26th December 2022

We are seeing more and more countries passing legislation that legitimises the use of cryptocurrencies as a method to keep up with global practices. 

Two of the counties we recently saw jumping on this bandwagon are Nigeria and Russia.

The Nigerian Government will pass a law that will recognize the use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Once the law is in place this would mean that the local securities and exchange commissions will recognise crypto and other digital funds as capital for investment. A recent report by CoinGecko showed that Nigerian residents were found to be the most crypto-curious nation. Nigeria also recently entered into early-stage discussions with cryptocurrency exchange Binance in September to develop a crypto-friendly economic zone that will aim to support crypto and blockchain-related businesses in the region.

Russia is not far behind when it comes to adapting to global trends as a member of Russia's senior management has indicated that the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia) intends to utilise cryptocurrency for cross-border payments in experiments with private enterprises. Government institutions in Moscow have been working to expand the regulatory framework for digital financial assets to cover decentralized cryptocurrencies. Nevertheless, the CBR maintains its position against allowing the free circulation of digital currencies like bitcoin under Russian jurisdiction, including domestic crypto payments. It recently backed legislation designed to regulate mining, provided the minted crypto is exchanged abroad or exclusively under special legal regimes inside Russia.

Other top news this week included MetaMask allowing users to purchase and transfer Ethereum via PayPal, and The Bank of England is now accepting applications for a Proof-Of-Concept CBDC wallet. Algorand rises after Italy selects Blockchain protocol for digital guarantees platform, Reddit, Inc. collectible avatars hit a milestone with over 5 million NFTs minted and Trump launches NFT card collection — sweepstake winners could dine or golf with the 45th President. 

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In the News: 

Users can now purchase cryptocurrencies using debit and credit cards through Uniswap. Users in the majority of the United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) are able to use the bank transfer option. Soon, they'll be able to quickly change money to crypto on the Ethereum mainnet via Polygon, Optimism, and Artibrum. Cointelegraph 

Coinbase exchange targets offering a regulatory framework for global Crypto. In a statement written by Coinbase's chief policy officer Faryar Shirzad, the exchange lists a number of crucial areas that it claims should be taken into account in any global regulatory framework. The Daily Hodl 

Raoul Pal predicts Crypto regulations could open institutional adoption of digital assets. The former Goldman Sachs CEO believes that once digital assets are regulated, investment institutions will be ready to go into the crypto space. For both institutional and retail investors, Pal believes crypto laws will create an environment conducive to increased capital back into the markets. The Daily Hodl 

The Third most-watched Cryptocurrency in 2022 is Shiba Inu (SHIB). Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, reported in a tweet that Shiba Inu is among the top three most watched cryptocurrencies in 2022, ranking with the two biggest digital assets by market value, BTC and ETH. Finbold 

$726 Million in Bitcoin has been amassed by top whales. According to data gathered by Santiment, a crypto analytics firm, 159 new addresses have been holding between 100 and 10,000 BTC in the past weeks—the fastest growth seen by such addresses in the past 10 months. News BTC 

CoinShares cryptocurrency investment firm begins trading on Nasdaq Stockholm. The largest cryptocurrency investment company, CoinShares, has started trading on Nasdaq Stockholm. The first trading day on Nasdaq Stockholm's main market began under the ticker CS. Cointelegraph 

Scalability and Performance are major advances by Tezos' activation of the Lima upgrade. The improvement is aimed at boosting the speed of blockchain traffic and making it easier for developers to build on the network. U.Today 

Ethereum whales transacted almost $30 Million in ETH after 5 years of inactivity. According to the on-chain analysis, the addresses came back alive on December 18 after being inactive for five years. Outgoing transfers from the whale addresses totaled 22,983 ETH, or $27 million in today's dollars. Be In Crypto  

Bitcoin wallet maker foundation raises $7M to expand self-custody push. The funds will be used to continue developing it's crypto "digital sovereignty" solutions, which comprise both hardware and software wallets, according to the Boston-based business. DeCrypt 

Binance US is set to acquire Voyager Digital assets for $1B. In the past, FTX US was the largest bidder for the firm’s assets, with an offer of $1.4 billion. Cointelegraph 

Payments giant Visa proposes using Ethereum L2 Starknet to bolster auto payments for self-custodial wallets. Visa has written a blog post discussing the use of Ethereum and the layer two (L2) scaling solution Starknet to allow users with self-custodial wallets to pay their bills. Bitcoin News 

Bank of Russia to test international Crypto payments with companies. The testing will take place under a specific legal system that is presently being developed. Bitcoin News 

