Prominent decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator 1inch is announcing a major partnership with payments giant Mastercard to create a debit card that will allow consumers to make purchases with either crypto or fiat funds. 1inch (1INCH) is announcing the launch of a partnership with Mastercard and Crypto Life to create a web3 debit card. According to […]
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Immutable deploys Transak’s functionality into its zkEVM gaming development infrastructure, powering in-game cryptocurrency and fiat payment methods.
Web3 gaming firm Immutable is set to integrate Transak as the sole payment service provider for its Immutable zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM). The service is set to directly power fiat and Web3-based payments in gaming environments.
Transak’s service will be integrated into Immutable Checkout and Immutable Passport. The former acts as Immutable’s all-in-one transaction infrastructure for games and provides a configurable interface for game developers to integrate various payment options.
Transak’s on-ramp, off-ramp and nonfungible token (NFT) payment service allows fiat payments through credit and debit cards, as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay. Transak marketing head Harshit Gangwar told Cointelegraph that the payment rail will power in-game transactions for digital assets:
Euro payments, deposits, and withdrawals are back on for European Binance users months after the severance of services by PaySafe.
Crypto exchange Binance has announced it has onboarded new partners to handle euro deposits and withdrawals, months after losing its previous fiat partner PaySafe in September.
In an Oct. 19 statement, Binance announced that it had signed agreements with new fiat partners for euro payments, deposits, and withdrawals.
The move follows regulatory and debanking woes in the European Union, where the firm was forced to look for new banking partners after it lost the support of PaySafe in September.
Binance said that users have already started being migrated to the new services provided by “a number of new regulated and authorized fiat partners.” It did not specify which firms it had partnered with, however.
More EUR fiat channels have arrived on #Binance
— Binance (@binance) October 19, 2023
We’re proud to announce that we’ve entered into agreements with multiple new EUR partners to provide deposit, withdrawal, and payment services, making your experience even more seamless.
Find out more https://t.co/jKh2QxH3sN
The announcement noted that fiat services offered by the new partners include EUR deposits and withdrawals via Open Banking and SEPA/SEPA Instant.
Users can also buy and sell crypto using SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area), bank cards, and their fiat balances, and trade EUR spot pairs.
In late September, Binance urged its European users to convert their euros into Tether (USDT) before the end of October, though the latest announcement could suggest this is now not necessary.
Related: Binance limits withdrawals in Europe, cites payment processor issues
However, some users were still reporting issues depositing euros even after the announcement, while others asked about fiat partners for the British pound in the UK.
Paysafe pulled support for transactions in British pounds in May following concerns raised by United Kingdom financial regulators over the partnership.
On Oct. 16, Binance suspended access to its exchange for new users based in the UK. The move followed the termination of a partnership with a third party to approve communications on its platform under new local rules by the country’s watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Binance has yet to source fiat partnerships for its UK exchange where British users are still unable to deposit GBP.
Cointelegraph contacted Binance for more specifics but did not receive an immediate response.
Magazine: SBF’s alleged Chinese bribe, Binance clarifies account freeze: Asia Express
Binance and Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB) are exploring the issuance of Yen and other foreign currency-denominated stablecoins in Japan.
Crypto exchange Binance is teaming up with Japan’s largest bank, the Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB), to explore the issuance of stablecoins in Japan.
On Sept. 25, Binance Japan announced a joint study that aims to see the companies issue yen and other fiat stablecoins to accelerate Web3 adoption in Japan. The pair plan to utilize a platform called “Progmat Coin” which would be a Japanese regulatory-compliant stablecoin issuance and management system.
The Japanese bank would be pioneering the development of the "Progmat Coin" platform as infrastructure for issuing stablecoins in accordance with Japan’s recently revised and enforced Payments Services Act. The legislation, which took effect in June, allows Japanese banks and regulated crypto providers to issue stablecoins.
The platform supports stablecoin issuance on Ethereum but may be expanded to include BNB Chain through the partnership with Binance, Binance said in a statement.
In a statement the general manager of Binance Japan, Takeshi Chino, said stablecoins are vital for the broader financial ecosystem. In addition to providing lower-cost and instantaneous cross-border trade settlement for businesses, they also facilitate seamless crypto transactions for retail investors, he added.
