The maiden voyage of China’s Sputnik blockchain

A Chinese satellite has become the world’s first to launch a blockchain imaging and screening system into orbit.

According to the local Red Star News on July 22, Tai’an Star Era 16 was a success launched into orbit from the China Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Developed by NationStar Aerospace Technology Co., the satellite features an in-orbit visual blockchain certificate storage system called “ADAChain” (not related to Cardano), owned by NationStar. The researchers wrote:

“The [ADAChain] it can realize functions such as visual blockchain multi-signature in-orbit authentication, video visual in-orbit broadcast, and data storage certificate confirmation for visual remote sensing in orbit.”

The purpose of the satellite’s voyage is to “acquire rich spectral information on the surface of the target area” in the fields of “precision agriculture, water resources management, mineral resource exploration, environmental monitoring and emergency safety”. Blockchain technology will also help in achieving the goals of “high spatial resolution, high spectral resolution and high temporal resolution” in such satellite imaging.

Digital Yuan CBDC expands to Hong Kong

The Bank of China’s Hong Kong branch has enabled individuals in the Special Administrative Region (SAR) to use the central bank’s yuan digital currency (e-CNY CBDC) for retail purchases.

According to a July 20 report, it has more than 200 merchants, such as shopping malls, pharmacies, convenience stores and electronic stores accepted e-CNY CBDC as a means of payment from shoppers originating from mainland China. e-CNY CBDC is currently not available to Hong Kong users.

As a SAR, Hong Kong has separate political, economic and social institutions from mainland China. Advocates have formerly called for the Hong Kong government to issue its own Hong Kong dollar CBDC to compete with Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC). Chinese President Xi Jinping is in a similar situation emphasized the importance CBDC as a means of settling international trade in local currencies.

Terraform Labs is trying to get back on its feet

“Every time we make a little bit of progress, there’s some allegation or something that derails us,” he said Terraform Labs Interim CEO Chris Amani on Twitter on July 20.

According to Amani, the arrest of the co-founder of the entity and former CEO Do Kwon in Montenegro basically broke all the momentum the ailing network is trying to restore. In May 2022, the $40 billion Terra Luna (LUNC) ecosystem collapsed due to the implosion of its algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD (USTC). Shortly after, Kwon created the Terra 2.0 Ecosystem (LUNA). The three tokens have a combined market cap of $1.3 billion at the time of publication.

In the next phase, Amani says nine projects built on Terra Luna’s combined ecosystem are slated to launch over the next few months. None of the projects will reportedly issue their own tokens. Plus Amani he warned that the projects face stiff competition from other tier one projects due to the lack of a Luna Foundation guardian or a protocol treasury for financial support.

South Korean cryptocurrency lender shuts down as a result of criminal proceedings

South Korean cryptocurrency lender Delio said all assets of its company and customers were seized in a raid by prosecutors on July 18.

In a July 22 announcement, Delio said it would suspend all interest payments to users effective immediately after the asset seizure prevents the company from continuing normal operations. In June, a crypto lender suspended all withdrawals and deposits on its platform, citing exposure to counterparty and another South Korean crypto lender, Haru Invest, which in turn suspended all transfers due to an issue with “shipment operator,” B&S Holdings.

Haru Invest is currently undergoing bankruptcy proceedings. Meanwhile, Delio is one of the largest crypto lenders in South Korea with approximately $1.5 billion in customer Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and altcoins. Since June 30, the firm has been under investigation by the country’s Financial Services Commission over allegations of fraud, embezzlement and breach of trust.

The company has previously said it will allow users to withdraw their assets without specifying a specific time frame. However, similar to A multi-string sagait is unlikely that a company could do this when customers’ assets were seized as part of criminal proceedings.

In a July 23 blog post, Haru Invest CEO Hugo Lee he wrote that the authorities have also seized assets of B&S Holdings and that the company is currently trying to recover the funds. All of the firm’s operations have been suspended and the company plans to gradually liquidate the remaining assets. Haru Invest currently has over 80,000 users.

Indonesia’s national crypto exchange is launched

Indonesia’s government-run national cryptocurrency exchange will be the only legal place to trade crypto assets in the Southeast Asian country.

On July 20 declaration by the Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency, also known as Bappebti, the exchange is currently open for spot trading and plans to expand its futures and cryptocurrency derivatives offering. All cryptocurrency exchanges registered in a country can join a national exchange that serves as a clearinghouse to ensure that transactions comply with relevant regulations.

Despite official support, Islamic organizations in Indonesia previously considered the use of cryptocurrency to be haramor banned for Muslim users. This means that there is no consensus among Islamic scholars on this matter.

To mark the 40th anniversary of the introduction of Chicken McNuggets, McDonald’s Hong Kong partnership with Sandbox to launch a meta-version of the same name to celebrate the occasion.

Dubbed “McNuggets Land,” the metaversion will allow users to interact with game characters and McNuggets-themed avatars. Randy Lai, CEO of McDonald’s Hong Kong, said:

“McDonald’s, rooted in Hong Kong for 48 years, has always strived to provide innovative experiences and happy moments. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Chicken McNuggets, we’re thrilled to partner with The Sandbox to bring you a fun Web3 Metaverse experience.”

Participants will be given a prize pool of 100,000 SAND tokens and 10,000 McNugget vouchers. Since entering what was then British Hong Kong in 1975, the franchise currently operates 250 restaurants across the city, serving more than 1 million customers daily.