The developments at Wirecard have brought an air of scandal to the news this week, as authorities continue to grapple with an apparent black hole in the company’s accounts. The mainstream global adoption of digital currency has hit the buffers following the arrest of founder Markus Braun in Munich, resulting in Wirecard services to the UK being halted.
This has affected large numbers of businesses and consumers tied to Wirecard products. In the digital currency sector, users of sites like Crypto.com, TenX, and CryptoPay unable to access funds. As a result, the firm has filed for insolvency, with losses thought to be in the region of $2.1 billion.
It was bad news this week for Facebook too, following a decision by authorities in Brazil to suspend new payment features for its WhatsApp app. Just a matter of days after the payment platform had been introduced in Brazil, WhatsApp was forced to switch it off, after authorities raised concerns about the impact on the mainstream financial and payment systems in Brazil.
By order of the Banco Central do Brasil, WhatsApp was told it was not permitted to run the service in Brazil, its second global market by user numbers. Chiming with the regulatory problems Facebook has experienced with its stablecoin Libra, the decision is the latest blow for the social media giant’s prospects in payments.
Things have been a little brighter in the world of Bitcoin SV, with the network continuing to go from strength to strength. MetaStreme this week conducted a record-breaking stress test on the Bitcoin BSV network, which was passed with flying colors, demonstrating sustained throughput at mass volume.
And South African payments startup Centbee announced customers in South Africa could now pay for subscription services like Netflix and Spotify through BSV.
Did you get a chance to catch the premiere of the CoinGeek RoundTable on July 1? If not, check out the expert panel discussion about transaction-based economic era here.
New to blockchain? Check out CoinGeek’s Blockchain for Beginners section, the ultimate resource guide to learn more about blockchain technology.
