Land-based casino equipment supplier Gaming Partners International (GPI) has become the latest victim of Russian hacker group REvil. 

In a public statement, REvil revealed it has hacked the servers of GPI, and issued a 72-hour deadline for the company to pay the ransom in cryptocurrency.

According to the DailyMail, the group has stolen 540 gigabytes of sensitive data from GPI, including financial documents, contracts and technical documentation for all of the company’s gaming machines, and “absolutely all servers and working computers of the company are hacked and encrypted.”

REvil say they have all the most important data from the company’s servers, including from both Macao and Mexico, and that if the ransom is not paid they will publish all the information, causing “huge losses” to GPI’s customers. 

The exact amount demanded by REvil has not been made public, and it is not known if the company has paid the ransom. 

In September, Chilean state-owned bank, Banco Estado, had to temporarily shut down operations after suffering a major ransomware attack by REvil. 

AYO.NEWS says:

As we’ve been reporting, this year has seen many ransomware attacks by REvil and other hacker groups, including one which saw multinational tech company Garmin pay up $10M, and US travel firm CWT pay a $4M ransom in Bitcoin (BTC). 

However, it’s not all plain sailing for the bad guys. In late August, Tesla revealed one of its employees had helped the FBI thwart a major crypto ransomware attack on the company.

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Natus Vincere is the latest esports organisation to partner with fan engagement platform Socios.com.

Ukraine-based Natus Vincere (Na’Vi) says it will be launching a Fan Token on the blockchain-based fan voting and rewards application from Malta-based Chiliz. 

By purchasing $NAVI tokens, fans will gain voting rights, and be able to influence selected decisions made by the organisation. 

5 million $NAVI fan tokens will be made available at launch, with a limited number sold at just $1 USD each during a flash sale to get the ball rolling.

Discussing plans CEO of Natus Vincere, Yevhen ‘HarisPilton’ Zolotarov, said:

“What we are launching today is the next eventual step in switching to a new dynamic of interacting with our devoted audience. Socios.com creates an opportunity to become an actual and viable part of NAVI, as $NAVI tokens are the real way to influence our decisions. In fact, it is a way of making all the crucial decisions together.

“We truly hope that our #NAVINATION members will enjoy the opportunity to make a real difference  with NAVI during the next few years.”

While Founder and CEO of Chiliz and Socios.com, Alexandre Dreyfus, added:

“NAVI’s ‘Born to Win’ mentality has already forged a really strong alliance with their fanbase. The organisation has always been focused on creating a special bond with players through YouTube vlogs and social media activity, but now NAVI are taking things to the next level. $NAVI Fan Tokens are going to give fans a real say in the future of the organisation and real decision making power, not to mention the chance to win some amazing rewards too.”

Thus far, Socios.com is dominated by football clubs (Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, AS Roma, Atletico Madrid, to name but a few), with Na’Vi becoming only the third esports organisation to join, after OG and Team Heretics. Mixed martial arts organisation UFC is also partnered with the app. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With so many things competing for fans’ attention, driving long-term, sustainable fan engagement is critical for the commercial viability of esports and traditional sports organisations alike. 

While Socios.com has attracted a lot of attention, other platforms like Blocksport are also making headway – indeed, Russian organisation Virtus.pro announced it had selected the platform earlier this week. 

Meanwhile Gen.G Esports recently partnered with blockchain network Rally to launch its own CS:GO crypto fan token called GG Strike Coin. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

H.M. Government of Gibraltar has joined the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC).

Launched in Davos in 2017, GBBC is an international industry association for the blockchain technology industry, committed to advancing global understanding of blockchain tech. The government of Gibraltar will be joining the association as an Observing Member.

Discussing the news Minister for Digital and Financial Services, the Hon. Albert Isola, said:

“The GBBC is committed to developing the next trillion dollar industry through education, advocacy, and partnership. 

“GBBC’s vision to further the adoption of blockchain technology through engaging and educating enterprises and regulators is totally aligned with our own mission and we are delighted to stand alongside this prestigious organisation where we can collaborate and work together with some of the best innovators and thought-leaders in this sector to help us achieve this common goal.” 

While CEO of GBBC, Sandra Ro, said:

“The Global Blockchain Business Council welcomes the Government of Gibraltar into our global network as a GBBC Observing Member. We look forward to highlighting the important digital assets and blockchain technology work and innovation from Gibraltar as we advance global collaboration, adoption, and opportunities.” 

The news is the latest in a string of high-profile announcements for the Government of Gibraltar who, earlier this year, announced they had joined INATBA, a group of international blockchain industry players at an EU-level and continues to work in expanding its reach internationally.

Reflecting its genuinely global nature, the GBBC currently has ambassadors in Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Haiti, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Palau, Peru, Puerto Rico, Russia, Rwanda, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, UAE, UK, USA, and Vanuatu. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Global peer-to-peer Bitcoin (BTC) marketplace, Paxful, and Ternio’s crypto fintech platform BlockCard, have announced a new debit card. 

Initially available in the United States, with an international roll out to follow, the new debit card will give users the ability to convert cryptocurrencies to USD, make purchases, get a checking account, and withdraw funds from any ATM worldwide. 

The companies say the new card will help fill a gap in the traditional financial system that has left many without access to essential banking products. According to a 2017 survey by the FDIC, 25% of US households are unbanked or underbanked, while globally that figure reaches a staggering 1.7 billion (according to the World Bank). 

