PRICE CHANGE: WTD/YTD

- BTC ($10,327): -1% / +176%
- ETH ($190): +5% / +42%
- LTC ($71): +1% / +133%
- XRP ($0.26): 0% / -26%
- Crypto Market Cap ($265B): 0% / +112%
- BTC Dominance: 69%

THIS WEEK IN CRYPTO

- North Korea will be holding its second cryptocurrency and blockchain conference next February. The first conference was held in April 2019 and attracted 100 people. North Korea has said US citizens are welcome and that internet access would be available to users who want to bring digital devices. Link. 

- The Libra Association, the non-profit behind the Libra cryptocurrency, announced the stablecoin would be launched by the end 2020. The stablecoin will be backed by a basket of currencies, including the US dollar, euro, Yen, pound sterling and Singapore dollar. Notably, China's currency, yuan, will not be a part  of the basket. The Libra Association expects to work  closely with regulators ahead of the launch, particularly on issues related to money  laundering and terrorist financing. Link. 

- Germany's government  is expected to pass legislature this month  that will ban private stablecoins from existing in the country, including Facebook's upcoming Libra cryptocurrency. Link.

- France's Finance Minister said Libra would be blocked in Europe because the digital currency is too risky and threatens sovereignty. He encouraged governments to launch their own public currencies, and said he had already discussed the idea with European Central Bank President Mario Draghi. Link.

- Coinbase is launching a fund to support developers building decentralized financial services on the blockchain. The USDC Bootstrap Fund will invest USDC tokens directly into protocols, providing liquidity for new Decentralized Finance (DeFi) projects being developed such as lending protocols and derivatives built on top of a blockchain. The first two investments include $1 million in USDC to Compound and $1 million to dydx. Link.

- SM Entertainment, one of Korea's top-three pop talent agencies, is planning to build its own blockchain network with a native cryptocurrency that fans could use to invest in artists' work. SM Entertainment isn't the first company  to have proposed the use of blockchain tech in k-pop -- in late 2018 a platform called Ko-fun announced plans to create digital coins for individual acts, such as BTS Coin. Link.

- Binance US will begin accepting account registrations and cryptocurrency deposits starting September 18th with support for six assets at launch: BTC, ETH, XRP, BCH, LTC, and USDT. Link.

- Dapper Labs, the firm behind the CryptoKitties, raised $11.2 million in a new round of financing from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, DCG, and Warner Music Group. Dapper Labs has raised $39 million to date. Investors in this new round will receive an equity stake in Dapper Labs, with an option to convert their stake into the native token of a new blockchain they are launching called Flow. Dapper Labs has raised $39 million to date. Link.

- Dapper Labs announced the development of Flow, a new blockchain built to support mass adoption of consumer-facing games, apps, and digital collectibles at scale. Some of the types of experiences Flow will support include: artists that can give crypto tokens to their fans; games that reward players for adding value and enable interoperability with assets and identities that users can take across environments; or platforms for sports fans around the world  to trade verified, authentic, limited-edition digital memorabilia in real-time. Flow is expected to launch in 2020. Link.

- Staked, a staking startup backed by Pantera and Coinbase, is launching a service to automate finding high-yield opportunities for investors. The new Robo Advisor for Yield (RAY) service is a set of smart contracts that automatically move users' assets to the cryptocurrencies with the highest staking yields. At launch, RAY supports DeFi protocols Compound, dydx, and bzx. Link.

- UMA, a DeFi smart contracts platform, launched a platform to create tokens that can track the price of any asset, from foreign exchange rates to stock prices. Called Synthetic Token Builder, the platform accepts DAI as collateral and enables users to mint tokens that follow various price indices. Users can trade these tokens without having to own the underlying financial assets. Link.

- US based crypto exchange Gemini, founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, is launching a new qualified custody unit which will allow investors to instantly trade certain cryptocurrencies from offline storage. In total, it will custody 18 assets: BTC, BCH, ETH, LTC and 13 ethereum-based tokens including BAT. The custody landscape has become increasingly competitive and companies are increasingly beefing up their services to win assets: Coinbase expanded its offering by acquiring Xapo's institutional arm; new players like Anchorage and Fidelity Digital Assets are targeting institutional investors; and BitGo partnered with Genesis Global Trading on same-day settlement from cold storage. Link.

- Philippine boxing champion Manny Pacquiao has launched his own cryptocurrency, called "Pac". Fans can use Pac to buy Pacquiao's merchandise and interact with him via social media. Link.