Headlines
1) Could California become its own crypto-country?
2) Bermuda hopes to jumpstart their economy with new ‘stimulus token’
3) Shanghai’s Jing’an District issues blockchain-based discount coupons
4) Swiss crypto bank Sygnum scores approval for digital asset trading
Reading Notes
Could California become its own crypto-country?
The idea of a future crypto-based economy, which could finance a level of free healthcare, free education, and a form of basic income (UBI) at a scale that has never before been seen.
People investing in land and property through crypto transactions could help boost the proposed implementation of Universal Basic Income.
California’s Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee recently passed a bill seeking to define digital assets and measure their impact on state and consumer protections.
A Brexit-inspired plan wants to make California its own nation, separate from the USA. The people behind the plan are now looking to establish cryptocurrencies as the financial backbone of the proposed nation.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/could-california-become-its-own-crypto-country
Bermuda hopes to jumpstart their economy with new ‘stimulus token’
“What we are proposing is bypassing all the middle-men, bypassing the banks, and airdrop what is basically an IOU from the government to the people. You will go to a website and register your ID, and the Government will airdrop to you a certain amount of money. It will be immediate and you will have it on your phone wallet.”
As part of the program, the government plans to enable the purchase of food and other products from retailers to strengthen its now-necessary array of contactless payment solutions.
The Bermuda government will also distribute payments to those who qualify for coronavirus-related financial aid using the tokens.
All the transactions will be handled through a digital wallet managed from a mobile app. Assets in this app will be spendable at vendors through QR codes and point-of-sale devices.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bermuda-hopes-to-jumpstart-their-economy-with-new-stimulus-token
Shanghai’s Jing’an District issues blockchain-based discount coupons
The Jing’an District of Shanghai has started offering blockchain-based discount coupons.
The tourism bureau has integrated blockchain to their WeChat mini-program to adjust the number of coupons in circulation and the validity period of each of these by analyzing how people are using them. The mini-program will send out new coupons daily.
The value of each blockchain-based coupon will vary between 5 yuan ($0.73) to 60 yuan ($8.80).
Employees, students and other residents of the district will be able to obtain the coupons using the WeChat mini-program. They can then redeem them at the movies, theater performances and for online courses.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/shanghais-jingan-district-issues-blockchain-based-discount-coupons
Swiss crypto bank Sygnum scores approval for digital asset trading
Sygnum, a major cryptocurrency bank in Switzerland, is preparing to finally introduce digital asset trading after receiving regulatory approval.
The new approval enables Sygnum to “cover the complete life-cycle of a security,” starting from services such as primary issuance, settlement and custody to secondary trading.
USP: Users now have access to instant settlement via the Sygnum-issued stablecoin Digital Swiss franc (DCHF).
Licensing: The bank has been aggressively expanding its services; after obtaining a Swiss banking license in August 2019, Sygnum was also licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore the following month.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/swiss-crypto-bank-sygnum-scores-approval-for-digital-asset-trading