#cryptocurrency nodes

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Running a uPlexa Node: Empowering Decentralization and Efficiency

What is a Node? Photo by Merlin Lightpainting on Pexels.com In the world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology, a node refers to a computer that participates in the network of a particular blockchain. Nodes are crucial components of a decentralized system, as they store, verify, and propagate the blockchain’s data. Every time a transaction is made or a new block is added, nodes across…

[iastrobeing]

Link to video

https://www.uhive.com/m/984681841445

[financialfreedomforever]

Soon, I will have a referral link for a cryptocurrency investing program I use for anyone who is interested. 🪽

[zarazyana]

What Is Node Sale Launchpad Development and How Does It Work?

As blockchain technology continues to evolve, new mechanisms are emerging to support decentralized networks and community-based projects. One such innovation is the concept of node sale launchpads, a specialized platform that facilitates the sale and distribution of blockchain nodes to stakeholders. In this blog, we’ll dive into the concept of node sale launchpad development, its components, its advantages, and how it works within the broader blockchain landscape.

Introduction to Node Sale Launchpads

Node sale launchpads are platforms designed to help blockchain projects decentralize by enabling users to purchase, operate, and contribute to network nodes. Nodes are essential for network security, validation, and decentralization, and node sale launchpads provide a structured way for projects to scale their networks while engaging a community of dedicated participants.

Key Components of Node Sale Launchpad Development

Node Infrastructure Management

Node Types: Nodes vary in functionality across different blockchain networks, from simple validating nodes to complex master nodes. Defining node requirements based on network protocol (e.g., PoS or DPoS) is fundamental to the launchpad’s development.

Node Management Tools: Effective node infrastructure management requires tools for setting up, monitoring, and maintaining nodes across various geographic regions and servers. The goal is to ensure that all nodes are operational and provide real-time insights on node performance.

Smart Contract Integration

Automated Smart Contracts: Smart contracts control the automated sale, distribution, and validation of nodes. These contracts can manage node registration, staking requirements, and rewards distribution securely and without manual intervention.

Staking Requirements: Many node sale platforms incorporate staking mechanisms to ensure participants are committed to maintaining the network. Smart contracts validate these staking requirements to qualify participants.

User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX)

Dashboard: The user dashboard is where participants can view available nodes for purchase, check staking requirements, and monitor earnings. A well-designed UI/UX is critical for attracting participants, ensuring ease of use, and providing transparency.

Wallet Integration: The launchpad should support multiple crypto wallets, allowing users to connect their wallets to view funds, purchase nodes, and receive rewards directly.

Payment and Token Integration

Multi-Currency Support: To maximize accessibility, the platform should support payments in multiple cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. This requires developing a secure, multi-currency payment gateway.

Token Utility and Rewards: Integrate the native token of the blockchain network (if applicable) as a utility token for transactions on the launchpad. Incentivize node operators by offering rewards or staking bonuses.

Security and Compliance

KYC/AML Compliance: Depending on jurisdictional requirements, the platform may need to implement Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures to verify participant identities.

Platform Security: Given that node sale launchpads deal with high-value assets, security protocols are essential. Multi-signature wallets, secure APIs, and encrypted databases should be part of the security framework.

Analytics and Reporting

Real-Time Monitoring: A robust analytics module enables participants to monitor node performance, ROI, and network health. Real-time reporting can also display earnings and incentivize participation.

Blockchain Explorer Integration: Connect with blockchain explorers to verify node transactions, staking, and rewards distribution.

How Node Sale Launchpads Work: Step-by-Step Process

Node Sale Preparation

Define Node Sale Parameters: Developers determine key metrics such as the number of nodes available for sale, the minimum staking amount, rewards structure, and duration of the sale.

Smart Contract Deployment: Smart contracts are deployed to automate the sale, set staking requirements, and distribute rewards to node participants.

User Participation and KYC Verification

Registration: Users sign up on the launchpad platform and complete any necessary KYC checks if required by the project.

Wallet Connection: Users connect their wallets to the platform, enabling them to view the node sale and make purchases.

Node Purchase and Staking

Purchasing Nodes: Users select the nodes they wish to purchase or operate, pay the required fee, and stake the designated amount.

Smart Contract Validation: The smart contract verifies that the user meets the staking requirements, registers the node in the network, and updates the blockchain with the transaction.

Node Operation and Rewards Distribution

Running Nodes: Once purchased, nodes start operating on the network, participating in tasks such as transaction validation, network governance, or data storage, depending on the blockchain’s structure.

Rewards Distribution: As nodes perform their roles, rewards accumulate. Smart contracts automatically distribute these rewards to node operators at regular intervals.

Ongoing Monitoring and Support

Platform Maintenance: The development team monitors node performance and provides support for issues that may arise, such as technical difficulties or security threats.

Community Engagement: Successful node sale platforms prioritize ongoing engagement with their node operators, fostering a supportive community and addressing questions or concerns.

Advantages of Node Sale Launchpad Development

Decentralization and Security

Node sale launchpads promote network decentralization by distributing control to multiple operators rather than concentrating it within a single entity, enhancing the security and resilience of the blockchain.

Enhanced Community Participation

Node sale launchpads attract a committed group of supporters who contribute to the project’s growth and integrity. These community members become active stakeholders, fostering loyalty and advocacy.

Revenue Generation for Projects

By offering node ownership or operation as a service, blockchain projects can generate additional revenue streams, which can be used to fund further development and expansion.

Efficient Staking Mechanism

Node sale launchpads provide a streamlined staking process, allowing participants to stake tokens easily, earn rewards, and understand their return on investment (ROI) without complex setup requirements.

Transparent Reward Distribution

Automated smart contracts ensure that rewards are distributed transparently and efficiently. This transparency builds trust with users, who are assured they’ll receive fair compensation for their contributions.

Challenges in Node Sale Launchpad Development

High Development and Maintenance Costs

Building a secure and scalable node sale launchpad requires significant investment in both development and ongoing maintenance. These costs can be challenging for smaller blockchain projects.

Regulatory Compliance Issues

Depending on the jurisdiction, node sales may be subject to various regulatory requirements. Compliance with these regulations can be complex and requires a legal framework to ensure the platform’s legitimacy.

