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US DOJ Charges Two Russians With Mt. Gox HackTwo Russian nationals have been charged by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) for their involvement in hacking of the Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox, and in causing the collapse of the infamous exchange.Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on UnsplashCulpable for collapseThe indictment, which has been unsealed, was originally filed on June 7, and identifies the individuals as Alexey Bilyuchenko, 43, and Aleksandr Verner, 29. They are accused of not only hacking the exchange but also conspiring to launder approximately 647,000 bitcoins, which is valued at around $17.1 billion based on Bitcoin’s unit price on Friday.Additionally, Bilyuchenko has been charged with collaborating with Alexander Vinnik to operate the illicit exchange known as BTC-e between 2011 and 2017. BTC-e was shut down by U.S. law enforcement in 2017, and Vinnik was later extradited from Greece to the U.S. in 2022 on charges of running BTC-e and engaging in money laundering.Mt. Gox, which experienced a major theft, declared bankruptcy and closed its operations in 2014. Bilyuchenko and Verner played a significant role in the theft, leading to the exchange’s insolvency, according to Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. The indictment states that “in or about September 2011, [the defendants] and their co-conspirators gained and caused others to gain unauthorized access to the Mt. Gox server in Japan.”BTC-e exchange money launderingFurthermore, it is alleged that Bilyuchenko utilized his ill-gotten gains from the Mt. Gox theft to establish the BTC-e exchange, which facilitated global money laundering activities for criminals. US Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey for the Northern District of California stated that Bilyuchenko and his co-conspirators operated a digital currency exchange that enabled criminal entities, including hackers, ransomware actors, narcotics rings, and corrupt officials, to launder billions of dollars.In March, there were reports from CoinDesk about movements of BTC-e funds on the blockchain. An exchange wallet linked to BTC-e made its first transaction since 2017, transferring approximately 3,299 bitcoins to a crypto wallet in November 2022. Additionally, six years ago, the exchange wallet sent around 10,000 bitcoins to two unidentified recipients. However, the recent DOJ filing does not specify whether these recipients were Bilyuchenko and Verner.Slow processMeanwhile, the long-suffering creditors of the hacked exchange are only beginning to reach the final stages of the bankruptcy process. Japan’s bankruptcy process is incredibly slow and it’s taken the best part of ten years for it to reach the distribution phase. It became apparent in April that the bankruptcy estate was moving to distribute $4.5 billion in cash and digital assets to creditors. It’s understood that the process will be completed in October.While creditors are taking a haircut in bitcoin terms, on a US dollar basis, they are not fairing out badly given that the leading cryptocurrency has seen massive dollar price appreciation in the intervening years.

In a stride towards global expansion Alchemy Pay, the cryptocurrency payment gateway based in Singapore, has secured its inaugural Money Transmitter License in the United States.Photo by Jametlene Reskp on Unsplash Arkansas licenseThe license, issued by the Arkansas Securities Department on September 13, enables Alchemy Pay to provide a comprehensive suite of financial services, including crypto-to-fiat transactions, within the state of Arkansas. The license was issued to Alchemy Pay, Inc., the crypto payments firm’s US entity which was first registered as a corporation in the US in October of last year.This milestone represents Alchemy Pay’s inaugural foray into the US market and demonstrates the company’s intent in terms of regulatory adherence. The Singapore-based firm now joins the ranks of authorized cryptocurrency enterprises operating in Arkansas, including industry giants like Coinbase, Jack Dorsey’s Block, MoonPay, and the bitFlyer exchange. Global expansionIn a press release published to the firm’s website on Thursday, Robert McCraken, Alchemy Pay’s Ecosystem Lead, underscored the meticulous efforts invested in securing licenses across diverse global jurisdictions, emphasizing the company’s unwavering dedication to compliance.It’s evident that the company is pursuing a strategy to globalize its market offering. Alchemy Pay has previously obtained operating licenses in strategic markets such as Indonesia and Lithuania, while it is making ongoing efforts to secure Money Transmitter Licenses in additional US states.In April it secured $10 million in funding from Singapore’s DWF Labs, with the intention of using the capital to expand its business in South Korea. The following month it enabled a rupee-denominated on-ramp using India’s UPI real-time payments system. In July it announced a collaboration with Checkout.com, enabling transactions between fiat currency and cryptocurrency over Checkout.com’s Visa and Mastercard channels.Since its establishment in 2017, Alchemy Pay has continuously worked on its mission of bridging the gap between fiat and cryptocurrency economies. The platform currently facilitates seamless transactions between traditional fiat currencies like the US dollar and leading cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. It boasts a presence in 173 countries, including Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and India. The Singapore-based payments gateway has emerged as a key player in the global digital payment landscape. Cracking the US marketThis milestone in Arkansas aligns with Alchemy Pay’s broader strategy to penetrate the vast US market, delivering its services to American users and furthering its mission to harmonize fiat and cryptocurrency payments. The development closely follows Alchemy Pay’s recent strategic collaborations with global payment titans Mastercard and Visa, cementing its status as an influential contributor to the rapidly evolving digital payment sector.According to an updated version of its roadmap published in August, the company also plans to offer a digital banking service before the end of the year. That offering would enable users to open bank accounts directly through the Alchemy Pay platform once collaborations are firmly in place with EU and UK banks.The acquisition of the Money Transmitter License in Arkansas signifies a pivotal moment in Alchemy Pay’s ambitious US expansion agenda. It’s likely to be a crucial stepping stone for the firm in positioning itself as a prominent catalyst in the seamless integration of cryptocurrencies into mainstream financial systems. This achievement not only propels Alchemy Pay’s global presence but also reinforces its efforts to ensure safe, compliant, and accessible cryptocurrency-based financial services.

Korean pro female golfers to compete in WEMIX golf tournament this weekendThe world’s first blockchain-assisted golf tournament, WEMIX Championship 2023, will take place this weekend at the Haeundae Beach Golf and Resort in Busan. 24 female golfers from the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) — including the top 20 who earned the most WEMIX points during the preliminary Race to WEMIX Championship — are set to compete.Photo by Mick De Paola on UnsplashBringing blockchain to sportsNotably, blockchain technology is incorporated into all aspects of the tournament. This includes dynamic Real World Event NFTs that are available via NFT Is Life Evolution (NILE), Wemade’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) and NFT platform. These NFTs come in two categories: “ticket NFTs,” which function as admission tickets and food or parking vouchers for spectators, and “prize NFTs,” which contain WEMIX token awards for tournament winners. The total prize budget is one million WEMIX, or approximately KRW 2.4 billion ($1.9 million) as of 4:30 p.m. on Thursday (local time). The first-place winner will receive 250,000 WEMIXThe tournament venue will also have a Gallery Plaza with various activities and showcases for visitors to enjoy, like exhibitions for Volvo’s newest vehicles, photo zones and putting games. The food and beverage zone will serve BAYC-themed burgers from Californian burger brand Bored and Hungry, as well as beverages from Hide Me, Please, a Korean food and beverage NFT membership brand. BAYC is the globally renowned IP from the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection.The competition’s top playersMeanwhile, the subject of many golfing enthusiasts’ interest is Im Jin-hee, the golfer who won the most WEMIX points during the Race to WEMIX Championship with 6,450 points. She secured 90,000 WEMIX for earning the top ranking, adding another personal achievement to her successful season this year. Coming in second and third place were Lee Ye-won and Kim Min-byeol. The final results of the competition were determined based on the golfers’ performances in the Lotte Rent-a-Car’s Ladies Open and the SK Shieldus-SK Telecom Championship.