NEOPIN and Finschia Foundation to jointly launch Finschia’s first decentralized exchange

OKX Strengthens Partnership with Manchester City Football ClubSeychelles-based crypto exchange OKX has announced the expansion of its sponsorship deal with Manchester City Football Club, the treble-winning English Premier League soccer champions.The announcement was made through a virtual reveal video featuring player avatars, presented at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium. News of the deal was also posted on the English club’s website on Friday.While the valuation of the deal remains undisclosed, the collaboration signifies a significant milestone for both parties. The new agreement, which spans multiple years, establishes OKX as the official sleeve partner on both the men’s and women’s first-team playing kits.Photo by Giero Saaski on UnsplashExtended partnershipUnder this extended partnership, the OKX logo will be prominently displayed on the sleeves of Manchester City’s playing kits, solidifying its position as a key sponsor. Additionally, OKX will retain its presence on the club’s training kit sleeve.City Football Group, the holding company that owns Manchester City and other soccer teams like New York City FC and Melbourne City FC, oversees the management and operations of the club.OKX initially became Manchester City’s official cryptocurrency exchange partner in March 2022. Subsequently, in July of the same year, the exchange secured a sponsorship deal to feature its logo on the front of the club’s training kit throughout the 2022/2023 season. At the time, the agreement was reported to be valued at over $12 million.OKX CollectiveIn February, OKX launched the “OKX Collective” alongside Manchester City players Jack Grealish, Rúben Dias, Ilkay Gündoğan, and Alex Greenwood. This immersive metaverse fan experience offered exclusive content and rewards, allowing fans to engage with the club in a unique way.OKX’s CMO Haider Rafique expressed satisfaction with the evolving partnership, stating: “Manchester City was our first official global brand partnership, and in just a year and a half, we have come a long way. We always intended to integrate with the sport and help the club lead on leaning into Web3. Fast forward fifteen months, we now have a metaverse, an NFT initiative, and a number of other new projects that we are excited about.”Additional sports sponsorshipsBesides Manchester City, OKX has also established partnerships with other prominent sports brands and athletes, including McLaren Formula 1, the Tribeca Festival, Olympian Scotty James, and F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo.While OKX’s partnership with Manchester City strengthens its global fan base, it’s worth noting that the sale of crypto derivatives, a product offered by OKX, was effectively banned by the UK’s financial regulator in January 2021. Consequently, OKX and other crypto exchanges have refrained from advertising such services in the country.As the Premier League clubs have collectively agreed to restrict gambling sponsorships on team shirts, there are concerns that similar restrictions may be imposed on crypto company sponsorships. However, any such developments are expected to be some years away, as the changes regarding gambling sponsorships are scheduled to take effect in the 2026/2027 soccer season.Marketing spend by crypto firms has sobered up quite a bit since the heady heights of the last bull run. However, OKX remains one entity which has been fairly consistent in continuing its marketing efforts regardless of market conditions.

Laos Halts Crypto Miners’ Electricity Amid Drought and DebtsLaos, a leading producer and exporter of hydroelectricity, has made the decision to suspend electricity supply to cryptocurrency mining operations within its borders.Photo by Ioana Farcas on UnsplashTackling a perfect stormThe decision comes as a result of a perfect storm of challenges, including a struggle to meet escalating power demands due to drought conditions, impending commitments to export electricity to Thailand, and the mounting debts of cryptocurrency mining companies.In a calculated move in 2021, Laos initiated a public-private pilot program aimed at delving into cryptocurrency mining and trading. The context for this move was China’s sweeping crackdown on mining activities, compelling miners to scout for alternative jurisdictions for their operations.In response, Laos granted authorization to a handful of entities, spanning construction conglomerates and a bank, to partake in the mining and trading of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. This led to a commitment to regulatory collaboration between government ministries, the Bank of Laos, and Electricité du Laos (EDL).Exploiting hydropowerLaos’ abundant and affordable electricity has placed it on the short list of locations for crypto miners to settle in. With an abundance of rivers and waterfalls, hydropower stands as one of the nation’s primary energy sources, offering a renewable source of cost-effective electricity.However, events in 2023 have disrupted that narrative. A persistent drought has hit the country during the first half of the year, which triggered an unprecedented surge in the demand for electricity from sources other than hydro.The dependence on hydropower, constituting 95% of the nation’s energy generation, struggled to keep pace with the demand. As a direct consequence, EDL, a state-owned electricity distributor, announced the cessation of electricity supply to crypto mining operations.The problem has compounded as Laos finds itself committed to exporting substantial quantities of electricity to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGET), serving as a lifeline for Thailand’s power grid during the forthcoming dry season. This external commitment has, in turn, further strained the local capacity for electricity supply.Another Asian country, Bhutan, has also gotten involved with crypto mining in an effort to exploit its hydropower resources, where 99% of electricity supply comes from hydropower within the kingdom.Unpaid billsAnother dimension to the saga is the growing debt crisis faced by cryptocurrency mining operations. A representative of EDL cited the inability of these mining businesses to settle their accumulating electricity bills as a key factor in the decision for suspension. The Bank of Laos has further escalated matters by deciding to halt loans to cryptocurrency companies in January.Laos has had bold objectives to transform itself into Southeast Asia’s premier exporter of clean electricity. The nation’s topography, featuring mountainous terrain covering 70% of the country, has immense potential for hydropower, with over 26,000 megawatts of installed capacity and ambitious plans to double this figure.Hydroelectric dams like Nam Theun 2 have become conduits for substantial volumes of low-cost electricity, primarily directed towards neighboring Thailand and Vietnam. Meanwhile, projects like the Luang Prabang dam, boasting an installed capacity of 1,460 megawatts, underscore the country’s ambitions to develop hydropower further.Revenues from power exports have become a vital component in Laos’ gross domestic product (GDP), contributing almost 15%, as per a report from October 2022.

