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How Chainsulting Is Securing the DeFi Industry via Smart Contract Auditing

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The rise of blockchain technology has opened the curtains for new opportunities, including decentralized finance (DeFi) applications governed by smart contracts. These protocols leverage decentralized networks and cutting-edge tech to bring innovative financial services to the masses.

By eliminating middlemen such as banks, DeFi projects bring lucrative earning opportunities and enable anyone to participate in traditional financial activities. These platforms provide for example, decentralized lending/borrowing access that benefits millions of unbanked folks worldwide.

Moreover, investors seeking huge returns find the DeFi sector very attractive, as it offers high-interest rate savings unmatched by traditional financial institutions. 

Unfortunately, the colossal total volume locked (TVL) in DeFi has brought several security concerns. Users have lost billions of dollars to cybercriminals targeting various platforms, spooking potential investors looking to jump onto the DeFi bandwagon. 

Part of the problem facing the fast-growing DeFi industry is that it lacks top-quality smart contract checks that could prevent cybercriminals from exploiting vulnerabilities on popular protocols.

As a result, cybercriminals have had great success targeting DeFi applications and siphoning billions in crypto funds to their private wallets.

A Look at Recent DeFi Hacks

DeFi gained traction in the summer of 2020, offering revolutionary lending products and huge returns but eliminating any involvement from intermediaries.

Since then, growth in the sector has taken place at lightning speed, with TVL in various protocols now surpassing $90B, per data from DeFiPulse. There are currently over 200 projects utilizing the blockchain and smart contracts to offer users unparalleled financial services.

However, success in this exciting and fast-moving sector has attracted bad actors looking to infiltrate DeFi code and siphon investor funds.

One of the most notable DeFi attacks dubbed the ‘biggest crypto heist‘ ever took place on November 19, 2021. Hackers exploited a loophole in Poly Network and stole $600M in digital assets.

More recently, in December of 2021, malicious actors struck again, targeting the popular DeFi protocol BadgerDAO. In this incident, hackers made off with over $120M in crypto, prompting Chainalysis to investigate the breach along with financial watchdogs from the US and Canada.

Unfortunately, these are not isolated smart contract breaches. As recently reported by CryptoSec, overall losses caused by DeFi exploits have amounted to $1.7 billion, with 75 protocols succumbing to the menacing threat of cybercrime.

Chainsulting Brings Excellent Security Solutions to DeFi

Chainsulting is a professional software development firm based in Germany that provides comprehensive distributed ledger technology (DLT) solutions. Some of their services include blockchain development, smart contract audits, and consulting.

One of the firm’s main goals is to develop tools and provide services to ensure every blockchain project is secure. They are determined to tackle the issue of continuous DeFi exploits that threatens to deter potential investors from putting their hard-earned cash into the blockchain and crypto economy.

So far, the lack of proper smart contract audits has seen multiple DeFi protocols fall victim to devastating hacks that have led to heavy losses. Per a report by blockchain tracing and security firm Ciphertrace, last year was overrun by numerous DeFi attacks that accounted for half of all the hacking incidents in the crypto world.

Chainsulting seeks to root out bugs and other vulnerabilities used by insidious cybercriminals to infiltrate DeFi applications. They have a proven track record of delivering customized security solutions with German technology that empower multiple DeFi and blockchain projects to maintain investor trust and gain a competitive advantage in the sector.

The firm conducts code audits for market-leading blockchains such as Hyperledger, Tezos, Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, and EOS to mitigate risk and instill trust and transparency into the vibrant crypto community. They also review and secure the smart contracts of DAI, 1Inch, POA Network, Unicrypt, among numerous other top DeFi and crypto projects.

Chainsulting currently secures $100 billion in user funds locked in multiple DeFi protocols. The team behind the leading audit firm relies on their robust technical know-how in the blockchain sector to deliver top-notch smart contract audit solutions tailored to the clients’ evolving business needs.

The blockchain security provider brings the highest security standards to crypto and blockchain platforms, helping to foster growth and transparency within the fast-growing ecosystem.

The Chainsulting Smart Contract Audit Process

Chainsulting boasts over four years of experience in smart contract audit and has delivered reliable security solutions to more than 420 clients.

The company’s audit team composed of Germany’s top blockchain and digital assets experts leverages its domain-specific expertise to conduct smart contract audit tactics that differ from those deployed by other audit firms. 

