By Talha Dar on Feb 10, 2019 07:30 pm
Europe Welcome to another weekly blockchain news roundup from around the world. Here we present to you all the latest Bitcoin news continent by continent and country by country. United Kingdom FCA Gives Go Ahead to London Firm for Contracts For Difference: United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has given go-ahead to B2C2 OTC Ltd, a London based firm, to give its customers Contracts For Difference (CFD) based on cryptocurrency. CFDs are a financial instrument that allows traders to predict price fluctuations to profit from the rise and fall of value. CFDs are offered in BTC, BCH, ETH, LTC, and XRP. DOVU, another London based crypto startup, has teamed up with London rail service provider Go-Ahead to offer commuters the chance to earn crypto as they travel. Travelers can earn by sharing their travel data and shifting their mode of transport to a more public one. Belgium SWIFT Announces Foray into Blockchain: SWIFT, the international financial transaction organization based in Belgium has announced the launch of blockchain technology based gateway to note and transmit transactional information to members. The tech is still a proof of concept that is being developed with the help of blockchain software company, R3. Isle of Man Government Working for Infrastructure of Crypto Sector: Authorities in the Isle of Man have set up an office that will help in developing adequate regulatory infrastructure for blockchain technology. In addition to the office, a sandbox is also introduced for organizations to test their blockchain platforms. Switzerland Stock Exchange to Use Blockchain Tech for Digital Exchange: Swiss stock exchange, SIX, will be using blockchain technology in its upcoming digital trading platform, SDX. The largest stock exchange in the country, it expects the decentralized ledger technology-based platform to be launched in the first quarter of the year. The exchange officials expect the new platform to outperform traditional services by 2029. Meanwhile, this year's Swiss Venture Capital Report has shown that in the last year, a record number of venture capital investments were made in Swiss blockchain startups. According to the report, in 2018, nearly USD 1.25 billion of funds were backed by VCs. The majority of the backing was done in Zug, Switzerland's crypto valley. Russia Bank Head Says Crypto Mining is Counterfeiting: The head of the second largest bank in Russia, VTB has said that crypto mining is equivalent to counterfeiting. According to the executive, "A person who is mining [cryptocurrencies] is similar to someone who is printing money". He believes that there will be a very niche market for cryptos in the coming future. Cryptos may be subjected to different views, but the Russian education board, Rosobrnadzor, is taking advantage of the technology behind them. Rosobrnadzor will be implementing the technology for its Unified State Exam, the only form of testing for school completion and preliminaries for universities. Portugal Bank Completes Transaction Using Blockchain: Portuguese bank, Banco Best, has successfully completed an end to end transaction with the global investment bank, Credit Suisse using blockchain. Every stage of the transaction was made possible through the use of a specialized blockchain based platform, FundsDLT. Italy Government Close to Defining Cryptocurrency Legislation: The Italian authorities have come a little closer to clearly defining blockchain technology based cryptocurrency through a new legislation. The Italian parliament passed the bill that specifies terms and their meanings for distributed ledger technology such as blockchain. Lichtenstein Fund Manager Gets Backing from UAE: A cryptocurrency fund manager in the tiny country of Lichtenstein has received backing from a Dubai royalty. The special interest by the Arab Sheikh is due to the fact that even in the slump of crypto market, the fund manager invested more than USD 1 million and managed to make a decent profit. Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. Image Courtesy: BitcoinNews.com The post Europe: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup 2-8 February 2019 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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By Talha Dar on Feb 10, 2019 04:30 pm
Asia and Australia Welcome to another weekly blockchain news roundup from around the world. Here we present to you all the latest Bitcoin news continent by continent and country by country. Malaysia New Amendments for Digital Asset Markets: Malaysian financial regulator, the Security Commission announced amendments to its Guidelines on Recognized Markets, bringing digital asset and crypto trading at par with equity crowdfunding and peer to peer financing. Japan and South Korea A Third of all Crypto Stolen in the World was from Japan and South Korea: A CipherTrace report has revealed that out of the USD 1.7 billion in crypto theft in 2018, a major portion was stolen from Japan and South Korea. Nearly one-third of the theft (USD 500 million) was from a single hack of Coincheck exchange in Tokyo. Meanwhile, the Bank of Korea has said that the launch of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in the country could threaten the existence of commercial banks. The report suggests that with blockchain based digital wallets acting as accounts for the central bank, people would simply not have the need to open bank accounts in commercial banks, leading