Crypto News: Gemini, Ethereum, Walton, Vechain, Monaco, Funfair (2nd-12th of September) Gemini Launches the Gemini dollar On 10th of September an exchange Gemini has annouced Gemini Dollar (GUSD): a trusted and regulated digital representation of the U.S. dollar that moves in an open, decentralized manner like cryptocurrencies Gemini dollar — a stable value coin (often called a “stablecoin”) that is: issued by Gemini, a New York trust company, strictly pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar, and built on the Ethereum network according to the ERC20 standard for tokens. Users will be able to convert U.S. dollars in their Gemini account into Gemini dollars and withdraw them to an Ethereum address they specify. They will also be able to automatically convert Gemini dollars into U.S. dollars by depositing them into Gemini account. This makes it the first stablecoin that users can buy today and convert to USD whenever they desire. Ethereum Updates A month ago there were more details released about Ethereum 2.0. On 7th of September they released additional information. Ethereum 2.0 combines these key projects: Beacon Chain: a side proof of stake chain that is the base of the sharding system and aiming to improve Ethereum scalability. Sharding: involves splitting the network into many tiny partitions called shards, and each shard contains independent pieces of transaction data. Casper: partial consensus mechanism combining proof of stake algorithm research and Byzantine fault tolerant consensus theory. eWASM: eWASM is being developed as a replacement to the EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) and will make a significant difference to how many transactions can be processed and subsequently added to a block Seems like despite price struggles Ethereum's future looks bright. Waltonchain updates Waltonchain has released some updates this week. On 3rd of September Walton Blockchain Institute together with Korean Standards Association had the first lecture of the six-month course in Walton Blockchain Insititute after an entrance ceremony. On 4th of September Waltonchain has announced the official release of Waltonchain White Paper 2.0 which is a periodic report of the technologies and applications related to the innovative Value Internet of Things (VIoT) concept proposed by Waltonchain. Last but not least on 5th of September Waltonchain annouced partnership with Dongdaemun Fashion Town to initiate its first implementation of blockchain + RFID solution in South Korea. Dongdaemun Fashion Town is the largest fashion district in South Korea. There are more than 35,000 stores in the fashion town and they will look into usage of Waltonchain which is very bullish for the project. Vechain Updates On 2nd of September it was annouced that People’s Insurance Company of China (PICC) entered into a partnership relationship with DNV GL and VeChain to bring digital transformation to the insurance industry. PICC is worth $126 billion and will look into blockchain technology for digital transformation, resulting in reduced turnaround time, premiums, prevent fraud and improve KYC compliance and claim experience. On 3rd of September they have also announced a partnership with BYD which is the world’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles and batteries, and the global leader in battery-electric buses. BYD has around 220k employees and revenue of $8.5B in 2013 This will be the first enterprise level application moving the data of millions of cars, buses, trains, and other vehicles onto a public blockchain platform Monaco Updates On 6th and 7th of September Crypto.com has published some updates to their Monaco project. The cards are very close to being released in Singapore with more details to follow. They have also removed the monthly purchased limits and increased the weekly ones (they vary between $1.5k to $10k depending on the card). The app has also been updated and include system status page and more coin updates. Amongst other updates this month include: adding Litecoin to the wallet storage (along BTC, ETH, BNB and MCO), introduction of something called Crypto Invest which allows users to easily buy crypto with super low initial contribution, reduction of the fees to make sure Monaco stays competetive, team expansion and community Q&A. Seems like project is doing well and is one of the top crypto cards projects out there. Funfair Updates On 5th of September Funfair has released an update about how the project is doing. Live beta has continued on Mainnet with the team continuing to assess new features and implementations on the platform. Thanks to the Curaçao operating licence will allow the FunFair subsidiary to launch its live casino later this month. The team is also busy with recruitment and team expansion so overall Funfair seems to be doing well and leading the way in terms of blockchain gambling platforms. Not a financial advice.