What is DeFi (Decentralized Finance)?

July 05, 2023

(Dinarian Note: This is one part of a series of informationals in the new "Ledger Academy", which I highly recommend everyone visiting as it's loaded with knowledge... and as we know Knowledge is Power... however, USING that knowledge is POWERFUL..)

They also have an interactive "QUEST" to learn as you go and earn NFT's as well for completion of tasks.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

— Decentralized Finance (DeFi) is the term used to describe the blockchain-based protocols, products, and platforms that serve as alternatives to traditional financial infrastructure.

— DeFi apps are permissionless, transparent, and accessible to anybody with the right blockchain wallet. There are no regional restrictions, no KYC requirements, and no centralized entities pulling the strings. Some DeFi apps can also generate significant returns for investors.

— The variety of DeFi use cases has grown with time, but lending protocols, automated market makers, DEXs, and staking services are among the most common.

If you have been involved in the blockchain or cryptocurrency industry for more than a short stretch, then you have probably stumbled across the terms ‘decentralized finance’, or ‘DeFi’ on more than one occasion. But do you know what they mean?

These are the financial applications built using blockchain technology—and they are starting to shape the future of a decentralized economy. DeFi has exploded in popularity and with a constantly evolving ecosystem of applications, is likely to keep growing and being adopted by more people. So, before you dive into the wonderful world of decentralized finance, let’s explore exactly what it is and what it’s for.

What Is Decentralized Finance (DeFi)?

In a nutshell, Decentralized Finance is a term for the financial tools, protocols, and platforms people use to manage their money in a decentralized manner. With these platforms, users don’t have to rely on traditional financial infrastructure—like banks, remittance platforms, and government-issued currencies.

This brand-new monetary system empowers users by offering an alternative to the old and outdated traditional financial system. However, instead of transactions relying on central entities for processing, DeFi protocols use the blockchain instead. To explain, DeFi apps operate using open and transparent smart contracts.

In short, these are blockchain-hosted computer programs that can complete a variety of different tasks without the need for middlemen. Since they use decentralized blockchains, Decentralized applications (dApps) operate without any centralized governing entity, allowing users to interact with each other in a completely trustless manner.

How Does DeFi Work?

DeFi exists as an ecosystem of applications (dApps) offering different financial services. However, they don’t operate like the financial applications you might know. Since DeFi apps use a decentralized blockchain, they can execute actions without a central entity.

The majority of DeFi applications (at the time of writing) exist on the Ethereum blockchain. This is because Ethereum was the first network to support smart contracts. As such, it still hosts the majority of DeFi platforms today.

However, that doesn’t mean DeFi is ETH-specific. In fact, there are plenty of DeFi platforms on other networks such as Solana and Cardano.

Centralized Finance vs. Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

Centralized Finance and Decentralized finance share some similarities and a lot of differences. To understand the impact decentralization makes, let’s first look at how Centralized Finance works.

What Is Centralized Finance (CeFi)?

Centralized Finance within the crypto space generally refers to centralized exchanges. Examples of Centralized platforms include Coinbase, Binance, Bitfinex, Gemini, and Kraken. Centralized exchanges have a few key features:

Run by a central entity: A centralized crypto exchange is one that is run by a real-world company. This company oversees and controls the exchange’s operations. Since it is a legal entity, the company will be subject to the laws of its jurisdiction.

Requires KYC : To access the services of a centralized platform, users need to go through a process called Know Your Customer (KYC). This process is part of a global Anti Money Laundering initiative. In short, each new customer must provide details and documents to confirm their identity. Today, nearly all centralized exchanges now require customers to undergo KYC. Unfortunately, this creates an imbalance between users and the institution. To explain, users are required to trust the institution with their sensitive personal data in order to access the service.

Uses Custodial Wallets: Centralized exchanges leave their customers no choice but to keep their funds in the platform’s own custodial wallet. This means that the platform controls the private keys, and therefore the crypto in that account. But without private keys linking you directly to your blockchain address, your crypto is only as safe as the middleman itself. If the platform is hacked, goes bankrupt, or is censored by a legal entity, there will be no way for you to access your coins. This is why the custodial wallet system is inherently flawed.

