The Supreme Court of India has ended a 2018 ban on banks from dealing in virtual currencies such as cryptocurrencies including bitcoins. A three-judge bench led by Justice Rohinton Nariman quashed the Reserve Bank of India orders issued in April 2018 that had introduced the restriction.

In 2018, the RBI had issued a press release stating that virtual currencies (VCs), referred to as crypto currencies and crypto assets, raise concerns of consumer protection, market integrity and money laundering.

As part of a defamation case in front of the New South Wales district court, Judge Judith Gibson allowed cryptocurrency usage as collateral and said it was a “recognized form of investment”.

As part of the defamation case, the NSW court stated the accusing party must place $20,000 AUD, or approximately $13,000 USD, in a bank account guarded by the courts. Should the accusing party lose or secede, the funds would pay for a portion of the defendant’s legal fees.

Instead of a bank account, the court allowed the plaintiff to use their cryptocurrency exchange account.

The courts also required the plaintiff to notify the defendant’s solicitor if the crypto account’s value falls south of $20,000 AUD.

Steemit Managing Director Elizabeth Powell says she is excited about the new strategic partnership between Tron and Steemit. On 14 February, the Tron Foundation had announced it had acquired Steemit, a decentralized social media platform with over 10,000 daily active users.

Following the announcement, a great deal of uncertainty arose from the Steemit community. But TRon Founder and CEO Justin Sun wrote an open letter to the Steemit community on 23 February to communicate to users that Steemit 2.0 will be an improvement on the current platform: “With so much happening in Steem right out the gates for me and everyone at Tron and Steemit Inc, such as the launch of Communities and a soft fork 22.2 we weren’t expecting, I feel it is important to show you guys I am here and ready to begin building with you.”

Sun’s letter also mentions that there will be a Steemit town hall summit on 6 March to discuss the Tron and Steemit roadmaps and to communicate the goals and objectives of the two ecosystems.

Steemit reportedly laid off more than 70% of its staff in November 2018. According to Powell, the Tron partnership has saved Steemit from reaching a breaking point, noting that new features are already being implemented across the blockchain-based social media platform.