Blockchain

Ripple Targets 10 Million Customers With New Strategic Partnership

Despite the looming SEC legal action against Ripple, the San Francisco-based blockchain startup shows no signs of slowing down its cross-border remittance offerings. Ripple recently announced a tie-up with Mobile Money, a Malaysian mobile wallet firm, in a move that would facilitate real-time wallet-to-wallet remittances between Malaysia and Bangladesh. Mobile Money will tap into the […]

Published

1 month ago

January 14, 2021

Republished by Plato

Despite the looming SEC legal action against Ripple, the San Francisco-based blockchain startup shows no signs of slowing down its cross-border remittance offerings.

Ripple recently announced a tie-up with Mobile Money, a Malaysian mobile wallet firm, in a move that would facilitate real-time wallet-to-wallet remittances between Malaysia and Bangladesh.

Mobile Money will tap into the RippleNet global payments network to connect with bKash, Ripple’s longtime partner based in Bangladesh that boasts over 45 million customers.

By powering remittances between the largest mobile financial services provider in Bangladesh and Malaysia’s top e-wallet company, RippleNet will ensure a seamless payout experience for users in both countries.

Under the new partnership, bKash and Mobile Money will leverage a wide range of RippleNet’s features to facilitate wallet-to-wallet payments to serve the remittance corridor between Bangladesh and Malaysia.

According to Kamal Quadir, CEO of bKash, the collaboration will benefit the national economy by encouraging inward foreign remittance flow. He added:

“bKash is happy to have partnered with Ripple in collaboration with Mutual Trust Bank of Bangladesh to deliver a cost-effective, fast, transparent, and reliable remittance sending experience to more than 10 million non-resident Bangladeshis all over the world.”

RippleNet Offers Cost-Effective e-Payment Solutions

The RippleNet network can solve most payment service providers’ problems, particularly overly costly and slow remittances.

bKash, which joined forces with Ripple in Nov 2019, has single handedly transformed Bangladesh into a digital-based economy by leveraging the blockchain for instant, transparent, and low-cost global payments.

The nation is now a lucrative market with the third-largest remittance flows in South Asia. Malaysia ranks as one of the top five sources of remittances for Bangladesh.

Mobile Money plans to use the RippleNet network to serve its clients better and grow its user base of Bangladeshi workers by 20%. According to Lee Eng Sia, Founder of Mobile Money, the urgency for cost-effective and convenient remittance solutions that enable people to transfer money across borders has been intensified by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Lee applauded the partnership with RippleNet, which makes Mobile Money one of the pioneering e-wallet enterprises to offer digital remittance services to Bangladeshi workers.

Ripple CEO Claims Most Customers are Not US-based

The recent SEC decision to pursue a lawsuit against Ripple threatens the blockchain company’s future and that of its affiliated XRP cryptocurrency.

However, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, who remains adamant that his company did nothing wrong, says that proceedings in the US may not damage his company’s overall remittance operations extensively.

His claims are evidenced by the growing number of Ripple partnerships, including the latest one to serve the South Asia remittance corridor. Garlinghouse explained that over 90% of RippleNet customers are not from the US, and many countries use the remittance service to solve their cross-border payment problems.

Source: https://thedailychain.com/ripple-targets-10-million-customers-with-new-strategic-partnership/

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Blockchain

Former London Stock Exchange Group CEO Urges UK Government to Explore Cryptocurrencies

Published

3 hours ago

February 24, 2021

Republished by Plato

The former CEO of the London Stock Exchange Group, Xavier Rolet, has advised the UK government to look into cryptocurrencies and SPACs to minimize the adverse impact of Brexit. In a recent report, Rolet claimed that the UK has trailed behind other countries in both aspects.

The UK Should Turn To Crypto And SPACs?

Born in France, Rolet is a businessman and the Chief Executive Officer of the London-based credit-focused asset management firm CQS. Before assuming this position, though, he served as the CEO of the London Stock Exchange Group and was named as one of the 100 best CEOs in the world in 2017 by the Harvard Business Review.

In a report cited by Bloomberg, Rolet touched upon the potential consequences to the UK economy following the withdrawal from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, better known as Brexit.

The executive believes that the UK has two viable options to consider if it wants to minimize the risks and help the nation flourish.

In the first one, he urged the government to “promptly consider the SPAC revolution.” Also referred to as “blank check companies,” these special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC) operate as shell corporations listed on a stock exchange with the idea of buying out a private company, thus making it public. Ultimately, this strategy eliminates the need to go through a traditional initial public offering (IPO).

While the US has seen significant adoption in the past year with a 10x increase in the raised funds compared to 2019’s results, the UK regulators have halted their progress on the London markets.