CeFi vs Defi: What’s The Difference

While you can lend, borrow, and trade, just as well as you can with centralized protocols, DefI Protocols also offer a lot more control over your funds. For example:

DeFi doesn’t involve central entities and institutions: DeFi platforms and financial services are not run by any sort of central entity. Instead, they are protocols run on smart contracts. There is no central company or single point of failure, and they are not regulated.

No KYC, Personal Data, or Barriers: Since DeFi platforms are unregulated, users are not required to identify themselves or provide any documentation to access DeFi services. A crypto wallet – and some crypto – are all that’s required.

Self-Custody is King: DeFi platforms offer full custody when trading. Using these platforms, there is no custodial “platform wallet”. Instead, users will interact with the platform directly from their own, non-custodial crypto wallet. You, the user, remain in control of your crypto at all times. However, with that control also comes the responsibility of securing your private keys.

Why Is DeFi Important?

Since the blockchain is permissionless, DeFi applications can be accessed by anyone—no matter where in the world they reside. Anybody with a cryptocurrency wallet and an internet connection can interact with the world of Decentralized Finance—with no credit checks, KYC, or other barriers to entry.

This is of particular importance for the 1.7 billion adults worldwide who lack access to a bank account. Through DeFi, these individuals, and everybody else now have access to a wide range of permissionless protocols that provide many of the same features as banks.

Uses of DeFi

Despite being a relatively new industry, Decentralized Finance has grown considerably in recent years. As a result, both the number and variety of DeFi applications in existence have also multiplied. Nowadays, there is a DeFi alternative to practically every major financial service you already use. Some applications for DeFi technology are completely unique and some of them are not. But all are possible thanks to peer-to-peer blockchain technology.

So, what are the biggest use cases for DeFi today?

Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)

A DEX, or decentralized exchange, does exactly what it says on the tin: It lets you exchange your crypto, coins, or tokens. DEXs can execute trades without a centralized entity overseeing the service, meaning you keep custody of your private keys. Furthermore, decentralized exchanges also allow users to trade without waiting for other participants. Instead of using an order book system like a centralized exchange, DEXs set their prices using liquidity pools and Automated Market Makers (AMMs). In short, this tech allows users to trade directly with the system.

Top Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) such as Paraswap, Uniswap, and Curve all use this technology.

DeFi Lending & Borrowing Services

DeFi lending protocols like Compound and Aave allow users to lend and borrow crypto in a secure, trustless manner. Borrowers deposit funds as collateral and typically pay a fixed interest rate, while lenders earn a variable return on their assets.

DeFi lending services enable anyone with a crypto wallet to contribute their crypto to a protocol. This allows other users the chance to borrow it, and in exchange, the lender receives interest. However, instead of a central entity organizing this payment, the smart contract can execute the action itself.

DeFi Staking Services

DeFi also offers some totally new options not available anywhere else – and staking is a great example. Crypto staking involves “locking up” some of your cryptocurrency as part of the process of securing a blockchain. In exchange, you’ll receive rewards, meaning staking presents DeFi users with a unique option for making passive income.

With many staking services offering the infrastructure to manage the details of that interaction, such as Kiln and Lido, staking is one of the prominent services in the DeFi ecosystem.

These are just a few of the different DeFi options that exist. With new platforms and services on the rise, we’re sure to see more and more possibilities opening up for crypto users as time goes on.

Decentralized Insurance:

Decentralized insurance protocols like Nexus Mutual allow users to protect themselves against a wide range of risks in the DeFi sector, such as hacks, theft, flash crashes, and almost anything else. Anybody can also contribute to insurance pools to earn a return for taking on risk.

Synthetic Asset Issuance:

Synthetic Asset issuance platforms allow users to create a variety of crypto tokens that mimic the price or characteristics of another digital currency, real-world asset, or financial product. Synthetics are essentially crypto derivatives, and they give cryptocurrency users a way to trade and gain exposure to complex financial products through a single token (like ETFs, options, and basket funds). Plus, they also let users participate in markets that might otherwise be difficult to access.

