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Ethereum developers target March 2023 for Shanghai hard fork

Users will be able to withdrew their staked Ether and applicable rewards after the upgrade goes live.

US lawmakers question federal regulators on banks' ties to crypto firms

“FTX’s collapse shows that crypto may be more integrated into the banking system than regulators are aware,” said Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith.

Waves-backed stablecoin USDN drops further after regulator warning and exchange delisting

Algorithmic stablecoins have had a rough year, starting with UST de-pegging to zero and the subsequent blow-up of Terra’s LUNA token which was used for the asset’s backing. Algorithmic stablecoins are not fully collateralized and rely on different mechanisms to maintain the peg, making them inherently fragile to market conditions. 

The UST implosion created a domino effect that caused another stablecoin, Magic Internet Money (MIM) to de-peg. Despite the fragility of algorithmic stablecoins, new projects like Djed by Cardano (ADA) are still planning on launching, but that doesn’t mean that the concept has improved since the crises seen earlier in the year.

Let’s look at the latest de-peg event in the cryptocurrency space.

On Dec. 8, the Digital Asset eXchange Association (DAXA), which consists of the five major crypto exchanges in Korea issued a warning for Waves and its (WAVES) token.

The warning comes after the stablecoin, USDN which is backed by WAVES, de-pegged and has thus far failed to re-establish the $1 peg in more than 180 days. This means that the USDN protocol may liquidate WAVES through the automatic arbitrage process in an attempt to regain the peg. On Dec. 8, USDN was 16% below the peg.

Waves-backed stablecoin USDN drops further after regulator warning and exchange delisting

Algorithmic stablecoins have had a rough year, starting with UST de-pegging to zero and the subsequent blow-up of Terra’s LUNA token which was used for the asset’s backing. Algorithmic stablecoins are not fully collateralized and rely on different mechanisms to maintain the peg, making them inherently fragile to market conditions. 

The UST implosion created a domino effect that caused another stablecoin, Magic Internet Money (MIM) to de-peg. Despite the fragility of algorithmic stablecoins, new projects like Djed by Cardano (ADA) are still planning on launching, but that doesn’t mean that the concept has improved since the crises seen earlier in the year.

Let’s look at the latest de-peg event in the cryptocurrency space.

On Dec. 8, the Digital Asset eXchange Association (DAXA), which consists of the five major crypto exchanges in Korea issued a warning for Waves and its (WAVES) token.

The warning comes after the stablecoin, USDN which is backed by WAVES, de-pegged and has thus far failed to re-establish the $1 peg in more than 180 days. This means that the USDN protocol may liquidate WAVES through the automatic arbitrage process in an attempt to regain the peg. On Dec. 8, USDN was 16% below the peg.

Major Grayscale digital currency funds are trading at 34% to 69% discount to NAV

The firm manages more than $14.7 billion in digital assets through its OTC investment vehicles.

Major Grayscale digital currency funds are trading at 34% to 69% discount to NAV

The firm manages more than $14.7 billion in digital assets through its OTC investment vehicles.

Major Grayscale digital currency funds are trading at 34% to 69% discount to NAV

The firm manages more than $14.7 billion in digital assets through its OTC investment vehicles.

Fintech Company ZELF launches anonymous Visa debit card with crypto recharge

The company’s latest initiative will allow users to open up a U.S. dollar checking account with only their name, email, and phone number.

Bitcoin takes liquidity near $17K as US dollar shows weakness pre-CPI

BTC price action targets $17,000 amid gently increasing volatility, with a week to go until U.S. inflation data.

Bitcoin takes liquidity near $17K as US dollar shows weakness pre-CPI

Bitcoin (BTC) ranged below $17,000 at the Dec. 8 Wall Street open as the U.S. dollar threatened further weakness.

BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

Dollar dips as stocks see modest upt

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD practically flat over the 24 hours to the time of writing.

With macro cues lacking, analysts eyed a potential breakdown in U.S. dollar strength as the next volatility catalyst for crypto and risk assets.

The U.S. dollar index (DXY) looked set to challenge multi-day support, wicking below 105 multiple times on the day.

“$DXY’s first time under the 100 day MA since June of ‘21,” Joe Cariasare, co-host of the Inside Bitcoin podcast, noted.