to their ultimate demise. On the other side of the sea, Japan's financial regulator has released data on inquiries made in the last quarter of 2018. The data shows a near half decline in inquiries received by the financial regulator. India Indian Authorities Unsure about Impact of Cryptocurrencies: The Indian authorities are again at a confusion regarding the impacts of cryptocurrency on the economy. According to one report, they are worried that digital tokens could lead to a destabilization of the local Rupee. With the debate taken to the highest levels in the financial and legislative arms of the government, a right to information report has revealed that the Indian government is looking outside its borders for advise on how to regulate the crypto sector. In a publicly released information, Canadian crypto exchange, QuadrigaCX, has announced that the owner, Mr Cotten, died in the Indian city of Jaipur. The death occurred in a hospital, where he was brought in critical condition, caused due to his ongoing Crohn’s disease. The death occurred last December, but only now has it been made public. Iran Gold Backed Crypto Reportedly Launched by Iran: With reports surfacing for quite some time on the Persian nation developing its own national cryptocurrency, a small group of Iranian banks have teamed up with a blockchain startup to launch a gold-backed cryptocurrency. Dubbed the PayMon, nearly a billion tokens will be issued in the first stage. Philippines New Crypto Rules Set to be Enforced: A new set of rules are ready to be rolled out by the regulatory body, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, in the Philippines. The first phase of the rules will be targeting crypto projects with crypto assets less than USD 5 million. Australia Australian Watchdog Registers 250 Exchanges: Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), the Australian financial regulator is keeping its lead in the crypto sphere with nearly 250 registered exchanges. With the latest license to operate a digital asset crypto exchange, CoinZoom joins the ever-increasing number of approved exchanges in the continental nation. Australian Real Estate Preferring Cryptocurrencies: Australian real estate is also one of those business sectors that prefer operating with cryptocurrency. A regional housing report stated one the largest real estate agent claiming "We are happy to accept Bitcoin or any other major cryptocurrency instead of Australian dollars". Even in the slump that has seen Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies see a heavy crash in prices, it seems the real estate market is just as more interested in accepting digital currencies. Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. Image Courtesy: BitcoinNews.com The post Asia and Australia: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup 2-8 February 2019 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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By Talha Dar on Feb 10, 2019 01:30 pm
Africa and the Middle East Welcome to another weekly blockchain news roundup from around the world. Here we present to you all the latest Bitcoin news continent by continent and country by country. South Africa Blockchain Companies Respond to New Legislation: In the aftermath of the new proposed crypto legislation by the government of South Africa, companies are now starting to respond to it. The paper titled Consultation Paper on Policy Proposals for Crypto Assets was proposed by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) earlier this year and drew mixed reactions from most of the crypto community. Cryptocurrency platform Luno has come forward and praised the latest initiative by the government especially the part about not placing cryptocurrencies on the Value Added Tax (VAT) list. While other crypto companies and commentators have had mixed reactions, exchanges are breathing a sigh of relief as the taxes are not as high as expected. DR Congo Ford and IBM are Working on Blockchain-based Ethical Mining: Car manufacturer Ford and electronics giant IBM are working to source minerals more ethically from African countries including DR Congo. Just like blood diamonds, rare earth metals that have abundant use in electronics are also blamed much for the violence and warlord-like style of governance in some African countries. Now, attention is being paid to the history of the mined metals including the labour being used in the process and adherence to basic human rights. Ford and IBM, both require huge quantities of these rare earth metals themselves but are now looking to help themselves and other companies procure them ethically with the help of blockchain technology. Every mineral shipment is recorded on the blockchain starting from its origin, processing, all the way up to the product itself. IBM’s Hyperledger DLT will be used for this purpose. Israel Sirin Labs CEO Says Whitepapers are not Legally Binding: Amid allegations that he misappropriated funds, Sirin Labs founder Moshe Hogeg has said before a court that whitepapers of Initial Coin Offerings are not legally binding. He also clarified that investors in ICOs have no actual ownership stakes in the company itself. Hogeg was being sued by a Chinese investor who claimed Hogeg deviated from the whitepaper and was therefore liable to a penalty. The company in question is STOX or STX Technologies Limited. While Hogeg hasn’t been convicted right now, the revelation could make investors more careful about