Today in Crypto, an Ethereum developer became the first witness of the defense to testify to the Roman storm trial after prosecutors rested their case. In Hong Kong, the regulators announced new fines and potential prison hours for unlicensed stablecoins that target retail investors. Meanwhile, the ether slipped slightly as the staking exit requests moved forward to an 18-month height.
ETH Core Developer testifies to Roman Storm Defense as Gov’t Rests Case
Prosecutors in Criminal Test of Tornado Cash Co-Founder and Developer Roman Storm rested their case On Thursday, the door opening for the advice of the defense to call a major Ethereum builder as its first witness.
According to the Inner City Press report on Thursday from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Ethereum core developer Preston Van Loon Proved In the case of Storm’s defense, which is expected to last for about a week. The developer reported that Tornado Cash was described as a “privacy tool for Ethereum” and said he used the mixing service four times to send a joint 43 ether (ETH) in 2019 or 2020, citing safety concerns.
“If the hackers know) the scope of my genitals -I can be a target,” Van Loon said, according to a court reporting.
Van Loon’s cross-examination of prosecutors is more confined to questions about any personal storm connection and if he uses a “normal crypto platform such as Coinbase.” Storm lawyers were reported to be said on Wednesday that they planned to call “two or three doctors” to testify, and possibly someone from the chainalysis.
Van Loon’s testimony marked the nineteenth day of the storm trial, in which he faced charges of money losses, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitter, and conspiracy to violate US penalties related to his Tornado Cash role.
Hong Kong to criminal unlicensed Stablecoin promotions from August 1
Hong Kong will start Implementation of its stablecoin ordinance On August 1, which makes it illegal to offer or promote an unlicensed Fiat-Referenced Stablecoins (FRS) to retail investors.
The new law Introducing Criminal penalties up to a level of five fine 50,000 dollars of Hong Kong (about $ 6,300) and a maximum sentence of six -month imprisonment.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the central bank of the administrative special region, Issued A public warning on Wednesday, urging investors to guide unlicensed offerings to prevent accidental violations of the law.
HKMA chief executive Eddie Yue said the warning that the upcoming regulation aims to bring credibility and stability to the budding stablecoin budding sector while protecting investors from fraud and excessive speculation.
Yue said that a frenzy in the market -filled by the hype surrounding Stablecoin’s announcements has led to unjust stock prices and trade volume spikes. “It seems necessary to further live in Euphoria,” Yue wrote in Wednesday’s announcement.
Ether stumbled while Validator Exit Queue hits 18-month high
Ether (Ether) sinks 7% from its annual high on Wednesday as The queue for validators and investors are unshakable The property hits an 18-month height.
Validatorqueue shows 644,330 ETHs worth around $ 2.34 billion lined to leave the blockchain with 11-day wait.
Unstaking usually means validators are looking to release the asset for sale, but this is not always the case and the staking service explained by Everstake that the backlog is likely to be validators that appear to “rest, optimize or rotate operators, not leaving Ethereum.”
It said investors and holders may also want to lock the income, “because it is natural to assume that some stakers are preparing to sell, which can create short-term pressure sellers and potentially lead to a price correction.”
There are also 390,000 ETHs worth around $ 1.2 billion waiting to enter staking, carrying a net value that is unchanged at nearly 255,000 ETHs.
