10 months ago
Visa completes e-HKD CBDC proceedings with HSBC and Hang Seng
Hong Kong is 1 measurement person to a cardinal slope integer currency (CBDC) with the merchandise of its palmy e-HKD signifier 1 results successful collaboration with Visa, HSBC, and Hang Seng Bank.
According to the November 1 announcement, Visa said that it achieved “near real-time” finality with transfers involving tokenized deposits of the integer Hong Kong dollar (e-HKD).
“Tokenized deposits were burned connected the sending bank’s ledger, minted connected the receiving bank’s ledger, and simultaneously settled interbank via the simulated wholesale CBDC layer,” the payments steadfast wrote.
“This would supply for colony successful an atomic mode with amended streamlining of immoderate operational dependencies imposed by fiscal institutions and different intermediaries, frankincense improving liquidity management.”
The outgo processor besides stated that its e-HKD trial aviator was functional 24/7, surpassing the uptime of accepted fiscal systems, which typically don’t relation aft hours oregon connected weekends. In addition, the steadfast wrote that “tokenized deposits tin beryllium afloat transacted portion remaining encrypted, without revealing accusation astir identity, balances, oregon transaction amounts to non-bank users.”
For its adjacent steps, Visa plans to research the usage of e-HKD successful tokenized plus markets and programmable concern to automate existent property transactions. “In this pilot’s Property Payments usage case, the outgo from a purchaser transferring the remaining equilibrium tokens to the spot developer whitethorn beryllium automated upon reaching the completion day of the contract, minimising lag clip successful closure of the process,” the institution said. Other areas of probe involvement see enlargement of retail solutions and integer cross-border payments.
Despite the promising results, nary definite timelines person been fixed for the afloat motorboat of the e-HKD CBDC, oregon adjacent that specified a motorboat volition occur. In its October 30report, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority warned determination are inactive issues to resolve:
“For instance, an rCBDC issued arsenic a programmable wealth whitethorn beryllium much susceptible to cybersecurity risks, arsenic it whitethorn contiguous much mediums for outer threats to inject malicious code.”
With the soundless motion from Beijing’s Central Government, Hong Kong has been striving to go a Web3 hub for blockchain successful the Asia-Pacific Region. However, specified efforts had been overshadowed by the illness of the JPEX crypto exchange, resulting successful losses exceeding $150 million for Hong Kong investors. Since the incidental unfolded, spot successful cryptocurrency among section residents has fallen drastically.
The caller e-HKD aviator results arsenic announced by Visa. Hashkey’s regulated speech token
Hashkey, 1 of the archetypal crypto exchanges to person a regulatory licence successful Hong Kong, volition present an speech token successful 2024.
According to therecentwhitepaper, the “HashKey EcoPoints” (HSK) token volition beryllium minted connected Ethereum with a full proviso of 1 billion. Out of this amount, 65% is reserved for users, 30% for Hashkey staff, and 5% for its ecosystem treasury.
The token volition beryllium distributed arsenic incentivizes to ecosystem users and distributors and volition not beryllium “sold via backstage oregon nationalist income for money raising purposes.” As for utility, the institution states that the token could beryllium utilized to settee trading fees, on with aboriginal entree to aboriginal token subscriptions and merchandise upgrades connected its speech services.
The speech besides pledges to buyback HSK tokens with up to 20% of profits generated from related Hashkey services. “HashKey implements an offsetting issuance mechanics (burning) to support HSK holders from the dilutionary interaction of rewards-based increases successful HSK circulating supply,” the steadfast wrote. However, regulatory support is inactive required for the token plan plan:
“The contents of this whitepaper person not been reviewed by immoderate regulatory authorization successful Singapore oregon Hong Kong. You are advised to workout caution successful narration to the accusation successful this whitepaper and immoderate transaction that you mean to transportation retired involving HSK.”
In August, Hashkey, alongside crypto speech OSL, received 1 of the archetypal regulatory licenses for retail crypto trading successful Hong Kong. Its trading measurement initially stagnated but has sincegainedtraction. Only prime coins and tokens, specified arsenic Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, and Avalanche, are approved to beryllium listed connected the exchange.
Hashkey’s program for HSK token utility. $308M syndicate manipulated crypto markets to launder money: Police
Nineteen Chinese nationals person been sentenced for their relation successful a $308 cardinal wealth laundering strategy involving cryptocurrencies betwixt November 2020 and April 2021.
According to an October 31 report by the Chongqing Tongliang District People’s Court, Mr. Jiang and Mr. Deng, the main conductors of the wealth laundering syndicate, unneurotic laundered a full of $308 cardinal worthy of Bitcoin and Tether for proceeds of transgression related to online gambling and ligament fraud.
Police accidental that to debar level monitoring and know-your-customer requirements, the accused individuals orchestrated a blase strategy of utilizing peer-to-peer transactions, wherever coins were sold astatine “unusual prices comparative to spot markets” for stablecoin Tether and past transferred to exchanges for cash.
“By fabricating pretexts specified arsenic withdrawing task funds and migrant workers’ wages, they organized pack members to retreat currency from slope counters successful Chongqing, Sichuan, Shanghai and different provinces and cities. The magnitude of currency withdrawals ranged from hundreds of thousands to respective cardinal yuan each time. After withdrawing the cash, the currency is packaged successful trolley cases, backpacks, etc., and transported by plane.”
The 19 individuals, including Mr. Jiang and Mr. Deng, were sentenced to six months to six years successful prison. “In caller years, the improvement of criminals committing amerciable and transgression activities done telecommunications networks has go progressively rampant, posing a immense menace to the morganatic rights and interests of the wide public,” the presiding justice wrote.
Due to specified a emergence successful ligament fraud involving cryptocurrencies, China’s Central Government has cracked down harshly connected crypto-related activities successful the country, though determination person been immoderate signs of relaxation arsenic of late. Nevertheless, specified enforcement actions person sometimes resulted successful collateral damage for overseas investors utilizing Chinese-based crypto services without transgression intent.
The culprits arsenic they appeared for sentencing successful Chongqing Tongliang District People’s Court. Subscribe
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Zhiyuan Sun
Zhiyuan Sun is simply a writer astatine Cointelegraph focusing connected technology-related news. He has respective years of acquisition penning for large fiscal media outlets specified arsenic The Motley Fool, Nasdaq.com and Seeking Alpha.
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