The High Court of Singapore has ordered the Multichain Foundation, a cross-chain router protocol, to compensate the Fantom Foundation, a layer-1 platform, for losses incurred during a $210 million hack.
Incident Overview
In July 2023, the Multichain Foundation, a Chinese cross-chain protocol, experienced abnormally large outflows, which were later confirmed to be the result of a hack. The incident led to the loss of over $210 million in assets across multiple chains, including Fantom, Ethereum, BNB, Cronos, Polygon, Arbitrum, zkSync, Optimism, and Moonbeam.
Legal Proceedings
The Fantom Foundation reported its financial losses to the Singapore High Court and sought compensation for the damages suffered. During a court hearing on June 3, Fantom’s representatives presented evidence collected over the year, while Multichain’s representatives were notably absent from the proceedings.
According to court documents, the Fantom Foundation argued that the breach was possible due to the CEO of Multichain having ultimate privileges and control over the cryptocurrency assets stored in the Multichain Bridge. The court noted that Multichain admitted this claim on X and breached the user agreement.
Fantom Foundation Update on Judgment Against Multichain.
đź”— https://t.co/Pi5RXJmhNW pic.twitter.com/ooseYW0NC2
— Fantom Foundation (@FantomFDN) July 8, 2024
Court Ruling and Compensation
On July 8, the court awarded Fantom $2.187 million in damages for the losses incurred during the hack. Despite this compensation, Fantom had previously claimed that its ecosystem losses amounted to approximately one-third of the total losses, which were worth $210 million.
Broader Implications
The incident is part of a broader trend of increasing crypto exploits. According to a report by blockchain security platform Immunefi, crypto losses from hacks and scams more than doubled in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period the previous year. Over $572 million was lost to hacks in Q2 2024, up from $220 million in Q2 2023. Centralized exchange hacks accounted for the majority of these losses.
Prior to the second quarter, losses from hacks and scams had been declining. Immunefi reported a 23% reduction in Q1 2024, with this trend continuing through April and most of May before peaking at the end of May and June.
Bitcoin ETF Investors Buy the Dip: Daily Inflows Hit $295M
United States-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded their largest day of inflows in over a month amidst a downturn in the crypto markets. On July 8, these ETFs saw net inflows totaling $295 million, marking the first positive net inflow day in the last three trading weeks.
Key Inflows:
- BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF: $187.2 million
- Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund: $61.5 million
- Grayscale Bitcoin Trust: $25.1 million
This surge in inflows is the highest since June 5, when ETFs attracted over $488 million in new capital. The influx comes amid broader market concerns about significant BTC sales from the German government and impending repayments from Mt. Gox creditors.
Market Concerns
German Government Sales:
- The German government has transferred over 26,200 BTC (worth $1.5 billion at current prices) to exchanges and market makers.
- It still holds 27,460 BTC (worth $1.57 billion) in reserve, according to Arkham Intelligence data.
Mt. Gox Creditor Repayments:
- There are concerns that $8.5 billion in BTC could enter the market in the coming months as the defunct Japanese crypto exchange Mt. Gox begins repaying creditors affected by a 2014 hack.
However, some analysts suggest that fears around the potential impact of Mt. Gox Bitcoin sales may be exaggerated.
Bitcoin Price Movement
The price of Bitcoin has declined over the past two trading weeks, dropping to a low of $53,600 on July 5. This marks the first time Bitcoin has traded below $54,000 since February.
Check Out the Latest Prices, Charts, and Data of BTC/USDT
Conclusion
Despite the recent price slump and market concerns, the substantial inflows into Bitcoin ETFs suggest strong investor confidence in the long-term potential of Bitcoin. The influx of $295 million on July 8 indicates that investors are capitalizing on lower prices, seeing the dip as an opportunity to increase their holdings.
MetaMask Unveils New Toolkit to Streamline Web3 and User Onboarding
Consensys has introduced a groundbreaking toolkit at the EthCC conference, aiming to simplify decentralized app development and enhance Web3 user engagement. The MetaMask Delegation Toolkit marks a significant milestone in promoting Web3 and blockchain adoption.
Key Features and Benefits
- Versatile Deployment: The toolkit will be available on any Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) chain supported by a user operation bundler, including Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base, Linea, Optimism, and Polygon.
- Developer Empowerment: Enables developers to create decentralized applications (DApps) and protocols offering new user experiences.
- User-Friendly Onboarding: Facilitates instant user onboarding without needing extensions or application downloads and eliminates the need for seed phrase management.
- Enhanced Interaction: Removes repetitive user actions and reduces direct interactions with Web3 infrastructure, thus eliminating user friction and pop-ups for smoother interactions.
- Gas Fee Management: Allows for better management of gas fees, enabling gasless transactions or postponed or reassigned gas costs.
Addressing Web3 Complexity
A study by Consensys involving 15,000 participants aged 18 to 65 revealed that many find crypto overly complex and challenging, with only 8% considering themselves very familiar with Web3 concepts. The toolkit aims to bridge this gap by simplifying user interactions and streamlining experiences.
Custom Policies and Permission Systems
Dan Finlay, co-founder of MetaMask, highlighted that the toolkit allows users to write custom policies and manage permissions. Users can set specific conditions for app interactions, thus eliminating the need for constant confirmations and allowing uninterrupted workflows.
Enhancing Security with Wallet Guard
In addition to the toolkit, Consensys announced its acquisition of Wallet Guard on July 3, aiming to bolster security in the Web3 space. Wallet Guard’s features will be integrated into MetaMask to protect digital assets and data from fraud, scams, and theft. Patrick Berarducci, leader of Consensys’ MetaMask and Infura Business Group, emphasized that the integration will shield users from threats like malicious DApps and scams.
Conclusion
The MetaMask Delegation Toolkit is set to transform the user experience in the Web3 ecosystem by making it more accessible and secure. By reducing complexity and enhancing security, Consensys is paving the way for broader adoption and more innovative use cases in the blockchain space.
