“Monetary authorities around the world are rushing to design digital currencies, and many are asking: Who knows how to do this? Some of the first governments to go digital have found an answer in cryptocurrency enthusiasts. For these rebels against traditional approaches to finance, the digital trend presents an opportunity to create virtual money for a whole nation.”

“The Bank of England said on Monday that payments with ‘stablecoins’ – a form of cryptocurrency usually pegged to a traditional currency – should be regulated in the same way as payments handled by banks if they start to become widely used. The central bank also said it had made no decision yet about whether to issue its own central bank digital currency, or CBDC, a prospect dubbed ‘Britcoin’ by finance minister Rishi Sunak when he asked the BoE to look into this in April.”

“While many use the terms cryptocurrency and digital currency interchangeably, Visa has chosen to characterize the area it is focusing on – the stablecoin side of the industry – as digital currencies.  Visa’s digital currency efforts currently fall into five areas. Some of these are well-established and already contributing to the company’s revenue growth, while others are in the early stages and are unlikely to make a meaningful impact on Visa’s top line in the near future. However, they together represent a long-term view of the market.”

“Alibaba — an e-commerce platform in China similar to Amazon — has created its own payment system (Alipay) to provide currency-like services: facilitating transactions, supporting peer-to-peer transfers and paying interest. Platforms like Facebook and Amazon are also researching creating their own digital currencies, but so far they have relied primarily on existing payment methods. What drives platforms to develop their own digital currency rather than use existing cash and card options? And should central banks and financial regulators worry about platforms issuing their own currency?”

“Stablecoins are one of the weirdest things in the whole bizarro world of cryptocurrencies, because they operate on principles directly opposed to the rest of the crypto system.   Crypto true believers argue that bitcoin and its ilk will supplant “fiat” currencies issued by governments, while the whole point of the innovative blockchain that underlies them is to overcome what pseudonymous inventor Satoshi Nakamoto called “the inherent weaknesses of the trust based model.” Yet stablecoins, and especially the largest, Tether, are thriving. Tether’s $60 billion of issuance leaves it jockeying for third place in crypto market value behind bitcoin and ethereum. There are scores of others, and Facebook’s Libra, renamed Diem last year, plans to join in with stablecoins covering several currencies.  Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency tied one-for-one to dollars or other traditional currencies and whose value relies on trusting the issuer.”

“Circle Internet Financial Ltd.’s new compliance chief plans to bolster the financial technology company’s risk and compliance leadership as U.S. authorities increase regulation of digital-currency transactions…Digital-currency transactions made through Circle’s services have been subject to inspection by federal authorities this year. Last month, a federal court in Massachusetts authorized the Internal Revenue Service to serve a summons to Circle seeking information about U.S. taxpayers who conducted transactions in cryptocurrency between 2016 and 2020, according to the Justice Department.”

“The Diem Association is pleased to announce a partnership between its wholly-owned subsidiary, Diem Networks US, and Silvergate Capital Corporation (NYSE: SI). Under this partnership, Silvergate Bank (“Silvergate”) will become the exclusive issuer of the Diem USD stablecoin. The Association is also announcing a strategic shift to the United States, resulting in a move of Diem’s primary operations from Switzerland to the United States. Diem has built a blockchain-based payment system to support financial inclusion and responsible financial services innovation. Silvergate will become the exclusive issuer of the Diem USD stablecoin and will manage the Diem USD reserve.”

“BitPay , the world’s largest provider of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency payment services, today announced the company is adding Dai and WBTC immediately for businesses to accept as a payment option without the need for any integration or enhancements… The ability to transact in Dai is ideal for global businesses and cross border merchants that are looking to attract new customers and want a fast, convenient and low-cost alternative remittance. MakerDAO ’s Dai stablecoin, built on the Ethereum network and underpinned by a system of smart contracts and decentralized price feeds, is designed to maintain a soft-peg to the US Dollar.”

