Nigerian innovator launches first active Bitcoin Lightning node in the country
JOSEPH HALL - Coin Telegraph
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The Lightning Network has struck the earth in one of the most challenging operating environments. Lagos, the capital of Nigeria — Africa’s most populous country — welcomed a new Bitcoin Lightning Network (LN) node this week, a vital step to better connect the continent to the layer-2 payments network that sits atop Bitcoin.
The node runs on an old laptop powered by a diesel generator, as Lagos regularly experiences energy and electricity blackouts.
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In a discussion with Cointelegraph, Megasley, who operates the first Nigerian Lightning node of 2023 and the first active Lightning node in the country (other nodes are dormant), shared his vision for bringing instant, low-cost payments to Africa thanks to the LN.
”Light takes 50 milliseconds to cross the earth. This is quick, but with many hops, these milliseconds can add up. And when you’re standing at a point of sale waiting for your payment to clear, it can be frustrating.”
Megasley explained his wish for Africans to have payments that are instant and as close to free as possible. “If a Nigerian Bitcoiner and a Nigerian retailer are both connected to a node in Nigeria, it will give them the best Lightning experience,” Megasley added.
According to the explorer services Mempool and Amboss, the operator is currently the only active node on the map in Nigeria. By spinning up the node, the operator aims to make Lightning payments as accessible as possible to Africans.
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When asked about the importance of building out an extensive network of nodes across the globe to facilitate Bitcoin payments, the node runner explained, “If Bitcoin is to succeed, it must become a better, easier, faster medium of exchange than the incumbents. To get there, we need to build out an extensive network of nodes across the globe to facilitate these payments.”
Megasley also touched on Bitcoin price volatility and its perception in Africa: “People talk about the problem of volatility, but this is nothing when you live in a place where your money could easily lose half its value in a year.”
“Africa has rotten money controlled by rotten people, and this is why we need Bitcoin. We will take the power of money away from them so that the enormous potential of the African people can thrive."
Indeed, there has been a surge in Bitcoin adoption among the countries that use the Central African franc, bolstered by Bitcoin conferences and forums in Senegal and Ghana. Although Nigeria has shown promising signs of Bitcoin adoption, such as legal tender discussion, the legacy financial system has imposed further restrictions in 2023.
For example, Nigerians will only be allowed to withdraw $44 dollars per week per individual and a maximum of $11,000 for businesses in 2023, as per the government’s efforts to phase out cash. As a reminder, Bitcoin has no limits or restrictions for its use. To transact freely on the Bitcoin network, users require only a phone and an internet connection.
The establishment of a Bitcoin Lightning node in Nigeria is a significant step toward increasing accessibility and adoption of the cryptocurrency in the country and the continent as a whole. Ultimately, Megasley hopes to empower individuals and businesses in Africa to take control of their financial future.
Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul Charged For ‘Touting’ Illegal Crypto Scheme
By Brandon Drey - The Daily Wire
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Former Disney star Lindsay Lohan and YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul are two celebrities among several others that face federal charges for illegally touting crypto asset securities from a digital currency entrepreneur.
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges Wednesday against crypto asset entrepreneur Justin Sun and three of his companies — Tron Foundation Limited, BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., and Rainberry Inc. (formerly BitTorrent) — for the unregistered offer and sale of crypto asset securities Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT).
The commission accused Sun and his companies of “orchestrating a scheme to pay celebrities to tout TRX and BTT without disclosing their compensation,” which included Lohan, Paul, and DeAndre Cortez Way, otherwise known as American rapper Soulja Boy.
Authorities also named musicians Austin Mahone, Miles Parks McCollum (Lil Yachty), Shaffer Smith (Ne-Yo), Aliaune Thiam (Akon), and adult actress Michele Mason (Kendra Lust) in the complaint.
According to the complaint, unregistered offers and sales violate Section 5 of the Securities Act, which requires all issuers to register non-exempt securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a news release that such charges demonstrate the high risk investors face when crypto asset securities are offered and sold without proper disclosure.
“Sun and his companies not only targeted U.S. investors in their unregistered offers and sales, generating millions in illegal proceeds at the expense of investors, but they also coordinated wash trading on an unregistered trading platform to create the misleading appearance of active trading in TRX,” Gensler said. “Sun further induced investors to purchase TRX and BTT by orchestrating a promotional campaign in which he and his celebrity promoters hid the fact that the celebrities were paid for their tweets.”
According to the complainant, the celebrities fraudulently manipulated the crypto market for Sun’s companies by extensive wash trading, which allegedly involved purchasing and selling securities “to make it appear actively traded without an actual change in beneficial ownership.”
“While we’re neutral about the technologies at issue, we’re anything but neutral when it comes to investor protection,” Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, said.
Grewal called Sun’s move an “age-old playbook” intended to mislead and harm investors, which offers securities without registration and disclosure compliance before manipulating the market for such securities.
“Sun paid celebrities with millions of social media followers to tout the unregistered offerings, while specifically directing that they not disclose their compensation,” he said. “This is the very conduct that the federal securities laws were designed to protect against regardless of the labels Sun and others used.”
Aside from Soulja Boy and singer Austin Mahone, the celebrities accused of touting Sun’s crypto scheme have agreed to pay more than $400,000 in interest and penalties to settle the charges. However, the accused has neither admitted nor denied the allegations.
Andrew Brettler, a lawyer for Lohan, told Reuters the actress was unaware of the disclosure requirements until last March.
“From the outset, she cooperated with the SEC’s investigation and ultimately agreed to disgorge the small amount of money she received and paid a fine to resolve this matter,” her attorney Andrew Brettler said in an emailed statement to the outlet.
Lawyers for Sun and the others named in the complaint either could not be identified, declined to comment, or did not respond immediately to requests for comment.