CryptoKitties Raises $15m from Venrock, Google, Samsung, and More

Blockchain-based virtual game CryptoKitties has raised US$15M in financing led by Venrock, with participation from GV (formerly Google Ventures) and Samsung NEXT. Funds raised will be used to establish a U.S. subsidiary, hire leading executives in the U.S. and Canada, and develop its infrastructure. High-Profile Investors Line Up to Back Consumer Blockchain Success CryptoKitties With $15m The $15 million raised by Dapper Labs, the company behind CryptoKitties, included other high-profile investors, such as Endeavor; eSports leader aXiomatic, and the Andreessen Horowitz Cultural Leadership Fund CoinFund. Other investors include Animoca Brands,…

Why Blockchain Is the Right Fit for Gold and Diamonds

This week, two major news within the precious metals industry broke. First, the world’s largest diamond company, Russia’s Alrosa, joined a blockchain project aimed at increasing transparency. Secondly, the world’s largest bank, JPMorgan, reportedly started to use its blockchain to tokenize gold. Indeed, blockchain has been pioneering both gold and diamond industries — complex ecosystems that heavily rely on supply chains, where cargo passes through dozens of geographical locations before arriving at its destination. The technology has helped to avoid corruption and improve quality by tracking valuable assets at every…

Russian State Duma Committee Considers Launch of Central Bank-Issued Stablecoin

The chairman of Russia’s State Duma Committee on Financial Markets has claimed that the entity is considering the launch of state-backed cryptocurrency pegged to the Russian ruble, Russian radio news station Govorit Moskva reported Friday, Nov. 2. Speaking at a press conference on the increase of the household debt load, Chairman Anatoly Aksakov expressed his confidence that the government will back a cryptocurrency, “but it will be a ruble-pegged cryptocurrency.” The deputy clarified that the implied coin will represent a blockchain-powered stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the ruble. Aksakov further described…

‘Tis the Season — to Evaluate Bitcoin’s Price Performance

Twitter Facebook LinkedIn By Rafael Delfin, Head of Research at Brave New Coin, a leading provider of high-value cryptocurrency market data and insights, since 2012. October 31st, 2018 marked the 10-year anniversary of the publication of Bitcoin’s white paper. While it was initially circulated among a small and obscure cryptography mailing list, one decade later, the implementation of the mythical white paper is disrupting the world’s notion of money, sovereignty, and everything in between. Since its inception, bitcoin’s performance has been nothing short of extraordinary. With its highly volatile nature,…

‘Tis the Season — to Evaluate Bitcoin’s Price Performance

Twitter Facebook LinkedIn By Rafael Delfin, Head of Research at Brave New Coin, a leading provider of high-value cryptocurrency market data and insights, since 2012. October 31st, 2018 marked the 10-year anniversary of the publication of Bitcoin’s white paper. While it was initially circulated among a small and obscure cryptography mailing list, one decade later, the implementation of the mythical white paper is disrupting the world’s notion of money, sovereignty, and everything in between. Since its inception, bitcoin’s performance has been nothing short of extraordinary. With its highly volatile nature,…

Crypto Markets See Hint of Green, Top Cryptos Keep Trading Sideways

Thursday, Nov. 1: crypto markets have seen a hint of green, with many of the top 20 cryptocurrencies seeing slight growth. The slight growth in markets follows a recent sell off on Monday, when the price of Bitcoin (BTC) dropped from $6,480 to as low as $6,344. While 19 out of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization have seen some growth today, almost all of them are still firmly in the red over the past 7 days. Market visualization from Coin360 The major cryptocurrency Bitcoin is up almost 0.9…

Night of the Living HODLers: Halloween 2018’s Best Crypto Costumes

The cryptocurrency and blockchain communities got into the Halloween spirit this week – and as shown on social media, more than a few people went out in style. Last year saw costume takes such as “Bitcoin Bubble Boy” and a real-life private key, and that kind of imaginative spirit was on full display for 2018. This year’s Halloween also marked the 10-year anniversary of the release of the bitcoin white paper. In 2008, the pseudonymous creator of bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, first circulated the paper among a list of influential cryptographers –…

Bitcoin Brought Us a New World We Could Have Only Imagined

Mike Belshe is the co-founder and CEO of BitGo. This exclusive opinion piece is part of CoinDesk’s “Bitcoin at 10: The Satoshi White Paper” series. In the 10 years since the bitcoin white paper was released, our understanding of the world around us has changed. The introduction of a global, digital currency that can exist without a central authority opened our eyes to the possibilities of money – that it can be different from what we’ve known. As a community, we’re now wiser to the opportunities for a digital economy…

The SEC to Rule on 9 Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs After November 5th

Back in late August, news broke that the SEC was reviewing nine earlier rejected Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs. What happened is that the rejections were as a result of the Commission delegating some tasks to its staff. The staff had acted on behalf of the Commission and followed through with rejecting the 9 Bitcoin ETFs. However, due to additional rules at the regulatory body, the Commission has the power to review such ‘delegated’ decisions. Confusion that the SEC Deadline Was the 26th October Soon after the SEC Commission announced that it…

South Korean Court Rules Bank’s Action to End Banking Services to Crypto Exchange Illegal

Twitter Facebook LinkedIn A court in South Korea has ruled that the decision by a commercial bank to stop offering banking services to a cryptocurrency exchange was unlawful and must therefore be rescinded. According to the Central District Court’s 50th Civil Affairs Division, the move by South Korean commercial bank Nonghyup to cease offering deposit and withdrawal services to Coinis cryptocurrency exchange was both unfair and illegal. The South Korean bank had claimed that it based its decision on the anti-money laundering guidelines issued by the regulator Financial Services Commission…