Advantages of DeFi

Arguably the most significant benefit of DeFi applications is their accessibility. Since there is no governing entity at the helm, and there are no regulations or rules to adhere to. DeFi applications are available to anyone—no matter where in the world they reside. Anybody with a cryptocurrency wallet and an internet connection can interact with the world of Decentralized Finance—with no credit checks, KYC, or other barriers to entry.

But DeFi goes well beyond providing standard financial services to those that need them. It presents an entirely original system based on openness and transparency. Basically, it ensures participants can check exactly what is going on behind the scenes. It achieves this while dispensing with trusted third parties and costly intermediaries—driving access costs down to the bare minimum.

Moreover, DeFi gives individuals a way to easily turn a profit on their digital assets by contributing to lending pools. These pools provide collateral-backed loans to borrowers and allow other users to exchange coins directly with the system. These are so attractive to users because they provide much better returns than banks offer.

Disadvantages of DeFi

DeFi offers regular people unprecedented access to financial services, control of their data, and passive income opportunities. However, just as with any activity, users need to be aware of the risks.

The Blockchain Isn’t Regulated

Smart contracts and blockchain have enabled anyone to develop a value-based application and offer it to the public, generating a new wave of exciting options – but this comes with a price.

But with no central entity or traditional infrastructure, DeFi apps are not subject to the same legal scrutiny as traditional consumer services. You have no real guarantee of who you’re interacting with, what’s behind a smart contract, or whether your project is genuine – and if you make a mistake, there’s nobody to help you get your crypto back.

Instead, users rely entirely on their own research. This is why it’s imperative to get to grips with DYOR. For example, just learning to read smart contracts and understand white papers is a great start. Then, navigating sources of information, like Discord, is invaluable when assessing new projects.

The Future of DeFi

In the last two years, the total value of tokens locked up in DeFi tools and protocols increased from $203 million to $9.53 billion. This represents a growth of more than 4,500%. But it’s not just everyday users, traditional financial institutions are becoming more interested in DeFi too. In fact, many firms are looking into how they can participate in the Decentralized Finance world too.

However, with DYOR and self-custody at the heart of this industry – and no second chance if you make a mistake – it has never been so important to understand exactly what you’re interacting with.

While many DeFi platforms genuinely act to return financial independence to users and provide access to new, potentially liberating, or profitable opportunities, not all are safe to use, and some are outright scams. With that in mind, it’s important to do your due diligence before investing in or using any DeFi platforms. You should only ever risk what you can afford to lose.

So keep reading, stay up to date, and keep those private keys secure – Ledger Academy is here to guide you as you navigate this exciting new ecosystem of financial service.

To view more in this series check out Ledgers Academy which covers everything from Web3 to Daos.

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thedinarian@thedinarian

February 17, 2025

The Dawn of DeFi: The Hidden War for a Decentralized Future

👉 DON'T FADE THIS ARTICLE~ Crypto Michael AKA "The Dinarian"

The below article is NOT financial advice, it is being broadcast for entertainment purposes only. You should DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH and NEVER invest any more than you are willing to lose. On that note, THIS ARTICLE AND THE UNDERLYING ASSET DISCUSSED COULD CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR THE BETTER FOREVER! You SHOULD pay close attention as this MAY BE THE MOST IMPORTANT article you could ever have read, unless you were fortunate enough to read the Bitcoin whitepaper and had invested in it back in 2008. The asset I am about to present to you, COULD EASILY FLIP BITCOIN! ESPECIALLY WITH TODAYS ADMINISTRATION IN PLACE!
~ Namasté 🙏 Crypto Michael AKA "The Dinarian"

Attempted Theft of the World's Most Valuable Property, SEC Lawfare & The ETHgate Scandal

It is widely accepted that the media often spreads misinformation and hides any truth that challenge the establishments narratives. Well, this is one of those hidden truths...

Loans without Banks, Trades without Exchanges, Contracts without Lawyers. Peer to Peer Capital Markets disrupts traditional finance by removing middlemen and counter-party risk, enabling you to become your own bank by holding the keys to it all in your own privately held digital wallet.

To what lengths do you think the establishment would go to defend their control of the financial system? A system seemingly ripe with market manipulation, naked shorts, money laundering and regulatory capture.

