Scott Chipolina
Scott worked at Decrypt from 2020 to 2021. He's an investigative journalist with a background in financial regulation. He previously worked for the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission and holds a Masters’ degree from City University, London, in Investigative Journalism. His areas of interest include financial crime, social media misinformation and the regulation of cryptocurrencies.
Stories by Scott Chipolina
What Are Crypto Futures? The Financial Derivatives Explained
Want to learn more about crypto derivatives? Sign up for Decrypt’s upcoming webinar, “Unleashing the Power of Permissionless Markets with Vega Protocol,” on June 5! Crypto futures are a type of derivatives contract that enable investors to bet on the future price of a crypto asset such as Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH). Using futures contracts, investors attempt to take advantage of the high volatility of most cryptocurrencies. Let's use Bitcoin as an example of how they work. What are crypto f...
What Are Stablecoins and How Do You Use Them?
Since their inception, cryptocurrencies have been considered particularly volatile investment instruments when it comes to their price. That's led to price jumps and crashes, preventing cryptocurrencies from being used for everyday goods and services in some cases, due to the risks for vendors and merchants. That's where stablecoins come in. The theory goes, if you create a currency that is 'pegged' or attached to a regular fiat currency like the US dollar or something else with a relatively sta...
Is Quantum Computing a Threat to Bitcoin?
The strength of the Bitcoin network is based on very strong cryptography. But what if one day in the not-too-distant future, computers advanced to such a level that current cryptographic standards were no longer good enough? That's the promise and the danger of quantum computing, a technology that allows computers to utilize the rules of quantum physics to speed up calculations and process massive amounts of data at speeds that today’s computers are simply not capable of doing. Right now, quant...
What Is Tether (USDT), the Token With the Record $83.6 Billion Market Cap
In May 2023, Tether’s USDT stablecoin hit an all-time high in market capitalization, surpassing its previous peak level of $83.355 billion in May 2022, according to CoinGecko data. Tether is currently the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization with a valuation of $83.6 billion, commanding 7.5% of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization. To critics of cryptocurrencies—like China’s major payment institutions—this price volatility makes them poorly suited to being actual curre...
What Backs Bitcoin?
Up until relatively recently (the last century or so), most ordinary paper currency and coinage was directly redeemable for gold. This is because many of the wealthiest countries followed the gold standard, a monetary system where governments tied a fixed exchange rate for national currency to gold. As part of this system, countries kept sufficient reserves of gold in their vaults to 100% back their circulating currency supply, ensuring currency-for-gold exchanges were always possible. However,...
What Are Decentralized Apps (Dapps)?
The promise being offered by dapps, or decentralized apps, is that it might reduce the need for a middleman. What is a dapp (decentralized application)? Dapps are decentralized apps. They are like normal apps, and offer similar functions, but the key difference is that they are run on a peer-to-peer network, such as a blockchain, using smart contracts. As dapps are decentralized, they can’t be controlled by a single person or entity. Dapps also often have the following features: They are open-s...
What are Decentralized Apps (Dapps)?
It’s time to cut out the middleman. Why pay for a company to provide a ride-sharing service when you could use an app that connects drivers directly with riders and doesn’t take a cut? That's the promise being offered by dapps, or decentralized apps. Read on for an overview of what they are, how they work, some of the opportunities they present, and and the challenges these new types of applications face. What is a dapp (decentralized application)? Dapps are decentralized apps. They are like no...
IMF Warns Russia Could Use Bitcoin Mining to Evade Sanctions
The International Monetary Fund has said Russia could evade economic sanctions levied in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine by pivoting to cryptocurrency mining. The report specifically warns that Russia could martial its vast energy resources to power crypto mining and generate revenue. “Over time, sanctioned countries could also allocate more resources toward evading sanctions through mining. Mining for energy-intensive blockchains like Bitcoin can allow countries to monetize energy resources...
U.S. Government Issues Alert on Malicious North Korean Crypto Activity
The FBI, the U.S. Treasury Department, and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have co-released a cybersecurity advisory on North Korean state-sponsored efforts targeting the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry. “The U.S. government has observed North Korean cyber actors targeting a variety of organizations in the blockchain technology and cryptocurrency industry,” the report reads. The report specifically cites several target areas of the industry, including exchanges,...
Greenidge Faces ‘Uphill Battle’ to Renew Bitcoin Mining Permit: Regulator
Greenidge is facing an “uphill battle” to renew its Bitcoin mining permit, according to Basil Seggos, Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in New York and per local news outlet WSKG. “Our belief still stands that this is a facility that’s going to have an uphill battle complying with the law,” Seggos said. The DEC Commissioner added a caveat to his statement, however, saying the regulator owed it to Greenidge to review what the company had submitted for a permit r...