Stablecoins fill an important financial services need and are crucial for the success of Web3 adoption.
According to Tatsuya Saito, MUFG’s vice president of product, Japan’s stablecoin market has the potential to grow to as large as $34 billion (5 trillion yen). This equates to around 27% of the estimated current global market which is $123.7 billion, according to CoinGecko.
Binance, which has faced a mountain of regulatory pressure in the West, started offering 34 tokens at the launch of its services for the Japanese market in August 2023.
Related: Marketing company wants 90% of Japanese population on Web3
Meanwhile, Japan's Orix Bank is reportedly also weighing plans to issue stablecoins in the country.
Orix aims to begin testing yen, dollar, and other stablecoins in October eyeing a 2024 launch. They will be backed by fiat deposits utilizing the Japan Open Chain blockchain developed by Tokyo-based G.U. Technologies and partners.
Japan appears well poised to roll out stablecoins for payment rails. In August, Cointelegraph reported that Japanese blockchain startup Soramitsu was exploring a new stablecoin exchange for a cross-border payment system for Asian countries.
Earlier this month, the Japanese government reportedly planned to permit startups to raise public funds through the issuance of crypto assets and stablecoins.
Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom
Pancakeswap now allows users to purchase crypto with debit card, Google Pay, Apple Pay, and other methods through Transak.
Decentralized exchange Pancakeswap now offers Transak as a provider in its “buy crypto” tab, giving Pancakeswap users an additional option when shopping for crypto, according to an announcement on September 21. Mercuryo and Moonpay were previously providers for this feature, making Transak the third provider to be added.
Pancakeswap is a multichain decentralized crypto exchange (DEX). It’s available on 8 different blockchain networks, including BNB Chain, Ethereum, Base, Polygon zkEVM, and others. It has over $1.3 billion worth of crypto locked in its contracts and does over $150 billion in volume per day, according to crypto analytics platform DeFi Llama.
As with all DEXs, Pancakeswap can’t perform fiat to crypto conversions on its own. Users have to first own cryptocurrency in a wallet before they can use the exchange. Its development team recently implemented the “buy crypto” feature in an attempt to fix this problem by allowing users to onboard with third-party providers like Mercuryo, Moonpay and now Transak. Transak claims to be integrated into over 350 Web3 apps, making it one of the most accessible crypto onboarding services.
According to the announcement, Transak will provide “over 20 different payment options based on global needs,” including debit cards, Google Pay, Apple Pay, bank transfers, and others, and will provide nine different cryptocurrencies across seven different blockchain networks to Pancakeswap users.
Related: MetaMask launches feature to sell ETH for fiat
Pancakeswap’s pseudonymous leader, head chef Mochi, stated that the integration will help make decentralized finance protocols easier to use:
“[I]t's imperative that entry points remain simple yet robust. Transak's expertise in fiat on-ramping, combined with PancakeSwap's platform capabilities, promises an era where diving into decentralized finance is intuitive and barrier-free for all."
Pancakeswap launched a web3 game called “Pancake Protectors” on May 30. The game gives extra perks to holders of the DEXs governance token, CAKE. The token’s inflation rate was reduced to 3%-5% through a governance vote in April.
Roar Studios will be acquired by Yuga Labs as the latter looks to onboard talent for its still-in-development Otherside metaverse.
Nonfungible token (NFT) conglomerate Yuga Labs has agreed to acquire the metaverse-building startup Roar Studios as Yuga looks to bolster its Otherside metaverse.
Yuga tweeted the news on July 31 saying the impending acquisition was to “execute our expansive vision” for Otherside.
An accompanying release said Roar Studios' founder and CEO Eric Reid will join Yuga as the general manager of Otherside, charged with leading the development and production of the metaverse.
We are proud to announce Yuga Labs is acquiring Roar Studios, a music and metaverse startup led by long-time entertainment Executive, Eric Reid, to execute our expansive vision for @OthersideMeta.
— Yuga Labs (@yugalabs) July 31, 2023
For more, read here: https://t.co/Ll9OMrSwEP. pic.twitter.com/o2FankWun2
Yuga is also nabbing audio, game and artificial intelligence engineers from Roar’s team which is 14 strong according to LinkedIn.
Otherside has only been glimpsed through a handful of early access demos which started in August 2022 alongside a more recent “vibe check.” It’s unknown when the project will officially launch.
