Month: July 2018

Crypto Merchant Bank Galaxy Digital Lost $134 Million in The First Quarter of 2018

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Mike Novogratz’s crypto-focused merchant bank Galaxy Digital released its first quarter report for 2018, posting a $134 million loss as cryptocurrency markets slumped, according to Bloomberg July 26. Galaxy Digital lost $13.5 million in its trading business, with $85.5 million of unrealized loss on digital assets, $1.1 million in paper losses on investments, and $22.9 million in paper loss on investments in its principal investing business. As of March 31, Galaxy digital had $281.7 million in assets, of which $225.8 million were digital assets and investments. Novogratz, who founded Galaxy…

South Carolina State Regulators Withdraw Enforcement Actions on Two Blockchain Startups

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The Securities Division of the Office of the Attorney General of South Carolina has removed cease-and-desist orders against two blockchain startups, according to public documents published July 26. Today’s order removed a cease-and-desist order filed by the South Carolina Attorney General’s office against shipping platform ShipChain for violating the state’s securities statutes on May 21. Regulators initially accused the firm of running afoul of securities laws during their private SHIP token sale. The second firm, cloud mining platform Genesis Mining, which was previously halted by the South Carolina Attorney General’s…

CME Will Not Introduce Altcoin Futures Anytime Soon, Says CEO

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The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) will not introduce futures on cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin (BTC) in the near future, CME CEO Terry Duffy revealed in an interview with Bloomberg July 26.   In the interview, Duffy said that the company should first evaluate and develop an approach for Bitcoin, stressing that Bitcoin futures “might have been the most controversial launch of a product.” Duffy emphasized that altcoins futures contracts cannot be launched immediately, because they are “highly volatile and new,” and the company cannot just list products for trading in order…

IOTA, Litecoin, Stellar Lumens, Tron, EOS Technical Analysis

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News of EOSIO Block Producer agreement to increase on a yearly basis the size of network RAM is exciting for dApp developers and EOS holders. RAM-as we have seen-is a sensitive subject if we can relive recent debates. Aside from EOS, IOTA and Stellar Lumens (XLM) are registering decent gains while Litecoin and Tron retest important resistance lines. EOS Technical Analysis EOS Daily Chart by Trading View At long last, there has been a ratification from EOS Block Producers allowing for expansion of available RAM. By all accounts, this is…

Major Banks From Member States Sign MoU on DLT Research

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Five major banks from each BRICS member state signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the development of distributed ledger technology (DLT), according to an official press release July 26. During the 10th International BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, banks from the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa agreed to a joint study of DLT technology like blockchain, “in the interests of the development of the digital economy.” BRICS countries have met annually since 2009 to discuss initiatives for economic, cultural, and political cooperation between member states.…

Crypto ETF Rejection Sends Bitcoin Price Below $8,000

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Within hours that the SEC announced that it has rejected a proposed bitcoin ETF submitted by the Winklevoss Twins, the bitcoin price dipped below the $8,000 mark and is now currently teetering back and forth across that psychologically-significant level. CCN reported on the breaking ETF announcement earlier today. About the ETF The announcement comes after the SEC reviewed the application a second time, following an appeal from Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. The SEC also opened up a fresh round  of public comment for this second review. The initial application…

Swiss Crypto Mining Firm Faces Enforcement Action for Potentially Unauthorized ICO

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The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has launched enforcement proceedings against crypto mining firm Envion AG over its potentially unauthorized token sale, according to a FINMA press release today, July 26. Swiss-based Envion AG is an off-grid mining company that claims to use decentralized, clean energy to power its mobile mining units, and completed its month-long Initial Coin Offering (ICO) for the EVN token in mid-January this year. FINMA’s investigation into the case to date suggests that in the context of its ICO, Envion AG accepted approximately 100 million…

Bitcoin Price Slides After SEC Rejects Winklevoss ETF

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The bitcoin price careened back toward $8,000 on Thursday after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejected the Winklevoss twins’ second attempt to create a bitcoin ETF and list it on a regulated stock exchange. The bitcoin price had entered the evening trading at approximately $8,300, a mark it managed to hold until shortly after 20:30 UTC. At that point, the floor appeared to disappear from under the flagship cryptocurrency’s feet, and it quickly posted a several-hundred-dollar decline. The bitcoin price briefly sunk below $8,100, though it has since…

Mastercard CEO Calls Anonymous Cryptocurrencies ‘Junk,’ Again

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Ajaypal Banga, the CEO of Mastercard, blasted cryptocurrencies during the “New India Lecture” at the Indian Consulate earlier this week, The Times of India reports Thursday, July 26. Banga described anonymous, non-state-issued cryptocurrencies as “junk,” because their prices can fluctuate “wildly” and thus they do not “deserve” to be considered a medium of exchange. Speaking at a series of lectures hosted by the Indian Consulate in partnership with the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), the India-born CEO and president of the multinational financial services giant Mastercard reportedly said the following:…