Here are some of the major developments from the world of crypto over the past few days
Ripple, a major cryptocurrency firm, is deepening its CBDC engagement with the Republic of Georgia by looking into ways to digitize the local economy. In order to improve collaboration in financial technology and digitalization, James Wallis, the CEO of Ripple, met with Natia Turnava, the acting governor of the NBG, and Varlam Ebanoidze, the head of the bank's technological development department.
The new collaboration builds on the previous partnership between the NBG and Ripple, where the latter serves as the technological partner for the NBG’s pilot CBDC project called the digital lari. As previously stated, the NBG intends to launch CBDC research in September 2023, inviting nine organizations, including Ripple Labs, to join in the digital lari project.
Ripple collaborates with numerous central banks throughout the world, including Georgia, on CBDC development. They are also undertaking pilots in Colombia, Bhutan, Palau, Montenegro, and other countries. CBDCs contribute to the positive impact of asset tokenization by transforming tangible assets into blockchain-based digital tokens.
DeFi Technologies, a venture capital firm and publicly traded supplier of exchange-traded products (ETPs), has declared that its primary treasury reserve asset would be Bitcoin BTC $67,068. Following the news, DeFi Technologies' shares soared in price on Canadian stock exchanges and over-the-counter (OTC) markets in the United States.
On May 28, shares of Semler Scientific (SMLR) rose by up to 30% after the Nasdaq-listed business announced the adoption of Bitcoin as its principal treasury asset and the purchase of 581 BTC for $41 million at the time. Government organizations are now aggressively studying Bitcoin as part of their investment portfolios and treasury holdings.
Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund, the world’s largest pension fund, also launched a research project with a five-year window to explore how digital assets like Bitcoin and traditional precious metals like gold could figure into its investment portfolio. Bitcoin ETFs amassed two months of mining output in just the first week of June, per HODL15 Capital data.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved a spot Ether ETH $3,535 exchange-traded fund application from asset management ProShares, three weeks after approving eight other investment vehicles. In a document dated June 10, the SEC reported NYSE Arca's request to list ProShares Ethereum ETF shares.
In May, the SEC authorized 19b-4 files from eight asset managers, but they will not be able to trade on US exchanges until the SEC approves the S-1 registration statements. This procedure could take months, but some experts expect that it will be completed in July.
In October 2023, ProShares became one of the first asset managers to receive SEC approval to list and trade shares of a spot investment vehicle linked to ETH futures. It is unclear whether the SEC will approve ProShares' spot Ether ETF offering following its initial clearance.