Bitcoin Drops Below $40,000, Ethereum Falls Under $3,000 Yet Again
Bitcoin and Ethereum have dropped below $40,000 and $3,000, after dipping below 4% and 5% respectively in the last 24 hours. Currently priced at $38,962 and $2,904, respectively, the two largest cryptocurrencies by market cap have been in a recent slump. In the last week, both cryptocurrencies have fallen by almost 8%. The latest series of price drops can likely be attributed to the mining industry, which has experienced several developments that may have put further pressure on prices. Bitco...
Bitcoin, Ethereum Down 8% Over the Week as Crypto Struggles
Bitcoin and Ethereum—the two largest cryptocurrencies by market cap—are down by approximately 8% over the last week. Both cryptocurrencies, priced at $40,200 and just a tick over $3,000, are also edging closer to falling below landmark prices. This already happened earlier this week, when Bitcoin and Ethereum fell by 15% and 14%, marking the first time each asset fell below $40,000 and $3,000 since mid-March. This price slump remains part and parcel of an ongoing market downturn in the broader...
Portugal Grants First Crypto License to Bison Bank
The Banco de Portugal, the competent authority responsible for registering virtual asset service providers in Portugal, has granted a license to Bison Bank to act as the first crypto bank in the country. Per Portuguese media outlet Sapo, the bank has received authorization to launch Bison Digital Assets, the specific company which will conduct custodial and exchange services of cryptocurrencies. Customers will reportedly be offered a “new and broader set of products and services that, in line w...
Amazon Won't Support Crypto Payments Any Time Soon: CEO
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy says Amazon is not close to adding support for cryptocurrency payments. “We’re not probably close to adding crypto as a payment mechanism in our retail business, but I do believe over time that you’ll see crypto become bigger,” Jassy said. But Jassy, who made the comments in a CNBC interview on Thursday, did say he thought it was "possible down the road" that Amazon could eventually sell NFTs. Jassy’s crypto commentary comes amid recent speculation that Amazon might one...
Elon Musk Offers to Buy '100% of Twitter' for $43 Billion
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has offered to purchase 100% of Twitter Inc. stock for $54.20 per share, at a total price of $43 billion, following his earlier purchase of a 9.2% stake in the social media giant. The offer was disclosed in an SEC filing, in which Musk stated that, "My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder." "Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it," Musk wrote. I made an offer https://t.co/VvreuPMeLu...
Thorchain, Compound Lead DeFi Recovery With Double-Digit Gains
Some decentralized finance (DeFi) assets are defying the broader crypto market slump with significant gains, including Thorchain and Compound. THORchain (RUNE) is up over 17% in the last 24 hours, while Compound (COMP)—up 16% in the last day—has also gained over 11% in the last week. Synthetix Network, a decentralized synthetic asset issuance protocol, is also surging, posting over 12% gains in the last day. These price moves come amid a much more lethargic market for some of the industry’s b...
Luno Partners With London Music Venue KOKO As Crypto Moves Beyond Sports Deals
Cryptocurrency platform Luno has partnered with KOKO, a storied music venue in London’s Camden. The partnership aims to empower an upcoming generation of artists and musicians by creating opportunities through blockchain and Web3 technology. In addition, a new space at KOKO’s venue—The Luno—will launch with a digital art gallery. “KOKO is a cultural institution and for decades has used its stage to put the spotlight on emerging talent as well as some of the biggest acts in the world,” said Luno...
Nexo Partners with Mastercard, DiPocket to Launch Crypto Card
Digital asset manager Nexo has partnered with global payments giant Mastercard to launch a Mastercard-backed crypto card in selected European markets. Dubbed the Nexo Card, the card offers users a crypto-backed credit line, enabling cardholders to use their cryptocurrency as collateral, rather than selling it. To launch the card, Nexo has teamed up with DiPocket, which will act as Nexo’s card issuer for European markets. In a release accompanying the announcement, Nexo co-founder and managing...
Sega Lays Groundwork for Metaverse With 'Super Game' NFT Plan
Video game giant Sega is embarking on a five-year plan to create “Super Game,” an interconnected framework of AAA titles that could incorporate Web3 technologies such as NFTs. “It is a natural extension for the future of gaming that it will expand to involve new areas such as cloud gaming and NFTs,” said Sega producer Masayoshi Kikuchi in an interview translated by VGC. Kikuchi also hinted at how its 'Super Game' plan could lead to a metaverse initiative in which different games are interconne...
SHIB, ApeCoin Defy Crypto Market Slump With Double-Digit Gains
Meme cryptocurrencies Shiba Inu (SHIB) and ApeCoin are up approximately 10% and 20% during the last 24 hours—price movements that run counter to the downward trend of the broader crypto market. SHIB currently stands at $0.00002733, up 20.6% on the day, according to CoinMarketCap. ApeCoin is currently $12.24, up a more modest 10.1% over the last 24 hours. In comparison, Bitcoin and Ethereum—the two most known and largest cryptocurrencies—have seen barely any movement in the last 24 hours and hav...
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