Security Threats and Risks

Node sale platforms can be attractive targets for hackers. Effective security protocols, such as encryption, multi-signature wallets, and secure data storage, are essential to minimize risks.

User Education and Adoption

For many participants, the concept of operating nodes and understanding staking can be complex. Educating users about how node sale launchpads work and the benefits of participation is crucial to the platform’s success.

Scalability and Network Congestion

As the number of nodes and participants increases, the platform must be able to scale without causing network congestion or slowdowns. Scalability solutions, such as sharding or layer-two integration, may be necessary.

Future of Node Sale Launchpad Development

The future of node sale launchpads looks promising as more blockchain projects embrace decentralization and community governance. Here are some key trends:

Integration with Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)

Many projects are adopting DAO structures, allowing node operators to participate in governance decisions. Node sale launchpads will likely become integrated with DAOs, empowering users with voting rights and decision-making power.

Cross-Chain Node Launchpad Platforms

As cross-chain technology evolves, node sale launchpads may become compatible with multiple blockchain networks. This will increase accessibility, enabling participants to operate nodes on various networks through a single platform.

AI-Powered Monitoring and Optimization

AI-driven tools can enhance the efficiency and reliability of node operations, predicting network issues, optimizing resource allocation, and automatically adjusting parameters for maximum performance.

Tokenization and Fractional Ownership of Nodes

Tokenization could enable fractional ownership of nodes, allowing more participants to contribute to node operations without the full capital requirement. This trend can democratize node participation further.

Conclusion

Node sale launchpad development presents a valuable opportunity for blockchain projects seeking to decentralize and engage with their communities. By providing a platform for node operation and staking, node sale launchpads empower users to support blockchain networks while earning rewards. Despite challenges related to security, regulatory compliance, and user education, node sale launchpads represent a step forward in decentralized blockchain infrastructure.

[otiskeene]

Understanding Types Of Blockchain Nodes And How They Work

Have you ever envisioned a world where money is secondary, but reputation reigns supreme? If so, then you might be interested in Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, a novel by Cory Doctorow. This intriguing sci-fi story introduces a world where people are rewarded with "Whuffie," a digital currency that reflects their social standing. Sounds familiar? Well, buckle up because this concept is no longer confined to fiction.

Thanks to blockchain technology, the foundation of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, the idea of a world where reputation translates into currency is becoming increasingly plausible. But how exactly does this work, and what could it mean for our future?

Imagine this: a sprawling network of computers, each acting as a node within the blockchain, collectively maintaining a shared ledger of every transaction ever made. These nodes are the protectors of the blockchain's integrity—like a global team of accountants verifying every entry. But there's much more to it than just accounting.

To better understand how this works, let’s explore the basics of blockchain nodes and their various types. Keep reading!

TechDogs - "Understanding Types of Blockchain Nodes and How They Function"

Curious about how Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies operate? Welcome to the fascinating world of blockchain, where trust is established not by blind faith, but by a network of smart, interconnected nodes.

However, not all nodes are the same. In fact, the blockchain ecosystem includes a variety of nodes, each with a specific function. As of February 2024, there are roughly 18,000 public nodes running on the Bitcoin network. This extensive network of nodes ensures the resilience and decentralization that make blockchain revolutionary!

Intrigued? You've come to the right place because we’re about to dive deep into the world of blockchain and uncover the different types of blockchain nodes and how they operate.

But first, let’s take a closer look at what blockchain nodes are!

What Are Blockchain Nodes?

Picture a global network of computers, all working together to maintain an enormous digital ledger. That’s blockchain, and each computer in this network is called a node. These nodes hold a copy of the entire transaction history, ensuring that no single entity controls the data. This makes blockchain extremely secure, decentralized, and transparent.

These nodes come in various forms, each serving a particular role and facing specific limitations. Some nodes validate transactions, others store data, and some even help create new blocks on the blockchain. Together, they form a resilient network that supports the entire blockchain ecosystem. Now that we know what blockchain nodes are, how exactly do they work?

Let’s delve into that!

How Do Blockchain Nodes Function?

When a new transaction occurs, nodes collaborate to verify its authenticity. They check if the sender has enough funds, if the transaction follows the network’s rules, and if it has been tampered with. Once validated, the transaction details are added to a “block,” a collection of transactions that form a long “chain” of transaction history—hence the name “blockchain.”

Here’s where it gets interesting: nodes compete to add the next block to the blockchain. This process, known as "mining" or "validating," involves solving complex mathematical puzzles. The first node to solve the puzzle gets to add the block, earning a reward in return. This competition incentivizes nodes to participate in the network, ensuring its security and decentralization.

The system's strength lies in its redundancy. Since every node holds a copy of the blockchain, the network remains functional even if some nodes fail or act maliciously. Now you can see why blockchain networks are renowned for their security!

Now, let’s explore the different types of blockchain nodes.

What Are the Types of Blockchain Nodes?

If the blockchain were a bustling factory, then nodes would be its diverse workforce, each with a specific role to play. Let’s meet some of the key players:

Full Node: Full nodes are the backbone of the blockchain, storing the entire transaction history and verifying each transaction to maintain the network’s integrity. They also broadcast new transactions and blocks to keep everyone in sync. When it comes to blockchain governance, full nodes have significant influence. Their collective decisions shape the future of the network—like the leaders of blockchain.

Lightning Node: Lightning nodes address issues like blockchain congestion and high fees. These nodes create a separate, faster lane for transactions, enabling low-cost and quick exchanges. They’re invaluable for blockchains struggling with slow processing times or expensive fees.

Miner Nodes: Miner nodes are the engines of Proof-of-Work blockchains. They use computational power to solve complex puzzles, competing to add new blocks and earn rewards. The first miner to solve the puzzle gets to append the next block, keeping the system running smoothly.

RPC Nodes: RPC (Remote Procedure Call) nodes act as the blockchain’s customer service agents. They handle external requests, allowing users to retrieve data, send transactions, and check the network’s status. They bridge the gap between the blockchain and the outside world, making the network more user-friendly.

