The cryptocurrency business is thriving, but many things are happening, including, Microsoft & Visa joining the Brazilian CBDC pilot project, Red Bull launching its first NFT collection, Dubai considering a new crypto law update, and much more!
In this issue:
- Microsoft & Visa joins the Brazilian CBDC pilot project.
- Bitcoin secures second-largest NFT blockchain rank amid Ordinals craze.
- Red Bull launched its first NFT collection “Red Bull Doodle Art”.
- Dubai considers new crypto law update as concerns grow.
- Binance and Gulf Innova to launch a crypto exchange in Thailand in Q4 2023.
- F1 ticket provider Platinum Group introduces NFT tickets for global racing events.
- WEF publishes crypto asset regulation recommendations for Government and Industry.
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Microsoft & Visa joins the Brazilian CBDC pilot project.
The Brazilian central bank focused on taking support from domestic as well as international tech giants for its CBDC project.
Crypto investment & trading is legal under the jurisdiction of Brazil. The Central Bank of Brazil does not regulate or supervise transactions with cryptocurrencies. The Brazilian central bank is fully focused on blockchain technology & aims to bring a highly advanced version of the digital form of its sovereign fiat currency, or says Brazilian CBDC.
Recently tech giant Microsoft & card payment processor firm Visa joined Brazil’s CBDC pilot initiative. Along With these two giants’ support, Central Bank is also getting support from other 12 participants, including a Brazil-based bank, and 7COMm.
In America, the Federal Reserve (Fed) also proposed the idea to develop American CBDC (Digital Dollar), to remain top in the race for digital financial Innovations. Recently Florida’s Governor opposed the digital dollar concept and said that it will remove the money power from the people’s hands and also proposed a different concept to distribute the control of digital dollar money flow.
At present, nearly 100 Central banks are engaged in the CBDC development race and nearly 7 banks are in the pilot phase. In the world, the Bahamas was the first to introduce its CBDC, called Sand Dollar. Later China and Nigeria showed their fast efforts to launch CBDC. In particular, the Nigerian CBDC (e-Naira) failed to grab adoption in the first 1 year but later during the currency demonetization phase, e-Naira saw a sudden adoption bump.
Bitcoin secures second-largest NFT blockchain rank amid Ordinals craze.
Bitcoin is now the world’s second most popular blockchain for NFTs, behind Ethereum. While Solana saw $49 million in NFT transactions over that time, Bitcoin saw $173 million.
Since Counterparty’s Rare Pepes and operation code Easter eggs, the newest iteration of NFTs on Bitcoin, Ordinals, has sprung onto the scene. Bitcoin is now the world’s second most popular blockchain for NFTs, behind Ethereum which is still the most popular blockchain overall. Ethereum has handled $390 million in on-chain NFT transactions over the last 30 days, whereas Bitcoin is getting close to half that amount. While Solana saw $49 million in NFT transactions over that time, Bitcoin saw $173 million.
No one could have imagined a few months ago that Bitcoin would handle approximately half as many NFT transactions as Ethereum. Ethereum has handled almost 38 million NFT transactions since its creation, much surpassing Bitcoin’s 320,000. Despite this, Ordinals’ meteoric rise in popularity is inspiring new uses for the oldest blockchain in the world, including the safekeeping of works of art, movies, collectibles, tickets, and even video games.
Ordinals protocol is a system that uses wallet software other than Bitcoin Core to serialize Bitcoin’s smallest unit of currency, the satoshi. The former Bitcoin Core engineer, Casey Rodamor spent a year working on his own personal “ordwallet” program, in which he coded and fixed bugs. Like serial numbers on banknotes, his order numbers have a special significance. Although there is a minimum value of $1 on all notes, uncommon bills with specific serial numbers have more numismatic value. Ordinals have generated enormous transaction fees for miners, even though they are primarily of interest to explorers and NFT merchants.
Red Bull launched its first NFT collection “Red Bull Doodle Art”.
