PayPal Launches First Major Stablecoin, Ushering in New Era of Digital Payments
PayPal announced on Monday that it has launched a U.S. dollar stablecoin, called PayPal USD. This makes PayPal the first major financial technology firm to embrace digital currencies for payments and transfers.
Stablecoins are crypto tokens whose monetary value is pegged to a stable asset, such as the U.S. dollar, to protect from wild volatility. They have been around for years, but they have yet to make significant inroads into the mainstream consumer payments ecosystem.
PayPal's announcement is a sign of confidence in the cryptocurrency industry, which has been plagued by regulatory headwinds and high-profile collapses in recent months. The company's stablecoin, which will be backed by U.S. dollar deposits and short-term U.S. Treasuries, will be gradually available to PayPal customers in the United States.
The token can be redeemed for U.S. dollars at any time, and can also be used to buy and sell the other cryptocurrencies PayPal offers on its platform, including bitcoin.
PayPal's move is likely to be seen as a major step towards mainstream adoption of digital currencies. It could also pave the way for other major financial technology firms to launch their own stablecoins.
Paxos 🤝 PayPal
Thrilled to be partnering with @PayPal to bring PYUSD, the world’s safest dollar-backed digital asset, to hundreds of millions of consumers and merchants worldwide.
PYUSD is the first of its kind, representing the next phase of US dollars on the blockchain. This…
Robinhood Posts First Profitable Quarter, But Trading Slows and Regulatory Risks Loom
Robinhood Markets, the online brokerage that became a household name during the meme stock frenzy of 2021, posted its first profitable quarter on Wednesday. However, the company's revenue fell short of expectations, and its monthly active users declined by 1 million from the prior quarter.
Robinhood earned 3 cents per share on revenue of $486 million in the second quarter. Analysts had expected the company to earn 1 cent per share on revenue of $473 million.
The slowdown in trading activity was the main reason for the revenue miss. Robinhood's monthly active users fell to 10.8 million in the second quarter, down from 11.8 million in the first quarter.
The company's new experiment in 24-hour trading is off to a strong start, but it is not yet enough to offset the decline in traditional trading activity.
Robinhood is also facing risks from the Securities and Exchange Commission's latest crackdown on cryptocurrencies. The SEC has charged its competitor Coinbase with selling cryptocurrencies that were allegedly unlicensed securities. Robinhood delisted some coins in the second quarter, but it is not clear if the company will face any regulatory action from the SEC.
Bitget Signs Adam DeVine as New Crypto Ambassador
Bitget partners with actor Adam DeVine in a new ad campaign
Crypto exchange Bitget has partnered with actor Adam DeVine in a new ad campaign. DeVine is the second celebrity to partner with Bitget, following Argentine football star Lionel Messi.
The campaign highlights the potential of crypto to revolutionise the way we live, work, and play. DeVine is a popular and well-respected actor who is known for his humor and energy. His feature in the campaign is a sign that the crypto space is maturing and becoming more mainstream as the industry continues to grow and innovate.
Alchemix Hacker Returns Stolen Funds After Accepting Bug Bounty
Lending platform Alchemix has announced that all stolen funds from the Curve Finance hack have been returned. The hacker accepted a bug bounty offer of almost $7 million, which prompted them to return the stolen funds.
The hack took place on July 30 and resulted in over $61 million in cryptocurrencies being drained from Curve Finance. The hacker targeted stable pools on Curve Finance using vulnerable versions of the Vyper programming language through reentrancy attacks.
After the bug bounty offer was made, the hacker began returning the stolen funds within 24 hours. The funds were returned to Alchemix, JPEG'd, and Metronome. As part of the bounty offer, the protocols will not take legal action against the hacker.
This is a positive development for the crypto community, as it shows that hackers can be incentivized to return stolen funds. It also highlights the importance of bug bounties in protecting the security of crypto projects.
We are extremely happy to announce that all funds stolen by the hacker of the Alchemix @CurveFinance pool have now been returned.
Full post mortem coming.
British Museum Enters the Metaverse with The Sandbox
The British Museum, one of the world's most renowned cultural institutions, has partnered with The Sandbox, a popular Ethereum-based metaverse game, to create a range of NFT digital collectibles and immersive experiences.
The collaboration will see The British Museum create its own space within The Sandbox, where players will be able to explore the museum's vast collection of artifacts and artworks in a virtual setting. The museum will also issue a series of NFTs based on its collection, which players can use to decorate their avatars or trade with other players.
The partnership is a sign of the growing interest in NFTs and the metaverse among cultural institutions. In recent months, a number of museums and galleries have announced plans to explore these new technologies, including the Louvre, the Guggenheim, and the Museum of Modern Art.
The British Museum's partnership with The Sandbox is particularly significant as it is one of the first major cultural institutions to create its own space in a metaverse game. This could pave the way for other museums to follow suit and create immersive experiences that allow people to learn about history and culture in new and engaging ways.
FTX Plans to Reboot for International Customers
The bankruptcy administrators of defunct crypto exchange FTX have proposed a plan that would see the possible restart of FTX.com as an offshore exchange for international customers. However, FTT token holders would get nothing under the plan.
The plan would see creditors of FTX.com offshore exchange, or "dotcom customers," pool their assets to create a new exchange company. This new company could then be used to restart FTX.com or to create a new exchange platform.
FTT token holders would not be included in the dotcom customer pool and would not receive any payouts under the plan. This is because the SEC has called FTT a security, and the plan does not allow for the distribution of securities to creditors.
The proposed plan is still subject to approval by the bankruptcy court. If it is approved, it could pave the way for the return of FTX.com as an offshore exchange for international customers.
Coinbase Launches Base Mainnet and Kicks Off Onchain Summer Celebration
Coinbase, the largest publicly traded crypto exchange based in the US, has announced the opening of its Base mainnet to the public, starting August 9. Base is a layer-two scaling solution for Ethereum (ETH) that is built on the OP stack in partnership with Optimism.
To celebrate the launch of Base mainnet, Coinbase is hosting a month-long celebration called “Onchain Summer.” During this time, 50 “best builders,” creators, and developers will be featured in a series of events highlighting art, music, gaming, and advocacy.
Some of the mainstream brands that have partnered with Coinbase for Onchain Summer include Coca-Cola, Atari, OpenSea, Pixelmon, and Showtime. These brands will be offering daily mints of on-chain non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
In addition to the Onchain Summer celebration, Coinbase is also providing grants and hosting a hackathon to support the development of apps on Base. The company has committed more than $183,982 in grants to developers building on Base, and the Superhack hackathon will feature $125,000 in prizes.
The launch of Base mainnet is a significant milestone for Coinbase and the wider crypto community. Base is one of the most promising layer-two scaling solutions for Ethereum, and its launch could help to address the scalability and gas fee issues that have plagued the Ethereum network in recent months.
Earn rewards for coming onchain.
Quests on Coinbase Wallet reward you in tokens or NFTs for participating in onchain activities. New users can earn up to $50 in crypto just for getting started. Terms apply.
Subscribe to our newsletter
