Anna Baydakova

Anna writes about blockchain projects and regulation with a special focus on Eastern Europe and Russia. She is especially excited about stories on privacy, cybercrime, sanctions policies and censorship resistance of decentralized technologies.
She graduated from the Saint Petersburg State University and the Higher School of Economics in Russia and got her Master's degree at Columbia Journalism School in New York City.
She joined CoinDesk after years of writing for various Russian media, including the leading political outlet Novaya Gazeta.
Anna owns BTC and an NFT of sentimental value.

Anna Baydakova

Latest from Anna Baydakova


Consensus Magazine

Where the Mt. Gox Money Went: New Details in the BTC-e Exchange Case

Fresh court documents detail how two administrators of the now-defunct BTC-e exchange stole and laundered bitcoin from Mt.Gox, the hacked bitcoin exchange.

Alexander Vinnik (Shutterstock)

Consensus Magazine

Binance and Coinbase: Experts Weigh What’s Coming Next

Will the SEC win? Will Binance close in the U.S.? What will Congress do? As the SEC launches wide-ranging suits against crypto’s biggest players, we asked a range of experts to peer into the future.

Gary Gensler (Third Way/Flickr)

Consensus Magazine

The Meaning of Community in Crypto Discussed at Consensus 2023

Consensus 2023 participants explored how user-focused design, cultural understanding, and gradual decentralization can drive mainstream crypto adoption

Kamala Alcantara, host of the “Women Who Web3” podcast, discussed the meaning of community at Consensus 2023. (Shutterstock/CoinDesk)

Consensus Magazine

Atomic Wallet Was Breached by North Korean Hackers: Elliptic

Wallets that siphoned Atomic users' funds are connected to the known Lazarus group's addresses, crypto tracing firm said.

(boonchai wedmakawand/Getty Images)

Consensus Magazine

Gary Gensler’s Evolving Position on Crypto – in Quotes

The SEC chair has gone from supporting the technology at MIT to a full-swing offensive on the crypto industry.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler testifies before the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, on Capitol Hill, September 15, 2022 in Washington, DC.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Consensus Magazine

CoinDesk Turns 10: 2022 - How Crypto Gods Turn Into Monsters

FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried had been crypto’s favorite kid until CoinDesk revealed he was actually an enfant terrible. This story is from our “CoinDesk Turns 10” series featuring the biggest stories in crypto from the last decade. FTX is our choice for 2022.

Sam Bankman-Fried leaving court on Feb. 16, 2023 (Liz Napolitano/CoinDesk)

Consensus Magazine

Ledger's PR Struggle Reveals Uncomfortable Trade-Offs for Crypto Storage

In a series of media appearances, executives said the French wallet-maker would make part of its code open-source and add additional security protections.

Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier at Web Summit 2021 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Harry Murphy/Web Summit via Sportsfile)

Finance

Crypto Wallet Provider Ledger Delays Key-Recovery Service After Uproar

After criticism from the crypto community, the firm pledged to open-source the Ledger Recover code before releasing the controversial update.

Ledger Wallet (Amjith S/Unsplash)

Consensus Magazine

Crypto Hacks Are Down and Hackers Tend to Return Stolen Money: TRM Labs Report

The sanctions against Tornado Cash, as well as last year's arrest of the Mango Markets infiltrator, motivate hackers to return their loot, researchers believe.

Crypto companies hit by newsletter breach (Mika Baumeister/Unsplash)

Finance

Dash Blockchain Halts, Binance Pool Suspends Mining Rewards

The blockchain behind oldest privacy coin stopped after a failed hard fork, with the chain reportedly split in two.

(Henrik Sorensen/GettyImages)