India's Central Bank Launches Wholesale CBDC Pilot For Inter-Bank Borrowing

Meanwhile Group, a company supported by Sam Altman and Gradient Ventures, has introduced a new private credit fund denominated in Bitcoin. The fund aims to provide investors with a conservative yield in Bitcoin while lending funds in BTC to institutional counterparties. By vetting loan recipients, the fund aims to mitigate risks associated with retail platforms that primarily lend to individuals. The fund will convert U.S. dollars contributed by investors into BTC, and loans will be originated and fees charged in cryptocurrency. This move aligns with the increasing interest from institutional investors in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Despite a financial market downturn, Bitcoin has shown resilience by reaching a 19-month high, highlighting its low correlation with traditional macro assets. The anticipation of the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States is driving gains in Bitcoin. The correlation between Bitcoin and global shares and spot gold has diminished since the beginning of the year.

Reebok and Futureverse have partnered to develop blockchain-based gaming and metaverse experiences, focusing on creating digital versions of Reebok wearables linked to non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The collaboration, called "Reebok Impact," will launch in 2024 and aims to transform how consumers perceive digital fashion. The companies plan to expand their partnership and launch new experiences in the future. Reebok is promoting its "life is not a spectator sport" campaign, aligning with Futureverse's "play-to-learn" strategy. This collaboration goes beyond NFTs and is part of Reebok's efforts to embrace transformative technology.

Safe, Sygnum Bank, and CoinCover have collaborated to create the Safe Recovery Hub, which offers various options for recovering cryptocurrency. The hub allows users to customize their recovery solution based on their risk preferences, addressing the limitations of existing key management systems. Users can recover their digital asset accounts through designated "recoverers," such as family and friends, as well as third-party service providers like Sygnum Bank and CoinCover. Users maintain control and can cancel recovery attempts unless a recovery event occurs. This user-driven module is a significant development in both the crypto industry and traditional finance. The Safe Recovery Hub will be accessible to users of the Safe wallet, with partner services launching in the first half of 2024.

Chinese cities are launching giveaways of digital yuan tokens and discount vouchers at the end of the year to promote the adoption of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The People's Bank of China (PBoC) plans to distribute up to $2.8 million worth of coins and vouchers in Hebei province. Recipients can use their coins and vouchers at over 50,000 participating merchants, and residents must have digital yuan wallets with commercial banks or the Alipay e-pay platform to participate. Similar incentives are also being implemented in Suzhou and Jinan, offering discounts and subsidies to encourage the use of digital yuan.