Ferrari to accept crypto as payment for its cars in the US

Ferrari Monza SP1

Ferrari has started to accept payment in cryptocurrency for its luxury sports cars in the US and will extend the scheme to Europe following requests from its wealthy customers, its marketing and commercial chief told Reuters. The vast majority of blue-chip companies have steered clear of crypto as the volatility of bitcoin and other tokens renders them impractical for commerce. Patchy regulation and high energy usage have also prevented the spread of crypto as a means of payment. These include electric carmaker Tesla, which in 2021 began to accept payment…

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US Acquires 200,000 Bitcoins Through Three Seizures

Bitcoin USA

A recent report unveiled the bitcoin holdings of the Federal Government of the United States, accounting for around $5 billion worth of BTC. According to the Wall Street Journal, three recent seizures yielding over 200,000 bitcoins have made the United States one of the largest bitcoin holders in the world. Prominent Chinese reporter Colin Wu took to X (formerly Twitter) earlier today to reveal the United States’ acquisition of the largest cryptocurrency by market cap. The seized bitcoins were primarily traced to cyber criminals and darknet markets. They were stored…

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MetaMask Temporarily Removed from Apple’s App Store

MetaMask logo

On October 14, the leading Ethereum wallet, MetaMask, was temporarily removed from the Apple App Store, raising fears of a permanent ban. MetaMask, which has over 30 million users worldwide, informed the community that the problem was not caused by security concerns or malicious activity. Apple’s service regulations, which ban “unrelated background processes” such as cryptocurrency mining, are thought to be the cause of the brief removal. The company indicated that MetaMask would be available again via the App Store soon. This isn’t MetaMask’s first encounter with tech giants. In…

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$2.3 billion has been invested in blockchain gaming so far this year

blockchain gaming

DappRadar, the decentralized app tracking platform, has unveiled data indicating a remarkable influx of $600 million in investments into the blockchain gaming sphere during the third quarter of 2023. In the broader landscape of blockchain gaming ventures, the year 2023 has been nothing short of astonishing, witnessing an astounding $2.3 billion poured into this domain. Remarkably, even in the face of a seemingly bearish crypto market throughout the year, the third quarter alone contributed a substantial $600 million to this flourishing ecosystem. Diving deeper into the quarterly breakdown, DappRadar’s report…

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Ripple Launches Cutting-Edge CBDC Platform Empowering Central Banks and Financial Institutions

Ripple’s CBDC platform

Ripple, a leading blockchain technology company, has announced the launch of a state-of-the-art platform specifically designed to enable central banks, governments, and financial institutions to issue their own central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). This groundbreaking development comes in response to the increasing interest and momentum behind CBDC adoption worldwide. Ripple’s CBDC platform grants government institutions full control over the entire life cycle of their digital currencies, encompassing essential aspects such as minting, distribution, redemption, and token burning. With this comprehensive solution, financial institutions can actively participate in inter-institutional settlement and…

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Bank of China tests SIM card NFC payments for digital yuan

Bank of China digital yuan e-CNY

Bank of China, one of China’s largest state-owned banks, is testing a new offline payment method linked to SIM cards for digital yuan, or the e-CNY, the country’s in trial central bank digital currency (CBDC). Bank of China has partnered with telecommunication operators China Telecom and China Unicom to start testing the new feature on Tuesday, the bank said Monday in a social media post. The bank intends to allow users to make payments with their phones by connecting its e-CNY app with what it calls “super SIM cards” that…

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The Latest NFT Trend: Taking Out Loans on Rolexes

Rolex GMT-Master II

Blockchain technology has already changed much about the way people interact. But some innovators are hoping to push the technology’s limits even further: they’re betting the blockchain can transform the world into one giant pawn shop. Arcade.xyz, a DeFi protocol for NFT lending, has begun facilitating loans between strangers that use luxury watches as collateral, and employ NFTs to guarantee those loans’ terms. In the past few weeks, Arcade users have lent three Rolexes to anonymous lenders for cash—a Daytona, for $20,000 at 15% APR; a GMT-Master II, for $14,500…

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Brazilian CBDC Could Reportedly Allow Government to Freeze or Manipulate Accounts

