• Japan is embracing the metaverse for recruiting, with a job fair that featured over 2,000 students using digital avatars to communicate with recruiters.
• The event was organized by Neo Career Co. and X Inc., and was praised for allowing students to ask questions on delicate matters concerning job offers, while allowing them to meet and converse with recruiters.
• The success of this event has led many to praise the advantages that the metaverse brings for these recruiting processes.

The job recruiting landscape in Japan is undergoing a revolution, thanks to the emergence of the metaverse. On Jan. 27, a massive metaverse job fair was held, with over 2,000 students attending the event. The participants used digital avatars to communicate with recruiters and explore the job previews available in various booths. The event was organized by Neo Career Co. and X Inc., and was praised for its ability to allow students to ask questions on delicate matters concerning job offers, while also allowing them to meet and converse with recruiters.

The success of this event has led to many praising the advantages that the metaverse brings for these recruiting processes. Taiki Nishino of Neo Career stated: “The metaverse allows for both taking advantage of online meetings in which students from distant areas can take part as well as maintaining the spontaneity of meeting and conversing that occurs in face-to-face job fairs.” Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, was also optimistic about the impact of metaverse technology on the sector, citing its potential to provide a more convenient and efficient way of recruiting.

The potential of the metaverse in job recruiting is clear, particularly in regions such as Japan where technology has become an integral part of the job search process. As the metaverse continues to evolve and more companies embrace its potential, it is likely that this technology will become even more prevalent in the job hunting and recruiting space.

• JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon called bitcoin “a hyped-up fraud” and a “pet rock”.
• Dimon suggested that bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto could remove the cryptocurrency’s supply limit.
• He is bullish on blockchain technology but skeptical of crypto tokens.

Jamie Dimon, CEO of global investment bank JPMorgan Chase, recently shared his views on the cryptocurrency market in an interview with CNBC. He referred to bitcoin as a “hyped-up fraud” and a “pet rock”. He was especially critical of the cryptocurrency’s limited supply cap, suggesting that it could be removed by bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto.

Dimon commented on the recent collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, saying: “I’m not surprised at all. I call them a decentralized Ponzi scheme. The hype around this thing has been extraordinary.” He also expressed his doubt about bitcoin’s supply cap, suggesting that bitcoin’s creator could increase it when it reaches 21 million coins. He said: “How do you know it’s going to stop at 21 million? Maybe it’s going to get to 21 million and Satoshi’s picture is going to come up and laugh at you all … and by then Satoshi would have taken out billions of dollars.”

Despite his criticism of bitcoin, Dimon remains bullish on blockchain technology. He said: “Crypto itself doesn’t do anything. It’s a pet rock.” He then stressed: “I don’t care about bitcoin so we should drop this subject.”

This is not the first time Dimon has expressed skepticism about bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Last December, he likened crypto tokens to pet rocks. He also said: “How do you know it ends at 21 million? You all read the algorithms? You guys all believe that? I don’t know, I’ve always been a skeptic of stuff like that.”

Given his comments, it is clear that Dimon remains skeptical of cryptocurrencies, despite their growing popularity. He believes that while blockchain technology has promise, crypto tokens are a “pet rock” and “hyped-up fraud”. He also expressed his doubt about BTC’s 21 million supply cap, suggesting that bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto could remove the cryptocurrency’s supply limit.

• The value of FTX’s exchange token, FTT, has seen a 28.42% increase since Jan. 9, 2023, and currently sits above the $1 range.
• FTT’s levels of ownership concentration are extremely high, with a single address controlling 59.55% of the circulating supply.
• The most active crypto exchanges trading FTT currently include Binance, Mexc Global, Kucoin, Gate.io, and Sushiswap.

Amidst the ongoing FTX bankruptcy case and fraud charges against co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried, the value of the exchange’s token, FTX Token (FTT), has seen a significant surge. Since Jan. 9, 2023, FTT has risen 28.42% and is currently holding above the $1 range at $1.22 per coin as of 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Jan. 11, 2023.

The reason for this increase in value is unclear, as FTT’s tokenomics are tied to the now-defunct FTX exchange and its potential future growth. FTT’s levels of ownership concentration are extremely high, with a single address controlling 59.55% of the entire FTT supply. Additionally, an unknown hacker holds 45.85 million FTT tokens, comprising 13.94% of the circulating supply. Another unknown address holds 10 million FTT, or 3.04% of the total supply.

FTT’s value fell below the $1 range on Dec. 19, 2022, and remained below that threshold until a spike on Jan. 9, 2023. Since the FTT token’s all-time low 12 days ago on Dec. 30, 2022, when it reached $0.827 per unit, it has risen 45.8%. However, it remains 98.6% below its all-time high of $59.06 per unit, set on Mar. 27, 2021.

