Digix, creator of the world’s first asset-backed digital gold token, has partnered with Ethereum-based game Axie Infinity. 

Axie Infinity players collect, raise, and battle fantasy creatures, and the new partnership will enable them to receive in-game tokens that are backed by, and redeemable for, physical, investment-grade gold. 

Real gold rewards will be offered as an in-game currency via Axie-DGX tokens, which can be exchanged for Digix’s native token, DGX, with 1 DGX being equivalent to 100,000 Axie-DGX. 

Powered by Ethereum, the Axie Infinity marketplace is transparent, liquid, and secure, giving players complete ownership for their Axies, and the ability to trade and sell them securely. 

Discussing the collaboration COO and Co-Founder of Digix, Shaun Djie, said:

“This collaboration with Axie Infinity is not only a major milestone for Digix—but for the growth of digital gold, highlighting its benefits across a range of industries including gaming. By providing an in-game currency that is backed by gold, a time-tested, safe haven asset—we are remaining true to our vision of democratising access to gold and further showcasing the innovative use cases for digital gold.” 

While COO and Co-Founder of Axie Infinity, Aleksander Leonard Larsen, added:

“This initiative elevates the play-to-earn narrative to new heights. For the first time, players can earn real gold by simply playing a game. User-focused experiments that benefit and reward users are key to furthering the adoption of blockchain technology.”

From 10AM EST on 20 July 2020 to 10AM EST on 2 August 2020, Axie Infinity players will have the chance to earn a share of $1,500 USD worth of Axie-DGX tokens rewarded as random in-game drops.

Bullionix will also be crafting limited edition 3D collectibles in the form of Axie-themed non-fungible tokens (NFTs) backed by Digix’s investment grade gold. Each Bullionix collectible has 0.25 DGX staked on-chain that belongs to the holder of the NFT. A 0.1 DGX minting fee is settled in the same transaction. 

The special commemorative pieces are available to mint exclusively from 20 July to 9 August. Each NFT can subsequently be interacted with in the Bullionix dapp, gifted, or resold on NFT marketplaces. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Though collectible and tradable creatures in the form of NFTs are nothing new these days, adding real gold into the mix is something unique and very interesting. As we’ve said before, we’re still in early days, but we see a whole parallel economy evolving here, where one day many people will own significant wealth in the form of digital assets other than cryptocurrencies. 

Staying with tradable digital collectibles, last week Reality Group announced it had secured an exclusive global license from JoyPixels to develop and publish blockchain-based tradable emoji icons and a companion game. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Romania has taken the first steps to regulating digital currencies, crypto wallets, and crypto exchanges, fully adopting the EU’s 5AMLD. 

The Fifth Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Directive (5AMLD), which is part of the framework created by the European Union (EU) and European Central Bank (ECB), aims to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and tax evasion. 

Romania brings legislation up to 5AMLD standard

In July 2019, Romania implemented a law to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing, but it did not meet the criteria of 5AMLD because it failed to define the categories of reporting entities – like crypto businesses, for example. 

While a case was opened against Romania in the Court of Justice of the European Union (Case C-549/18), on 1 July 2020 the government passed an Emergency Ordinance, which brought legislation up to 5AMLD standards. 

It means all exchanges offering crypto for fiat, or vice versa, in Romania, must now be registered and comply with 5AMLD standards. Companies providing “hot wallets”, i.e. those with direct and permanent access to the internet and a specific blockchain, must also comply with 5AMLD standards. 

Foreign providers must double register

Providers authorised in other EU or EEA countries, or Switzerland, may continue to offer their services in Romania only if they also register with Romania authorities, and have an authorised representative domiciled in Romania. Companies already providing such services will have 12 months to comply with the new registration requirements. 

Any exchanges operating in Romania will also need to receive technical approval from the Romanian Digital Authority. This approval process will cover issues like site security policies and technical systems. Approval will not be required for “certain EU-authorised exchange platforms” which use a simple API or gateway for Romanian customers. 

In a move that will be welcomed by crypto businesses in the country, the new legislation also prohibits banks operating in Romania from arbitrarily refusing to provide accounts to crypto or blockchain business or closing accounts based on unknown or opaque criteria. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Like other countries that have gone down the route of crypto/blockchain regulation, we expect things will continue to evolve as real-life experience proves certain plans unworkable – particularly the double-registration aspect. However, it’s definitely a step in the right direction for the Romanian blockchain and crypto sector, and the changes to how banks are required to treat the sector is long overdue. 

