technology
Decentralized and traditional finance tried to destroy each other but failed
The year 2022 is here, and banks and the traditional banking system remain alive despite decades of threatening predictions made by crypto enthusiasts. The only endgame that happened— a new Ethereum 2.0 roadmap that Vitalik Buterin posted at the end of last year. Even though with this roadmap the crypto industry would change for the better, 2021 showed us that crypto didn’t destroy or damage the central banks just like traditional banking didn’t kill crypto. Why? To be fair, the fight between the two was equivalently brutal on both sides. Many crypto enthusiasts were screaming about the coming apocalypse of the world’s financial systems and described a bright crypto future ahead where every item could be bought with Bitcoin (BTC). On the other hand, bankers rushed t...
Meta exploring NFTs integration, with a marketplace reportedly in plans
Meta will support digital art creators by introducing monetisation for their collectibles Social media giant Meta plans to take advantage of the growing hype in the NFTs industry, according to recent reports. NFTs burst into the scene last year, ballooning to surpass a figure of $40 billion in trades as of the end of 2021. A Thursday report from the Financial Times detailed that ‘several people familiar with the matter’ have suggested that Facebook and Instagram are eyeing NFT integration with talks of an NFT marketplace also in the air. It is worth noting that following the transformation of Facebook into Meta, CEO Mark Zuckerberg indicated that his company would explore the idea of bringing NFTs into the Meta universe. A ‘space’ for creators to exhibit their work ...
Much-anticipated EIP-1559 hardfork goes live on Polygon – What is next?
Onwards, validators will receive a priority fee instead of the total fee in transactions The core development team behind Polygon has, today, announced that it rolled out the EIP-1559 protocol on the Polygon mainnet. The milestone succeeds a fruitful upgrade on the Mumbai testnet. The Ethereum Improvement Protocol – 1559 went live on Polygon at block height 23850000 today at 2.47 am UTC. The upgrade, alternatively known as the London hardfork, will replace Polygon’s “first-price auction” fee approximation system. Following successful implementation, transactions on the Polygon network would be processed differently to find a fair price. A set base fee would be defined – the minimum amount needed to complete a transaction on the chain immediately. The set base fee would, h...
Pakistan’s president calls for more training in blockchain technology
Arif Alvi, currently serving as the president of Pakistan, called for additional training in emerging technologies including blockchain, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity while meeting with a delegation of blockchain technology experts. In a Monday announcement, Alvi said Pakistan’s talent pool should be ready to meet the needs of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which includes utilizing blockchain technology in the public and private sectors. According to the Pakistan president, the technology could be used as a government tool to track transactions, reduce corruption and increase transparency. Among the panel of experts was Bitcoin SV advocate Jimmy Nguyen, founding president of the Bitcoin Association. President Dr. Arif Alvi had a meeting with an international delegation ...
Doctors Develop Music-Making App to Battle Brain Fog In Cancer Patients
Doctors from the University of Cincinnati are researching innovative ways to battle brain fog, and a new study has tested the waters of virtual music therapy. According to a report by WFMZ-TV, neuro-oncologist Dr. Soma Sengupta and her team have developed an app called ARMcan Active Receptive Music, which harnesses music therapy to allow users to create their own songs. “I wanted an app that could allow patients to express their musical ability,” Sengupta said. “In other words, to have musical turns where you could overlay genres and create your own music track.” WFMZ-TV Recommended Articles The technology, Sengupta added, is “helping the rewiring and exercising areas of the brain that normally wouldn’t do it.” The team’s ...
China is looking to adopt a crypto-free model in its NFT industry
The Asian country will model its NFT industry around the Blockchain Services Network China is setting boundaries that would define the scope of the booming NFT sector in the country. Despite having previously declared a crackdown on cryptocurrencies (primarily used in NFTs transactions), the Chinese government does not intend to be left out in the new collectibles’ wave. The South China Morning Post reported on Wednesday that the government-supported Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) will later this month deploy infrastructure to support NFTs. The tech will provide application programming interfaces to businesses and individuals to develop user apps & modules to manage their NFTs. The project, also referred to as the BSN-Distributed Digital Certificate (BSN-DDC), aims t...
