Luc Smits van Oyen
Weekly crypto news: FIFA partners up with Algorand
The stock market and the crypto market are wobbling a bit. This past week (April 29, 2022 to May 6), Bitcoin seemed to collapse along with the rest of the crypto market and even the stock market, following rumors of a detrimental new monetary policy in the US. Bitcoin started the week at €38,000, but quickly plummeted to €35,700.
Later in the week, it became clear that the feared interest rate hikes in the US were not as bad as initially thought. This ensured that the crypto market soon found its way back up. Bitcoin is at €37,300 at the time of writing.
Despite the uncertain sentiment currently prevailing in the market, there were positive news items coming from the crypto space. For example, Hawaii is going to look at ways to integrate crypto and FIFA announced blockchain platform Algorand as a sponsor for the 2022 World Cup. As every week, you can read the most important crypto news of the week here!
FIFA, the world football association, has partnered with blockchain technology company Algorand for sponsorship and technical cooperation.
The agreement means that Algorand will become the official blockchain platform of FIFA and will provide the official blockchain-supported wallet. Under the sponsorship agreement, Algorand will become a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 sponsor in North America and Europe, and a FIFA Women's World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 sponsor.
As part of the agreement, Algorand will also help FIFA further develop its strategy for digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs, while FIFA will provide sponsorship resources including advertising, media exposure and promotional opportunities.
On the occasion of the announcement, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said, "We are pleased to announce this partnership with Algorand. The partnership is a clear indication of FIFA's commitment to continually seek innovative channels for sustainable revenue growth to reinvest in soccer and reach our stakeholders and soccer fans around the world in a transparent way - a key element of our vision to make soccer truly global. I look forward to a long and fruitful partnership with Algorand.
Following the announcement, ALGO immediately rose more than 20%.
Argentina's largest and second largest private banks, Banco Galicia and Brubank, have announced that they will allow customers to make crypto purchases through the bank.
Bloomberg reported Monday that a resounding 60% of respondents to an Argentine poll asked for more access to crypto, which was the deciding factor in the banks' decision to allow crypto trading.
Affiliate at market research firm Americas Market Intelligence, Ignacio Carballo, tweeted Tuesday confirming with screenshots from Banco Galicia's online interface that it had begun supporting Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), USD Coin (USDC) and Ripple (XRP) purchases.
Allowing customers to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies through their banks could help Argentines stay ahead of the country's massive inflation. According to the latest data from economic data tracker Trading Economics, Argentina's inflation rate was 55% in April. Proponents say Bitcoin's scarcity and decentralization make it the ideal inflation hedge.
Hawaii could be the latest U.S. state to establish legislative frameworks for crypto, as a Senate committee has recommended the formation of a task force to regulate cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.
Two committees of the Hawaii State Blockchain Legislature unanimously supported the formation of a specialized task force to examine and regulate crypto and blockchain ecosystems: Commerce and Consumer Protection (CPN) and Ways and Means (WAM).
Hawaii's law seeks to examine how the government can regulate, monitor and potentially use blockchain and cryptocurrency technology.
The task force plans to study data from other jurisdictions and "produce a roadmap to encourage the use of blockchain in both the private and public sectors."
Once enacted into law, the crypto and blockchain task force will have to deliver a report summarizing its findings and recommendations at least 20 days before the regular session of the House of Representatives convenes in 2023.
The task force will consist of 11 individuals nominated by the governor, including representatives from a company that provides blockchain payment solutions, a cryptocurrency exchange and a cryptocurrency association.
Facebook, which has recently transformed into Meta, has been sued by Dfinity because the logos of the two companies are too similar. Dfinity is the company that develops the Internet Computer blockchain (ICP).
Dfinity claims in the suit, which was filed on April 29: "Meta and Dfinity are trying to attract the same users, namely those who are looking for an innovative and different user experience, created by users, for users."
Facebook's move into the metaverse, which brings with it the possibility of NFTs and other Web3 elements, threatens Dfinity's brand, although that brand may be worth less than it was before ICP launched in May 2021.