Earlier this year we saw Switzerland tighten its regulations, requiring ID to be provided for all crypto transactions worth more than 1,000 CHF, and the Ukraine pass similar measures, requiring monitoring of all transactions worth more than 30,000 UAH. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Reports suggest PayPal is planning to introduce crypto trading via a partnership with US stablecoin operator Paxos. 

According to Coindesk, PayPal intends to introduce cryptocurrency trading through Paxos’ new brokerage service platform – which was announced earlier this month, and is designed to enable other firms to integrate crypto trading via a simple API. 

New York-based Paxos is a regulated digital assets custodian, and will be handling all regulatory and compliance aspects of the planned service. 

No details have yet been provided regarding the cryptocurrencies PayPal intends to offer. 

PayPal was a member of the Libra Association – the governing body for Facebook’s Libra stablecoin project – but left it in late 2019 along with other major firms, including Visa and Mastercard, after a backlash from politicians, regulators and some sections of the mainstream media. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Given PayPal’s sheer size and user base, its move into the crypto space could significantly fuel adoption and further cement crypto in the mainstream. As for Paxos’ new brokerage service and API, it will be interesting to see which other firms adopt it, but it could mean the likes of Robinhood, Revolut (also powered by Paxos), and Square are about to get a lot more competition. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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Major cryptocurrency exchange Binance has made it to Malaysia’s naughty list, for operating in the country without authorisation.

Operating without authorisation

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) has added the cryptocurrency exchange to its list of unauthorised entities. Under Malaysian law, to operate in the country cryptocurrency exchanges must register as Digital Assets Exchanges with the SC. 

Applicants are given nine months, from the initial filing, to meet the SC’s regulatory requirements. However, thus far only three exchanges – Luno, Sinegy, and Tokenize – have been fully approved. As we previously reported, in June 2020, the Global Stock Exchange (GSX) Group has submitted an application for a license to launch a bespoke digital securities exchange in the country, which has been conditionally approved. 

In March this year, Binance announced it intended to use Malaysia as the Southeast Asian testbed for its crypto debit card. At press time (17 July 2020), Binance was still supporting the Malaysian Ringgit. 

Last month Binance was also scolded by the Brazilian securities watchdog, which prohibited the platform from offering Bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts in the country.

Where exactly is Binance based and regulated?

Though many have assumed Binance is based in Malta, in February 2020, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) put out a statement saying it had not authorised Binance to operate in the cryptocurrency sphere, and therefore the company was not subject to its oversight. 

However, people can be forgiven for thinking the exchange is based in Malta given the frequent coverage in Maltese press that refers to the business as “Malta-based”, the fact that the company signed a memorandum of understanding with the Malta Stock Exchange, regarding the launch of a new security token digital exchange, in September 2018. And, then of course, there’s the fact that Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has previously said he was invited to Malta by the government to look at an upcoming crypto bill.  

Heck, even the Wikipedia entry for Binance lists it as Malta-based.

Indeed, reports suggest the company is actually registered in the Cayman Islands and the Seychelles. In June, data from blockchain analysis company Crystal, which classed Binance as a Seychelles-based, showed the country handled more BTC than any other country during 2019.

AYO.NEWS says:

In Binance’s defence, with the global regulatory patchwork that now exists, it must be almost impossible to stay technically legitimate in all jurisdictions. And, the fact that so far only three crypto exchanges have managed to get approval from the Malaysian Securities Commission would suggest the process itself may be experiencing problems or delays. We’re sure they will get things ironed out before long.

Regarding where Binance is based, CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has made it very clear that he doesn’t believe in centralised working, or “fixed offices”, and the company obviously has workers and operations scattered all over the world. 

As for the Malta connection, we’d hazard a guess that the Maltese media, encouraged by local politicians, has just been so enthusiastic about their perceived success as ‘Blockchain Island’ that they latched onto Biance’s interest in the jurisdiction and ran with it. 

