Bitdeer appoints Jihan Wu as new CEO

Ripple and the Republic of Palau Collaborate to Mint First PSC StablecoinIn a groundbreaking partnership, the Republic of Palau has teamed up with Ripple Labs to introduce its inaugural stablecoin, the Palau Stablecoin (PSC).This occasion was shared by Jay Hunter Anson, the Director of Palau’s Digital Residency Program and a member of Palau’s Ministry of Finance, who took to Twitter on Wednesday to shed light on the collaboration between the Palau National Treasury and Ripple Labs.The event unfolded at the National Capitol in Ngerulmud, Palau, where representatives from both the Palau National Treasury and Ripple gathered to celebrate the successful launch of the Palau Stablecoin. Anson emphasized that this marks a significant step in their joint exploration of the stablecoin’s potential use cases within the Micronesian island nation.Photo by Kanchanara on UnsplashReducing payment costsPalau’s Ministry of Finance initiated the Stablecoin project to address specific needs within the nation’s financial landscape. By sponsoring this project, the ministry aims to reduce payment costs within the Republic of Palau and enhance access to financial services, especially for underserved communities and various socio-economic groups, utilizing digital solutions.Notably, the Palau Stablecoin operates on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), demonstrating Ripple’s technology as the backbone of this financial initiative.Anson’s tweets also shed light on the meticulous approach taken in developing the Palau Stablecoin. Controlled and limited PSC pilot tests have been conducted to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of the solution co-designed with Ripple. These pilot experiments provide valuable insights into the stability and usability of the Palau Stablecoin before its potential public release.Extensive testingAlready, the Palau Stablecoin pilot program has seen volunteer users actively participating in the testing phase. Videos shared by Anson on Twitter showcased smooth transactions at partner vendors in Palau, promptly confirming the transaction receipts.The successful implementation of the Palau Stablecoin pilot program has drawn attention from the XRP community, and anticipation is building for the official joint press release scheduled for July 27, Thursday morning in Ngerulmud, Palau, as Anson revealed.The collaboration between Ripple and the Republic of Palau was initiated at the end of 2021, with launch originally scheduled to take place in 2022. Ripple has claimed to be in dialogue with in excess of twenty governments relative to enabling central bank digital currency (CBDC) issuance.Given that the island state lacks a functioning central bank and the US dollar is recognized as the primary medium of exchange throughout the country, the creation of a USD-backed stablecoin is a significant achievement resulting from the national stablecoin initiative. The president described this as a “step towards our own central bank digital currency.”There has been plenty of activity in Micronesian nations relative to cryptocurrency in recent times. Tonga is understood to be considering introducing bitcoin as legal tender. The Marshall Islands is considering issuing a CBDC although it is being discouraged by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in that endeavor. Meanwhile, the government of Vanuatu announced its support for the Satoshi Island project.With a strategic focus on addressing financial needs and enhancing accessibility within Palau, this partnership sets the stage for a new era of digital financial solutions for the Micronesian nation.

