Hawkish ECB Intentions, Tether on Tezos, Osmosis Promises to Cover Losses + More News

 

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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Economics news

• The European Central Bank (ECB) announced it intends to raise its key interest rates by 25 basis points at its July monetary policy meeting and raise them again in September in order to return inflation to its 2% target over the medium term. Beyond September, based on their current assessment, they anticipate that a gradual but sustained path of further increases in interest rates will be appropriate.

Stablecoins news

• Stablecoin issuer Tether (USDT) will launch their USDT tokens on blockchain network Tezos (XTZ). This will be the 12th blockchain network to make the stablecoin available to its community.

Blockchain news

• Osmosis, a proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain with a decentralized exchange (DEX) application within the Cosmos (ATOM) ecosystem which was exploited to the tune of USD 5m, will remain offline for at least another two days although the estimated time is “highly subject to change.” The team also said it will cover all losses using its strategic reserves.
• Layer 1 blockchain platform Fantom (FTM) revealed several upgrades to its network, which aim to aid the platform’s speed and efficiency. The upgrades concern transaction fees, a new consensus algorithm, and improvements to the network’s decentralization, they said.
• Mixed martial arts organization UFC and blockchain project VeChain (VET) announced a long-term partnership as VeChain will become UFC’s first-ever Official Layer 1 Blockchain Partner.

Investments news

• Digital asset brokerage OSL Digital Securities and online trading solution Interactive Brokers announced that OSL was chosen to provide virtual asset dealing services for Interactive Brokers in Hong Kong.
• Digital asset management firm Arrington Capital and Moonbeam Foundation, the team behind the Ethereum-compatible smart contract platform on Polkadot (DOT), Moonbeam, announced a USD 100m ecosystem fund to support projects building on Moonbeam. The fund is designed to benefit projects across all categories, including DeFi, marketplaces, NFTs, and gaming, they said.
• Venture capital firm Felix Capital raised USD 600m to continue investing mainly in commerce-driven startups, businesses building tools to help run those (including new spins on finance around crypto and Web3), and the future of work overall, according to TechCrunch.
• MMORPG game Tatsumeeko announced that it raised USD 7.5m in a seed funding round co-led by Delphi Ventures, BITKRAFT Ventures, and DeFiance Capital. This will allow the team to continue the development of their game, to be launched on Ethereum and Solana (SOL) networks.
• GameFi infrastructure developer Ancient8 announced the completion of a USD 6m private round of financing led by Makers Fund and C² Ventures. They added that with this funding, they will accelerate their efforts in infrastructure development.
• Games studio SuperTeam Games raised USD 10m in its first round of funding led by Griffin Gaming Partners. The company’s first game will launch with a closed beta this summer, they added.
• Alternative investment management company Melanion Capital announced that its Melanion BTC Equities Universe exchange-trading fund (ETF) began trading on June 7th on Borsa Italiana.

Exchanges news

• Wholesale brokerage BGC Partners is building a crypto exchange that would become ready for operation in the first quarter of 2023, Reuters reported, citing Chief Executive Officer Howard Lutnick.
• Miami International Holdings (MIH), the owner of the Miami International Securities Exchange, and institutional tech provider Lukka announced a strategic alliance to jointly develop and launch a suite of proprietary crypto derivatives on MIH exchange platforms based on Lukka-supplied crypto data. They expect the first products to include cash-settled bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) futures and options, subject to regulatory approval.

NFTs news

• Customer relationship management company Salesforce announced new Customer 360 innovations which include an NFT Cloud, a pilot that lets brands expand customer experiences to Web3 environments. The feature will allow them to mint, manage, and sell NFTs directly on the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform, they said.

Mining news

• Greenidge Generation Holdings announced that it produced approximately BTC 195 during May 2022 and had approximately 1.7 EH/s of mining capacity from around 20,400 miners as of May 31. Around 25% of the capacity was located at Greenidge’s facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina, USA.
• Bit Digital announced that they generated BTC 53.4 and ETH 27 during May 2022, whereas their treasury holdings were BTC 793.6 and ETH 316.1, with a fair market value of approximately USD 25.2m and USD 600,000, respectively, on May 31. The company owned 33,376 BTC miners and 731 ETH miners as of May 31, they added.