This week, SpankPay, a crypto payment tool for the adult entertainment ecosystem SpankChain, has announced it is shutting down.
As a refresher, the adult content platform SpankChain is built on Ethereum, and through SpankPay, it powered cryptocurrency payments, enabling blockchain to do away with third-party intermediaries and unfair payment practices in the adult industry.
Also, after being arrested on Thursday in Montenegro, Do Kwon, the former CEO of Terraform Labs, has reportedly been charged with fraud by the United States.
Related post:
Terra founder Do Kwon arrested in Montenegro
Here are the major crypto stories from around the world this week
UAE launches CBDC strategy
After announcing its plans in February, the central bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has launched a new strategy to provide the infrastructure and technology for issuing its central bank digital currency (CBDC) called ‘digital dirham.’
According to the central bank’s press release on Thursday, deploying a digital version of the dirham, under ‘The Digital Dirham’ strategy, is part of the nine key initiatives in the country’s Financial Infrastructure Transformation (FIT) Program.
Per the announcement, the first phase of this strategy is set to take place over the following 12 to 15 months and includes three major pillars – the soft launch of mBridge for real-value cross-border CBDC transactions in international trade settlements; proof-of-concept (PoC) for CBDC bridges with India; and PoC for domestic CBDCs in wholesale and retail.
SpankPay shutdown
Ethereum-based adult entertainment platform SpankChain is shuttering its crypto payment processor, SpankPay, after losing its payment service provider Wyre in February and failing to find a new one.
Recall that in February, SpankPay revealed that its previous provider, crypto payment platform Wyre, had terminated its agreement to provide payment services to SpankPay, referring to “violations of any third-party payment processor or network rules.“
In a Monday post, SpankPay said this was a “targeted shutdown” by Wyre because its new payment processor “doesn’t work with the adult business.” SpankPay says since then, all attempts to find another service provided resulted in rejection due to it “being in the adult industry.” The company wrote in a Twitter thread:
“Operating SpankPay in a hostile banking environment has always been challenging, but the escalating attacks have become untenable for our small team and the niche market we serve,”
Despite the shutdown, the company assured users, “your money is safe, and we’ll get it to you as soon as possible.”
Florida Governor wants CBDC banned
Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, United States, has proposed a new bill to oppose central bank digital currency (CBDC). In a statement released on Monday, he stated that he wants to protect citizens from the surveillance and control of the federal government through a CBDC. Therefore he has proposed legislation to ban a national central bank digital currency.
Read also:
Telegram users can now transfer USDT swiftly through chats
If the legislation goes through, it would shield Florida residents from a global digital currency issued by a foreign central bank. According to the release:
“The Biden administration’s efforts to inject a Centralized Bank Digital Currency is about surveillance and control. Today’s announcement will protect Florida consumers and businesses from the reckless adoption of a ‘centralized digital dollar’ which will stifle innovation and promote government-sanctioned surveillance.”
He also addressed other states in the United States and appealed to them to adopt similar legislation by adding such prohibitions to their uniform commercial codes.
Do Kwon charged with fraud
Do Kwon has been charged with fraud by United States prosecutors in New York, just hours after he was reportedly arrested in Montenegro.
In a court filing signed by United States Attorney Damian Williams, the 31-year-old entrepreneur has been charged with eight separate counts, including commodities fraud, securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to defraud and engage in market manipulation.
Under the first charge, conspiracy to defraud, the US prosecutors claim to have jurisdiction over Kwon because he made a series of false and misleading statements during a TV interview that was transmitted to, among other places, the Southern District of New York, about the extent to which users had adopted the Terra blockchain.
The remaining four charges are related to a series of purportedly misleading statements about the effectiveness of the TerraClassicUSD stablecoin (USTC) to keep its peg with the US dollar, as well as Kwon’s alleged involvement in trading strategies that were designed to alter the market price of USTC.
OneCoin executive is now facing a jail term
On Tuesday, the United States Department of Justice charged Dilkinska, the fraudulent crypto scheme OneCoin’s former head of legal and compliance, with one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Each count carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison. Irina Dilkinska now faces up to 40 years in prison after being extradited from Bulgaria. Dilkinska allegedly aided in laundering over $400 million of OneCoin’s proceeds and, upon hearing of a co-conspirator’s arrest, destroyed incriminating evidence and sent incriminating messages.
According to the US Attorney Damian Williams:
“Irina Dilkinska, the supposed Head of Legal and Compliance for the OneCoin cryptocurrency pyramid scheme, accomplished the exact opposite of her job title and allegedly enabled OneCoin to launder millions of dollars of illegal proceeds through shell companies.”
You can read about the OneCoin scam here.
That is all from us this week. See you same time next week.
Technext Newsletter
Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!