Validator Nodes: Validator nodes are the architects of the blockchain, chosen based on their reputation and stake in the network. They have the authority to create and validate new blocks, ensuring the blockchain’s integrity. A system of checks and balances keeps them honest.

Authority Nodes: Authority nodes strike a balance between efficiency and centralization. In some blockchains, these nodes hold special privileges, such as managing new node authorization or block creation. While this streamlines operations, it introduces a degree of centralized control.

Super Nodes: Supernodes are the specialists within the blockchain ecosystem. They handle essential tasks like enforcing rules or facilitating software upgrades. Although less common, supernodes play a crucial role in maintaining the network’s health and functionality.

In Conclusion

Each type of blockchain node plays a unique and essential role, like instruments in an orchestra, creating a harmonious symphony. Together, they ensure the blockchain’s security, efficiency, and accessibility. Whether it’s the authority nodes with special privileges or the lightning nodes facilitating fast transactions, understanding the role of blockchain nodes is key to unlocking the full potential of this groundbreaking technology.

As the saying goes, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

[softwaredynamism]

Decentralized Networks: A New Era Powered by Developers.

passionate developers, are redefining the internet. This transformation isn’t merely a technological shift

but a reimagining of how power, freedom, and transparency can be restored to users. At the heart of this

revolution lies the ingenuity and relentless drive of developers, who are challenging the status quo and

building the infrastructure for a new, decentralized world.

The Foundation of Decentralization

Decentralization is fundamentally about distributing control away from central authorities. In the context of

networks, this means creating systems where no single entity has unilateral power, fostering resilience,

and democratizing access.

Key Components of Decentralized Networks:

● Distributed Ledgers: These are the backbone of decentralized networks, ensuring that data is

spread across a network of nodes, making it nearly impossible for a single point of failure to bring

down the system.

● Peer-to-Peer Interactions: By eliminating intermediaries, peer-to-peer networks enable direct

interactions between users, reducing costs and enhancing privacy.

● Consensus Mechanisms: From Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS), consensus

mechanisms are crucial for maintaining the integrity of decentralized networks. For instance,

Ethereum's shift from PoW to PoS not only increased network security but also reduced its energy

consumption, setting a new standard for blockchain sustainability.

● Smart Contracts: The Heart of Decentralized Applications (dApps) Smart contracts are

self-executing agreements with the terms directly coded into them. These contracts have

revolutionized the blockchain space by enabling trustless interactions, leading to the rise of

decentralized applications (dApps). A key moment in the history of smart contracts was the DAO

hack in 2016, which highlighted both their potential and the critical need for robust security

measures in their development.

● Tokenomics: Aligning Incentives in a Decentralized World Tokenomics refers to the economic

models that govern decentralized networks. These models align the interests of all participants,

from developers to users, ensuring that everyone benefits from the network's growth. Koii's

Compute Attribution and Reputation Protocol (CARP) exemplifies innovative tokenomics by

rewarding developers fairly for their contributions, fostering a sustainable ecosystem.

Koii's Commitment to Developer Empowerment: The Koii Grants

Program

To further support developers in this decentralized revolution, Koii has established the Koii Grants

Program. This initiative is designed to provide financial support to innovative projects that align with Koii's

mission of building a decentralized future. The grants program offers developers the resources they need

to explore new ideas, scale their projects, and contribute to the growth of the decentralized ecosystem

without the traditional reliance on venture capital.

By providing funding through the Koii Grants Program, Koii not only fosters innovation but also ensures

that the projects receiving support are in line with the community’s values and the decentralized ethos.

This initiative is a critical part of Koii's broader strategy to empower developers, making it easier for them

to drive the decentralized revolution forward.

Overcoming Scalability Challenges

As decentralized networks expand, maintaining speed and efficiency becomes increasingly difficult.

Solutions like Layer 2 scaling, sharding, and novel consensus mechanisms are being developed to

address these challenges. Koii's Succinct Curated Acyclic Ledger Extensions (SCALEs) offer a promising

approach, enabling efficient archiving of large event streams without compromising on performance.

Interoperability: The Next Frontier

The future of decentralized networks lies in their ability to communicate and interact seamlessly with one

another. Projects like Polkadot are pioneering cross-chain communication, allowing diverse blockchains to

interoperate while maintaining their unique features.

Conclusion: A New Path Forward

As we move further into the decentralized era, developers remain the driving force behind these networks.

They are not just building applications but are reshaping the very fabric of the internet. The journey

towards true decentralization is ongoing, with challenges in scalability, governance, and adoption still to be

fully resolved. However, the rapid pace of innovation and the passionate community of developers give

reason for optimism. The question now is: How will you, as a developer or user, contribute to this.

To begin your koii journey start of here :

https://www.koii.network/node?promo=5BA0BC1D350E

It rewards you.

In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, a revolution is taking place. Decentralized networks, driven by

[nigeriabitcoincommunity]

3 Top Ways to Earn Crypto Passive Income in 2024

Today, we will discuss the latest ways to make passive income in 2024. Ways of earning some free money abound, especially in the cryptocurrency space. I will tell you how to make money passively in crypto and how to go about it. Without wasting any more time, let’s get started. Ways to Earn Passive Income in 2024 If you have been in the crypto space for some time now, you will agree that…

[skshorts]

How To Buy, Sell, and Earn Crypto Income With Cryptocurrency, NFTs, and Nodes

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum present new opportunities to generate income beyond just investing in the assets. With the right strategies, you can buy, sell, and establish passive crypto cash flow using cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and nodes. Buying Your First Cryptocurrency The first step is acquiring digital currency to begin crypto money-making: Use exchanges – Platforms like Coinbase…

[icryptobeing]

Theta Airdrop: Lavita Subchain

Untitled

[eriumzone]

Use the most profitable nodes in cryptocurrency offered by Erium

[canmom]

Hypothetical Decentralised Social Media Protocol Stack

if we were to dream up the Next Social Media from first principles we face three problems. one is scaling hosting, the second is discovery/aggregation, the third is moderation.

hosting

hosting for millions of users is very very expensive. you have to have a network of datacentres around the world and mechanisms to sync the data between them. you probably use something like AWS, and they will charge you an eye-watering amount of money for it. since it's so expensive, there's no way to break even except by either charging users to access your service (which people generally hate to do) or selling ads, the ability to intrude on their attention to the highest bidder (which people also hate, and go out of their way to filter out). unless you have a lot of money to burn, this is a major barrier.