ICP had a market capitalization of $57 billion when it came to market, but has since fallen by 98% to a market capitalization of less than $3 billion. That said, the logos of Meta and Dfinity are indeed very similar …
Later in the week, it became clear that the feared interest rate hikes in the US were not as bad as initially thought. This ensured that the crypto market soon found its way back up. Bitcoin is at €37,300 at the time of writing.
Despite the uncertain sentiment currently prevailing in the market, there were positive news items coming from the crypto space. For example, Hawaii is going to look at ways to integrate crypto and FIFA announced blockchain platform Algorand as a sponsor for the 2022 World Cup. As every week, you can read the most important crypto news of the week here!
Algorand sponsors FIFA world cup 2022
FIFA, the world football association, has partnered with blockchain technology company Algorand for sponsorship and technical cooperation.
The agreement means that Algorand will become the official blockchain platform of FIFA and will provide the official blockchain-supported wallet. Under the sponsorship agreement, Algorand will become a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 sponsor in North America and Europe, and a FIFA Women's World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 sponsor.
As part of the agreement, Algorand will also help FIFA further develop its strategy for digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs, while FIFA will provide sponsorship resources including advertising, media exposure and promotional opportunities.
On the occasion of the announcement, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said, "We are pleased to announce this partnership with Algorand. The partnership is a clear indication of FIFA's commitment to continually seek innovative channels for sustainable revenue growth to reinvest in soccer and reach our stakeholders and soccer fans around the world in a transparent way - a key element of our vision to make soccer truly global. I look forward to a long and fruitful partnership with Algorand.
Following the announcement, ALGO immediately rose more than 20%.
Argentina's two largest banks will allow trading in crypto
Argentina's largest and second largest private banks, Banco Galicia and Brubank, have announced that they will allow customers to make crypto purchases through the bank.
Bloomberg reported Monday that a resounding 60% of respondents to an Argentine poll asked for more access to crypto, which was the deciding factor in the banks' decision to allow crypto trading.
Affiliate at market research firm Americas Market Intelligence, Ignacio Carballo, tweeted Tuesday confirming with screenshots from Banco Galicia's online interface that it had begun supporting Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), USD Coin (USDC) and Ripple (XRP) purchases.
Allowing customers to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies through their banks could help Argentines stay ahead of the country's massive inflation. According to the latest data from economic data tracker Trading Economics, Argentina's inflation rate was 55% in April. Proponents say Bitcoin's scarcity and decentralization make it the ideal inflation hedge.
Hawaii sets up crypto task force to regulate crypto
Hawaii could be the latest U.S. state to establish legislative frameworks for crypto, as a Senate committee has recommended the formation of a task force to regulate cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.
Two committees of the Hawaii State Blockchain Legislature unanimously supported the formation of a specialized task force to examine and regulate crypto and blockchain ecosystems: Commerce and Consumer Protection (CPN) and Ways and Means (WAM).
Hawaii's law seeks to examine how the government can regulate, monitor and potentially use blockchain and cryptocurrency technology.
The task force plans to study data from other jurisdictions and "produce a roadmap to encourage the use of blockchain in both the private and public sectors."
Once enacted into law, the crypto and blockchain task force will have to deliver a report summarizing its findings and recommendations at least 20 days before the regular session of the House of Representatives convenes in 2023.
The task force will consist of 11 individuals nominated by the governor, including representatives from a company that provides blockchain payment solutions, a cryptocurrency exchange and a cryptocurrency association.
Dfinity sues Facebook over new Meta logo
Facebook, which has recently transformed into Meta, has been sued by Dfinity because the logos of the two companies are too similar. Dfinity is the company that develops the Internet Computer blockchain (ICP).
Dfinity claims in the suit, which was filed on April 29: "Meta and Dfinity are trying to attract the same users, namely those who are looking for an innovative and different user experience, created by users, for users."
Facebook's move into the metaverse, which brings with it the possibility of NFTs and other Web3 elements, threatens Dfinity's brand, although that brand may be worth less than it was before ICP launched in May 2021.
ICP had a market capitalization of $57 billion when it came to market, but has since fallen by 98% to a market capitalization of less than $3 billion. That said, the logos of Meta and Dfinity are indeed very similar …