Skip to main content

MLB Team Washington Nationals Partners With Terra Blockchain Community, Ballpark Plans to Accept UST

On February 9, the American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals, announced the team has partnered with Terra, the open-source blockchain platform and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The Washington Nationals detail that the team is a “leading innovator” and is “consistently introducing new technologies to enhance the fan experience.” Washington Nationals Ink Long-Term Deal With Terra Major League Baseball (MLB) team the Washington Nationals has partnered with the blockchain platform and DAO Terra, according to an announcement published by the team on Wednesday. The deal with Terra follows a slew of sports-related deals with crypto firms, but the MLB team will be the first to partner with an open-source blockchain project. In addition to the partnership, the algorithmic stablecoin UST that’s issued on the Terra blockchain will be “accepted as a payment method at Nationals Park as early as next season.” “The Nationals continue t...
Post a Comment

Estonia Considers Revoking Crypto Licenses as Government Mulls Tougher Regulations

Estonia Considers Revoking Crypto Licenses as Government Mulls Tougher Regulations

Authorities in Estonia are working on new legislation expected to stiffen the rules for the country’s cryptocurrency sector. The Baltic nation’s regulator for the industry is considering whether to revoke previously issued crypto licenses and restart authorization from scratch.

Licensed Crypto Companies Register Millions in Turnover, Estonia Gets Little

With only around 1.3 million people, Estonia is one of the least populated member states of the European Union and the Eurozone. However, the small nation has become a magnet for a large number of crypto companies attracted by the friendly regulatory regime it established a few years ago.

These firms process transactions for more than 20 billion euros, equal to over 40% of the cross-border transfers in the local banking sector, according to an interview with Matis Mäeker who heads the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). Only one in 10 companies has a bank account in the country.

Estonia Considers Revoking Crypto Licenses as Government Mulls Tougher Regulations

The Estonia-licensed crypto businesses have at least 5 million customers around the world, Mäeker revealed speaking to the Eesti Ekspress newspaper. He added that more and more often the anti-money laundering agency identifies entities that have almost nothing to do with Estonia and its market.

Many of them neither invest nor create jobs in the country, the official remarked. Their only aim is to acquire an Estonian license allowing them to process serious amounts of money, from which Estonia does not receive anything.

The FIU executive said that if officials in Tallinn had been able to predict the risks associated with crypto companies back in 2017, they would not have allowed the ensuing explosive growth. “Definitely the decision would have been different. We are learning… the entire world is learning,” he commented for Bloomberg.

Head of FIU Supports Rescinding All Crypto Licenses

Since late 2018, the government in Tallinn has been tightening its regulations for the crypto industry. Authorities have so far revoked around 2,000 licenses issued to crypto service providers such as exchanges and wallet operators.

Earlier this year, officials indicated they were planning to introduce even stricter regulations. A new bill has been drafted by the Finance Ministry and is currently being discussed with other institutions. The legislation is likely to introduce higher capital requirements and annual audits for crypto companies along with due diligence thresholds on transaction volumes.

Matis Mäeker wants to go even further. Asked what the government should do, he told Eesti Ekspress that Tallinn has to “turn the regulation to zero and start licensing all over again,” agreeing with the publication that authorities should revoke all permits and issue new ones. The FIU chief said:

We will toughen our supervision, we will toughen our approach which concerns the market entry.

Later, the Financial Intelligence Unit told the crypto news outlet Forklog that it is not considering an automatic cancelation of all previously issued licenses for crypto-related activities. The agency added that it supports the upcoming regulations which will also increase its own powers in the authorization process.

Do you expect Estonia to adopt new tougher licensing rules for crypto companies? Tell us in the comments section below.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blockchain Software Firm Consensys Acquires Mycrypto Ethereum Wallet

On February 1, the blockchain infrastructure firm Consensys has revealed it has acquired the Ethereum-based wallet Mycrypto and plans to merge the wallet into Metamask. The price Consensys paid for Mycrypto was not disclosed but the announcement notes that the acquisition will “further improve the security of all the products.” Consensys Obtains Mycrypto Ethereum Wallet, Plans to Merge With Metamask in the Future Consensys has acquired the Ethereum-based wallet Mycrypto for an undisclosed sum according to an announcement released on Tuesday. The deal aims to strengthen the company’s Ethereum wallet Metamask and “enhance Web3 experiences.” The eventual merger between the two Ethereum interfaces will “provide users with a heightened experience that is even more extensive and secure,” according to Consensys. Consensys is an Ethereum software company led by one of the Ethereum co-founders Joseph Lubin. The Web3 wallet Metamask, with 21 million monthly active users (MAUs) is owned by C...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Congolese Mountain of Gold: Surprise Discovery in Africa Shows Metal’s Scarcity Is Hard to Prove

A myriad of gold bugs like to compliment the yellow precious metal for its ostensible scarcity, as estimates say only 2,500 to 3,000 tons of new gold is produced annually. While new gold discoveries have seemingly slowed, investigative studies also show that in some areas, gold is being smuggled into the economy by the ton, and often never accounted for as far as per annum issuance estimates. Recently, reports show a whole mountain of gold was discovered in the Congo, as the Democratic Republic of the Congo is well known for being a region that sees tons of smuggled gold filtered into the global financial system unreported. Surprise Gold Deposits Continue to Crack the Precious Metal’s Scarcity Proposition It has always been said that the precious metal gold (Au) is scarce, and some reports even say that gold mining on earth will end by the year 2050 . Additionally, estimates also show that there’s roughly 2,500 to 3,000 tons of new gold that is accounted for and enters into the fin...
Post a Comment
Read more

Bitcoin Legal Tender in 3 Days but Survey Shows 7 Out of 10 Salvadorans Want Bitcoin Law Repealed

Bitcoin is becoming legal tender in El Salvador in three days. However, a nationwide survey conducted by the University Institute of Public Opinion (Iudop) shows that seven out of 10 Salvadorans want the government to repeal the Bitcoin Law. El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law Goes Into Effect in 3 Days The University Institute of Public Opinion (Iudop) in El Salvador conducted a study between Aug. 13 and Aug. 20 of how the public views the country’s upcoming Bitcoin Law. The institute is a research center of the José Simeón Cañas Central American University (UCA). El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law is set to go into effect on Sept. 7 , when BTC will be legal tender in the country alongside the U.S. dollar. A total of 1,281 respondents ages 18 and over participated in this national survey that “represents the entire adult population residing in the country,” according to the institute. Out of all the respondents, 62.4% said they were aware of the approval of the Bitcoin Law by the deputies of the ...
Post a Comment
Read more