It may not be the buzzword it once was among the tech set, but the metaverse has begun to get attention from financial institutions. With a user base and audience that are young, tech-savvy and in the early stages of their financial lives, metaverse applications offer banks unique opportunities to build relationships with a digitally native and growing consumer base that has long embraced fintech. It’s also important for banks to be able to tap into this pool of talent for future hiring.
The metaverse can be broadly defined as a blockchain-fueled, all-encompassing virtual world that offers new human and socio-cultural experiences. No single company or application defines the metaverse, and users can use a single, portable identity among metaverse apps.
Leading institutions in TradFi from different parts of the world have begun to set up shop in the metaverse. JPMorgan arrived in Decentraland under the brand Onyx, HSBC announced the purchase of land on The Sandbox, and Kookmin and DBS – two banking giants from Asia – have begun offering various metaverse services.
BRC-20 Explained: How Tokens on Bitcoin Work and Why They Are Controversial
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BRC-20, or Bitcoin Request for Comment 20, is modeled after the Ethereum protocol called ERC-20 (Ethereum Request for Comment 20) and was introduced in March 2023 by an anonymous developer known as Domo. BRC-20s are basically (with some major caveats like a lack of smart contracts) Bitcoin’s version of ERC-20s.
That said, there haven’t been other “BRC” numbers as Bitcoin changes actually go through a process called BIP, or Bitcoin Improvement Proposals. So there hasn’t been a BRC-1 or BRC-2 and so on.
ERC-20 is an Ethereum token standard that enables developers to create tokens that are compatible with the broader Ethereum network and have built-in smart contracts. These tokens can embody a broad spectrum of transferable assets or rights, such as ownership interests, access rights or even different cryptocurrencies – many cryptocurrencies such as Tether and Shibu Inu coin are ERC-20 tokens under the hood.
Ripple (XRP) has outperformed the rest of the Currency sector in the CoinDesk Market Index with a 12.8% month-on-month increase, even after the broad market contraction at the beginning of the week.
SEC chair Gary Gensler wants you to think Coinbase and Binance are the same as FTX and Celsius. They’re not.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this newsletter, and any information linked through the items contained herein, is not intended to provide sufficient information to form the basis for an investment decision. You should seek additional information regarding the merits and risks of investing in any cryptocurrency or digital assets.
