Regulator seeks comments on DeFi; Crypto Firms Announce CAD Products, Licenses, and Updates; The NFT boom continues; OFAC adds a Bitcoin address

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In this problem:

NCUA Seeks Feedback on DeFi, Crypto Firms Launch Products, Obtain Licenses

Reports describe the evolution of decentralized platforms and FinTech funding

Fashion, sport, art and music: the NFT market continues to grow

OFAC adds the Bitcoin address to the SDN list, the anchor selected for USMS services

NCUA Seeks Feedback on DeFi, Crypto Firms Launch Products, Obtain Licenses

By: Robert A. Musiala Jr.

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), a federal agency that creates and regulates federal credit unions, recently issued a notice requesting information and comment on the current and potential impact of activities related to digital assets and related technologies on federally insured credit unions. (FICU), related entities and NCUA, including current and potential uses in the credit union system, and the risks associated with them. According to the opinion, the NCUA is investigating how the credit union community is using emerging distributed ledger technology and decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. The NCUA is also seeking feedback on the role the NCUA can play in protecting the financial system and consumers in the context of these emerging technologies.

According to a press release released this week, Ripple has completed its first liquidity-on-demand (ODL) service implementation in Japan, paving the way for greater adoption of crypto services in the region. The service is said to take advantage of Ripples XRP cryptocurrency and be implemented by payment companies in Japan and the Philippines to provide faster and more affordable transfer options for customers in those countries.

In another recent announcement, the cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com reportedly became the first global cryptocurrency platform to receive an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license from the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). . The announcement notes that the license allows Crypto.com to issue cards and offer bank transfers directly to consumers.

A report released this week provided details of the expansion of cryptocurrency ATMs across the world. Citing data from Coin ATM Radar, the report notes that crypto ATM installations in 2021 spiked 71.73%, pushing the figures from 13,993 on January 1 to 24,030 at the time of the report. According to the report, Crypto ATMs are accessible in 75 sovereign countries and are powered by 42 producers.

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Reports describe the evolution of decentralized platforms and FinTech funding

By: Kayley B. Sullivan and Robert A. Musiala Jr.

The MakerDAO Foundation recently announced that MakerDAO is now completely decentralized. MakerDAO is an Ethereum-based Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) that enables Dai, an ERC20 cryptocurrency designed to keep its value as close to a US dollar as possible through an automated smart contract system. According to the announcement, [t]he global Maker community is now responsible for all aspects of Maker Protocol and DAO. The announcement indicates that the DAO is now fully self-sufficient and that the Maker Foundation will officially be dissolved in the coming months.

In another recent announcement, Uniswap Labs, a software development studio that contributes to the Uniswap protocol and provides the open source portal app.uniswap.org for interaction with the Uniswap protocol, made the decision to restrict access. to certain tokens via the app. uniswap.org. The announcement includes a link to the full list of Restricted Tokens and Notes monitored by Uniswap Labs.[s] the evolution of the regulatory landscape. According to the announcement, the action has no impact on the code of the Uniswap interface, which remains open source, nor on the many other portals or instances running locally and used to access the Uniswap protocol. The announcement distinguishes the app.uniswap.org portal from the Uniswap protocol, which it describes as a set of autonomous, decentralized and immutable smart contracts that provide unlimited access to anyone with an internet connection.

At the end of last week, CB Insights released its State of FinTech report for the second quarter of 2021. Among other things, the report notes that funding for blockchain-related companies has reached an all-time high, exceeding $ 4 billion. dollars during the quarter. The largest deal reported was Circle, a cryptocurrency payment platform, which raised around $ 440 million. According to the report, the second quarter was the largest funding quarter on record; mega-towers have led to the financing boom; South America led the growth in terms of financing and number of deals; and Fintech public releases have reached new heights. The report examines trends in FinTech financing across the payments, banking, digital lending, wealth management, insurance, capital markets, SMEs, and real estate industries.

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Fashion, sport, art and music: the NFT market continues to grow

By: Lauren Bass

According to recent reports, an upscale Italian fashion house has partnered with a luxury digital marketplace to offer a high fashion collection of NFT (non-fungible token) fashion clothing. The unique digital pieces, inspired by the city of Venice, will be promoted at the house’s next fashion shows in Italy at the end of August, and would be available to be worn virtually thanks to augmented reality.

In other NFT news, a multinational e-commerce platform is said to have integrated an NFT marketplace, which will eliminate the need for third-party resellers and allow its merchants to issue and sell NFTs directly to consumers. The integration will support NFTs issued through the Ethereums ERC-721 standard, Simple Ledger Protocols’ SLP token standard, and the Dapper Labs Flow blockchain. A large sports franchise team would be the first customer to take advantage of the new offering. The team will offer an exclusive digital collection, created by Flow, comprising six unique pieces celebrating the iconic victories of legendary league teams.

NFTs are also making their way into the nonprofit arena. Earlier this month, a global nonprofit working to end hunger reportedly commissioned three independent artists to create and publish unique digital collectibles to help raise awareness of the organization’s sustainability programs. According to press releases, NFTs will be auctioned off in a community-owned digital marketplace, and the proceeds from the sale will help fund non-profit blockchain initiatives, including the creation of an agricultural network to showcase farmers in expanding markets.

Likewise, a large American orchestra has reportedly released a series of classical music NFTs to raise funds for the benefit of musicians affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The series combines live orchestral performances captured on video, with backstage concert footage and various VIP in-person experiences. It is also celebrating a historic musical event marking the first time many orchestra members have performed live since the coronavirus shutdown.

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OFAC adds the Bitcoin address to the SDN list, the anchor selected for USMS services

By: Keith R. Murphy

This week, the US Department of the Treasury (Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)) appointed a Turkey-based financial facilitator to materially assist al-Qaida, and separately appointed a Syria-based fundraiser and recruiter to provide material support to Hayet Tahrir Al-Sham. , according to a press release. In related updates to OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, OFAC included a Bitcoin network public key address associated with one of the individuals.

Anchorage Digital has been selected to provide financial and digital asset custody services to the United States Marshals Service (USMS), according to a press release released this week by the company. To help the USMS manage its seized digital assets, Anchorage plans to provide several cryptocurrency services to the USMS, including custody, wallet creation, blockchain forks management, and token asset transformation. in parts assets.

According to a recent report, Brazil’s civilian police seized $ 33 million as part of an ongoing investigation into an alleged cryptocurrency money laundering program. The allegations include that some cryptocurrency exchanges have acquired and sold bitcoin while knowingly acting on behalf of a criminal organization focused on money laundering through cryptocurrencies.

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