Get your everyday, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related information — exploring the stories flying beneath the radar of the crypto news.
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- The issue remains whether the designation of bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender by El Salvador has mechanical consequences for its remedy in larger economies under tax law, banking and financial regulations, and other areas, analysts at JPMorgan said in a notice. According to them, any such change in treatment would be an unintended consequence of regulations and laws that considerably predate, and reluctantly did not expect cryptocurrency, but those movements may be complicated if this really is the beginning of a broader tendency among similarly located, smaller states. (Find out more: El Salvador Brings New Global Puzzle – What Is Bitcoin & How To Tax It?)
- El Salvador’s choice to produce bitcoin legal tender is an”intriguing experiment” with a speculative asset that doesn’t pass the test for becoming a reliable way of payment, according to Benoit Coeure, head of the Innovation Hub at the Bank for International Settlements, according to Reuters.
- Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter, has theorized it is”only a matter of time” until the societal media sees a Lightning Network integration. This was in response to an appreciative tweet to the layer two technology within messaging app Sphinx Chat.
- Brave Software, the firm behind the eponymous browser, also announced they are starting a brand new browser-integrated content flow named Brave Today. The support will aggregate information content in 15 different categories from major media outlets, delivered anonymously to the user’s browser through Brave’s new personal content delivery network (CDN).
Mining news
- New York failed to pass a measure that would put a grip on new large-scale Bitcoin mining operations, wshu reported, adding that The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union pushed against the measure, saying it was unfair to their own members.
- The recently declared Bitcoin Mining Council, was officially launched. The council said it will function to standardize energy reporting inside the mining industry, but also for education.
- KEPCO, the South Korean state electricity firm, will start auditing firms it suspects of illegally using cut-price electricity to mine crypto, reported Seoul Kyungjae. KEPCO supplies cut-priced, subsidized power to businesses and agricultural manufacturers, but seems to be suspicious that a variety of those using cut-priced power have been mining crypto.
Banking news
- Texas state-chartered banks can provide customers with virtual money custody services, provided that they are able to deal with the risks while complying with the law, an official note by the Texas Department of Banking said. This is due to the fact that these custody services should not be very different from conventional ones, so the ability to supply these services already exists within the current laws of the state.
Exchanges news
- Binance-owned Indian crypto market WazirX has obtained a show cause notice from the Enforcement Directorate for breaching the Foreign Exchange Management Act through crypto trades worth more than Rs 2,790.74 crore, the authority revealed. However, the trade claims they haven’t received any such notice, but they will comply and help that the investigation should that happen.
- CEO of crypto market Kraken, Jesse Powell, is having second thoughts about their direct listing after seeing how rival trade Coinbase performed after their listing last April, he told Fortune. The company is presently mulling an initial public offering (IPO), which gives bankers greater control over the pricing process rather than it happening organically on the market, but the general public debut should happen in the second half of 2022.
Investment news
- Copper, the London-based electronic asset infrastructure supplier, said it has closed a USD 50m Series B financing round, co-led by B2B software investor Dawn Capital and Goal Global. Copper said it will use the funds to expand its global footprint. They also plan to announce crucial high-profile hires and create a”significant investment” to further build Copper’s product suite. These funds are meant to accelerate the company’s rapid expansion, especially the growth across North America and Asia, as the company has already sold its solution to the electric vehicle industry.
- GIC, Singapore’s autonomous wealth fund, has taken a USD 70m stake in fintech and electronic asset firm BC Group. This is a bit more than 8 percent of the issued share capital of BC Group, that’s the parent firm of Hong Kong’s first accredited crypto trade OSL, the company said.
- Ethereum (ETH) frame Polygon (MATIC) is partnering with the project behind decentralized market (DEX) on the exact same network, 0x (ZRX), committing USD 10.5m to support Programmers and jobs and build a decentralized fund (DeFi) infrastructure on Polygon. The deal gives Boson Protocol the best to create a superior block of property, which is referred to inside Decentraland as LAND, at the Vegas City gaming district, they included.
CBDCs news
- The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said they may be launching their very own digital money (CBDC) pilot project at the end of 2021, per Today. Once the coin fully starts, it is going to be complementary to money notes, and would serve to simplify cross-border remittances.
Politics news
- The plan of the Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has accused the opposition leader of providing gangland leaders with secret crypto funding. Feb El Nacional, Jorge Rodríguez, the leader of the National Assembly, has accused the resistance Voluntat Popular (People’s Will) party of handing of”employing thugs” to hand out dollars and crypto to”criminal gangs” at La Vega. The MP Tania Valentina Díaz shared a movie of this pioneer inquiring where”that the cryptocurrencies that [the Voluntat Popular Presidential candidate] Juan Guaidó” is”providing terrorist groups has come from” The terroristshe alleged, are”exchanging [tokens] to buy weapons.”