Authorities in Germany, the US, Belgium, Poland, and Switzerland, with support from Europol, have seized BTC 1,909.4 and taken down cryptocurrency mixer ChipMixer for alleged involvement in money laundering activities. Europol stated that the platform may have facilitated the laundering of 152,000 Bitcoins, primarily connected to dark web markets, ransomware groups, and illicit goods trafficking. Meanwhile, Koinly’s “State of the Crypto Market 2023” report found that Ethereum Layer 2 usage and cold storage adoption surged and Ethereum remained the most popular blockchain for crypto investors using Koinly. In other news, Synalcom and Qori have merged to launch Sylq, enabling crypto transactions across Europe, while Luxor Technologies has released LuxOS, an Antminer firmware that allows Bitcoin miners to optimize hashrate and power efficiency. Sotheby’s, Paris Blockchain Week, and RLTY are collaborating to present the first NFT auction in the metaverse next week.
