Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
Blockchain news
- Phase 0 of Ethereum’s next version, Ethereum 2.0 might go live in January of 2021 at the earliest, Ethereum researcher Justin Drake said during a Reddit Ask-Me-Anything session today. During the same session, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin replied that he “personally quite disagree[s] with this” and that he “would favor launching phase 0 significantly before that date regardless of level of readiness :D.”
- China’s Hebei Province has launched a two-year blockchain action plan, reported East Money. The province, in the northern coastal part of the country, is the latest to do so – following on from other Chinese areas, including Beijing. The plan will involve launching blockchain operations in at least 20 different public and private sectors before the end of 2022.
Crypto adoption news
- Maker (MKR), the company behind the Dai (DAI) stablecoin said that it will reward Japanese post-COVID 19 restaurant diners with DAI giveaways. Per Coinpost, Maker said it will give 20 dai tokens (USD 20) to the first 200 people who post images of themselves dining out at restaurants in the country on social media platforms after eateries in the country resume post-coronavirus service.
- Japanese exchange bitFlyer is set to co-develop a crypto wallet with blockchain-powered browser provider Brave (BAT). The companies said they were working on “a cryptoasset wallet for Brave browser users,” and will “launch a joint marketing campaign to expand the recognition of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.”
- WikiLeaks.shop, a shop associated with non-profit organization WikiLeaks has announced that they accept orders using Bitcoin Lightning. Per their website, the shop accepts cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH), dash (DASH), ethereum (ETH), litecoin (LTC), monero (XMR), and zcash (ZEC) through payment service provider CoinPayments. Users automatically receive a 5% discount when they pay in crypto.
- The Samsung Blockchain Wallet has added support for the elysia (EL) token, reports Dialy Secu. The token is used by Elysia’s real estate micro-investment platform, which allows tenants in Seoul to settle property leasing and other related bills using a blockchain-powered platform.
Tokenization news
- NEM and digital asset manager Wave Financial Group (WFG) said they will launch the Kentucky Whiskey Digital Fund token on the NEM’s Symbol platform when it goes live later this year. WFG is working with Wilderness Trail Distillery to launch a fund with up to 25,000 barrels of 2020-vintage bourbon, equivalent to a year’s production. This fund will allow investors to purchase asset-backed tokens linked to an estimated inventory of four million bottles of bourbon barreled this year, the company said.
Regulation news
- The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) plans to develop “a holistic framework to promote responsible innovation in digital assets” by 2024, according to their latest Strategic Plan. This digital asset innovation blueprint will enable the CFTC to understand and keep up with the “risks and opportunities” of the “21st century commodities.”
- Two ruling party MPs in South Korea are championing crypto and blockchain’s cause, per Hanguk Kyungjae. The Democratic Party lawmakers have called for government and policy support for the crypto and blockchain industry – with one stating that the potential for exponential growth is now sky-high in the nation.
Legal news
- New York Attorney General (AG) Letitia James has accused crypto exchange Bitfinex of hiding the loss of more than USD 800 million in client and corporate funds, reported Bloomberg. Per the article, the companies stated that the funds were deposited with a Panamian company Crypto Capital Corp. but were seized by government authorities in various countries, and that they’re working to recover the funds. iFinex, the operator of the Bitfinex and the Tether stablecoin, and the AG James are leading a long legal feud, with accusations coming from both sides.
- In China, police have arrested ten alleged crypto scammers who sold fake huobi tokens (HT), also confiscating 100 million yuan (c. USD 14.3 million), in addition to cars and villas together worth c. USD 2.15 million, reported Toutiao. The group allegedly attracted potential investors through various Telegram channels, promoting a blockchain smart contract which they claimed could create HT.
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