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| Hey Insider! The week has kicked off with the hype of the long-awaited WLD token launch by Worldcoin, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s crypto project. Today’s issue covers the details of this launch, as well as several more of the biggest stories from the crypto market, including Ripple’s application for a crypto license in the U.K., the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s new job posting related to the CBDCs, a recent survey revealing expectations on the Bitcoin’s next all-time high, and more. Enjoy your reading! Doğa
p/dogayurduneri | |
| 1 | | OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's crypto project Worldcoin has officially launched its long-awaited WLD token as it migrated to the OP Mainnet, a Layer-2 scaling solution. The token has already been listed on several leading crypto exchanges, including Binance, OKX, Huobi, Bybit, and Gate.io. More: - WLD tokens will initially be distributed to more than two million people worldwide who previously signed up for the project and were verified.
- The WLD token will have a ten-billion total supply, with 80% reserved for users, operators, and the ecosystem and 20% for the Worldcoin team and its backers.
- The project aims to help people prove their identity online with credentials verified in person through iris-scanning devices dubbed the "Orb."
- The Orbs are built by Tools for Humanity as a custom biometric imaging device to securely and privately verify users' humanness and uniqueness.
- Worldcoin plans to ramp up sign-ups by deploying the Orbs in over 35 cities across 20 countries worldwide.
- The firm also said the number of Orbs in circulation would increase from 200 to around 1,500 by the end of the year.
- Two million people who have already been verified through an Orb will initially receive 25 WLD tokens.
Zoom Out: - Worldcoin co-founder Sam Altman is most famous for his CEO position in OpenAI, the AI research lab behind the popular AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT.
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| 2 | |  What the numbers say: A recent survey conducted by CryptoVantage with 1,000 U.S. residents has revealed Americans' expectations on when Bitcoin (BTC) will reach its all-time high (ATH) again. In the poll, 47% of respondents said the leading cryptocurrency would reach that level within the next five years. A significant 23% portion also reported an expectation for it within the next year. While 14% of participants did not share a prediction, 8% set their expectations for after 2030. The remaining 8% stated that it would never happen again.
Relevance: Bitcoin reached its ATH in November 2021, with around $69,000. At the time, the spike in the BTC price was mainly triggered by the renowned CEO Elon Musk's support, Tesla's massive Bitcoin investment, El Salvador's acceptance of Bitcoin as legal tender, and the launch of the first U.S. Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). Then, a crypto market downturn caused substantial volatility in Bitcoin's price, with sudden ups and downs. The popular cryptocurrency is still more than 57% below its ATH, though it increased by over 80% since the beginning of 2023. However, analysts foresee a jump similar to the one in 2021 again, with the halving event expected to happen in April or May 2024. The internal supply and issuance process will decrease the amount of Bitcoins that can be mined daily by half. Brands that should care: On the other hand, predictions of sky-high valuations for Bitcoin have gained massive popularity in recent years, though they mostly do not come to fruition. Most recently, U.K.-based banking giant Standard Chartered's analysts forecasted that Bitcoin would reach $50,000 by the end of the year and $120,000 by the end of 2024. In November 2020, a Citibank analyst also estimated that the popular token could reach $318,000 by the end of 2022, but the leading cryptocurrency closed last year at $16,500. | | | |
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| 3 | | Lawyers for the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX's former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), have asked the court to issue a gag order for witnesses in his case. The move followed a gag order against SBF after he spoke to a reporter about the former CEO of Alameda Research, Caroline Ellison. More: - If approved, the order will restrict the witnesses in the case from disclosing any information about the lawsuit to the public before SBF's trial in October.
- The gag order against SBF was issued over the court's concerns around the potential of his recent comments to influence the jury pool that would sit in the trial.
- In response, SBF's lawyers argued that the article contrarily had negative references for the former FTX CEO and positive references for Ellison.
- The legal team also claimed that the court unfairly targeted SBF without restricting comments from other parties, asking for another gag order for all the witnesses.
- Other witnesses include the U.S. government, former FTX employees, FTX's current CEO John J. Ray III, FTX's debtor entities, and Alameda Research.
Zoom Out: - FTX, previously the third-largest crypto exchange, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2022, with all the 130 entities under the roof of FTX Group.
- The downfall followed the claims that SBF used customer funds in FTX to compensate for losses at the sister company Alameda Research.
- SBF will appear in court in October to defend himself against eight charges, including money laundering and misappropriation of customer funds, to which he pleaded not guilty.
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| 4 | | The Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of San Francisco has published another job posting related to the development of a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC). As part of the new recruitment, the bank has started seeking a crypto architect to work on the institution's CBDC research and development. More: - The full-time position will be based in San Francisco in a hybrid manner, and its annual salary will start at $134,900.
