Qatar’s Central Bank Didn’t Properly Enforce Its Crypto Ban, Money Laundering Watchdog FATF Says

“There are major inconsistencies between Qatar’s risk profile and the type and extent of terrorist financing activity prosecuted and convicted,” added FATF, a Paris-based global watchdog, which seeks to monitor and mitigate flows of dirty money, including through a controversial “travel rule” requiring the identification of participants in crypto transactions. Source

Macy’s Shares Drop after Reporting Mixed Q1 2023 Earnings and Lowered Its Full-Year Outlook

Macy’s noted that Nike will return to its stores, starting from October this year. Macy’s Inc (NYSE: M), an American conglomerate holding company that engages in consumer goods, released its first-quarter earnings results on June 01. According to the announcement, Macy’s reported net sales of $4.98 billion during the first three months of the year (Q1 2023), which represented a decline of approximately 7 percent YoY basis. However, analysts surveyed by REFINITIV expected the company to report revenue of about $5.04 billion during the first quarter. Notably, the company noted…

ECB President Says Euro Zone Inflation Still ‘Too High’ as Rate Falls Lower than Expected to 6.1%

Inflation in the Euro zone has fallen to 6.1% as individual countries are also recording reductions. However, Lagarde plans more rate hikes. Euro zone inflation has dropped in May, with a steeper plunge than analysts and observers expected. Flash figures show that headline inflation, which was 7% in April, fell to 6.1% in May. This is the lowest recorded figure since February 2022. According to a Reuters poll, economics had set the May figure at 6.3%. Core inflation, minus food and energy, also fell from 5.6% to 5.3%. The general sentiment in…

Apple Likely to Launch Two Mac Products at Upcoming WWDC

Apple is focused on overhauling the Mac line with the new computer as well as attracting more customers, especially now that there is a static stretch in the computer industry. There are suspicions that American multinational technology giant Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) will be launching two highly anticipated Mac models in the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference  (WWDC) which will be held next week. These rumors are stemming from the fact that the technology company has begun the testing process of two desktop Macs that are equipped with M2 Max and…

ChatGPT can’t beat human smart contract auditors yet: OpenZeppelin’s Ethernaut challenges

While generative artificial intelligence (AI) is capable of doing a vast variety of tasks, OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 is currently unable to audit smart contracts as effectively as human auditors, according to recent testing. In an effort to determine whether AI tools could replace human auditors, blockchain security firm OpenZeppelin’s Mariko Wakabayashi and Felix Wegener pitted ChatGPT-4 against the firm’s Ethernaut security challenge.  Although the AI model passed a majority of the levels, it struggled with newer ones introduced after its September 2021 training data cutoff date, as the plugin enabling web…

First Digital Group Launches FDUSD Stablecoin amid Hong Kong’s Regulation Move

FDUSD will not be used in Hong Kong until its stablecoin regulations are fully in place. First Digital Group announced the introduction of its USD stablecoin FDUSD. The company, which has its headquarters in Hong Kong, is launching the stablecoin on the Ethereum and BNB blockchains. Having a coin on multiple blockchains can facilitate better interoperability and broader adoption. It also heightens the chances of gaining access to a wider community and benefiting from each blockchain’s advantages. Lastly, this can also reduce the risk of over-dependence on one blockchain. The…

Georgian central bank to launch AML probe into crypto firms

Georgia, a major cryptocurrency-friendly country among Post-Soviet states, is preparing to start monitoring crypto firms to prevent money laundering and comply with sanctions. The National Bank of Georgia plans to launch mandatory supervision of virtual asset service providers (VASP) starting Sept. 1, 2023. NBG’s acting governor Archil Mestvirishvili said that the new regulatory measures will help the country combat money laundering, the local news agency InterPressNews reported on May 31. In line with Anti-Money Laundering considerations, the upcoming VASP probe is expected to increase the country’s compliance with Western sanctions…

Increasing number of divorce proceedings involve crypto

Most crypto investors probably aren’t thinking about divorce or what will happen to their digital assets in the event of separation, but lawyers say it’s becoming a very common scenario as more people hold crypto assets.  Last year, market research firm GWI suggested that as much as 10.2% of global internet users aged 16 to 64 own crypto, with most ownership skewed toward nations experiencing high inflation or fluctuation in the value of their national currency. Independent data and statistics tracker World Population Review suggests the divorce rate worldwide varies…

Fine art on Solana, AI music, podcast + book reviews – Cointelegraph Magazine

BitCulture explores arts, culture, music and media in blockchain and Web3. Fine art on the blockchain Exchange.art head curator Haley Karren came to Web3 from some of the world’s leading art institutions and says that working with 14,000 artists on Solana’s fine art marketplace has broadened her tastes.  Exchange.art head curator Haley Karren (Supplied) “I have a new appreciation for pixel art, voxels and things that really are very much native to this space. It’s been fascinating to see the difference between what I was more interested in two years ago…