Read in the Digest:

• Federal judge orders the SEC to turn Hinman documents over to Ripple Labs.

• BlackRock prepares metaverse fund after launching a new ETF in Europe.

• Warner Music Group partners with OpenSea to expand music NFT ecosystem.

• Meta enables NFT sharing feature for all Instagram & Facebook users in U.S..

Federal Judge Orders the SEC to Turn Hinman Documents Over to Ripple Labs

Ripple has scored the biggest win to date in its case with the SEC, as U.S. District Court Judge Analisa Torres ordered the regulator to turn over the documents related to former top official William Hinman.

Judge Torres overruled the SEC’s previously filed objection to the Court, denying the SEC’s motion to protect the William Hinman documents under the attorney-client privilege.

The document contains the famous 2018 speech, in which Hinman clearly indicated that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are not securities. The SEC had battled to shield the Hinman documents under the attorney-client privilege

Judge Torres agreed with Ripple that the documents bore relevance to the case due to the fact that “they may be used to obtain potential impeachment evidence, or to impeach witnesses at trial,” including Hinman.

Flipsider:

• XRP responded positively to the news, rallying by more than 11% to trade at an inter-day high of $0.503.

The 24 hour price chart for XRP. Source: CoinMarketCap

Why You Should Care

The documents could be the deciding factor in the lawsuit, with the SEC alleging that Ripple Labs sold XRP as unregistered securities.

BlackRock Prepares a Metaverse Fund After Launching a New ETF in Europe

 BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, is reportedly preparing to launch a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) aimed at tracking companies with exposure to the metaverse.

On Thursday, September 29th BlackRock filed for the iShares Future Metaverse Tech and Communications ETF. The move came on the same day as BlackRock launched a separate ETF for its European customers. 

Holdings of the new BlackRock ETF, the ‘iShares Future Metaverse Tech and Communications ETF‘, consist of 75% of blockchain companies such as miners and exchanges, while the other 25% are companies that support the blockchain ecosystem.

The top five holdings in the fund are those of Coinbase (13.20%), USD cash (13.00%), Block (11.40%), Marathon Digital Holdings (11.13%), and Riot Blockchain (10.50%).

Flipsider:

• Since launching its first blockchain ETF, the BlackRock digital-assets fund has recorded low volumes as it fails to interest investors.

Why You Should Care

BlackRock believes that digital assets and blockchain will become increasingly relevant for its clients as their use cases develop in scope, scale, and complexity.

Warner Music Group Partners with OpenSea to Expand Music NFT Ecosystem

On September 29th, global music and entertainment company Warner Music Group (WMG) announced a partnership with leading NFT marketplace OpenSea to provide a space for selected WMG artists to promote their fanbase using Web 3.0 tools.

The partnership will provide artists signed to Warner Music Group with personalized, storytelling customized landing pages on OpenSea’s website, early access to drops products, improved visibility, and OpenSea’s considerable safety and security features.

The partnership aims to help WMG artists build new Web 3.0 communities, celebrate their music with their fans, and introduce existing fan communities on OpenSea to new forms of connection and creativity through NFTs.

Warner Records UK and celebrity chef Jeremy Fall’s Web 3.0 startup ‘Probably Nothing’ are reportedly already working on the first collection of music NFTs for the partnership.

Flipsider:

• The NFT market continues to suffer significant losses, declining for the 5th straight month to drop to 97% of its peak trading volume.

Why You Should Care

WMG continues to forge ahead with Web 3.0-related partnerships, as seen from its collaboration with gaming developers of Splinterlands and Blockparty earlier this year.

Meta Enables NFT Sharing Feature for All Instagram & Facebook Users in U.S.

Social media titan Meta has announced the expansion of its NFT sharing feature to all U.S.-based Facebook and Instagram users. Meta’s NFT functionality test with select Instagram users began in May, and on Facebook in June.

On Thursday, September 29th, Meta announced that all Facebook and Instagram users in the U.S. can now connect their wallets and share their digital collectibles. Additionally, a wider range of users can now access the features in the 100 countries where digital collectibles are available.

The feature allows both NFT creators and collectors to be automatically tagged in posts related to their assets using data minted on Ethereum, Polygon, and Flow through connected third-party wallets like Coinbase Wallet, Dapper Wallet, MetaMask, Rainbow and Trust Wallet.

The announcement greatly accelerates Meta’s non-fungible token campaign, and comes swiftly after recent news that company CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold a digital art of his childhood baseball card for $105,000.

Flipsider:

• On Thursday Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg announced the temporary halt of all hiring processes, 10% expense cuts, and the restructuring of a number of teams as it looks to endure the tough economic landscape.

Why You Should Care

The feature will permit millions of NFT creators and collectors in the U.S. to connect their wallets and share their digital collectibles across Meta’s two core social media platforms.