Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Coinbase and 17 Other Crypto Firms Launch 'Travel Rule Universal Solution Technology'

18 VASPs Launch TRUST in Order to Comply With FATF‘s Travel Rule　　For quite some time now, FATF’s Travel Rule has been a top concern within the crypto industry as virtual asset service providers (VASPs) have been told they need to comply with the regulatory policy. As cryptocurrency has grown more popular, FATF has been releasing guidelines on the Travel Rule, as the intergovernmental organization believes the rule needs to be applied to VASPs.　　Essentially, the ‘Travel Rule’ is a descriptive label for the regulatory guideline that aims to curb illicit transactions and money laundering. The rule mandates that all companies that deal with finances have to pass on KYC/AML transmission data concerning their customers‘ identities to the next financial institution. The transfer amount tied to FATF’s Travel Rule has a threshold thats equal to $3,000 or higher.　　In a blog post published on Wednesday, Coinbase explains that it has crafted a new plan called TRUST with a slew of other well known VASPs. “Travel Rule Universal Solution Technology” or the TRUST collaborative effort includes VASPs such as Robinhood, Fidelity Digital Assets, Tradestation, Zero Hash, Bittrex, Coinbase, Gemini, Avanti, Circle, Bitflyer, Zodia Custody, Paxos, Anchorage, Symbridge, Bitgo, Kraken, Blockfi, and Standard Custody &

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Exclusive-Universal Music to develop collectible NFTs in deal with Curio platform

Universal Music Group has struck a partnership with NFT platform Curio to develop non-fungible token (NFT) collections for its record labels and artists, the companies said on Thursday.　　The deal is a major move into a potentially new revenue stream by the worlds largest music company, which, like its rivals, depends heavily on streaming music for its financial survival.　　Universal Music said it plans to work with Curio to develop digital artwork and other collectibles for the company and its artists. Curio also will serve as an online outlet where fans can buy officially licensed NFTs, starting in March with a collaboration from Capitol Music Group and the British singer-songwriter Calum Scott. 　　Michael Nash, Universal Music Groups executive vice president of digital strategy, said NFTs and Web3, the coming generation of the internet built on blockchain technology, present an opportunity for labels and artists to create unique digital products for fans at a time when streaming has made access to music ubiquitous.　　“We have an opportunity, with Web3, to have ownership on top of access,” Nash told Reuters in an interview. NFTs are unique data files that can be music, art and more.　　“With all the innovation happening around Web3 and NFTs, youve got

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Arab Federation of Capital Markets Partners With UAE to Launch Blockchain Innovation Challenge

United Arab Emirates (UAE)s Ministry of Economy has joined hands with the Arab Federation of Capital Markets (AFCM) to kickstart a challenge that encourages fintechs to create a know-your-customer (KYC) verification system based on blockchain technology.　　Trustworthiness of Data on the Blockchain　　The AFCM has, in conjunction with the UAEs Ministry of Economy, launched a market innovation challenge wherein participants are expected to create a functional know-your-customer (KYC) blockchain system. The challenge, according to AFCM, is open to “enterprise-ready” fintechs and tech firms from the region and around the world.　　Participants are expected to create a platform that “enable[s] transparency and immutability,” according to the AFCM. Such a KYC platform would, in turn, “allow financial institutions to validate the trustworthiness of data present in the distributed ledger technology (DLT) platform.”　　In detailing its reasons for launching the challenge, AFCM, which is the guiding body for exchanges and clearinghouses from all around the Arab region, explains why it wants the winning KYC platform to be based on blockchain. AFCM said:　　“Blockchain will allow for an accumulation of data from multiple authoritative service providers into one single, cryptographically secured database. KYC verification through this type of architecture has the ability to be faster, more secure and more

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Bank of Russia Reports First Successful Digital Ruble Transfers Between Users

Testing of the digital ruble has started in Russia with the countrys central bank announcing the first complete transactions between individual wallets. The monetary authority, a staunch opponent of cryptocurrencies, says its digital currency will create new opportunities for citizens, businesses, and the Russian state.　　Digital Ruble Transactions Carried Out by Commercial Banks and Bank of Russia　　The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR) and participating financial institutions have begun testing the digitalized national fiat currency. The trials have been launched after a prototype of the digital ruble platform was completed in December, 2021.　　Twelve banks applied to join the pilot group for the project and three of them have already connected their systems to the CBDC platform. Two of the banks have successfully completed a full cycle of digital ruble transfers between clients using mobile banking applications, the regulator explained.　　The users were able to open digital ruble wallets through the apps and exchange regular electronic money from their bank accounts for digital rubles and then transfer the coins between themselves, the CBR detailed in an announcement.　　The digital ruble is based on a two-tier model. Bank of Russia is the issuer and operator of the platform while end customers access it through

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Russian Ministry Wants To Legalize Bitcoin Mining In Specific Locations

The clouds of uncertainty continue to hang over Russias official stance on cryptocurrency. The Finance Ministry and the Central Bank take divergent views on cryptocurrency. The Russian Finance Ministry wants to legalize crypto mining and introduce taxes on the profits accrued from cryptocurrency. In addition, the Russian ministry now wants to legalize Bitcoin Mining in specific locations.　　The Russian government is creating a regulatory regimen for cryptocurrencies; a federal ministry has presented a new proposal concerning the crypto mining sector.　　Russias Ministry of Economic Development has consented to a proposal to allow crypto mining in locations with a sustainable surplus in electricity generation, local news agency Izvestia reported.　　The ministry has suggested offering electricity at lower rates for miners and data centers in specific locations in Russia.　　Ministry wants to set thresholds on power usage for mining　　The ministry also wants to set a threshold for power use by mining rigs and proposed introducing higher energy rates for increased energy spending. However, the report notes that the authority has yet to determine a threshold amount for this.　　The ministry further added that the latest proposals would remove the risks of deficit power supply for housing, social facilities, and infrastructure in other country regions due to crypto

