Nomura Subsidiary Achieves In-Principle Approval in Abu Dhabi

McDonald’s Enters the Metaverse with McNuggets LandMcDonald’s, the global fast food giant, has ventured into the metaverse realm to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its beloved Chicken McNuggets, with McDonald’s Hong Kong spearheading the immersive experience.McNuggets Land, a virtual world situated within the metaverse platform The Sandbox, now welcomes enthusiastic players to embark on a quirky adventure filled with pixelated McNugget characters like “Coach McNugget” and his trusty sidekick, “Assistant Coach McNugget.” The project team behind The Sandbox laid out the details of the initiative via a blog post published on Medium on Thursday.In this novel virtual landscape, players are tasked with the mission of locating four McDonald’s signs, sparking excitement for the rewards that await. Among the enticing incentives are a shared prize pool of 100,000 SAND (approximately $44,000) and enigmatic “mystery boxes.” SAND is the native token of The Sandbox virtual world.Photo by Jas Rolyn on UnsplashCustomer engagement challengesThe CEO of The Sandbox, Sebastien Borget, expressed enthusiasm for collaborating with global brands like McDonald’s to drive mass adoption of the metaverse. The Sandbox has already witnessed the presence of several prominent brands like Adidas, Atari, and Gucci within its virtual world. Comparatively, it might be challenging for McNuggets Land to carve out a distinctive niche to capture enduring user engagement.Numerous brands have attempted whimsical activations within metaverses over the years, from Snapple’s virtual bodega to Taco Bell’s metaverse wedding. However, the fundamental question arises when virtual food or drink experiences are introduced — what’s the point when you can’t taste or smell in the metaverse?Bear market & regulatory setbacksMoreover, the timing of brands entering the Web3 space may be subject to scrutiny. With venture capital money flowing toward AI and Disney closing its metaverse ventures, the Web3 landscape faces a more challenging environment in 2023. The ongoing crypto winter and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) crackdowns have somewhat dampened the allure of these activations, making it imperative for brands like McDonald’s to offer a compelling “why” for their Web3 endeavors.Starbucks has been experimenting with its Web3 loyalty program called “Odyssey,” which ties in seamlessly with its customers’ real-world coffee purchases. This strategic approach aligns virtual rewards and digital collectibles with existing behaviors, giving added value to their regular activities. In doing so, Starbucks fosters a sense of community and gains valuable feedback for future improvements, ensuring a more sustainable and purposeful presence in the Web3 space.Formative developmentWhile McDonald’s McNuggets Land in the metaverse may excite some players with its whimsical charm, the bigger question remains: What value does it truly bring to the participants, and how does it ensure a lasting impact? In a rapidly evolving Web3 landscape, success lies in offering meaningful experiences that align with users’ existing behaviors and aspirations, fostering genuine engagement and community-building.We are still at a stage where consideration of the metaverse in terms of what it is, what it represents, and what experience users can or should glean from it is still formative. It remains to be seen as to the extent to which Mcdonald's will be successful in this instance, but it is encouraging that they’re brave enough to get involved with the innovation.

