Binance
Binance becomes official crypto exchange partner of 64th Grammy Awards
The Recording Academy, a major music recording company famous for its annual music awards Grammy Awards, has inked a partnership with Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volumes. According to a joint announcement on Thursday, Binance became the first-ever official crypto exchange partner of the 64th Annual Grammy Awards and Grammy Week events to bring various Web3 technology solutions and experiences to the organization’s events and projects. The partnership was announced just a few days before the 64th Grammy Awards ceremony, which will take place on April 3 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Recording Academy co-president Panos Panay specified that the agreement envisions the development of new monetization avenues for the Recording Academy and the crea...
Binance launches Binance Bridge 2.0 to integrate CeFi and DeFi
On Tuesday, centralized cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced the rollout of Binance Bridge 2.0. The feature enables users to bridge assets from any blockchain, including tokens not listed on the Binance app, to the BNB Chain. Bridged tokens listed on Binance will be stored in the Funding or Spot Wallet, while unlisted bridged tokens will be transferred to the Funding Wallet only. Users can bridge-in or bridge-out tokens between their native blockchains and BNB Chain via regular deposit and withdrawal functions. In the future, Binance also plans to create a better version of its mobile app to allow users to facilitate such conversion via a single click. Regarding the development, Mayur Kamat, head of product at Binance, said: “With Binance Bridge 2.0, we can make decentralized fi...
Cardano founder talks about Web3 and the comfort of Bitcoin at Binance Blockchain Week
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson gave a keynote speech on the first day of this year’s Binance Blockchain Week, held at the Dubai World Trade Centre in the United Arab Emirates. Addressing the audience, Hoskinson used his keynote to discuss topics like Bitcoin (BTC), Web3 and philosophy, bringing up topics like what happens next when the community moves forward from the comfort of Bitcoin and toward centralization. “As blockchains become more advanced and more powerful, we have to start making some difficult and uncomfortable philosophical decisions.” The CEO raised questions about Web3 and what the lines are between decentralization and regulation. “At what point do you cross the threshold where you’re no longer decentralized? You’re no longer the arbitrator of trust?” a...
President Bukele hits out at Bitcoin Bond ‘FUD’ as CZ jets in to El Salvador
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele took to Twitter on Wednesday evening, hitting out at a Reuters report claiming Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) was flying in to save El Salvador’s Bitcoin Bond. “Please don’t spread Reuter’s FUD,” Bukele tweeted to his 3.6 million followers, rebuking the claim that CZ was flying in to assist after the $1 billion bond offering, originally scheduled for mid-March, was postponed until September. He was responding to a tweet on the subject by Bitcoin Magazine, which has now deleted the post. I’m a fan of @BitcoinMagazine, please don’t spread @Reuters FUD. The #Bitcoin Volcano Bonds will be issued with @bitfinex. The short delay in the issuance is only because we are prioritizing internal pension reform and we have to send that to congress before. https://t.co...
Crypto and NFTs at F1: What are firms bringing to the races beyond sponsorships?
The cryptocurrency community has always put an emphasis on decentralization and globalization. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a number of crypto companies are sponsoring Formula 1 (F1) racing teams in an attempt to further connect with audiences across the world. Research by global analytics company Nielsen Sports found that Formula 1 has the potential to reach about one billion fans globally this year, with the 16–35 age group accounting for the biggest share. The appeal of F1 is clearly on the rise, and cryptocurrency companies are jumping on board to demonstrate their presence. To put this in perspective, there are 10 F1 teams for the 2022 season and crypto companies are currently sponsoring eight. Source: Motorsport.com Crypto and F1: An ideal marketing match Mar...
Law Decoded: Arab States of the Gulf open up to digital asset services, March 14–21
Last week got off to an antsy start as the clause that many interpreted as a direct route to ban proof-of-work-(PoW)-based cryptocurrencies made a sudden comeback to the draft of the European Union’s key directive on digital assets. Many in the crypto policy space got immediate flashbacks to other instances of harmful last-minute additions to must-pass legislation days and hours before the vote. It all ended well, though, as the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs voted against the draft that contained the hostile language. Over in the United States, monetary policy kept growing more political, as evidenced by Sarah Bloom Raskin, President Joe Biden’s pick for the Federal Reserve’s vice chair for supervision, being forced to withdraw her nomination due to a Senate gridlock. Ukrainia...