the traditional internet hosts everything on different servers, and you use addresses that point you to that server. the problem with this is that it responds poorly to sudden spikes in attention. if you self-host your blog, you can get DDOSed entirely by accident. you can use a service like cloudflare to protect you but that's $$$. you can host a blog on a service like wordpress, or a static site on a service like Github Pages or Neocities, often for free, but that broadly limits interaction to people leaving comments on your blog and doesn't have the off-the-cuff passing-thought sort of interaction that social media does.

the middle ground is forums, which used to be the primary form of social interaction before social media eclipsed them, typically running on one or a few servers with a database + frontend. these are viable enough, often they can be run with fairly minimal ads or by user subscriptions (the SomethingAwful model), but they can't scale indefinitely, and each one is a separate bubble. mastodon is a semi-return to this model, with the addition of a means to use your account on one bubble to interact with another ('federation').

the issue with everything so far is that it's an all-eggs-in-one-basket approach. you depend on the forum, instance, or service paying its bills to stay up. if it goes down, it's just gone. and database-backend models often interact poorly with the internet archive's scraping, so huge chunks won't be preserved.

scaling hosting could theoretically be solved by a model like torrents or IPFS, in which every user becomes a 'server' for all the posts they download, and you look up files using hashes of the content. if a post gets popular, it also gets better seeded! an issue with that design is archival: there is no guarantee that stuff will stay on the network, so if nobody is downloading a post, it is likely to get flushed out by newer stuff. it's like link rot, but it happens automatically.

IPFS solves this by 'pinning': you order an IPFS node (e.g. your server) not to flush a certain file so it will always be available from at least one source. they've sadly mixed this up in cryptocurrency, with 'pinning services' which will take payment in crypto to pin your data. my distaste for a technology designed around red queen races aside, I don't know how pinning costs compare to regular hosting costs.

theoretically you could build a social network on a backbone of content-based addressing. it would come with some drawbacks (posts would be immutable, unless you use some indirection to a traditional address-based hosting) but i think you could make it work (a mix of location-based addressing for low-bandwidth stuff like text, and content-based addressing for inline media). in fact, IPFS has the ability to mix in a bit of address-based lookup into its content-based approach, used for hosting blogs and the like.

as for videos - well, BitTorrent is great for distributing video files. though I don't know how well that scales to something like Youtube. you'd need a lot of hard drive space to handle the amount of Youtube that people typically watch and continue seeding it.

aggregation/discovery

the next problem is aggregation/discovery. social media sites approach this problem in various ways. early social media sites like LiveJournal had a somewhat newsgroup-like approach, you'd join a 'community' and people would post stuff to that community. this got replaced by the subscription model of sites like Twitter and Tumblr, where every user is simultaneously an author and a curator, and you subscribe to someone to see what posts they want to share.

this in turn got replaced by neural network-driven algorithms which attempt to guess what you'll want to see and show you stuff that's popular with whatever it thinks your demographic is. that's gotta go, or at least not be an intrinsic part of the social network anymore.

it would be easy enough to replicate the 'subscribe to see someone's recommended stuff' model, you just need a protocol for pointing people at stuff. (getting analytics such as like/reblog counts would be more difficult!) it would probably look similar to RSS feeds: you upload a list of suitably formatted data, and programs which speak that protocol can download it.

the problem of discovery - ways to find strangers who are interested in the same stuff you are - is more tricky. if we're trying to design this as a fully decentralised, censorship-resistant network, we face the spam problem. any means you use to broadcast 'hi, i exist and i like to talk about this thing, come interact with me' can be subverted by spammers. either you restrict yourself entirely to spreading across a network of curated recommendations, or you have to have moderation.

moderation

moderation is one of the hardest problems of social networks as they currently exist. it's both a problem of spam (the posts that users want to see getting swamped by porn bots or whatever) and legality (they're obliged to remove child porn, beheading videos and the like). the usual solution is a combination of AI shit - does the robot think this looks like a naked person - and outsourcing it to poorly paid workers in (typically) African countries, whose job is to look at reports of the most traumatic shit humans can come up with all day and confirm whether it's bad or not.

for our purposes, the hypothetical decentralised network is a protocol to help computers find stuff, not a platform. we can't control how people use it, and if we're not hosting any of the bad shit, it's not on us. but spam moderation is a problem any time that people can insert content you did not request into your feed.

possibly this is where you could have something like Mastodon instances, with their own moderation rules, but crucially, which don't host the content they aggregate. so instead of having 'an account on an instance', you have a stable address on the network, and you submit it to various directories so people can find you. by keeping each one limited in scale, it makes moderation more feasible. this is basically Reddit's model: you have topic-based hubs which people can subscribe to, and submit stuff to.

the other moderation issue is that there is no mechanism in this design to protect from mass harassment. if someone put you on the K*w*f*rms List of Degenerate Trannies To Suicidebait, there'd be fuck all you can do except refuse to receive contact from strangers. though... that's kind of already true of the internet as it stands. nobody has solved this problem.

to sum up

primarily static sites 'hosted' partly or fully on IPFS and BitTorrent

a protocol for sharing content you want to promote, similar to RSS, that you can aggregate into a 'feed'

directories you can submit posts to which handle their own moderation

no ads, nobody makes money off this

honestly, the biggest problem with all this is mostly just... getting it going in the first place. because let's be real, who but tech nerds is going to use a system that requires you to understand fuckin IPFS? until it's already up and running, this idea's got about as much hope as getting people to sign each others' GPG keys. it would have to have the sharp edges sanded down, so it's as easy to get on the Hypothetical Decentralised Social Network Protocol Stack as it is to register an account on tumblr.

but running over it like this... I don't think it's actually impossible in principle. a lot of the technical hurdles have already been solved. and that's what I want the Next Place to look like.

[mariacallous]

In roughly two months, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will take office and, according to his campaign promises, work to end the ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, and the broader Middle East. On Iran, a second Trump term will look like his first, with the administration almost certain to reinstate its maximum pressure campaign to further weaken Tehran.

