A new blockchain trade finance platform developed by a dozen banks, among them HSBC, BNP Paribas, and Standard Chartered, launched this week in Hong Kong, Reuters reported Oct. 31. The platform, dubbed eTrade Connect, aims to improve efficiency in the financing of international trade by reducing the time needed to approve trade loan applications from thirty-six to just four hours. HSBC is reported to have earned $2.52 billion in trade-finance revenue in 2017, making it one of the global banking leaders in the industry. As of 2017, trade finance transactions…
Day: November 2, 2018
New Zealand’s Financial Authority Blacklists Three Local Crypto Platforms
The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) of New Zealand has added three new crypto-related websites to its list of online scams, an announcement by the FMA reveals Thursday, Nov. 1. On Nov. 1, the FMA listed three companies — Crypto Gain, Russ Horn, and Zend Trade — on its “scam” list, where citizens are warned about the potential risk of dealing with certain websites. In regards to Crypto Gain, the FMA states that the company is posing as a New Zealand company with the same name without permission to do so,…
Ledger to Suspend Bitcoin Cash (BCH) Support on the 15th of November
November 15th is quickly approaching and the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) community has yet to come to a consensus as to what upgrade shall be implemented uniformly across the network. The lack of consensus and open differences between the two camps supporting different upgrades is self evident and the only solution for this is a hard fork. The two camps with different upgrade proposals are Bitcoin ABC and nChain. Both camps have released their individual versions of the upgrade that is to come on the 15th of November. There is also…
Bitcoin Price Watch: BTC/USD Targets Fresh High Above $6,400
Key Points Bitcoin price gained traction and moved above the $6,335 and $6,350 resistances against the US Dollar. There was a break above a key bearish trend line with resistance at $6,345 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken). The price is currently correcting lower, but there are decent supports near $6,345 and $6,325. Bitcoin price is gaining upside momentum against the US Dollar. BTC/USD could dip a few points before it climbs above the $6,380 and $6,400 levels. Bitcoin Price Analysis Yesterday, we saw…
Azerbaijan Targets Utilities, Justice System for Blockchain, Smart Contracts Use
Azerbaijan is planning to use blockchain and smart contracts in the country’s legal system and housing sector, Central Asian-focused Trend News Agency reported Nov. 2. Speaking to the publication, chairman of the Azerbaijani Internet Forum Osman Gunduz noted that plans for smart contract introduction in these areas by the country’s justice ministry had “attracted attention” at a meeting held Oct. 30. “It was announced that in the future, the smart contracts will be introduced in the field of public utilities (water, gas and electricity supply),” he said, adding: “This refers…
IOTA Foundation to Integrate Native Token With Ledger’s Hardware Crypto Wallets
The Germany-based IOTA Foundation will integrate IOTA tokens with Ledger’s hardware cryptocurrency wallets, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph Nov. 2. The IOTA Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports the development and standardization of distributed ledger technology (DLT) and is focused on building ecosystems around IOTA in order to facilitate its commercial adoption. As of November 2017, the Foundation reportedly owned $255 million in tokens as foundation funds, $22 million as the ecosystem fund, and $20 million as unclaimed IOTA from the crowdsale. After the integration with…
Cardano Price Analysis: ADA/USD Eyeing Rebound Above $0.075
Key Highlights ADA price found support near the $0.0680 level and recovered against the US Dollar (tethered). There was a break above a major bearish trend line with resistance at $0.0710 on the hourly chart of the ADA/USD pair (data feed via Bittrex). The pair is currently trading in a bullish zone and it could move towards $0.0750 or $0.0780 in the near term. Cardano price is rebounding against the US Dollar and Bitcoin. ADA/USD is likely to correct further higher towards the $0.0750 level. Cardano Price Analysis In the…
Use Consensus to the Fullest: A Quick Guide on Strengthened Networking
There were times when some crypto conferences had a reputation of being the most anticipated events in the industry. Today the industry seems to have got tired of conferences because of the vast presence of those who only pave the way for attracting investments to their doubtful projects. The most influential people in blockchain space opt for small dedicated side-events, which commonly are private. Then how to choose an appropriate side-event? Let’s try to find out the answer. Attending side-events today looks like the only way to find valuable connections…
Brazilian Tax Regulator Publishes Draft on Cryptocurrency Taxation
The Department of Federal Revenue of Brazil (RFB), which administers tax collection in the country, is seeking to receive monthly reports on crypto assets operations, according to a document released by the RFB Tuesday, Oct. 30. In the paper, the RFB has announced that Brazil-based crypto exchanges are now obliged to send them detailed reports on all crypto-related operations on monthly basis. For instance, the companies have to reveal the amounts of transactions and the identity of the customers. Moreover, both legal entities and individuals residing in Brazil are now…
The Incoming Wave of ICO Regulation (Yes, It’s Coming)
Alex Sunnarborg is a Founder of Tetras Capital. Previously, he was a research analyst at CoinDesk and a founder of the crypto investing app Lawnmower. As you may know, securities classification analysis in the U.S. today primarily revolves around the Securities Act of 1933 and the SEC v. W.J. Howey Co. Supreme Court case of 1946. The Securities Act of 1933 was established to require issuers to disclose certain pieces of information to potential investors prior to any public securities offering. This law was enacted to reduce misrepresentation by issuers and to help…