“Today, Visa announced a new partnership with Tala, a digital financial services provider in emerging markets, the goal of which is to provide easier access to cryptocurrencies for underbanked consumers, beginning with USD Coin (USDC), a stablecoin backed by the U.S. dollar, using the Ethereum blockchain, and governed by the Centre Consortium. The collaboration will also involve Circle, one of Centre’s founding members, and the Stellar Development Foundation that oversees the XLM cryptocurrency. Through the integration with Circle and Stellar, Tala’s customers will gain access to USDC in Tala’s digital wallet, supporting asset storage, cross-border transfer, and crypto-fiat exchange functionalities.”

“The U.S. House of Representatives has passed several pieces of bipartisan legislation including a section on digital assets, according to a press release from the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday. Known as the Eliminate Barriers to Innovation Act of 2021 ( H.R. 1602 ), the bill was introduced by Reps. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) in March. The legislation seeks to set up a digital asset working group with representatives from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)…The overarching goal of the legislation seeks to clarify when the SEC has jurisdiction over digital assets, in the case of when they are deemed securities, and when the CFTC has a final say, in the case of when digital assets are classified as commodities.”

“First proposed in June 2019 with the name libra, the token was initially intended to be a universal currency tied to a basket of sovereign currencies such as the U.S. dollar and the euro .   But after facing strong opposition from regulators around the world, the organization overseeing the project lost major backers including Visa and Mastercard . The group eventually watered down its plans , opting for multiple “stablecoins” backed one-to-one by different government-backed currencies, as well as one multi-currency coin. Now known as diem , the Facebook-backed digital coin is expected to launch later this year, albeit in a much more limited form. When it finally arrives, diem won’t come with the same fanfare and controversy of the original idea envisioned by the social media giant nearly two years ago .”

“Circle, a global financial technology firm that provides payments and treasury infrastructure for digital businesses announced today that Signature Bank (Nasdaq: SBNY ), a New York-based, full service commercial bank, will become their leading financial institution to hold billions of dollars in reserve deposits related to USD Coin (USDC), the fastest growing digital dollar in the world. The two companies also committed to a long-term roadmap that will kick off with the integration of Circle into Signet TM , the Bank’s groundbreaking, blockchain-based, digital payments platform enabling real-time payments.”

“As consumers and merchants accelerate their adoption of digital payment options, Blackhawk Network and Bakkt® have launched a partnership that enables users to easily purchase eGifts using digital assets, such as bitcoin, supported loyalty points and cash. Blackhawk’s industry-leading portfolio of eGift brands enables Bakkt users to buy, send and redeem digital gift cards for everyday shopping using the Bakkt App. Gift cards from over 60 retailers including DoorDash, PetSmart, and major retailers will be available for purchase and for use in peer-to-peer transfer in the Bakkt App.”

“Internal Finance Department documents show officials have deep concerns about the effect of Facebook’s planned digital currency on Canada’s financial stability. Officials wrote in the briefing note last summer that they believed the social media company had yet to address multiple concerns and risks its digital currency posed to the financial system. The July briefing note, obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act, also says the government was working on options to ease the risks. Officials appeared less concerned about rivals like Bitcoin — which the briefing note says has not played a large role in everyday transactions in Canada for various reasons.”

“Circle, a global financial technology firm that provides payments and treasury infrastructure for internet businesses, announced a comprehensive payments solution for non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces and storefronts that enables them to accept credit card and crypto payments alike in order to attract more mainstream audience adoption. Circle today also unveiled forthcoming features that will be made available over the coming months, including support USDC, BTC and ETH payments, NFT custodial services, and yield-generating Circle accounts for NFT market operators.”

“A New Zealand-based firm says it has created the country’s first legal stablecoin, one backed by the country’s dollar. According to a press release shared with CoinDesk on Wednesday, the New Zealand dollar stablecoin ($NZDs) is issued by Techemynt, a regulated company with ties to crypto hedge fund Techemy Capital. Launching today, the cryptocurrency is backed one-to-one by the New Zealand dollar and deployed on the Ethereum blockchain by Blockchain Labs. $NZDs’ code utilizes a framework developed by Coinbase and Circle-founded Centre group.”