[Re-sent] January 14, 2023

🌍Cardano's African woes, 🚓Nexo's Bulgarian raid, 🛑Paxful shuts down in El Salvador

January 15, 2023

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Your 5 minute emerging market web3 weekly update

In This Issue

Africa🔸Cardano loses steam in Africa🔸Nigeria's first Bitcoin Lightning Network node is launched

Eastern Europe🔸Crypto lender Nexo raided by police in Bulgaria🔸Russia is set to test digital ruble in international transactions

Latin America and The Caribbean🔸Paxful exits from El Salvador, lays off all of its employees🔸El Salvador approves law to regulate digital asset issuance

Asia🔸Samsung launches Bitcoin futures ETF in Hong Kong🔸Hong Kong retail investors will only have access to ‘highly liquid’ crypto

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Africa

Image Credit: Jason Leung via Unsplash

Cardano has reportedly lost momentum in Africa, despite efforts to increase adoption. The platform has failed to gain the traction it had hoped for in the region. Lack of a strong community and limited use cases may have contributed to this lack of momentum. This news may be concerning for those who have invested in or are considering investing in the platform in Africa.

Nigeria has launched the first active Bitcoin Lightning node in the country, runing on an old laptop powered by a diesel generator, as Lagos regularly experiences energy and electricity blackouts. The launch of this node will allow for faster and cheaper bitcoin transactions in the country. This is a significant development for the adoption and usage of Bitcoin in Nigeria, as it will increase the accessibility and scalability of the cryptocurrency. This news is likely to be well received by those in the Nigerian crypto community, as it will make transactions more efficient and cost-effective.

Eastern Europe

Image Credit: Dall-E

The offices of Nexo, a crypto-lending platform, were reportedly raided by police in Bulgaria. The investigation, which involved 300 personnel, including 35 investigators from various government departments such as the police and National Security Service, was reportedly related to allegations of terrorist financing. In response to the allegations, Nexo tweeted that it "has 30+ AML compliance officers who ensure that we retain a real-time picture of our clients" and that crypto is "terrible for illicit purposes."Russia is set to test digital ruble in international transactions (4 minute read, Russian)

The Central Bank of Russia is planning to test the digital ruble abroad in order to evaluate its potential uses and benefits. The Central Bank is likely to begin testing with China due to technological and political readiness. The development models for cross-border interaction is scheduled for the first quarter, options include bilateral agreements on the integration of digital currency platforms or a single integration platform, otherwise known as a 'hub and spoke' model.

Latin America and The Caribbean

Image Credit: Marco Bianchetti via Unsplash

Paxful, an online peer-to-peer bitcoin marketplace, has reportedly closed its operations El Salvador. No official reason has been provided, however, one anonymous source said the departure is due to the current bear market. Meanwhile, another anonymous source cited that changes in the Digital Assets Law would make it difficult for it to operate in the country.El Salvador approves law to regulate digital asset issuance (2 minute read)

El Salvador has approved a law that will regulate the issuance of other digital assets by both the state and private entities, not just bitcoin. The bill aims to attract national and foreign investors while creating new financing opportunities for citizens, companies, and the government. The country's National Bitcoin Office tweeted that the law also paves the way for issuing sovereign bitcoin-backed "volcano" bonds.

Asia

Image Credit: Yiorgos Ntrahas via Unsplash

Samsung's investment arm launched a Bitcoin futures ETF yesterday on the Hong Kong stock market, called Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF, which will be available for institutional and retail investors. The ETF will track the performance of the CME Bitcoin futures contract, capitalizing on the growing interest in cryptocurrencies. This move by Samsung shows that large corporations are beginning to take notice of the growing interest in cryptocurrencies and are looking for ways to capitalize on it.

Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) new boss Julia Leung has said that retail investors will only have access to highly liquid products in the virtual assets market when a new licensing regime comes into effect in June. Leung did not identify which virtual assets would be included or provide any examples. The move is aimed at protecting retail investors by ensuring that the products they have access to are highly liquid.

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