Earlier today we brought together a small focus group of 40 Voyagers in LA to delve into Otherside for a vibe check. pic.twitter.com/fXpyUk81w8
— Othersidemeta (@OthersideMeta) July 28, 2023
In mid-July Yuga chief Daniel Alegre said it's still hard at work building Otherside adding the project will take time as it's “audacious.”
Yuga also scooped up the CryptoPunks and Meebits NFT collections in March 2022 and in November 2022 it acquired the Beeple-founded NFT game 10KTF.
Abu Dhabi-based airline Etihad will soon take off with an NFT staking loyalty program called “Horizon Club” and is expanding its current NFT collection.
On Aug. 1, 300 new NFTs will be added to Etihad’s EY-ZERO1 collection, which will offer benefits like priority check-in, lounge access in Abu Dhabi and the ability to stake the NFT to earn flight miles.
Introducing ‘Etihad Horizon Club’: one of the world’s first Web3 airline loyalty programs, powered by @arcubenft. Stake your NFTs to earn Etihad miles and spend on travel & web 3 perks.
— Etihad NFT (@EtihadNFT) July 28, 2023
More miles per day for Etihad: Mission Impossible Livery NFT holders!
Launching in Q3 2023 pic.twitter.com/n6b1GJlvPN
Etihad isn’t launching the NFT staking platform until September but a trailer for the product shows users will be able to stake multiple NFTs to earn flight miles which are redeemable for various perks such as flights, upgrades and hotels.
As for the new NFTs, they depict an Etihad aircraft wrapped in branding for the latest Mission: Impossible film which the airline has a promotional partnership with.
NFT service platform Arcube collaborated on the collection and is one of the Web3 partners for the airline.
Lufthansa and Eurowings, two European airlines, have also flirted with Web3 integrations and are seeing how it could apply to their business models.
NFT-focused news outlet NFT Now is reducing its staff count and restructuring, citing the ongoing crypto market winter.
NFT Now president Alejandro Navia tweeted on July 31 that it over-hired during the bull market and changing market conditions are forcing it to restructure and make cuts.
I have difficult news to share: pic.twitter.com/ufcknaboEO
— ALΞJANDRO (@AlejNavia) July 31, 2023
“Our company experienced rapid growth during the bull run, and we hired to service that growth,” reads Navia’s note.
“However, as we are building the business for the long term, we must adapt to changing market conditions,” he added. “Given the current climate, it is clear that this pace of growth was unsustainable and we over-hired.”
Navia said he takes “full ownership of this mistake” in his role as president. He did not disclose how many staff were impacted by the decision.
The sports gaming platform Sorare has added support for fiat currencies to purchase its NFT-based digital trading cards, removing the need for users to pay in Ether (ETH).
As part of an update to its wallet users can now use U.S. dollars, euros or British pounds to buy the NFT cards which Sorare said eliminates a barrier to entry, according to a VentureBeat report.
Related: Shanghai implements plan for blockchain digital infrastructure system by 2025
A Sorare-affiliated account tweeted on July 31 that the rollout of what it calls the “Cash Wallet” will progressively start on Aug. 1 with more fiat functionality coming in September.
Cash Wallet Update
— Sorare Support (@soraresupport) July 31, 2023
Cash Wallet is almost here! Over the next several days and weeks, we'll be rolling out functionality that enables Managers to easily buy, sell, trade cards and receive rewards in cash.
Here’s what to expect on or around the following dates:
-Monday, July…
Two U.S. lawmakers stung Apple CEO Tim Cook with a letter asking for information on if its App Store’s guidelines are dampening the growth of blockchain and NFT technologies due to it limiting the functionality of Web3 apps.
A computer scientist and an archaeologist have developed a Web3-based verification-as-a-service model for recording the authenticity of cultural artifacts as NFTs.
NFT Collector: Interactive NFTs the future for sport, Vegas Sphere excites
Bitcoin is selling for just over $27,500 on Binance.US, a nearly $3,000 discount from global spot prices.
Bitcoin (BTC) is selling for a nearly $3,000 discount on Binance.US, providing a significantly better rate than global spot prices — but there’s just one catch.
