This week in our positive but always realistic look at crypto news…
Meta and Apple Advance NFTs Into The Mainstream
We’re excited to see social media giant Meta embrace cryptocurrency. U.S. Facebook and Instagram users can now connect their crypto wallets as part of Meta’s new digital collectible feature. American users can connect wallets from Coinbase, Dapper Labs, MetaMask, Rainbow, and Trust to Instagram and crosspost their NFTs to their Facebook accounts.
The U.S. is the most recent country to come on board with Meta’s NFT sharing. “...everyone in the 100 countries where digital collectibles are available on Instagram can now access the feature,” Meta said in a blog post.
Apple is also incorporating NFTs into the Apple store. Though some have balked at Apple’s high revenue sharing costs, their adoption of NFTs shows how big tech is helping usher NFTs into the mainstream.
Apple is imposing the same 30% commission on NFT purchases as they do with regular in-app purchases. It will be interesting to see if Apple revisits the high commission in the weeks to come.
Meta Source 1, Meta Source 2, Apple Source 1, Apple Source 2, Apple Source 3
The United Kingdom Welcomes Revolut
Trading platform Revolut has been accepted by the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority. The crypto app received its registration after a lengthy wait after participating in a program where they could operate while their application was pending.
Revolut is the first and only of five firms to receive registration. The other four firms, CEX.I0, Copper Technologies, GlobalBlock, and Moneybrain, are still pending approval.
Circle Gains Strength On 5 Additional Blockchains
Stablecoin issuer, Circle, will now be accessible on 5 extra blockchains; Arbitrum One, NEAR, Polkadot, Optimism, and Cosmos. Circle has also launched the Cross Chain Switch Protocol, which will facilitate easy interoperability for USDC throughout all chains.
The expansion is set to provide “greater liquidity and interoperability within the crypto economy,” according to Vice President of Product Joao Reginatto. “Extending multi-chain support for USDC opens the door for institutions, exchanges, developers, and more to innovate and have easier access to a trusted and stable digital dollar.”
BlackRock And Pantera Go Big
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has launched an ETF with exposure to blockchain and crypto companies for its European customers. It said in a release that the iShares Blockchain Technology UCITS ETF will track the New York Stock Exchange FactSet Global Blockchain Technologies capped index. The index is listed on the Euronext under the ticker BLKC and includes 35 global companies.
Pantera Capital, a prominent player in the crypto space, is seeking to raise $1.25 billion for a second blockchain fund. In 2013 Pantera created the first blockchain hedge fund and venture fund in the United States and currently manages ~$4.7B in blockchain related assets.
BlackRock Source, Pantera Source
Ooki DAO Takes A Stand
We’re very interested to see that Ooki DAO is preparing to fight back against its lawsuit. The lawsuit by the CFTC (US Commodity Futures Trading Commission) claims that Ooki DAO is an unincorporated association involved in unlawful activity by running an unlicensed exchange called bZx.
The community is considering the allocation of treasury funds towards hiring legal counsel to represent DAO members and is considering raising additional funds for a possible legal challenge of the CFTC’s complaint. We’re glad to see that the cryptocurrency community is rallying together against such a broad action against a DAO as Ooki DAO plans its response.
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NFA DYOR (Not financial advice. Do your own research.)
