Ethereum Co-founder Ignites 'Cypherpunk' Revolution Amidst DeFi's $1.8 Billion Loss to Web3 Scams
Summary:
This week in decentralized finance (DeFi), Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin intends to revive the original "cypherpunk" vision of Ethereum. In 2023, Web3 lost $1.8 billion to scams and security breaches, with the biggest hack being the peer-to-peer trading platform Mixin Network. The Kyber Network has reduced its workforce by 50% following a $49 million security breach, while there's widespread optimism for DeFi’s future in 2024. The total value locked in DeFi protocols remained above $60 billion.
Welcome to Finance Redefined, your trusted guide to the week's salient decentralized finance (DeFi) occurrences. Our newsletter has been thoughtfully assembled to deliver a comprehensive look at major events from the previous seven days. Vitlalik Buterin advocates for a revival of the original "cypherpunk" revolution on Ethereum's platform. Meanwhile, online scams and breaches wreaked a financial havoc amounting to $1.8 billion in the Web3 domain in 2023. In other news, the Kyber Network has halved its staff following a $49 million breach.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has expressed his desire to restore the initial "cypherpunk" vision of Ethereum. As suggested in a blog post dated Dec. 28, the original idea of Ethereum was to function as an open decentralized data storage platform enabling P2P communication and distributed data storage. However, a shift towards Ethereum's financialization led to a fading of this original vision in 2017.
In 2023, scams and security breaches in the Web3 ecosystem led to losses amounting to $1.8 billion according to a report published by blockchain security company Immunefi on Dec. 28. The report attributes 17% of these losses to the Lazarus Group, believed to have ties to North Korea. The most damaging cyber attack of the year was on the P2P trading platform, Mixin Network, leading to losses over $200 million for cryptocurrency investors. Euler Finance's $197 million breach took second place, with a $126 million exploit on Multichain's cross-chain bridge protocol coming third.
Meanwhile, Kyber Network, the brains behind the decentralized finance protocol KyberSwap, has been forced to reduce its workforce by half to sustain its operational viability following a $49 million breach in November. In a statement on Dec. 24, Kyber Network's CEO Victor Tran announced his heartfelt sorrow at having to part with so many team members from his workforce.
Cointelegraph engaged with several industry experts to predict the course of the DeFi scene in 2024. With the signs of renewed growth beginning to emerge, the current mood in the sector is largely upbeat. Elusiv co-founder Julian Deschler is among those showing optimism for DeFi’s future.
On the market front, data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView suggests a week of bullish activity across the DeFi's top 100 tokens by market capitalization. The total value locked in DeFi protocols consistently exceeded $60 billion. We sincerely hope our roundup provides you with valuable insights into this rapidly evolving sector. Join us next Friday for more updates.
Published At
12/29/2023 10:25:00 PM
Disclaimer: Algoine does not endorse any content or product on this page. Readers should conduct their own research before taking any actions related to the asset, company, or any information in this article and assume full responsibility for their decisions. This article should not be considered as investment advice. Our news is prepared with AI support.
Do you suspect this content may be misleading, incomplete, or inappropriate in any way, requiring modification or removal?
We appreciate your report.