Showing posts with label microsoft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label microsoft. Show all posts

Microsoft Just Tapped this Small DeFi Platform for Upcoming AI / Decentralized Finance Project...

Mictosoft and LeverFi

It is now confirmed that Microsoft has tapped LeverFI to partner in their "development of A.I. solutions for decentralized finance (DeFi) using the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service."  The move aims to address the challenges currently facing the DeFi industry.

LeverFi, previously known as Ramp, also issues their own coin LEVER.   The platform offers leveraged trading up to 10x permission less and decentralized. 

LeverFi is far from unknown, and their coin trades on major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase.  

But they're not huge either, their token's market cap of around $25 million means they don't even rank in the top 500. 

Current Challenges in Decentralized Finance

Recent statistics highlight various challenges in the DeFi sector. Notably, Peckshield reported that security breaches led to losses of approximately $480 million in the first half of 2023. Furthermore, certain lending platforms face risk management issues, and the manual processes often required by users can introduce additional risks and complexities.

The Role of Morpheus in DeFi Management

Named after 'The Matrix' character, LeverFi and Microsoft's joint project, Morpheus, is an A.I. portfolio management tool designed to assist users in navigating the DeFi landscape. By leveraging machine learning, Morpheus aims to provide insights into portfolio management and offer real-time on-chain monitoring.

Morpheus encompasses two A.I. engines: one for protocols and another for user wallets. The protocol engine is intended to identify and respond to security exploits or other protocol-related risks, while the user engine is focused on monitoring portfolio positions, aiming to alert users if market conditions change adversely.

LeverFi’s Additional Initiatives

Beyond Morpheus, LeverFi has expressed an interest in exploring other areas within the DeFi sector in conjunction with Microsoft's A.I. infrastructure. These areas include asset tokenization, integration with real-world assets, and streamlining on/off-chain settlements, with initial efforts already underway in Hong Kong. Crypto consultant Brian Miller says this will likely play out to be a smart move by both companies.

LeverFi, known for its on-chain, cross-margin platform on Ethereum, is working towards introducing improvements in the existing DeFi infrastructure. The company emphasizes its commitment to enhancing the user experience and security within the sector.

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Author: Mark Pippen
London Newsroom
GlobalCryptoPress | Breaking Crypto News


Corrupt Microsoft Employee Sold Over $10 Million In Gift Cards For Bitcoin...

 Microsoft bitcoin

A former Microsoft developer identified as 26-year-old Volodymyr Kvashuk was sentenced yesterday after defrauding more than $10 million from the company. 

Kvashuk worked first as a contractor and then was hired as an employee between 2016 and 2018.

The engineer was involved in one of Microsoft's online retail sales platforms that use gift cards, according to the DOJ.

With the access to create these gift cards, he would make and then resell them online exchange for Bitcoin. During the early days of the scam he was so confident that no one was watching, he even used his own email account for his first $12,000 sold.

But he wanted more, and eventually began to use accounts of co-workers to hide his actions, essentially framing them for his crimes.

With the money, he bought a home valued at $ 1.6 million and a Tesla, explaining it by telling people, and putting on his taxes, that he had received a 'gift' from relatives. 

Yet Another Case To Disprove The Myth That Bitcoin Is "Anonymous"...

After receiving the Bitcoin he attempted to hide the origins by using cryptocurrency mixing services before withdrawing to his bank and investment accounts. But that wasn't enough to stop officials from following the funds.

He plead guilty to five counts of wire fraud, six counts of money laundering, two counts of aggravated identity theft, two counts of filing false tax returns, mail fraud, device access fraud, and trespassing. computer protected in the promotion of fraud.

He was sentenced to 9 years in prison, and was ordered to repay Microsoft $8.3 million dollars.

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Author: Justin Derbek
New York News Desk
Breaking Crypto News

Introducing Azure Blockchain Service from Microsoft, the foundation for blockchain apps in the cloud...


