1. Bitcoin L2 network Mezo completes $7.5 million in financing
According to The Block, Bitcoin L2 network Mezo has completed a $7.5 million financing, led by Ledger Cathay Fund, with participation from ArkStream Capital, Aquarius Fund, Flowdesk, GSR, Origin Protocol, Mantle EcoFund, etc. This round of financing will be used to expand the adoption of Mezo, including integrating more products into its network, such as its Bitcoin staking platform Acre.
2. Bitcoin mining company Marathon Digital seeks to collaborate on developing Bitcoin L2 cross-border payment solutions
According to Cointelegraph, Bitcoin mining company Marathon Digital is seeking to work with blockchain developers to build a Bitcoin L2 cross-border payment solution. Marathon also focuses on the field of physical asset tokenization (RWA), has begun planning to tokenize whiskey barrels in the United States, and has partnered with an RWA platform to protect French castles. Marathon is one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin, with a Bitcoin reserve of approximately 20,000, worth more than $1 billion.
3. Pudgy Penguins parent company's encrypted consumer application Abstract is launched on the test network
Crypto consumer application Abstract tweeted that its testnet has officially gone live. The testnet is powered by ZK Stack and runs as L2 on Ethereum Sepolia testnet. Developers can use this testnet to test applications and ensure smooth operation before the Abstract mainnet goes live later this year.
4. Hong Kong Legislative Council member Tam Yue-heng: Accelerate the issuance and trading of stablecoins that match the characteristics of the linked exchange rate system
Tam Yuet-heng, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and member of the Legislative Council, stated in "Consolidating the Status of a Financial Center and Sharing the Dividends of Deepening Reform" that in terms of digital finance, the SAR government must continue to develop digital finance and qualified virtual products, conduct beneficial explorations into new financial formats, and promote the development of new quality productivity in the financial industry itself.
Hong Kong must encourage financial technology companies to participate in the stablecoin sandbox mechanism, accelerate the issuance and trading of stablecoins that match the characteristics of the linked exchange rate system; expand the testing scope and implementation scenarios of the digital RMB as a cross-border payment tool; focus on developing products that link virtual assets with underlying real assets, and convert artworks, real estate, equity, and carbon emissions into digital tokens through blockchain technology.
5. Mountain Protocol receives digital asset business license from Bermuda Monetary Authority
Mountain Protocol, an issuer of yield-based stablecoins, announced in a post on X that its license has been upgraded to a full license by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (Category F). This is the highest license available to digital asset businesses in Bermuda, and currently only Coinbase, Circle, Hashkey and Zero Hash have obtained it.
6. Cantor Fitzgerald plans to launch a financing business that supports Bitcoin as collateral
Cantor Fitzgerald plans to launch a financing business that supports Bitcoin as collateral, providing investors holding Bitcoin with the ability to increase leverage. The initial total amount of the business is capped at $2 billion, and it is expected that the cap will be significantly increased in the future.
7. Trump: If elected, he will fire the current chairman of the US SEC and establish a strategic reserve of Bitcoin
According to The Block, Trump delivered a keynote speech at the "Bitcoin 2024" conference in Nashville, promising to fire Gary Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and prevent the government from selling its Bitcoin holdings and establishing a "strategic Bitcoin reserve" if elected in November. In addition, Trump also reiterated his past promises to commute the sentence of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht and prevent the U.S. government from further developing CBDCs. Trump also expressed support for the development of stablecoins and Bitcoin mining in the United States. Trump said that the United States will become the global crypto capital and Bitcoin will be mined and minted in the United States. During the speech, the price of Bitcoin fell to about 66,600 USDT, and soon recovered to 68,000 USDT.
8. U.S. Senator Lummis proposed that the U.S. government purchase 1 million Bitcoins to reduce the national debt
According to CoinDesk, U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis called on the U.S. government to establish a "strategic bitcoin reserve" at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville to reduce the national debt by purchasing 1 million bitcoins within five years and holding them for at least 20 years.
9. Insider: Harris team has contacted Coinbase and other companies to "ease" the relationship
The campaign of U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has approached top cryptocurrency companies and discussed meetings, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. These companies include Coinbase, Circle and Ripple Labs, two people familiar with the matter said.
10. Hong Kong Legislative Council Member Wu Jiezhuang: In the future, Bitcoin can be considered as the official fiscal reserve of a country or region under compliance conditions
Hong Kong Legislative Council member Wu Jiezhuang expressed his personal views on Trump's speech at the "Bitcoin 2024" conference today. Wu Jiezhuang believes that Bitcoin can be considered as the official fiscal reserve of a country or region. "At present, the global recognition of Bitcoin is increasing, and Bitcoin is considered by the public as "digital gold" in the context of technology, so in the future, it is indeed possible to study and consider including Bitcoin in strategic fiscal reserves under compliance conditions."
In addition, Wu Jiezhuang pointed out that Hong Kong must accelerate the development of the Web3 ecosystem, and believed that the SAR government would responsibly open up the market step by step. At the same time, Web3 represents technology and technological innovation. Hong Kong should further build an ecosystem to attract global talents and funds, public chains and exchanges, enterprises and projects to Hong Kong, and cultivate industry technology development.
Wu Jiezhuang said, "I will discuss with different stakeholders in Hong Kong the feasibility and opportunities of incorporating Bitcoin into fiscal reserves, and report to everyone in due course."