The Myth of Open Source

For context, in the realm of open source, major corporations can engage in Intellectual Property theft by using open source projects to gain insights, technology, or legal protections without fully reciprocating to the community. Companies might contribute code to an open source project, only to later use that same code in commercial products, extending it with enhancements, essentially using open source as a low-cost R&D resource. Patents are crucial here, serving as a defense mechanism. Although open-source licenses cover copyrights, they don't extend to patents, meaning that companies holding patents can enforce legal protections against unauthorized commercial use, ensuring that any commercial application of their patented technology within open-source software requires proper licensing or recognition. This protection has historically led to the hyper-growth of industries like mobile phones and the internet, where patented technologies could be safely shared and built upon, promoting innovation and market expansion.

Validating Inventorship

In fields such as technology, pharmaceuticals, and manufacturing, patents are vital for safeguarding new inventions, with Nikola Tesla's extensive patent portfolio serving as a testament to his contributions to science.

However, Tesla's revolutionary inventions, like the Wardenclyffe Tower which aimed at providing free wireless energy, faced fierce opposition due to their potential to disrupt established control over energy markets. Financially sabotaged by investors like J.P. Morgan, legally challenged through "the war of currents" by Thomas Edison's promotion of the less efficient Direct Current system, and undermined by media smear campaigns, Tesla's work was systematically suppressed. After his death, the FBI's seizure of his documents further suggests efforts to control or conceal his ideas that could disrupt centralized energy distribution, illustrating how innovation can be stifled to maintain existing power structures.

Could this type of suppression still be happening today?

The Genesis of Decentralized Finance

Reggie Middleton first introduced Distributed Finance what would later become known as Decentralized Finance (DeFi), in 2013 when he invented and patented technologies under the title "Devices, systems, and methods for facilitating low trust and zero trust value transfers." This included groundbreaking concepts like programmable Smart Contracts, Swaps, Tokenized Assets, NFTs, Stable Coins, Digital Wallets, and even underpin Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs).

https://patents.google.com/patent/US11196566B2/en?oq=US11196566+

Called by many as "The Most Valuable Property in the World", his patents US11196566B2, US11895246B2, JP6813477B2, JP7204231B2, JP7533974B2, & JP7533983B2 have been cited over 138 times by major financial institutions, underscoring their foundational role in the blockchain industry.

His patents cover:

Trustless Peer-to-Peer Value Transfers: Systems for enabling decentralized and secure value transfers between parties without the need for intermediaries. Applicable to cryptocurrency transactions, DeFi platforms, and digital payment systems.
Decentralized Financial Systems (DeFi): Methods and devices that facilitate decentralized trading, lending, borrowing, and yield generation. Impacting decentralized exchanges (DEXs) like Uniswap, SushiSwap, and similar platforms.
Smart Contracts: Implementation of self-executing contracts on blockchain networks, used to automate agreements and enforce conditions without intermediaries. Essential for platforms such as Ethereum, Cardano, and other Layer-1 and Layer-2 blockchain protocols.
Tokenized Asset Trading: Methods for creating, transferring, and trading tokenized assets, including cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and digital securities. Platforms like OpenSea, Rarible, and asset tokenization platforms may fall within the scope.
Cryptographic Security and Wallet Systems: Systems for securing digital assets using cryptographic methods, including cold storage, multi-signature wallets, and multi-party computation (MPC). Potential overlaps with services offered by companies like Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, and institutional custody providers.
Decentralized Identity and Verification Systems: Technologies for managing and verifying digital identities on decentralized networks, including for KYC (Know Your Customer) purposes. Likely touching on identity solutions like Civic, BrightID, and Blockstack.
Blockchain-Based Voting and Governance: Systems for implementing decentralized voting, governance, and consensus mechanisms, foundational to DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations). Relevant to governance platforms like Aragon, Snapshot, and MakerDAO.
AI Economic Agentic Computing: First introduced by the VeADIR Platform refers to the application of autonomous agents in economic systems, where software entities can make decisions, negotiate, and execute transactions independently. These agents use artificial intelligence to analyze market data, predict trends, and optimize economic activities like trading, resource allocation, and supply chain management. Used by OpenAi, Claude Sonnet, Meta and xAI.

