Today in Crypto: Xapo Bank Enables Non-US Members to Invest $10 in S&P 100 Stocks, Nym Technologies Reveals NymVPN Upcoming Launch and Info

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Investment news

Bitcoin and stablecoin custodian and licensed private bank Xapo Bank announced the launch of a new Stocks investment feature within the new ‘Wealth’ section of its mobile application, expanding accessible investment options for its non-US members by allowing them to invest in S&P 100 stocks from anywhere in the world. According to the press release, non-US members can now make fractional or whole investments in over 100 blue chip stocks with as little as $10 and automatically collect dividends with stocks that offer these benefits. There are no hidden fees, and all transactions will incur a 1% fee, with regulatory fees where applicable, it said. In the near future, a host of additional stocks and investment options may also be added. Xapo Bank offers members an annual interest rate of 4.1% on USD deposits and 1% on bitcoin deposits, it added.

Blockchain news

Nym Technologies, the open-source, incentivized, and decentralized privacy system backed by the Binance Labs and a16z, announced the upcoming launch and more information for its NymVPN in Q1 2024. “This brings together a decentralized VPN and a mixnet on the same network to offer users the highest level of privacy and security for all their online activities,” a press release said. Built on a decentralized network, NymVPN leverages blockchain technology and a mixed network to offer a comprehensive, unified security solution, it added. In conjunction with this launch, Nym will also be releasing the VPN lightpaper.
Referral marketing and engagement hub Buddy Link announced its official global launch at the Solana Breakpoint conference held in Amsterdam. Built on the Solana network, Buddy Link has opened the platform to businesses and users worldwide for sign-up. It is built on a fully on-chain referral and attribution infrastructure and offers businesses a way to engage and retain customers through white-labeled acquisition and retention tools such as referrals, loyalty systems, and gamification tools. On the user side, anyone can use it as a discovery hub to find referral and loyalty programs. Since its initial stealth launch to a closed user base five months ago, Buddy Link has completed five successful integrations, linked over 2,000 users, distributed over $100,000 in rewards, and seen more than $1 million in marketplace volume generated by its user community, the announcement said. One of the decentralized applications that has already integrated with Buddy Link is the Web3-based grand strategy game Star Atlas.

Web3 news

Domain and digital identity platform Unstoppable Domains joined hands with Web3 Compass to simplify and change how people browse the decentralized web, according to an announcement. Unstoppable Domain offers Web3 domain names for true ownership, while Web3 Compass simplifies navigation and search inside content hosted on decentralized networks. Web3 Compass, a solution crafted by the Web3 development company Blockstars.tech, fully indexes everything that is on the Web3 network, including decentralized websites, providing users with relevant and accurate search results. “Our goal is to add the missing part to web3, just as Google did for Web2. Without it, web3 site building would be entirely unusable,” said Artyom Harutyunyan, Web3 Compass co-founder. From now on, when a user buys an Unstoppable Domain and connects a decentralized website to it, everyone can find it on Web3 Compass easily, the companies said.

Banking news

Global crypto bank SEBA Bank launched earlier this year a partnership with St.Galler Kantonalbank (SGKB), Switzerland’s fifth largest cantonal bank, to enable digital asset custody and brokerage services for SGKB’s clients. Per the press release, after a short implementation time, the SGKB’s service is now live. This partnership enables the bank’s clients to integrate cryptocurrencies into their existing investment portfolios seamlessly. SGKB is launching custody and trading services for bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) to a select group of clients, with plans to expand its offerings to additional cryptocurrencies based on client demand, it said.

NFT news

Non-fungible token (NFT)-based fantasy game and marketplace Sorare announced the auction of the only 1-f-1 Unique Victor Wembanyama card. Wembanyama is a French professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). There have been 39 bids placed by the time of writing, with ETH 18.5 ($33,934) offered. The auction closes today. The card will have an enhanced 3D design and increased interactivity through integrated AR technology, new features launched as part of Season 2 of Sorare’s NBA fantasy game. The 19-year-old Wembanyama is the first Frenchman ever to be selected as the first overall draft pick and only the second-ever European. He leads in points scored and defensive steals and tackles among rookies through the season’s first week and is one of the most-watched talents in the league, the announcement said.

Exchange news

Bitfinex announced that it is now available in Vietnamese, opening up the platform to 87.1 million Vietnamese speakers across the globe. According to the press release, the exchange is committed to localizing its platform for customers around the world. With Vietnamese customer support, users can trade up to 200 different digital assets, 400 spot pairs, and over 60 perpetual trading contracts, and obtain access to margin funding on Bitfinex’s markets. Information on how to use the platform and benefit from its features is also available in Vietnamese. This is the eighth language to be supported on Bitfinex, following English, Russian, Spanish, traditional and simplified Chinese, Portuguese, and Turkish, it said.