Government-issued electronic currency seems to be an idea whose time has come. “More than half of the world’s central banks are now developing digital currencies or running concrete experiments on them,” reported the Bank for International Settlements, or BIS, in early May — something that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. The BIS also found that nine out of ten central banks were exploring central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, in some form or other, according to its survey of 81 central banks conducted last autumn but just published. Many were taken aback by the progress. “It …

The European Central Bank (ECB) continues pushing its central bank digital currency (CBDC) project despite Europeans apparently not feeling too positive about a digital euro. The ECB released another working paper on the digital euro, providing an extensive technical analysis of a potential European CBDC and its position in the existing financial system. Issued on May 13, the working paper aims to study issues like financial intermediation, payment choices and privacy in the digital economy, providing a large number of related algebra-based conclusions. The study suggests that a “CBDC with anonymity” is preferable to traditional digital payments like bank deposits …

Even though the cryptocurrency market seems to be going through a bit of a lull at the moment, there’s no denying the fact that the industry has grown from strength to strength over the last few years, especially from an adoption perspective. To this point, a recent study revealed that the number of adults in the United States using digital assets for everyday purchases will increase by 70% by the end of the year when compared to 2021, with the metric rising from 1.08 million to 3.6 million users. The study’s chief author suggests that as the crypto market’s volatility …

Just three days after debuting in the Indian market, United States-based crypto exchange Coinbase abruptly stopped using United Payments Interface (UPI), the most popular payment service in the region. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong later revealed that the service disruption was due to an “informal pressure” from India’s central bank. During Coinbase’s 2022 Quarterly Earnings call, Armstrong spoke about the company’s global expansion plans while acknowledging Coinbase’s role in starting the conversation with regulators related to crypto adoption. When asked about the impact of the recent disruption related to offering payment services in India, Armstrong stated: “So a few days after …

Bitcoin (BTC) is for all. For you, for Michael Saylor in Miami, and for 38-year-old Jorge, a Mozambican family man who's using the largest cryptocurrency to make ends meet. Jorge, who goes by his first name for anonymity, lives in the tiny village of Bomba, Mozambique, on its southeast coast. Since the COVID-19 pandemic stripped away tourism from the sleepy surf town, one of Jorge’s primary wage earners—tourism—disappeared. Luckily, Bitcoin adoption is slowly swelling in Africa–from the Central African Republic across to Senegal and further north. Mozambique is also showing signs it's warming to the world's most popular crypto. Mozambique …

AMC Theatres CEO Adam Aron stated that crypto along with several other digital payment methods recently accounted for 35% of its online payments. The popular cinema chain has gradually been working on various crypto adoption plays after first rolling out online payment support for Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC) in November. Last month, it also added support for Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) payments via the AMC Theatres mobile app. Speaking as part of the firm’s 2022 Q1 earnings call on Monday, Aron emphasized that the firm’s plunge into crypto has not only been …

Similar to crypto institutions, cannabis businesses struggle to access financial services from banks and other payment providers. These businesses would either be denied financial services outright or have to pay exorbitant fees for receiving them. Utilizing blockchain and cryptocurrency, global blockchain technology company BitCanna offers an alternative in the form of cashless payment. Alternative funding for cannabis companies As mentioned, BitCanna ensures cannabis companies can gain access to financial services through blockchain. Instead of dealing with the restrictions set by credit card companies and banks, cannabis groups can receive payments through BitCanna Pay — an application providing instant, worldwide access …

In an attempt to bring the fashion industry into new innovations and trends, many brands are entering the cryptoverse to test out the waters. Fortunately, the crypto industry has its arms wide open, ready to accept the fashion world and grow. One fashion designer who has recently started dipping his toes in the crypto world is Philipp Plein. He participated in Decentraland’s Metaverse Fashion Week, showcasing a collection alongside Dolce & Gabbana, watch company Jacob & Co and many others who joined Decentraland in an attempt to bring fashion and the Metaverse together. During the show, Plein used the skull …

The Italian high-end fashion label Gucci has announced it will begin accepting cryptocurrency payments by the end of the month in five of its United States stores, with plans to extend the service to all of its 111 stores in North America. Gucci will accept 12 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ether (ETH), Wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC), Litecoin (LTC), Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE) and five U.S. dollar stablecoins, according to Vogue Business. Customers paying with crypto in-store at the pilot locations in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Atlanta and Las Vegas will be sent an email with a …

The Market Report with Cointelegraph is live right now. On this week’s show, Cointelegraph’s resident experts discuss what they believe are the top three most bullish coins one should take a closer look at. But first, market expert Marcel Pechman carefully examines the Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) markets. Are the current market conditions bullish or bearish? What is the outlook for the next few months? Pechman is here to break it down. Next up: the main event. Join Cointelegraph analysts Benton Yaun, Jordan Finneseth and Sam Bourgi as each makes his case for the most bullish cryptocurrency right now. …

Progress will continue on the development of the digital euro as the European Central Bank (ECB) and Eurosystem have begun looking for companies to participate in an exercise to prototype customer-facing payments services. Payment service providers, banks and other relevant companies were invited to express interest in the project in an announcement released Thursday. Eurosystem, which comprises the ECB and the national central banks of countries that use the euro, stated that it will select up to five front-end providers on the basis of their capabilities and the use cases they present. While participants are not required to have previous …

As told via a Twitter post on Tuesday, Toncoin (TON)'s independent developers have rolled out crypto payment options on Telegram using a Wallet Bot. To access the feature, users first need to opt in via the Wallet Bot on Telegram, which allows them to purchase cryptocurrency by bank card, exchange and transfer to other wallets. According to the company, they can then send Bitcoin (BTC) or Toncoin to other users by clicking on the “Wallet” icon in direct messages. You can now send #Toncoin directly within Telegram chats! It’s a new way to send Toncoin without transaction fees to any …