Rotonda Signs Deal with The Sandbox for Blockchain Ecosystem Expansion

Indian Crypto Platform Mudrex Expands Operations in ItalyMudrex, the Indian cryptocurrency investment platform, has achieved a new milestone by successfully registering to operate in Italy.News of Mudrex’s move into the Italian market emerged via a press release published on Tuesday, as well as through an interview given recently by CEO and Co-Founder Edul Patel to CoinDesk. The expansion into Italy marks a rare international move for Indian crypto entities, which have faced challenges due to stringent taxation policies and the global crypto market’s fluctuations.Photo by Mathew Schwartz on UnsplashGlobal expansion planPatel unveiled Mudrex’s ambitious plan for global expansion, with half of the team actively working on international initiatives. The firm’s journey into the Italian market involved gaining approval for registration with Italy’s Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM), a crucial step for crypto firms operating in the country. This registration, granted on September 1, was a strategic move that the company had been carefully planning. Patel explained:“We just wanted some time to pass after the approval before we made the news public.”Coin Sets and thematic indexesDespite having only one million registered users, Mudrex stands out as one of India’s largest crypto platforms. It offers a unique investment approach, focusing on index investing through Coin Sets, an innovative alternative to speculative trading. These Coin Sets encompass various categories, including small, mid, and large-cap assets, as well as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Additionally, Mudrex provides thematic indexes that cover layer one and layer two solutions, NFTs, metaverse projects, and Dow trackers.“While India is our home and where we initially grew, our international customers have told us that investment products in their regions lack diversity,” Patel noted. “We believe that our product is unique and offers distinct advantages.”Mudrex was established in 2018 in Bengaluru while also establishing an office in San Francisco. Alongside Patel, its other Founders included Alankar Saxena as CTO, Rohit Goyal in the role of VP of DeFi, and Prince Arora as VP of Engineering.In 2021 it raised $2.5 million in funding with a view towards launching crypto mutual funds and ETFs. It followed that up in 2022 when it raised $6.5 million in a pre-series A funding round, supported by Y-Combinator, Arkham Ventures, and Tribe Capital.The firm participated in what has become a crypto platform trend over recent months by incorporating an AI chatbot into its platform in June to assist platform users when it comes to learning about crypto.Lithuanian trading licenseMudrex’s expansion into Italy was facilitated by the company’s prior fulfillment of EU operating requirements. The company had obtained a license in Lithuania less than a year ago, enabling it to navigate the EU regulatory landscape efficiently. During the six months of pursuing registration in Italy, Mudrex’s presence in the EU grew substantially, with user numbers increasing from approximately 5,000 to 17,000.With its foothold established in Italy, Mudrex now seeks to make its investment products accessible through various registered entities, including banking partner apps. Patel confirmed ongoing discussions with potential partners, further signaling the company’s commitment to expanding its global footprint.

Raon Whitehat Launches Cloud-Based NFT Wallet for OmniOne MarketplaceSouth Korean tech security firm RaonSecure announced Thursday that its subsidiary Raon Whitehat has launched a cloud-based NFT wallet service on the OmniOne NFT marketplace, specializing in utility NFTs that are backed by tangible assets like gold.Photo by C Dustin on UnsplashMore secure and convenientUsers can easily create an account for the OmniOne NFT cloud wallet by entering a username and password. This cloud-based solution offers advantages over mobile app-based NFT wallets, which can present occasional inconveniences. In scenarios involving app deletion, device change, or device loss, one faces the cumbersome task of reinstalling the application and going through the authorization process again. In contrast, the cloud wallet provides a more seamless experience. NFTs are securely stored in the cloud and can be accessed from any device, requiring only the recollection of a username and password.Transferring NFTsIndividuals who have NFTs stored within their current app-based NFT wallet can create a new cloud wallet account and proceed to transfer their NFTs from the existing app-based account to the new cloud account by utilizing the “Send as Gift” feature.RaonSecure CEO Lee Soon-hyung announced that users are now able to store their gold-backed NFTs, purchased from the OmniOne NFT marketplace, in the cloud wallet. He explained that this development addresses the issue of potential NFT asset loss due to app deletion or device loss.Furthermore, Lee emphasized that Raon Whitehat is dedicated to introducing more innovative services in the future. These services will prioritize user convenience and security, specifically in the storage of diverse digital assets like NFTs and certification badges.

Chinese Prosecutors Issue Warning on NFTsIn recent days, China’s top procuratorial agency, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate of China, issued a warning alongside some guidelines on non-fungible tokens (NFTs).The Supreme People’s Procuratorate is the highest office in China charged with the mandate of upholding legal integrity, safeguarding citizens’ rights, and where necessary, conducting criminal investigations. In a statement published on Monday, the agency set out an advisory, together with additional recommendations, pertaining to NFTs.Photo by Markus Winkler on PexelsNFT status in ChinaWhile all and sundry are aware of a multi-year crack-down by the Chinese authorities on crypto in recent times, exemplified by a ban on crypto trading and the operation of crypto mining facilities within the country’s borders, the status of NFTs has been discussed to a much lesser degree.NFTs remain legal within the country. When the crypto trading ban came into play in 2021, much of the local industry connected with that trading activity disappeared. However, in its place, a newly emergent trend came to the fore in the form of NFTs. With cryptocurrencies perceived as being high risk and sanctioned by the authorities, attention turned to NFTs and there has been a surge of adoption of the digital collectibles within China as a consequence.NFT risksThe procuratorial agency highlighted a number of attributes as well as risks in relation to NFTs in the report that it published. The agency finds the issue of ownership of NFTs as a troublesome one. It cites the fact that NFTs can be replicated and distributed at will on this basis as being particularly problematic. The legitimacy of the right source of the work itself is the decisive factor for the healthy and orderly development of digital works NFT transactions,” it states.It appears that the agency, like many in traditional professional circles before them, have a difficulty recognizing the model of asset ownership that NFTs incorporate. That ownership is not defined by civil law or in accordance with centralized systems but by simply the possession of the requisite private key pertaining to a given NFT within a decentralized system.Blockchain, not cryptoThe agency acknowledged that NFTs do present a novel application of blockchain technology. This is not surprising as while there might be an ongoing clampdown on decentralized cryptocurrencies in China, officials at a national level and in numerous instances within regional administrations, are demonstrating a strategy of leveraging blockchain technology for the betterment of the Chinese economy in the future.Public prosecutor Wang Xia-fen, one of the authors of the report, stated: “It’s widely recognized that digital collectibles have the potential to protect intellectual property rights, boost content creation and enrich the digital economy.” Wang encouraged public prosecutors to “find the distinction between real innovation and criminal activities” where NFTs are concerned.The upshot of its report though, is that the procuratorial agency is uncomfortable with the similarity of many of the attributes of NFTs when compared with decentralized cryptocurrencies. It issued a warning on that basis, emphasizing a need for risk assessment to be carried out and further consideration of the legal risks that are implicated.