Shares in Moon Inc. (formerly HK Asia Holdings Limited), a publicly listed Hong Kong-based firm that acts as an investment holding company while engaged in activities such as wholesale and retail sales of prepaid products such as SIM cards, have surged following the company’s symbolic purchase of one Bitcoin (BTC).Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash93% share price increaseThe stock (1723.HK), which is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), closed at HKD 5.50 following Monday’s trading. That represents a 93% increase compared to the closing share price following the previous day’s trading. The share price has settled somewhat following Tuesday’s trading, pulling back 16% to HKD 4.60. However, it jumped again on Feb. 21, closing at HKD 6.48. Bitcoin adoptionIt’s believed that the stock has been influenced by a decision taken by the company to adopt Bitcoin. The firm bought just one Bitcoin. However, the move has led to speculation as to whether Moon Inc. will become the MicroStrategy (now rebranded as “Strategy”) of China.  Michael Saylor’s Strategy has pioneered the use of Bitcoin as a corporate treasury asset. The company has positioned itself as the frontrunner in terms of the corporate adoption of Bitcoin. The company has amassed 471,000 Bitcoin within its reserves. This accounts for 2% of all Bitcoin. With Strategy’s Bitcoin playbook having been well documented, other companies now appear to be following its lead.  In recent weeks, Metaplanet, a Japanese Bitcoin treasury company, has demonstrated that it is pursuing the same strategy, outlining its ambition to build a reserve of 21,000 Bitcoin by 2026. On Feb. 18, it announced a 10-to-1 stock split in an effort to improve liquidity while executing on that overall Bitcoin treasury goal. Metaplanet shares have surged 3,900% over the course of the past 12 months on the back of its Bitcoin treasury pivot. On Feb. 16, Moon Inc. announced the purchase of its first Bitcoin at a unit price of $96,150. In a statement, the company said that the purchase was financed by way of the firm’s “internal resources.” An evolving global financial landscapeThe company’s board noted the increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies in the commercial world, with particular emphasis on the use of Bitcoin as an investment portfolio asset. It believes that Bitcoin acts as a dependable store of value. It added: “The Board believes that this initial investment is symbolic in scale, and marks a significant step toward aligning with the evolving global financial landscape, and would diversify the Group’s investment portfolio and enhance its asset value.” The company’s stock rose significantly last month when details emerged of a 70% stock position in the firm, taken by UTXO Management, in collaboration with Sora Ventures and other investors. Recently appointed board member John Riggins of BTC Inc. said that this recent Bitcoin purchase by Moon Inc. “is more than a transaction.” He stated, “It’s a bold step toward creating a vision for the future of the company.”

Stables Money, an Australian platform that claims to be on a mission “to make stablecoins usable for everyday use,” has partnered with Philippines-based digital assets platform Coins.ph to use the latter’s peso-pegged stablecoin (PHPC) for remittances. Peso-denominated stablecoinIn a press release published to the Coins.ph website on Aug. 28, the firm laid out details of the deal. PHPC is a retail stablecoin which is backed by Philippine peso-denominated cash reserves and pegged to the peso on a 1:1 basis. The stablecoin was launched by Coins.ph in July.  It’s an ERC-20 token which runs on the Ethereum virtual machine (EVM)-compatible Ronin blockchain network. The stablecoin was accepted into the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ regulatory sandbox in May.Photo by Aeron Oracion on Unsplash$35 billion in remittancesThe Philippines has always been seen as a lucrative remittance market due to the high number of Filipinos who work outside of the country, sending funds home to family on a regular basis. In 2020, remittances back to the Philippines from overseas were just shy of $35 billion, according to data from the World Bank. It appears that Australia’s Stables Money has identified this opportunity, with the company entering the Philippine market back in March. The Philippine peso already accounts for over 25% of all outward transactions sent via the platform. Stables Money CEO Bernardo Bilotta spoke to the opportunity that the company is trying to exploit. He stated: "Recognizing the Philippines as a key player in global remittances, we expanded to deliver smooth PHP transactions. With 28.44% of our send transactions now in PHP, this move highlights our commitment to making cross-border payments hassle-free for those sending money to the Philippines.” Coins.ph has the intention of engaging in further industry partnerships in an effort to expand the reach of PHPC. That will mean additional collaborations with crypto exchanges, digital asset wallet providers and those financial institutions who are increasingly delving into the world of stablecoins. Commenting on this latest development, Wei Zhou, Coins.ph CEO, stated:”We’re encouraged to see growing adoption of PHPC among our user base. Our partnerships with Stables and Ronin underscore the vast potential of PHPC in cross-border transactions, trading and other financial activities.” Stables has also made efforts to expand through the use of Circle’s USDC stablecoin. Last month, it partnered with global payments card platform Mastercard in a collaboration which facilitates Stables users in purchasing goods using USDC at locations across 27 European countries where Mastercard is accepted. The firm’s partnership with Mastercard dates back to March 2023 when it entered into a similar collaboration relative to the Asia-Pacific region. Previous peso-based stablecoin projectsCoins.ph is not the first entity to try and drive adoption of a Philippine peso-based stablecoin. The Southeast Asian country’s UnionBank launched a similar product back in 2019. However, the product failed to find product-market fit and ultimately, it was withdrawn from the market. The company tried once again in 2022, attempting to launch a similar product through its digital bank subsidiary UnionDigital, in an effort that seems to have failed. More recently still, UnionBank subsidiary company UBX launched a peso-based stablecoin on Polygon back in March.