Last week in review: Goldman Sachs CEO backs efficiency of blockchain technology

While crypto prices continued to recover after the fallout of the Terra ecosystem, mainstream adoption maintained an upwards trajectory with a number of positive stories appearing from across the globe. 

In the music space, Spotify made headlines with an announcement that its platform will allow artists to display and sell NFTs and while Bitcoin mining remains outlawed in China, mining data revealed it’s still the second biggest contributor to Bitcoin hashrate globally. 

Meanwhile, the CEO of Goldman Sachs sent shockwaves through the financial sector in an interview where he spoke of the potential of blockchain technology to disrupt financial infrastructure.

In a less surprising turn of events, the UK’s financial conduct authority announced that it would be investigating the collapse of the Terra ecosystem as part of its plan to roll out new crypto regulation.

As always, there is never a dull moment in crypto. Here are our picks of last week’s top headlines.

Spotify is trialling NFT promotion

What

Spotify is testing a new feature on its platform that allows artists to display and sell NFTs

Why 

The music streaming service state the test is part of an ongoing effort to improve artist and fan experiences

What next

Spotify’s move follows other apps such as Instagram and Twitter that are attempting to engage their users through NFTs

Read the full story here

China’s spectacular rise back to 2nd largest Bitcoin mining hub globally

What 

Despite a ban on mining in the country, China accounted for 21% of the total Bitcoin hashrate in January 2022, second only to the US, which contributed 37.84%

Why 

Last year’s data by the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (CBECI) showed zero mining activity in China shortly after the crypto ban, but it turns out this period of zero activity may only have lasted for two months

What next 

Mining in China has evidently increased considerably since the Mining Migration last year, perhaps signalling a return of hashrate power to the People’s Republic 

Read the full story here

Goldman Sachs CEO backs efficiency of blockchain technology

What

Goldman Sachs Chief Executive spoke of the potential of blockchain technology to disrupt financial infrastructure in a recent interview

Why

This commentary marks the latest in the bank’s attempt to understand and meet customer’s demands for crypto 

What next

Despite being a legacy bank, Goldman Sachs continues to believe that Bitcoin and Gold can co-exist which stands in stark contrast to its industry peers

Read the full story here

UK financial regulator to investigate Terra collapse as part of new crypto rules

What

The UK’s financial regulator and its finance ministry, the Treasury will consider the collapse of the Terra ecosystem’s crypto tokens while creating new rules for crypto assets

Why 

In an interview with the Bloomberg, the FCA’s executive director confirmed that recent market instability in stablecoins will need to be taken into account when working with the Treasury to create new rules

What next

The UK will continue to work on a new crypto regulatory package and plans to create the rules later this year

Read the full story here

To catch up on other big stories from last week, be sure to check these headlines:

Grayscale launches its first European ETF

Regional central bank hampers the Central African Republic’s Bitcoin ambitions

6 Times Elon Musk Broke the Internet (And Crypto)

Ethereum’s Ropsten POS test merge to launch in June

The future of Block will be shaped by Bitcoin, Dorsey tells investors

Soul-Bounds (SBTs) Could Restore Trust in NFTs and Give Web3 its Soul