Technavio, a global market research firm, predicts that the real estate market in the metaverse is projected to pass $5 billion by 2026, Cryptonews reports.

The reports highlights the growth will be fueled by how the metaverse will gradually move towards a more mixed reality experience, giving more value to these platforms in which visitors can inhabit, taking annotations and decoding tags for different application-specific purposes; and because of the popularity of cryptocurrencies, which will make this kind of property more approachable and easy to purchase in order to sell or rent, allowing its owners to obtain a passive income.

Another report released last February estimated that metaverse real estate sales would reach $1 billion this year.

Elon Musk’s Tesla has sold 75% of its Bitcoin, worth approximately $936 million, according to its Q2 earnings report, Decrypt reports.

The electric car manufacturer said in a shareholder presentation that “Bitcoin impairment” had a negative impact on its profitability during the second quarter, when it posted $2.5 billion in operating income.

crypto market reacted to the news with Bitcoin (BTC) dropping sharply right to $23,078.18 (2.5%) after markets close.

Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, was also down 3% in the last hour following the news from Tesla’s earnings report.

Tesla invested $1.5 billion in Bitcoin in February 2021, after changing its investment policy in January to allow it to hold digital assets.

In line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, today launched the Dubai Metaverse Strategy that aims to turn Dubai into one the world’s top 10 metaverse economies as well as a global hub for the metaverse community.

The strategy aims to build on Dubai’s achievement of attracting more than 1,000 companies in the fields of blockchain and metaverse. It also promotes Dubai’s ambitions to support more than 40,000 virtual jobs by 2030. This would further boost Dubai’s economy and support the UAE government’s vision of increasing the number of blockchain companies by five times the present number.

VR and AR are two key enablers of the metaverse, responsible for 6,700 jobs and contributing US$500 million to the UAE’s economy, which is expected to increase significantly in the future. The metaverse provides an array of economic opportunities. Globally, the value of venture capital and private equity financing in the metaverse reached US$13 billion in 2021, while real estate sales in the metaverse surpassed US$500 million last year.

Read full press release.

Elon Musk’s The Boring Company announced that customers will be allowed to pay for rides on Loop, its Las Vegas transit system, with the cryptocurrency Dogecoin, CNN reports.

The new payment option surfaced as the Boring Company opened its first Loop station outside the Las Vegas Convention Center, which already has three stops. The Boring Company hopes to eventually expand to more than 50 stations on the Vegas Strip.

Read the full article.

The South African Reserve Bank will introduce regulations next year that will see cryptocurrencies classed as financial assets to balance investor protection and innovation, Crypto Telegraph reports.

Cryptocurrency use in South Africa is in a healthy space, with around 13% of the population estimated to own some form of cryptocurrency, according to research from global exchange Luno. With more than six million people in the country having cryptocurrency exposure, regulation of the space has long been a talking point.

South African Reserve Bank deputy governor Kuben Chetty, said:

By all definitions, cryptocurrencies are an asset. It’s something that is tradable, it’s something that is created. Some have backing, others do not. Some may have a genuine underpinning, real economic activity.

The Secretary of the Treasury delivered to President Biden a framework for interagency engagement with foreign counterparts and in international fora as directed in the President’s Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets (March 9, 2022).

Framework objectives:

• Protect consumers, investors, and businesses in the United States and globally by promoting technology and regulatory standards that reflect U.S. values;
• Protect U.S. and global financial stability and mitigate systemic risk;
• Mitigate illicit finance and national security risks posed by misuse of digital assets and counter and respond to efforts by foreign adversaries to drive standards and promote their protocols;
• Reinforce U.S. leadership in the global financial system and in technological and economic competitiveness, including through the responsible development of payment innovations and digital assets and by advancing technology and regulatory standards that align with U.S. values;
• Promote access to safe and affordable financial services; and
• Support technological advances that promote responsible development and use of digital assets by advancing research and relationships that increase shared learning.