- The potential candidate should have knowledge of implementation of the distributed systems, cryptographic protocols, consensus algorithms, and security.
- The qualified candidate will help the bank further understand the cost and benefits of the potential technologies for a CBDC and become well-positioned to design, develop, and implement technology to support a digital currency.
- The person hired for the role will also implement example systems related to a CBDC, engaging directly with management, the developer team, the development operations team, and vendors.
- San Francisco Fed first revealed its plans to develop a CDBC in February when it published a job posting for a software engineer titled "senior application developer — digital currency."
Zoom Out: - The digital dollar is a controversial issue in the U.S., especially for lawmakers, since President Joe Biden signed an executive order in 2022 for the federal government to explore the potential use cases and risks of a CBDC.
- Some politicians, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson, have argued that the CBDCs could be used as a direct surveillance tool by the government and violate the privacy rights of American citizens.
- Earlier in July, the Fed, the U.S. central banking system, stated that it did not decide whether to issue a CBDC yet, and the issuance could be only possible with an authorizing law.
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| 5 | | Ripple, a payment protocol most famous for its native token XRP, recently applied in the U.K. to register as a crypto asset firm with the Financial Conduct Authority, the country's financial market regulator. The move came nearly one year after Ripple announced its plans to expand further in Europe, especially to the U.K. and Ireland. More: - Ripple's managing director of Europe, Sendi Young, defined the application as a huge win and a positive move for the firm's overall growth and success.
- The firm also simultaneously applied for a payment institution license in Ireland.
- The applications followed Ripple's partial win in court against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which classified XRP as a security in a lawsuit filed in December 2020.
- U.S. Judge Analisa Torres recently ruled that XRP is not a security when sold to the general public.
- On the other hand, earlier this year, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the firm would remain committed to the U.S. as a hub for its global operations.
Zoom Out: - Over the last several months, the U.K. has increasingly become an attraction point for crypto companies due to its regulatory clarity and supportive business environment as U.S. regulators increased their crackdown on the industry.
- Most recently, the country officially passed the Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSMB) that recognizes crypto as a regulated activity and brings cryptocurrencies and stablecoins under the same rules applied to traditional financial assets.
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| 6 | | Russian President Vladimir Putin has officially signed the country's digital ruble bill into law. The legislation, establishing a legal framework for the country's central bank digital currency (CBDC) ecosystem, will come into force as of Aug. 1. More: - The bill was first introduced to the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, the State Duma, in December 2022 and passed in the third reading in July.
- The new legislation makes the Bank of Russia (BoR), the country's central bank, the main operator of the CBDC infrastructure and responsible for all the stored assets.
- The regulatory framework also sees the digital ruble as a payment and transfer method rather than an investment instrument, which means that CBDC users in Russia cannot open savings accounts.
- Putin's sign has officially authorized the BoR to launch the first CBDC pilot in the country with real consumers in August.
- However, the central bank does not expect the digital ruble to move to the mass rollout for all Russian citizens before 2027.
- The BoR governor, Elvira Nabiullina, said the government would not force Russian citizens to use the CBDC, and it would be a completely voluntary choice.
Zoom Out: - The launch of the CBDC pilot in Russia, initially planned to start on April 1 with 13 local banks, was postponed by the BoR in March since the related legislation had not been ready yet.
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| 7 | | Quick Hits: - Invest in Virtuix before they ship their VR treadmills to their waitlist, a $100M opportunity. This opportunity ends on 8/10.*
- Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network has recently reached two separate settlement agreements to exit bankruptcy and receive court approval to repay its customers by the end of the year.
- A 38-year-old Nevada resident, Kristy Lynn Felkins, has been sentenced to five years in prison after paying 12 Bitcoin (BTC) to a hitman on the dark web in 2016 to kill her ex-husband.
- The Central Bank of Nigeria has integrated the Near Field Communication (NFC) technology into the country's central bank digital currency (CBDC) app to enable contactless payments.
- Discover how collagen helps reduce loose skin, deep wrinkles, and dark spots.*
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 | Staff Writer | | Doga is a tech and science editor who has been writing news for nearly 10 years. She worked for leading tech platforms and mainstrem media channels as an editor and presenter throughout his career. Then, she carried her know-how to more than one platform. She is a part-time cat lover and binge-watcher, and also fond of science, space, and emerging tech. She always has a story to tell. She is a bit addict to the laughter and -unfortunately- the '90s culture. | | This newsletter was edited by Christopher Hachey | |
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