Former US President Donald Trump is boosting his support for cryptocurrencies as part of his 2024 presidential campaign.
Trump reportedly announced “that he would be the president of cryptocurrencies” at a fundraising event in San Francisco hosted by Craft Ventures general partner David Sachs and tech billionaire Chamath Palihapitiya.
Trump also reiterated his support for cryptocurrencies and his plans to advance the sector, emphasizing the Democratic Party’s intention to take the opposite approach through strict regulations.
However, some experts believe that a crypto transformation is underway in Washington. Matt Hogan, chief investment officer at Bitwise, believes the U.S. is finally moving toward clearer regulation, which could open it up to the country’s $20 trillion financial advisory industry.
At the same time, the industry isn’t just waiting for things to change. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has donated $25 million to cryptocurrency-focused super PAC Fairshake as it ramps up pressure ahead of the US elections in November.
This latest donation brings the total amount raised by the political action committee and its affiliates this election cycle to $160 million. This amount corresponds to recent donations from Ripple and investment firm Andreessen Horowitz.
Qatar launches first phase of CBDC project
The Qatar Central Bank (QCB) has completed the infrastructure for the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) project and launched the first phase of the pilot project. The Central Bank of Qatar will consider settling large payments between major local and international banks.
Few details about the project have been revealed. The official news agency said it would focus on distributed ledger technology and artificial intelligence, improving liquidity and securities trading. The project will continue until October.
A day before the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) project was announced, the Central Bank of Qatar launched a new fintech sandbox. The Express Sandbox offers “a reduced testing period, accelerated testing cycles, and a simplified overall evaluation process” for eligible participants.
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Worldcoin suspends operations in Spain
The Spanish Data Protection Agency said that Tools for Humanity Corporation – the company behind Human Identity and the Worldcoin financial network – would not resume data collection and processing until the end of 2024 or until the final decisions of the investigation underway.
The Bavarian data protection authority is also investigating the organization regarding the processing of users’ personal data.
Spain and Germany are just two of the many countries that have raised eyebrows over the Worldcoin project.
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UAE Central Bank approves licensing system for stablecoins
The board of directors of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has approved the release of a new system to supervise and license stablecoins. The initiative aims to improve digital transactions, strengthen the country’s digital economy and encourage innovation.
According to the local lawyer, the regulations define the issuance, authorization and supervision of dirham-backed payment tokens. Payment tokens must be collateralized by AED and cannot be linked to other currencies, digital assets or algorithms.
In February, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates announced that it would issue a central bank digital currency. The issuance of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) aims to address gaps in cross-border payments and drive innovation in the domestic payments space.
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