Today in Crypto: Bank of Canada Opens Public CBDC Consultation, Solana’ Saga Phone Available for Orders, 32% of Family Offices Investment in Digital Assets, Binance NFT to Support Bitcoin Ordinals

Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
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CBDC news

• The Bank of Canada wants the public’s opinions on a potential digital Canadian dollar. A digital Canadian dollar is currently not needed, said the press release, and any decision to issue one rests with Parliament and the Government of Canada. However, “as Canada’s central bank, we want to make sure everyone can always take part in our country’s economy. That means being ready for whatever the future holds,” said Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers. The consultation runs until June 19.

Wallet news

• Solana Mobile announced that the Saga Android phone is now available to the general public for orders. Users can now utilize a simplified Web3 experience with Seed Vault, a self-custody solution that protects keys through biometric authentication and encryption, said the announcement. With the Solana decentralized app (dapp) Store, Saga users can access dapps without having to interact and sign transactions through their desktop web browser, it added.
• SafePal, a non-custodial crypto wallet suite, has integrated Klaytn, a Layer 1 blockchain platform, supporting its native assets and established dapps as part of expansion plans into South Korea. SafePal will be looking to integrate dapps such as Klayswap, DeFi Kingdoms, Pala, Kleva, and Swapscanner for users to access diverse Web3 verticals, said the press release, and it will also potentially be looking to add Korean to its available languages. “The move comes strategically for the wallet firm after growing from 8 million to over 10 million users this year,” it added.

Investment news

• 32% of family offices currently hold investments in digital assets, according to a Goldman Sachs report titled “Family Office Investment Insides”. This includes cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized finance (DeFi), and blockchain-focused funds. Family offices “have become more decisive about cryptocurrencies: the proportion that are invested has risen from 16% in 2021 to 26%. However, the proportion that are not invested and not interested for the future has risen from 39% to 62% and those that are potentially interested for the future has fallen from 45% to 12%,” the report explained.

NFT news

• Binance NFT Marketplace will soon support Bitcoin Ordinals (aka Bitcoin NFTs), said the press release. It already supports NFTs on Ethereum, Polygon, and its native BNB Chain. “The integration of the Bitcoin network will further elevate Binance NFT to a multi-chain, open marketplace ecosystem, where users can explore and trade a wider variety of NFTs across multiple blockchains from their Binance accounts,” it added.

DeFi news

• MakerDAO, a DeFi lending protocol and the creator of DAI stablecoin, announced the official launch date of Spark Protocol, a MakerDAO-centric decentralized application. Starting from May 9, Spark Protocol will serve as the underlying infrastructure for Spark Lend, a decentralized lending marketplace for supplying and borrowing crypto assets with a focus on DAI, it said. One of the contributors to Spark Protocol is Phoenix Labs, a research and development company that aims to introduce new decentralized products to the MakerDAO ecosystem, it added.

Gaming news

• Layer 1 blockchain Concordium and mobile game XONE announced “a partnership that brings web3 security and identity solutions to the entertainment industry,” said the press release. The native XONE token is being developed for launch later this year following Concordium’s CCD Interoperability Standard (CIS-2), “ensuring regulatory compliance and applicability for it both on the XONE platform and across Concordium´s ecosystem DeFi protocols.” It will power and unlock more experiences on the XONE platform, allowing users to purchase virtual goods and collectibles and access virtual events, it added.