In all these instances, a key issue Trump will need to address is the revenue streams of the axis of resistance—Iranian-backed proxies operating in the region. Groups like Hezbollah, Hamas, Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the Houthis, and other Iran-backed factions remain surprisingly robust through their diverse financial streams—even after the first Trump administration successfully weakened the Iranian economy through extensive sanctions. This time, Trump will need to go beyond financial sanctions and target the full revenue portfolio of these groups, particularly Hezbollah. The Lebanese group has proven remarkably resilient through a diverse funding portfolio, which includes criminal enterprise. Multilateral cooperation will be the only way to dismantle this activity, which spans from Latin America to West Africa and beyond.

While most of the coverage of the post-Oct. 7, 2023, war in the Middle East has focused on the kinetic aspects of Iran’s proxy network, less attention has been paid to its financing. After months of imposing sanctions on the key players and revenue streams of Hamas and Hezbollah, Israel bombed al-Qard al-Hasan association this past October—Hezbollah’s main cash source. According to some researchers, the strikes have significantly impacted Hezbollah’s financial situation, and the group is also facing increasing difficulties accessing the Lebanese banking system.

Hezbollah owes the lion’s share of its budget to state sponsorship from Iran, which provides the “Party of God” with hundreds of millions of dollars per year—reportedly as much as $800 million, according to some estimates. But beyond that significant financial windfall, Hezbollah has cultivated a global network of money-making schemes, such as drug trafficking, fraud, and the abuse of cryptocurrencies. By “going global,” Hezbollah understands that it makes the group’s activities more difficult to trace, operating between the various seams of national laws, authorities, and policies.

The most crucial challenge awaiting the Trump administration in redressing this issue is getting countries that form nodes in the supply chain of Hezbollah’s criminal enterprise to help crack down on its illicit activities. For some countries, it may be a matter of political will; for others, capabilities; and for some, both. U.S. diplomacy should be able to address the matter of political will, while security cooperation, intelligence-sharing, and building partner capacity can help mitigate the capabilities challenge. But in an era of great-power competition, with rivalries trumping cooperation in many instances, Hezbollah is betting that the lack of international coordination will allow its criminal activities to continue unabated.

West Africa plays a crucial role in Hezbollah’s criminal activities beyond the Middle East, particularly through the significant Shiite Lebanese diaspora in Ivory Coast and Guinea. Elements within these communities are integral to Hezbollah’s lucrative operations, not just through the payment of zakat to the group—an annual charitable and religious payment that forms one of the five pillars of Islam—but also through aiding and abetting smuggling and money-laundering operations. This money can then be transferred through hawaladars, bulk cash smuggling, or front charities. In past Hezbollah money-laundering schemes in West Africa, money was funneled through networks of money couriers.

Profits from drug trafficking and diamond sales are, for example, funneled through Ivory Coast and Guinea to Hezbollah’s war chest, facilitating the laundering of funds and making it significantly more complex for law enforcement to track its financing streams. For instance, Hezbollah’s transnational drug trafficking network collaborates with South American cartels in Mexico and Colombia to route drug money through West Africa, the profits of which ultimately bolster the group’s finances. While it remains opaque how much of Hezbollah’s financing is derived from its money-laundering operations through West Africa, profits from drug trafficking are known to be a significant share of Hezbollah’s revenue. Roughly 40 percent of Hezbollah’s revenue is reportedly from its drug trafficking trade.

The transnational nature of its drug trafficking schemes is not new. In the 1990s, Hezbollah started to oversee the growth of illicit crops, particularly poppies used to produce heroin and hashish in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, the profits from which it funneled to its operations. In the early 2000s, Hezbollah also worked with South American narcotics networks, gaining a significant foothold in the infamous Tri-Border Area, the largely ungoverned territory between Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, where criminal groups take advantage of jurisdictional arbitrage. Also in the 2000s, profits Hezbollah reaped from cocaine trafficking in Latin America were funneled to its war chest by an elaborate scheme that included shipping secondhand American cars to Benin, which the local Lebanese diaspora then sold through car dealerships. The profits went from West Africa to Hezbollah in Lebanon through a network of money couriers.

Terrorist financing has long been connected to both the participation in transnational organized crime by terrorist groups and cooperation between terrorist and criminal organizations—the so-called “crime-terror nexus.” The go-to playbook of illicit narcotics trafficking has been repeatedly copied by terrorist groups in the region and beyond. Most recently, Captagon, a form of fenethylline of which about 80 percent is produced in Syria, has become vital in supporting the activities of Iranian-backed militias throughout the Middle East. This drug financially reinforces Iran’s axis of resistance through its trade, while simultaneously suppressing fear in militias committing atrocities through its abuse. It has spread quickly throughout the region. Multiple Hamas fighters captured and killed by the Israel Defense Forces allegedly had the meth-like drug on them, likely used to suppress fear as they killed and sexually assaulted civilians.

Captagon, the drug of choice by Islamic State terrorists during their caliphate, has become especially important for Hezbollah, supporting its operations and replenishing its weapons arsenal as the Israel-Hamas war rages on. In addition, Captagon has provided a financial lifeline for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose brother Maher controls the trade. It has become a regional phenomenon that, according to experts, is poised to expand globally in the coming months ahead. Captagon facilities under Hezbollah’s control in the Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon remain active and form a crucial lifeline after all the tactical setbacks Hezbollah has endured since the Israel-Hamas conflict kicked off more than a year ago.

Like Hezbollah, Hamas’s criminal activities are more complex than just money laundering through drug trafficking. The group has searched to hedge against risk by diversifying its funding operations. Hamas and PIJ, for example, have been actively abusing blockchain technology to solicit donations in cryptocurrency, which has drawn funding globally. The U.S. Treasury Department and other counterterrorism financing entities remain behind the curve when it comes to blunting terrorist groups’ use of virtual currencies, especially so-called “privacy tokens,” which are cryptocurrencies designed to make the tracing of transactions impossible by obfuscating the sender, receiver, and transaction amount.

