China’s mobile payment giants, WeChat Pay and Alipay, have announced that foreign users can now make payments at Chinese retailers using their foreign credit cards. Previously, foreign users needed a local bank account to make payments. The new payment option allows foreign card users to utilize various payment methods, such as scanning and being scanned, mini-program payment, password-free withholding, and in-app payment. Alipay, as the official payment partner of the Hangzhou Asian Games, has completed support for overseas users to use mobile payment in China. This move is expected to further facilitate international transactions and attract more foreign users to these mobile payment platforms.
In the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a total of 699,816 ETH has been paid as royalties to NFT projects on the Ethereum blockchain. The latest Nansen report reveals that 25.9% of these payments were made in 2021, 64.1% in 2022, and 9.4% in the first half of 2023. While the volume of NFT transactions this year is approaching half of the 2022 levels, royalties received by projects are significantly lower. According to the report, royalties in 2023 account for only 14.7% of the total royalties received in 2022. The report also highlights a significant decrease in the average fee rate for royalties, from 2.5% in 2022 to 0.6% in July 2023. Yuga Labs’ projects received the highest share of all royalties earned, totaling 9.4%.
South Korean banks, Hana Bank and Woori Bank, have expressed interest in using “certificate of deposit” tokens (CDs) as an alternative to stablecoins. CD tokens are seen as stable from the banks’ perspective since they do not differ significantly from the current banking system. However, solid plans for implementing CD tokens will only be available once ongoing discussions on the central bank’s blockchain-based monetary system are complete. Hana Bank’s interest in CD tokens is believed to indicate its support for the central bank’s initiative.
Zengo, a self-custodial crypto wallet, has introduced new features and a premium subscription called Zengo Pro. The optional subscription, priced at $20 per month, offers additional security features, while basic accounts remain free. The wallet app has also undergone a redesign. Zengo CEO Ouriel Ohayon stated that the company launched Zengo Pro to address security concerns in various use cases. With the paid subscription, users can access a suite of security services that are applicable to all blockchains. The launch of Zengo Pro aims to provide comprehensive security solutions bundled with the wallet.
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Blocto, a cross-chain wallet application and multi-chain Web3 ecosystem, has announced a $1 million grant program to accelerate user onboarding to Web3. The grant will enable decentralized applications (dapps) to integrate Blocto’s user onboarding experience directly in-dapp with just two lines of code. The grant program is exclusively available for projects building on Polygon, and selected projects will receive up to $1 million in builder incentives, as well as developer marketing and operational support. This initiative aims to simplify the process of user onboarding to the Web3 ecosystem, ultimately driving the adoption of decentralized applications.
Blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis has published a report detailing the operations of Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, who were involved in money laundering following the Bitfinex hack in 2016. The report highlights how blockchain analysis, combined with traditional financial investigation techniques, empowered law enforcement to solve cryptocurrency-related crimes. The case resulted in the recovery of over $3 billion worth of stolen funds. Last week, Lichtenstein and Morgan filed paperwork suggesting that they will plead guilty in a hearing scheduled for August 3.
Connext Labs, a blockchain interoperability protocol, has launched xERC20, a mechanism that allows Web3 projects to bring their tokens to any chain. The launch includes a partnership with Alchemix, a DeFi protocol for future-yield-backed synthetic assets, which will be the first user of xERC20. The xERC20 mechanism aims to address the liquidity and security issues associated with token bridging by transferring ownership and security to token issuers. Connext aims to be the first protocol to support the deployment of tokens using the proposed ERC-7281 standard, which is currently undergoing public review.
Iakov Levin, founder of the now-defunct custodial crypto investment platform Midas Investments, has launched a new decentralized finance (DeFi) platform called Locus Finance. Locus Finance offers yield-bearing tokenized vaults that provide users with exposure to the DeFi market without high transactional costs. The platform has launched with three initial products: Locus Yield ETH, DeFi Core Index, and Arbitrum Yield Index. The highlight of Locus’ development is the creation of Omnichain vaults, which integrate strategies from any blockchain, monitor market conditions, and ensure diversified exposure to DeFi. This new platform aims to make DeFi accessible to retail investors worldwide.
