Looking back at last week’s biggest news, including price analyses for BTC, ETH, and XRP.

Following several months of pilot testing, the small island nation of the Bahamas is set to edge out global powers such as China and Sweden and become the first country to roll out a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The release is slated to happen in October.

A new study shows that in 2020, Alibaba Group is the largest blockchain patent holder, having 10x the number of patents than its closest rival, IBM. However, the United States outranks all countries in the most blockchain patents (2,112) , followed by the Cayman Islands (350 filings).

The Libra Association, the governing body that will oversee Facebook’s digital currency project, has a new Managing Director. Libra announced on Thursday that it has appointed former HSBC Europe CEO, James Emmett.

On Friday, it looked like the US was ready to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat, but as of yesterday, each platform received a reprieve from a ban (at least temporarily). This article by Decrypt highlights that the threat to disrupt the communication of millions of people could give rise to borderless, decentralised apps.

Below is our weekly roundup of industry and coin specific news. If you’d like to get in touch with us about any of our products or services, we look forward to hearing from you. Just send us a note.

Kraken cryptocurrency exchange gets US banking license, plans to be global bank

Last week, Kraken became the first crypto firm in the US to become a bank, after receiving a banking charter under Wyoming’s Special Purpose Depository Institution statute.

Launching sometime in Q1 2021, Kraken Financial will be able to provide clients from 49 states with digital asset custody services and help them make payments.

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EU to introduce crypto-assets regime by 2024, EU documents say

A comprehensive cryptocurrency regulatory framework is expected to be put in place within four years, according to leaked EU documents.

The documents show that cross-border payments will be quicker and cheaper through the use of blockchain and cryptoassets like stablecoins.

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India plans to introduce law to ban cryptocurrency trading

India's complicated relationship with crypto is braced for further uncertainty as government officials are reportedly planning to discuss a new bill banning trade in cryptocurrencies.

If the ban is passed, it would be a blow to the rapidly growing crypto scene in India that has been blossoming since the banking ban was overturned in March.

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Latest Coin News

BTC

• Price Analysis: BTC/USD erases Saturday's gains, returns to $11,000 area.
• MicroStrategy buys $175m more in Bitcoin, upping BTC holdings to $425m.
• Bitcoin price volatility expected as 47% of BTC options expire next Friday. 

ETH

• Price Analysis: ETH/USD pares majority of weekly gains, trades near $370. 
• Ethereum Classic partners with ChainSafe and OpenRelay to prevent more 51% attacks. 
• Ethereum smashes records as DeFi hype sends transactions and miner revenue soaring. 

XRP

• Price Analysis: XRP/USD struggles to hold above $0.25. 
• Ripple CEO criticises India's looming crypto ban. 
• Ripple accuses YouTube of ‘feigning ignorance’ in XRP scam. 

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