On July 9, a swathe of crypto users began noticing a widening price discrepancy between cryptocurrencies listed on the United States crypto exchange and their global spot prices, with many calling it a “depeg” of cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin is currently trading at $27,536 on the exchange against the U.S. dollar, which is around an 8.5% discount from global spot USD prices of $30,106 at the time of writing.
Other cryptocurrencies are also trading at a discount in U.S. dollar terms. Ethereum prices are around $200 cheaper on Binance.US, trading for $1,695 at the time of writing. Some stablecoins such as USDT were also trading below their pegs with Tether at $0.915 on the exchange.
WOAH. Bitcoin is trading at $26,970 on binance US vs it’s $30,300 (real price)
— borovik.eth (@3orovik) July 9, 2023
Ethereum is $200 lower than normal
USDT is at 0.889 cents pic.twitter.com/LgKeMEDZQv
However, while the crypto discounts look enticing for an arbitrager, the reality is that most investors will not be able to take advantage of them.
This is because the discount only applies when a cryptocurrency is traded against fiat USD on the crypto exchange.
The problem is, Binance.US users have not been able to deposit new USD into the platform since June 9, when it was suspended. Effectively, this means that the discounted cryptocurrencies can only be bought with any USD already sitting on the account before the suspensions took place.
Concerns that Binance.US will soon halt USD withdrawals have also led to some users trading their cryptocurrencies below market value in order to exit their positions in USD.
According to an email from Binance.US to customers, which has circulated on Twitter, the last day for USD withdrawals will be July 20.
Related: Bitcoin priced on Binance.US crypto exchange at $700 premium
In late May, a similar situation occurred relating to the Australian dollar at the Australian branch of Binance when the company’s third-party payments provider shuttered fiat on and off ramps.
The price of BTC on Binance fell 20% compared to global spot prices when traded against the Australian dollar.
Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom
“While USD withdrawal remains fully operational on the platform today, we expect our banking partners to discontinue that service in the near future,” said Binance.US.
U.S. crypto exchange Binance.US has informed customers it has resolved its U.S. dollar withdrawal issues after working with its banking partners but warns the relief may not last.
The reportedly independent subsidiary of crypto exchange Binance told customers in a June 22 update that its system remains fully operational and that USD withdrawal requests are expected to go back to their normal five-business-day turnaround.
On June 9, the exchange suspended dollar deposits and notified its customers of an incoming pause to fiat withdrawal channels amid its ongoing battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
At the time, it also warned customers that its banking partners were preparing to pause fiat (USD) withdrawal channels as early as June 13, however, that didn't end up coming to pass as yet.
In its most recent statement, Binance.US has encouraged any customers that have a failed withdrawal attempt to resubmit their requests “as our systems remain fully operational,” but cautioned that the relief may not be permanent.
“While USD withdrawal remains fully operational on the platform today, we expect our banking partners to discontinue that service in the near future.”
Binance.US is also encouraging its users “use, withdraw, or convert your USD to a stablecoin to continue crypto-to-crypto trading,” as it transitions to a crypto-only exchange.
Reminder: As we transition to a crypto-only exchange, https://t.co/gM6e3xb9BX will remove select USD Advanced Trading pairs from our platform on 6/26 at 8 p.m. PDT / 11 p.m. EDT.
— Binance.US Customer Support (@BinanceUShelp) June 22, 2023
While USD withdrawals remain fully operational, we encourage you to use, withdraw, or convert your… pic.twitter.com/LWDWVvwtoq
Any remaining USD balances held in customer accounts could be converted into Tether (USDT) at a future date, it noted.
The announcement also included details of more USDT trading pairs with ANKR, DAI, DASH, HBAR, ICX, IOTA, RVN, WAVES, XNO, XTZ, and ZIL being added on June 26.
Related: Binance.US coins trade at premium amid litigation fears, fiat gateway issues
However, it noted that it will remove most “USD Advanced Trading pairs” from the platform on the same date. Of the 150 crypto assets that Binance.US supports, only BTC, ETH, ADA, BNB, LTC, MATIC, SOL, VET, USDC, and USDT will be tradable against the dollar.
The company has also had problems with banking partners in Australia. In May, Bitcoin prices fell to a 20% discount on the Australian branch of Binance when local banking and payments partners suspended their services causing a rush to sell and cash out.