While various counterterrorism financing bodies have sought to crack down on this issue, it is especially the U.S. Treasury and the Israeli National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) that have seized crypto wallets from terrorist organizations and sanctioned cryptocurrency addresses used by terrorist financing schemes. Soon after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, the U.S. Treasury Department, for example, sanctioned Buy Cash, a cryptocurrency exchange based in Gaza, for providing funding to al-Qassam Brigades. In March, the NBCTF published a January seizure order against Gaza Now, a media outlet that collected donations for Hamas, including in cryptocurrency.

In September, federal police in Argentina arrested four people suspected of financing Hezbollah through cryptocurrency transfers, for a total of 1.8 billion Argentine pesos. Hamas has also used the guise of charitable foundations to fund its operations. For example, Italy-based Hamas member Mohammad Hannoun established the Charity Association of Solidarity with the Palestinian People to bankroll Hamas’s military operations. According to the U.S. Treasury, as of early 2024, Hamas may have received as much as $10 million a month in donations through its use of sham and front charities.

Iran, the grand benefactor of militant groups from Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades to Hezbollah, is another case in point of the crime-terror nexus and the importance of its transnational scope. Tehran is also involved in extensive money laundering efforts through narcotics trafficking to fund militant groups under its patronage. Outside of the Middle East, in Europe, Iran is increasingly relying on criminal networks to carry out attacks against dissidents, journalists reporting in Farsi, Israeli citizens and diplomats, and Jews.

The topic of terrorist innovation is critical to understanding the resiliency of groups like Hamas and Hezbollah in continuing to target Israel after the elimination of much of their leadership. In response to the traceability of Bitcoin transactions, for instance, Islamic State in Khorasan has reportedly shifted to Monero as its cryptocurrency of choice to solicit donations due to its strict privacy features, and other groups will inevitably follow suit.

To effectively combat the finances of militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, policymakers must move beyond simply aligning with other nations that also classify these organizations as terrorist entities. Forming a coalition of the willing is naive at best, and counterproductive at worst. It is essential to engage with countries that are part of the supply chain of these organizations’ criminal activities. For example, to disrupt Hezbollah’s transnational funding networks, the United States, Israel, and others must engage with South American and West African countries that are used to funnel profits. This approach will require reciprocal, tit-for-tat diplomatic efforts to encourage these partners to assist in interrupting financial flows while also addressing their own domestic- or foreign-policy priorities to build goodwill. This could involve unfreezing certain assets currently held in abeyance by the U.S. Treasury, in exchange for measurable progress on anti-money laundering initiatives and counternarcotics programs. If the Trump administration follows the advice of some crypto supporters in dismantling or rolling back anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing tools, it will lose credibility in pushing other countries to tighten restrictions and implement tougher laws.

There are some concrete, proactive steps, too: Hezbollah’s drug labs should not be able to continue production unfettered. In January, Jordan launched airstrikes inside Syria against suspected Tehran-linked drug warehouses. The drug labs in Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon should also be forcibly closed. As long as the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) do not have the capabilities to do so, Lebanese allies need to reinforce the LAF and crack down where possible.

Only a combination of kinetic and non-kinetic activities, including diplomacy, intelligence-sharing, and building partner capacity, can succeed in putting a dent in Hezbollah’s vast financial network. Unless the United States and its allies can follow the money and then seriously disrupt it, Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies will continue to finance their organizations through the crime-terror nexus. The interconnected nature of the crime-terror nexus necessitates a coordinated, transnational response, proving that it takes a network to defeat a network.

[lejel-labs-global]

Membongkar Teknologi Blockchain: Tulang Punggung Cryptocurrency

Blockchain, sebuah inovasi revolusioner yang menjadi tulang punggung di balik dunia cryptocurrency, telah mengubah cara kita memandang sistem keuangan dan teknologi. Seiring dengan kemunculan Bitcoin pada tahun 2009 oleh seseorang atau sekelompok orang yang menggunakan nama samaran Satoshi Nakamoto, blockchain menjadi fondasi bagi berbagai mata uang digital dan aplikasi terdesentralisasi.

Apa Itu Blockchain?

Pada dasarnya, blockchain adalah ledger terdesentralisasi yang mencatat transaksi secara transparan dan aman. Ini adalah rangkaian blok yang saling terhubung, di mana setiap blok berisi serangkaian transaksi dan memiliki hash khusus yang merujuk pada blok sebelumnya. Dengan demikian, setiap informasi yang dimasukkan ke dalam blockchain menjadi sulit diubah atau dimanipulasi.

Keamanan yang Diberikan oleh Blockchain

Salah satu fitur utama blockchain adalah keamanannya. Karena setiap blok terkait dengan blok sebelumnya melalui hash, mengubah satu blok akan membutuhkan perubahan pada seluruh rantai blok setelahnya. Ini membuat serangan terhadap integritas data menjadi sangat sulit dan melibatkan upaya yang sangat besar.

Blockchain juga menggunakan mekanisme konsensus untuk mengonfirmasi transaksi. Bitcoin, misalnya, menggunakan Proof of Work (PoW), di mana para penambang memecahkan masalah matematika yang rumit untuk menambahkan blok baru ke blockchain. Sistem ini memerlukan daya komputasi yang signifikan untuk melindungi jaringan dari serangan.

Desentralisasi dan Transparansi

Keunikan lain dari blockchain adalah desentralisasi. Tidak ada otoritas tunggal yang mengontrol atau memiliki kepemilikan penuh atas jaringan. Setiap node dalam jaringan memiliki salinan lengkap dari blockchain, dan setiap transaksi disahkan oleh konsensus kolektif. Hal ini menghilangkan kebutuhan akan pihak ketiga, seperti bank atau lembaga keuangan, dan mengurangi risiko manipulasi atau korupsi.

Transparansi juga menjadi kunci dalam blockchain. Semua transaksi dicatat secara terbuka dan dapat diakses oleh siapa saja. Ini memberikan tingkat kepercayaan yang tinggi di antara pengguna, karena setiap orang dapat memverifikasi transaksi dengan mudah.

Penerapan Luas di Luar Cryptocurrency

Meskipun blockchain pertama kali dikenal melalui cryptocurrency, teknologi ini telah menemukan penerapan luas di berbagai industri. Misalnya, banyak perusahaan menggunakan blockchain untuk melacak rantai pasokan secara real-time, memastikan keaslian produk, dan meningkatkan efisiensi operasional.

