Phishing on the OpenSea

Good morning. Man that headline really wrote itself today! We are back after celebrating George Washington's birthday yesterday and some of you really need to give me some space to express my respect for US presidents...

Today we've got updates on the OpenSea attack, crypto gaming at FTX, an impassioned piece on freedom and crypto from @APompliano, and more!

Market Update (as of 8:07am ET):

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Top 5:

1. Bitcoin Is The Freedom Technology The Western World Needs. In this piece, which I highly encourage you to read, Pomp makes the argument that bitcoin is a "freedom technology" and that the events in Canada are waking many up to this fact. Just a few weeks ago, the idea that a democratically elected government would impose financial sanctions on its citizens for civil disobedience seemed like a fringe case that "couldn't happen in my country." Now, the freedom to transact is a talking point globally. Bitcoin (and other cryptocurrencies) present a new avenue to this freedom and offer citizens "censorship-resistant technology that prevents their government from enacting authoritarian measures that encroach on their basic rights."

Bitcoin Is The Freedom Technology The Western World Needs

Listen now (7 min) | To investors, The situation in Canada has received international attention across the internet. People are wondering how a liberal, democratic country could descend into authoritarian chaos so quickly. Disagreeing with subsets of your population, or opposite sides of the politic…

The Pomp LetterAnthony Pompliano

SSS (sat-sized summary): Bitcoin is a freedom technology and it protects citizens ability to transact freely outside of the control of government.

2. OpenSea is investigating a phishing attack. Over the weekend rumors of a hack of the NFT marketplace sent ripples of fear across social media, as users scrambled to protect their tokens. Luckily, those rumors were just that, and the real culprit behind the chaos was a well planned phishing attack. The phisher used a well crafted email that asked users to "migrate to the new OpenSea smart contract" which in reality resulted in a sale of your NFTs for 0 ETH. According to OpenSea's CEO 32 users have been exploited and the hacker has amassed $1.7 million in ETH via sales of stolen NFTs. For a more detailed explanation of the hack along with some images of the phishing emails check the thread below.

SSS: The takeaway here is to be extremely careful when signing any type of crypto transaction. There is no central clearing house and 99% of the time you won't be getting your property, tokens, etc. back.

3. FTX to Roll Out Service for Games Publishers. The US arm of the global crypto exchange announced the launch of a new unit called FTX Gaming. The new business unit will operate as a "crypto-as-a-service" platform that will offer white label and turnkey solutions to all sizes of gaming companies. FTX gaming is already hiring for software engineers and plans to offer gaming tokens, NFT support, and other services.

We are launching FTX Gaming because we see games as an exciting use case for crypto. There are two billion plus gamers in the world who have played with and collected digital items, and can now also own them.

The gaming community hasn't been too fond of crypto and NFTs and many in the community view the technology as simply another cash grab by developers. That being said, the tides of change are moving in favor of crypto and I think it's likely crypto and gaming will be inseparable in the future.

SSS: FTX is making a big bet on crypto integration with video games. The company is dedicating a new business unit to develop a "crypto-as-a-service" platform for game developers to launch tokens, NFTs, and other in-game crypto features.

4. A DAO Is Trying to Buy the NFL’s Denver Broncos. In an attempted $4 billion fundraising effort, BuyTheBroncosDAO, is trying to do exactly what the names suggests. We've seen several DAOs organized with specific intentions to buy things or entities. Some were successful, like SpiceDAO, some were failures, see ConstitutionDAO. Where BuyTheBroncos aims to differentiate themselves is in their plan to give DAO members actual ownership and control of the franchise. It's an audacious goal to say the least, and if in the event the $4 billion is not raised, the DAO organizers will reduce their fundraising goal to $1 billion and partner with traditional investors to raise the $3 billion difference. To be honest, this seems like a terrible idea. But hey, they really couldn't be any worse than the Lions could they?

SSS: A DAO is attempting to raise $4 billion to purchase the Denver Broncos. It's an astounding sum, that seems unlikely to be reached using a DAO as the primary fundraising vehicle. However, the interesting concept is that the team behind the DAO plans to actually manage the team using the DAO as the governance structure.

5. Jambo raises $7.5 million to build “web3 super app” of Africa. The company plans to make their app Africa's biggest web3 onboarding portal by providing access to crypto-based income-generation opportunities and leveraging a "learn, play, earn" model. A young and quickly-growing population, widespread smartphone use, and an increasing rate of crypto adoption are positive signs that the African market may be the next boomtown for crypto. The Jambo app will utilize a web2 advertising model to generate revenue while allowing users to keep all income from any activities (play-to-earn gaming, watching videos, using data, etc.) they perform on the app.

SSS: Africa is ripe for widespread crypto adoption, but the continent has struggled over the years to take full advantage of other technological innovations. I'm hopeful, that crypto incentives can drive higher rates of adoption, but it's one of those "I'll believe it when I see it" kind of situations.

Updates and other stories:
- Russian government introduces crypto bill to Parliament...Read More
- Crypto unicorn Bitso is expanding into Colombia...Read More
- 400 Salesforce staff object to its NFT plans...Read More

Top Sharers of the Crypto Top 5:
1. Donna Y. - Nashville, TN
2. Jake Y. - Greenville, SC
3. Forrest H. - Evansville, IN

External Resources:
1. Cryptopedia from Gemini - if you see a word, acronym, or phrase in this newsletter that you don't understand, there's a good chance you can find an explanation here
2. Crypto Explainer+ - intro level courses on Bitcoin, Ethereum, decentralized finance, NFTs, and more
3. Crypto Jobs! - looking for a new job? Check out this page from Anthony Pompliano with hundreds, if not thousands of listings

Disclaimer: The information contained in this newsletter shall not be understood or construed as financial advice. I am not an attorney, accountant, or financial advisor, nor am I holding myself out to be, and the information provided is not a substitute for financial advice from a professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.