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Centralized crypto exchange OKX has integrated a type of zero-knowledge proof mechanism called ZK-Starks into its proof-of-reserves (PoR) verification, enabling users to independently verify its assets while keeping sensitive user data private.

ZK-Stark (Zero-Knowledge Scalable Transparent Arguments of Knowledge) is a cryptographic mechanism that claims to let users to independently confirm the accuracy and authenticity of the exchange’s reserves without exposing account balances to other parties.

Leveraging ZK-Stark technology, OKX’s Proof of Reserves (PoR) system claims to be a more privacy-focused verification of the exchange’s reserves for 21 crypto assets. The exchange noted it is a “method that verifies the accuracy and authenticity of OKX’s PoR while upholding user privacy — no account balances are visible to other parties.”

As detailed in the exchange’s most recent PoR report, the combined value of bitcoin, ether and tether reserves has risen to $10.7 billion, an increase from the $8.9 billion reported in March. OKX has also expanded PoR support to include 18 new assets, in addition to the existing coverage of bitcoin, ether, and tether. However, the system does not provide insights into the exchange’s potential liabilities.

OKX registered trading volume of $1.08 billion in the last 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data.

OKX added privacy to Merkle Tree-based proof of reserves

Previously, OKX’s PoR system relied solely on the Merkle Tree — a data structure used in cryptography for verification. This method was not deemed ideal for user privacy, prompting the decision to incorporate zero-knowledge proofs. In February, Binance, the largest crypto exchange by trading volume, also added zero-knowledge proofs to its PoR system in an effort to enhance privacy.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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Aave Companies, developer of the web3 social network Lens Protocol, rebranded its newly launched scaling solution after discovering another blockchain project was already using the Bonsai name. 

The team announced in a Twitter Spaces session yesterday that the product was now called Momoka, just a day after the initial launch.

Lens Protocol, a decentralized social graph offering a software stack to build alternatives to major social media platforms, was launched on Polygon in May 2022.

On Wednesday, the Lens team implemented a new blockchain solution aimed at scaling social media applications for the project. However, due to the presence of an existing project named Bonsai.xyz, the moniker was quickly changed to Momoka.

Lens Protocol’s trademark concerns

A Lens Protocol representative said the swift transition to the alternative name, Momoka, was a proactive measure to avoid unnecessary brand complications in the future. They added that the effort was made to ensure the name wasn’t trademarked, acting promptly upon realizing the pre-existing use of the name within the sector.

Lens Protocol aims to achieve censorship resistance for social media apps and help them unlock new forms of content monetization. To help such apps scale, Momoka will optimize cost and scalability by storing transactions off-chain in such a way as they remain accessible and verifiable. This can avoid the limitations of block space on Ethereum and other blockchains.

Momoka will process most transactions off-chain, relying on its data-availability layer. Data availability is essential for scaling solutions because it ensures that off-chain data remains accessible and verifiable when needed for on-chain settlement, dispute resolution or audits.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

The tally has increased by over 50,000 BTC in four weeks, reversing the exodus seen late last year.

The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades reportedly said the move is to protect donors from harm.

A South African businessman was ordered to pay a record $3.4 billion penalty after a U.S. judge agreed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission that it had engaged in multilevel marketing scam to solicit bitcoin from members of the public. 

Cornelius Johannes Steynberg, the founder and CEO of Mirror Trading International (MTI), was ordered to pay a $1.7 billion fine and $1.7 billion in restitution to defrauded victims — who included U.S. citizens. The sum is the highest-ever civil monetary penalty awarded for a case involving the CFTC. 

The order, entered by Judge Lee Yeakel of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, found that Steynberg committed fraud tied to retail foreign-currency transactions, among other violations.

Steynberg, a fugitive from South African law enforcement, has been in custody in Brazil since December 2021 on an Interpol arrest warrant, the CFTC said. The regulator has permanently banned him from trading in any CFTC-regulated markets. MTI is currently in liquidation in South Africa.

The CFTC first charged Steynberg with fraud in June 2022.

Soliciting bitcoin scam

From at least May 2018 through at least March 2021, Steynberg, individually and as the “controlling person” of MTI, engaged in an international fraudulent multilevel marketing scheme — using the websites mtimembers.com, mirrortradinginternational.au.za and mymticlub.com in addition to social media — to solicit bitcoin from the public for participation in a commodity pool operated by MTI, according to the CFTC.

The pool allegedly engaged in off-exchange, retail forex trading using leverage, margin and financing through a proprietary software program.

Steynberg accepted at least 29,421 bitcoin (worth around $1.7 billion at the end of the relevant period) from at least 23,000 U.S. participants and even more throughout the world without being registered as an associated person of a commodity pool as required by federal law, the regulator said. MTI had never been registered with the CFTC in any capacity either, according to the regulator.

“Either directly or indirectly, the defendants misappropriated all of the bitcoin they accepted from pool participants,” the CFTC said.

Though the CFTC slapped Steynberg with a record fine, it cautioned that “orders requiring payment of funds to victims may not result in the recovery of any money lost because wrongdoers may not have sufficient funds or assets.”

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

More investors are recognizing the digital asset as a sensible alternative not only among crypto tokens, but also within a global financial context, the report said.