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đź’ĄCiti, Nasdaq-backed enterprise blockchain startup Symbiont enters Ch11 bankruptcyđź’Ą
December 12, 2022
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Symbiont, the U.S.-based enterprise blockchain startup, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy at the start of the month. The holding company is backed by the likes of Citi, Nasdaq Ventures and Broadridge, with Vanguard as one of its biggest clients. As of the middle of last year, it had raised $43 million in funding.

In December 2021 it went into production with a solution that automatically calculates margins for foreign exchange (FX) forward contracts, one of the solutions it developed in conjunction with Vanguard. It also created a blockchain platform for private market securities in association with Nasdaq and another for asset-backed securities. 

One of Symbiont’s biggest projects is with Lewis Ranieri, who popularized mortgage-backed securities. It involved creating a shared data solution to be used by the mortgage servicing industry, reaching the minimum viable product stage mid-last year. CEO Mark Smith claimed it would be the single largest blockchain application ever deployed with hundreds of thousands of lines of smart contract code.

Smith has a clear vision for Symbiont to address the inefficiencies in capital markets using blockchain by creating native golden records of assets on the Assembly blockchain. However, he believes the blockchain layer could become commoditized, so the company focused on developing vertically integrated solutions with its smart contract language.

The bankruptcy trigger 

According to the bankruptcy filing, the trigger was the inability to repay a loan from LM Funding secured on Symbiont’s assets and due on December 1 this year. LM Funding is a listed specialist lender and also a Bitcoin miner. Symbiont entered into a loan agreement on December 1, 2021, drawing down $2 million of a $3 million facility at a rate of 16%.

We suspect the purpose of the loan may have been to bridge an awaited payment over a legal case. Last year Symbiont won a lawsuit against IHS Markit-owned IPREO with damages of up to $78.9 million. Before IHS Markit acquired IPREO, Symbiont had a joint venture with IPREO to address the secondary market in syndicated loans. 

The judge ruled in favor of Symbiont in August 2021. However, IHS Markit appealed, hence the likely reason for the loan. On December 28, 2021, the companies settled and Symbiont was paid $53 million, according to the IHS Markit annual report.

The company will publish more details regarding the bankruptcy later this week. 

Apart from the FTX debacle, two major DLT initiatives have shuttered in the last month. The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) pulled the plug on its replacement post-trade system CHESS. And Maersk announced it was closing its Tradelens shipping initiative with IBM. This follows the June winding down of the bank-backed trade finance platform we.trade.

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📽️ One of the most important things we’ve done at Pyth is help bring U.S. GDP onchain 🏛️

Working with the U.S. Department of Commerce to publish official economic data on a public blockchain is a powerful signal of where global market infrastructure is headed. When core economic indicators become cryptographically verifiable, composable, and accessible in real time, it opens the door to a more transparent and more efficient financial system for everyone.

Thanks to Roundtable and Jackson Hinkle for hosting a thoughtful conversation on how this came together and what it means for the future of market data.

In a conversation with Jackson Hinkle

Full interview link: https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/policy/why-washington-is-experimenting-with-public-blockchains-for-economic-data

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Patent US10144532B2 | Craft using an inertial mass reduction device

🚀 The Mind-Blowing Patent That Could Revolutionize Space Travel: US Navy's Anti-Gravity Craft! 🛸

December 4, 2018 - The day physics got weird

🤯 What If I Told You...

The US Navy patented a spacecraft that could bend the laws of physics as we know them? No, this isn't science fiction or the latest Marvel movie – this is US Patent US10144532B2, and it's about to blow your mind! 💥

🎯 The Patent That Made Physicists Go "Wait, WHAT?!"

Filed on April 28, 2016, and granted on December 4, 2018, this patent describes a "Craft Using an Inertial Mass Reduction Device" – which is fancy talk for "spaceship that can make itself lighter than physics allows."

Invented by Salvatore Cezar Pais and assigned to the US Department of Navy, this isn't your average paper airplane design. We're talking about technology that could theoretically allow spacecraft to travel at extreme speeds by literally manipulating the fabric of spacetime itself! ⚡

🔬 The Science Behind the Magic✨

👉Here's where it gets really wild:

🌀 The ...

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🚨Senate Delays CLARITY Act Vote After Coinbase Pulls Support🚨

The bipartisan CLARITY Act seeks to clarify digital asset rules by dividing oversight between the SEC and CFTC, while covering stablecoins, DeFi, and tokenized assets. Coinbase withdrew support over a provision blocking interest payments on payment stablecoins, arguing it favors banks that pay depositors just 0.14% while stablecoin reserves earn 3.8% in Treasuries. Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan countered that yield-bearing stablecoins could drain $6 trillion in deposits, hurting lending for small businesses. Lawmakers are negotiating revisions, with a possible vote by late January.

Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO of Ripple chimes in...

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Custom AI assistants that print money in your sleep? 🔜

The future of Crypto x AI is about to go crazy.

👉 Here’s what you need to know:

đź’  'Based Agent' enables creation of custom AI agents
đź’  Users set up personalized agents in < 3 minutes
đź’  Equipped w/ crypto wallet and on-chain functions
đź’  Capable of completing trades, swaps, and staking
💠 Integrates with Coinbase’s SDK, OpenAI, & Replit

👉 What this means for the future of Crypto:

1. Open Access: Democratized access to advanced trading
2. Automated Txns: Complex trades + streamlined on-chain activity
3. AI Dominance: Est ~80% of crypto 👉txns done by AI agents by 2025

🚨 I personally wouldn't bet against Brian Armstrong and Jesse Pollak.

👉 Coinbase just launched an AI agent for Crypto Trading

🚨 Ripple Drops $2.7 B Cash-and-Stock Deal for Full-Stack Financial Platform 🚨

Ripple has agreed to buy (subject to CFIUS and EC clearance) a yet-unnamed “full-stack” payments, FX and treasury-suite provider—valued at $2.7 B, its largest acquisition to date—to fold fiat rails, card issuing and 200+ country licenses directly into the XRP Ledger ecosystem, according to Crypto Threads’ unnamed sources close to the board.

🔑 Key points

🔹 Target profile:

  • 1,100 employees, 42 offices; owns EMI licenses in EU/UK, MSB registrations in 47 U.S. states, PI/PF licenses in Singapore, HK, UAE; processes $48 B annual payments volume, 65 % B2B cross-border.

  • Proprietary FX engine aggregates 450+ correspondent-bank routes plus four CSD access points (Fedwire, TARGET2, BOJ-NET, CHATS); average FX markup 18 bps vs Ripple ODL’s current 60 bps.

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🔹 Deal ...

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🚨 BIS Project Agora Enters Testing Phase for Tokenized Cross-Border Payments 🚨

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🔑 Key points

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🔹 Live pilots:

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Introducing the University Digital Asset Xcelerator (UDAX). 🎓

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The UDAX - UC Berkeley mission:

➡️ Scaling enterprise solutions using XRP
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https://ripple.com/insights/ripple-and-uc-berkeley-launch-the-university-digital-asset-xcelerator-udax-to-supercharge-the-xrp-ecosystem/

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🚨David Grusch on The Megyn Kelly Show🚨

Earlier this week, UFO/UAP whistleblower David Grusch appeared on The Megyn Kelly Show for a brief but revealing interview. During the conversation, Grusch named individuals he claimed were involved in managing the alleged UFO/UAP Legacy crash retrieval program, statements that immediately drew attention across the disclosure community.

Most notably, Grusch asserted that former Vice President Dick Cheney played a central role in overseeing the program. Cheney’s name has circulated within UFO/UAP research circles for years, but this marks the first time it has been spoken publicly by a former intelligence official who claims direct knowledge of the issue. It is also notable that just weeks ago, journalist Ross Coulthart independently referenced Cheney in a similar context, lending additional weight to the consistency of these claims.

Grusch also named former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, stating that Clapper was not only aware of the crash retrieval issue, but managed it and helped place individuals into key roles, both publicly and behind the scenes. These are serious assertions that warrant scrutiny and further investigation, given their potential implications for disclosure.

Please watch the full interview and consider its significance within the broader context of the disclosure conversation. Please note that the interview concludes with a paid promotional pitch, and Grusch does not provide any additional comments after the pitch.

 

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Stellar CEO Reveals Where Real Opportunity Lies in Crypto Market: Details

In a recent tweet, Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) CEO and Executive Director Denelle Dixon defines what "real opportunity" is in blockchain as a new financial future beckons.

The SDF CEO was reacting to a recent Bloomberg report on Bank of New York Mellon Corp (BNY), Nasdaq, S&P Global and iCapital participation in a new $50 million investment round by Digital Asset Holdings. This comes as some of Wall Street’s biggest names embrace the technology that underpins cryptocurrencies to handle traditional assets.

Reacting to this development, Stellar Foundation CEO Denelle Dixon stated that every blockchain investment is a bet on a different financial future. Dixon added that seeing banks explore blockchain technology validates what has been known over the years.

Real opportunity defined

While Wall Street’s biggest names betting on blockchain might be one of the most significant adoption milestones in the digital asset market, Dixon defines what real opportunity is and what it is not.

According to the SDF executive director, real opportunity is not replicating old systems on new rails but rather building open networks that fundamentally expand global finance participation.

