Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly digest of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights – a newsletter tailored to deliver the most significant updates from the previous week.
In the realm of DeFi over the past week, notable regulatory advancements unfolded in Hong Kong, where the government is initiating an exploration to pinpoint key opportunities within the decentralized sector.
Following a 14-year battle against extradition to the United States, Julian Assange has achieved freedom. AssangeDAO, a decentralized entity established to procure funds for Assange’s legal battle, disclosed that it disbursed $37 million to facilitate the release of the WikiLeaks’ founder.
Elsewhere, cryptocurrency losses stemming from hacks and exploits within the DeFi space surged by over 100% during the second quarter of 2024.
Hong Kong sets its sights on DeFi and the metaverse for fintech expansion
Studies backed by the government in Hong Kong have highlighted DeFi and metaverse technologies as emerging prospects to bolster the region’s influence in the global fintech arena.
The Hong Kong Institute for Monetary and Financial Research, the research branch of the Hong Kong Academy of Finance, published two reports on June 25th, delving into the impacts of DeFi and the metaverse on the financial industry.
The DeFi report from Hong Kong underscored the sector’s exponential growth, scaling from a modest $6 billion market capitalization in 2021 to over $80 billion by 2023.
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AssangeDAO member Silke Noa reveals $37 million expenditure to aid Assange
Silke Noa, a member of AssangeDAO, disclosed in a post that approximately 11,000 ETH worth $37 million from a total of 16,593 Ether had been utilized for legal defense and advocacy by AssangeDAO’s initiative, The Clock.
To secure Assange’s liberation, Noa detailed that the allocation of 16,593 Ether was managed by the Wau Holland Foundation via their Safe.global multisig wallet address. Assange, an Australian journalist and activist, is renowned for founding WikiLeaks and has been detained since April 2019.
Crypto losses from hacks and fraud peak by 113% in Q2 2024, amounting to $572 million
Research conducted by the blockchain security platform Immunefi revealed that losses from crypto hacks and scams more than doubled in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in the previous year.
The total sum lost in Q2 reached $572 million, a stark increase from $220 million in Q2 2023, with centralized exchange hacks contributing significantly to the overall losses. Prior to the second quarter, losses had been decreasing, with Immunefi reporting a 23% reduction in Q1. However, the trend took a sharp turn at the end of May and throughout June.
MakerDAO delegate falls prey to $11 million token theft in phishing ploy
A MakerDAO governance delegate suffered a loss of $11 million in Aave Ethereum Maker (aEthMKR) and Pendle USDe tokens due to a phishing scam involving the signing of multiple signatures.
The incident was promptly detected by Scam Sniffer in the early hours of June 23rd. The user’s digital assets were compromised after inadvertently consenting to multiple signatures. As per Wu Blockchain, Arkham discovered that the victim in question was a MakerDAO governance delegate who plays a pivotal role in the MakerDAO ecosystem by participating in governance-related decision-making processes.
DeFi market overview
Insights from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView revealed that DeFi’s top 100 tokens by market cap had a mixed week, with most experiencing losses on the weekly charts, leading to the total value locked in DeFi protocols dropping below $100 billion.
Thank you for engaging with our recap of the most impactful DeFi updates from this week. Tune in next Friday for further narratives, analyses, and enlightenment on the ever-evolving DeFi landscape.