In a rapidly globalizing digital world, business processes touch multiple organizations and great sums are spent managing workflows that cross trust boundaries. As digital transformation expands beyond the walls of one company and into processes shared with suppliers, partners, and customers, the importance of trust grows with it. Microsoft’s goal is to help companies thrive in this new era of secure multi-party computation by delivering open, scalable platforms, and services that any company from game publishers and grain processors, to payments ISVs and global shippers can use to digitally transform the processes they share with others. Read more at Microsoft.com

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Information provided via press release
Distributed by Global Crypto Press Association Press Release Distribution Service for industry.


We've just learned the first product the NYSE, Microsoft, and Starbucks crypto venture Bakkt will offer...

Early last month I covered the announcement of the new cryptocurrency venture called "Bakkt", a company launched by the New York Stock Exchange, Microsoft, and Starbucks.

Today, we're learning about the first product they will offer - Bitcoin futures, with a twist.  The company tweeted:

"Our first contracts will be physically delivered Bitcoin futures contracts versus fiat currencies, including USD, GBP and EUR. For example, buying one USD/BTC futures contract will result in daily delivery of one Bitcoin into the customer’s account."

To understand why they would be physically delivering something that represents a virtual asset such as Bitcoin, you need to understand the very complex legal framework of 'custody'.  The issue is something that's held Wall Street back from offering cryptocurrency investments, until a solution that meets legal compliance is created.

I explained it this way last week covering a company that believes they have a custody solution.

"When it comes to traditional markets, very few investors actually sit upon stacks of stock certificates to prove what they own - and they don't want to. Their brokerage firm does all that, and will want them to do the same for their crypto assets.

So, the 30 second version is: there's laws surrounding the storage of any valuable assets.  How to do this in a way that would allow major Wall Street investment houses to offer cryptocurrencies to their clients, while at the same time meeting all the legal requirements surrounding custody, has been a massive challenge."

Basically - for now Bakkt has has decided to use a method where none of this is a concern.  Waiving any need for custody compliance by creating a physical asset that represents Bitcoin, and then delivering it daily to their customers - so the entire issue of custody is in the hands of the client.

A creative solution, for now. But the race is on to develop an SEC approved method of custody for cryptocurrency assets, and once this exists I expect Bakkt's daily delivery method to be replaced.

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Author: Ross Davis
E-Mail: Ross@GlobalCryptoPress.com Twitter:@RossFM
San Francisco News Desk

Microsoft is going full speed ahead with their entry into cryptocurrency... but miners aren't coming with them.

Last week Microsoft announced their role in a partnership with the owners of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Starbucks and the launch of the new cryptocurrency based company Bakkt (that story here)

Today, Microsoft unviled their new Ethereum Proof-of-Authority Algorithm, which works along side Azure’s original proof of work algorithm (Azur is Microsoft's cloud computing service).

"We’ve had great traction with our support of Ethereum on Azure. The existing Proof-of-Work solution has been deployed tens of thousands of times across a variety of industry verticals. Through the extensive development on our platform, we’ve received great feedback from the community that has helped us shape our next Ethereum ledger product. I’m excited to announce the release of Ethereum Proof-of-Authority on Azure.

 Proof-of-Work is a Sybil-resistance mechanism that leverages computation costs to self-regulate the network and allow fair participation. This works great in anonymous, open networks where competition for cryptocurrency promotes security on the network. However, in private/consortium networks the underlying ether has no value. An alternative protocol, Proof-of-Authority, is more suitable for permissioned networks where all consensus participants are known and reputable. Without the need for mining, Proof-of-Authority is more efficient while still retaining Byzantine fault tolerance." says Microsoft Azur engineer Cody Born.

However it's important to note - this algorithm is for use by larger enterprise operations looking to run decentralized applications (dApps) built on the Ethereum blockchain, but unlike typical dApp's which use miners as their consensus participants, the miners here are replaced with a network of 'known and trusted' participants for confirmations.

Sounds like bad news for miners at first, but in reality they simply aren't needed for dApp's being used by companies internally “In private/consortium networks the underlying ether has no value.” added Born. So it's not as if mining rewards that were going out to miners are now going to themselves, there's simply no mining fees at all in this case.

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Author: Oliver Redding
Seattle News Desk