participating in ICOs. Saudi Arabia/ United Arab Emirates Cross Border Payments being Tested between Saudi Arabia and UAE: The Saudi Arabian and Emirati central bank task forces are working to create a borderless currency between the two nations. The project is part of a seven-point cooperation plan for strengthening the mutual banking and financial channels. The joint statement from the two countries read: “The cross-border digital currency will be strictly targeted for banks at an experimental phase with the aim of better understanding the implications of Blockchain technology and facilitating cross-border payments. The virtual currency relies on the use of a distributed database between the central banks and the participating banks from both sides. It seeks to safeguard customer interests, set technology standards and assess cybersecurity risks. The project will also determine the impact of a central currency on monetary policies.” So, for now, the currency will strictly be used for interbank and interdepartmental use only. Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. Image Courtesy: The post Africa and the Middle East: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup 2-8 February 2019 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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By Peter on Feb 10, 2019 10:30 am
After all, this week we saw the chance of changing the passive market into an active one. For more than a month, the price has been moving in a narrow range that resembles a wedge. At the same time, the volumes declined continually. In the previous weekly analysis, we expected a continuation of the movement in the wedge with the ultimate target of $3230-$3330. However, the sellers did not have enough power to continue the fall and after that sellers could not keep below the previous local low, buyers took the initiative in their hands: A similar situation took place on December 14, when everyone was expecting a continuation of the fall to $3,000. At this point, buyers intercepted the initiative and organized a short-term trend with a local high of $4370. On the chart, we see two wedges. Though, the angle of sellers’ attack in these wedges is completely different. In the first case, it was an aggressive fall in large volumes. The current wedge looks more like a correction, after the growth from 17 December. The volumes are noticeably smaller. Therefore, buyers are well-placed to continue growth with the ultimate target of $5150-$5200. The breakthrough of the wedge up is a good event for buyers but the price is still in the falling channel: Therefore, a good confirmation of the intentions of buyers should be the breakthrough of the price zone of $3800-$3870 at large volumes. It will break the falling trend from December 24 and will give confidence to all market participants that in the near future the price will increase. In addition to the trend line, the range of $3850-$3950 clearly shows a large liquidity, which buyers will not easily break without volumes: If we analyze the mood of market participants, then buyers are beginning to believe in the continuation of the growth. This is confirmed by a fear/greed index which is 42: Margin positions of buyers are now at the top of the trend line. If the buyers do not begin to continue their attack after the consolidation, sellers will begin their game and buyers will be actively closing their positions. Moreover, now the marginal positions of buyers are at highs. Sellers look puzzled. This is what the situation says about their marginal positions: Sellers do not have a common mood for the future sequence of events. This situation confirms our opinion about the critical point of $3870. As long as buyers are not fixed above this price, we can only hope for a continuation of growth, rather than claiming. The lower critical point for buyers is $3,500. If buyers decided to change the situation on the market drastically, they should keep that price. According to the wave analysis, the correction wave Y ended on 7 February. Globally, the correction lasted from 24 December and corrected the previous growth by slightly more than 78.6%: If buyers can breakthrough $3860, then the next target will be $4580 and the potential final target will be $5200: No matter how we analyse it, we see that without a breakthrough of $3860, buyers will not be able to continue to grow confidently. This is a kind of test on strength and desire. Therefore, we expect how buyers will cope with this test and we will present the course of the week and work out our weekly scenario. See you at the next analysis! Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. About the Author: Peter Oleshchuk is a trader and technical analyst. He has spent two years studying and analyzing the crypto market. Image Courtesy:Pixabay The post Bitcoin Market Analysis: 10 February 2019 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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By Harold Vandelay on Feb 10, 2019 07:30 am
