Alibaba Cloud builds Metaverse Launchpad into Avalanche
Alibaba’s cloud division (NYSE:BABA) has launched a launch pad called Cloudverse for companies to deploy metaverses on the Avalanche blockchain. Avalanche will provide the technology to build the metaverse spaces, while Alibaba Cloud will provide the compute and storage. The platform is designed to provide an end-to-end platform for companies to customize and maintain their metaverse spaces to interact with their customers. Avalanche’s native token (COIN:AVAXUSD) was up less than 1% on the initial announcement of the news.
President of El Savador eliminates all taxes on technological innovations
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele signed into law the Innovation and Technology Manufacturing Incentives Act, which removes taxation on technological innovations, including Bitcoin (COIN:BTCUSD). The law is seen as an attempt by the country to attract Bitcoiners and tech companies, as part of a plan to become a financial hub in Latin America. “[It] eliminates all taxes (income, property, capital gains and import tariffs) on technological innovations, software and application programming, AI, computer hardware manufacturing and communications.”, said a tweet from Bukele on 4 of May. Meanwhile, the US government has proposed a 30% tax on cryptocurrency miners to limit the environmental and social harm caused by them.
French senators propose allowing influencers to promote registered cryptocurrency companies
The French Senate Economic Affairs Committee has proposed a new law that would allow the promotion of cryptocurrencies by influencers on social media, provided the companies are registered with the Financial Markets Authority of France (AMF) and the influencers comply with advertising regulations, disclose their relationships with cryptocurrency companies and provide accurate and clear information about the risks associated with investments in digital assets. The proposal would allow all digital asset companies operating in France to register with the AMF, raising awareness of cryptocurrencies and making them more accessible to the general public.
Nigeria adopts national blockchain policy
On Wednesday, Nigeria’s federal government approved a national blockchain policy with the aim of creating a blockchain-powered economy that supports secure transactions and data sharing between people, businesses and government. A multisectoral Steering Committee will oversee the implementation of the Policy, while regulators work on the development of regulatory instruments for blockchain in various sectors of the economy. According to a statement, “The Policy’s vision is to create a Blockchain-powered economy that supports secure transactions, data sharing and value exchange between people, businesses and government, thereby enhancing innovation, trust, growth and prosperity for all.”
Bill banning North Carolina state agencies from accepting CBDCs passes
The North Carolina House of Representatives passed a bill prohibiting state agencies from accepting payments in CBDCs issued by the central bank. Republican lawmakers sponsored the proposal, following a trend of opposition to the use of CBDCs by party members. In addition to North Carolina, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has also introduced a similar bill that seeks to ban the use of CBDCs issued by the US federal government. “Unlike a decentralized digital currency, a CBDC is directly controlled and issued by the government to consumers, giving government bureaucrats the ability to see all consumer activity and the power to cut off access to goods and services for consumers,” said DeSantis. The Biden administration is considering launching an American CBDC, but has yet to make a final decision.
Market value of Memecoin Turbo exceeded $50 million
A digital artist used ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence tool, to create the Turbo memecoin. The AI tool chose the name and brand, provided the smart contract code, and prepared the tokennomics for the project. After an unsuccessful initial launch, ChatGPT provided ideas on how to take the project forward, including crowdfunding, social media promotion, and airdrops. The token has already attracted interest from various crypto influencers, and has been listed on several cryptocurrency exchanges, including MEXC and LBank. The memecoin market cap exceeded over $50 million as of May 3, but recently fell to around $34.6 million. Meanwhile, increased interest saw its holders pass 9,000, with its trading volume exceeding $30 million in 24 hours.
CEX trading volumes fall in April after months of growth
According to Kaiko, a blockchain data provider, centralized exchanges have seen a drop in trading volumes this month for the first time in three months. “Trading volumes on CEXs declined in April after rising for three consecutive months and surpassing pre-FTX levels in March. Overall, however, the cryptocurrency market remains significantly higher than before the 2020 bull run,” it said.
Bitget launches Blockchain4Youth
Bitget has revealed the launch of a new corporate social responsibility (CSR) project called Blockchain4Youth, which will receive investments of US$10 million over the next five years. The initiative will include offering blockchain courses, certifications through Bitget Academy and lectures at partner universities around the world. In addition, the company intends to make scholarships available soon. The project “aims to create a blockchain future by empowering and inspiring younger generations to use Web3 and cryptographic tools to create and engage in a decentralized space.”
INX collaborates with BitGo to introduce wallet management solution
INX Digital Company announced the launch of a pilot wallet management solution for regulated security tokens in partnership with BitGo. BitGo’s policy management solution allows institutional investors, such as family offices and venture capital funds, to have the highest standards of portfolio management, allowing policy setting with spenders, viewers, approvers and administrators.