A code review by Chainsulting includes an Automated Vulnerability Test (HoneyBadger, MythX, Mythril, Oyente, Slither, Solhint) and thorough Manual Security Testing (SWC-Registry, Overflow, etc.). The auditing process also integrates a Gas Optimization and Coding Conventions Check, as well as thorough Function and Logic testing.

The blockchain security startup uses a real-time communication tool to connect with the project dev team and provide suggestions on how to remedy bugs and inefficiencies discovered during the audit process. The team also offers assistance to the token developers in applying the necessary fixes. 

They then deliver a comprehensive report documenting the audit steps and recommendations. Finally, Chainsulting provides a Certificate of Compliance that reassures all DeFi users that the project is fully vetted and safe. 

The leading blockchain auditor has done many notable audits for some of the most prominent crypto projects in existence. The team posts transparent audit results on their social media, GitHub, and Website, confirming that a given project’s code is fully secure and ready to go live. 

Conclusion 

Over the past few months, a spate of high-profile DeFi hacks has led some to refer to the young sector as the ‘Wild West’ of cryptocurrencies.

This year has seen some of the biggest crypto thefts in history. Increasingly sophisticated heists on dozens of top DeFi protocols highlight the need for project backers to adopt higher security standards to protect the integrity of the entire blockchain industry.

Chainsulting has introduced an intuitive smart contract auditing process that integrates elaborate steps to ensure 100% test coverage on all DeFi projects. This radical approach helps these decentralized protocols conquer the investors’ trust, propelling the nascent crypto space to greater heights.

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TWT Stake – A New Platform with Advanced Staking Solutions for the TWT Token

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Crypto passive income is becoming increasingly popular to compensate for the market’s volatility peaks. Staking has become a popular strategy for crypto investors to boost their returns.

TWT Stake is a new platform introducing advanced staking solutions for Trust Wallet’s TWT token. This article will examine how TWT Stake works, its referral program, and its airdrop system. The project’s roadmap will reveal this platform’s potential and future.

TWT Stake and the TWT Token

TWT Stake is a platform developed around Trust Wallet’s TWT token and built on the BNB Chain. The project aims to give users an easy and convenient way to stake their TWT tokens to earn staking rewards.

This team seeks to solve the problem of a lack of accessible and user-friendly platforms for staking TWT.

According to the project’s founders, staking TWT should not require high technical knowledge or large resources. Moreover, this process should be quick and simple.

The Solutions Offered by TWT Stake

How does TWT Stake intend to solve the issues previously mentioned? The project’s solutions aim to give users a simple platform to stake TWT tokens and earn rewards.

TWT Stake offers four staking options, each with varying returns:

  • 40 days duration: 3% daily ROI and 120% total earnings
  • 64 days duration: 2.6% daily ROI and 166.4% total earnings
  • 128 days duration: 1.6% daily ROI and 204.8% total earnings
  • Infinite duration: 1% daily ROI and 365% yearly total earnings

Using the TWT Stake platform, anyone can easily monitor their staking performance and adjust their strategy for maximum rewards. The user interface intends to be simple and intuitive, making staking TWT tokens easy even for beginners.

The idea of offering different plans allows users to tailor their staking strategy according to their goals and investment timeline.

How to Stake TWT on This Platform

As mentioned, this team plans to give the crypto community a user-friendly way to stake their tokens. To start staking TWT, you’ll need to connect with a Web3-supported wallet like Trust Wallet. Then, create a new deposit and collect your rewards.

The whole workflow aims to encourage simplicity and make it easier for users to get started with staking. It should take a few minutes to complete, giving you more time to track your rewards and plan your strategy.

Joining the Project’s Affiliate Program

This team’s affiliate program rewards the community for helping expand TWT Stake. TWT Stake will activate your referral link after one deposit on the platform.

You can earn from 0.5% to 7% as a commission on each successful TWT Stake referral, allowing you to maximize your rewards.

Technically, TWT Stake proposes what experts in the field call “a multi-level referral system.” This affiliate program compensates you for inviting users and for their referrals.

If you invite a user to the platform who, in turn, invites someone, you’ll receive a reward for both referrals.

This system incentivizes participants to invite others, creating a chain that can lead to significant rewards. It’s important to note that commission rates may vary depending on the promoted product or service.

Enhancing the Product’s Offer with Crypto Airdrops

Over the last few years, many teams have used crypto airdrops to create market traction in this sector. Airdrops consist of the free distribution of tokens or coins to users who meet certain requirements.