The societal value of these patents to disrupt traditional financial models and fintech business practises, by essentially removing the banks as middlemen, create significant economic incentives to suppress his work.

True Decentralization

Current Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) often fall short of being truly decentralized due to various practical and structural limitations. Although DEXs leverage blockchain technology and smart contracts to enable trading without a central authority, aspects like governance, liquidity, and user interface can introduce centralization. Governance tokens might be concentrated in the hands of a few, influencing decision-making unevenly. The frontend, controlled by developers, represents a centralized point of control or potential failure. Liquidity pools can be dominated by a handful of large providers, leading to centralized liquidity dynamics. Some DEXs implement regulatory compliance like KYC/AML, which inherently involves centralized oversight. The use of layer-2 solutions for scalability might also undermine decentralization if not fully autonomous.

However, patents like US11196566B2 and US11895246B2 could pave the way for true decentralization by introducing innovations in blockchain interoperability and decentralized governance mechanisms. These patents potentially offer solutions for more evenly distributed control over exchange operations, enhancing the autonomy and distribution of decision-making, thus moving closer to genuine decentralization in the DEX ecosystem, which can be expanded to other industries like Healthcare, Supply Chain, or any other industry that trades value.

Who is Reggie Middleton?

Reggie Middleton, through his BoomBustBlog, became a notable figure in financial analysis, particularly for his early and accurate predictions regarding the collapses of Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns during the 2008 financial crisis. His blog was renowned for providing in-depth, contrarian insights into economic trends, investment opportunities, and corporate vulnerabilities. Reggie won the CNBC's stock draft consecutively for two years, and appeared on major financial news networks like CNBC, BBC and Bloomberg where he discussed market trends, his forecasts, and the implications of financial strategies adopted by major firms. His track record has undeniably positioned him as a significant voice in the financial commentary space.

Reggie's work gained public attention when he appeared on the Keiser Report and CNBC in 2014, premiering his innovations built on the Bitcoin blockchain called "Ultracoin", two years before Ethereum captured the crypto limelight.

His vision was to create sound markets for a financial ecosystem where loans could be issued without banks, trades executed without exchanges, and contracts enforced without lawyers, aiming to disintermediate traditional finance by removing the middleman that doesn't add value.

In 2014, Reggie pioneered a simple Apple trade using a Pure Bitcoin Wallet: The Ultracoin Client.

Ultracoin later renamed VERI short for “Veritaseum” meaning "of truth", was the

first to market in tokenizing precious metals, offering VeGold, VeSilver and even tokenized fiat currencies or so called "Stablecoins". Veritaseum also introduced VeRent creating yield through P2P lending, and the revolutionary VeADIR platform, an autonomous, blockchain-powered research platform that independently evaluates and acts on dynamic research in real-time, communicates in machine language, and operates by purchasing, analyzing, and distributing insights on various assets while allowing VERI token holders to access and trade this research.

In 2018 he created the worlds first Gold Denominated Blockchain Mortgage

with traditional written note, mortgage as well as a smart contract on a public blockchain, both of whom incorporate each other by reference. The transaction had traditional title insurance and the note was recorded with the county clerk. The mortgage was denominated in Veritaseum's VeGold product, a digital form of gold in bearer form, fully transferable and redeemable upon demand.

Merely a few examples of groundbreaking products offered by Veritaseum.

Coinbase's Challenge: The Patent Infringement Suit

Coinbase, a dominant force in the cryptocurrency exchange market, enlisted the services of Perkins Coie, one of the largest patent law firms, to contest the validity of Reggie Middleton's patents.

They launched an Inter Partes Review (IPR) at the Patent Trials and Appeals Board (PTAB), arguing that Middleton's patents lacked novelty. An overwhelming 85% of patents are invalidated through this process. However, Coinbase's challenge was denied along with the appeal, thereby upholding and strengthening the validity of Reggie's patents.

This IPR challenge came after Veritaseum sued both Coinbase and Circle USDC for $350 million each over patent infringement. Unfortunately, Reggie's patent attorney and close friend passed away during this suit, so the cases has been dismissed without prejudice, meaning they can be negotiated or the cases reopened at any time. This leaves Coinbase in a precarious position, especially if shareholders have not been properly informed of this risk.

