Binance Acquires Licensed Japanese Crypto Exchange — Prepares to Enter Japan as Regulated Entity
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has acquired a regulated Japanese cryptocurrency exchange and is now preparing to enter the Japanese crypto market as a regulated entity. “The Japanese market will play a key role in the future of cryptocurrency adoption,” said the general manager of Binance Japan. (Bitcoin.com)
Crypto Trading Firm Auros Global Misses DeFi Payment Due to FTX Contagion
Crypto trading firm Auros Global appears to be suffering from FTX contagion after missing a principal repayment on a 2,400 Wrapped Ether (wETH) decentralized finance (DeFi) loan. Institutional credit underwriter M11 Credit, which manages liquidity pools on Maple Finance, told its followers in a Nov. 30 Twitter thread that the Auros had missed a principal payment on the 2,400 wETH loan, which is worth in total around $3 million. (Cointelegraph)
South Korea’s Shinhan Bank Starts ‘Metaverse’ Services, According to Local Media
Shinhan Bank, one of South Korea’s top four lenders by net profit, has opened a “metaverse” site to provide what it called financial and non-financial services, claiming to be the first bank in the country to provide such a platform, according to local media reports on Wednesday. Shinhan Bank is also an early investor in Korea Digital Asset Custody, an industry consortium that provides crypto custody services. (forkast)
Kraken Takes Steps to Weather Crypto Winter
Kraken is reducing our global workforce by approximately 1,100 people, or 30 percent, in order to adapt to current market conditions. Since the start of this year, macroeconomic and geopolitical factors have weighed on financial markets. This resulted in significantly lower trading volumes and fewer client sign-ups. We responded by slowing hiring efforts and avoiding large marketing commitments. Unfortunately, negative influences on the financial markets have continued and we have exhausted preferable options for bringing costs in line with demand.
DTCC Digital Dollar Pilot for Securities Settlement Uses CCP
The Digital Dollar Project is a private initiative founded in January 2020 by Accenture and former Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) J. Christopher Giancarlo’s Digital Dollar Foundation. Last year Accenture agreed to fund five of the DDP’s CBDC pilot programs. Turning to the DTCC, its subsidiaries processed $2.4 quadrillion in securities transactions in 2021. “As a potential digital alternative to cash, a U.S. CBDC should be carefully explored in consultation with key stakeholders across the public and private sectors,” said Jennifer Peve, DTCC Managing Director, Head of Strategy and Business Development. “DTCC’s pilot with DDP assessed the use of a simulated CBDC and DLT for DvP settlement in the U.S. wholesale markets through direct engagement with market participants.” (Ledgerinsights)
Crypto's Venture Capital Landscape
More than 3300 funds made venture investments in crypto since 2018. Of these funds, only 339 made 10 or more investments since the beginning of 2021 — meaning that most of these funds are casual investors as opposed to focused & active crypto funds. There are 339 funds actively investing in crypto. However, the data shows that only a handful of emerging and established funds consistently invest in high-quality companies at scale.
Coinbase Clarifies Bug Bounty Policy in Response to Uber Extortion Verdict
In a blog post on November 30, Coinbase sought to clarify its bug bounty program policies in response to the recent Uber data breach verdict. The company stated that it still welcomes “responsible” disclosure of security issues, but users who abuse this process will not be awarded bug bounties: “The key word in all of this is ‘responsible’. In the wake of the recent Uber verdict, there is a lot of concern in the industry about bug bounty submissions becoming extortion attempts. At Coinbase, [...] we’ve put a lot of thought into how we operate our bug bounty program to stay on the right side of the law.”(Cointelegraph)
Brazil’s Congress Passes Bill Legalizing Bitcoin, Ether Payments
If assented to, the law will require all crypto exchanges and other crypto custodians to acquire licenses.
Huobi, Poloniex Announced Strategic Partnership Despite Initial Denials of a Merger
Huobi and Poloniex announced a strategic partnership on Nov. 30. Reports of a planned merger of the two cryptocurrency exchanges emerged and were denied last week. The two exchanges will “progressively cooperate” on Huobi’s HT coin ecosystem development, connectivity, liquidity sharing and global compliance. Beginning in December, the Huobi Advisory Board will make a monthly evaluation of all Poloniex projects, with top performers potentially directly listed on Huobi, the exchange stated. (Cointelegraph)
Elon Musk Warns of Severe Recession — Urges the Fed to Cut Interest Rates Immediately
Tesla CEO and Twitter boss Elon Musk has warned of a severe recession in the U.S. The billionaire stressed that the Federal Reserve needs to cut interest rates “immediately,” emphasizing that the Fed is “massively amplifying the probability of a severe recession.” (Bitcoin.com)