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Canada Bans 34 Crypto Wallets Tied to Freedom Convoy

Canadian authorities have reportedly banned companies from working with 34 cryptocurrency wallets associated with the Freedom Convoy, a protest against COVID-19 restrictions.　　$1.4 Million of Crypto Could Be Halted　　Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act on Monday, allowing the government to freeze bank accounts funding the protestors without needing to obtain a court order.　　Now, according to reports from Keann Bexte of the Counter Signal, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Ontario Provincial Police are attempting to freeze transactions from 34 crypto wallets associated with the Freedom Convoy.　　The list purportedly includes 29 Bitcoin wallets, two Ethereum wallets, as well Litecoin, Monero, and Cardano wallets. The wallets are said to contain about 25 BTC worth $1.4 million.　　The order says that Canadian authorities have been “investigating cryptocurrency donations being collected in relation to illegal acts falling under the scope of the Emergency Measures Act.”　　The police order does not suggest that the authorities can freeze the wallets directly. Rather, it aims to prevent FINTRAC-regulated companies from accepting funds from those wallets, thereby preventing the holders from cashing out their crypto via exchanges.　　Emergencies Act Allows for Crypto Regulation　　Crypto Briefing was unable to locate a full copy of the police order in full,

2022-02-17Deep Dive

JPMorgan: Global Regulation Urgently Needed for Banks to Help Clients Invest in Crypto

A globally consistent crypto regulatory framework is urgently needed to allow banks to handle crypto assets on behalf of large customers, said a JPMorgan executive. “We need a globally consistent regulatory framework. Its important that we get to a solution as quickly as possible.”　　Global Regulatory Framework Urgently Needed to Allow Banks to Offer Crypto Exposure to Clients, Says JPMorgan　　Debbie Toennies, managing director and head of Regulatory Affairs at global investment bank JPMorgan Chase & Co., talked about global cryptocurrency regulation applicable to banks Tuesday at an event held by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association.　　The JPMorgan executive said that new rules are urgently needed to give banks certainty in handling crypto assets on behalf of large customers who seek exposure in this asset class.　　A growing number of large institutions, including hedge funds, are interested in investing and gaining exposure to the crypto asset class. According to Wells Fargo, cryptocurrency has entered the “hyper adoption phase.”　　Noting that some very large players had asked JPMorgan to hedge their exposures to crypto assets, Toennies opined:　　“I do think we need a globally consistent regulatory framework. Its important that we get to a solution as quickly as possible.”　　Global banking regulators at the Basel Committee on

2022-02-17Deep Dive

Crypto Music App Audius Bridges AUDIO Token From Ethereum to Solana

Streaming music service Audius was originally built to be used on the Ethereum network, but it has gradually embraced rival blockchain Solana as a way to scale to meet increasing demand. Today, the firm announced the latest step in that process: bridging its Ethereum-based AUDIO token to Solana.　　Starting today, any AUDIO token holder can move the ERC-20 token from Ethereum to Solana using Wormhole‘s Portal, a cross-platform bridge that lets users “wrap” an asset from one blockchain to use it on the other. When bridging, the native Ethereum tokens are locked into Wormhole’ssmart contract, which then produces new native Solana tokens to use instead.　　Whats the value？ Audius says that this bridging process is an important step to bringing more functionality over to the rising Solana ecosystem, with a release claiming that it is “paving the way for future Solana-based features on Audius.” The platform is also now offering new token rewards to users for actions like downloading the mobile app or inviting friends.　　Audius adds that it sees this as another potential access point for new users to get onboarded to the blockchain-based music platform. An Audius representative said that Solanas “low-cost, faster, and more environmentally-conscious blockchain” will help the firm

2022-02-16Deep Dive

Major Crypto Companies Announce Plan on Money Laundering, Privacy

Coinbase, Robinhood, and more than a dozen other crypto firms announced a plan on Wednesday to comply with new rules recently issued by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international body dedicated to fighting money laundering and terrorist financing.　　The new rules concern the so-called “travel rule,” which requires financial institutions to collect information about the sender (and sometimes the receiver) of transactions worth more than $3,000 between financial institutions. FATF made clear last autumn that the travel rule applies to crypto firms.　　In response, a coalition of crypto companies has been working on a plan to comply with that requirement. The result of that work is what they are calling TRUST, short for “Travel Rule Universal Solution Technology,” a set of arrangements they say will ensure compliance while also protecting customer privacy.　　Notably, TRUST obliges the member companies to use end-to-end encryption when sending data to each other, and to never store customer information in a way that could be vulnerable to third-party attacks. It also establishes a set of minimum security practices.　　The initial members of TRUST are: Anchorage, Avanti, Bitgo, bitFlyer, Bittrex, BlockFi, Circle, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital AssetsSM, Gemini, Kraken, Paxos, Robinhood, Standard Custody s top lawyer, Paul Grewal, the

2022-02-16Deep Dive

US State Colorado Will Accept Bitcoin For Tax Payments Starting This Summer

Colorado Governor Jared Schutz Polis has just announced that his state will begin accepting Bitcoin for tax payments starting this summer.　　Polis in an interview on CNBC reveals plans for the US State to advance further in more untried payment models and vision for a potential state token.　　Governor Jared Polis has been a long-time supporter of crypto and as a congressman, he was the first US politician to accept campaign donations in Bitcoin.

2022-02-16Deep Dive

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