TWT Stake periodically distributes airdrops to users who complete quests and stake TWT tokens on the platform. The project delivers the airdrops directly to the user’s wallet, making it easy for everyone to access and enjoy rewards.

The team’s idea is to combine rewards from staking and airdrops, incentivizing users to use the platform.

What Does TWT Stake’s Roadmap Tell Us?

In the world of cryptocurrencies, having a public roadmap is essential for success. A roadmap outlines the development plans of any project. Furthermore, it clarifies to investors what they can expect from that project over time.

TWT Stake’s roadmap outlines their ambitious plans for the project in 2023. The subsections below will explain in more detail what these plans look like.

Q2 2023

TWT Stake mentioned multiple milestones in its plans for the second quarter of the year. Specifically, the first goal is launching the TWT yield-farming protocol, which allows users to generate passive income rewards.

The airdrop program is another major step for the network to further increase its community base and development.

The marketing campaign is focusing on building brand awareness and promoting the platform among potential users. Finally, TWT Stake emphasized its commitment to developing a large community and building a strong network of users.

Q3 2023

The third quarter will see TWT Stake’s token launch. Moreover, the team will develop and launch integrations with major DeFi protocols and exchanges to ensure maximum liquidity.

This quarter also includes launches of marketing campaigns that will spread awareness and help build a solid user base.

Q4 2023

The project’s roadmap will culminate in Q4 with TWT’s governance system launch and community voting.

This strategy will enhance the project’s decentralization and transparency, providing users with more control over the project.

Wrapping Up – The Potential of the TWT Stake Platform

In conclusion, TWT Stake offers an innovative platform for users to earn rewards through staking and referral programs.

The team is also actively developing new features like yield farming protocols and a community governance system. These initiatives intend to help build a strong community base around the project while enhancing its decentralization and transparency.

TWT Stake’s website gives users detailed information about the project’s progress and upcoming milestones. Furthermore, the team’s social media (Telegram and Twitter) can be an excellent source of information, sharing details on the project.

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Following Fall of FTX & Silvergate, The Crypto Market Needs Sensible Regulation

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The FTX collapse guarantees that crypto regulation will be on the US legislative agenda for 2023 — at long last. In total, six bills were introduced in 2022, focusing on a mix of aspects connected to the crypto industry for investor protection or compliance. 

As the SEC and the CFTC are jockeying for positions, the number of voices in the room is going to increase. Some don’t want any sort of regulation to exist, but others people in the industry and anti-crypto lawmakers think regulating crypto will legitimize its existence. 

The time is right for crypto custody and all other types of platforms to be supervised with certain regulations. The US has the strongest financial market in the world, and that is due in large part to regulation. Regulation will make crypto markets stronger.

No regulatory regime administering traditional finance is created in one fell swoop. Along with the system, the regime also evolves to become better, inclusive, and stronger according to the needs. Disasters like FTX become a teaching lesson for the rulemakers to improve the regulatory system. 

The digital asset industry is still in its infancy, but problems like FTX are familiar. There have been previous such events at QuadrigaCX and at Mt. Gox. To prevent these types of massive losses that also deteriorate the market trust, regulatory oversight must begin. Here are five modest, sensible steps that could be taken now that don’t even require much crypto knowledge.

  • Stablecoin Reserves

As stablecoins are intended to be less volatile, they play an important role in the digital asset ecosystem. Moreover, they are more practical for everyday transactions. However, these stablecoins have not always been so stable.

These stablecoins are intended to be exchangeable for the underlying asset at a 1:1 ratio. However, stablecoin issuers are not required by law to maintain reserves that are equivalent to the available supply. There is a chance that holders will rush to redeem their coins when a stablecoin loses its peg, creating a situation that resembles a bank run.

That’s exactly what happened with TerraUSD in May of 2022. Recently, the US SEC has found another strong point of concern against the platform, making the former stronger. It relied on trading based on a mint and burn algorithm linked to the supply of LUNA, a cryptocurrency issued by Terra. Ironically, Sam Bankman-Fried is now under investigation for manipulating the market for TerraUSD, whose collapse touched off the industry crisis that ultimately exposed his other misdeeds at FTX.

Yet, none of that is necessary to know in order to determine whether a stablecoin is backed by a dollar. The quantity of circulating stablecoins is equal to the number of dollars in reserve. Stablecoin issuers should be required to keep 1:1 reserves at FDIC-insured banks.

