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Forbes - Going for gold 🥇

Good Wednesday morning. This is Billy Bambrough with what you need to know from the world of bitcoin and crypto.
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24-hour crypto market snapshot
Bitcoin (-1%) $46,058
Solana (-2%) $167.78
Is this thing on? 🤖
It's another quiet day on cryptocurrency markets with traders waking up bitcoin and other major crypto prices almost exactly where they left them. Bitcoin and ethereum are both down around 1%, while solana and terra's luna are leading the major market lower, down 2% and 4% respectively.

Well outside of the top ten, 2020 crypto darling chainlink has surged 6% though it's not clear exactly why. The oracle platform's link cryptocurrency has been falling steadily down the charts over the last 18 months after rocketing into the top ten during the summer of 2020.

Look out today... for the minutes of the Federal Reserve's December meeting that may give markets direction.

Now read this: Goldman says bitcoin $100,000 a possibility by taking on gold
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China launches e-CNY apps 📱
China's digital yuan, or e-CNY, on display at a Bank of China booth during the 4th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai last year
China's digital yuan, or e-CNY, on display at a Bank of China booth during the 4th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai last year VCG via Getty Images
Olympian effort: China has begun rolling out an early version of an app for iPhones and Android devices that allows users to hold and pay in digital yuan, also known as e-CNY. The news, first reported by the South China Morning Post, comes as Beijing is gearing up for the Winter Olympics next month where the e-CNY is expected to be used in stores and venues.

Don't call it a crypto: The e-CNY isn't a cryptocurrency in the same sense as bitcoin or ethereum as it is neither decentralized nor does it use a blockchain. It will have "controlled anonymity," according to Deutsche Bank research out in July last year, meaning users can choose to conceal their identities from some but authorities will be able to monitor transactions in any way they choose.

Why it matters: The e-CNY was developed by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) to replace banknotes and coins, giving the government unprecedented control over spending and insight into economic trends. The e-CNY, in development since around 2014, is physical cash converted into a digital form and the first large-scale central bank digital currency (CBDC). Similar digital dollars and e-euros are in the works and will likely take inspiration and learn lessons from the e-CNY. A direct central bank to consumer digital payments system will likely cause severe disruption to the commercial banking space and further demand for non-governmental or non-corporate alternatives.

How it works: Distribution of the digital currency will take place using a two-tier system that transfers e-CNY from the PBOC to commercial banks. Banks will then distribute the currency directly to consumers, according to CNBC.

The best of the rest: The e-CNY is up against China’s two dominant digital payment apps—Ant Group’s Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat, both of which are regularly used by almost everyone in the country. But this isn't a fair fight. China has been promoting the e-CNY with The Verge news site pulling together reports of lotteries, distributing a total of 10 million digital yuan (worth about $1.47 million at the time) to people in Shenzen in October 2020, 20 million digital yuan (or ~$3 million) in Suzhou in December 2020, and 40.2 million digital yuan (or ~$6.2 million) in Chengdu in February 2021.

The bottom line: China is demonstrating the importance of bitcoin and other non-governmental forms of digital payment.

Now read this: The NFT craze has stopped being funny
R3 warning ⚠️
✊ Regulators need to get a better grip on the crypto space according to the chief executive of blockchain banking consortium R3, who is apparently "extremely worried" that "painters and plumbers" are talking to him about their crypto portfolios.

🗣️ "The Federal Reserve and other central banks, they’re looking at how they can use this technology to bring efficiency to the marketplace. [But] when you examine cryptocurrencies, that kind of crosses this invisible line," R3 cofounder David Rutter told Financial News. "I don’t believe in getting-rich-quick schemes. I’m shocked, given my experience, that the regulators haven’t been more proactive."

🏦 R3 was founded in 2015 by a consortium of banks including Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse and JPMorgan. Its platforms Corda and Conclave, which use the same blockchain technology underlying cryptocurrencies, have been adopted by innovation projects inside a number of the world’s largest banks and financial institutions.

Good to know: Crypto payments top Airbnb user requests
hello world
Billy Bambrough
Forbes Senior Contributor
I am a journalist with significant experience covering technology, finance, economics, and business. I write about how bitcoin, crypto and blockchain can change the world.
Follow me on Twitter or email me.
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