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Newlyweds lose funds in FTX exchange a day after their wedding

“We could not sleep properly for a few days,” said Jaime Zulueta, as he told Cointelegraph the story of how he and his wife dealt with losing their funds at FTX.

Newlyweds lose funds in FTX exchange a day after their wedding

“We could not sleep properly for a few days,” said Jaime Zulueta, as he told Cointelegraph the story of how he and his wife dealt with losing their funds at FTX.

Inside South Korea’s wild plan to dominate the metaverse

“Many years ago, it was AI. Now, it’s metaverse,” he says. “From the government’s perspective, […] as long as you don’t have a coin itself, they’re willing to support a lot of these new technologies” — Doo Wan Nam from StableNode

South Korea: The land of the metaverse

If you had to pick the one country that’s most primed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the metaverse, South Korea would be high on the list. 

It’s a technology-obsessed country that eagerly adopts new products, where 98% of people own a smart device and more than 10% of the population own at least some cryptocurrency. Despite being the 13th-largest economy in the world by GDP — and the 27th by population — it’s the fourth-largest gaming market in the world, with its 33 million gamers generating $8.3 billion in revenue for the sector in 2021.

Gaming is already a metaverse-style social activity. The most popular games are either cooperative or competitive, and the country dominates esports, with thousands packing stadiums to watch professional players battle it out. 

The Seoul Metaverse. (Source: Seoul Metropolitan Government)

“For [Australians], our entertainment on a day-to-day basis would be watching TV or watching a movie or whatever,” says Melbourne-based Zerocap analyst Nathan Lenga, who has researched South Korea’s metaverse plans.

The Seoul Metaverse

Inside South Korea’s wild plan to dominate the metaverse

“Many years ago, it was AI. Now, it’s metaverse,” he says. “From the government’s perspective, […] as long as you don’t have a coin itself, they’re willing to support a lot of these new technologies” — Doo Wan Nam from StableNode

South Korea: The land of the metaverse

If you had to pick the one country that’s most primed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the metaverse, South Korea would be high on the list. 

It’s a technology-obsessed country that eagerly adopts new products, where 98% of people own a smart device and more than 10% of the population own at least some cryptocurrency. Despite being the 13th-largest economy in the world by GDP — and the 27th by population — it’s the fourth-largest gaming market in the world, with its 33 million gamers generating $8.3 billion in revenue for the sector in 2021.

Gaming is already a metaverse-style social activity. The most popular games are either cooperative or competitive, and the country dominates esports, with thousands packing stadiums to watch professional players battle it out. 

The Seoul Metaverse. (Source: Seoul Metropolitan Government)

“For [Australians], our entertainment on a day-to-day basis would be watching TV or watching a movie or whatever,” says Melbourne-based Zerocap analyst Nathan Lenga, who has researched South Korea’s metaverse plans.

The Seoul Metaverse

Inside South Korea’s wild plan to dominate the metaverse

“Many years ago, it was AI. Now, it’s metaverse,” he says. “From the government’s perspective, […] as long as you don’t have a coin itself, they’re willing to support a lot of these new technologies” — Doo Wan Nam from StableNode

South Korea: The land of the metaverse

If you had to pick the one country that’s most primed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the metaverse, South Korea would be high on the list. 

It’s a technology-obsessed country that eagerly adopts new products, where 98% of people own a smart device and more than 10% of the population own at least some cryptocurrency. Despite being the 13th-largest economy in the world by GDP — and the 27th by population — it’s the fourth-largest gaming market in the world, with its 33 million gamers generating $8.3 billion in revenue for the sector in 2021.

Gaming is already a metaverse-style social activity. The most popular games are either cooperative or competitive, and the country dominates esports, with thousands packing stadiums to watch professional players battle it out. 

The Seoul Metaverse. (Source: Seoul Metropolitan Government)

“For [Australians], our entertainment on a day-to-day basis would be watching TV or watching a movie or whatever,” says Melbourne-based Zerocap analyst Nathan Lenga, who has researched South Korea’s metaverse plans.

The Seoul Metaverse

What are crypto payment gateways and how do they work?

Cryptocurrency payment gateways are digital currency payment processors that allow merchants to offer cryptocurrencies as a payment method.

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