Month: October 2018

Branding Mishap of Bitcoin ‘ATM’ Landed us in Trouble, Says Unocoin Founder

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About a week since the seizure of what was to be the first Bitcoin ATM in India, one of the co-founders of the firm that installed the cryptocurrency vending machine, Unocoin, has speculated that the debacle could have been avoided with better branding. Speaking to Quartz India, the co-founder of Unocoin, Sathvik Vishwanath, has claimed that by branding the cryptocurrency kiosk ‘Bitcoin ATM’ they probably created the wrong impression as the acronym ‘ATM’ carries certain connotations. However, according to Vishwanath, the device did not need any regulatory approval, unlike the…

Bitcoin Is ‘Anything but Useful’ Says Ex-Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen

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Bitcoin is “anything but” a useful store of value, former U.S. Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen stated in a speech Monday, Canadian financial news outlet Kitco reported Oct. 29. Speaking during an interview at the 2018 Canada FinTech Forum in Montreal, Yellen – who rose to fame in the cryptocurrency community last year as the target of the now infamous ‘Buy Bitcoin’ session at a House Financial Services Committee meeting – doubled down on her previous criticism of the asset. “It has long been thought that for something to be…

U.S. Man Faces up to 5 Years in Prison for ‘Unlicensed’ Bitcoin Sales via LocalBitcoins

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A U.S. citizen has pled guilty before a federal court to operating an “unlicensed money transmitting business” via LocalBitcoins.com, according to a Department of Justice (DoJ) press release published Oct. 29. The man, Jacob Burrell Campos, has reportedly admitted to “selling hundreds of thousands of dollars” in Bitcoin (BTC) “to over 1,000 customers” in the U.S. between Jan. 2015-April 2016, thus deemed to effectively be operating what the DoJ characterizes as an unregistered “Bitcoin exchange.” Availing himself of the popular peer-to-peer platform LocalBitcoins.com, Burrell reportedly failed to register his business…

UK Financial Watchdog Eyes Ban on Sale of Crypto Derivatives

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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is eyeing a potential ban on the sale of cryptocurrency derivatives, the Financial Times reported. The UK financial watchdog said that it would begin discussions in the first quarter of the next year on whether it would go ahead with the proposed ban on crypto-based difference, futures, and options. The agency affirmed that it still believes cryptocurrencies have no intrinsic value and investors should be prepared to lose a lot of money if they venture into this unregulated territory. It also repeated global concerns about the…

Singapore’s National Energy Provider Launches Blockchain Marketplace for Green Energy

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Singapore’s national electricity and gas provider has launched blockchain-powered trading of renewable energy certificates in a new marketplace. The blockchain is designed and built in-house by the company’s own team of digital energy experts to “ensure the security, integrity and traceability” of every renewable energy certificate (REC) transaction, Singapore Power (SP) said in a press release. The SP Group, a unified corporate entity of former electricity and gas departments of Singapore’s Public Utilities Board, claims the blockchain marketplace will enable local and international companies meet their energy sustainability targets. When…

U.K.’s Financial Regulator Mulls Ban on Sale of Crypto Derivatives

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The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it will consider whether to ban the sale of cryptocurrency-based derivatives, the Financial Times (FT) reported Oct. 29. Unlike crypto spot market activities, trading, transacting and advising on crypto derivatives such as contracts for difference (CFDs), options, and futures currently falls within the FCA’s regulatory perimeter and requires its official authorization. In a statement published Monday, the watchdog is reported to have said it will now launch a consultation in the first quarter of 2019 into whether or not to place a…

U.K.’s Financial Regulator Mulls Ban on Sale of Crypto Derivatives

boss

The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it will consider whether to ban the sale of cryptocurrency-based derivatives, the Financial Times (FT) reported Oct. 29. Unlike crypto spot market activities, trading, transacting and advising on crypto derivatives such as contracts for difference (CFDs), options, and futures currently falls within the FCA’s regulatory perimeter and requires its official authorization. In a statement published Monday, the watchdog is reported to have said it will now launch a consultation in the first quarter of 2019 into whether or not to place a…

First Islamic Crypto Exchange to be Launched in 2019

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  The ADAB Solutions project, based in the United Arab Emirates, is planning to launch FICE — the First Islamic Crypto Exchange which will be operating “according to the principles of Shariah law.” The company is expecting to reach $146 million daily trading and $4.4 billion monthly turnover by 2020. Islamic finance as crypto exchange base The new project hasn’t been launched yet but it has already gotten the attention of the crypto community. The First Islamic Crypto Exchange was marked as number one in a recently published Coin Shark…

Bitcoin Price Watch: BTC/USD At Risk Of More Losses Below $6,240

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Key Points Bitcoin price finally made the next move and broke the $6,350 support against the US Dollar. There was a break below a major contracting triangle with support at $6,405 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken). The price traded towards the $6,200 support area where buyers emerged. Bitcoin price moved into a bearish zone below $6,350 against the US Dollar. BTC/USD remains at risk of more losses below the $6,240 and $6,200 support levels. Bitcoin Price Analysis After consolidating for a few days…

BCH and EOS Extend Losses to 5% as Bitcoin Drops to $6,250

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Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin has lost 2 percent of its price against the US dollar, dipping below the $6,300 mark to $6,250. While cryptocurrency-only exchanges are demonstrating a price of $6,350 for Bitcoin due to the premium on BTC-to-USDT (Tether) pair, the actual price of Bitcoin remains at around $6,256. The volume of BTC has increased from $3.1 billion to $4.2 billion over the past seven days, by more than 35 percent. But, most of the volume recorded by major cryptocurrency exchanges represent sell orders. Major Digital Assets…