Rolet’s second advice involved digital assets as he noted that “all relevant UK government agencies should be resourced to thoroughly understand cryptocurrencies.”

With proper regulations, the crypto ecosystem could “place London and the UK at the center of a reputable and safe financial market.”

The UK’s Regulatory Approach To Cryptocurrencies

While UK’s regulators have hindered SPACs’ progress within the country, the nation’s financial watchdog, the FCA, has also been rather harsh against the cryptocurrency industry.

As of the start of this year, the Financial Conduct Authority banned crypto derivatives and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) to retail customers.

Additionally, the watchdog has issued several warnings to investors that they could lose all their funds if allocated in digital assets.

The regulator also announced that all UK-based digital asset businesses need to be registered with it but extended the deadline for applications to July 9th, 2021.

Featured Image Courtesy of TheGuardian

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Source: https://cryptopotato.com/former-london-stock-exchange-group-ceo-urges-uk-government-to-explore-cryptocurrencies/

Blockchain

Traders remain bullish even as DeFi’s TVL falls to $54.4 billion

Published

3 hours ago

February 24, 2021

Republished by Plato

Decentralized finance and the numerous platforms offering investment services have been the talk of the cryptocurrency sector for several months and this has resulted in investors capturing spectacular gains for some of the top DeFi tokens like Uniswap (UNI) and AAVE.

The fast-moving prices and 1,000% APY on staked tokens elicited cheers from investors when the market was going up, but the recent selling pressure seen as Bitcoin price dropped below $45,000 shows that the highest fliers are often the quickest to fall as traders rush to exit their positions and lock in their gains.

*Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source:* *Coin360*

On Feb. 22 Bitcoin (BTC) price entered a sharp corrective phase which saw the top digital asset pullback by more than 20% from its all-time high of $58,274. As this occurred, the majority altcoins also saw double-digit corrections and DeFi tokens like PancakeSwap (CAKE) fell as much as 55%.

Total value locked in DeFi shows resilience

The total value locked in DeFi platforms also took a hit as Bitcoin and altcoins corrected. Data from DeFi Llama shows the combined TVL of all DeFi platforms fell from $64.89 billion to $54.22 billion on Feb. 24. Cointelegraph also reported that this week’s correction led to the second-largest day of DeFi loan liquidations in history.

*Total value locked in DeFi. Source:* *Defi Llama*

The decline in TVL is a result of decreasing token values rather than protocol outflows, indicating that token holders remain committed to the continued expansion of decentralized finance and that the current yields are still incentivizing investors to rem engaged.

Market analysis indicates that despite the recent $5.8 billion Bitcoin and altcoin liquidation, bulls remain optimistic and see this price pullback as a sign of a healthy market.

The same goes for the DeFi sector, which has been in a strong uptrend since the start of the year. Increasing DEX volume as well as a rising TVL show that DeFi is still in the early stages of growth, and while pullbacks are to be expected, the overall trend is positive as institutional and retail investors increasingly gain exposure to this emerging asset class.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/traders-remain-bullish-even-as-defi-s-tvl-falls-to-54-4-billion

Blockchain

ZelaaPayAE deploys Pundi X’s merchant crypto payment solutions for UAE

Published

3 hours ago

February 24, 2021

Republished by Plato

ZelaaPayAE (ZPAE), a Dubai-based blockchain payment network focused on the Gulf region, has announced the deployment of 100 XPOS Handy (point-of-sale terminals) and 10,000 XPASS cards from partner Pundi X, a cryptocurrency payment platform.

“Pundi X has the technology to empower merchants across the world to deploy easy-to-use blockchain solutions. We’re excited to bring it to the UAE market.”
– Sahil Arora, ZPAE CEO

XPOS devices enable cryptocurrency transactions on the blockchain from anywhere….from trendy cafes in Seoul, South Korea, to pubs in New Hampshire, USA. Similarly, the XPASS card makes it easy for customers to pay with their crypto-assets.

“Any corner of the world where XPOS is, that’s a place where seamless transactions can take place. Both ZPAE and Pundi X essentially want the same things; making the blockchain accessible.”
– Zac Cheah, Pundi X’s CEO and Co-Founder

ZelaaPayAE (ZPAE) was founded with the aim of unlocking the power of cryptocurrency in the Middle East. The ZPAE token trades on numerous exchanges such as CoinTiger, JustSwap, Bilaxy, and others. The company is engaged in introducing a number of decentralized finance products in the UAE.

Source: Pundi X

Source: https://www.cryptoninjas.net/2021/02/24/zelaapayae-deploys-pundi-xs-merchant-crypto-payment-solutions-for-uae/