A new Circle–Aleo stablecoin project highlights the growing demand for privacy features as firms weigh blockchain use against the risks of transparency. Stablecoin issuer Circle is developing a privacy-enhanced version of its US dollar-pegged USDC token, aiming to spur institutional adoption by offering greater confidentiality than traditional public blockchains allow. The new stablecoin, called USDCx and targeting banking and enterprise users, is being built in partnership with the privacy-focused blockchain company Aleo, Fortune reported on Tuesday, citing Aleo co-founder Howard Wu. Unlike most existing stablecoins, which have wallet addresses and transaction details fully visible onchain, USDCx is designed to provide “banking-level privacy.” Circle would still be able to provide a compliance record if law enforcement or regulators request information on specific transactions, according to the report. Read more
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday termed his meeting with the Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto “extremely productive and gratifying”, as the two pledged to expand bilateral trade ties. Speaking during a ceremony held for the signing of several memoranda of understanding between Indonesia and Pakistan, PM Shehbaz detailed the pair’s discussions and said, “What we have decided is […] to promote our bilateral trade, culture, interact in the field of medical health, education, and vocational training.” He assured the Indonesian president that Pakistan would “work closely” with Indonesia to achieve the decided targets. The premier noted that Pakistan’s current bilateral trade with Indonesia stood at $4.5 billion, out of which more than 90 per cent accounted for palm oil imports. “We have discussed how to take corrective measures to balance this balance of trade through agricultural exports from Pakistan, through exports of IT-led initiatives,” adding that the “trade gap” can be filled in many other are...
“Our staffs are exhausted,” said the Wyoming senator at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit on Tuesday, speaking on the progress of the crypto bill. Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, a member of the US Senate Banking Committee and one of the most prominent proponents for addressing digital asset market structure in Congress, said she wants to take the next step in advancing the bill sometime next week. Speaking at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit on Tuesday, Lummis said she anticipated that the markup hearing for the Responsible Financial Innovation Act — the Banking Committee’s version of market structure — would happen before Congress broke for the holidays. The senator said the crypto industry “was getting a little concerned” about the progress of the bill, adding that drafts were “changed so much every few days” during bipartisan discussions. Read more