Staying with Binance, earlier this week the company announced the European launch of its Swipe-powered crypto debit card. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Atari is partnering with Worldwide Asset Exchange (WAX) to bring its video games onto the blockchain as Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). 

The announcement comes just two months before the planned Atari token public offering, and follows the news that Atari CEO Frederic Chesnais has joined the WAX Advisory Board, alongside major companies and celebrities including Google, Microsoft, Marvel Games, Magic Leap, and the real Captain James T. Kirk a.k.a William Shatner. 

Though Atari is still best-known for its 70s and 80s video games like Pong, Space Invaders, Tetris, and Pac Man, the company’s vision is anything but retro. Over the last year Atari has been making serious efforts to embrace blockchain technology, exemplified by the Atari Token.

Enthusiasm for Atari Token

In June both esports betting platform Unikrn and revolutionary MMORPG and online casino operator Native Gaming confirmed they would be integrating the Atari Token. While in April, the company announced a partnership with global monetisation platform and multichain blockchain API and wallet provider Arkane Network. 

Additionally, the company has created an Atari-themed virtual theme park in blockchain-powered virtual world, The Sandbox (TSB). TSB, which counts Animoca Brands as a major shareholder, has now attracted significant backing from investors including Square Enix, B Cryptos, Mindfulness Capital, and True Global Ventures. Notably, Animoca Brands has reported record revenues during the COVID-19 lockdowns. 

We’re excited to finally unveil our latest partnership with @WAX_io! With this collaboration, Atari is bringing its legendary #videogames further into the vastly expanding world of #blockchain and #NFTs. pic.twitter.com/9raXtwZKra

— atari (@atari) July 15, 2020

AYO.NEWS says:

Though many legacy firms know they should be exploring blockchain technology and tokenisation, few are doing so with the enthusiasm and rigour of Atari, and we’re sure it will pay off, introducing a whole new generation to a brand that many had all but written off. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Investigators at cybersecurity firm ESET have found GMERA malware targeting crypto traders using applications on Apple’s macOS. 

According to Slovakia-based ESET, the malware has been integrated into sophisticated convincing-looking trading applications that provide full functionality but also steal users’ crypto funds. 

Those behind the malware have integrated it into a fake copy of the popular cryptocurrency trading application Kattana, and have also produced slick copies of the company’s website – copies easily good enough to fool those new to Kattana. 

Currently the crooks are also believed to be promoting four malware loaded copycat trading apps; Cointrazer, Cupatrade, Licatrade, and Trezarus. The fraudulent websites contain links to download ZIP archives which contain trojanised versions of the apps. 

Stealing user names, crypto wallets and screen captures

ESET says it has tested samples from Licatrade, which though slightly different to the other apps, functions in much the same way, with the trojan installing a shell script in the victim’s machine, giving the hackers access to their system. 

The crooks can then create command-and-control servers (C&C or C2), over HTTP between their own system and the victim’s. They can then steal information including user names, crypto wallets, location, and screen captures. 

ESET reported their finding to Apple, which quickly revoked the certificate issues to Licatrade. Two certificates used by other malware loaded trading apps have also been revoked. 

GMERA malware was first discovered by cybersecurity firm Trend Micro in September 2019 – in an app imitating Mac-specific stock investment app Stockfolio. 

According to ESET, the email address that registered the licatrade.com domain was the same as that which registered repbaerray.pw and macstockfolio.com – both of which were associated with the GMERA-laden Stockfolio app clone. 

Promoted by social engineering?

Interestingly, researchers say they still aren’t sure exactly how someone specifically becomes a victim of this hacking group in the first place, but suspect the dodgy operators directly contact their targets and “socially engineer” them into installing the malicious applications. 

They also noted that the mitigation implementation in the most recent version of macOS, Catalina, has worked to limit the success of the hackers because it requires the user of the machine to give permission for a screen capture to be taken – thus alerting them to the fact the malware is installed. 

AYO.NEWS says:

There are still a fair few annoyingly smug Mac users who believe the myth that they are safe from viruses and malware, so they should sit up and take note, especially if they are using their machines to trade crypto. 

But anyone trading crypto, on any machine or operating system, should always follow a few simple rules; always double check you are on the legitimate site and not a clone, and be extremely careful interacting with anyone who approaches you on social media regarding crypto trading opportunities. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020