The most active crypto exchanges trading FTT currently include Binance, Mexc Global, Kucoin, Gate.io, and Sushiswap. On Sushiswap alone, there is roughly $104,496 in FTT trades paired against wrapped ethereum (WETH). The overall global trading volume for FTT is approximately $23.81 million among all exchanges worldwide.

It is unclear why FTT has seen such a surge in value, though some speculate that it may be due to the potential for the exchange to be revived or for FTX tokens to be listed on other exchanges. It is also possible that investors are taking advantage of the current situation and buying up FTT tokens in anticipation of a potential increase in their value once the bankruptcy proceedings and fraud charges against Sam Bankman-Fried are resolved. Whatever the case may be, FTT’s value will likely remain volatile in the coming weeks as investors continue to assess the situation.

• Alameda Research, a quantitative trading firm run by Sam Bankman-Fried, was assumed to be one of the top firms within the industry, but a recent report has revealed that the firm suffered from financial troubles as early as 2018.
• The report claims that Alameda lost large sums of money in 2018 due to a failed xrp trade which resulted in the company’s assets being cut by over two-thirds.
• Prior to Alameda Research, SBF worked for Jane Street and traded international exchange-traded funds (ETFs). He then launched Alameda in Sept. 2017 with Tara Mac Aulay and the firm was making money through crypto arbitrage.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) Alameda Research had been viewed as one of the top quantitative trading firms and market makers in the cryptocurrency industry. However, a report recently published by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has revealed that the firm was struggling financially as early as 2018.

People familiar with the matter told WSJ that Alameda was already losing money by 2018 and a massive loss from a failed xrp trade during mid-2018 cut the company’s assets by more than two-thirds. This sheds light on the façade of Alameda Research as a top quantitative crypto trading firm, and reveals the truth behind the firm’s early financial struggles.

Before Alameda Research, SBF worked for Jane Street, a trading firm focused on international exchange-traded funds (ETFs). He then made the move to work for the Centre for Effective Altruism as the Director of Development in 2017. Shortly after, SBF launched Alameda Research with co-founder Tara Mac Aulay and the firm was making money through crypto arbitrage.

According to SBF, opportunities for arbitrage stemmed from countries like Japan and South Korea as bitcoin (BTC) was trading for a premium in those regions. This “Kimchi premium” in South Korea saw BTC trading at 30% higher at times and in Japan, it was trading 10% higher. Reports have highlighted Alameda making millions from crypto arbitrage, but the recent report from WSJ has shown that not all of their trades were profitable.

In addition to the failed xrp trade, Alameda was also dealing with a lack of liquidity in some of its trading pairs and the company was unable to access enough capital to expand its operations. On top of this, Alameda was also facing increased competition from other market makers.

Despite these financial struggles, Alameda has managed to stay afloat and has become one of the leading quantitative trading firms in the cryptocurrency industry. SBF is also the founder of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which has seen a surge in popularity in recent months. FTX’s success has helped Alameda Research stay afloat and it looks like the firm is well on its way to becoming one of the top market makers in the industry.

• Robert Kiyosaki has predicted that a stock market crash will send the prices of gold and silver higher.
• The crypto community is curious about former Alameda Research co-CEO Sam Trabucco and his whereabouts, after the unsealing of former CEO Caroline Ellison’s guilty plea revealed troubling information about customer funds.
• As the US Fed turns 109 years old, the dollar has lost 96% of its purchasing power since its creation, and one market strategist expects oil to “crush” other investments in 2023.

As the US Federal Reserve turns 109 years old, the dollar has seen its purchasing power massively eroded since its creation. This, coupled with Robert Kiyosaki’s predictions of a stock market crash sending the prices of gold and silver higher, and one market strategist expecting oil to “crush” other investments in 2023, makes the Week in Review an interesting one.

Robert Kiyosaki, the famous author of the best-selling book “Rich Dad Poor Dad”, has warned that now may be the last chance to buy gold and silver at low prices. Kiyosaki described, “Inflation moving up. Interest rates moving up. Stock market to crash sending gold and silver higher.” With gold and silver prices already on the rise, Kiyosaki’s predictions may prove to be correct.

The crypto community has also been interested in the former Alameda Research co-CEO Sam Trabucco, and his whereabouts. This curiosity was sparked by the unsealing of the guilty plea transcript of Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research. In her statement, Ellison revealed that she reported directly to the former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) and that she was directed by him to co-mingle customer funds since 2019.

