From Omicron token rallying to Kimbal Musk launching a DAO: 8 crypto updates you should know
After a sell-off last week, bitcoin and other top cryptocurrencies by market value began to rebound on Monday.
Though it fell as low as $53,549 after stocks and other riskier assets declined over fears regarding the new coronavirus variant, bitcoin topped $58,000 on Monday afternoon, according to Coin Metrics. It's now trading at around $58,546.
Here are eight other important things that happened in the crypto space this past week.
1. Regulatory agencies issue a policy roadmap for crypto assets
On Tuesday, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a joint statement about research they've conducted on crypto assets and shared areas they plan to explore going forward.
So far, agency staff have focused on defining vocabulary for crypto assets, assessed "key risks" in the space and analyzed current regulation, according to the statement.
In 2022, the agencies plan to "provide greater clarity" on safety, consumer protection and compliance for crypto asset custody services and on the issuance and distribution of stablecoins.
Also on Tuesday, the OCC published a letter affirming that national banks and federal savings associations must show that they have specific safety measures in place before they can engage in certain cryptocurrency and stablecoin activities.
2. ConstitutionDAO shuts down, but its token rises in value
The ConstitutionDAO announced it would shut down on Tuesday and offered its investors an opportunity to claim refunds. Investors could do so by claiming or redeeming the DAO's token, called PEOPLE.
"ConstitutionDAO was a beautiful experiment... We now believe this project has run its course," the DAO wrote on its website.
Originally, the DAO formed with the goal of buying a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution during a Sotheby's auction, but the group was outbid by billionaire Ken Griffin.
Though the DAO decided to no longer continue operations, PEOPLE is up over 4,300% in the last seven days, according to CoinGecko. It hit an all-time high of over 16.6 cents on Saturday, but has since dipped, currently trading at around 7 cents.
3. India seeks to block most cryptocurrencies in a new bill
In a new bill, India plans to ban most private cryptocurrencies and establish a framework for creating an official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India.
Still, the bill will allow for "certain exceptions to promote the underlying technology of cryptocurrency and its uses," its parliamentary bulletin said.
4. Virtual real estate in the metaverse sold for a record $2.43 million in crypto
A plot of virtual real estate in Decentraland, a crypto-powered metaverse platform, sold for a record $2.43 million on Tuesday. Decentraland is governed by a DAO, or decentralized autonomous organization, and allows users to buy land or in-game items as NFTs.
The plot was purchased by the Metaverse Group, a virtual real estate company, according to a statement by its parent company Tokens.com.
"The estate will be developed to facilitate fashion shows and commerce within the exploding digital fashion industry," the statement reads. "Metaverse Group also plans to establish partnerships with several existing fashion brands who are looking to connect with new audiences and expand their ecommerce offerings within the metaverse."
5. 'NFT' is the Collins Dictionary 2021 word of the year
On Wednesday, the Collins Dictionary announced NFT, or nonfungible token, as its word of the year for 2021.
Collins defines NFT as "a unique digital certificate, registered in a blockchain, that is used to record ownership of an asset such as an artwork or a collectible."
6. Google warns that crypto miners may be using compromised Cloud accounts
Some cryptocurrency miners are using compromised Google Cloud accounts, according to Google's "Threat Horizons" report published on Wednesday.
"Malicious actors were observed performing cryptocurrency mining within compromised Cloud instances," Google wrote in an executive summary of the report.
Google said that 86% of 50 recently compromised Google Cloud accounts were used to perform cryptocurrency mining, and that the malicious actors were able to access Google Cloud accounts due to weak security practices by customers.
7. Kimbal Musk says he's launching a DAO
Kimbal Musk, brother of Elon Musk and co-founder of non-profit organization Big Green, plans to create a DAO, he tweeted on Friday.
The DAO is called Big Green DAO, according to CoinDesk, and with it, Musk aims to "decentralize philanthropy," since DAO structures aim to be more democratized than traditional organizations, among other things. Further details about the DAO have yet to be released.
Musk launched Big Green in 2011. It provides resources to plant gardens in city schools and teach children how to grow food.
8. A cryptocurrency called Omicron rallies over the weekend
Over the weekend, a DeFi, or decentralized finance, token with the same name as the new omicron Covid-19 variant surged.
The Omicron token, which trades as OMIC, launched at the beginning of November, according to CoinMarketCap. It started to rally over the weekend, shooting up close to 1,000%, after the new variant was named.
OMIC hit an all-time high on Monday of $689, according to CoinGecko, but it's now trading at around $324.
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