BlockCard offers Paxful both a virtual card and physical card, requires a minimum balance of just $10, and can be used at over 45 million merchants and ATMs worldwide. 

Discussing the new card CEO and co-founder of Paxful, Ray Youssef, said:

“Whether looking to invest in education, start a business, or simply manage the financial demands of everyday life, there should be a viable option for everyone across the globe. Paxful has always been dedicated to providing that option, be it to users who are in the platform as a matter of preference, or necessity.”

While CEO and co-founder of Ternio, Daniel Gouldman, added:

“Paxful is a best in class peer to peer bitcoin marketplace, so we’re pumped up about being able to provide their customers access to the BlockCard platform.

“It’s going to be fun to pair together all of the strengths of Paxful with Blockcard’s global debit card and bank account capabilities. Ternio is committed to providing interoperability between cryptocurrencies and the traditional banking system.”

In addition to issuing the Paxful Card, BlockCard will also provide dedicated technical customer service and all-in-one services on its mobile app. 

AYO.NEWS says:

As we all know, traditional banks can be a b**ch, and their aversion to providing decent services can often lead the poorest, most vulnerable members of society, to fall into viscous debt spirals, so anything that helps bridge the financial gaps is great news. 

Staying with sticking one to the traditional financial system and helping the underbanked and unbanked, last month the Decentralized Lending Network (DLN) announced the launch of a novel concept to executing a no-fee, zero percent interest micro-loans network. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

FirstBlood Technologies has announced a partnership with MakerDAO to bring decentralised stablecoin integration to the FirstBlood Platform.

MakerDAO, the protocol behind the popular DeFi stablecoin Dai, will enhance accessibility for enthusiasts and professional gamers alike, by offering rewards in DAI to competitive gamers playing on FirstBlood. 

According to the company, this “signals an immense victory for gamers,” allowing for permissionless cross-border payments to be made in what is one of the most popular DeFi crypto tokens. 

Discussing the news Co-founder and CEO of FirstBlood, Joe Zhou, said:

“We aim to leverage the massive DAI community and facilitate blockchain adoption into the world of competitive gaming. With players competing from every continent, payments in cryptocurrencies will simplify barriers to entry for users, and provide a stable and secure environment for players to earn rewards for rising to the challenge.”

While CEO of Maker Foundation and co-founder of MakerDAO, Rune Christensen, added:

“The borderless, decentralized nature of Dai makes it the perfect stablecoin to use as in-game rewards for FirstBlood players. The stability, transparency and ease of use of Dai will let players spend more time focused on competing and less time sorting out how to manage their rewards.”

To celebrate the partnership, MakerDAO is offering 10,000 DAI in prizes to sign-up and compete on FirstBlood. 

AYO.NEWS says:

As anyone who’s familiar with this site will guess, we love it when esports and blockchain come together nicely like this! For gamers already using FirstBlood this will make things more convenient, and hopefully it will net the platform a fair few new sign-ups too. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

MESE.io, the Algorand-powered tokenized microequities exchange, has launched MESX, an index ETF token that acts as a centralized exchange token and exhibits DeFi token mechanics. 

MESX is backed by Microsoft, Apple, Tesla, Twitter, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (MATTANG) stocks held in its index fund, and can be traded on MESE.io.

It will launch with a 10,000 USD index ETF pool value of MATTANG stocks, which is equivalent to 10,000,000 MESX tokens. Initially, each MESX token will represent 1/10,000,000 shares of the MESX pool of equity for a value of 0.001 USD per MESX token.  

Drawing on the recent innovations in the DeFi space, MESX has been modeled to be a sustainable DeFi product on a CeFi platform. Similar to liquidity incentive programs in decentralized finance, the MESX tokens held on MESE.io receive continual staking rewards based on 50% of all net transactional revenue on MESE.io. 

This 50% net revenue share directly contributes to the MESX index ETF pool which mints an additional supply of MESX for a sustainable DeFi staking pool resulting in a positive feedback loop.

Discussing the launch Managing Director at IBMR.io, Sinjin David Jung, explained:

“We are massive fans of the Uniswap model and we wanted to see if we could apply those innovations to a CeFi platform.

“The beautiful thing about DeFi is that growth and value come from the process of participation in revenue sharing, this is at the heart of the decentralized network model. But, sharing in revenue without actually creating revenue is problematic as many DeFi projects were solely dependent on secondary market speculative appreciation for a basis of value. 

“The key to sharing revenue through the process of participation is in the mechanism of staking. In the case of a DEX AMM, the staking rewards are provided on the basis of providing liquidity to ensure trades can happen, but for our model, we have based staking rewards on our overall net transactional revenue on the exchange. 

“Unlike the current exchange token model, we are not burning exchange tokens with profit, but are investing those net revenues into the underlying index ETF pool so that we can mint more supply resulting in more staking. We hope that this will be a sustainable DeFi model of value where MESX can also act as a long term microasset for emerging market participants.” 

With the global fintech market expected to grow at an annual rate of 24.8%, surpassing its $120 billion market value, MESE.io anticipates the introduction of innovative DeFi and crypto exchange models into microfinance will act as the catalyst for contributing to financial inclusion and growth in emerging markets. 

Please note that all US jurisdictions and those territories sanctioned by the US Treasury are restricted from access and participation on MESE.io.

AYO.NEWS says:

This is an interesting approach to tackling some of the issues that are plaguing DeFi right now, like assets becoming overly speculative, and making participation in the global tech equity market more accessible, so we’ll be watching to see what happens. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.