F|T: The FinTech Times – Why Bank of Canada’s Ron Morrow Says FinTechs ‘Must Be Ready’

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Bank of Canada’s Ron Morrow: FinTechs ‘must be ready’ for upcoming retail payments regulations (BETAKIT)

The Bank of Canada will soon regulate entities that facilitate retail payment functions in Canada, including FinTech firms of various sizes, domestic and foreign.

“It’s not often that the Bank of Canada gets a new mandate, and it’s not often that you get a blank slate to work from.” Said Ron Morrow, Executive Director of Retail Payments Supervision at the Bank of Canada.

Galaxy Digital closes acquisition of BitGo (THE BLOCK)

“Galaxy remains positioned for success and to take advantage of strategic opportunities to grow sustainably,” Mike Novogratz, CEO and founder of Galaxy Digital, said in a release. “We are committed to continuing our process to go public in the US and provide our customers with a first-class solution that truly makes Galaxy a one-stop shop for institutions.”

Venture capital returns to pre-pandemic levels, Q2 2022 CVCA report shows (BETAKIT)

The economic slowdown is leading to investment themes similar to early 2020, as investors were cautious about deploying capital and concentrating on their existing portfolio companies.

Crypto.com laid off 260 employees – then let go hundreds more (THE VERGE)

“We were assured that the layoffs would affect 5 percent, only 260 employees,” a source with close knowledge of the situation told The Verge. “People in the company recently noticed many employees disappearing from our internal lax or scheduled meetings.”

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Losses from crypto hacks surged 60% to $1.9 billion from January to July, Chainalysis says (REUTERS)

“DeFi protocols are uniquely vulnerable to hacking, as their open source code can be studied ad nauseum by cybercriminals looking for exploits, and it is possible that the protocols’ incentives to reach the market and grow rapidly lead to a lapse in security best practices,” said Chainalysis in a blog.

How startups can survive a market downturn (BETAKIT)

Katy Yam, Partner at Real Ventures and GM of Founder Fuel, Peter Fishman, Co-Founder and CEO of Mozart Data, and Ethan Ruby, Analytics Partner at Craft Ventures all talked about how the right data can help startup leaders make survival decisions in a downturn.

Wait, when did everyone start using Apple Pay? (WALL STREET JOURNAL)

Patience is not the most popular virtue in Silicon Valley, where companies want to move fast and break things, the motto that defined the age of technology excess. It took longer than expected for the iPhone to become a wallet. But Apple’s patience is slowly paying off.

Samsung revealed as the most active investor in blockchain since September (COINTELEGRAPH)

In a blog published by Blockdata that was updated on Wednesday, the tech company was revealed to have participated in funding rounds for 13 companies, including climate technology venture Flowcarbon, Bored Apes Yacht Club issuer Yuga Labs, blockchain gaming company Animoca Brands and Axie Infinity owner Sky Mavis.

As Other Lenders Collapse, Ledn Bets Conservative Approach Will Help Startups Survive Crypto Winter (BETAKIT)

“What has become clear after everything that has happened is that not everything [crypto] lending platforms are created equal, Ledn co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) Mauricio Di Bartolomeo told BetaKit in an interview.

“When times are good, you don’t ask the right questions,” Di Bartolomeo said. “And when times get bad, it’s unfortunately too late to ask the right questions.”

Social Media Was a CEO’s Bullhorn, and How He Lured Women (THE NEW YORK TIMES)

After responding to questions earlier in the day from The New York Times, Mr. Price tweeted that he was stepping down Wednesday night as chief executive of his company, Gravity Payments. He wrote that he had become a “distraction” and needed to “focus full time on fighting false claims about me”.

Crypto firm FTX gets warning from FDIC to stop ‘misleading’ consumers about deposit protection (CNBC)

“Based on evidence collected by the FDIC, each of these companies made false representations — including on their websites and social media accounts — suggesting or implying that certain crypto-related products are FDIC-insured or that stocks held in brokerage accounts are FDIC-insured,” said a regulator in a press release.

Talk of Regulation, Market Conditions Collide with Sparkling Behavior at the Blockchain Futurist Conference (BETAKIT)

The setting allowed attendees to rent corporate cabanas, relax by a pool, park yachts outside and use a local helicopter service to fly in. One of the conference’s global attendees was overheard saying that they had recently rented a $5 million Airbnb for their company.

OSFI limits crypto exposure for Canadian banks, insurers (BNN BLOOMBERG)

Financial institutions must notify the Office of the Financial Conduct Authority if their gross exposure to Type 2 cryptoassets — which under the regulator’s definition is likely to include most cryptocurrencies — exceeds 1 percent of their Common Equity Tier 1 capital, the regulator said on Thursday. .

Sequoia India-backed Digit Insurance files for $440 million IPO (TECHCRUNCH)

The five-year-old startup, which sells auto, health and travel insurance, is part of a group of firms trying to expand the number of individuals in India buying insurance coverage.