Selain itu, konsep tokenisasi, yang memungkinkan aset fisik direpresentasikan dalam bentuk token digital di blockchain, telah membuka pintu untuk inovasi di bidang properti, seni, dan keuangan tradisional.

Kesimpulan

Blockchain telah membuktikan dirinya sebagai tulang punggung cryptocurrency dan lebih dari sekadar inovasi teknologi. Ini membawa paradigma baru dalam keamanan, desentralisasi, dan transparansi. Meskipun masih dalam tahap pengembangan, potensi penggunaan blockchain di luar cryptocurrency terus berkembang, memberikan dampak signifikan pada cara kita berinteraksi dengan dunia digital dan fisik. Sebagai teknologi yang terus berkembang, blockchain menjanjikan perubahan lebih lanjut di masa depan, melampaui batas-batas yang kita kenal saat ini.

[saturniandevil]

June 2024 Important Dates

AKA my notes on The Astrology Podcast's June Forecast. Cohost Austin Coppock is back, now as a new father!

Notable mundane alignments in May: through May 10th-13th we had intense geomagnetic storms from solar radiation cause auroras over a huge area in the world, happening right as the Sun in Taurus conjoined Uranus (electricity/unexpected) and Jupiter (expansion). On May 19th the president of Iran died in a helicopter crash due officially to poor visibility in foggy mountains (but with assassination suspected), the day Mars conjoined the North Node in Aries (with the Moon opposing them)--a date that Chris & Diana singled out last forecast as hitting eclipse points affecting world leaders & Iran specifically (during the April eclipses Iran fired back at Israel to retaliate for the destruction of its embassy). The ICC arrest warrants were also issued during this Mars-Node conjunction, a continuation of the eclipse story (both in April and October). In the sign of Aries, this is the time when hostilities became overt, and generally the Aries April eclipse was an exalted Sun being eclipsed, boding ill for leaders and heads of state. The North Node is also called "the head of the dragon," so it's fitting that leaders of three countries were affected--especially since these leaders were born under eclipses as well.

In celebrity news, Kendrick Lamar and Drake released a series of diss tracks at each other from late March to early May, also aligning with eclipse season this year. The precursor to this was a line from Like That, released March 22nd under an eclipse in Libra--Kendrick's rising sign. Drake was born after an Aries eclipse, and it was just after the April eclipse that this heated up with his track release. Mars joined the fray entering Aries and that's when the beef really heated up. Mars-Rahu (North Node) contacts indicate fights where parties cross the line because they can't see it, and indeed these shots went below the belt.

On April 30th the DEA announced it may reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drug, which Chris connects to the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus as a sudden change around a medicinal plant. Austin also connects int to Neptune in Pisces--he's been wondering if marijuana will finally be legally recognized before Neptune leaves. Also Uranus in Taurus: BitCoin and Etherium have approved ETFs now, bringing crypto to mainstream investment like retirement funds (Pluto's last peek into Capricorn is connected too, as it was invented when Pluto entered Capricorn in 2009). Also in currency, the BRICS group of nations are discussing bringing in a new currency as an alternative to the US Dollar and cryptocurrency is on the table--these talks also first began in 2009. The next BRICS meeting is in October in Russia, around the time of another eclipse. In other Saturn in Pisces finance news, Red Lobster has gone bankrupt, possibly because they gave away too much free shrimp (limits and seafood; the discussions were taking place during Mars conjunct Saturn in Pisces even though the announcement was under an Aries Mars).

We're going into the month of June just as many planets shift into Gemini, a key signature for the month. We've had one stellium after another this year, but that trend will change as June wraps up.

June 2nd - Jupiter trine retrograde Pluto In Gemini this is good for travel, such as Boeing launching a new spacecraft (right before Mercury enters Gemini). This aspect is great for enabling Pluto's Aquarian endeavors like transformative new technologies or sci-fi...but mileage may vary for Jupiter. Chris relates this to voice AI translations opening up communication as Jupiter transits Gemini. With Mercury nearby, this month has a tone of trying a little bit of many different things, generally with positive growth and stability in the Gemini parts of our charts. Jupiter is also bound, decan, and triplicity ruler of the early part of the Gemini and has lots of power here. It's a great time to learn enough of something to do what you need with it, rather than pursuing deep expertise.

June 3rd - Mercury enters Gemini, Auspicious election

Taking advantage of Mercury in Gemini this chart is at about 12:05PM local time. You'll want early Virgo rising and Mercury on the degree of the Midheaven at 0-1 Gemini. This places the Ascendant ruler (most important planet in elections) both in domicile and applying to a conjunction with Jupiter at 2 Gemini. In the 10th house this emphasizes career, reputation and work. Mercury, Jupiter, and Pluto form a trine which bodes well for communication and technology, and is furthermore close in date to the Venus cazimi (exact conjunction to Sun) in the middle of Gemini. The Moon is exalted in the 10th house and applies to a trine with Saturn in Pisces. Overall this is great not only for career matters, but also communication, short travel, and other Mercury matters. This is one of the last days this week while Mercury will be visible, so there's a small window to take advantage of this auspicious Mercury-Jupiter conjunction.

June 4th - Mercury conjunt Jupiter, Sun conjunct Venus Also known as a Venus cazimi, the Venus-Sun exact conjunction marks a reset point in Venus's synodic cycle and a new epoch for Venusian themes, including women in society. Interestingly, Mexico's election is in early June with two female candidates (spoiler alert: a woman won!), and the Venus synodic cycle was been central to Mesoamerican astrology in the past--the 2012 news was due in part to a calendar marking these calculations. Mexico's inauguration takes place in September on a Mercury cazimi in Libra (Venus-ruled sign) and the day before a solar eclipse in Libra. Four years ago in June 2020 the Sun conjoined Venus during Black Lives Matter protests after George Floyd's and Breonna Taylor's murders, connecting Venus cazimi to questions of equality and fairness in society. However, a square from Saturn in Pisces days later brings obstacles to our hope. In fact, all the Gemini planets will go through this optimism & speed before hitting Pisces Saturn's big melancholy iceberg this month. The last Venus-Sun conjunction in Gemini was June of 2016, so it's a good time to look back and see how far we've come over the past 8 years, as well as to sow the seeds for a new cycle. With Venus invisible during a cazimi, much of this work is internal; similarly, often the biggest advancements made possible during these times isn't visible until later.

