As we wrote in the previous news summary from the world of cryptocurrencies – the largest network in the world, Ethereum, will undergo an unprecedented update that will change the entire blockchain from the ground up.

Considered to be the event of the year, it is certainly not surprising it also draws a crowd of speculators. ETH has risen by 90% since this June. Does the cryptocurrency still offer an opportunity, or is the transition to the new consensus already completely priced in at today's numbers?

Listen to the audio version of today's episode bellow!

Johns Hopkins University teacher defies US government and re-releases code of sanctioned Tornado Cash app

Professor Mathew Green from a renowned American university uploaded the code from the Tornado Cash application (which was earlier sanctioned by the United States of America) to the GitHub repository. This code was previously on the platform, but Microsoft (owner of GitHub) deleted it after the new regulation was announced. 

Tornado Cash is a blockchain application that was used by criminals to launder money - its main purpose is to increase the anonymity of transactions. The US government banned it, and the police in the Netherlands arrested its alleged author. Professor Green does not agree that authorities should have the power to make a piece of code unavailable and arrest contributors to open-source solutions. In protest of the regulation, he re-shared the app and continues to use it as part of his lectures on blockchain technology and its security.

Ukraine has blocked and seized cryptocurrency from a wallet that authorities say is involved in financing Russia's campaign.

Agents from the Ukrainian counterintelligence SSU managed to seize the wallet of a Russian spy who posed as a volunteer fighting on the side of Ukraine. In reality, he collected funds for arming the separatists using the help of social networks.

The SSU announced that the incriminated soldier’s arrest took place thanks to evidence gathered from blockchain and cryptocurrency service providers.

 The very fact that a company in possession of the personal data of crypto-currency owners willingly cooperated with the Secret Service of Ukraine definitely raised a few eyebrows. However, the amount only went up to around $10k, so the negative reactions were limited to the crypto community.

Cryptocurrencies play a significant role in the war. Ukraine has already demonstrably used $54 million to support its funding. In the same way, Russia also uses blockchain, usually in an attempt to avoid sanctions.

India does not want to miss another train. It aspires to become a leader in Web 3.0 technology

It's no secret that India has long struggled with getting cryptocurrency regulation right. Despite many Indians being interested in cryptocurrencies, the most populous country on the planet has failed to propel blockchain to prominence.

Politicians from the state of Hyderabad are trying to change that. They launched the Blockchain Forum program, the result of which is to be the industrial adoption of Web 3.0 technology. If they manage to succeed with this initiative, India could become the hub for the crypto world. 

Does Ethereum 2.0 provide an opportunity to speculate or is the transition to a new consensus already reflected in its price?

Trading is undeniably an important part of the whole cryptocurrency community. In recent days, there has been a heated debate about whether ETH has the potential to rise in price after the September network update. The issue is so important that even Ethereum Foundation CEO Vitalik Buterin also joined the discussion.

With the launch of Ethereum 2.0, all ETH mining is about to cease. It released 13 thousand coins into circulation every day. Staking rewards will kick in instead. These amount to only 1600 ETH per day. This fact is very difficult to value before its real effects are noticeable. We know from previous experience within the industry that a drastic reduction in the supply of cryptocurrency has a long-term positive impact on the price.

Vitalik Buterin stated that the new update cannot be priced at today's ether price. He points out that it depends primarily on how well the new blockchain will work and if Ethereum becomes the fastest growing network yet again.