💳 Visa's proposed Ethereum auto-payments system: a step towards total automation?

💳 Visa's proposed Ethereum auto-payments system: a step towards total automation? 🫠 Boris Johnson's brother quits Binance's Bitfinity advisory board after only 3 months 🔨 Terraform Labs executives' assets seized: $92m frozen in connection to pre-issued token profiteering scheme

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Here's what recently happened in the space:

💳 Visa's proposed Ethereum auto-payments system: a step towards total automation?

🫠 Boris Johnson's brother quits Binance's Bitfinity advisory board after only 3 months

🔨 Terraform Labs executives' assets seized: $92m frozen in connection to pre-issued token profiteering scheme

Visa's proposed Ethereum auto-payments system: a step towards total automation?

Visa (a payment giant) has proposed a blockchain account design that could allow Ethereum users to arrange auto-payments from a self-custodied wallet. Visa proposes using Account Abstraction, an Ethereum feature that is currently under consideration by core developers, as the basis for its automatic payments system.

This approach allows users to set up recurring bill payments with ease - something that Ethereum does not even have basic functionality for at this point. This means that Ethereum users will soon be able to conduct completely automated transactions like the ones Visa is proposing without having to worry about manually entering commands.

People at Visa explained that the idea came out of their internal Crypto Hackathon challenge. The challenge consisted of finding a way to make crypto more user friendly and streamline everyday transactions. Although bank accounts and custodial crypto wallets can be used to arrange payments, Visa was determined to figure out a way for users of self-managed accounts to do the same through blockchain.

By using account abstraction, Visa has managed to merge the functions of user accounts and smart contracts into a single type of Ethereum account. They call this 'delegable account'. This method allows merchants to deploy an automated payment smart contract that is triggered once permission has been granted by the user. In addition, the user’s delegable account adds the auto-payment contract to a whitelist for future payments.

The way things are going, it looks like Ethereum is going to be able to do what other major financial services companies have been doing for years, but with a blockchain twist. It's exciting to watch the space evolve and see this new technology come into play.

Boris Johnson's brother quits Binance's Bitfinity advisory board after only 3 months

Jo Johnson, brother of former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has sadly bid farewell to the UK advisory board of Bifinity, a unit of Binance.

The main reason for Johnson's departure is still unknown, but it's possible that the increasing pressure over the transparency of Binance's finances made him feel a little less than welcome, some experts have also speculated that it was due to the increasing regulatory scrutiny of cryptocurrency businesses in the United Kingdom. Binance has reported that their finances are more transparent than a glass window, yet some might argue that's not really saying much. And it's clear that the UK government takes a dim view of crypto, no matter how transparent its finances are.

Bitfinity was launched in early March this year by Binance, and Johnson joined it as an advisor in September. However, it seems Johnson's tenure was short-lived. He may have been hoping to make a lasting contribution to the cryptocurrency ecosystem and promote good practices in the industry, but unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be.

We can only guess what goes on behind the scenes at Binance and Bitfinity, but we can only assume that Johnson's departure isn't a sign of something too serious. We'll hope that he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and chose to exit while he still could and Binance will be able to carry on with business as usual.

Terraform Labs executives' assets seized: $92m frozen in connection to pre-issued token profiteering scheme

Well, it looks like the party's over for Terra and its affiliates. The South Korean court has put a halt to their endeavors by freezing 120 billion won ($92 million) in assets of former and incumbent CEO's of Terraform Labs’ affiliate firm Kernel Labs - talk about harsh punishment!

It seems that all the money they made through their shady activities is now out of reach. If you thought Terraform Labs was unscrupulous before, then this news should come as no surprise.

Kernel Labs was founded in 2018 and is a blockchain consultancy firm that focuses on decentralized applications and blockchain payment systems. It's believed to have close ties with Terraform Labs, as CEO Kim Hyun-joong once reportedly served as vice president of engineering at Terraform Labs.

According to the prosecutors, Kim and his associates were able to unlawfully acquire 79 billion won ($61 million) in profits from pre-issued Terra tokens. On top of that, the former CEO was reportedly able to pocket 41 billion won ($31 million).

It's not often you hear of such huge sums being confiscated from illegal activity. But this case goes to show that no one is above the law. It looks like Terraform Labs and its affiliates have finally been brought down to earth - and that's something everyone can celebrate. I fought the law, and the law won. Who would have thought?