As if the drama swirling around Verge wasn't enough, XVG Whale reveals a series of direct messages on Twitter that implicate John McAfee blackmailing the Verge team.
Verge currency supporters have been anxiously awaiting the release of the Wraith Protocol that will enable the ability to toggle private and public transactions on the Verge blockchain. As supporters were awaiting the release of Wraith within the next 24 hours or so, John McAfee declared that he only ever claimed Verge would increase in value from 1 cent to 2 cents (technically, a 100% gain) and back-pedalled on his previous enthusiastic comments supporting Verge. This negative comment would appear to be detrimental to the Verge brand, but the coin has remained relatively steady, especially considering that the entire cryptocurrency market has been sinking this weekend, save for a few coins.
Soon after this negative comment was made, one of the most outspoken supporters of Verge and a personal contact of the Verge team and John McAfee, XVG Whale, spoke out against McAfee, revealing a series of direct messages that suggest that McAfee was demanding money in the form of Ethereum from the Verge team in exchange for the positive comments he had made. In the direct message conversation, McAfee is refused, and is instead encouraged to "buy the dip", saying that had he done so previously, he would have gained considerable profits.
While there is no way to know the veracity of McAfee or XVG Whale's statements, this does go to show how the "wild west" of cryptocurrency operates. This is not a regulated industry. The normal ethical behaviour that is required in conventional business is not applied here (not that there aren't ways to circumvent this behaviour, but that's another story). Recently, Roger Ver made a comment that insider trading in cryptocurrency is not illegal. Technically, this is true. It is not operated under the legal framework of any particular state in the same way that other businesses must operate. It does bring into question McAfee's previous support of other currencies such as Monero, DigiByte, and Humaniq. Were there inside deals happening between these entities and McAfee?
Interestingly, the spat doesn't seem to have fazed Verge investors as the price continues to hover around 14-15 cents USD in anticipation of the Wraith Protocol. Will this be a Happy New Year for Verge investors?
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