This lawsuit details how Coinbase's infrastructure, specifically its Ethereum and Solana validator nodes, engage with client devices to facilitate transactions. Exhibit #3 meticulously outlines the patent's claims, detailing the roles of computing devices, the use of memory for key pair storage, network interfaces for transaction terms, and the generation and dissemination of transaction data records. It provides concrete examples such as the processing of NFT transactions on Ethereum and the management of transaction fees on Solana, supported by in-depth references to code and API interactions. Furthermore, the exhibit explains the verification of transactions through an external state, illustrating how Coinbase's technology aligns with the patent's principles for decentralized transaction processing without a central authority.

SEC's Intervention: A Turning Point

In 2019, with promising negotiations on the horizon with both the Jamaican and the Nigerian Stock Exchanges for digital asset platforms, Reggie's world was turned upside down.

The SEC accused Reggie of fraud, alleging he misled investors about the functionality of Veritaseum's VeADIR platform, which the SEC ordered to be shut down following a live demonstration. The SEC also made claims on the validity of Reggie's patent applications, which have since been approved by both the USPTO and the Japan Patent Office. Oddly enough, the SEC may actually infringe on these very patents through the disgorgement and storage of seized crypto tokens.

Despite Veritaseum's cooperation with the SEC over a two-year period, along with a detailed response addressing the SEC's allegations, and not one token holder claiming to be defrauded, these allegations still led to a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) that froze millions in assets, destroying the company's operations, and forcing a consent judgment "neither confirming or denying the allegations". The SEC would top it all off with a gag order that barred Reggie from publicly discussing the matter.

Keep in mind, the SEC is claiming jurisdiction by calling Utility Tokens "Digital Asset Securities" but recently SEC Commissioner @HesterPeirce stated:

"...by using imprecise language we've been able to suggest the token itself is a security, apart from that investment contract, which has implications for Secondary Sales, it has implications for who can list it...

We've fallen down on our duty as a regulator not to be precise. So, tucking into a footnote that yes we admit that now that the TOKEN ITSELF IS NOT A SECURITY, that is something we should have admitted long ago and then started wrestling with the difficult questions."

This calls into question if the SEC even had jurisdiction to bring forth this case to begin with. The Veri Community would later challenge the SEC's unproven allegations against Reggie with

a Dossier supporting the Vacating or Setting Aside of this case, and suggesting possible misconduct by the SEC.

Allegations of SEC Misconduct:

Misrepresentation of Facts: Assertions that the SEC deliberately mischaracterized the
functionality of the VeADIR platform, along with the patents and their value, by labeling them as lacking novelty and part of fraudulent activities.
Misleading Evidence: The SEC's use of declarations from Patrick Doody and Roseann Daniello, which contained misleading information about the personal ownership of a Kraken account used to misappropriate funds. Doody would later correct his statement, but the SEC did not update the court with this new information, potentially misleading the judicial process.
Conflict of Interest: Doody's undisclosed financial interests in the digital asset space through Lily Pad Capital LLC could suggest a bias in his testimony, which was pivotal in obtaining the TRO.
Coercion and Intimidation: Witnesses like Lloyd Cupp and John Doe provided affidavits claiming coercion by SEC attorneys to alter their testimonies, pointing towards witness tampering and intimidation.

FOIA Responses: The SEC's FOIA department initially denied any communications with Kraken, only later admitting to subpoena issuance, suggesting an attempt to obscure facts.
RICO Allegations: A 95 page RICO Dossier, supported by extensive evidence, alleges that the SEC's actions could resemble an organized crime syndicate, with systemic coercion, misrepresentation, and procedural misconduct aimed at Reggie Middleton.
Bar Complaint: The Veri community lodged a Bar Complaint against the SEC's Lead Attorney
over the use of misleading evidence, coercion and intimidation of witnesses.