Magazine: US and China try to crush Binance, SBF’s $40M bribe claim
James Roberts, Commonwealth Bank General Manager of Group Fraud Management Services cited a huge scale of "investment scams" involving crypto exchanges.
Commonwealth Bank (CBA), the largest bank in Australia, has said it will decline or temporarily hold certain payments to cryptocurrency exchanges, citing the risk of scammers.
The move comes amid two major global exchanges facing a lawsuit from the United States securities regulator and is just a few weeks after another major bank, Westpac banned customers from transacting with crypto exchange Binance.
On June 8, CBA said it would decline or put a 24-hour hold on "certain payments to cryptocurrency exchanges." The bank did not explain which exchanges or payment types that would be impacted by the new measures.
Reporting from @jessicasier @FinancialReview that @CommBank have banned AUD transfers to “high-risk” crypto exchanges & limited transactions with others to $10k per month, with a 24 hr delay. $700k per day leaves CBA as scammed money heading to crypto. Banks & the crypto industry…
— Caroline Bowler (@CaroBowler) June 8, 2023
"Commonwealth Bank has today introduced new measures to help protect customers from scam risks associated with making certain payments to cryptocurrency exchanges," it wrote in a statement.
It added a $6,650 ($10,000 Australian dollar) per month limit on customers sending funds to crypto exchanges to purchase cryptocurrencies would be introduced "in the coming months."
"From today, CBA will decline or hold for 24 hours certain payments to cryptocurrency exchanges. In coming months the Bank will also introduce $10,000 limits in a calendar month where the Bank can identify the customer payments are to exchanges for cryptocurrency purchases," it said.
The general manager of CBA's fraud management services, James Roberts, claimed that "scammers globally are capitalizing" on the interest in crypto, pretending to be "legitimate investment opportunities or diverting funds into cryptocurrency exchanges."
The bank said the measure would be "subject to ongoing review" and it would monitor the impact of the measures.
One Bitcoin can be bought for the equivalent of $22,000 on Binance Australia if paid using Australian dollars. The problem is getting the funds there.
Bitcoin (BTC) is trading hands at a hefty discount on the Australian branch of the Binance crypto exchange, with the price of Bitcoin down as much as 21% if traded against the Australian dollar.
The move comes as traders rush to cash out their crypto holdings into Australian dollars before the door for local bank withdrawals closes in a few days.
On May 18, Binance Australia informed users that it is suspending Australian dollar services after a decision by its third-party payments provider.
Deposits via bank transfer were halted immediately, while withdrawals using the PayID service are set to remain open until June 1 at 5 pm local time. The exchange has also warned its Australian clients that any Australian dollars remaining on the exchange after May 31 would be automatically converted into USDT.
The announcements have since caused a progressive rush to cash out, causing BTC prices to become heavily discounted.
At the time of publication, one BTC can be purchased for only 33,750 Australian dollars, equating to around $21,987, or 21% lower than the global spot rate.
Those hoping to capitalize on the cheaper Bitcoin may be disappointed, however.
Without the ability to deposit Australian dollars into the trading wallet and hefty premiums for converting other crypto assets into Australian dollars, users may find it difficult to get their hands on the discounted BTC.
Binance has also warned of the delisting of several crypto trading pairs with Australian dollars on June 1 and for users to “pay attention to the risks when trading.”
Meanwhile, Binance said it is continuing to look for an alternate provider to continue offering Australian dollar deposits and withdrawals. Currently, the ability to buy and sell crypto using credit or debit cards is still available, though these rates appear to be in line with the market.
While AUD deposits by bank transfers are no longer available to Binance users in Australia, there are still several ways Aussie users can deposit onto the exchange.
— Binance Australia (@Binance_AUS) May 27, 2023
- Credit or debit card
- Use P2P to buy and sell crypto
- Third Party Payment
Details: https://t.co/DSRhaebEfS pic.twitter.com/dQSKfJXYHK
Related: Crypto exchange TrigonX latest to emerge from the FTX rubble
Binance has been in hot water with regulators down under as its derivatives license was canceled by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission last month. It is also facing a massive investigation by the U.S. Commodities and Futures Trading Commission.
Aussie crypto broker Swyftx, which relied on Binance for its liquidity needs, h previously stated that the severing of Binance’s Australian dollar on/off-ramps would not affect its own operations.
Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom
