Digital Asset

Ethereum community adopts ERC-3643 as standard for compliant asset tokenization

The ERC-3643 Ethereum Improvement Proposal reached its final stage, emerging as a recognized standard for tokenizing real-world assets.

The Ethereum community has officially signed off on the ERC-3643 Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP), establishing it as a recognized standard for compliant tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs).

According to a Dec. 15 announcement, the proposal reached its final status, meaning it has been formally reviewed, discussed and agreed upon within the Ethereum community. It’s a similar process to the way ERC-20 and other popular standards were established in the past.

ERC-3643 is a standard for securities tokenization, RWAs, payment systems and loyalty programs. It verifies users’ eligibility for a token via a self-sovereign identity (SSI) framework, providing anonymous yet verifiable credentials, the association behind the proposal explained.

Read more

Taurus starts credit tokenization as an asset class for German SMEs

Blockchain tokenization provides an alternative means for SMEs to raise capital and liquidity while building diversified investment opportunities.

Teylor, a German-based fintech firm specializing in digitizing small business loans, has joined forces with digital asset infrastructure provider Taurus to turn small and medium enterprise (SME) loans into tokenized assets and provide tokenholders with monthly cashflows.

In the partnership, Teylor originates and manages SME loans through its Teylor credit platform. By tokenizing part of this credit portfolio on the Taurus infrastructure and TDX-regulated marketplace, professional private debt investors could participate in the returns through a secure blockchain-based secondary market.

Blockchain tokenization provides an alternative means for SMEs to raise capital and build liquidity while building diversified investment opportunities. In 2021, Italy’s Azimut group tokenized its first portfolio of loans to Italian SMEs through Sygnum Bank.

Read more

US accounting standards board rules will reflect institutional crypto assets’ fair value

The U.S. FASB has decided that crypto assets will be represented at their fair value in accounting beginning late next year.

Crypto companies and institutions holding crypto assets will be able to record the value of their crypto more realistically under accounting rule changes in the United States. 

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) finalized the new rules on Dec. 13. The FASB is the organization that sets accounting and reporting standards for the U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). GAAP-standard financial reports are required from companies that trade on public markets in the United States.

Related: New crypto accounting guidelines could ‘smooth the way’ for adoption

Read more

Iota's ShimmerEVM joins Fireblocks, targets demand for assets tokenization

The Iota Foundation wants to capitalize on institutional demand for real-world assets tokenization, which reached $342 billion in September, according to VanEck data.

Open-source blockchain developer Iota has taken another step to meet institutional demand for asset tokenization by integrating its Shimmer EVM-compatible chain with Fireblocks.

Data from VanEck Research shows the total market capitalization for tokenized real-world assets (RWA) reached $342 billion in September, despite the bear market and the crypto industry headwinds. According to Dominik Schiener, co-founder of Iota, the network is building infrastructure and solutions to address the escalating demand for RWA tokenization.

“We can expect many large institutional investors and financial institutions to give their public support for digital assets in 2024. With clear regulations and newfound public support through these institutions and the imminent ETFs, we are well on our way to make institutional investors the dominant market participants,” noted Schiener.

Read more

Iota’s ShimmerEVM joins Fireblocks, targets demand for assets tokenization

The Iota Foundation wants to capitalize on institutional demand for real-world asset tokenization, which reached $342 billion in September.

Open-source blockchain developer Iota has taken another step to meet institutional demand for asset tokenization by integrating its Shimmer Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible chain with Fireblocks.

Data from VanEck Research shows the total market capitalization for tokenized real-world assets (RWA) reached $342 billion in September despite the bear market and the crypto industry’s headwinds. According to Dominik Schiener, co-founder of Iota, the network is building infrastructure and solutions to address the escalating demand for real-world asset (RWA) tokenization.

“We can expect many large institutional investors and financial institutions to give their public support for digital assets in 2024. With clear regulations and newfound public support through these institutions and the imminent ETFs, we are well on our way to make institutional investors the dominant market participants,” noted Schiener.

Read more

Japan’s SBI looks to Saudi Aramco as it continues Middle East expansion

They have signed a memorandum of understanding on digital asset investment and semiconductor production.

Japanese financial services firm SBI Holdings and Saudi Arabian state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco are considering teaming up on digital asset investment and semiconductor production projects. The two signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation that includes the establishment of SBI Middle East in Riyadh as a base for operations in the region. 

According to the MoU, signed Dec. 7, SBI and Saudi Aramco will consider collaborating in the field of digital assets and co-investing in their digital asset portfolios. They may identify Japanese digital asset startups that could be interested in expanding to Saudi Arabia and launch semiconductor production projects in both countries. In addition:

Saudi Aramco is the world’s second-largest corporation by revenue, after Walmart. The MoU mentioned Saudi Aramco investments aimed at complementing its supply chain. Cryptocurrency is “not recognized by legal entities” in Saudi Arabia, although the government has shown a healthy interest in Web3. SBI Holdings’ partnership with Taiwan-based Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing was also highlighted.

Read more

Japan’s SBI looks to Saudi Aramco to continue Middle East expansion

They have signed a memorandum of understanding on digital asset investment and semiconductor production.

Japanese financial services firm SBI Holdings and Saudi Arabian state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco are considering teaming up on digital asset investment and semiconductor production projects. The two signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation that includes establishing SBI Middle East in Riyadh as a base for regional operations. 

According to the MoU, signed Dec. 7, SBI and Saudi Aramco will consider collaborating on digital assets and co-investing in their digital asset portfolios. They may identify Japanese digital asset startups that could be interested in expanding to Saudi Arabia and launch semiconductor production projects in both countries. In addition:

Saudi Aramco is the world’s second-largest corporation by revenue, after Walmart. The MoU mentioned Saudi Aramco investments aimed at complementing its supply chain. Cryptocurrency is “not recognized by legal entities” in Saudi Arabia, although the government has shown a healthy interest in Web3. SBI Holdings’ partnership with Taiwan-based Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing was also highlighted.

Read more

NFT.NYC: Games and tokenization are driving NFT industry maturation

At NFT.NYC 2023, Cointelegraph’s team learned firsthand how nonfungible tokens are shaping the digital world of tomorrow.

From tokenizing investment assets to game avatars, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have an array of applications that go beyond digital art, with more projects coming online despite the market downturn in 2022.

At the NFT.NYC 2023 conference, Cointelegraph’s team learned first-hand from experts, projects, companies and the NFT community how the technology is shaping the digital world. Check out the highlights of the three-day event below:

NFT games show signs of maturing 

After years of development, the first batch of NFT-based gaming projects are entering the market, paving the way for a world in which real life and games will be blended, companies and developers told Cointelegraph.

“Ten years from now, I could be wearing my VR glasses or still using my phone, or probably using some new system interacting with the metaverse — but I’m going to be able to port my avatar and my NFT items. […] As a user, I’m going to start collecting more digital goods as NFTs, more than even physical goods, like clothing or watches or cars,“ explained Origin Protocol co-founder Matthew Liu regarding skins being interoperable across platforms.

Alex Connolly, co-founder of Immutable, has noticed an increase in competition in the gaming sector as more projects and developers seek to address blockchain-based challenges, such as interoperability:

“We‘re seeing a few alphas. There’s been a few things that have been playable here at NFT.NYC. Building games is hard. It takes a while […] to make them good. But I think we’re starting to see some of the best Web3 games that have ever been built. […] I can own my stuff and trade inside the game. I think that’s really powerful.”

Linus Chung, vice president of product at Origin Protocol, believes that companies trying to bring NFTs into their business should focus on significantly improving one pain point in people’s lives that traditional methods do not solve: “The last bull market has definitely shown that people will go through all of the hoops of acquiring crypto, getting a MetaMask wallet because there is some carrot at the end of that tunnel that’s way better than the traditional way of doing things.”

NFT.NYC 2023 attendees at the Immutable booth. Source: Cointelegraph

Real estate NFTs

One real-world application of NFTs is the tokenization of investment assets, and the real estate industry is one of its primary targets, event speakers said. Fintech company Ripple, for example, is working with other businesses developing real estate marketplaces and tokenized NFTs, Emi Yoshikawa, Ripple’s vice president of strategy and operations, told Cointelegraph. 

“Real estate is one of the big focuses of the market that we are very excited about. Obviously, it’s a massive market, but it’s very illiquid and also very inefficient. […] We are partnering with some companies who are building a marketplace to provide tokenized NFTs for real estate,“ she noted, before adding that Japan is one helping lead the tokenization market in Asia.

Related: Play-to-Earn is not dead, but game publishers are looking for alternatives

A decentralized economy powered by NFTs

Speaking at NFT.NYC, Solon Labs CEO Maxwell Lyman noted that while many projects, blockchains and coins are decentralized, their infrastructure relies on centralized ecosystems, exposing them to security and censorship risks.

“All of these protocols, they’re decentralized on the back end. There are smart contracts live on the Ethereum blockchain or whatever respective blockchain they’re hosted on. But if you look at their front end, they are hosted on centralized servers, an AWS server, or something equivalent,“ explained Lyman, adding: “We are a football field away from getting to a point where the space is actually decentralized.”

NFTs may play a crucial role in achieving real decentralization, according to Lyman. “There’s something that I call global personal capitalism that’s going to be enabled by the proliferation of nonfungible tokens. It’s the capability of anyone in the world to be able to control and monetize their personal information, their activities or their creations.”

From left to right: Gabe, Maxwell Lyman, KidEthereum and Dave Uhryniak speaking at the NFT.NYC. Source: Cointelegraph

Uncertainty about NFT regulation

During the event’s panels, legal experts pointed out that NFTs are facing the same regulatory uncertainty as the broader crypto industry, particularly in the United States, with a major question in the space being whether NFTs can be considered securities.

Katrina Paglia, chief compliance officer of Pantera Capital, said the venture firm is relying on recent enforcement actions from the Securities and Exchange Commission to gauge regulators’ views on digital assets: 

“We do a lot of scrolling of the SEC enforcement actions that have come out recently because with each one of these things, […] you glean a little bit more information about how they are thinking about applying for the Howey test. Until we actually get the clarity that the industry desperately needs and wants, we’re kind of relying on that for now.”

Magazine: Why join a blockchain gaming guild? Fun, profit and create better games

Bitfinex Securities El Salvador receives Digital Asset Service provider license in El Salvador

The license granted by El Salvador’s National Digital Asset Commission will allow Bitfinex Securities to issue and trade secondary assets on a regulatory-compliant platform.

Digital asset exchange Bitfinex Securities El Salvador has received a digital asset service provider license under El Salvador’s new Digital Assets Issuance Law, which was passed by El Salvador’s National Congress in January, with the goal of fostering increased financial innovation and growth in the Central American country. 

According to the announcement, the license, which was granted on April 11 by El Salvador’s National Digital Asset Commission, makes Bitfinex Securities El Salvador “the world’s first international digital asset platform to receive approval to be licenced as a Digital Asset Service Provider” in El Salvador 

Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer of Bitfinex, noted that the license will allow “Bitfinex Securities to facilitate the issuance and secondary trading of assets with clearly defined rights and obligations as outlined in the new digital asset regulatory regime.”

The announcement said that Bitfinex Securities El Salvador, a newly-formed entity, would offer a regulatory-compliant platform for companies worldwide to issue digital assets like equities, bonds, and other financial instruments. This will present a unique opportunity for businesses and individuals to leverage the advantages of issuing, investing, and trading digital assets in the favorable regulatory environment of El Salvador. 

Bitfinex Securities El Salvador will function independently from Bitfinex group’s current platform, Bitfinex Securities AIFC, managed by Bitfinex Securities Limited. 

Related: Why did 12K Bitcoin margin longs close at Bitfinex, and why didn’t it impact BTC price?

Bitfinex continues to expand its global reach. In 2022, Bitfinex’s security token platform went live in Kazakhstan. The security token platform (STO) by Bitfinex, announced in September 2021, is now regulated under the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) in Kazakhstan.

El Salvador, the first country to establish Bitcoin (BTC) as a legal tender, continues to forge its way in becoming a tech friendly hub. On April 1, Cointelegraph reported that the country had decided to eliminate all taxes on technology innovations. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele believes that winding down tax requirements will expedite technological development. 

US SEC seeks to expand its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit

A new job posting reveals an open position for general attorneys in New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. in the SEC Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit division.

Regulators in the United States have been piling on the pressure on the crypto space over the last year, even more so in light of the demise of FTX and collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.

Now, according to a job posting on the official careers website for the U.S. government, the Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking to hire general attorneys in New York, New York; San Francisco, California; and Washington D.C. for its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit in its Division of Enforcement.

Part of the job’s duties will include conducting “complex, fast-moving investigations” involving crypto-asset securities and cyber issues. Other duties include drafting subpoenas or document requests, questioning witnesses through interviews, evaluating evidence and more.

Magazine: Crypto Wendy on trashing the SEC, sexism, and how underdogs can win: Hall of Flame

Salaries for the general attorney positions range from $140,830 to $259,590 per year.

The announcement comes shortly after Chair Gary Gensler asked for nearly $2.4 billion in funding for the purpose of chasing down crypto “misconduct” on March 29. 

Meanwhile, local regulators plan to introduce new taxes directed toward the industry, which has some industry insiders wondering if those and other regulations will “choke” the sector and prevent innovation.

Related: Gary Gensler finds new audience for his crypto skepticism: the US Army

Recently, the Beaxy cryptocurrency exchange shuttered after the SEC filed multiple charges against the company’s founder. Japan-based Sushi DAO is also facing a subpoena from the SEC.

However, not everyone in positions of regulatory authority is on board with the SEC’s approach. Representative Tom Emmer called Gensler a “bad faith regulator” and questioned his methods of industry oversight.