Binance tells regulators it will cease operations in Ontario… for real this time
Binance confirmed in an undertaking to the Ontario Securities Commission, or OSC, in Canada dated Wednesday that the crypto exchange will cease activities involving Ontario residents. Binance will also stop opening new Ontario accounts, and provide fee waivers and reimbursements to certain Ontario users under the administration of a third party, the company said. The undertaking appears to mark the end of a disagreement that started in June when Binance announced that it would no longer service Ontario accounts and customers were advised to close out active positions by the end of the year. The month prior to Binance’s announcement, the OSC introduced a new prospectus and registration requirements for cryptocurrency exchanges. In December, Binance told investors that it was allowed t...
Binance temporarily halts MATIC deposits and withdrawals
Last week, Polygon experienced an extended outage that resulted from an issue related to the Heimdall node Binance’s suspension follows a series of updates on the Polygon network that were meant to remedy the situation Early Tuesday, the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance notified its users that it had temporarily paused deposits and withdrawals via the Polygon network. The exchange said it had taken the decision as it works with Polygon to solve “network-wide issues.” The Chaopeng Zhao-led exchange added that it would restore support for Polygon’s MATIC token– once the network is stable. Binance explained that any deposits that would be done during the suspension of service would be credited as soon as service is restored. Polygon developers were keen to...
Binance is now a licensed virtual asset service provider in Bahrain
The score is Binance’s first regulatory approval in the Gulf as a VASP The exchange has been courting the Middle East with initiatives in countries within the region, including Dubai Binance, the largest crypto exchange by trading volume, is stretching its wings in the Middle East further. The exchange announced on Monday that it had won full approval from the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) to legally operate in the Kingdom of Bahrain. By receiving the licence, Binance became the first crypto asset provider allowed to offer fully regulated services within the larger Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC). The Bahrain approval comes amidst efforts by Binance to seek regulatory approval and compliance around the world. CEO of the exchange, Changpeng Zhao, explained th...
Financial future or false promises? Crypto firms go big on ads in 2022
Advertisements are in abundance everywhere we go — from billboards seen throughout road trips to commercials displayed every fifteen minutes or so during television shows. It’s also the case that most advertisements today display messages from major internet-based brands like Amazon, which was ranked as the largest advertiser in the United States in 2020. Telecommunication providers and payment giants like American Express have also been listed as some of the biggest advertisers in the United States. These companies typically spend billions of dollars per year on marketing messages aimed to inform, persuade and remind consumers about their products and services. 2022 is the year for crypto advertising While dot-com brand commercials and social media advertisements continue to bombard...
Crypto Biz: Goldman Sachs tip-toes into ETH, Mar. 4-10
Wall Street’s embrace of digital assets is showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, they don’t even need to tell us about it as the proof is in the fine print. This week, a United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing revealed that multinational investment bank Goldman Sachs has been quietly offering clients exposure to Ether (ETH) through Galaxy Digital, a crypto-focused financial services provider headed by billionaire Mike Novogratz. Of course, this isn’t the first time Goldman has worked with Galaxy Digital to offer clients a gateway to digital assets. In June 2021, the investment giant began trading a Bitcoin (BTC) futures project in collaboration with Galaxy Digital. Like other financial services giants, Goldman Sachs sees the writing on the wall and realizes...
Here’s why the UK’s FCA is not impressed with EQONEX’s agreement with Bifinity
The FCA says the agreement granted Bifinity certain contractual rights over Eqonex The UK financial markets regulator insists it retains powers to suspend an unfit firm’s crypoasset registration The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority yesterday sent out a note indicating that it is still keeping a close eye on Binance. The message came on the heels of Binance’s subsidiary pay tech firm Bifinity completing a strategic agreement with FCA-regulated EQONEX Limited. Binance launched payment tech company Bifinity yesterday, noting that EQONEX, the first publicly listed digital asset firm in the US, would receive a $36 million convertible loan as part of the agreement. Further, the cooperation would also give Bifinity the right to appoint the CEO, CFO, and Chief Legal Officer of EQ...
