Articles by Elizabeth Howcroft

Crypto Hacking Thefts Double to $1.4B in First Half 2024

The amount of cryptocurrency stolen in hacks globally more than doubled in the first six months of 2024 from a year earlier, driven by a small number of large attacks and rising crypto prices, blockchain researchers TRM Labs said. Hackers …

Growing Reliance on Big Tech for AI Carries New Risks, Banks Say

The boom in artificial intelligence will increase banks’ dependence on big U.S. tech firms, creating new risks for the industry, European banking executives said. Excitement around using artificial intelligence (AI) in financial services – widely used already for detecting fraud …

Blockchain Analysts Suspect N. Korea-Linked Hackers Behind $70M Crypto Theft

Blockchain researchers say North Korea-linked hackers are likely behind a $70 million theft from crypto exchange CoinEx. CoinEx, which says it is based in Hong Kong, said on Tuesday on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that wallets …

UK Insurer Aviva to Sell Singlife Joint Venture Stake for $1 Billion

Aviva is quitting its Singlife joint venture, selling its 25.9% stake in Singapore Life Holdings and two debt instruments to Sumitomo Life for a combined 800 million pounds ($997 million), the British insurer said on Wednesday. The transaction is expected …

Crypto Ransomware Attacks Rise in First Half of 2023: Chainalysis

Crypto crime fell overall in the first six months of 2023, but the volume of payments to ransomware attackers surged and is on track for its second-biggest annual total on record, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis said on Wednesday [July 12]. …

Founder of Crypto Lender Celsius Network Arrested, Charged With Fraud

Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, was arrested and charged with fraud, a U.S. prosecutor in New York said Thursday, while three federal regulatory agencies sued him and his company. Mashinsky, 57, was …

Britain’s Finance Ministry Issues Draft Rules to Regulate Cryptoassets

Britain’s finance ministry laid out its first set of rules to regulate cryptoassets on Wednesday, saying ongoing turbulence in the sector and the collapse of exchange FTX highlighted risks that need addressing. Cryptoassets, such as bitcoin BTC=BTSP, have little direct …

Crypto Crime Hits Record $20B in 2022, Report Says

Illicit use of cryptocurrencies hit a record $20.1 billion last year as transactions involving companies targeted by U.S. sanctions skyrocketed, data from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis showed on Thursday. The cryptocurrency market floundered in 2022, as risk appetite diminished and …

Binance’s Books Are Black Box, Filings Show, as Crypto Giant Tries to Rally Confidence: Reuters

The world’s biggest crypto exchange, Binance, is battling to shore up confidence after a surge in customer withdrawals and a steep drop in the value of its digital token. The exchange said it dealt with net outflows of around $6 …

Collapsed Crypto Exchange FTX Flags Millions of Dollars of Unauthorized Transactions

Crypto exchange FTX was engulfed in further chaos on Saturday when the company said it had detected unauthorized transactions and analysts flagged that millions of dollars of assets had been moved from the platform in “suspicious circumstances.” FTX filed for …