Coinbase to shut down Bitcoin lending services, awaits SEC response in legal proceedings
A Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) will shut down its Bitcoin-backed lending services on May 10, citing the need to prioritize key offerings. The decision comes amid increasing regulatory scrutiny from the SEC and ongoing customer litigation. Coinbase’s Bitcoin loan amount could be as high as $1 million, but the exchange did not directly attribute the decision to regulatory pressure from the SEC. Elsewhere, a US court has given the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) a 10-day deadline to respond to legal action brought by Coinbase, which seeks clarification on regulatory guidance for the cryptocurrency industry. Coinbase filed the suit after facing tighter regulatory scrutiny from the SEC, which in March received a Well Notice on some of its products. The exchange stated that it does not list securities.
SEC cuts digital assets out of hedge fund rule
The Securities and Exchange Commission has decided to leave digital assets out of a new rule that requires more information from hedge funds and private equity advisers. While the agency approved changes to the PF Form, which include disclosing events that indicate “significant stress” such as extraordinary investment losses, digital assets were left out. In a footnote, the SEC said it considered including digital assets in a Glossary of Terms but decided not to adopt them in this rule. The final hedge fund rule, adopted on Wednesday, would for the first time require large hedge funds and private equity advisers to report more timely on certain events that “may indicate significant stress or otherwise signal systemic risk and damage to investors”, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said in a statement.
Deloitte joins the Polkadot ecosystem to issue reusable digital credentials
Deloitte will use the KILT platform to issue reusable know-your-customer (KYC) and know-your-business (KYB) credentials to improve the efficiency and privacy of data verification processes. With KILT-generated credentials stored in users’ wallets, users will have full control over their data and will be able to decide how to share it and with whom. Deloitte will offer a wallet as a browser extension to help users manage and share their credentials. “With simplified identity solutions ‘Built on KILT’, customers can use verifiable digital credentials across multiple services while maintaining control over when and where to share their personal information.” said Ingo Rübe, CEO of BOTLabs and founder of KILT Protocol.
Alchemy Launches Public Support for StarkNet ZK Rollup
Alchemy has released a public version of its platform for StarkNet, a ZK rollup that uses zero-knowledge cryptography to process transactions faster and cheaper. StarkNet also has native account abstraction, which allows users to access blockchains through smart contract wallets, making the experience easier. The integration of StarkNet into the Alchemy platform may indicate a demand from developers to build more with account abstraction. “Developers can embed customizable account permissions, create protections to run at the wallet level, and create simple transaction flows. This empowers developers to build for a world where end users and businesses are always represented by a smart contract wallet,” said Alex Miao, CEO of BOTLabs and founder of the KILT Protocol.
Curve Finance deploys native stablecoin on Ethereum mainnet
The developer team at Curve Finance, a decentralized exchange, announced that it has deployed smart contracts for crvUSD, a decentralized stablecoin, on the Ethereum network. With this implementation, users can now trade crvUSD directly on the Ethereum mainnet. “As many imagined – the crvUSD smart contract deployment happened! This is not finalized yet because the UI needs to be implemented as well. Stay tuned,” they stated, adding that “after some peer reviews of the deployments, it was found that the current version of crvUSD needs a redeployment which will take place soon [veCRV would not receive fees with this one, due to an error in the script of implantation].”
HK$10 million cryptocurrency scam in Hong Kong
According to the South China Morning Post, two Hong Kong residents lost nearly HK$10 million ($1.3 million) after falling for a cryptocurrency scam. A 66-year-old victim responded to a WhatsApp message from a fake cryptocurrency “expert” who convinced her to provide her bank details to receive her profits. However, the link sent by the scammer took her to an online platform controlled by criminals, who stole her confidential information.
US regulatory action against ‘Elon Musk AI Tokens’ and ‘TruthGPT Coin’
Regulators in several US states are cracking down on AI-focused cryptocurrency projects that are being marketed as investments. The Texas State Securities Board led a group of state regulators in issuing a cease and desist order against several projects, including the TruthGPT Coin and the Elon Musk AI Token. Regulators have claimed the projects are fraudulent and warned investors against them. The projects reportedly promised returns investors never saw and used the popularity of figures like Vitalik Buterin and Changpeng Zhao to give them credibility. Projects had 30 days to request a hearing.
CryptoOrange partners with Paysafe to expand payment options
CryptoOrange has partnered with payment platform Paysafe to expand its options for buying and selling cryptocurrencies internationally. According to the press release, the exchange will also receive support from Paysafe in its geographic expansion, with a focus on the Latin America region, where the company recently acquired two local payments companies with an extensive payment network in six countries, including Brazil, Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, Chile and Colombia.
Denode partners with GTN
Fintech pioneer GTN has partnered with Mongolian fintech Denode to provide retail investors in Mongolia with “a comprehensive range of tokenized assets from various regions, enabling access to the global market,” the press release said. Denode, a regulated blockchain-based digital trading platform, will enhance its services to meet the changing needs of investors locally and globally.