Argentina joins the list of countries against Worldcoin

Worldcoin has recently come under the scrutiny of various governments. Last week, Kenya’s Ministry of the Interior suspended the operations of Worldcoin, and later, the Kenyan police raided the Nairobi warehouse of Worldcoin on Saturday, confiscating documents and machines.

Now, authorities in Argentina have become the latest government officials to probe the cryptocurrency project Worldcoin over privacy concerns.

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Here is all you need to know about Worldcoin; the proof of personhood project

Also, the fascinating legal tussle between the SEC and Ripple took a new turn this week. The regulatory firm seeks to appeal against the ruling that selling XRP to retail investors does not classify it as a security.

Here are major crypto stories from around the world this week.

Binance gets approval in El Salvador 

On Tuesday, Binance secured two licenses to provide crypto-related services to residents of El Salvador. The licenses include a Bitcoin Services Provider License (BSP) and a Digital Assets Services Provider (DASP) from El Salvador’s Central Reserve Bank and the country’s National Commission of Digital Assets.

These new licenses will let Binance offer custodial services, process crypto payments, provide digital wallets, and operate a crypto asset exchange platform within the Central American nation.

Being the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender, El Salvador has long displayed a pro-crypto stance.

Argentina opens investigation into Worldcoin 

In a Tuesday announcement, Argentina’s Agency for Access to Public Information (AAIP) said it was investigating Worldcoin over its collection, storage and use of customer data to ensure it complies with security and privacy regulations. 

According to the announcement:

“Citizens have the right, whenever personal data is provided, to have clear and accessible information in relation to the assignment, use and purpose for which the data is collected and processed, especially with regard to sensitive data, such as biometric data.”

Prior reports have said Germany’s Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision announced an investigation over privacy concerns, while the French National Commission on Informatics and Liberty called the project’s data collection methods “questionable.”

Read also:

Kenyan police raid Worldcoin warehouse in Nairobi

Also, we reported earlier in the week that Kenyan police raided a Worldcoin property, seizing equipment that may have contained user data.

Coinbase launches blockchain

One of the prominent crypto exchanges in the space, Coinbase, has launched its native blockchain called Base. 

The layer-2 blockchain, which went live for public access on Wednesday, aims to reach 1 billion people through decentralised applications (DApps) built on blockchains.

The network launch enables users to transfer Ether between the Ethereum mainnet and Base, and with this, Coinbase has joined the likes of public firms, such as IBM and Microsoft, that have launched their blockchain networks.

SEC to appeal Ripple ruling 

In a court filing on Wednesday, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it will file an “interlocutory appeal” of a judge’s ruling on Ripple’s programmatic sales of XRP.

Recall that a federal judge ruled last month that while Ripple’s direct sales of XRP to institutional investors violated securities law, its programmatic sales to retail investors through exchanges did not. But now the SEC is appealing that decision:

“Specifically, the SEC seeks to certify the Court’s holding that Defendants’ ‘Programmatic’ offers and sales to XRP buyers over crypto asset trading platforms and Ripple’s ‘Other Distributions’ in exchange for labor and services did not involve the offer or sale of securities under [the Howey test].”

Telegram launches custodial wallet 

On Wednesday, TON, a blockchain system created by Telegram, announced the launch of its self-custodial crypto wallet TON Space, which would be integrated into the prominent messaging app.

TON Space aims at facilitating Web3 adoption by offering the whole user experience entirely within Telegram Messenger. Developers can build apps, integrate the blockchain, and onboard users without leaving the platform.

By integrating the crypto wallet, Telegram, which has always emphasised privacy and security, is now officially entering the Web3 space. 

That is all from us this week. See you same time next week!