The Signal 24

The digital euro gets a lunch test

A central bank employee buying lunch could be among the first people to try the digital euro. ECB board member Piero Cipollone told European lawmakers this week that the pilot is due to start in the second half of next year. Canteens at participating central banks are one example of where staff could spend it.

The ECB has picked 36 payment providers, including banks and non-bank firms. It also wants merchants to test what happens when a shopper pays online or on a phone. It expects to name the selected merchants early next year.

For a shop deciding when to change its checkout, two dates matter. The pilot will use a beta version with no legal tender status. The ECB says it can set a date for a possible public launch only after lawmakers adopt the regulation.

Still using a Paybis address on invoices?

If a client has saved your Paybis address for USDT payments, check the invoice before Sunday. Paybis says it will remove USDT deposit addresses for customers in the European Economic Area that day. Buying, selling and swapping USDT on Paybis will also stop for those customers.

USDT already in a Paybis wallet will stay in USDT. Customers who want to swap it on the platform have until the change. Afterward they can still withdraw to an external wallet. Network fees and minimum withdrawal amounts apply.

Paybis says withdrawals will remain available after January 8 as well. The immediate deadline matters for incoming payments. Give clients updated payment instructions before they transfer. If someone has already sent USDT to the old address after its removal, Paybis directs the recipient to contact support.

Nakamoto gets another year on part of its Kraken loan

Nakamoto owed Kraken 60 million USDT next month. In a filing on Thursday, the bitcoin company said Kraken had agreed to give its subsidiary another year to repay that portion. The full 165 million USDT is still outstanding.

The larger payment now comes first. Under the revised schedule, 105 million USDT falls due next June and the remaining 60 million the following December.

Kraken will also count the net value of certain bitcoin derivatives in Nakamoto’s pledged trading account toward the collateral backing the loan. Kraken values those positions daily. If their combined value falls below zero, they contribute nothing toward the collateral requirement.

That leaves Nakamoto with two clocks to watch. Its next scheduled principal payment is months away, but a fall in bitcoin could still force it to put up more collateral or repay part of the loan sooner.