The cryptocurrency market has turned bullish with Bitcoin (BTC) rallying above $30,000. While preparing this report, Bitcoin was trading at $34,612, up 14% in the past 24 hours. Ethereum (ETH) gained 8.50% to trade at $1,829. XRP was trading at $0.5538, up 5.60% in the same period.
Major cryptocurrencies, that have gained ground in the past 24 hours, are Bitcoin Cash (BCH, $262.89, 6.40%), VeChain (VET, $0.0189, 4.80%), Shiba Inu (SHIB, $0.00000761, 5.40%), EOS (EOS – $0.5972, 4.60%), IOTA (IOTA – $0.1578, 3.70%), Binance Coin (BNB – $233.27, 5.20%), Avalanche (Avax- $10.56, 3.30%), Cardano (ADA, $0.2854, 7.50%), Polkadot (DOT, $4.34, 8%), and Solana (SOL, $31.88, 5.60%).
The only cryptocurrency which has gained ground in the past 24 hours, is ChainLink (LINK – $10.37, -3.50%).
Government level initiatives
Ghana’s Central Bank Launches A 12-Week Ecedi Hackathon
The central bank of Ghana has unveiled an eCedi hackathon. The event, scheduled to last for 12 weeks, is anticipated to draw together groups of programmers, engineers, designers, and other financial professionals to pinpoint the likely use cases of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
In June 2021, the Bank of Ghana was one of the initial African central banks to evince interest in developing a CBDC. Two months later, it inked a deal with Germany’s Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) Currency Technology to initiate the first trial.
The hackathon is run by Emtech, a firm involved in several CBDC ventures across the globe. Notably, a few months ago, the firm inked a strategic collaboration with the West African Monetary Institute. The firm is also a participant in the Digital Dollar Project. The hackathon can offer vital information for the CBDC’s rollout, and developers will study the usage scenarios across a range of industries.
Private sector initiatives
Ripple Scores Legal Victory as SEC Appeal Denied and Singapore License Granted
The past week saw a lot of good news for Ripple. The US SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) was not allowed a premature appeal against a partial ruling in favor of Ripple. Furthermore, Ripple received a license from a Singapore regulator to operate as a payment processor.
Ripple tasted its first major success in the lawsuit filed by the SEC in July when Judge Analisa Torres declined to call Ripple’s sale of XRP through digital exchanges and other channels a securities offering. The surprising aspect of the judgment is that the decree underlined a distinction between modes of sale, implying that XRP is sometimes regarded as security and sometimes not.
In particular, the judge’s decree only regarded the sale of XRP to institutions as the sale of securities. Due to the ongoing nature of the case, any potential appeal would be classified as an interlocutory appeal, a specific category designed to prevent numerous fragmented appeals. Consequently, the approval of such appeals is relatively infrequent.
The judge also explained that this decree does not serve as a precedent in other cases as the circumstances are different.
MDM Partners With JFR Card For Instant Real Estate Investments
Mitsui & Co. Digital Asset Management (MDM) has partnered with JFR Card, a store card, enabling clients to invest straightaway in tokenized real estate. The card is an initiative of J Front Retailing, which is the holding company of Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores and online retail outlets.
In May, MDM unveiled Altema, a real estate tokenization solution, with each issuance in the form of digital security for a particular building. More importantly, in the position of an asset manager, the firm offers digital securities straightaway to retail investors. This is the kind of trial we would probably witness from asset managers in the rest of the jurisdictions in the future.
Using the JFR Card, systematic investment is made possible.
Even though digital securities avoid securities brokers, intermediaries are not avoided completely. In the aforesaid case, the JFR card acts as the third party. Back in June, MDM inked a deal with Sony Bank (online only) as an introducer. Nevertheless, there is a crucial difference between an introducer and a broker.
An asset manager is hardly involved in a deal while dealing with a broker as an intermediary. Transactions are routed through the broker’s books and ultimately reach the asset manager.
On the contrary, introducers do not take part in transactions. The customer routes his orders directly through MDM’s Alterna mobile app. In simple terms, asset manager MDM has a straightforward relationship with its investors.
Miscellaneous
Hyperledger Foundation Adds Seven New Members
The Hyperledger Foundation, the provider of enterprise-level blockchain technologies, has welcomed seven new members. They mirror the increasing enterprise focus on tokenization, central bank digital currency (CBDC), and blockchain. The interest in tokenization is manifested by the inclusion of Deloitte and Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC). Likewise, the CBDC interest is reflected by the inclusion of Norges Bank and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) as associate members.
The central counterparty clearing house for the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) and Japanese commodities is the Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCO). It is an associate of JPX, which runs the stock exchange and owns stakes in several blockchain initiatives.
A few months ago, the JSCC began utilizing blockchain to settle rubber futures. Upon maturity of the futures contract, the holder receives a ‘delivery order’, instead of a warehouse receipt, for the physical rubber. By employing blockchain, the procedure is completely digitized. A token represents the delivery order and is validated digitally by the warehouse operator. The token is then transmitted online to the buyer.
Disclaimer: Any financial trading analysis offered here is our opinion and is not intended as advice or direction for investors. We cannot guarantee the success of any trades made as a consequence of this article, and we encourage traders to incorporate a strong money management strategy to limit losses when they enter the markets. Please use this article as part of your own research before formulating strategies prior to trading.
