Listen to the audio version of the article
The world of technology gives, the world of technology takes away. There is something mocking in the news of the hacker attack on the SEC linked to the Authority’s awaited decision on the opportunity to approve a fund listed on the Bitcoin exchange. It happened that the Security and Exchange Commission (hi-tech platform) account X (formerly Twitter) was compromised with a false post regarding the approval of the Exchange Traded Fund on Bitcoin (technological currency par excellence). The computer hackers made people believe that the much hated (by crypto currency followers) SEC was preparing to give the OK to the financial product. Which wasn’t true.
From mockery to manipulation
Moreover. The joke also lies in the fact that a cybersecurity breach hit a regulator who has repeatedly warned about the online vulnerabilities of cryptocurrencies. A contradiction that has not escaped critics, who have spent years waiting for the SEC to approve a Bitcoin ETF. Beyond this, the attack obviously did not escape even those who – most likely – also exploited (or created) the event to manipulate the market. It goes without saying that bitcoin, although operators have largely discounted the SEC’s approval, shot up in the wake of the news. The crypto queen, between one leap up and one down, was trading around 46,000 dollars. Then, in a flash, it reached up to $47,800. Once the denial arrived, Satoshi Nakamoto’s token landed again at around 45,000 dollars. In such a scenario there are those who have been able to take home a significant capital gain. Starting from ultra-fast traders.
The investigation
In particular, with respect to the event, the SEC said that on Tuesday there had been unapproved activity on the @SECGov After the fake post was removed, Joe Benarroch, X’s head of business operations, said “the account is safe and we are investigating the root cause.” The social media also confirmed how “an unidentified individual” compromised the SEC’s account by gaining control of an associated telephone number. He then added that at the time of the incident the account did not have two-factor authentication enabled. Which, in fact, sparked social irony. The authentication in question, in fact, adds an additional level of security, which is becoming increasingly common with the proliferation of cyber attacks.
Crypto: Miners are an industry. Bitcoin betrayed?
The effect of the ETF
Regardless of the hacker attack, the wait for Gensler’s “choice” – for which a deadline expires today – is still high. The market, say several experts, would have already discounted the presumable approval from the authority. «The approval – underlines Ferdinando Ametrano, founder of CheckSig – is already in the prices of the cryptocurrency». That said, any authorization «does not imply the traditional “buy on rumor sell on the news”. The presence of an ETF traded on Wall Street, in fact, will bring investments worth billions of dollars. A dynamic which creates upward pressure on the price of Satoshi Nakamoto’s token.” Not only. «The possible “ok” also has a high symbolic value. It is a turning point that signals how it has become possible to invest in bitcoin in a direct, transparent way and without risks other than market ones.” The scandals, the failures that “we have witnessed in recent years, and from which the crypto queen has always emerged unscathed, have been a highly negative element for the cryptoeconomy”. Now, the transition, together with the arrival of regulations such as MiCa in Europe, places an important fixed point in the maturation process of bitocin and the entire system.
Betrayed ideals?
At least, from the point of view of traditional operators. The fact that the ideals of Cypherpunk, and of Satoshi Nakamoto himself (video), were a little different from those of BlackRock & co doesn’t seem to matter too much. It is evolution from a capitalist perspective. Profit and capital gain are relevant. The whole idea of disintermediation from traditional banks and institutional operators can end up in the background. What matters is that the price goes up. Money is king!