Digital Brazilian Real

The source code for the Brazilian CBDC in testing was analyzed by blockchain dev Pedro Magalhães. Brazil has been developing a CBDC for some time now. If all goes according to plan, the digital Real will be launched sometime in 2024. Once launched, it would support retail payments for anyone inclined to use it, backing up the payment with funds in the users’ bank accounts. Planning Ahead The Brazilian CBDC would not, however, interfere with other payment methods common in Brazil, such as Pix. According to a spokesman for the…

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Crypto Trader Turns $12K Into $1M In 10 Days

SmartMoney turned $12K into $1M

A trader has transformed an initial $12,000 investment into $1.05 million in just 10 days, primarily through the skyrocketing success of Pepe 2.0. What Happened: Data from Lookonchain shows that the trader initially allocated $90,000 to purchase 7.9 trillion Pepe 2.0 tokens, and subsequently sold 5.2 trillion of the meme coin for approximately $614,000. Pepe 2.0, a token largely introduced within the past week, positions itself as a new iteration of the popular Pepe Coin. Capitalizing on Pepe 2.0’s spike on June 28, the trader flipped $400,000 worth of Bitcoin…

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Cardano developers launch Marlowe to ease smart contract creation

Cardano hard fork

Input Output Global, the creator of Cardano, has launched Marlowe, a toolkit to facilitate smart contract creation in the ecosystem. Marlowe is a tool that simplifies how developers and ordinary people with no coding experience can develop, test, and deploy smart contracts. Marlowe, which has gone through testing by an external firm, has numerous features like reusable and customizable templates, a built-in simulator to test contracts, easy setup, and powerful APIs. In a statement in Lisbon, the developers said that they were partnering with TxPipe to offer access to Marlowe…

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Binance reportedly withdraws from Austria

Binance

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has reportedly withdrawn its application in Austria and is now focusing on achieving MiCA compliance. Binance is fighting battles on multiple fronts in 2023, as it tries to fend off the US Securities and Exchange Commission while pulling out from several markets in Europe. Specifically, the cryptocurrency exchange has left the Netherlands after it failed to secure a licence from the Dutch central bank, and it also faced an investigation in France concerning its anti-money laundering procedures. Now, reports from Finance Forward have surfaced that Binance is…

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MicroStrategy buys Bitcoin worth $347M to strengthen its crypto holding

Ukrajina crypto Bitcoin

On Wednesday, 28 June, MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor revealed that the renowned firm purchased 12,333 Bitcoin between 29 April and 27 June, spending $347 million. The latest buy saw the company strengthening its crypto holding. MicroStrategy acquired its BTC assets at $28,136 average price. MicroStrategy now has 152,333 Bitcoins, worth more than $4.6B at prevailing prices. The firm is among the largest BTC hodlers. Moreover, MicroStrategy has remained resilient despite challenges plaguing the crypto space. While Michael Saylor has been supporting the leading crypto, even backing BTC’s layer2 platform Lightning…

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European Commission outlines vision for digital euro

EU digital euro CBDC

The European Commission on Wednesday released a proposal for a digital euro that would ensure free access to the CBDC across the bloc and establish a legal framework so that digital euro payments can be made from device to device, both online and offline. “The digital euro would be available alongside existing national and international private means of payment, such as cards or applications and it would work like a digital wallet where people and businesses could pay with the digital euro anytime and anywhere in the euro area,” the…

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Warner Music, Polygon Labs Launch Blockchain Music Accelerator

music concert blockchain

Further committing to blockchain-based initiatives, Warner Music Group announced Wednesday that it has formed a new music accelerator program in partnership with Polygon Labs that seeks to bolster decentralized music-related apps and projects built on the Polygon network. The program will specifically seek out projects operating at the intersection of music and the blockchain. Some examples of top priorities for Warner and Polygon purportedly include companies attempting to create new mechanisms for the decentralized distribution of music, those focused on fostering artist-fan communities, those building on-chain ticketing solutions, and those…

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More than 50 Crypto Tokens including ADA, LUNA, and TRX Now Considered Securities by the US SEC

tokens securities US SEC

Our cherished digital assets may not be as innocent as you think!” This line could easily be mistaken for sensationalist tabloid fodder, but unfortunately for crypto enthusiasts around the globe, it has become a startling reality. In a move that has left the world of digital currencies in a state of shock and uncertainty, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially classified more than 50 popular cryptocurrency tokens – including the likes of Cardano ($ADA), Terra ($LUNA), and Tron ($TRX) – as securities. Let’s take a look at…

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