Hervé Falciani, the French-Italian whistleblower who helped track down tax evaders with 130,00 Swiss bank accounts in the 2008 Valencia Polytechnic University crash, is to launch a new cryptocurrency. Falciani became renowned as the HSBC ex-employee turned whistleblower who provided several European countries classified information on thousands of Swiss bank clients who were evading taxes, most of which were managed by a subsidiary of his employers at the time, HSBC Private Bank. He created what became known as the "Lagarde list" of HSBC account holders who allegedly used the financial institution’s services for money laundering and tax evasion, leaking the list to the current International Monetary Fund (IMF) head, Christine Lagarde, who was French finance minister at the time. Continuing his anti-banking crusade, Falciani has now fallen back on crypto to clean up the financial space, by creating his own cryptocurrency – Tabu, which has been developed by 'Tactical Whistleblowers', a non-profit organization founded by Falciani. To date, the Tabu token project has raised €1.3 million (appr. $1.47 million), however, an additional €2 million of capital is required in order to ensure adequate funding for the project's ongoing development. Falciani's mission is to cut corruption caused by what he sees as inefficiencies of the traditional banking documentation system, by also developing a blockchain powered registration system. Tactical Whistleblowers, with its HQ in Valencia, is comprised of several academics with a strong background in Mathematics from the Valencia Polytechnic University. Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. Image Courtesy: Pixabay The post HSBC Whistleblower Is Developing His Own Cryptocurrency appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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By Talha Dar on Feb 10, 2019 04:25 am
South America Welcome to another weekly blockchain news roundup from around the world. Here we present to you all the latest Bitcoin news continent by continent and country by country. Brazil Bitcoin’s Presence in the Carnival: Rio Di Janeiro’s extravagant carnival that draws thousands of people from around the world is likely to be full of crypto references in the country. The move is relevant because the cryptocurrencies and other blockchain applications are gaining increasing traction in the country. Last year, Sao Paulo’s carnival had a whole block dedicated to blockchain and bitcoin for the first time. This year, the carnival in Rio will have an even more presence of cryptocurrencies. Exchange to Help Socially Vulnerable Young People with Crypto Donations: Brazilian exchange Coinext is aiming to help young people who are in a socially vulnerable situation with the help of cryptocurrencies. The move called Recode Movement is trying to implement the ideology of digital inclusion and dissemination of knowledge while helping people in the process. The donated amount will go directly to the Recode’s portfolio which has been operating for more than 20 years. Recife Region Trying to Promote Cryptocurrencies for Mainstream Adoption: Brazilian region of Recife is working on implementing cryptocurrencies for daily use including acceptability in banks, retailers, eateries and other public places. According to Raphael Vasconcelos, the owner of a local cafe: “We are benefited by being in the technology region of Recife, where it is easier to find people with a portfolio of bitcoins in their pockets, but the staff has used them. This creates a good image for us” There are currently over 80 places that accept cryptocurrencies from gas stations to retailers and even legal firms. House of Representative to Discuss Bitcoin Regulation: The Brazilian Chamber of Deputies saw a new cryptocurrency regulation bill filed. The details of the bill are currently not well known and more clarity will come once the bill will go under discussion in the house. The bill was authored by Deputy Aureo Ribeiro from Rio but he was unavailable for comment till the reporting of this news. Cryptocurrency regulation is a sensitive issue in the country as the government is torn between allowing the new asset class to grow and create jobs while trying to clamp down on money laundering and other negative uses of the sector. Venezuela New Crypto Bill Enforced: A new piece of crypto legislation named "Constituent Decree on the Integral System of Crypto Assets" has been enforced in the South American country. The much-delayed legislation was initially approved as early as 2018 by the constituent assembly but was delayed due to official red tape. The bill includes extensive 63 articles that cover a wide range of topics from definitions of blockchain, mining, cryptography, and more. It also has a definition for national cryptocurrency, which in Venezuela’s case is the Petro. But, the bill also empowers the national crypto watchdog named Sunacrip to have overwhelming control of all crypto platforms. Argentina 37 Cities to Allow Commuting Charges to be Paid in Bitcoin: 37 cities all across Argentina will now allow paying of commuting charges through Bitcoin. The commuters use a card named SUBE that can be recharged with money electronically. The addition of Bitcoin as an alternative has been received positively by the Argentinians as more and more parts of the country warm up to the idea of cryptocurrencies for daily use. Cryptocurrency platform Bitex will be used to transfer BTC to the SUBE card. Follow BitcoinNews.com on Twitter: @BitcoinNewsCom Telegram Alerts from BitcoinNews.com: https://t.me/bconews Want to advertise or get published on BitcoinNews.com? – View our Media Kit PDF here. Image Courtesy:BitcoinNews.com The post South America: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup 2-8 February 2019 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.
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Recap - Day in Crypto - BitcoinNews.com for 02/10/2019