MiCA Close to Becoming Law
The EU’s landmark crypto regulation, known as Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA), has received unanimous approval from European finance ministers. It marks the final step in the legislative process. The regulation aims to create a uniform approach to crypto across the EU and is set to become law this summer after an implementation period.
Samsung and BoK Research on Offline CBDC
Samsung Electronics and the Bank of Korea have partnered to collaborate on offline CBDC research. The plan is to leverage Samsung’s developed offline CBDC technology based on NFC to enable transfers and payments between mobile phones without an internet connection.
SEC Seeks Lower Penalty
The US SEC is seeking to lower the penalty imposed on crypto startup LBRY from $22 million to $111,614, citing the company’s financial situation. LBRY has been in a legal battle with the SEC over the sale of its native LBRY credits. The SEC has argued that it violated securities laws by not registering with the commission.
SEC Calls Coinbase Suit Baseless
The SEC has responded in court to the lawsuit brought by Coinbase by calling the suit “baseless.” It asserts the digital asset industry already has rules and regulations, and the SEC is not obligated to issue new ones.
SEC Vs Ripple Saga
A judge has rejected the SEC’s request to seal documents related to an address given by former Division of Corporation Finance Director Bill Hinman, which are crucial to the SEC’s case against Ripple. The speech is central to the allegations of the SEC, which accuses Ripple of selling unregistered securities.
GlobalGiving Accepts Crypto
Endaoment has expanded its list of nonprofits accepting crypto and NFT donations via a new partnership with GlobalGiving. This collaboration enables donors to make tax deductible contributions using over 1,000 digital assets.
COFRA Joins Hedera
COFRA Holding, a 182-year-old family enterprise, has joined the Hedera Governing Council. As a member of the council, COFRA will work to develop blockchain based solutions on Hedera. It will initially focus on areas like tokenization and supply chain transparency. This partnership is a significant step forward for Hedera as it continues to grow its network of partners and expand its reach into new industries.
CBDC Powered Marketplace
Jamaican Senator Aubyn Hill has announced plans to create a digital marketplace that will enable consumers to use the country’s CBDC, JAM-DEX, for ecommerce transactions. The marketplace aims to promote financial inclusion by allowing underserved merchants to advertise their products and conduct transactions without the need for debit or credit cards.
Ripple’s CBDC Platform
Ripple is launching a CBDC platform that allows central banks, governments, and financial institutions to issue their own digital currencies. The platform is an enhanced version of Ripple’s Private Ledger and is powered by the XRP Ledger. Ripple will show the use case for its platform under the e-HKD pilot, a program run by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.
Crypto AMA with Secret Service
During an “Ask Me Anything” session on Reddit, the US Secret Service and a California task force shared insights on solving crypto crimes. They advised those seeking to keep transactions hidden from law enforcement to use cash. The officials emphasized that the blockchain can be a valuable tool for tracking financial crimes. The REACT task force stated that it provides an “amazing opportunity” to trace the flow of money and highlighted their success in recovering stolen funds and returning them to victims.
Polygon Founder’s Fellowship
Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal and Symbolic Capital have introduced the Nailwal Fellowship. The goal is to provide financial support and mentorship to early stage builders transitioning from Web2 to Web3. With each selected builder receiving $50,000 in grant money and access to networks, the fellowship aims to empower individuals exploring Web3.
Tether Bitcoin SIP
Tether, the issuer of the largest stablecoin, has announced plans to invest up to 15% of its profits in bitcoin. It plans to shift towards holding more crypto assets and reducing its exposure to US government debt. The company intends to make regular purchases and self custody of its bitcoin holdings.
G7 Commit to Stricter Crypto Regulations
The G7 has expressed its commitment to implementing upcoming regulations for crypto assets and CBDCs. The finance ministers and central bank governors of the G7 countries discussed the need for stricter crypto rules during a meeting in Japan. They intend to support the FSB’s recommendations and standards while endorsing the FATF’s efforts to combat illicit activities in the crypto space.
Ledger Under Fire
Hardware wallet provider Ledger is fraught with problems after releasing its latest Ledger Recover — a service that allows users to back up their seed phrases by connecting them to their IDs. Some users are concerned about the security of this approach, given Ledger’s history of data breaches. Ledger though, assures that the process is safe.
Coinbase One Expands Outside the US
Coinbase has expanded its subscription service, Coinbase One, from the US to the UK, Germany, and Ireland. The service, priced at $29.99 per month, offers benefits such as no trading fees, higher staking rewards, and pre-filed tax return documents. Users also get access to Messari insights and a free trial for personal crypto portfolio analytics.
Carbon Asset Pool
Solid World has launched a forward carbon assets pool on Polygon. It will allow projects to pre-sell future carbon credits at a price determined by an automated market maker. The carbon assets pool will focus on mangrove restoration projects.
Web Shorts
Ripple has acquired Swiss custody firm Metaco in a $250 million deal. The acquisition allows Ripple to offer customers tools for custody, issuance, and settlement of tokenized assets.
Apple is allowing the popular web 3 game ‘Axie Infinity: Origins’ on its app store in a select number of countries throughout Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Bitcoin mining machine manufacturer, MicroBT, launched three mining rigs, of which one — WhatsMiner M53S++ — delivers a massive 320 TH/s of computing power using 22 joules per terahash.
DIBA, a new bitcoin NFT marketplace, went live this week. DIBA allows users to trade any asset issued using bitcoin “smart contracts.”
Infra provider Coinbase Cloud will become the node operator of blockchain data provider Chainlink.
Web3 Investments
Auradine raised a whopping $81 million in a Series A funding round co-led by Celesta Capital and Mayfield. The company, which is now reportedly valued at over $500 million, plans to deploy the funds to build Nextgen web infrastructure.
Bitcoin focused financial services startup River Financial closed a $35 million Series B round led by Kingsway Capital.
Web3 VC firm Red Beard Ventures secured $25 million in a funding round that saw a16z and Animoca Brands, among others, in participation. The money will go into launching a tokenomics accelerator program, Denarii Labs.
Asymmetry Finance raised $3 million from the likes of Ecco Capital and Republic Capital to grow its liquidity staking derivatives protocol.
Crypto mining data center Soluna Holdings entered into a new deal with Navitas Global, which included a $2 million loan and $12 million equity investment. Consequently, Soluna will finish the construction of the 25 MW site, Project Dorothy 1B, in Texas.
Web3 developer platform Airstack closed the second half of its pre-seed round led by Superscrypt and, as a result, raised over $7 million.
Bitcoin miner Cormint Data Systems raised $30 million in a Series A funding round co-led by its president Jamie McAvity and semiconductor firm Silicon Laboratories’ chairman Nav Sooch. The money will go into building a data center in Texas. ZK startup Lagrange Labs raised $4 million in a pre-seed round led by 1kx to develop its ZK system.
mage Source: iStock
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