Weekly Digest: Monero Community Fears 51% Attack, UK Seizes NFT

The community of privacy-focused crypto Monero is concerned about the concentration of hashrate in the hands of the mining pool MineXMR. Some say, this increases the risk that the cryptocurrency's network could suffer a 51% attack. According to MineXMR's own statistics, the hashrate controlled by the pool amounts to about 1.5 GH/s, or 49% of the total network.

The UK's tax department, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), seized three non-fungible tokens (NFTs) valued at $1.9 in addition to ~$6,700 in cryptocurrencies as part of tax fraud probe. According to reports, the authorities also arrested three unnamed people over tax repayment fraud involving 250 fake companies.

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation revealed that two banks in the country, VTB and PSB, had successfully carried out a full cycle of operations for the transfer of digital rubles between customers via bank mobile apps. The digital platform allows users to register once through the mobile app of any bank connected to the platform, access their digital wallet and perform transactions.

The Canadian authorities announced plans to activate the "Emergency Act," which, among other things, will allow the government to block citizens' bank accounts and track users' transactions with cryptocurrencies. The adoption of such drastic measures is reportedly due to the growing incidence of terrorist financing through digital assets. The expanded scope of the terrorism financing rules includes crypto transactions and gives the government the power to freeze bank accounts.