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COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: Tencent, the Chinese internet giant, said Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency poses serious risks to its messaging app subsidiary WeChat's existing digital payment infrastructure. In a whitepaper published this week, Tencent said Libra could quickly win market share in countries that do not have a credible local currency or stable financial system, a move that would be impossible for Chinese companies to replicate. “Any internet company that has a relatively mature digital payment system, such as WeChat Pay and Alipay, would be threatened by the stablecoin if it is ever launched,” the whitepaper reads. Full story
ETH UPDATE: Aiming to get the broader public up to speed about changes being planned for ethereum 2.0, founder Vitalik Buterin wrote four blog posts ahead of the blockchain’s planned 2020 launch. Reporter Christine Kim breaks down five of the biggest takeaways from Buterin’s erudite posts, including changes to the proof-of-stake blockchain's transaction speed and capacity on eth 2.0. Full story
LAB UPGRADE: The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's research wing, known as LabCFTC, is to become its own independent office. Announced Thursday at the annual Fintech Forward conference, LabCFTC will continue to research emerging financial technologies, but now report directly to the agency’s chairman, Heath Tarbert. Launched in 2017, LabCFTC acts as a “beachhead” for blockchain and digital asset research. Full story
FACEBOOK WALKS? Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told lawmakers that the company would pull out of the Libra Association if, as seems unlikely, the consortium launches a cryptocurrency without all needed regulatory approvals. In a House Financial Services Committee hearing Wednesday, Zuckerberg reiterated his commitment to satisfying regulators’ concerns before launching Libra, saying, “I believe we would be forced to leave the association,” if the Libra Association did not receive U.S. regulatory approval. Full story |
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| BEAR TEST: Long-term bitcoin price support at $7,200 may be put to the test for the first time in six months, likely after a minor price bounce. A high-volume range breakdown seen on the daily chart suggests scope for test of a long-term moving average at $7,200. However, a UTC close above the Oct. 21 high of $8,352 is needed to confirm a bullish reversal. Full story |
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| | CRYPTO GOALS: Football clubs across Europe are edging closer to crypto, reports Paul MacInnes of The Guardian . Last month, Watford became the first UK club to accept bitcoin payments from fans. And there are plenty of cheerleaders in other leagues. Bayern Munich has launched a line of crypto-collectibles, while Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Atlético Madrid, Roma, Galatasaray and West Ham have all signed deals with the yet-to-be-launched Socios token platform. |
WHO WON #CRYPTOTWITTER
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Zuck bucks