OKX collaborates with Polygon Labs on layer-2 network launchSeychelles-incorporated OKX, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, has collaborated with blockchain development firm Polygon Labs to unveil the testnet for its latest zero-knowledge layer-2 network, named “X1.”Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashIntroducing “X1”The company announced initial details on X1 via a press release published on Tuesday. This Ethereum-based ZK network has been constructed using the Polygon Chain Development Kit (CDK), with OKX playing a pivotal role as a core contributor to the CDK. Substantial engineering resources are being invested by OKX to strengthen the Ethereum scaling solution.The new network will serve to bolster the utility of OKX's native token, OKB. OKB will be used for X1’s gas fees. There has been a lot of chatter about the utility of exchange tokens following the collapse of FTX, as that platform was over-reliant on its native token in propping up the exchange. Similarly, critics are speculating that a comparable dynamic may be at play at Binance, relative to its native token BNB.Likely buoyed by news of this development, OKB observed a 10% unit price increase on Tuesday. However, that move has retraced downwards in the meantime.ZK proof technologyX1 has been designed with ZK proofs, a method through which one party can convince another that a particular claim is true without disclosing details of the claim itself. In this way, X1 ensures high security and scalability while mitigating transaction costs. The network seamlessly aligns with Ethereum, facilitating the secure deployment of EVM-based dApps and connectivity with a wide array of smart contracts, wallets and tools. OKX underscores X1’s status as its new native network.Chief Innovation Officer of OKX, Jason Lau, expressed optimism about X1, deeming it integral to the firm’s efforts in guiding users into the realm of Web3. Lau emphasized the scalability and accessibility of X1, especially for developers who can leverage it to construct user-friendly Web3 applications while maintaining interoperability with other networks.The collaboration with Polygon Labs marks another milestone in the evolution of Polygon’s CDK. Launched in August, the CDK enables the development of layer-2 blockchains on Ethereum, emphasizing zero-knowledge proofs. Networks deployed using the CDK gain the ability to connect to a shared ZK bridge, fostering interoperability.Sandeep Nailwal, co-founder of Polygon, underscored the significance of X1’s adoption of Polygon CDK technology, envisioning a future where CDK-deployed chains interoperate and coexist within a larger network of ZK-powered layer 2s in the Polygon CDK ecosystem. The CDK has gained traction, with various Layer 2s, including Immutable zkEVM, IDEX, Palm Network and Astar zkEVM, currently in development using this technology.Industry trendA trend is developing among crypto exchange platforms and their involvement in establishing layer two networks. Earlier this year, U.S. crypto platform Coinbase introduced the Base network, an Ethereum layer-2 network that focuses on offering a safe, low-cost and developer-friendly mechanism to build on-chain.Last week, it emerged that another leading U.S.-based crypto platform, Kraken, is on the lookout for a development partner to enable it in building out its own layer-2 blockchain network. According to those reports, it’s understood that Kraken is considering partnering with Polygon Labs, Matter Labs or the Nil Foundation.As this OKX-Polygon Labs collaboration progresses, the industry will continue to observe how X1, with its innovative technology stack and seamless integration with Ethereum, contributes towards broader Web3 development.