"But the real opportunity isn’t replicating old systems on new rails—it’s building open networks that fundamentally expand who gets to participate in global finance. That’s the opportunity," Dixon tweeted.

At the Meridian 2025 event, Stellar outlined its long-term privacy strategy, committing to investing in critical privacy infrastructure and building foundational cryptographic capabilities.

Stellar eyes privacy upgrade

A new protocol upgrade is on the horizon for the Stellar network: X-Ray, which lays the groundwork for developers to build privacy applications on Stellar using zero-knowledge (ZK) cryptography.

The protocol timeline testnet vote is anticipated for Jan. 7, 2026, while the mainnet vote is expected for Jan. 22, 2026.

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XDC Network's acquisition of Contour Network

XDC Network's acquisition of Contour Network marks a silent shift to connect the digital trade infrastructure to real-time, tokenized settlement rails.

In a world where cross-border payments still take days and trap trillions in idle liquidity, integrating Contour’s trade workflows with XDC Network Blockchains' ISO 20022 financial messaging standard to bridge TradFi and Web3 in Trade Finance.

The Current State of Cross-Border Trade Settlements

Cross-border payments remain one of the most inefficient parts of global finance. For decades, companies have inter-dependency with banks and their correspondent banks across the world, forcing them to maintain trillions of dollars in pre-funded nostro and vostro balances — the capital that sits idle while transactions crawl across borders.

Traditional settlement is slow, often 1–5 days, and often with ~2-3% in FX and conversion fees. For every hour a corporation can’t access its own cash increases the cost of financing, tightens liquidity that could be used for other purposes, which in turn slows economic activity.

Before SWIFT, payments were fully manual. Intermediary banks maintained ledgers, and reconciliation across multiple institutions limited speed and volume.

SWIFT reshaped global payments by introducing a secure, standardized messaging infrastructure through ISO 20022 - which quickly became the language of money for 11,000+ institutions in 200 countries.

But SWIFT only fixed the messaging — not the movement. Actual value still moves through slow, capital-intensive correspondent chains.

Regulated and Compliant Stablecoin such as USDC (Circle) solves the part SWIFT never could: instant, on-chain settlement.

Stablecoin Settlement revamping Trade and Tokenization

Stablecoin such as USDC is a digital token pegged to the US Dollar, still the most widely used currency for trade, enabling the movement of funds instantly 24*7 globally - transparently, instantly, and without the need for any intermediaries and the need to lock in trillions of dollars of idle cash.

Tokenized settlement replaces multi-day reconciliation with on-chain finality, reducing:

  • Dependency on intermediaries
  • Operational friction
  • Trillions locked in idle liquidity

For corporates trapped in long working capital cycles, this is transformative.

Digital dollars like USDC make the process simple:

Fiat → Stablecoin → On-Chain Transfer → Fiat

This hybrid model is already widely used across remittances, payouts, and treasury flows.

But one critical piece of global commerce is still lagging:

👉 Trade finance.

The Missing link is still Trade Finance Infrastructure.

While payments innovation has raced ahead, trade finance infrastructure hasn’t kept up. Document flows, letters of credit, and supply-chain financing remain siloed, paper-heavy, and operationally outdated.

This is exactly where the next breakthrough will happen - and why the recent XDC Network acquisition of Contour is a silent revolution.

It transforms to a new era of trade-driven liquidity through an end-to-end digital trade from shipping docs to payment confirmation – one infrastructure that powers all.

The breakthrough won’t come from payments alone — it will come from connecting trade finance to real-time settlement rails.

The XDC + Contour Shift: A Silent Revolution

  • Contour already connects global banks and corporates through digital LCs and digitized trade workflows.
  • XDC Blockchain brings a settlement layer built for speed, tokenization, and institutional-grade interoperability and ISO 20022 messaging compatibility

Contour’s digital letter of credit workflows will be integrated with XDC’s blockchain network to streamline trade documentation and settlement.

Together, they form the first end-to-end digital trade finance network linking:

Documentation → Validation → Settlement all under a single infrastructure.

XDC Ventures (XVC.TECH) is launching a Stable-Coin Lab to work with financial institutions on regulated stablecoin pilots for trade to deepen institutional trade-finance integration through launch of pilots with banks and corporates for regulated stable-coin issuance and settlement.

The Bottom Line

Payments alone won’t transform Global Trade Finance — Trade finance + Tokenized Settlement will.

This is the shift happening underway XDC Network's acquisition of Contour is the quiet catalyst.

Learn how trade finance is being revolutionised:

https://www.reuters.com/press-releases/xdc-ventures-acquires-contour-network-launches-stablecoin-lab-trade-finance-2025-10-22/

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