Daily Digest - 9th September 2022

Headlines

▌Russia Will Promote the Use of Digital Ruble in Cross-Border Payments

The Governor of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, Elvira Nabiullina, announced on Thursday that the Central Bank of Russia will actively promote the possibility of using digital rubles for cross-border settlements. Many Russian banks want to participate and are actively participating in the experiment to introduce the digital ruble. The experiment will continue until 2023. Elvira Nabiullina added: “Next year, we will start another type of business on a limited scale to gradually start putting it into circulation.”

Policies

▌White House Office of Science and Technology: Crypto Mining Obstructs U.S. Environmental Protection Efforts

The White House Office of Science and Technology released a report saying that crypto mining hinders the United States’ climate commitments and efforts to net zero carbon pollution, and the United States must take action to reduce the pollution associated with cryptocurrency production. The report calls for federal agencies to work with states to develop standards, saying the White House or Congress may eventually need to step in. The conclusions released Thursday are understood to be in line with the Biden administration's focus on mitigating climate change.

Cryptocurrency

▌PUMA Launches Metaverse Sneakers and NFTs at New York Fashion Week

Sportswear brand PUMA launched its first metaverse experience at New York Fashion Week. The 3D metaverse website, titled "Black Station," will showcase future NFT projects, offering consumers new opportunities to engage with brands through immersive online experiences. From September 13th, exclusive NFTs for redemption of limited-edition physical sneakers will be available as part of FUTROGRADE, the PUMA New York fashion show. With the launch of Black Station at New York Fashion Week, this strategic positioning demonstrates the brand's desire to reach out to a segment of fashion-forward and digital-savvy consumers. Additionally, designing it as an immersive Web3 venue enables PUMA to engage more with customers digitally, thereby fostering community engagement and opening up new revenue streams through the metaverse.

▌US Recovers More Than $30M in Cryptocurrency from North Korean Hackers

A U.S. firm announced on Thursday that it worked alongside law enforcement to recover more than $30 million worth of cryptocurrency that North Korean hackers stole earlier this year.

▌NEAR Foundation Invests in Few and Far to Grow the NEAR NFT Ecosystem

Few and Far, the next-generation NFT marketplace built on NEAR Protocol, has been awarded a grant by the NEAR Foundation. The specific amount has not been disclosed publicly. In the upcoming months, Few and Far will support the growth and development of NFT projects within NEAR, and work closely with the team to provide world-class launchpad capabilities to support the onboarding of top brands and major IPs from Web2 into Web3. The team will also collaborate with the NFT Vision Group to spearhead efforts in NFT smart contract standardization, liquidity and blockchain indexing solutions. “We are thrilled to support Few and Far’s mission to provide seamless NFT minting solutions and an easy-to-use marketplace for the NEAR ecosystem and beyond,” says NEAR spokesperson.