The Ethereum Foundation is set to make a significant impact on the Southeast Asian Ethereum community as it announces Bangkok as the location for Devcon 7.Photo by Viktor Forgacs on UnsplashFocusing on Southeast AsiaThe Ethereum developer conference will be held in the Thai capital from Nov. 12 to 15. The decision signifies a broadened vision for the event, shifting from a city-focused approach to embracing the entire Southeast Asia region as the backdrop for this community gathering. To underscore the Foundation’s intent, it has renamed the event from Devcon 7 to "Devcon Southeast Asia." Expressing enthusiasm about the potential and rapid growth of the Ethereum community in Southeast Asia, the Ethereum Foundation sees the scheduling of Devcon 7 for 2024 as an opportunity to deeply engage with local communities, providing meaningful support and empowerment. This shift aims to make Devcon 7 a more inclusive and regionally focused event, aptly named "Devcon Southeast Asia" to highlight its broader reach and impact. There has already been a positive reaction from crypto community members in the region in response to the choice of Bangkok for the conference. Navaporn Nalita, the founder of Crypto City Connext in Thailand wrote that “Bangkok's collaborative ecosystem, welcomes Devcon 2024 with open arms (and open blockchains)! Thailand's vibrant dev scene is primed to ignite alongside the world's brightest minds.” In short order, community builders have been looking to make the most out of the opportunity. Aligning with crypto growth potentialAccording to the blog post published by the Ethereum Foundation outlining the announcement, the choice of Bangkok as the host city aligns with the region's crypto adoption growth. Countries like Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand have shown remarkable positions in the Global Crypto Adoption Index, underscoring the pivotal role of Southeast Asia in the global Ethereum landscape. To support Ethereum events, grassroots communities and educational initiatives in Southeast Asia, the Ethereum Foundation (EF) initiated the Road to Devcon (RTD) Grants round on June 29. This grant round is specifically aimed at individuals in Southeast Asia actively building communities, developing educational activities, and contributing to the growth of the Ethereum ecosystem. Encouraging smaller meet-ups over large events, the EF set the maximum grant at $1,000. The initiative aims to empower the Southeast Asian Ethereum community by providing support along the Road to Devcon. In a recent Chainalysis research report, Vietnam has emerged as the leader in cryptocurrency adoption within Southeast Asia, claiming the top spot in the region and ranking third globally in the Global Crypto Adoption Index for 2023. This index considers transaction volumes, protocols, web traffic patterns and factors like population size and purchasing power. The competition among Southeast Asian countries to establish themselves as crypto hubs is evident. Each nation adopts different regulatory approaches, with Singapore and Thailand implementing stricter measures. There has been a steady stream of Ethereum developer-centric conferences in recent years. 2022 featured EthDenver, Avax Barcelona, Devconnect Amsterdam, Devcon Bogota and EthSF (San Francisco). EthDenver, EthCC Paris and Devconnect Istanbul followed in 2023. As Devcon Southeast Asia approaches, the Ethereum Foundation anticipates fostering deeper connections and collaboration in this vibrant and evolving ecosystem. 

Hong Kong Crypto Licensing Yet to Result in Job SurgeWhile Hong Kong has seen a rush for crypto licenses, scrambling for licensing has not yet resulted in a corresponding surge in job opportunities, according to recruiters in the industry.Approximately 150 companies applied for a local crypto license on June 1, allowing them to operate crypto trading platforms, but recruiters have not witnessed a high demand for talent in the field. That’s according to reports received by Cointelegraph from a number of recruiters active in the crypto space in the Chinese autonomous territory.Photo by Simon Zhu on UnsplashBear market hangoverSue Wei, the Managing Director of major recruitment firm Hays, revealed that her firm has experienced a significant decrease in requests for recruiting technical talent since the recent dip in the crypto market. This decline was particularly notable when many talents were laid off en masse, which led to hesitancy among individuals to work for crypto companies due to the volatile nature of the business, heavily reliant on cryptocurrency prices.Neil Dundon, the Founder of crypto recruiter Cryptorecruit, also noted a lack of significant activity in the Hong Kong market. Despite the regulatory changes, venture activity remains low. However, Dundon expressed optimism that the market has reached its bottom and expects an upward trend to emerge soon.Olga Yung, the Managing Director of Michael Page Hong Kong, echoed the sentiment, stating that there hasn’t been a substantial increase in individuals seeking jobs in the Web3 sector, despite the government’s recent efforts to promote it. However, Yung did mention a slight increase in Web3 firms seeking legal and compliance hires in the latter half of Q2 2023.At the time of publication, 85 crypto-related jobs were being advertised on LinkedIn. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Cyberport, the city’s flagship technology hub, has attracted more than 150 companies operating within the Web3 space over the course of the past 12 months. Authorities in Hong Kong are also trying to entice Web3 companies based in mainland China to establish bases within Hong Kong.Increased job openings anticipatedAlthough these firms have displayed enthusiasm in entering the Hong Kong market, the recruitment needs of the crypto industry remain relatively light at present, as many Web3 companies are still in their early stages of development. However, recruiters anticipate a rise in job openings as these companies continue to grow and mature.Kevin Gibson, Founder of Proof of Search, a Web3 recruitment specialist, said that it may take six months before current crypto licensing activity in Hong Kong translates into a surge in demand for staff. Gibson maintains that specialist talent in Hong Kong is in short supply due to many such professionals having left the city in recent years.While Hong Kong has witnessed a rush for crypto licenses, the recruitment landscape in the industry has yet to experience a corresponding surge. However, recruiters remain optimistic about future job opportunities as Web3 companies progress and regulatory conditions stabilize.With Singapore-based Matrixport and international banking firm Standard Chartered both predicting a Bitcoin unit price in the region of $120,000 by the end of 2024, the market is expected to trend upward in the coming months. That could potentially lead to increased hiring activity in the crypto sector.