Today in Crypto: Sberbank’s Blockchain Platform Will Be Compatible with Ethereum, Internet Computer Mainnet Integrates with Bitcoin, Exclusive Automotive Group Accepts Crypto

Get your daily digest of crypto-asset and blockchain-related news – by investigating stories that fly under the radar in today’s crypto news.
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Banking News

• The largest bank in Russia Sber announced that its proprietary blockchain platform will be compatible with Ethereum (ETH). Developers will be able to freely transfer smart contracts and entire projects between the bank’s blockchain network and Ethereum.

Blockchain news

• The DFINITY Foundationthe non-profit association contributing to the development of internet computer (IC) blockchain, announced the integration of the Internet Computer mainnet with Bitcoin (BTC), bringing advanced smart contract functionality to the world’s largest crypto, according to the announcement. The internet computer can now serve as a layer 2 for Bitcoin where smart contracts on the internet computer can natively contain, send and receive BTC, without the need for blockchain bridges or other third parties.
• The directors of the Partisia Blockchain Foundationthe organization behind an internet privacy blockchain infrastructure, will appear with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) tomorrow in Paris for its first Hackathon, the PartiHack, to present the prototype of a blockchain-based system “aiming to demonstrate that this technology could be used in conflict zones where a very high degree of confidentiality and data protection is required”. The press release said the stablecoin the two organizations are developing “will pilot a new way of providing support to victims of armed conflict and violence by combining the benefits of public blockchains with the privacy protections” of Partisia Blockchain’s multi-party computing technology.
• The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) will cut up to 200 contractors who were working on integrating blockchain technology into its CHESS clearing and settlement system after the redesign was rolled back, Reuters reported. The ASX had a total of around 300 people working on the now-cancelled project, of which a third were permanent staff and two-thirds were contractors and consultants, it said, citing a spokesperson.

Payments News

• Exclusive car group (EAG), a factory-authorized dealership for Aston Martin, Bentley Motors, Koenigsegg and Karma Automotive, has announced that it is accepting cryptocurrency for payment of goods and services from BitPay, a crypto payment service provider. “Exclusive Automotive Group’s ability to accept cryptocurrency allows the dealership to tap into the massive crypto market and attract new customers,” he said.
• The Solanaautomated market maker orca has integrated with the payment company Bandaged for fiat-onramps. According to an announcement, a fiat-crypto on-ramp has been built inside the Orca UI through integration with Link, built by Stripe. The new podmates can now convert fiat currency to crypto, without needing to buy the crypto on other exchanges first, he said.
• The blockchain technology provider Venly said it was one of 16 companies piloting Stripe’s new fiat-to-crypto on-ramp. According to an announcement, this integration will make it possible to make purchases with Wallet Venly via Stripe’s on-ramp, and it will also reduce entry barriers for users.

Regulatory News

• The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has granted a license to MetaComp provide digital payment token services as a major payment institution. According to the press release, as of December 2022, MetaComp has been licensed under the Payment Services Act, enabling it to offer an end-to-end suite of digital asset services to businesses, as well as traditional institutional and crypto-native investors.

Investment News

• by Mike Novogratz Digital Galaxy won an auction to buy a self-guarding platform GK8 from the bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network, says the firm. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
• Web3 development platform Fleek said it raised $25 million in Series A funding, led by Capital Polychainwith the participation of Protocol laboratories, Arweave, Coinbase Ventures, Group of digital currencies, North Island Companies, globally distributed, LAOand Argonautical companies. According to an announcement, the funds will be allocated for the development and launch Fleek Networka decentralized content and application delivery network, scheduled to launch in 2023.

Portfolio News

• THORPortfolio announced the collaboration with Mayan Protocola decentralized liquidity network based on the Cosmos SDK powered by its native CACAO coin, which is also a friendly fork of the decentralized liquidity network THOR Chain. According to the announcement, the project will initially offer permissionless, non-custodial cross-chain exchanges between native Bitcoin, Ethereum, and THORChain assets.

Web3 News

• The graphica decentralized protocol used to index Web3 data, adds support for Polygon (MATIC) on the Graph network. Polygon users will soon be able to rely on fully decentralized APIs to power their decentralized applications (dapps), the announcement says.

NFT News

• Some of the biggest names in American fashion have partnered with Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), The sandbox, Polygon Studiosand A whole new vision (BNV) to celebrate 60 years of the fashion institution and “light the way to the future of fashion in the web3 and metaverse,” said an announcement. Seven designer brands – Coach, Michael Kors, Wes Gordon for Carolina Herrera, Diane von Furstenberg, Tommy Hilfiger, Vivienne Tam and Willy Chavarria – will each create a non-fungible token (NFT) with associated utility, available from December 12, a week before the opening of the exhibition.