• The US Department of Justice is on the hunt for DeFi hackers and exploiters who have stolen millions of dollars worth of assets.
• Bancor DAO was hit with a class-action lawsuit over its impermanent loss protection promises.
• Ethereum un-staking opened on the Beacon Chain and Coinbase Cloud tapped into the Chainlink Oracle network to improve its smart contract reliability.
US Justice Department Targeting DeFi Hackers
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is actively pursuing DeFi hackers and exploiters, according to Eun Young Choi, director of the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team. She said that it was a “pretty significant issue” given North Korean “state-sponsored hackers” have emerged as key actors in this space. This comes after North Korea has been accused of stealing millions in crypto from exchanges around the world.
Bancor DAO Hit with Class-Action Lawsuit
DeFi protocol Bancor DAO recently became subject to a class-action lawsuit alleging that it had made false promises regarding its impermanent loss protection feature. This feature was meant to protect users against losses resulting from price swings between different tokens when swapping them within the platform, but failed to do so adequately, leading to losses for many investors.
Ethereum Unstaking Opens on Beacon Chain
As Ethereum’s newly launched Beacon Chain gained traction last week, bankrupt crypto lender Celsius moved $781 million worth of staked Ether (stETH) from staking service provider Lido as Ether withdrawals opened up. This move came just as Lido enabled withdrawals of ETH tokens for users who had staked their coins within the platform.
Coinbase Cloud Leverages Chainlink Oracle Network
Coinbase Cloud also took steps towards improving its smart contract reliability by tapping into the Chainlink Oracle network. By doing so, Coinbase Cloud will be able to provide high-quality data provision services to several blockchain protocols through becoming a node operator in the oracle network operated by Chainlink.
DeFi Market Continues Bearish Trend
The DeFi market saw another bearish week overall, with total value locked in DeFi protocols falling below $50 billion after nearly a month of bullish price action. While some projects continue to maintain their positions at the top of market capitalization rankings, others are finding it difficult due to stiff competition and increasing scrutiny from regulators across multiple jurisdictions worldwide.