2024 Year in Review: Vitalik Buterin Adopts Moo Deng, James Howells Fights to Regain 8,000 Bitcoins, and Crypto Hacks Surge

The final week of 2024 witnessed significant news in the cryptocurrency world, highlighted by Vitalik Buterin's philanthropic move and ongoing legal battles surrounding Bitcoin.

Significant news emerged in the cryptocurrency world during the final week of 2024, including Vitalik Buterin's philanthropic gesture and ongoing legal battles over Bitcoin.

Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, adopted Moo Deng, a viral pygmy hippopotamus, through a generous donation of 88 Ether, valued at around $292,000 at the time. His contribution went to the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand, which gained fame for Moo Deng's lively personality and captivating online presence. Buterin also hinted at the possibility of making further donations to the zoo.

In another development, James Howells, an IT engineer from Newport, Wales, continued his legal battle to regain access to a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoins, estimated to be worth around $773 million. The drive, which was accidentally discarded in 2013, holds cryptocurrency from the early days of Bitcoin.

Newport City Council currently denies access due to environmental concerns. However, Howells remains optimistic, backed by a strong legal team and advanced AI technology, with plans to reinvest in the cryptocurrency community if he succeeds in recovering the Bitcoins.

On the geopolitical front, South Korea sanctioned 15 North Korean individuals and one organization for their involvement in crypto-related cyber thefts. These actions are linked to activities that contribute to financing North Korea's missile development program.

notably, North Korean hackers are blamed for over half of the cryptocurrency thefts in 2024, including the major Ronin network hack.

The year 2024 also saw a surge in crypto hacks, with losses exceeding $2.3 billion, a 40% increase over the previous year, largely attributed to security breaches in centralized exchanges. This increase corresponds with Bitcoin's rise past the $100,000 mark, indicating heightened hacker interest in crypto assets.

In a positive development for the crypto ecosystem, Solana's Jito staking pool reported over $100 million in monthly revenues from transaction tips and fees in the last two months of the year. This success highlights the growing profitability within the Solana network for its validators.

Finally, market movements showed strength, with many of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization finishing the week in positive territory. Notably, Bitget Token and Virtuals Protocol coin emerged as significant gainers, indicating robust investor appetite in this rapidly evolving market landscape.