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Estate of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX abruptly bets more than $144 million on Solana (SOL)

Property belonging to now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX was just seen betting more than $144 million on Ethereum (ETH) rival Solana (SOL) as the company’s bankruptcy proceedings unfold.

According to blockchain explorer SolanaFM, the address associated with FTX and its trading arm Alameda Research created a new stake of 5,546,217.04 SOL tokens.

Analysis by pseudonymous on-chain researcher Ashpool suggests that FTX subsequently staked all the tokens through Figment, a digital asset staking service built for institutions. According to Figment, Robinhood, Binance.US and Anchorage Digital are also betting on the platform.

On Solana, bettors currently earn around 7% APY (annual percentage yield), depending on the betting platform, and rewards are distributed every two to three days.

FTX ownership already owns roughly $1 billion in Solana, but much of it is locked up until 2028 as part of its vesting schedule agreement.

Solana co-creator Anatoly Yakovenko said last month that if he had the power, he would prefer FTX’s SOL tokens to be given directly to customers of the failed exchange as part of a compensation plan.

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Visa Launches Bitcoin and Crypto Debit Cards in 40 Countries in Partnership with FTX

The partnership allows FTX Exchange users in 40 countries to easily spend their bitcoins and cryptocurrencies at any merchant that accepts Visa cards.

FTX is launching bitcoin and cryptocurrency-backed debit cards in 40 countries.

The exchange has partnered with Visa and will focus on Latin America, Asia and Europe.

Despite the bear market, Visa believes bitcoin holders still want to use BTC for payments.

Visa has partnered with one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, FTX, to launch bitcoin and cryptocurrency debit cards, according to a CNBC report.

The offer will be available to FTX users in more than 40 countries, with a focus on Latin America, Asia and Europe.

Visa, along with its competitors in the market, continues to assert that bitcoin and cryptocurrency users still want to use their holdings as a medium of exchange, even amid a bear market downturn.

“While stocks are down, there is still a steady interest in cryptocurrencies,” said Visa Chief Financial Officer Vasant Prabhu, according to the report.

Debit cards, which are already available in the US, simply connect to the FTX platform, allowing users to spend digital assets in their wallets without the need to withdraw assets from the exchange platform.

“We don’t have a position as a company on what the value of cryptocurrency should be, or if it’s a good thing in the long run — as long as people have things they want to buy, we want to make it easy.” said Prabhu.

Visa’s main competitor, Mastercard, has also partnered with several different companies to offer debit cards that support bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. American Express has also expressed interest in offering a similar product, though its chief executive said it likely wouldn’t be “any time soon”.

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South Korea’s second largest city, Busan, partners with FTX for a local exchange

The city of Busan, the second largest city in South Korea, commonly known as the ‘Blockchain’ city of South Korea, has partnered with major cryptocurrency exchange FTX to build a local exchange. Furthermore, the association also aims to promote the development of blockchain in the city.

Pursuant to the agreement according to a statement issued by the Busan Metropolitan City on Aug. 30, FTX will assist in the creation of a local cryptocurrency exchange duped by the Busan Digital Asset Exchange. The Bahamian cryptocurrency exchange led by Sam Bankman-Fried will also support the city of Busan in promoting the growth of the local blockchain industry.

Busan City Cryptocurrency Exchange

The city of Busan will leverage FTX’s technology and infrastructure to build its own cryptocurrency exchange and promote blockchain-specific education at local universities and projects within the city’s ‘Special Blockchain Free Zone’ established in 2019.

FTX, through its Investment Division CEO Amy Woo, said that it will establish a Korean branch of FTX in the city of Busan within the next 12 months to help make Busan a digital financial hub in Asia.

In addition to signing an agreement with FTX, Busan also partnered with Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange by turnover, on August 1. Binance has signed a memorandum of understanding to provide the city with infrastructure and technology support for its blockchain development effort.

Both FTX and Binance are expected to establish a presence in South Korea in the next 12 months.

Since Busan was designated as the Blockchain City of South Korea in 2019, several projects have already been launched. These projects include a proprietary blockchain-based identification system, a blockchain-powered driver’s license platform, and cryptocurrency support for various services.

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FTX expands to Europe with CySEC approval

Headquartered in Switzerland, FTX Europe will offer FTX products in Europe, including cryptocurrency derivative services.

Global cryptocurrency derivatives and spot exchange FTX is expanding into Europe after receiving approval from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).

The new company called FTX Europe would offer the main products of the company to European clients through an investment company licensed throughout the European Economic Area. The new European company is based in Switzerland, along with a regional headquarters in Cyprus.

Cyprus is seen as one of the renowned jurisdictions offering a regulated means for financial companies to access the European Economic Area. Therefore, FTX would also be able to offer its crypto derivatives products, which is a big step forward since Binance had to shut down all crypto derivatives products last year across Europe.

Sam Bankman Fried said that his new venture will “interact with regulators in various countries in Europe to continue to provide a safe environment for people to trade cryptocurrencies.”

Related: FTX CEO Assesses Bitcoin Market Outlook Amid Ukraine Crisis

The exchange claimed that its launch in Europe on a regulated basis would be key to its expansion in the region. The exchange aims to maintain interactions with regulators in various European countries to build a safe ecosystem for cryptocurrency trading. FTX did not respond to requests for comment from Cointelegraph at the time of publication.

The global cryptocurrency exchange, currently valued at $32 billion, is looking to expand its reach of services to new regions, as well as fund and build nascent cryptocurrency ecosystems, including gameFi and play-to-earn.

The global cryptocurrency exchange recently announced a $2 billion venture capital fund to support Web3’s development in social media, gaming, fintech, software, and healthcare.