The birth of FDIC insurance came after the bank failures during the early 1800s. Quarterly audits of reserves and real-time reporting on mint and burn activity should be mandatory. We also need to implement safety and soundness controls with a diversity of banks proportional to reserve size.

  • Separate Trading And Custody

Customers’ requirement to maintain their money with the exchange under the current market structure is fundamentally wrong. It is not necessary to be an expert in cryptography to understand why that is a bad idea. Imagine that the Nasdaq asked the SEC to serve as its own custodian, is it possible?

The issue with counterparty risk persists even after being entirely honest. Many of these crypto custody platforms and exchanges also engage in different kinds of lending. They engage in market-making and arbitrage. As they continue to trade and hedge on other exchanges, identifying the counterparty risk on the exchange is impossible. The reason being it’s the sum of the exchange’s risk plus the risk of whatever other markets they’re participating in that plays an important role in risk assessment. 

If there’s anything one should learn from the FTX collapse, it’s that assets should be stored until required for trading by external, qualified, regulated, and insured custodians. This creates a check-and-balance for verifying reserve assets under any exchange’s control.

The public may have learned sooner that FTX was in a crisis in a fractional reserve position if trading and custody had been kept separate. After the bankruptcy, it would have been simpler to stop asset theft and hacking.

  • Require Digital Asset Exchanges To Be 100% Digital

Discontinuing direct trading of digital assets with fiat or off-chain assets will make all exchanges on-chain auditable. As a result, it will enable Proof-of-Reserves that actually work. At present, Proof of Reserves does bring some level of transparency, but they are not a foolproof solution for separating who’s solvent and who’s not, for two reasons.

  1. No one can practice it for reserves on fiat because they cannot be represented in a digital way. 
  2. It’s not possible to give proof of non-liabilities, which is really the thing that matters most. FTX combined fiat, and digital reserve components and their liabilities far outstripped their reserves. 

With pure digital exchanges representing fiat digitally as a regulated stablecoin, Proof of Reserves for everything can become a reality. The last thing to be solved is the liabilities component. 

A reasonably solid and effective system with compliance can be built by fixing settlement and clearing to be entirely digital. Exchanges are currently attempting to establish a business in a hybrid world because they have no other option. So, as a transition, it is preferable to package fiat and securities in digital form. The ability to work in a digital environment will be significantly improved after the archaic wrappers have been removed.

  • Regulate Digital Asset Exchanges’ Use Of Omnibus Wallets

In an omnibus wallet, the funds of multiple clients are stored under a single address. The benefit is that it makes key management easier for the custodian and also makes it easier to enable efficient off-chain transactions.

However, one of the main limitations is that individual customers no longer have visibility into the transactions. Neither do they have any information on the counterparty risk. It’s also unclear what happens to each customer’s funds in the event of bankruptcy.

Omnibus wallets are only acceptable when the qualified crypto custody platform is aware of each of the exchange’s clients in the omnibus pool and assets are segregated in such a way as to provide bankruptcy protection to each client. The custodian must also participate in AML/KYC compliance of exchange clients.

  • Define Securities For The Digital Era

The SEC is still using an ancient definition of securities which was developed in the 1940s. The result is it leads to underpinning their enforcement efforts. Builders in crypto have honest questions about how the rule applies to them, and they deserve answers.

Can the SEC not update their definition and upgrade the meaning of securities while taking into account the crypto era? How hard would it be for the SEC to provide an updated definition, detailed guidance, and sensible grandfathering policies? Having that clarity would go a long way toward providing protection to innovators and investors alike.

They should listen more to Commissioner @HesterPeirce, who has an open opinion that the agency should not be leading with enforcement. Enforcement is clearly in their purview, but there’s an opportunity to make the enforcement load a lot lighter by providing appropriate guidance, to begin with.

What occurred at FTX was a common form of financial fraud that has been practiced for ages. The sole connection between cryptocurrency and blockchain technology is that a lack of regulation created a level playing field for dishonest players.

Conclusion

At present, the crypto community understands SEC’s Custody Rule. These rules are meant to safeguard the crypto industry. As per this rule, the crypto custody and other types of platforms are required to separate custody from trading. This move is hailed as a positive aspect of the crypto industry. 

The crypto industry is in dire need of regulatory administration aimed at preventing catastrophic investor losses. Designers and builders are more than capable of architecting a better system to meet the requirements of regulators. Once people can’t be rug pulled or defrauded, the next discussion will be about more nuanced issues and building something more comprehensive.