Vitalik Buterin reveals 3 ‘huge’ opportunities for crypto in 2023. Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's co-founder, believes that there is still plenty of room for innovation in the crypto space. Cointelegraph 

Nigeria is set to pass a bill recognizing Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. The report said that if the bill is signed into law, the local Securities and Exchange Commission will be able to recognize cryptocurrency and other digital funds as capital for investment.  Cointelegraph 

Bahrain Telecom operator starts accepting Crypto payments. According to a statement, this move demonstrates its “strong focus on advancing Bahrain’s fintech sector as world-class digital enablers.” Bitcoin News 

Arte News: 

A beginner's guide to NBA Top Shot NFTs. NBA Top Shot is a nonfungible token marketplace where basketball enthusiasts can buy, sell, and exchange digital memorabilia related to the NBA. These collectibles are "Moments," which are NFTs of NBA video clips and digital art that vary in rarity. Cointelegraph 

Former Diablo Immortal devs pick ImmutableX for the upcoming Web3 MMORPG. Metaverse Game Studios, an independent gaming developer with a long history of working on AAA products, has announced a partnership with Web3 development platform ImmutableX to continue developing Angelic. Cointelegraph  

Mercedes-Benz files 5 trademark applications for the Metaverse and NFTs. Michael Kondoudis, a trademark attorney, made an announcement that five trademark filings for "Mercedes Benz, Mercedes, S-Class, G-Class, and Maybach" will include licenses for digital currency, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), trading stores for virtual vehicle parts and cryptocurrency trading. Finbold 

Game creators want to work on Web3 games in the future. Three out of four game creators expect to work on Web3 games as blockchain gaming gets wide adoption in the future. In a survey carried out by Coda Labs, which promotes blockchain-based entertainment, game creators were asked their thoughts on the emerging technology. Cointelegraph 

NFTBank and X2Y2 partner to boost the NFT loans module. The NFTs marketplace X2Y2 has integrated its valuation solution into X2Y2 Loans, a peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform. The integration is ready to accept NFTBank's pricing system for digital collectibles. U.Today 

By 2025, Chinese Zhejiang province wants to have $28.7 Billion Metaverse industry. Zhenjiang, a Chinese province, has unveiled its development strategy for the metaverse. By 2025, a $28.7 billion metaverse industry is expected to be built thanks to the province's strategy, which involves incorporating a number of current businesses into the metaverse. Bitcoin News 

An NFT debit card is Polygon's upcoming Web3 new launch. To launch a platform that enables users to mint non-fungible tokens (NFTs), Polygon has teamed up with the neo-banking app Hi. The NFT Debit Mastercard will allow cardholders to make purchases at 90 million global retailers using either crypto or fiat currencies. The Block 

Animoca Brands is the most funded metaverse developer in 2022: Nasdaq. With 15 finalized agreements, Animoca Brands, a significant metaverse ecosystem developer, was discovered to have done the most metaverse deals in the recent year. In 2022, the firm got around $564 million in investment. Cointelegraph 

Meta will continue to push Metaverse investments in 2023 according to the head of reality labs. According to Andrew Bosworth, president of Reality Labs, Meta's metaverse branch, the business will continue to invest in VR (virtual reality) technology in 2023. Bitcoin News 

The Province of South Korea's Metaverse claims to strengthen ties with Vietnam. According to Lee Cheol-woo, the governor of South Korea's Gyeongbuk Province, Gyeongbuk intends to use the metaverse to develop its trade and other ties with Vietnam. Forkast 

How will ChatGPT affect the Web3 space? Industry answers. With ChatGPT's various potential, leaders in the Web3 field forecasted how the artificial intelligence (AI) tool developed by OpenAI will affect the industry. Cointelegraph 

'Huge signal and validation' — Top Activision exec to take Yuga Labs' helm. The recruitment of one of Activision Blizzard's top executives to a senior role at Bored Ape Yacht Club parent Yuga Labs has been viewed as a boost for its metaverse initiatives and further reinforcement of the crypto business. Cointelegraph 

Revel, an NFT or "social collectibles" platform, has acquired $7.8 million in venture funding led by Dragonfly Capital, according to Adi Sideman, the startup's CEO. Tech Crunch 

Donald Trump trading card NFTs skyrocket in value. After former U.S. President Donald Trump revealed his non-fungible token (NFT) trading card collection, the NFTs sold out within hours after the announcement. Bitcoin News 

Amazon's new series 'NFTMe' explores NFT culture and disruption worldwide. The ability to digitally authenticate practically anything, as well as the ability to monetize in ways previously unimaginable. These are some of the ways nonfungible tokens are introduced in Amazon's new documentary series NFTMe. Cointelegraph