Day: August 23, 2018

Kenya’s Electoral Commission to Adopt Blockchain for Enhanced Vote Integrity

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The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission of Kenya (IEBC) has announced plans to utilize blockchain technology to offer real-time polling results and thus improve vote integrity and trust in the voting process. Speaking in a statement, IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati said that the technology will be used to give presidential candidates secure access to live results as the country struggles to shake off the legacy of the violent 2007 and 2017 elections which saw hundreds killed and hundreds of thousands displaced across the country. Kenya’s Electoral Problem Elections are often…

Markets See Red Following BTC ETF Rejections, News of Anti-Crypto Measures in China

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Thursday, August 23: virtually all of the top 100 cryptocurrencies are in the red today, with average losses of between 1 and 4 percent among the top 10 largest coins by market cap, as Coin360 data shows. Yesterday evening’s news of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) disapproval orders for 9 different Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposals from 3 applicants — which intersected with emerging reports of toughened anti-crypto measures in China — has apparently reversed yesterday’s short-lived market upswing. Pointedly, multiple crypto commentators had attributed the markets’ evanescent…

Bittrex Partners With Trading Firm on Crypto Securities Offering

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U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex is partnering with a regulated alternative trading system (ATS) with the aim of ultimately launching trading in crypto securities. In an announcement Thursday, Bitrex said it is working with Rialto Trading, which currently offers fixed-income products for traders, to gain regulatory approval to support “blockchain-based securities,” according to a press release. If approval is granted, Rialto plans to launch a “comprehensive” securities offering, including an issuance advisory service, placement, trading and custody. For the system, the firm will leverage its ATS and the tools it uses…

Blockchain Platforms vs. Governments and Facebook

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We’re living at a time of unprecedented concern over identity. Fears abound that our personal data is being abused by distant third-parties, while this data has become more valuable to us at a time when our identities and the identity politics we base around them have become more central to our lives. It’s in this context that blockchain technology has appeared, and while its application beyond cryptocurrencies is still limited, protecting our online identities and data more securely looks set to be one of its most central applications. In its…

UK Watchdog Grants Third E-Money License to Crypto Company

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UK watchdog The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has granted its third e-money license to a crypto-related company, Financial Magnates reports August 23. The new license has been issued to the Wirex, whose main product is a prepaid debit card that converts crypto into fiat currency for everyday use. As Cointelegraph has reported, the FCA granted an e-money license to major US crypto exchange and wallet service Coinbase this March, which applies to the firm’s fiat, not cryptocurrency, dealings. The license has facilitated Coinbase’s cooperation with UK banks and its access…

New York State to See Bitcoin Mining Operation Powered by Hydroelectric Dam in Q4 2018

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A California-based Bitcoin mining company has completed work on a repurposed hydroelectric dam to service its new mining farm, a press release announced Thursday, August 23. DPW Holdings will now prepare to use the dam, which is located in Valatie Falls, New York, as the source of electricity for its yet-to-be-built mining facility towards the end of 2018. The move means fresh competition for the steadily increasing miner population in New York State, where Coinmint signalled it would begin operations in an old smokestack with local government backing earlier this…

New FSA Chief Rules Out ‘Excessive’ Regulation of Japan’s Crypto Exchanges

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The newly appointed chief of Japan’s top financial regulator has stated his belief that there is no need for “excessive” regulation of the country’s cryptocurrency industry. Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday, Toshihide Endo, commissioner of the Financial Services Agency (FSA), said his agency is trying to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges in a way that protects consumers and yet doesn’t stifle innovation. He told the news source: “We have no intention to curb [the cryptocurrency industry] excessively  We would like to see it grow under appropriate regulation.” Endo’s comments echo statements previously made by representatives of…

Electronics Giant LG Focuses on Development of Blockchain, AI, IoT with Branding Strategy

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LG CNS, a subsidiary of South Korean multinational conglomerate LG Corporation, has announced a plan to strengthen its enterprise offerings in seven key areas including blockchain, according to an official press release published August 22. LG CNS is planning to release new “strategic” brands for each of the seven platforms of newly developed technologies — blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), smart city, smart factory, robot service, and smart energy — in order to promote the “fourth industrial revolution” with its enterprise portfolio. The released brandings, with similar…

California Police Arrest Teenage ‘SIM Swapper’ Who Allegedly Stole Crypto From Cell Phones

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Police in California have arrested an alleged hacker who stole Bitcoin (BTC) totalling more than $1 million by hijacking cellphones, investigative cybercrime blog Krebs on Security reported Wednesday, August 22. Citing a police report, the publication reveals Xzavyer Narvaez, 19, used “SIM swapping,” a technique also known as a “port out scam,” to reportedly steal cryptocurrency from victims’ devices. Over a period of several years, Narvaez and another suspect already under arrest used the funds to buy items such as luxury sports cars. From March to June 2018 alone, Narvaez’s…

China Prohibits Crypto-Related Promotion in Beijing’s Chaoyang District

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China is prohibiting all commercial venues from hosting any cryptocurrency-related events in Beijing’s Chaoyang district, local news outlet The Paper reported August 22. Official notice issued by local financial and social risk prevention and control authorities. Source: The Paper Many reportedly believe the ban, first covered by a local news app known as Jwview, could be extended to other districts as well, according to Cointelegraph correspondents in China. The correspondents further noted that Chinese media has conflictingly reported that the ban both does — and does not — apply to…