The last full week of March 2023 brought about several important news related to the cryptocurrency, metaverse, and non-fungible token (NFT) sectors. Aside from that, numerous reports were released about the state of crypto adoption in certain parts of the world while new bills were introduced as part of ensuring regulations are strictly adhered to.
Overall, it was reported that Disney has scrapped its metaverse division while the United Kingdom (UK) has also put on hold plans for a government-backed NFT.
Additionally, lawmakers in the European Union (EU) made efforts to push new rules on anonymous transfers related to cryptocurrencies which continues to contribute to the numerous hacking, scamming, and industry-wide cybercriminal activities.
Despite the perception that men make more money than women in cryptocurrency trades, a new survey in Singapore showed otherwise. Below, JPEX takes a look at the details behind the essential news during the last week of the third month of 2023.
Walt Disney Got Rid of Its Metaverse Division
The metaverse has been one of the most talked about sectors of the emerging blockchain technology and crypto economy and a vital part of the transition from Web2 to Web3.
Unfortunately, the metaverse has not been fully embraced by billions of people largely due to the complex processes involved, especially, the sums involved in buying equipment (AR and VR devices).
During the week, Wall Street Journal, a credible news outlet in the United States reported that Disney has laid off its entire metaverse division of about fifty (50) workers.
Although the media giant had made plans such as consumer experiences, theme park events, and fantasy sports among others, it has failed to come up with a comprehensive plan on how it could use the metaverse to improve its standing in the entertainment industry.
The news sent shockwaves across the metaverse world as well as the crypto economy. MATIC, the novel token of the popular layer two (2) scaling solution, Polygon, shed a significant part of its value.
This was due to the negative effect of Disney’s metaverse staff dismissal as a result of its association with Polygon.
In 2022, Polygon was named among six (6) companies to facilitate Disney’s Accelerator Program.
United Kingdom (UK) Backtracks from the Creation of Government-Backed NFT
NFT has been one of the most patronized aspects of the blockchain technology-powered economy. Its extensive use case is what led executives of the United Kingdom government to consider the creation of a national-backed NFT.
On Monday, March 27, it was widely reported that after months of consideration, the government has finally decided to drop the NFT project.
According to Jeremey Hunt, Finance Minister, the demand for NFTs has gone down substantially and this played a major part in the kingdom putting the creation of a government-backed token on hold.
Despite the relatively lower monthly volumes being recorded as global NFT market sales, the entire digital art market has still surpassed $50 billion in all-time sales volume.
Only time will tell if the United Kingdom or another country will lead the global adoption of non-fungible tokens.
Singapore Women Make More Money from Crypto Trades than Men
A new survey by the Independent Reserve, a cryptocurrency exchange has debunked the notion that men are more likely to see returns, yields, or gains from their crypto trades than women, according to findings from Singapore traders.
After polling 1,500 Singapore residents, the Independent Reserve found that while 72% of men made gains or broke even, 76% of women reported seeing the same developments in their trades.
Another area where women improved significantly was in the area of crypto ownership.
In 2021, around 35% of female participants said they owned crypto.
While this number dropped to 30% in 2022, the number increased to 37% in 2023. Unlike gains from crypto trades, men led the number of crypto owners from the survey.
EU Lawmakers Propose a Cap on Anonymous Transactions
The need for privacy is the primary reason why crypto was created and the main point in billions of people moving away from government-issued e-currencies to privacy coins such as Dash (DASH), Zcash (ZEC), and Monero (XMR) among others.
While this was supposed to be one of the best ways to rekindle people’s relationships with the use of cash online, cybercriminals have taken advantage of the anonymous nature of crypto transactions to steal billions of dollars from innocent people.
This is the primary reason why lawmakers in the European Union are pushing for stricter rules on anonymous transfers involving the use of cryptocurrencies.
This legislation will help combat terrorism financing (CTF) as well as fight money laundering.
Overall, a maximum of €1,000 has been proposed for anonymous transfers to gradually reduce the amount of money being moved from one wallet to the other.
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