With the crypto winter slowing down developments within the space, two digital asset-focused firms will work together to speed up digital asset adoption for institutions. In an announcement sent to Cointelegraph, crypto-focused company SEBA Bank said that it formed a partnership with the financial services firm HashKey Group to accelerate the institutional adoption of digital assets in Hong Kong and Switzerland. The two firms will aim to create various solutions for institutional investors seeking to dive into the crypto ecosystem. Both companies said that they are dedicated to compliance and embracing various regulatory frameworks within their jurisdictions. SEBA Bank CEO …

Regulators worldwide see central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) as a way to enhance fiat capabilities by inheriting the financial prowess of technologies that power cryptocurrencies. Pakistan joined this list by announcing new regulations to ensure the launch of an in-house CBDC by 2025. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) signed in new laws for Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) — non-bank entities offering digital payment instruments — to ensure the timely issuance of a CBDC in the next three years. The World Bank helped Pakistan design the new regulations, according to local media Arab News. In addition to timeline adherence for …

United States Senator Ted Cruz wants to make the American state of Texas an oasis for Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrencies. Speaking at the Texas Blockchain Summit 2022 in late November, the politician empathized how the crypto industry can be strategic for the U.S. energy supply and technological development. Cruz argued that Bitcoin mining could be used to monetize energy created from oil and gas extraction, rather than burning it. In addition, he emphasized how mining activity can be used as an energy storage and supply alternative: "The beauty of it [Bitcoin mining] is when you've got substantial investment, as we …

2022 is nearing an end and might go down as one of the most eventful years for the crypto industry owing to the prolonged winter that had wiped more than 70% of the market cap from the top and the barrage of crypto firms imploding. This was mainly due to internal mismanagement and unchecked decision-making process. Among all the ups and downs, one thing has remained clear — retail customers have lost a significant amount of money due to a lack of regulatory oversight. While lawmakers in the United States promised to bring crypto under regulatory purview many times this …

Yes, the bear market weeds out the bad actor, but it also forces the existing players to rethink their business strategies to offset resultant losses. In this effort, crypto exchange Bybit announced mass layoffs for the second time in 2022. Ben Zhou, the co-founder and CEO of Bybit, announced a reorganization plan amid a prolonged bear market, which involves a steep reduction in the workforce. The “planned downsizing” will affects employees across the board: “We are all saddened by the fact this reorganization will impact many of our dear Bybuddies and some of our oldest friends.” Independent reporter Colin Wu …

Online forums are integral to the Bitcoin origin story, where Satoshi Nakamoto and early contributors collaborated to discuss and create a disruptive financial system from scratch. One of the oldest Bitcoin forums — bitcointalk.org — still preserves historical discussions around creating the Bitcoin (BTC) logo and the payment system. A curious member of the bitcointalk.org forum recently sought to identify Bitcoin miners from the early days. To their surprise, an anonymous member shared a signature dating back to January 2009, just a week after Bitcoin came into existence. “Maybe OP is inviting Satoshi?” questioned another member after confirming the legitimacy …

Bitcoin (BTC) is a dynamic monetary asset with the potential of being both — a commodity and a currency. For instance, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) classified BTC as a commodity, whereas El Salvador made Bitcoin a legal tender in 2021. So, does this make BTC a store of value or a medium of exchange? It can do both — On one hand, BTC can be added to treasuries as an inflationary hedge. On the other hand, it could also serve the retail purpose of paying for routine expenses. Almost over a decade ago, the first person to utilize …

Decentralized finance (DeFi) markets may have cooled down over the past year, but the technology powering these applications continues to advance. In particular, smart contract platforms that enable transactions to take place across DeFi applications are maturing to meet enterprise requirements. While it’s notable that enterprises have previously shown interest in DeFi use cases, smart contract limitations have hampered adoption. A report published by Grayscale Research in March puts this in perspective, noting that “Despite handling millions of transactions per day, smart contract platforms in their current state would be incapable of handling even 10% of the worlds’ internet traffic.” …

Just a month after the controversial fall of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX exchange and 130 affiliated companies, a former high-ranking executive is reportedly seeking out investors to launch a crypto startup. The ex-president of FTX US, Brett Harrison, is on the lookout for $6 million in funding to launch a start-up that would build crypto trading software for big investors, according to The Information. Harrison’s funding round would be against a $60 million valuation. On Sept. 27, Harrison announced his plans to step down as the president of FTX US as he moved into an advisory role — over a month …

The GameFi champion and metaverse developer Animoca Brands has a billion-dollar fund in its plans, according to a report from Nikkei Asia on Nov. 30. Animoca Brands’ co-founder Yat Siu said in an interview that the fund could potentially have up to $2 billion dollars to allot to mid to late-stage startups with a metaverse focus. The fund and the exact amount available to developers have yet to be finalized. Cointelegraph reached out to Animoca Brands for a comment, to which the company confirmed that the fund is “in the works.” According to the interview with Siu there will be …

Working on their national crypto framework, the amendments to the law “On virtual assets,” the Ukrainian regulatory community actively collaborates with international experts. The list includes the international consultancy firm Ernst&Young and the USAID Financial Sector Reform project. On Dec. 1, the Advisory Council on the Regulation of Virtual Assets, organized by the National Securities and Stock Market Commission, held its first meeting. The regulatory experts discussed the amendments to the law "On virtual assets", which should adjust the National Tax Code to crypto regulation. The event was attended by representatives of the President's Office, the National Bank of Ukraine, …

The web developer Mozilla, mainly known for its internet browser Firefox, has joined the rush of legacy internet platforms jumping into the Web3 and metaverse development space. In a blog post announcement on Nov. 30, the company revealed its acquisition of Active Replica, an immersive experience developer. Active Replica is joining Mozilla’s Hubs creator platform to help create virtual events. Already the virtual experience developer has worked with Mozilla during its multi-day arts and tech festival Mozfest earlier this year. According to Mozilla the acquisition will also be important to accelerate in demand work, personalized subscription tiers, on-boarding improvements and …