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Crypto Exchange Binance to End Singapore Operations in February 2022

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, is set to withdraw its operations from Singapore. In the latter, Binance Asia Services Ltd., the Singapore crypto exchanger, said it withdrew its application for a license to operate a crypto exchange.

As a result, Binance should no longer seek further efforts to operate a regulated exchange crypto under the regulatory oversight of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Binance.sg, the fiat to encrypt the trading platform, is expected to be delisted in February 2022, the exchange told Bloomberg.

Well, the decision also ends long-standing speculation about Singapore’s emergence as Binance’s global headquarters. The company also noted that the decision has taken into account “global strategic, commercial and development considerations.” Richard Teng, CEO of the Singapore entity, said:

“We always put our users first, so our decision to close Binance.sg was not taken lightly. I thank the Monetary Authority of Singapore for their continued assistance to Binance Asia Services and I look forward to future opportunities to work together. "

Instead, Binance Asia noted that it will redirect its operations to blockchain technology. Interestingly, the decision to exit Singapore comes just a week after Binance acquires an 18% stake in Singapore-based crypto exchange Hg.

Binance Global Plans

Having received a lot of regulatory criticism this year, Binance appears to be optimizing its global operations. The fact that the crypto exchange does not have a global headquarters has infuriated investors around the world.

During his latest interview, Binance CEO Changepeng Zhao stated that they are working to rebuild their business in the UK. “We are fully committed there. We are making a number of substantial changes to organizational structures, product offering, our internal processes, and the way we work with regulators. We want to continue to establish a presence in the UK and serve UK users in a fully licensed and compliant manner, ”he said.

Zhao, who has lived in Singapore for two years, is sending mixed signals about where Binance finally plans to move: Europe or the Middle East.

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Virtue Gaming Launches Win-Win Cryptocurrency Gaming Model to Bring Online Poker to US Players.

The platform is supported by World Poker Tour champion and professional poker celebrity Phil Ivey.

On Friday, Virtue Gaming, a decentralized online poker platform built on the blockchain Ethereum (ETH), launched the first play-to-win digital poker casino in the United States.

In the US, only six states (Nevada, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Michigan) have legalized and regulated online poker. The country has been slow to act on the issue due to concerns that international poker platforms will steal revenue from domestic and land-based gambling. Furthermore, even in these states, poker platforms must obtain licenses from each individual jurisdiction to operate.

As a result, US residents are often unable to access popular online poker platforms such as PokerStars or 888 Poker available to players around the world. To address this issue, Virtue Gaming proposed a game-to-win configuration where the platform provides users with 500 Virtual Player Points, or VPPs, worth approximately $147.37 USD.

Players will receive them free of charge upon registration. Players who meet the minimum play time requirements in cash games and tournaments can withdraw their VPP to USDT. US players can compete with players from the rest of the world who transfer VPP, ETH or other encryption to Virtue Gaming’s locked sidechain smart contracts to play the game. To avoid cheating, the platform implements encrypted peer-to-peer scrambling for all decks.

Virtue Poker Casino User Interface | Source: Virtue Poker

According to the law, “the points or credits that the game or contest sponsor provides to participants free of charge and which can only be used or exchanged for participation in games or contests offered by the sponsor” are outside the legal scope of a bet or bet and could theoretically give the game model some regulatory space to gain. To date, there are currently over 25,000 non-US players on the platform.

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Central banks of France, Switzerland and BIS complete cross-border CBDC test

The Bank of France, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) and the Bank for International Settlements have successfully tested the application of the wholesale central bank’s digital currency to international payments. The project used distributed ratio technology and was carried out with the help of private companies.

France and Switzerland Explore Direct Wholesale Digital Currency Transfer in Euros and Swiss Francs

An experiment carried out by the monetary authorities of France, Switzerland and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) indicated that central bank digital currencies (CBDC) can be used effectively for international agreements between financial institutions, announced the participants of the trial.

The Jura Project, which has just been completed, has focused on settling currency transactions in wholesale CBDCs in euros and Swiss francs, as well as the issuance, transfer and exchange of a euro-denominated French commercial paper in tokens between French financial institutions and Swiss, they explained. the banks.

The test involved the direct transfer of wholesale CBDCs in euros and Swiss francs between French and Swiss commercial banks on a single distributed accounting platform operated by a third party with real value transactions. It was carried out in collaboration with the private companies Accenture, Credit Suisse, Natixis, R3, SIX Digital Exchange and UBS.

According to the partners, issuing CBDCs in large quantities, providing regulated non-resident financial institutions with direct access to central bank money, raises certain policy issues. To address these issues, they have taken a new approach, employing subnets and dual notarial signatures that should give central banks the confidence to issue wholesale CBDCs on third-party platforms. Benoît Cœuré, who heads the BIS Innovation Center, commented:

Project Jura confirms that a well-designed wholesale CBDC can play a critical role as a safe and neutral settlement asset for international financial transactions. It also demonstrates how central banks and the private sector can work together across borders to promote innovation.

