LensLinks: Issue 47

A blockchain news roundup, brought to you by Regiment LLC

Author

Len Pacek
December 08, 2022

Today in LensLinks:

  • Crypto's Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Year

  • NIGERIA PUSHES CBDC USAGE WITH NEW ATM CASH WITHDRAWAL LIMITS

  • Is Facebook losing its $100bn gamble on virtual reality?

  • Crypto Exchange Binance.US Eliminates Trading Fees for Ether

  • Advice for Oculus Adiction

  • Circle's Plan to Go Public Cancelled

  • And Much, Much, More...

QUOTABLE... 

“Your field will not last long outside of public policy norms,” he said. “Some of these platforms have come in and said, ‘We want to continue running a commingled platform. We want to continue doing lending, trading, hedge fund functions, an exchange function, a custody function.’ We said, ‘No, you have to separate it out.’”

- U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler

NOTABLE...  

Nigeria Pushes CBDC Usage With New ATM Cash Withdrawal Limits

The Nigerian government has imposed new restrictions on ATM withdrawals in an effort to increase usage of the eNaira.

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/legal/nigeria-pushes-cbdc-usage-atm-limits

The Nigerian government has placed new restrictions and limits on the amount of cash citizens are able to withdraw from ATMs. The decision is seemingly an attempt to further push the country’s new CBDC, the eNaira.

The directive orders that citizens and businesses cannot withdraw amounts exceeding $45 (20,000 nairas) per day and $225 (100,000 nairas) per week from ATMs. Withdrawals from banks of over $225 (100,000 nairas) and $1,125 (500,000 nairas) will be subject to processing fees of 5% for individuals and 10% for businesses.

The order also details that cashback via point-of-sale terminals cannot exceed $45 (20,000 nairas) per day either.

 Metaverse & Gaming

‘The metaverse will be our slow death!’ Is Facebook losing its $100bn gamble on virtual reality?

The company now known as Meta has spent staggering amounts on creating an immersive successor to the traditional 2D internet. But what has it got to show for it, apart from 11,000 job losses?

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/dec/07/metaverse-slow-death-facebook-losing-100bn-gamble-virtual-reality-mark-zuckerberg

The company now known as Meta has spent staggering amounts on creating an immersive successor to the traditional 2D internet. But what has it got to show for it, apart from 11,000 job losses?

What a difference a year makes.

 Blockchain, Tokens & DeFi

Economic Unreality: What SEC ICO Precedents Mean for Ripple

The history and future of crypto securities law told in four acts: Kik, Telegram, Library and Ripple.

https://www.coindesk.com/consensus-magazine/2022/12/06/economic-unreality-what-sec-ico-precedents-mean-for-ripple/?outputType=amp

The story begins with long-forgotten projects like Mastercoin and Counterparty, was blasted into public consciousness with projects like Ethereum and now slowly dies as American crypto developers shun the mother country for greener pastures abroad.

If Ripple loses, as I expect it will sooner or later, its defeat would be highly symbolic. The company and its associated protocol are among the longest-running and significant cryptocurrency projects in the world. XRP is practically a household name.

 Crypto Trading

Crypto Exchange Binance.US Eliminates Trading Fees for Ether

The exchange will also offer additional trading fee discounts to customers who pay their trading fees with BNB tokens.

https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/12/07/crypto-exchange-binanceus-eliminates-trading-fees-for-ether/

Free trading will apply to the following spot market pairs: ETH/USD, ETH/USDT, ETH/USDC and ETH/BUSD. The exchange said it will also offer additional trading fee discounts to customers who pay their trading fees with BNB tokens.

Back in June the exchange, a unit of the largest crypto exchange by volume, became the first U.S. crypto exchange platform to eliminate bitcoin trading fees in an effort to attract more users. It said at the time it would do the same for more tokens in the future.

Metaverse & Gaming - A Little More...

Advice For Oculus Addiction

Can a child Oculus themself into a headache or injury? Do hours in the metaverse lead to anti-social behavior in the real world? What are the rules with virtual-reality gaming?

https://www.scarymommy.com/parenting/how-much-vr-gaming-is-too-much

Circle plan to go public is cancelled. What does it mean for stablecoin market?

Circle, the issuer of USDC, has cancelled a plan to go public. A look at what this means for the stablecoin market

https://coinjournal.net/news/circle-plan-to-go-public-is-cancelled-what-does-it-mean-for-stablecoin-market/

Blockchain, Tokens & Defi - A Little More...

Crypto's Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Year

The cryptocurrency market had a rough 2022, but it's far from dead. Next year holds the promise of more mainstream adoption and new crypto innovations, as the industry learns from past mistakes.

https://www.investopedia.com/cryptos-horrible-no-good-very-bad-year-6835076

Op-Ed: Crypto doesn’t need the FTX’s of the world

Did Sam Bankman-Fried knowingly commingle funds? We shouldn’t need to care.

https://cryptoslate.com/op-ed-crypto-doesnt-need-the-ftxs-of-the-world/

Crypto Trading - A Little More...

Gensler Says SEC Is Fine Going After Crypto With Its Current Authority

Gary Gensler, the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), isn’t waiting for new powers from Congress in order to enforce securities laws against crypto companies, though he said Wednesday that it would be good to have more money and additional reach beyond U.S. borders.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/gensler-says-sec-fine-going-180006778.html

Rally in Crypto Game Axie's AXS Token Faces Skepticism From Derivative Traders

With a favorable environment for alternative cryptocurrencies far away, a rise in open interest in AXS futures implies traders shorting the rally, one trader said.

https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2022/12/07/rally-in-crypto-game-axies-axs-token-faces-skepticism-from-derivative-traders/

 ESG (Environment, Social & Governance)

NEAR Protocol Partners with ESG DAO to Support the Creation of "OpenESG", an Open and Credibly Neutral ESG Scoring System

Zug, Switzerland--(Newsfile Corp. - December 7, 2022) - ESG DAO, the United Kingdom entity that is building a global, decentralized and real-time Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) rating protocol, has partnered with NEAR Protocol to accelerate the development of OpenESG. NEAR Protocol Partners with ESG DAOTo view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8203/147105_8e72012b74ba1aba_001full.jpgNEAR is the leading carbon-neutral layer 1 block

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/near-protocol-partners-esg-dao-165700352.html

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