Rio de Janeiro will hold 1% of city reserves in Bitcoin, Mayor says
The city mayor plans to convert Rio de Janeiro into Crypto Rio, representing a cryptocurrency hub Rio de Janeiro’s mayor Eduardo Paes, yesterday, shared his proposition to channel a fraction of the treasury funds into crypto at the Rio Innovation Week event. In the company of Miami mayor Francis Suarez, he stated that 1% of the city’s treasury reserves would be allocated into bitcoin. “We are going to launch Crypto Rio and invest 1% of the treasury in cryptocurrency. The government has a role to play,” he said. Paes, a member of the Social Democratic Party, added that the city would create a working group tasked with handling matters related to cryptocurrency. He also mentioned that Rio was well-positioned to become South America’s leading city in te...
Visa and ConsenSys to build bridging tech for CBDCs in latest collaboration
The payment services behemoth intends to enable user transactions via digital wallets or CBDC-enabled Visa cards International payment services company Visa has partnered with software tech firm ConsenSys to create on-ramp tech for Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). The partnership reported first by Bloomberg earlier today seeks to advance sovereign digital currency networks. Visa said it would build a CBDC sandbox that will be available in the coming spring. This isolated testing environment would help central banks test CBDC prototypes and pilot programs. The global financial company hopes that this initiative will help bridge the existing rift between financial systems and CBDCs “We’ve spoken with nearly 30 central banks to understand their perspectives on CBDCs and to...
Russian protest group Pussy Riot seeks to tackle gender inequality in the NFT space
Russian punk rock collective Pussy Riot is planning to launch a DAO for LBTQ+ and women artists. As the group’s co-founder Nadya Tolokonnikova told Cointelegraph, the DAO will be working on reducing the gender inequality that still marks the nonfungible token (NFT) space and, more broadly, the crypto industry. Despite the large gender gap in crypto — around 60% of US crypto investors are white men, according to a survey from August 2021 — Nadya is convinced that it is still early enough for Pussy Riot to make an impact. “The NFT space is still so small, I feel that with a good enough effort you can actually change it,” she said. Nadya is already using her follower base to promote the work of women and LGBTQ+ artists and connect them with potential collectors. The DAO will continue doi...
What should the crypto industry expect from regulators in 2022? Experts answer, Part 2
Michelle is the CEO of the Association for Digital Asset Markets, which works in partnership with financial firms and regulatory experts to devise a code of conduct for digital asset markets. “2021 was the year Washington woke up to the digital assets industry. The year started with the rushed FinCEN “Unhosted Wallets” proposal, which the industry was able to voice its concerns and delay. At the same time, pro-digital asset Senator Cynthia Lummis joined the Senate. As the Biden Administration got up to speed on digital assets, it seemed like all of Washington was studying the industry in some shape or form. Then came the Infrastructure Bill, which contained a rushed provision defining a broker for tax reporting purposes. This flawed language unleashed digital ...
What should the crypto industry expect from regulators in 2022? Experts answer, Part 1
Hatu is the co-founder and chief strategy officer of DAO Maker, which creates growth technologies and funding frameworks for startups while simultaneously reducing risks for investors. “2021 has been a stop-start year for crypto and DeFi, as regulatory bodies have not clarified their stance on the industry. This has held back the retail population from getting involved, and this is a huge opportunity cost for the industry. However, with El Salvador adopting Bitcoin as legal tender and more countries embracing crypto, the future looks brighter. In 2021, yes, there have been multiple deliberations at various levels regarding crypto and its regulatory status. Governments and regulatory authorities across the globe have expressed reservations against the mainstreaming of crypto. Howe...
Mozilla puts crypto support on hold following intensified heat on initial decision
Distanced Mozilla founder vehemently lambasted the move in a tweeted response to the tweet announcing the decision The Mozilla Foundation yesterday announced that it was putting a hold on crypto donations following a discussion with involved parties and the larger community. On New Year’s Eve, the foundation revealed that it had partnered with crypto payment service BitPay to introduce support for crypto donations. The announcement was followed with heavy backlash and trenchant criticism as many users expressed their disapproval of the decision. Some brought to the fore a company blog from January last year in which the chief executive Mitchell Baker asserted that the organisation was devoted to positive climate efforts. Others even noted that they would entirely stop donating to the devel...
