**Cryptocurrency News:**
• Block founder and CEO Jack Dorsey just confirmed that the company, formerly known as Square, plans to move forward with plans to build a bitcoin mining system.
• North Korean hackers stole almost $400 million worth of digital assets from crypto platforms last year, mostly in the form of ether.
• The Chinese state-backed blockchain deployment infrastructure platform Blockchain Services Network (BSN) is moving closer to supporting NFTS — under the condition that the NFTs aren’t connected to cryptocurrency or public blockchains.
• Congress is officially looking into the environmental impact of blockchain, especially proof-of-work networks like Bitcoin.
• Digital collectible company Candy Digital is launching its Secondary Marketplace to allow users to buy and sell previously released officially licensed Major League Baseball NFTs starting January 15.
• Canadian startup Conduit has raised $17 million in a funding round led by Portage Ventures, according to a statement. FinVC, Gemini Frontier Fund, and ex-a16z partner Rex Salisbury participated in the round.
• Seashell, a startup building an investment app to offer high yields, has raised $6 million in a seed funding round.
• Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that Tesla now accepts Dogecoin as payment for the company’s merchandise. DOGE-eligible products in the Tesla store can be purchased by sending DOGE to Tesla’s Dogecoin wallet.
• A group of U.S.-based banks is launching their own stablecoin, USDF. The stablecoin will be issued by the USDF Consortium, which will allow its members (financial and banking institutions) to issue USDF.
• Revolut, a leading fintech platform, and neobank has received a special banking license to operate in Spain.
• The Russian neobank Tinkoff is joining the world of cryptocurrencies by purchasing a stake in Aximetria. This Swissmyt0uegistered and licensed company provides clients worldwide with services and solutions for digital financial assets.