The cryptocurrency market continues to trade in a narrow range, with Bitcoin (BTC) finding it increasingly difficult to hold above $30,000. While preparing this report, Bitcoin was trading at $29,604.72, down 4.10% in the last 24 hours. Ether (ETH) has lost 6.40% to trade at $1,737. XRP was trading at $0.3869, a decrease of 3.90% during the same period.
Major altcoins, which have lost ground in the past 24 hours, include VeChain (VET, $0.02987, -5%), Tezos (XTZ-$1.97, -4.90%), Uniswap (UNI, $5.01 -4.50%), IOTA (IOTA-$0.3402, -5.2%), Stellar (XLM-$0.1355, -7.80%), Binance Coin (BNB- $283.75, -7.10%), Polkadot (DOT, $8.95, -7.80), Cardano (ADA, $0.5763, -2.50%), Internet Computer (ICP, $6.85, -11%), Avalanche (Avax- $23.56, -8.60%), EOS (EOS-$1.23, -5.50%), ChainLink (LINK-$7.43, -7%), Bitcoin Cash (BCH, $174.77, -5.60%), Solana (SOL, $38.91, -4.70%), Cosmos (ATOM, $8.82, -7.40%), Polygon (MATIC- $$0.5874, -6.10%), Shiba Inu-(SHIB $0.00001033, -6.80%) and Dogecoin (DOGE- $0.0784, -5.80%).
Government level initiatives
Digital RMB smart student ID introduced in Chinese middle school
China has advanced the digital yuan (eCNY) trial by introducing the digital RMB smart student ID card at the Hainan Lu Xun Middle School. The digital yuan was extensively used throughout the Winter Olympics. Of late, the trial was extended to further regions.
Basically, the software solution has been embedded in a mobile SIM card instead of a payment card. The ID card has been designed as a mobile SIM included in a phone offering several functions other than payments. The digital RMB smart student ID card was developed by ICBC, which is the country’s biggest bank, in partnership with China Mobile.
The phone aids NFC for payments and identity. Additionally, the GPS feature enables tracking of a child’s location. Furthermore, speed dialing to three family members is enabled. To make a payment, a child can utilize the card offered by the school’s campus. Alternatively, the school can also permit payments through off-campus vendors. Parents will be able to monitor their child’s payments done through the digital RMB smart student ID card and also top up the digital yuan balance.
Private sector initiatives
Obscuro rolls out DeFi data privacy protocol
Obscuro has used the Ethereum blockchain to roll out its DeFi privacy protocol intended to serve both retailers and corporates. Obscuro aspires to back several applications, including sealed auctions, private transactions, gaming, and private NFTs.
The venture was initially started by R3, which developed the enterprise blockchain Corsa and confidential computing solution Conclave. The latter solution acted as an inspiration for the development of Obscuro, which was later spun out. Former CIO (chief information officer) of R3, James Carlyle, heads Obscuro.
The latest permissionless protocol is fundamentally a Layer 2 Ethereum network that facilitates private transactions. A well-known issue with public blockchains is that transactions on queue can be seen by everyone, allowing miners (aka validators) to capitalize on the opportunities (referred to as miner extractable value or MEV).
In the case of the aforesaid protocol, transaction details can be encrypted but would remain private only for a predetermined time span. This would discourage people from using it for unlawful activities.
The layer 2 blockchain network makes use of Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs), which are unique processors that prevent snooping by isolating trades from the remaining portion of the OS (operating system).
JP Morgan Chase launches new collateral management solution
JP Morgan Chase has rolled out a new collateral management solution for conventional finance. The platform is powered by blockchain technology. It can be remembered that the institution completed its initial transaction by tokenizing units of BlackRock money market fund and utilizing them as collateral. The solution being explained here is a new one from Onyx, which is JP Morgan’s blockchain and digital assets division.
Ben Challice, JPMorgan’s global head of trading services, stated, “What we have managed to accomplish is a hassle-free real-time transfer of collateral assets.” In the aforesaid transaction, the asset was units of money market fund in tokenized form. In the months ahead, JP Morgan intends to tokenize equities, fixed income, and several other kinds of assets through its enterprise-level blockchain network. Even though BlackRock was not involved in the transaction, the institution is very much interested in the technology.
Onyx division offers a range of blockchain-related solutions catering to interbank payments, repo trading, and even in-house stablecoin (pegged to the US dollar) named JPM Coin.
Miscellaneous
Audi to launch NFT series named The Art of Progress
Audi is working on releasing a unique NFT (non-fungible token) series. In particular, each of the NFTs represents a fraction of a complete piece of artwork, named The Art of Progress. The artificial intelligence (AI) aided animated art was developed by Ouchhh Studio that used the movement of people at the German internet market event OMR. During the course of the event, it was shown on a massive art display in the shape of a cube.
A piece of digital artwork in the form of NFT costs €50. Overall, the digital artwork is expected to fetch €50,000 (~$53,500). The NFTs are offered in partnership with Timeless, which has carved a name for itself in fractionalizing popular collectibles. The amount raised by selling the NFTs will be given to the UN Refugee Aid for Ukrainians.
A video advertisement released around the same time portrayed The Art of Progress as offering a glimpse into the possibility of the future of artwork.
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.
