The blockchain industry is moving at a breakneck pace. Every week, dozens of stories worldwide show how blockchain technology, digital currencies, tokenization, and related technologies are being tested, piloted, and used to create game-changing solutions.
The following is a roundup of some of the most significant stories in blockchain for the week ending on February 21. Last week saw one of the biggest exchange hacks in history, several stablecoin stories, and some significant moves by governments and institutions.
The Bybit Hack: $1.4 billion gone in minutes
Over the years, CoinGeek has covered some massive hacks in the digital currency industry. However, the Bybit hack story is the biggest one in history.
According to initial reports, $1.4 billion worth of ETH and other tokens were drained from the United Arab Emirates UAE-based exchange. Details are still sparse, but according to Bybit, the attacker altered the smart contract logic and gained control of the cold wallet.
The technical details don’t matter that much; what’s most important is that, once again, we have seen how unsafe centralized exchanges are. Unlike banks, users are not covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and similar safety nets. While Bybit claims it has the funds to cover the loss, users can only wait and hope that’s true.
More news on stablecoin projects
Stablecoins have been in the headlines since U.S. President Donald Trump ordered his government to form a working group and craft regulations governing them. Multiple bills have been introduced and are currently being hashed out by lawmakers.
This week saw more noteworthy stablecoin news. Brazilian FX bank Braza announced it had launched a Brazilian Real (BBRL) stablecoin. The public pilot for Nigeria’s regulated stablecoin cNGN also went live, proving naysayers within the country wrong.
Stablecoins continue to be the killer app in the blockchain space. With private banks and governments across the globe launching them seemingly every week, we’ll likely continue to see a relentless uptrend in stablecoin adoption in the months and years to come.
Tokenized bonds and private credit funds
At the beginning of 2024, BlackRock (NASDAQ: BLK) CEO Larry Fink said the tokenization of everything is coming. As far as financial products go, it looks like he was right.
This week, Thailand announced it will launch a $148 million tokenized government bond. Thai Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira said the government will issue 5 million baht ($149,548) worth of bonds directly to the public by September 30. The trial will allow retail investors to participate, and they can buy and sell any amount of the digital bond platform.
In other news, global investment management firm Invesco (NASDAQ: IVZ) partnered with Singapore-based DigiFT to launch a tokenized private credit fund. It’s one of many asset managers engaging with tokenization after the BlackRock BUIDL fund was launched in March 2024.
Announcements from Hong Kong, Israel, and the ECB
In Asia, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) published a 12-point roadmap to establish itself as a global digital asset hub. The plan involves speeding up exchange licensing, prioritizing over-the-counter (OTC) and custodian services, increasing investor protection, and crafting adaptive legislation.
In the Middle East, the Bank of Israel released the results of a survey gauging interest in a digital shekel central bank digital currency (CBDC). 51% of respondents expressed high or intermediate interest. 21% responded with very high interest (10), while 16% responded with very low interest (1). Unlike in many other countries, privacy was not a concern. Instead, respondents saw cybersecurity and inaccessibility for the elderly as the biggest concerns, while usability and convenience were the most significant upsides.
In Europe, the European Central Bank (ECB) announced a two-track DLT settlement plan for wholesale CBDC settlement. A temporary settlement platform will be introduced in the coming months, followed by a more integrated platform. The long-term solution will support international transactions and foreign exchange settlement.
These stories, all in just one week, show how blockchain technology, DLT, tokenization, and digital currencies are changing the world one trial and experiment at a time. It was always about utility, and with public blockchains like BSV now reaching one million transactions per second (TPS), thanks to Teranode, it’s only a matter of time before it all comes together on a single, scalable public ledger.
Watch: Tokenovate milestones unveiled at the London Blockchain Conference
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