The cryptocurrency market remains range-bound with a slight bullish bias as Bitcoin (BTC) has once again moved towards $50,000. When writing this article, Bitcoin was trading at $49,484.62, reflecting a gain of 6.5% in the last 24 hours. Ether (ETH) has gained 9.4% to trade at $1,580. XRP has gained 4.7% to trade at $0.4460.
Other altcoins, which have gained ground in the last 24 hours include USD Coin (USDC-$1.01, 0.4%), IOTA (IOTA-$1.21, 3.4%), Binance Coin (BNB-$255.50, 13.4%), Tron (TRX-$0.04812, 3.7%), Cosmos (ATOM, $19.75, 8.2%), Dash (DASH-$224.72, 9.2%), Monero (XMR-$228.96, 4.7%), Stellar (XLM-$0.4259, 2.4%), Polkadot (DOT-$36.64, 6.6%), Tezos (XTZ-3.65, 4.1%), ChainLink (LINK-$28.99, 14.3%), Bitcoin Cash (BCH-$508.17, 8.2%), Bitcoin SV (BSV-$185.52 3.4%) and EOS (EOS-$3.72, 5%). The only major altcoin, which has lost ground in the past 24 hours, is Cardano (ADA-$1.23, -0.4%).
Government level initiatives
2 Weeks ago, HKMA and the bank of Thailand inked a deal with ConsenSys
Two years back, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Bank of Thailand partnered with CBDC venture Inthanon-Lion Rock. A few weeks ago, both institutions inked a deal with ConsenSys to pilot a different technology.
In this regard, the parties above have joined hands with the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) and the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) for cross-border payment trials. The original project Inthanon-Lion Rock has been the “Multiple Central Bank Digital Currency (m-CBDC) Bridge.”
The platform uses distributed ledger technology for enabling instantaneous cross-border transactions. The PoC (Proof of Concept) trial is authorized by the BIS Innovation Hub, which simultaneously works with multiple central banks on CBDC trials. In case the trial goes successful, the plan will likely be extended to other Asian nations. Furthermore, the platform will be utilized for trans-border trades and settlement of global and trade and capital markets dealings.
BAM has established a Committee to study the pros and cons of CBDS
Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM), has announced that it has established a Committee to study the pros and cons of CBDC (central bank digital currency). The central bank highlighted the CBDC research carried out by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The research report has identified that 60% of banks will not move forward in issuing a CBDC in the forthcoming six years, but 86% of banks will be involved in some related activity.
BAM’s committee stated that it would “identify and analyze the contributions, the benefits as well as the risks of a CBDC for the national economy.”
The committee will join hands with other government authorities to determine the measures to be taken about cryptocurrencies’ domestic and global use. BAM clarified that it does not intend to issue a digital dirham in the foreseeable future.
Private sector initiatives
Piramal Glass unveiled a cross-border trade on the blockchain
Piramal Glass, the India-based manufacturer of specialty glass, unveiled a cross-border trade venture on the blockchain. The measure involves using an enterprise-level blockchain platform from dltledgers, a fintech firm focused on manufacturing supply chain solutions.
In the initial stage of the venture, Piramal Glass assessed the pros of digitizing all supply chain dealings. Furthermore, the glass manufacturer validated whether the technology could ensure transparency while safeguarding classified data.
The project is currently in its second stage, which involves establishing a private digital network among stakeholders in its supply chain while improving transparency in manufacturing operations. To achieve the objective, dltledger’s enterprise blockchain platform will be linked to Piramal’s prevailing SAP systems, paving the way for dealings with several global suppliers and buyers.
The agriculture business network of Covantis has gone live
The agriculture business network of Covantis, which offers enterprise-level blockchain solutions, has gone live. The commodities-focused consortium was established in October 2018 by top six agro-business enterprises: Louis Dreyfus Company, ADM, Bunge, COFCO, Cargill, and Viterra (previously Glencore Agriculture).
In January 2020, ConsenSys was chosen as the lead technology partner. To develop post-trade solutions, in March 2020, Covantis was established in Geneva. The firm uses enterprises level blockchain Quorum, which is based on Ethereum.
To begin with, the platform will serve bulk shipments of corn and soybean of Brazil origin. The primary objective is to optimize the trade process by bringing traders, shippers, and charterers into a single platform. The founding members are taking part in the first stage of the venture. Covantis has already drawn hundreds of users from 30 institutions. The second stage is to bring other firms active in the soybean and corn market of Brazil.
Miscellaneous
China is conducting the next round of CBDC trials in Chengdu
China is conducting the next round of central bank digital currency (CBDC) trials in Chengdu. This round will involve 200,000 people, the largest so far, and digital yuan worth 40 million (~$6.20mln) has been set aside to reward lottery winners. Residents of the province can participate in the free money lottery program, and the digital yuan can be spent between March 3 and March 19.
In earlier digital yuan lotteries, the amount of reward per person was 200 renminbi ($31). In Chengdu’s case, random winners will be rewarded 178 yuan ($27), while others will get 238 yuan ($37). The digital yuan can be used to pay for products and services provided at 10,000 physical outlets, including restaurants and supermarkets, in addition to online stores such as JD.com.
Interestingly, this time the digital yuan can also be used at ‘youth entrepreneurship bases,’ which refers to a mix of startups and accelerators. Six large state-run banks are also participating in the startups. Notably, WeBank and MyBank, linked to Tencent and Ant (a subsidiary of AliPay), are also participating in the program.
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