South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, Upbit — a crypto-only platform run by a subsidiary of Korean tech giant Kakao — has posted a $100 million profit in the third quarter (Q3) of 2018, Yonhap News reported August 23. As Yonhap reports, Kakao’s recent Semiannual Report indicates that the net profit of Upbit operator Dunamoo was 19,330 million won ($17.35 million), with total assets adding up to around 1.25 trillion won (around $1.1 billion). Last year, the company posted a net income of 190.31 billion won ($170 million), while its total…
Day: August 24, 2018
China’s Payments Giant AliPay Takes Measures Against OTC Crypto Trading via Its Platform
Chinese mobile payment app Alipay is toughening its stance towards users who use their Alipay accounts for over-the-counter (OTC) Bitcoin (BTC) trading, Beijing News website reports August 24. The overwhelmingly popular Alipay counted 400 million users as of August 2017, and is run by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial, which has recently been valued as high as $150 billion. According to Beijing News, Alipay is now taking measures to restrict and even permanently block those accounts that use its network to transact Bitcoin OTC, as well as establishing an inspection system…
China’s Payments Giant AliPay Takes Measures Against OTC Crypto Trading via Its Platform
Chinese mobile payment app Alipay is toughening its stance towards users who use their Alipay accounts for over-the-counter (OTC) Bitcoin (BTC) trading, Beijing News website reports August 24. The overwhelmingly popular Alipay counted 400 million users as of August 2017, and is run by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial, which has recently been valued as high as $150 billion. According to Beijing News, Alipay is now taking measures to restrict and even permanently block those accounts that use its network to transact Bitcoin OTC, as well as establishing an inspection system…
Sim-Swapping, Bitcoin Swiping 19-Year-Old Snags Luxury Car
On August 17th police arrested 19-year-old Xzavyer Narvaez on seven counts of computer crime. These included identity fraud and grand theft. The hacker was accused of hijacking phone numbers to steal large amounts of cryptocurrency successfully. Attacks like this are a part of an emerging type of fraud called sim swapping. While Narvaez was caught, it’s clear that attacks like this are a growing trend. A Network of Fraudsters The arrest comes a month after Joel Ortiz was taken into custody for hijacking phone numbers. Ortiz allegedly stole around $5…
UK: Leicester City and FansUnite partnership in another blockchain sports betting deal in Premier League
Leicester City Football Club has announced a fresh partnership with Vancouver headquartered FansUnite, whose goal is one of “revolutionising the sports betting industry by harnessing the power of blockchain technology”. Brought on board with The Foxes as an official partner for the 2018/19 season, FansUnite details that it is to launch its sports betting protocol later this year, “with operators across the globe able to offer bettors lower fees, and an increased opportunity to profit for individuals”. FansUnite is to work in conjunction with the club to launch a series of…
Commercial Use of Bitcoin Cash Payments has Dropped: Analytics Firm
Cryptocurrency advocate Roger Ver, often referred to as Bitcoin Jesus is having a tough time with the adoption of Bitcoin Cash (BCH). In a report published on Bloomberg, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis says the Bitcoin fork is barely being used in commerce. Bitcoin Cash was forked from Bitcoin over a year ago. At the time, Ver had converted his holdings into Bitcoin Cash, telling everyone who cared to listen that he had switched allegiance to BCH. He even overhauled his Bitcoin.com website, to focus on the cryptocurrency. In a review…
Mt. Gox Crypto Exchange Opens Claims for Creditors to Request Lost Funds
Creditors of hacked Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox began filing civil rehabilitation claims Thursday, August 23 in a fresh attempt to retrieve their lost bitcoins. An online claims submission process released by trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi details the various prerequisites for the exchange’s creditors, who now have until October 22 to submit a filing. The news follows on from an update earlier this month, in which officials clarified information about ultimate payouts and other issues. “If proof of claim is not filed by the deadline, then disenfranchisement (i.e., loss of the…
CNBC’s Analyst Brian Kelly Says Bitcoin ETF Approval Likely by February 2019
Crypto analyst Brian Kelly has predicted that approval of a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) will “likeliest” and “earliest” come in February 2019, in an interview on CNBC’s Fast Money August 23. Kelly’s forecast comes hot upon the heels of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) rejection of nine BTC derivatives-based ETF proposals from three applicants August 22. An ETF is a type of mutual investment fund that divides ownership of a commodity, derivative, index, or basket of assets, into shares. The fund tracks the value of the underlying…
Korea’s Biggest Crypto Exchange Sees $100 Million Profit in a Bear Market
UPbit, South Korea’s biggest crypto exchange, has seen a profit of $100 million in the third quarter of of 2018, despite the bear market and decline in trading volume. According to the data released by Repository of Korea’s Corporate Filings (DART) obtained by mainstream media outlet Yonhap, UPbit saw a profit of just over $100 million while Bithumb, the country’s second-largest trading platform, recorded a profit of $39 million. Bithumb’s Profit Shrunk From $400 Million to $39 Million UPbit demonstrated one of its best quarters since its launch in 2017,…
Central Bank, Gov’t Caution Public Over Fake Cryptocurrency Schemes
Multiple Chinese authorities issued a stark warning about illegal fundraising attempts claiming affiliation with the cryptocurrency industry in a bulletin Friday, August 24. Sounding the alarm on “lawless entities” attempting to amass funds “using the banner of ‘financial innovation’ and ‘blockchain’” and distributing “so-called ‘virtual currency,’ ‘virtual assets’ and ‘digital assets,’” the document urges the public to be “rational” about blockchain-related information. Its authors include China’s Banking Regulatory Commission, Ministry of Public Security and the People’s Bank of China (PBoC). “Such activities are not really based on blockchain technology, but…