Furthermore, as the dollar has lost 96% of its purchasing power since the Federal Reserve was created, one market strategist expects oil to “crush” other investments in 2023. With this in mind, it may be a good idea to invest in oil in the coming year to take advantage of the expected increase in prices.

All in all, this Week in Review is an intriguing one. With Robert Kiyosaki’s predictions that a stock market crash will send the prices of gold and silver higher, the crypto community’s curiosity about former Alameda Research co-CEO Sam Trabucco, and the dollar’s massive erosion in purchasing power, it will be interesting to see how these events play out in the coming year.

• A group of Russian lawmakers has submitted draft legislation on a digital ruble, a central bank digital currency (CBDC) minted by Russia’s monetary authority.
• The document suggests legislative changes meant to create the conditions for the introduction of the digital ruble, providing Russian citizens, businesses, and the state with access to fast, convenient, and low-cost money transfers.
• The proposed amendments to existing laws assign to the Bank of Russia the role of sole operator of the CBDC platform, secure the status of the digital ruble as a currency of the Russian Federation, and allow the central bank to process personal information.

A draft law devoted to the digital ruble has recently been filed with the State Duma, the lower house of Russian parliament. This document, which is sponsored by the Chairman of the Financial Market Committee Anatoly Aksakov and his colleagues, introduces rules determining how the new form of national fiat will be issued and amends a series of legal acts to facilitate its implementation.

The main purpose of the bill is to develop the necessary payment infrastructure for the digital ruble, providing Russian citizens, businesses, and the state with access to fast, convenient, and low-cost money transfers. To achieve this goal, the proposed amendments to existing laws assign to the Bank of Russia the role of sole operator of the CBDC platform. In particular, the law on “On the National Payment System” is supplemented with definitions pertaining to the CBDC, and the law “On Currency Regulation and Currency Control” secures the status of the digital ruble as a currency of the Russian Federation and defines CBDCs issued by the central banks of other nations as foreign currencies.

Changes to the Federal Law “On Personal Data” also enable Russia’s central bank to process personal information in order to support the digital ruble platform. According to the explanatory notes to the bill, choosing the Bank of Russia as the sole operator of the CBDC platform is intended to ensure stability and reliability of the system. It is also expected to provide additional protection to users, prevent fraud and increase the speed of transactions.

The introduction of the digital ruble is part of the Russian government’s efforts to modernize the country’s financial system and facilitate the adoption of new technologies in the banking sector. Russia is not the only nation exploring the potential of CBDCs. Central banks around the world have been researching the technology and are considering issuing their own digital currencies.

•Fidelity Investments, a major financial services firm, has filed three trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a range of cryptocurrency, non-fungible token (NFT), and metaverse products and services.
•The applications detail products and services for “the metaverse and other virtual worlds,” including mutual fund investment services, retirement fund investment services, investment management services, financial planning, securities brokerage services, money management, financial analysis, and investment management.
•In April, Fidelity opened a multi-level learning center called “The Fidelity Stack” in Decentraland, and in November, the firm launched a metaverse ETF.

Fidelity Investments, a major financial services firm with $10 trillion in assets under administration, recently filed three trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a wide range of cryptocurrency, non-fungible token (NFT), and metaverse products and services. According to Mike Kondoudis, a USPTO-licensed trademark attorney, Fidelity has plans for the metaverse.

The applications filed by Fidelity detail a vast number of products and services “in the metaverse and other virtual worlds,” including mutual fund investment services, retirement fund investment services, investment management services, financial planning, securities brokerage services, money management, financial analysis, and investment management.

Fidelity is no stranger to the metaverse. In April, the financial services firm opened a multi-level learning center called “The Fidelity Stack” in Decentraland. The firm also launched a metaverse exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the same month. In November, Fidelity Investments became the first major financial institution to offer its customers access to a digital asset custodian.

The trademark applications are an indication that Fidelity is planning to expand its involvement with the crypto and metaverse space. The company already has an extensive portfolio of products and services related to these fields, and the trademark applications suggest that the financial services giant is looking to broaden its offerings in the near future.

Fidelity has long been at the forefront of the digital asset revolution. The firm has been involved in the crypto space since its launch of the Fidelity Bitcoin Custody service in 2015. The firm also recently announced a partnership with BlockFi to offer cryptocurrency-based loans to its customers.

It is clear that Fidelity is serious about its involvement in the crypto and metaverse space. The company’s filings with the USPTO demonstrate its commitment to innovation and expansion in these fields. With its vast resources and expertise, Fidelity is well-positioned to become a major player in the crypto and metaverse space going forward.