Summary Articles of the B ar Complaint and RICO Dossier

Comparisons with the SEC Misconduct in the DEBT Box Case

The DEBT Box case shares a troubling parallel with the Veritaseum case. In both cases a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) freezing funds was issued using dubious evidence which suppressed the ability to defend themselves. This behavior was already admonished by five US Senators

in a letter to Commissioner Gary Gensler in which the SEC presented misleading claims in this now high-profile cryptocurrency case.

"Regardless of whether Commission staff deliberately misrepresented evidence or unknowingly presented false information, this case suggests other enforcement cases brought by the Commission may be deserving of scrutiny. It is difficult to maintain confidence that other cases are not predicated upon dubious evidence, obfuscations, or outright misrepresentations."

Given the similarities in alleged procedural misconduct between the cases, it raises systemic questions about the SEC’s litigation approach in cryptocurrency matters.

This parallel underscores a potential agency-wide issue that could involve either implicit biases against crypto companies or an explicit strategy to pursue aggressive, potentially misleading tactics in court.

Is The Fox Guarding the Hen House?

In a significant development, the Attorney Grievance Committee (AGC) has decided to forward a complaint against SEC attorney Jorge Tenreiro to the SEC's Office of General Counsel (OGC) for investigation. This controversial move suggests a potential conflict of interest, given that the OGC is part of the SEC, the very agency where Tenreiro was recently promoted to Chief Litigation Counsel. The complaint, filed by the Veri community, accuses Tenreiro of misconduct including alleged coercion, witness tampering, and misrepresentation during SEC investigations. The Veri Community argues that this decision undermines the integrity of the legal process, as the OGC's role is to provide legal advice and defend the SEC, not to independently investigate its own employees. This raises questions about the impartiality and transparency of the disciplinary process for attorneys, especially when it involves high-profile figures like Tenreiro.

"As noted in re Rowe, 80 N.Y.2d 336 (1992), the public’s confidence in the legal profession depends on transparent and impartial disciplinary processes. Delegating oversight to the SEC, where Mr. Tenreiro remains a senior official and where the OGC has a clear institutional stake, jeopardizes this confidence and risks the appearance of protectionism.”

The VeriDAO has submitted a response letter to the AGC along with creating a PDF generator
to help the estimated 100 complainants and anyone else interested in requesting the AGC to reconsider this action.

Legal and Judicial Trials

The legal battles would only continue for Reggie. The case of Hall v. Middleton, in which Hall, a 1% shareholder sued Reggie, raises concerns of judicial bias and procedural mishandling. In this case, Reggie was denied Due Process and barred from presenting crucial evidence or calling witnesses due to his former attorneys' "Office Failures" that missed deadlines to submit evidence without the knowledge of Reggie or the firm Brundidge & Stanger that outsourced his counsel as detailed in their affirmations.

"In my many years of practice it is a rare instance where I have witnessed an attorney intentionally not file critical documents as required by Court Order without the permission or knowledge of his client, who had an established and fully developed attorney client-relationship with said attorney, and then misrepresent that the requirements of the Court Order were being satisfied. This is one of those instances and I hope not to see another."
~ Carl Brundidge

The judge ruled that Reggie must:

Pay a $1M fine to his company Veritaseum Inc., in which he owns 99%
The plaintiff was awarded costs of $495k against Veritaseum Inc.
The Judge ordered Patents (filed before the creation of Veritaseum Inc.) to be assigned to the company without compensation.

Attorney's "Office Failures":

Sheridan England missed critical deadlines, resulting in the striking of exculpatory evidence. England’s inaction or inadequate defense exacerbated Middleton’s legal vulnerability, directly leading to adverse outcomes.

Judge Schecter’s Conduct:

Ignoring Exculpatory Evidence: Despite knowledge of its existence, Schecter struck Middleton’s post-trial memorandum.
Procedural Bias: The judge’s decisions systematically favored Hall, including allowing him to collect attorney fees from Middleton personally, contrary to the principles of derivative law.
Forced Patent Transfers: Schecter’s order to transfer patents to an underfunded entity (Veritaseum) which were court restrained by the same judge, rendering them defenseless against attacks and IP theft.

