GM, frens! Ambire here with our weekly newsletter. Today we’ll talk about FriendTech and privacy, Vitalik stirring up the market again with his $1M transaction, FBI warning about hackers potentially dumping BTC on the market, Binance in hot water again over sanctions and EthOS team unveiling new ETH-powered phone.

Let’s get down to it:

Friend.Tech becomes the hottest thing in crypto for a day... but there's a twist

Friends.Tech, a social app built on Base, has taken the crypto world by storm. In just 24 hours, it generated more fees than top bluechips in crypto, combined. In addition to its massive success in generating fees, the platform has also seen impressive growth in user numbers, signing up 108k unique users since its launch on August 10th.

The app allows fans to tokenize and trade shares of their favorite influencers, creators, and celebrities. According to the platform, it's a new revolutionary way for content creators to monetize their work in ways never seen before.

But it's not all simple, as Banteg, the core developer of Yearn, discovered a repository that unintentionally revealed wallet addresses and associated Twitter usernames for more than 101,000 individuals, effectively doxxing 100 thousand crypto users.

This may not seem like a lot, but given the relatively small size of the crypto industry, it's safe to assume that a substantial portion of regular crypto users were impacted.

So, what's worth more? Getting a piece of your favorite influencer's success or protecting your privacy? Crypto always teaches us weird lessons.

Ambire is working hard to create a next level extension that will revolutionize the way you interact with WEB3.

We want to make sure that our users get the most out of our extension, which is why we need your help! Together, let's create something amazing! 👇️ 

Vitalik stirs up the market with a $1M transfer

Vitalik Buterin, the Ethereum co-founder and creator of Vitalik.eth, stirred up market uncertainty last Monday with a $1 million transfer of 600 Ether to Coinbase. On-chain data indicates that Vitalik's wallet repaid 251,000 RAI tokens on the Maker DeFi platform and withdrew 1,000 ETH (around $1.67 million) from Binance on Aug. 20.

The wallet in question (Vitalik.eth) was created seven years ago and contained 3,993 ETH, worth $6 million. Besides Ethereum, other digital assets in the wallet include $84,000 worth of USD Coin (USDC) and $58,000 worth of Wrapped Ethereum (WETH).

So why even talk about it?

Vitalik's wallet plays an important role in the crypto community, from it being a dumping ground for unsolicited altcoins he receives to users watching it for any signs of movement that could be suggestive of what the market is about to do.

For example, the last time Buterin transferred ETH to an exchange was in March. Around that same time, Ethereum's price dropped, and the market further experienced more selling pressure.

This caused many to speculate on whether his recent transfer could mean a similarly bearish outcome for the coin. It's worth noting, however, that the motive behind the transfer remains speculative and could be attributed to a variety of other factors.

Ambire’s latest podcast episode with Backdrop Founder Joey DeBruin is out

Fron the intricacies of neuroscience to the dynamic world of crypto, Joey DeBruin’s story is a testament to innovation’s boundless reach. Host Rob Edwards sits with Joey, the founder of Backdrop, a decentralized professional network, and together they unveil the intersections of academia, tech, and decentralized platforms, painting a vivid picture of the future.

Listen to this week’s episode now:

Make sure to follow Web3 on Fire on Twitter so you don’t miss any episodes or general Web3 goss!

FBI warns North Korean hackers are cashing out

FBI has issued a warning to crypto exchanges and other crypto-related organizations about North Korean hackers intending to dump a great amount of stolen BTC on the market.

This means that these hackers are likely to cash out millions worth of crypto soon, flooding the market with large amounts of crypto and potentially causing a dip in prices.

The hacker group, known as TraderTraitor, has been linked to a number of notorious international thefts and hacks. Some of these include the $60 million virtual currency breach at Alphapo on June 22, 2023; the $37 million CoinsPaid hack on the same day; and an even bigger crypto heist from Atomic Wallet earlier that month on June 2 - totalling around $100 million in stolen crypto.

Well, it's not like the FBI can do anything to stop the hackers from hacking or cashing out their ill-gotten gains, but at least there's a warning now.

Sanctions evasion allegations rock Binance, triggering record low for BNB

Seems like Binance has found itself in hot water again (to no surprise), as the Wall Street Journal reported that the leading crypto exchange is helping Russians 'move' money and circumvent the sanctions.

Despite Binance's claims of complying with the 10th round of EU sanctions on Russia, WSJ argued that Russian users continue to engage in peer-to-peer trading on Binance via five financial institutions, including sanctioned Tinkoff Bank and Rosbank, for completing payment transactions. It has been further reported that the exchanges are not only helping Russians but also clients from other countries to move money as well.

Back in February, the exchange announced that it was banning peer-to-peer transactions involving U.S. dollars and euros for Russian traders in compliance with EU sanctions. Such reports suggesting money laundering operations have sparked some serious concerns within the crypto community, leading to speculations of a potential ban on Binance if they fail to comply with international rules and regulations.

This comes at a time when crypto companies have already come under increased scrutiny due to their involvement with shady businesses and even illegal activities.

BNB instantly lost 14% of its value as a result of the news, slumping to $204 on Tuesday evening. That would be the lowest recorded price for BNB since 2022’s crypto crash. While the news has definitely had an effect on the crypto markets, it remains to be seen how exactly this would play out for Binance in the long run.

EthOS team unveils new ETH-powered phone

ETH-based phones are about to hit the market, and the excitement amongst the Ethereum community is palpable. With a preorder campaign currently running, ethOS team declared that customers in the U.S., Canada and Europe can now reserve their very own special Ethereum-native Google Pixel 7a.

The ethOS team promises that the phone will be able to provide users with seamless integration into the Ethereum network. It comes with a decentralized messenger, noncustodial crypto wallet, and even support for Ethereum Name Service (ENS) integration.

The key feature, however, is its ability to run a light node software client for the Ethereum network. This means that all users will be able to sync their accounts with the blockchain and validate transactions directly from their phones instead of relying on third-party services.

Nimbus, a popular ETH client provider, is especially excited about the ethOS phone. They insist that it will increase the level of decentralization within Ethereum, paving the way for a more secure and reliable network.

It's unclear whether a crypto phone is a concept that people need, but it's clear that the Ethereum community is thrilled about its potential and that it looks forward to seeing what ethOS brings to the table.

Other worthy reads:

Sol ‘monster’ guide by blocmates:

A new scam alert by DefiLlama’s founder:

The fun page

That's all for now, frens.

We'll see you next week. And remember, the market conditions are temporary, but our commitment to building a better DeFi is here to stay. Thanks for joining us, and we look forward to seeing you back next week. Cheers!

Yours, The 🔥 Team

Brought to you by Ambire: The Only Web3 Wallet That You’ll Need!