It will take a collective effort to get through this phase. FTX isn’t the first exchange to run into trouble; it’s just the biggest. It is easy to compartmentalize it as one guy who was a charlatan and go back to business as usual. However, doing so will be like setting the industry up for the next failure. To come out stronger and better, it is essential to use this opportunity to take a few simple steps in the direction to lead the industry into a new direction in order to thrive.

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WOM Protocol Gains Strategic Investment for Web3 Social Revolution

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Blockchain-based marketing technology WOM Protocol, which replaces traditional ads with user-generated content, is thrilled to announce an undisclosed amount of investment from global liquidity provider and multi-stage web3 investment firm, DWF Labs. This strategic investment supports the scaling of the WOM Protocol through more integrations and kick starts a partnership to further the mission of empowering brands, creators, publishers, and social networks to monetize word-of-mouth recommendations.

Web3 social is defined by its decentralized nature, transparency, and emphasis on empowering users. While many web3 social projects focus on issues like digital identity and data ownership, the WOM Protocol distinguishes itself by targeting the primary revenue source for social media platforms: advertising. The global digital advertising market is expected to grow significantly, with estimates projecting it to reach $517.51 billion by 2023, up from $332.84 billion in 2020. Since advertising generates the majority of revenue for Web2 platforms, it represents a massive opportunity to explore in the context of web3 social.

The WOM Protocol is a marketing solution built on web3 that replaces ads with user-generated content (UGC). It enables advertisers to find, track and reward word-of-mouth recommendations, while rewarding creators based on their content engagement and quality ratings. The Protocol includes the WOM Authenticator app, which authenticates recommendations across all WOM integrated platforms, the WOM Campaign Manager, which enables advertisers to find, track and access word-of-mouth recommendations by spending WOM Tokens, a Shopify app, and the underlying payment protocol that automatically rewards creators, authenticators, publishers and platforms in WOM Tokens.

Advertisers benefit from the credibility and authenticity that creators provide, ensuring a transparent and equitable advertising ecosystem that aligns the interests of creators, brands, and platforms. The protocol’s “to-earn” tokenomics is based on existing user behavior, as recommendations are made 2.1 billion times daily. WOM is already live and tested, having processed over 27,886,895 transactions in 2022 alone, with over 110k aggregated WOM videos passing the peer review of content, so-called “authentication”. WOM has meanwhile scaled its own “TikTok of Crypto” app, BULLZ, to onboard more projects and brands through its Campaign Manager, as well as kick-start campaigns for user-generated content.

DWF Labs is the investment firm and liquidity provider for digital assets that supports web3 projects at various stages. Their services include consulting, smart contract auditing, treasury management, and more. With the strategic partnership and investment into WOM, DWF Labs will also be able to benefit their clients and partners by introducing the WOM Protocol as a new content marketing tool. As WOM expands its infrastructure across multiple platforms, it will continue to prove the adoption of word-of-mouth rewards as a replacement for traditional advertising.

According to Andrei Grachev, Managing Partner of DWF Labs: “We see tremendous potential in WOM Protocol’s innovative approach to word-of-mouth marketing. The Protocol’s ability to authenticate recommendations, incentivize creators, and reward authenticators and platforms has the potential to revolutionize the way brands and creators connect with their audiences. We are excited to be a part of this groundbreaking project and look forward to seeing the impact it will have on the industry.”

Melanie Mohr, Founder & CEO of WOM Protocol, also commented: “We are thrilled to have DWF Labs on board as an investor and liquidity provision partner. This investment underscores the strength of our technology and its potential for the future of marketing. With the support of DWF Labs, we will continue to develop and expand the WOM Protocol, bringing it to new audiences around the world.”

About the WOM Protocol

WOM (word-of-mouth) Protocol is a blockchain-based protocol that gives brands, content creators, publishers, and social networks a way to monetize word-of-mouth recommendations on any website, app or platform. WOM is backed by seasoned investors from around the globe. For more info about WOM: https://womprotocol.io

About DWF Labs

DWF Labs is a liquidity provider and multi-stage web3 investment firm with offices in Singapore, Switzerland, the British Virgin Islands, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea and Hong Kong. The investment company is an affiliate of Digital Wave Finance (DWF), one of the world’s largest high-frequency cryptocurrency trading entities, which trades spot and derivatives markets on over 40 top exchanges. DWF Labs seeks to invest and support bold founders who want to build the future of Web3. For more information on DWF Labs, visit: https://www.dwf-labs.com/

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