Latest Blockchain News: Finextra Research

MoonPay launches credit card checkout for NFTs

Crypto payments platform MoonPay has released a plug-and-play service for buying and selling NFTs with a credit card.

27 January 2022

City of London policy chair hails UK capital as a centre of green finance

This week, the FCA and the City of London Corporation held a demo day for its Sustainability Cohort initiative, which aims to further green the financial sector and catalyse the transition to net zero.

18 January 2022

News/crypto

FTX launches $2bn fund to back web3 startups

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX has launched a $2 billion venture capital fund that will invest in firms pushing blockchain and web3 adoption in areas including social, gaming, fintech, software, and healthcare.

14 January 2022

News/crypto

Disagreement among Lords: A busy week for digital currency

We knew policymakers and financial leaders would be at their battle stations come 2022, and the updates rolling in across the crypto, CBDC and stablecoin fronts are coming thick and fast. We’ve rounded up the key updates from the private and public sector to make headlines this week:

14 January 2022

News/people

NatWest Markets sets up blockchain team

NatWest is to formalise its blockchain strategy with the launch of a new digital team in its capital markets business.

14 January 2022

News/crypto

Visa and ConsenSys build CBDC on-ramp to existing payment networks

Visa is working with blockchain firm ConsenSys on a project to help bridge CBDC networks with existing payment rails.

13 January 2022

News/people

New York regulator appoints virtual currencies chief

The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS) has appointed former Promontory executive Peter Marton as deputy superintendent of virtual currency.

07 January 2022

News/crypto

Bahrain central bank trials JPM Coin

The Central Bank of Bahrain has teamed up with JP Morgan's blockchain and crypto unit Onyx to test the Wall Street giant's JPM Coin digital currency.

07 January 2022

News/regulation

Esma consults on rule changes to accommodate tokenized securities

Europe's top securities regulator is seeking submissions on the need for amending the regulatory technical standards (RTS) on reporting and transparency requirements in order to accommodate growing use of blockchain technology in financial markets.

04 January 2022

News/crypto

eToro expands crypto offering with Celo and The Sandbox

Social investment platform, eToro, has just announced the addition of two assets to its crypto offering: The Sandbox and Celo. This brings eToro’s offering to 42 cryptoassets.

29 December 2021

News/crypto

Swift explores expansion of network into the digital asset market

Banking co-operative Swift is to explore how it can support interoperability in the development of the tokenised asset market, working in conjunction with Clearstream, Northern Trust, SETL and other market participants.

23 December 2021

News/wholesale

JPMorgan builds blockchain payments system for Siemens

JPMorgan Chase is working with Siemens on a blockchain-based system for the German firm's payments, according to the Financial Times.

21 December 2021

News/people

Natwest Mettle chief quits to join blockchain outfit Near

Marieke Flament has quit NatWest's online business banking offshoot Mettle to join Swiss-based blockhain foundation Near.

17 December 2021

News/crypto

34% of UK finance businesses now making crypto payments - Mercuryo

According to new research by global payment network, Mercuryo, over one third of UK finance businesses are now using blockchain to facilitate payments, as demand for innovation soars.

17 December 2021

News/crypto

Banque de France demos ledger interoperability in CBDC trials

The Banque de France has completed the last of its interbank settlement in CBDC experiments, demonstrating the possibility of direct ledger interoperability in a hybrid cloud environment across multiple technologies and asset classes.

16 December 2021

News/payments

Fnality preps go live with pledge to slash intraday liquidity costs

Backed by some of the world's largest banks, blockchain for payments consortium Fnality says it expects to reduce banks' intraday liquidity requirements by 70% when it goes live next year.

15 December 2021

News/crypto

RBA reports back on CBDC/DLT loan syndication project

A collaborative research project into the use of distributed ledger technology in CBDC loan syndication conducted by the Reserve Bank of Australia in association with Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank, Perpetual and ConsenSys Software has demonstrated the potential for significant efficiency gains for businerss customers and market participants.

13 December 2021

News/payments

HSBC and Wells Fargo achieve PvP settlement finality with DLT

HSBC and Wells Fargo have completed the first interbank Payment vs Payment (PvP) settlement outside of CLS using distributed ledger technology from Baton Systems.

13 December 2021

News/crypto

Meta extends Novi payments trial to WhatsApp

Meta (formerly Facebook) has extended the pilot for its Novi digital app to WhatsApp, using a stablecoin to enable participants to send and receive money from within chats.

09 December 2021

News/startups

Tokenised fund for footballers' image rights launches

A Spanish startup has launched what it claims is the world’s first tokenised investment fund focused footballer’s image rights.

09 December 2021