MAS
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is Singapore's central bank. The mission of the MAS is to promote sustained non-inflationary economic growth, and a sound and progressive financial center. The MAS has leveraged blockchain technology for its Project Ubin central bank digital currency (CBDC) project.
Avalanche Launches Avaissance to Boost NFT Ecosystem
The Avalanche Foundation has announced the launch of Avaissance, an initiative aimed at supporting digital artists and growing the Avalanche NFT ecosystem. The program includes an Artist in Resident program for over 50 artists and the Mona Lisa Initiative to curate digital art and expand the collections of art-focused DAOs. In other news, Ticketmaster has announced a new feature, token-gated ticket sales, allowing artists to reward NFT holders with exclusive benefits. Popular NFT artist Patrick Amadon withdrew his work from a major auction house to protest a lack of female representation. Sony Interactive Entertainment filed a patent for a framework allowing users to transfer and utilize NFTs across multiple game platforms.
Mastercard Enables USDC Spending in Asia
Mastercard has partnered with Stables to allow retail customers in the Asia-Pacific region to spend and save USDC through its network. Meanwhile, worldwide banking turmoil has not slowed the blending of traditional and decentralized finance (DeFi).
Global payment provider Mastercard has expanded its partnership with the Australian stablecoin platform, Stables, to enable retail customers in the Asia-Pacific region to spend and save USDC anywhere Mastercard is accepted. The wallet will accept deposits in several stablecoins, including Tether (USDT) and Binance USD (BUSD), with all deposits automatically converted into USDC. This move comes as worldwide banking turmoil and regulatory crackdowns continue to impact the crypto space.
MetaMask Launches Ethereum Staking Marketplace
MetaMask Institutional has announced a new staking marketplace that allows institutional clients to manage ETH staking through vendors such as ConsenSys Staking, Allnodes, Blockdaemon, and Kiln. The marketplace aims to simplify access and management of solo staking and enable institutions to become Ethereum network validators.
MetaMask Enables Direct Bank Transfers for Crypto Purchases in Nigeria
MetaMask, a major crypto wallet, has partnered with MoonPay to enable direct bank transfers for crypto purchases in Nigeria, allowing users to access crypto faster and cheaper without using credit or debit cards. Nigeria is a major market for MetaMask, despite current issues with crypto on-ramps in the country.
Bitcoin Flips Visa Again
Bitcoin (BTC) market valuation surpassed Visa's after a near 50% price increase in 2023. BTC has "flipped" the payment giant three times.
MetaMask Warns Investors Against Phishing Attempts by Scammers
MetaMask informed customers that it never emails account data or collects KYC information.
Web2 and Web3 tools are merging as crypto-backed debit cards
The Bit2Me card supports eight cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH, ADA, and SOL, with more anticipated later this year.
Russia largest bank is moving forward with the plan
Sberbank, Russia's biggest bank, will begin open DeFi platform testing in April 2023.
Wyre Limits WithdrawalsTo 90% For All Users
Wyre, a crypto payment company, has changed its withdrawal policy to restrict customers to 90% of their funds, days after two former workers purportedly hinted at a closure. Yanni Giannaros, Wyre's chief risk and compliance officer, is temporary CEO. As Wyre implements new operations, daily withdrawal restrictions will vary.
Mastercard Launches Web3 Musician Accelerator With Polygon
Mastercard launched a Polygon-based accelerator program for Web3 artists. Five international performers will be mentored by the business to establish their Web3 music brands. For those not chosen for the program, Mastercard is offering the Mastercard Music Pass NFT collection.