Daily Digest - 15th May 2023

Headlines

▌OpenAI’s Sam Altman nears $100 million funding for Worldcoin project

OpenAI boss Sam Altman is close to securing the necessary funding for his plan to use iris-scanning technology to create a secure global cryptocurrency called Worldcoin.

According to people with knowledge of the deal, Worldcoin is in advanced talks to raise fresh cash as it prepares to launch in the next few weeks.

Previous investors in the company include Khosla Ventures, as well as FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

A $100 million token sale early last year valued the total supply of the company’s tokens at $3 billion.

According to project executives, Worldcoin will help to distinguish between humans and bots, and provide a form of universal basic income which might offset job losses caused by AI.

Policies

▌Coinbase and Ripple Execs criticise SEC’s Gary Gensler on crypto policy

Following previous threats to leave the US for more favourable markets, crypto exchange Coinbase and Blockchain services company Ripple have joined in the criticism of the SEC’s crackdown on the crypto industry.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse criticised the US for putting politics ahead of policy in the field of crypto regulation, and argued that the US was ‘getting passed not just by a little bit but by a lot’.

Other crypto companies like Binance have also criticised the SEC.

Experts have also weighed in on the SEC’s regulatory framework, suggesting that while these companies may not actually move overseas, there could be a real issue if regulators do not move forward with thoughtful regulation.

Blockchain Application

▌China opens blockchain research centre with plans to train 500,000 industry professionals

China is aiming to train half a million blockchain professionals after the launch of its National Blockchain Research Centre. The research centre will work with universities, research institutes, and companies to train workers and support China’s digital economy, according to Xinhua.

The goal is to establish a national-level blockchain network that will connect existing blockchains in China and support other industries.

The launch is the latest development in the Chinese government’s plans to boost the industrial use of blockchain, which it has sought to separate from cryptocurrencies, still banned in mainland China.

Cryptocurrencies

▌Animoca Brands token reserves down 36%

Hong Kong-based blockchain gaming developer Animoca Brands said that its token reserves stood at $2.7 billion at the end of April, down 36% from figures published last year.

A spokesperson said that these tokens were ‘not immediately liquid’, and stated that ‘crypto asset valuations have been affected by price volatility and declines since April 2022, which has affected the entire sector’.

Thus far, the volatility has led it to scale back its target for a new metaverse fund.

▌Torque Founder sued by liquidators to recover cryptocurrency lost under his watch

Singaporean Businessman Bernard Ong Hock Fong, who founded cryptocurrency trader Torque, has been sued by liquidators to recover hundreds of millions worth of cryptocurrency that were lost under his watch.

The new suit alleges that Ong failed in his duties as the sole director and chief executive of the company, resulting in substantial losses of investors’ funds and the eventual collapse of the trading platform.

Ong has filed an intention to contest the lawsuit.