On this graph of Venus's synodic cycle we're at the superior conjunction, where Venus is obscured from us by going behind the Sun. Her conjunctions when retrograde are also important turning points--April 2025 is the next conjunction (in Aries).

June 6th - New Moon in Gemini

At this point Mercury is already separating from the conjunction with Jupiter but is still close, while the Sun, Moon, and Venus are all conjunct at 16 Gemini. Thus the Gemini stellium is really concentrated at this lunation. We have so many new beginnings in Gemini on different scales at this time; the events set into motion here won't go away when planets move into Cancer. Whatever was brought up by the cazimi on the 4th will continue here, though in mid-Gemini the lights & Venus are poised to square Saturn. Venus wants to connect people, while Saturn wants to push away, so the immediate aftermath of the New Moon may see cooling in relationships. Communication is important; can we address the obstacle hanging over us? Sometimes you can't talk your way out of the emotions freezing each other out. On a positive note, this can be productive for setting boundaries and expectations. Saturn in Pisces generally can indicate emotional, professional, or spiritual exhaustion: now's the time to take a rest and a step back. Darkness and silence are often needed for mental healing to begin.

June 9th - Mars enters Taurus This brings a tone shift, as Mars was activating eclipse points while he traversed Aries in April in May. On the 11th he'll immediately square Pluto (1♒), raising issues like the abusive of power, going overboard in conflict, and crossing the line because we can't see it. We can see disproportionate escalations where the person doesn't even really know why they did it, but also the very real power of those who aren't in the public eye, pulling strings behind the scenes. Mars-Pluto brings up control, manipulation, power plays, and covert actions--and the paranoia that makes us worry about these things when they're not there. Though an unpleasant introduction, this doesn't last for most of the sign.

As soon as he enters Taurus Mars also approaches a conjunction with Uranus (culminating in mid-July). We've had Jupiter transiting Taurus for the past year bringing a positive spin on events, but now we have the explosive tension on its own. A famous Mars-Uranus conjunction without Jupiter there was January 6th events. However, there are about 20 degrees between the Pluto and Uranus aspects, during which time Mars will make some nice sextiles to Mercury and Venus in Cancer, so we'll have a chill period for some time. Mars in Taurus is also generally less fiery (in detriment), which can be an advantage for us.

June 14th - Mercury conjunct Sun (cazimi) At 24 Gemini, this is the fourth and final peak/reset point in Gemini. In his home sign, Mercury really locks in the preceding resets. This also really marks the second half of the year where we won't have all these massive pileups in one particular sign. He also brushes past a square to Neptune (29♓) while conjoining Venus in the last 10 minutes of this sign. Beware of miscommunications.

June 17th - Venus and Mercury enter Cancer, Mercury conjunct Venus Venus and Mercury enter Cancer together, bringing communication and relationships together. Both planets are invisible at this point, but are working their way out from under the Sun's beams as evening stars and will be visible by the end of the month. Mercury-Venus connects our minds with the arts, giving us the technical know-how to implement aesthetic ideas and the charm to communicate our ideas in a beautiful way. Diplomacy and agreements are also signified here.

June 20th - Sun enters Cancer

June 21st - Full Moon in Capricorn

This lunation occurs just a day after the Sun's ingress into Cancer and right after Mercury & Venus sextiling Mars, bringing a great directness and mental acuity. Once in Capricorn the Moon begins applying to Venus, though Neptune's proximity to the cardinal signs means its square to all the Cancer/Capricorn planets weighs in on things. Saturn has also begun to move within conjunction distance of Neptune, bringing questions around what's real and what's not to the end of June and into July. Some of the clarity we had before will seem to dissolve. We saw a lot of new tech developments earlier this month, but now it's muddied the waters.

June 29th - Saturn stations Retrograde This will likely activate news stories around danger in the water, water-borne pathogens, and events like the submarine disaster (A/N: or naval blockades). Jupiter will also square Saturn and later Neptune later this summer (Saturn entering Pisces corresponded with a spike in inflation) so continued issues with inflation and economy will likely come into play. Neptune stations within a week of Saturn as well, intensifying these issues and bringing what Austin calls season 2 of the Saturn-Neptune story--though season 3 is where things will get really crazy. This is another indicator of what kinds of contraction we'll experience in the Pisces parts of our charts. Saturn doesn't leave Pisces until next year, and even after entering Aries he'll retrograde back into Pisces for a bit.

[innervoiceartblog]

The Year of the Water Rabbit…..

New Year 2023 finally starts here at the seismic Super New Moon at 1 Aquarius on January 21st. It is an exciting foretaste of the Aquarian Agenda 2023 – 2043 which begins when Pluto enters Aquarius on March 23rd, re-activating the degree of this Super Moon.

In Chinese Astrology, this New Moon marks the Year of the Water Rabbit. The Yin Water element represents sensitivity, intuition and the way of inner peace after the dynamic and extremely harsh Year of the Yang Tiger in 2022.

Super New Moons are New Moons on steroids and have the same storm and seismic potential as their more visible Full Moon counterparts that are always reported by the media. The January 21 Stealth Super Moon will anchor a January 18-24 shock window when extreme tides, strong storms and seismic activity are likely. It is in a wide conjunction with Pluto square the karmic Nodes of Fate across Taurus/Scorpio- choices made now will have long term consequences.

Uranus turns direct at 14 degrees Taurus on January 22, shaking up global markets and personal finances - cryptocurrencies are going to be centre stage as old debts are called in.

Attune to the incoming Aquarian frequency by: • renewing the architecture of your life in coming weeks and months • recognising the value of your friendships and social networks and expanding your people landscape • looking for win/win scenarios via collaborative ventures • giving your emotional dramas and soap operas a break

From Hare in the Moon Astrology www.hareinthemoonastrology.co.uk