Last week is behind us, which means it's time for our traditional news digest. This time we will look at news about Google Cloud, Microsoft and Mastercard in the cryptocurrency world. We will also talk about a new way to create NFTs using Litecoin Network, the delisting of 3 cryptocurrencies from Binance and Twitter's own coin.

Let's get started!

Bitcoin exchange rate

Bitcoin was unable to hold the $25,000 level and fell to the $23,000 level by the end of the week.

Source: Bitcoin price chart, CoinMarketCap

BTC was followed by other altcoins. For example, Ethereum fell from $1,720 to $1,570.

Source: Ethereum price chart, CoinMarketCap

Google Cloud becomes Tezos validator

Tezos Network and Google Cloud have become partners. As part of the partnership, Google will become one of Tezos Network's validator. All Google users will now have the opportunity to deploy Tezos nodes through the Blockchain Node Engine service.

In addition to Tezos, there are other projects in this service for which Google is the validator. These projects include:

  • Ethereum;
  • Solana;
  • Aptos.

Google considers the area promising for development, judging by the post-expansion of its presence in the crypto sphere. Notably, after the news of the partnership, the value of the Tezos token increased by 6% overnight.

Microsoft cooperates with Ankr

Microsoft and Ankr have signed an agreement to provide the latter with web3 services. The cooperation should result in a service that will allow developers to connect to nodes and retrieve information from 19 blockchains.

Microsoft's Azure cloud infrastructure has been chosen as the basis for the service. Ultimately, users will not only be able to connect, but also customize storage and bandwidth specifications.

Microsoft itself commented on the collaboration as follows:

"Our partnership with Ankr will enable developers and enterprises to reliably and securely access blockchain data as they evaluate how web3 can solve real business problems," said Rashmi Mishra, general manager of Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies at Microsoft. - "Together, we are building a robust web3 infrastructure."

On news of the collaboration, the price of the Ankr token jumped more than 50%.

Mastercard is set to launch cryptocurrency payments

In cooperation with Immersve, Mastercard will launch the ability to make transactions to pay in the digital and physical world.

The algorithm will be based on the USDC stablecoin. When a user makes a transaction, USDC will be converted into fiat currencies, after which the payment will take place on Mastercard's networks.

The system is designed for real-time transactions and uses decentralized protocols. It will be possible to pay at all Mastercard-enabled terminals.

Access to the new functionality will be provided by creating a cryptocurrency wallet that can be accessed by Mastercard. Transactions are confirmed by a private key.

Twitter introduced Twitter Coin

The social network Twitter has appeared as an opportunity to buy coins. You can get access to this functionality only by activating the option to participate in the use of alpha versions of the products.

At the moment Twitter offers to buy 150 coins for $ 1.99. However, the user who purchased this bundle reported that 215 coins were credited.

Source: Tree Of Alpha user tweet, Twitter

At this point, it is not known exactly how these coins can be used. However, users suspect that the main functionality of the coins will be the ability to send coins to content creators.

Litecoin Blockchain introduces ability to create NFT

Recently, the bitcoin network released an update with the Ordinals protocol, which allowed users to create NFTs in the blockchain. Now, software engineer Anthony Guerrera has adapted this update for the Litecoin network, which is compatible with the MimbleWimble update.

As expected, it was cheaper to issue NFTs in the Litecoin network than in the Bitcoin network. The first NFT created was the MimbleWimble White Paper update. Notably, this update allows NFTs to be created anonymously, without identifying the creator.

Anthony received 22 LTC from Litecoin patrons for his work. In addition, one of the users promised Anthony another 5 LTC if he ported his development to the blockchain.

Binance delists three cryptocurrencies

The Binance exchange has announced the delisting of several cryptocurrencies, viz:

  • Aion (AION),
  • Mirror Protocol (MIR),
  • Anchor Protocol (ANC).

The reason for the delisting is that these cryptocurrencies do not meet the platform's criteria. According to Binance, all cryptocurrencies undergo regular eligibility checks, which include reliability, security, team and project development. If an asset does not meet the criteria, a more thorough, in-depth review is conducted and then the asset is removed from the platform.

After the delisting announcement, the value of each asset began to decline, causing the price to drop:

  • Aion (AION) - 14.95%,
  • Mirror Protocol (MIR) - 7.96%,
  • Anchor Protocol (ANC) - 16.89%.

This is not the first case of delisting on Binance. Back in December 2022, the exchange conducted several rounds of delisting of various cryptocurrencies, both due to ineligibility and for other reasons, such as improving liquidity and capital efficiency.

Canada updates cryptocurrency registration rules

On February 22, Canada updated its registration rules for all cryptocurrencies, announcing that all companies planning to operate in the space in the country must register.

Within 30 days, all companies must begin the registration process by pre-registering.

The new rules include regulation of cryptocurrency storage and local assets, limits on margin and leveraged trading, and a ban on the sale of unauthorized stablecoins.

Commenting on the changes, Stan Magidson, Chairman of the CSA and CEO of the Alberta Securities Commission, said: "The recent bankruptcies of several crypto-asset trading platforms highlight the enormous risks associated with crypto-asset trading, especially when conducted on unregistered platforms located outside of Canada."

Summary

It's been a relatively quiet week with some news about the development and expansion of the crypto sphere. Giants like Google, Microsoft, and Mastercard continue to expand their presence in the cryptocurrency market with new collaborations and projects.

As cryptocurrencies proliferate, regulators continue to set the framework in their jurisdictions. This time, Canada submitted an update to its registration rules and also restricted the distribution of stablecoins in its territory.

Twitter launched its own coin, but it is not a cryptocurrency and is simply a currency for use within the network.

The update that brought NFT to the bitcoin blockchain is now available on the Litecoin network. Users have been given additional options to create NFT on different platforms. Furthermore, thanks to the MimbleWimble update, the creation of NFTs on the Litecoin blockchain can be done anonymously.

That's it for all the exciting news. Come back next week to read the new PointPay Crypto Digest with updates on the latest news and developments in the crypto sphere.

Also join the official PointPay channel on Telegram where you can discuss various news, PointPay plans, share ideas and find like-minded people!


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