Each week, we bring you the most important cryptocurrency and blockchain news. After all, you need to stay informed to succeed in the market.

Today we will talk about the implementation of the digital yuan, an NFT from the Hermitage, the tightening of US legislation on cryptocurrencies, the legalization of the blockchain in Cuba, the new crypto development from Microsoft and more.

Chinese banks will start using the digital yuan to buy financial products

Chinese state-owned banks China Construction Bank and Bank of Communications will test the use of the digital yuan to purchase financial products, that is, services and turnkey solutions. If the project is successfully completed, the currency will be incorporated into investment instruments.

Banks are not the only entities interested in expanding the digital yuan to domestic markets. China Construction Bank's partners include, for example, the e-commerce service JD.com and the Shanghai Tiantian Fund Distribution platform, which offers financial services. The companies are confident that the innovation will be useful to customers: to date, both pioneering banks have processed $ 3.4 billion in digital yuan transactions.

The digital currency is planned to be put into circulation by 2023. According to predictions, its functionality will be fully launched during the Olympic Games in Beijing. The Chinese government is currently working on a mobile payments network that will track foreign investors using the digital yuan.
The Hermitage and Binance create an NFT with digital copies of painting masterpieces

The collection was named “Your token is stored in the Hermitage”. Users will be able to purchase copies of works by da Vinci, Van Gogh, Kandinsky, Monet and Giorgione.

Each coin will be presented in two identical copies. One of them will be stored in the museum, and the second will be sold on the Binance NFT marketplace. Digital copies were signed by the General Director of the Hermitage, Mikhail Piotrovsky; information about the date, time and place of the signature will be available to token holders.

The minimum coin value is set at approximately $10,000. The deal will have to be executed in Binance's local currency - BUSD, whose value is almost equal to the USD exchange rate. The money received for the tokens will be transferred to the Hermitage.

Biden's administration plans to earn $300 billion from the crypto market

The US financial intelligence service is confident that American citizens are laundering funds through cryptocurrency. Because of this, the Ministry of Finance demands to disclose the accounts of foreign companies that trade crypto on American exchanges and to de-anonymize users who own blockchain wallets.

If the regulator's proposal is accepted by Congress, it will become more difficult for Americans to evade taxes by using firms operating in other countries’ jurisdictions. In addition, the government will be required to disclose information about American citizens holding accounts with foreign brokers. The bill could come into force in 2023 and will apply to major cryptocurrency exchanges and services like Coinbase and Gemini. As a result, lawmakers will be able to collect about $300 billion in taxes.

Experts suggest that the Finance Ministry's proposal is directly related to the need to find funds for the Biden administration’s projects. In the near future, the country plans to launch programs for childcare, sustainable energy production, vacation payments and medical procedures. From this point of view, the attention to unpaid taxes is understandable.

Electric Car Manufacturer Launches App That Will Allow Drivers To Earn Cryptocurrency

The service will be available to owners of Zhiji Auto IM electric vehicles, which will go on sale in 2022. Alibaba has already invested in the development.

To earn crypto, car buyers will need to enter information about each new kilometer of the car's mileage into the app. As a reward, users will receive the Stone digital currency, half of which will be burned every 4 years. When the mileage exceeds 5 thousand kilometers, its owner will be able to exchange Stone coins for a smart driving system, additional battery capacity or other services from the manufacturer.

Cuba will allow the use of digital assets as legal tender

From now on, it will be possible to buy almost any goods for blockchain tokens – however, the central bank has yet to determine how crypto service providers will be licensed.

Still, coin owners don’t have to worry about the bright future of crypto right now. Blockchain in Cuba is likely to be on par with the US dollar used for domestic payments. However, there is no need to talk about the complete freedom of the crypto sector, since payments with tokens will only be available in case of state control. It’s not yet clear whether the law will affect Cuban crypto exchanges, which have processed payments exceeding $350,000 in 2020 alone.

Microsoft users will be able to create their own tokens and smart contracts

The company has patented a technology that allows it to create and manage coins and smart contracts using different networks and platforms. The development will also be available to legal entities.

Soon, users of this technology will be able to issue universal tokens representing physical or digital assets and transfer them to trusted persons. Each action will be recorded on the coin's blockchain. The basis for the development of the service, according to the patent, will be Ethereum, Quorum, Hyperledger Fabric, Chain Core and R3 Corda.

This development is not Microsoft's first foray into the world of cryptocurrencies. In March 2020, the company applied for a patent registration for a system that tracked the actions of users by implementing the obtained data to mine tokens. Until September 2021, Microsoft owned the Azure Blockchain service, which provides businesses with the power to use crypto technologies. Projects created on this site are not destroyed, but transferred to the software of the developer, ConsenSys.