“Jura demonstrates how wholesale CBDCs can optimize international and international business, which is a key facet of international transactions,” added Sylvie Goulard, deputy governor of the Banque de France.

The wholesale CBDC experiment is part of a series of tests launched by the Bank of France last year and a continuation of tests carried out under the Helvetia SNB Project. It also contributes to the ongoing work on cross-border payments at the G20, noted central banks, noting that it should not be seen as a plan on their part to issue CBDCs en masse.

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Croatian supermarket chain introduces cryptocurrency payments

Croatia’s biggest supermarket chain, Konzum, has announced that customers can now pay with cryptocurrencies to buy products from its online store.

Pay for groceries with encryption

The initiative was carried out in partnership with Croatian payment processor Paycek, developed by local financial technology company Electrocoin. With the new payment system, which started on December 1st, Konzum customers have the option to choose to pay with one of nine different cryptocurrencies on the store’s online retail platform. The cryptocurrencies accepted in the online store are Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ripple (XRP), Stellar (XLM), Dai (DAI), EOS (EOS), Tether (USDT) and currency of USD (USDC).

PayCek integrates cryptocurrency payment service

To pay in encryption, customers can scan a QR code after adding their items to their online cart. A confirmation of the transaction, along with an invoice from Konzum, will be emailed to the customer shortly thereafter. To counteract fluctuating cryptocurrency prices, PayCek guarantees the buyer a fixed exchange rate at the start of the transaction and provides sufficient time for successful execution. PayCek is very experienced in integrating a cryptocurrency payment module into online stores, having previously provided the same service to Croatian electric bicycle company Greyp Bikes.

The cryptocurrency payment option at Konzum is currently limited to online purchases only. However, the conglomerate plans to introduce the service even in its physical stores.

Uroš Kalinić of Konzum’s management team noted that the initiative was an attempt to stay ahead of global trends.

“As the biggest minority chain in Croatia, which in its 65 years of history is a continuous leader in the national market in terms of commercial results and technological achievements, we are proud to be leaders in another area that is rapidly developing and dictating the future.”

Cryptocurrency Retail Payments

Despite a series of regulatory turmoil, cryptocurrencies are slowly but surely making their way into mainstream retail. For example, Newegg, a large California-based e-commerce company, had already started accepting BTC as payment in 2014. Then, in early 2021, Newegg began accepting payments from Dogecoin (DOGE), shortly thereafter by Litecoin (LTC). More recently, the company made the news again, this time for including the popular Shiba Inu (SHIB) memecoin in its list of acceptable cryptocurrencies.

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US Treasury Secretary Yellen says it has not been decided whether the Fed should issue digital currency

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says she has not decided whether the Fed should issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC). “There are some benefits” to a digital dollar, Yellen said, but noted that “there are also significant costs.”

Janet Yellen hasn’t decided whether the Fed should develop a digital dollar

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday during an interview at the Reuters Next conference that no opinion has been formed on whether the Federal Reserve should create a digital dollar.

She explained that the decision would require a broad consensus between Congress, the central bank and the White House. The Secretary of the Treasury believes that more study is needed on the advantages and disadvantages of having a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the US, including its effects on the banking system. Yellen opined:

I see pros and cons in doing this. And my own opinion is not based on that.

According to the Atlantic Council’s Center for Geoeconomics, 87 countries (representing more than 90% of global GDP) are exploring a CBDC.

Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard has urged the Fed to urgently develop a digital dollar. She said in July that she cannot understand why the United States is not actively developing a digital currency for the central bank when China and other countries are. Brainard is President Joe Biden’s nominee for the position of Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve.

Yellen, who was the 15th chairman of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018, said the US central bank is expected to release a report detailing his work on a CBDC soon. She added that the Fed understands that consensus is needed to proceed.

However, the Treasury secretary said the question of whether the Fed should develop a digital currency for the central bank was not discussed “seriously” at the White House, explaining:

This is an important decision and needs consensus. There are some benefits, but also significant costs ... It can work to disintermediate the banking system. And, you know, we have to figure out the pros and cons. I still don't have a view.

Several Federal Reserve governors fail to see the benefits of the Fed issuing a digital dollar, including Governors Michelle Bowman, Randal Quarles and Christopher Waller. “I remain skeptical that a Federal Reserve CBDC would solve the significant problems facing the US payments system,” Waller said recently.

In September, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell shared an update on the progress of the digital dollar study. He insisted that the Fed is not behind other countries in the central bank’s digital currency (CBDC).