Red Bull, the world’s largest energy drink company, has released the first NFT digital collection series, “Red Bull Doodle Art.”Burnt Toast, the originator of the NFT project Doodles, guided the creation of this series. The items are all from the 2023 Red Bull Doodles Art finalists’ artworks.
Red Bull Doodle Art, a platform founded in the Netherlands, acts as a catalyst for empowering a new generation of artists globally. It allows students and creatives to use just a pen and paper to release their imaginations and express themselves via innovative doodles.
Vayner3 has joined up with Red Bull and famous digital artist Burnt Toast for the Red Bull Doodle Art Program 2023 in a unique partnership. Avery Akkineni, President of Vayner3, stated: “When Red Bull approached us about integrating a Web3 layer into their iconic Doodle Art program, we were beyond thrilled. Their exceptional team has conceived a meaningful way to honor their student creators by featuring the artwork of 61 world finalists on-chain, encompassing icons crafted by Burnt Toast, under the direct mentorship of the legendary Doodler himself.”
The collection includes 61 one-of-a-kind NFTs made by the Red Bull Doodle Art 2023 national champions. The artworks of the outstanding creatives were chosen from over 120,000 submissions globally, with each producing a fresh doodle that includes a trademark emblem made by the acclaimed artist Burnt Toast.
Dubai considers new crypto law update as concerns grow.
According to Bloomberg, Elisabeth Wallace, deputy director of the Dubai Financial Services Authority, stated that the agency intends to update the crypto rules that have been in effect in the city’s commercial center since November of last year and that the rules could be released later this year.
Wallace said during a Friday virtual conference: “A lot of crypto businesses tend to operate a significant number of activities within one umbrella and that concerns us. They are across the whole world and as regulators, we need to talk to each other a lot more in this area because there can be quite a few gaps and we have seen a lot of bad actors trying to plug some of those gaps,” she said.
Authorities throughout the world are debating how to regulate the crypto business. Hong Kong and Dubai are attempting to attract crypto-related investment.
Dubai is a significant financial hub in the Middle East, as well as the location of various crypto enterprises. The emirate has been aggressively investigating blockchain technology, with the Dubai government even launching its blockchain-based payment system called emCash. It has recently emerged as a worldwide leader in blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, making it an ideal location to start a crypto firm. Because of its strategic position, attractive regulatory environment, and prospered economy, the city is a perfect place for any entrepreneur trying to profit from the expanding crypto and NFT sector.
The city has become a magnet for investors and entrepreneurs trying to profit from the prosperous cryptocurrency industry. Dubai has all of the elements needed to become the worldwide hub of the crypto and NFT industries, thanks to its forward-thinking administration, supportive regulatory environment, and strategic position. However, not every region is promoting the crypto industry. Singapore intends to limit retail investor engagement. Meanwhile, after the bankruptcy of digital-asset exchange FTX and a severe market meltdown last year, US officials have begun cracking down on crypto businesses.
Binance and Gulf Innova to launch crypto exchange in Thailand in Q4 2023.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance continues expanding its global reach by securing new regulatory approvals in Thailand.
Gulf Binance, a joint crypto venture of Binance and Gulf Energy’s innovation arm Gulf Innova, has received digital asset operator licenses from Thailand’s Ministry of Finance. The licenses enable the firm to operate a crypto exchange regulated by the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
Announcing the news on May 26, Binance said that Gulf Binance is set to launch a new digital asset exchange in Thailand by Q4 2023. The new crypto venture will combine Binance’s digital asset expertise with the Gulf’s deep understanding of the Thai market. The companies have been closely working together for more than a year to explore the opportunity to launch a local digital asset exchange.
Thai billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi’s Gulf Energy first reached an agreement with Binance to study such an opportunity in January 2023. “By harnessing Binance’s expertise together with Gulf’s established local presence and network, Gulf Binance aims to showcase the full potential of blockchain technology to meet the needs of Thai users,” Binance’s Head of Asia, Europe, and MENA Richard Teng said. The executive also noted that Thailand has emerged as a crypto-friendly country and has demonstrated a strong commitment to crypto and blockchain.