This ordeal was compounded when Reggie was held in Contempt for using personal funds (while Veritaseum’s funds were court-restrained) to successfully defend his patents against an IPR challenge by Coinbase in the PTAB of the USPTO in an attempt to invalidate these patents. The Forced Patent Expropriation to Veritaseum without compensation or the ability to defend them could be seen as coordinated as it benefited very large competitors seeking to avoid licensing fees or infringement claims, or possibly even IP Theft.

Judicial Complaint: A formal complaint has been filed with the NYS Commission on Judicial Conduct by the Veri Community.

ETHgate: The Broader Conspiracy Allegations

Parallel to Middleton's struggles, "ETHgate" emerged, involving allegations by Ethereum co-creator @StevenNerayoff. Nerayoff claimed a government conspiracy aimed at controlling or monopolizing cryptocurrency development by targeting key figures. This narrative suggested that by attacking innovators (like Reggie Middleton as the Veri Community contends), the SEC might have indirectly cleared a path for Ethereum, which, despite its decentralized claim, benefited from a regulatory environment less scrutinized than its competition.

The term "ETHgate" encapsulates the belief that Ethereum's "Free Pass" from regulatory scrutiny might not just be due to its technological merits but also due to strategic regulatory maneuvers, where attacking smaller or less established DeFi projects could safeguard larger, more influential platforms like Ethereum.

Back in 2021, @JohnEDeaton1 from @CryptoLawUS explained XRP's side of Ethereum's "Free Pass". More recently, further SEC RICO Claims are insinuated in "RIGGED from the start" a documentary by @Fruition_News , along with posts by @KuwlShow and the XRParmy involving the SEC, Ethereum, a16z, and Consensys surrounding the Bill Hinman speech. Active FOIA requests by @EleanorTerrett seek to shed light on meetings between Hinman and Ethereum members.

Given the SEC protection of ETH and the high probability of Ethereum infringing on Reggie Middleton's patents as meticulously detailed in Exhibit #3 of the Coinbase case, is it ridiculous to believe Reggie Middleton could have been targeted?

Community Support: The Backbone of Resilience

Despite the SEC's narrative labeling them as "The Defrauded," the Veritaseum community rallied around Reggie.

SmartMetal with embedded NFT avalaible through VeriDAO.io

Financially devastated and with his funds frozen, Reggie faced foreclosure and was threatened with jail time after contempt charges for defending his patents using personal funds. In a remarkable show of support, the Veri Community rallied, raising an impressive $149,000 in less than two weeks to cover the fine while the case is under appeal.

They funded legal battles largely through donations and more recently with innovative means like NFT silver rounds called SmartMetal using Reggie's patented technologies, underscoring their belief in his vision. The first minted round was auctioned off for an astonishing $14,000 won by "M S"

"There is no better witness to the veracity of any defense than the alleged defrauded defending the alleged fraud at their own expense"
~ The Veri Community

This community support was not just financial but also moral, with efforts such as an Amicus Brief in the case against XRP, a No Action Letter (NAL) seeking clarity on secondary market sales of tokens, a Bar Complaint against the SEC's newly promoted Chief Litigation Counsel, and the @dao_veri's

#ProjectSunlight The SEC RICO Revelation.

A Call for a New Regulatory Paradigm

Reggie Middleton's saga is emblematic of the challenges faced by pioneers in the blockchain and DeFi arenas. His patents, now granted, underscore their foundational nature, yet the path to their recognition was marred by legal battles, suggesting a systemic issue where the regulatory framework might not fully comprehend or support emerging tech. His resilience, supported by an unwavering community and the validation of his intellectual property, underscores the need for a regulatory environment that fosters rather than stifles innovation. As blockchain technology continues to evolve, Reggie's story serves as a critical reference for balancing innovation with legal and ethical governance, ensuring that the future of finance remains open to all, not just those with the resources to navigate the legal maze.

For more information visit https://veridao.io/

I know what everyones question is, "HOW CAN I GET MY HANDS ON THE $VERI TOKEN BEFORE EVERYTHING GETS REVERSED AND RELEASED BACK TO THE COMMUNITY?"

Your in luck: Mark is a trusted source, longtime Veri Vet that beta tested the VeADIR platform. Simply follow the thread below. I highly advise picking up a few, and tuck them away! This is the token that could literally FLIP BITCOIN $100k and beyond!

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