Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
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Investments news
- Banking giant BNY Mellon is reported to be creating a new Dublin-based unit that will offer digital assets to their clients as part of their Digital Innovation Hub. The company will act as the custodian for all sorts of assets, including cryptoassets, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
- Nasdaq-listed Chinese online brokerages Tiger Brokers and Futu intend to expand into crypto trading outside mainland China in order to “make investing more efficient and enjoyable for investors,” the South China Morning Post reported. Tiger Brokers said they would not offer services to Chinese citizens due to the ongoing crackdown on crypto, while both brokers have added that they are applying for “relevant licenses.”
- Makara, a US Securities and Exchange Commission-registered cryptoasset robo-advisor, today announced the launch of its service and mobile app in the App Store. Following its initial announcement, Makara has seen demand for the service exceed more than 20,000 waitlist sign-ups, with as many as 600 new waitlisters in one day, they claimed.
- Exchange-traded fund (ETF) and exchange-traded product (ETP) sponsor WisdomTree has launched its physically-backed bitcoin and ethereum ETPs on Euronext exchanges in Paris and Amsterdam, per an emailed statement. Both instruments are already listed on Germany’s Boerse Xetra and the Swiss Stock Exchange.
Regulation news
- Governor of Riksbank, Sweden’s central bank, said that cryptoassets are unlikely to dodge regulatory oversight. “When something gets big enough, things like consumer interests and money laundering come into play,” Stefan Ingves was quoted as saying. “So there’s good reason to believe that [regulation] will happen.”
- Activities related to decentralized finance (DeFi) projects which involve digital coin issuance may require a license from the regulator in the near future, Bangkok Post reported, citing “the first official announcement on DeFi” by the Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
- South Korea’s main opposition party has accused the government of fostering “anarchy” in the crypto sector. Per Chosun, a meeting of crypto experts and MPs from the opposition People’s Party claimed that “until the government introduces a transparent and manageable system that can prevent damage and protect victims” of crypto-related fraud, scams, and hacks,” it had “no business collecting taxes” from crypto investors. The group was referencing much-maligned plans to launch crypto taxes at a flat rate of 20% on trading profits from January 1 next year – and claimed again that Seoul had neglected the plight of the nation’s crypto investors while seeking to line the Treasury’s pockets with tax revenues.
Mining news
- US-based Bitcoin mining firm Marathon Digital Holdings said that its mining pool, MaraPool, will no longer censor transactions. Once a planned update is completed over the coming week, the pool will begin validating transactions in a manner consistent with all other miners who use the standard node, they added.
Exchanges news
- Creditors who lost their funds in the Mt Gox crash in 2014 can now vote on the Draft Rehabilitation Plan on the online rehabilitation claim filing system, said the announcement. The deadline for voting is October 8, and creditors can see the extent of their voting rights on the system—and may even receive their restitutions through the same system, so everyone who lost funds on Mt Gox is encouraged to register here.
- Germany’s first regulated trading venue to add support for digital assets, Boerse Stuttgart, said it has launched a crypto trading app for both iOS and Android systems. The app has all the functionalities of the desktop version, and it is run in accordance with the German Banking Act, making it fully compliant with the law, they said.
- BitMEX has announced they’ve extended the grant for Bitcoin developer Calvin Kim until 2022, giving him a total of USD 150,000 in a partnership with the Human Rights Foundation. Kim has been working on Utreexo, a Bitcoin scaling solution, since 2019 and had previously received a USD 30,000 grant from BitMEX in 2020.
M&A news
- Blockchain solutions provider OIO Holdings said it has acquired Asia’s “second-largest” staking business Moonstake. Moonstake had USD 900m in staking assets at the time of the purchase and is “expanding rapidly,” they said in an emailed announcement.
Crime news
- More “high-yield” alleged crypto scams have been busted in South Korea, with some operators reportedly claiming to offer access to a secret, as-yet-unlisted “Amazon” and “Alibaba” token. Per KBS, prosecutors are gearing up to charge a group of four South Korean people in their 50s of duping investors out of some USD 1.3m by claiming they had access to a token co-developed by Amazon and Alibaba. At least 63 victims have been identified, reported NoCut News, which added that the operation appears to have been based in South Gyeongsang province. KBS also reported that another group of some 20 investors is seeking to recover funds from a Daegu-based operator who claimed to be representing a Japan-based crypto project. The operator had said that the tokens could be used to buy cut-price goods on duty-free sales platforms.
NFTs news
- Five Japanese crypto and blockchain firms have formed a non-fungible token (NFT)-themed partnership. The companies – the yen-pegged stablecoin operator JPYC, the NFT and app consultancy SmartApp and the blockchain gaming firms CryptoGames, LiberalChain and double jump.Tokyo – stated they would form a joint initiative that would help Japanese content creators to sell and distribute NFTs to global customers, offering “high-quality NFT business consulting and NFT marketplace business management.” They claimed the new initiative will “leverage the strengths of each of its members.”
- Major League Baseball announced a long-term agreement with digital collectible company Candy Digital — headlined by a Lou Gehrig NFT that will be released on July 4. Candy Digital is a joint venture being launched by Fanatics chairman Michael Rubin, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz, and entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk.
