Argentina’s Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship Minister Diana Mondina has announced that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies can now be used in contracts and payments in Argentina.

Ethereum’s Cancun-Deneb upgrade, also known as Dencun, is set to begin testing on January 17, first being applied to the Goerli testnet before being added to Sepolia on January 30. Ethereum’s developers haven’t yet announced when it will be launched on the mainnet.

Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has said it successfully registered as a Virtual Asset Services Provider in France, which allows it to offer a “full suite of retail, institutional, and ecosystem products and services.”

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Argentina Starts Allowing Contracts to Be Settled in Crypto
• Ethereum’s Dencun Upgrade’s Testnet Launch Set for January 17
• Coinbase Secures Virtual Asset Services Provider License in France
• Crypto Market Movers – ICP, HNT, INJ

Argentina Starts Allowing Contracts to Be Settled in Crypto

Argentina’s Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship Minister Diana Mondina has announced that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies can now be used in contracts and payments in Argentina.

The move comes as part of the government’s new “Bases for the Reconstruction of the Argentine Economy” decree, which doesn’t specifically mention cryptocurrencies but opens the door for their use by allowing payments in non-legal tender currencies.

Mondino emphasized the flexibility of the new policy, stating that not only Bitcoin but also other cryptocurrencies could be used for settling contracts, before adding the decree also allows for payments in unconventional units such as milk and meat.

One of the key features of this decree is its emphasis on freedom of choice in currency for financial transactions, including bonds or security deposits. The decree was launched after Argentine President Javier Milei, who once described Bitcoin as a step towards returning monetary control to the private sector, took office.

Ethereum’s Dencun Upgrade’s Testnet Launch Set for January 17

Ethereum’s Cancun-Deneb upgrade, also known as Dencun, is set to begin testing on January 17, first being applied to the Goerli testnet before being added to Sepolia on January 30. Ethereum’s developers haven’t yet announced when it will be launched on the mainnet.

The Dencun upgrade introduces various tools meant to lower transaction fees, enable new functionalities for bridges and staking pools, and restrict the use of self-destruct operations on smart contracts.

Developer documents details that Dencun will include Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4844, known as “proto-danksharding.” EIP-4844 will allow layer-2 rollup networks like Arbitrum, Basen and Polygon zkEVM, to temporarily store certain transaction data.

Ethereum’s developers believe that proto-danksharding will significantly reduce layer-2 transaction fees. It will be coupled with EIP-1153 that introduces a “transient storage” system to further help reduce transaction fees, as well as EIP-4788 to increase transparency.

Dencun also includes EIP-6780, which limits the use of the self-destruct keyword to erase the code of a smart contract and return funds to its deployer. With Dencun, self-destruct only erases code if called in the same transaction as deployment. It still sends funds to the deployer if called in a future transaction.

Coinbase Secures Virtual Asset Services Provider License in France

Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has said it successfully registered as a Virtual Asset Services Provider in France, which allows it to offer a “full suite of retail, institutional, and ecosystem products and services.”

The announcement came during the same day in which stablecoin issuer Circle said it was granted conditional registration from France’s Financial Markets Authority (AMF), as the country continues to draw in cryptocurrency businesses.

Coinbase's registration in France opens the door for various services, including  digital asset custody, fiat currency transactions, and digital asset trading. This move aligns with France's proactive approach to fostering a crypto-friendly environment, in contrast to the more uncertain regulatory landscape in the U.S.

The exchange also has licenses elsewhere in the European Union, including an e-money license in Ireland and a registration in Spain.

Crypto Market Movers – ICP, HNT, INJ

Several tokens are leading the charge in the last 7-day period. Some of these are well-known cryptocurrencies with more liquid trading pairs, so we’ll be focusing on these over low-cap cryptos that may have higher percentage changes.

Internet Computer (ICP) - The Internet Computer (ICP) token is a native token that is used to power the Internet Computer protocol. The ICP token is an essential part of the Internet Computer protocol as it serves as the underlying fuel for the protocol’s network and incentivizes participants to build and maintain the network.

Helium (HNT) - Helium is a decentralized, global network designed to provide long-range wireless coverage for Internet of Things (IoT) devices. The Helium Network is made up of Hotspots, which are hardware devices that anyone can install to build out this wireless network.

Injective (INJ) - By utilizing the Cosmos SDK, Injective can achieve instant transaction finality via the Tendermint proof-of-stake consensus framework. Moreover, Injective can quickly facilitate cross-chain transactions across the most significant layer one networks, like Ethereum and Cosmos Hub.

State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

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