Despite Ethereum being the blockchain of choice for smart-contract capabilities, there has been a recent push to bring decentralized finance to the Bitcoin network. Fast facts One such project looking to do so is layer-one protocol Stacks (STX), whose introduction of its programming language Clarity has allowed the development of smart contracts on the Bitcoin…
India plans to implement the country’s digital currency in phases, Reserve Bank of India’s deputy governor Shri T Rabi Sankar said at a webinar organized by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, New Delhi. Fast facts “CBDC (central bank digital currency) will be in the arsenal of most if not all central banks in the…
Indonesia has seen red-hot growth in the crypto asset market, but the country’s regulators are just beginning to get to grips with burgeoning industry and formulate policy responses.
Despite growing global interest, CBDCs are not all at the same stage of development. Amit Ghosh of R3 explains how countries in Asia are paving the way.
Mintable — a Singapore-based, Mark Cuban-backed non-fungible token platform — today announced the launch of a limited-edition NFT collection featuring comic book legend Stan Lee. Fast facts The collection, which includes three paintings by artist Rob Prior and a selection of photographs and videos of Lee taken by his friend and later caretaker, will be…
At EthCC in Paris, Ethereum’s boyish creator lays out a vision for the blockchain’s non-finance uses — like ridding social media of bots and fake news.
OpenSea, the world’s second-biggest non-fungible token marketplace by trading volume, has raised US$100 million in a series B funding round led by venture capital firm A16z, the company has announced. Fast facts The new funding raises the company’s value to US$1.5 billion, making it a unicorn — a start-up with a valuation of more than…
Trade platform the Global Shipping Business Network has launched its first blockchain-based application in China to reduce paper usage and enhance efficiency and transparency in the shipping industry. Fast facts Named Cargo Release, the new blockchain-based app will connect the whole shipping supply chain, including shipping lines, consignees, their agents and terminals. The app promises…
U.S. cryptocurrency miner Core Scientific Holding is set to list on the Nasdaq exchange through a merger with a special-purpose acquisitions company, boosting the value of the combined business to around US$4.3 billion. Fast facts Core Scientific, one of the biggest crypto mining companies in the U.S., announced yesterday that it had entered into merger…
China’s trial of e-CNY, the digital version of the national currency, the yuan, has extended to the insurance industry, with conglomerate Ping An encouraging medical staff in the southern city of Shenzhen to pay premiums for a Covid-19 insurance plan using the new currency. Fast facts One Ping An branch in Shenzhen is offering insurance…