Japan to test potential central bank currency; Curve's NFT aids London theaters

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Digital currency

The Bank of Japan's committee on central bank digital currencies has met for the first time, and an initial test is scheduled to start during the spring. The committee wants to ensure stability for settlement and payment systems. Its document did not provide details, but there are concerns globally that CBDCs could adversely impact traditional bank deposits.

Pressure is increasing on governments to consider CBDCs as China's digital yuan approaches launch and the Facebook-affiliated Diem nears its debut. In the U.S., Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently said a "digital dollar" or CBDC could improve payment access and safety for consumers without bank accounts.

The BOJ is already part of a multinational CBDC group that includes central bankers from Canada, the U.K., Switzerland and other nations to determine how digital currencies will work in different jurisdictions.

Bloomberg

Independence

The European Council has endorsed several payment projects within the EU, including real-time payments and improved interoperability among systems.

The EC, which includes political leaders from EU states, praised initiatives that foster development of cross-EU payment systems that decrease dependency on "major global players."

The EC did not name specific projects, but initiatives such as the European Payments Initiative are attempting to streamline the EU's fragmented payment markets, making it easier to compete with Visa and Mastercard.

Taking the stage

All-in-one card firm Curve is jumping into the NFT craze through a charitable art auction that will fund London's theater community.

Curve placed digital images of characters on Rarible.com, a cryptocurrency marketplace, reports LondonNewsTime. The proceeds from the NFT will go to the Theater Support Fund, which supports an industry that has been largely shut down during the pandemic.

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, have existed for several years, but have gotten a lot of attention lately due to high-profile art auctions and the participation of pop stars.

Building block

Lightspeed Ventures, partners of DST Global and VY Capital have invested $300 million in Blockchain.com, which comes just a month after it raised $120 million. The investments push the London company's valuation to $5.2 billion.

Blockchain.com has benefited from the jump in cryptocurrency, reporting a 300% increase in active users in the past 12 months, according to Finextra.

Blockchain.com plans to use the funding to add staff and pursue merger and acquisition opportunities.

From the web

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