Cryptocurrency and Web3 technology are thought to represent the future of finance, providing a decentralized and borderless world where money, data, and assets flow freely.
But despite advances and setbacks, the vanguard of a hypothetical future-fit financial sector is fighting the same historic battle on three major fronts: regulatory compliance, legal conflicts, and the inherent complexities of digital assets. Masu.
Each week, PYMNTS rounds up the most pressing Web3 news, updates and announcements, tracking key data points along the sector’s efforts across global payments and commerce.
Related article: This Week in Web3: Unlocking Blockchain’s Potential within the Payments Ecosystem
Traditional financial sectors find common ground in stablecoins
Coinbase announced on Friday (October 4) that it may delist stablecoins that do not comply with Europe’s strict new rules by the end of the year. The move comes as the European Union’s Cryptoassets Market Regulation (MiCA) introduces stricter supervision of cryptocurrency companies.
Stablecoins like Tether’s USDT may soon be banned from the platform unless they obtain the necessary permissions. This means crypto companies have even more hurdles to overcome, and is a reminder that the wild west of crypto isn’t so wild anymore.
Coinbase said users in the European Economic Area will have the option to convert to a compliant stablecoin such as Circle’s USD Coin.
Last week, PYMNTS examined efforts by PayPal and Visa to enter the stablecoin space, arguing that this shows the ecosystem is maturing.
“These leading companies are working not only to expand the use cases for stablecoins, but also to strengthen their stability and legitimacy, and this work will increase the perception and legitimacy of stablecoins in the broader financial community. “This could lead to changes in usage,” PYMNTS reported on Friday.
For years, stablecoins have been viewed as niche, useful but not ready for prime time. Currently, they are being touted as the future of payments and commerce.
For example, PayPal completed its first business payment to EY on Thursday (October 3) using its stablecoin PYUSD. Visa on Thursday launched a new platform for banks to issue fiat-backed tokens such as stablecoins and tokenized deposits.
The Visa Tokenized Asset Platform (VTAP) is designed to enable banks to issue and transfer fiat-backed tokens on blockchain networks by leveraging the payments company’s expertise in technologies such as smart contracts. .
Meanwhile, Coinbase is also expanding the ways businesses can pay through its Coinbase Prime intermediary platform.
“We are seeing a growing number of Fortune 500 companies approach Coinbase to explore crypto payments,” Stephen Capozza, Coinbase director of institutional sales, said Thursday. “Many companies are rapidly moving from proof-of-concept exploration to full implementation.”
Still, economic reasons aren’t the only reason people use blockchain. It should be as easy as swiping a credit card. Simplifying how cryptocurrencies are used and accessed remains a key hurdle in moving from niche adoption to mainstream adoption.
Legal Showdown: Ripple vs. SEC and FTX Recovery
Ultimately, the success of cryptocurrencies will depend on how well they can defeat the demons of the past, especially those of regulation and law.
Blockchain company Ripple says it is prepared to continue its legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission after the SEC announced it is appealing a ruling in a case against the company.
The ruling distinguished between sales of XRP to institutional investors and sales to the public on exchanges. It was determined that sales to institutional investors met the legal definition of an investment contract, but sales to the public did not qualify as securities.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse slammed the SEC in a statement regarding social platform X, saying the regulator and its chairman, Gary Gensler, need to move forward.
Cryptocurrency trading platform Crypto.com also filed a lawsuit against the SEC, alleging that the agency overstepped its legal authority in attempting to regulate the crypto sector.
Meanwhile, most of FTX’s creditors will benefit from their investments in the failed cryptocurrency exchange. The bankruptcy agreement approved by a federal court on Monday (October 7) will give 98% of FTX’s creditors about 119% of their claims.
Finally, in Web3 Metaverse News, Entropia Universe developer MindArk announced Wednesday (October 9) that it has the potential to help create the first artificial intelligence-generated and operated metaverse with an actual cash economy. Announcing a new breakthrough.
See more: Bankruptcy, Bitcoin, Blockchain, Coinbase, crypto.com, Cryptocurrency, EY, FTX, Law, Metaverse, MindArk, News, PayPal, PYMNTS News, Regulation, Ripple, SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission , stablecoin, visa, web3
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