As previously reported, Gulf Energy is also known for making strategic investments in Binance’s United States-based arm Binance US. The firm officially disclosed in April 2022 that it invested in “Series Seed Preferred Stock issued by BAM Trading Services,” which is the operator of Binance US.
The news comes amid Thailand regulators moving to implement a set of regulations to protect cryptocurrency investors. In January 2023, the financial regulator introduced new rules for crypto custody services, requiring all crypto custodians to have a contingency plan in case of unforeseen events.
F1 ticket provider Platinum Group introduces NFT tickets for global racing events.
Platinum Group, the leading ticket issuer for Formula 1, is releasing non-fungible token (NFT) race tickets starting with the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend. Platinum Group has teamed up with blockchain infrastructure company Elemint and Web3 agency Bary to help create, mint and sell the NFT tickets.
According to a press release, the tickets will be minted on Ethereum sidechain Polygon. Not only will the NFTs provide access to the race, but they will continue to provide utility to holders after the event, such as hospitality benefits and future race discounts to encourage collectors to stay loyal to the brand.
“By providing a completely seamless experience on the main website, the user doesn’t need to have any Web3 knowledge to purchase the NFT ticket,” said Zerbib. “We make users understand the benefits that come with this new type of ticketing and onboard them on a journey that will change their F1 experience.” Jacques-Henri Eyraud, CEO of Elemint said in a press release that leveraging blockchain technology for event ticketing will extend far beyond F1 and into the greater world of sports and entertainment.
“Web3 technologies make it possible to design ticketing solutions that are more secure and more adapted to the specificity of each event,” said Eyraud. “The experience becomes more personalized and fun for fans of all types of sports competitions.”
For the Monaco Grand Prix, certain NFT holders may be offered tickets to the most exclusive party of the event, according to Zerbib.
In the past two years, several crypto companies have flocked to Formula 1 for sponsorship deals, driven by the global brand’s ability to grant exposure to the emerging industry. In June 2021, digital asset exchange Crypto.com penned a partnership with Formula 1 to display its branding on the track throughout the rest of the season. In March, digital asset brokerage Kraken signed a sponsorship deal with the Williams Racing team.
WEF publishes crypto asset regulation recommendations for Government and Industry.
The World Economic Forum(WEF) has released a white paper on crypto asset regulation, assisted by its Digital Currency Governance Consortium. The need for regulation is urgent and cooperation is key, the paper found.
Global coordination is necessary for crypto asset regulation to prevent ambiguity, regulatory arbitration, and inconsistent enforcement, the paper argued. The authors identified a range of challenges to crypto asset regulation, including the presumption of “same activity, same regulation,” claiming:
“Crypto-assets and their ecosystem do not always fit squarely into the existing activity-based, intermediary-focused approach of regulation, even where crypto-asset activities mirror those of the traditional financial sector.”
The anonymity provided by crypto mixers, self-hosted wallets, and decentralized exchanges also complicates regulation. Meanwhile, increasing interconnectedness with traditional finance increases potential contagion risks from the crypto industry, which was only recently full of “turmoil.”
The paper created a variety of classifications of regulatory frameworks for comparison’s sake. Outcome-based, which is characterized as “same risk, same regulatory outcome,” and risk-based regulation, where the level of regulatory intervention is determined by the activity’s level of risk, were considered.
Agile regulation “adopts a responsive, iterative approach, acknowledging that policy and regulatory development is no longer limited to governments but is increasingly a multistakeholder effort.” Regulatory sandboxes, guidance, and regulators’ no-objection letters were cited as examples of an agile regulatory approach. Switzerland’s Financial Market Supervisory Authority was held up as an example of an agile regulator. Switzerland and Japan were cited as examples of self- and co-regulation.
Closing
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