Today in Crypto: OKX Chain Launches Liquid Staking, South Korea Freezes $93.4M in Terra-related Assets, Central African Republic to List Sango in 2023
Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
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Blockchain news
- OKC (OKX Chain), the EVM and IBC-compatible chain backed by the OKX exchange, announced the launch of their Liquid Staking protocol, “meant to be a key element for the rapidly-expanding DeFi ecosystem on OKC, offering a way for OKC users to effectively and flexibly utilize the chain’s native token, OKT,” said the press release. The launch of Liquid Staking is expected to give a “significant rise” to the volume of assets flowing into OKC and result in a higher total value locked (TVL), as well as advance the expansion of the OKC network.
- Web3 network peaq unveiled krest, its canary network set to be launched on Kusama, Polkadot’s canary chain. Per the announcement, the krest network will enable the peaq community to develop and test decentralized applications (dapps) and tools in a real IoT environment to simulate the behavior of machines, vehicles, robots, and devices before they go live on the peaq mainnet.
Legal news
- The Seoul Southern District Court has ruled to confiscate more assets related to Terra, The Korea Economic Daily reported. The South Korean court has ordered the freeze of 120 billion won ($93.4 million) in assets of CEOs of Terraform Labs’ affiliate Kernel Labs, a blockchain consultancy firm.
- Bankrupt crypto lender BlockFi has filed a motion with the US Bankruptcy Court seeking to reopen withdrawals for users who have crypto locked in its wallet accounts, according to an email to users shared on Twitter. A hearing is scheduled for January 9, several news outlets reported, with another hearing set for January 13 regarding wallet accounts held by the Bahamian-based subsidiary BlockFi International Ltd.
CBDC news
- The Central African Republic (CAR) will not list its Sango crypto coin until the first quarter of next year, Reuters reported, citing the coin’s official Telegram channel. Also delayed is a release that would allow coin holders to sell up to 5% of their coins, which are currently “locked” for a year and unable to be sold, it added.
Exchange news
- Binance announced it joined the Chamber of Digital Commerce, a blockchain and cryptocurrency trade association, said a press release. They will work to “educate, advocate and bring forth solutions for some of the most pressing issues impacting the industry,” and Binance “will participate in research, roundtables, working groups and discussions with policymakers and regulators to help bring sensible regulations and policies that benefit society and users,” it added.
- Bitfinex CTO Paolo Ardoino wrote an open letter to “reflect where we stand as an industry” and the directions the exchange is headed, said an announcement. Key takeaways include: blockchain technologies should be more accessible and understandable for everyone; Bitcoin (BTC) has the ability to provide a cost-effective solution to the unbanked, it provides trust and transparency, unquestionable and incorruptible; freedom of choice, communication, and finances are the lifeblood of the future, and anything that will enhance those freedoms is worth amplifying; it is essential for players to keep building solid and trustworthy foundations and show users they can trust the ecosystem, “the multiple crises we have seen this year will mark an inflection point separating the strongest companies that bring real value to their customers and those that do not.”
Investment news
- Interoperability network Axelar announced the $60 million Axelar Ecosystem Startup Funding Program, which will “accelerate the development of decentralized applications and protocols that can replace centralized exchanges, providing onramps to blockchain-based technology for millions of users.” A group of blockchain investors is committing capital to support the program: Blockchange, Chorus One, Collab+Currency, Cygni, dao5, DCVC, Divergence Ventures, Dragonfly Capital, Lemniscap, Morningstar Ventures, Nima Capital, Node Capital, North Island Ventures, Rockaway Blockchain Fund, SCB 10X, and others.
Mining news
- A manufacturer of electrical solutions for users of mining equipment Tusk Inc. Limited announced the introduction of new machine productions from Polycrystalline to photovoltaic solar panels. The press release claimed that photovoltaic cells are more durable and solid, and that they would allow cryptocurrency miners to avoid high electricity bills.
- Bitcoin mining firm Greenidge Generation came to an agreement with its lender NYDIG about restructuring $74.7 million of debt. The firm “continues to actively explore raising additional equity capital and to engage in discussions with its lenders,” but its board is also engaged “in active discussions about the potential for, and timing of, a voluntary bankruptcy filing,” Greenidge said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
