Daily Digest - 23 February 2023

Headlines

▌Investment giant BlackRock launches metaverse theme ETF

Investment giant BlackRock (BLK) is launching an exchange-traded fund (ETF), which will focus on technology companies with exposure to the Metaverse. According to the fund's website, the iShares Future Metaverse Tech and Communications ETF (IVRS) will invest in companies that are expected to contribute to the Metaverse in areas such as virtual platforms, social media, gaming, 3D software, digital assets, and virtual and augmented reality. The top five companies listed as holdings are Meta Platforms (META), Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDIA), NetEase (NTES), and Roblox (RBLX).

Policies

▌U.S. House of Representatives proposes a new bill that may limit the Fed’s power to issue CBDC

U.S. Representative Tom Emmer of Minnesota has proposed legislation in the House of Representatives that may limit the Federal Reserve’s power to issue central bank digital currency (CBDC). Emmer said in a statement on Feb. 22 that he proposed the "CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Bill" aimed at protecting Americans' right to financial privacy. The lawmaker said the bill could prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing digital dollars "directly to anyone," prohibit the central bank from implementing a CBDC-based monetary policy, and require transparency in digital dollar-related projects.

Cryptocurrency

▌Hong Kong Legislative Council member Wu Jiezhuang: The content of the budget reflects the determination of the Hong Kong government for the development of Web3

The "Hong Kong concept skyrocketed, mysterious oriental power rises" Twitter Space hosted by Meta Era and co-organized by OKX was officially launched. Members of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, representatives of institutions of higher learning, and representatives of Hong Kong institutions were invited to collaborate with Xiao Xiao, a representative of the Web3 industry. Feng, Jack Kong, Justin Sun, Du Jun, etc. comprehensively interpreted the technology and economic policies of Hong Kong's new budget. Wu Jiezhuang interpreted several key contents in the budget. Regarding the "Web3 also has great potential" in the budget, Mr. Wu believes that this means that the Hong Kong government has seen the unlimited potential of Web3.

▌Polygon block explorer Polygonscan was interrupted for several hours, but the network was not affected

The Polygon block browser Polygonscan was interrupted for several hours on Wednesday. The browser is used to monitor and analyze activities on Polygon. However, Polygon claimed that it did not experience any interruption when processing blocks. A Polygon spokesperson revealed some nodes on the network are indeed out of sync, but the problem is not serious. Block production has never stopped, but network performance may temporarily drop. Currently, the nodes have re-synced and the system is back to normal. Sandeep Nailwal, co-founder of Polygon, posted on social media that there was indeed a problem with Polygonscan and suggested that users switch to other browsers.

▌Federal Trade Commission: Voyager is under investigation for deceptive encryption marketing

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) opposed the third bankruptcy reorganization plan of the encryption broker Voyager Digital. Voyager Digital and its executives are being investigated for deceptive marketing of cryptocurrencies, the FTC said in a legal filing Wednesday. The filing states that the FTC has begun investigating certain acts and practices of Debtor and Debtor’s employees, directors, and officers for deceptively and unfairly marketing cryptocurrencies to the public. Voyager’s bankruptcy plan, filed on Jan. 13, includes the sale of the company’s assets to cryptocurrency exchange Binance US. However, the FTC said the plan would also shield the company and its employees from financial claims, possibly including claims related to wrongdoing.

▌Meta plans a new round of layoffs or affect thousands of employees

Meta is preparing for a new round of layoffs, entrusting human resources, lawyers, financial experts and executives to develop a plan to shrink the company's hierarchy. This restructuring and layoffs may affect thousands of employees. Meta plans to push some leaders into lower-level positions without direct reporting, creating tension between Meta CEO Zuckerberg and company interns, according to a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Management hierarchies have become flatter. Other managers may end up managing more employees as teams grow in size. Some inside Meta expect those switched jobs to end up quitting, reducing the company's workforce.