Coinbase Custody Now Supports Mainnet KIN Tokens

Coinbase Custody announced immediate support for the mainnet iteration of the KIN token today, April 30, 2019.   As Cointelegraph previously reported, KIN is a cryptocurrency created by Canadian organization Kik Interactive of Kik Messenger fame. The token was originally developed on the Ethereum and Stellar networks and now operates on its own blockchain (a fork of Stellar). “KIN holders can now benefit from Coinbase Custody’s industry-leading offline storage platform and insurance coverage,” they say. Coinbase Custody is a custodial service provided by San-Francisco-based platform  Coinbase. Coinbase Custody was first…

ConsenSys Spinoff Truffle Integrates With Goldmans Sachs-Supported Blockchain: Report

Truffle is integrating with AxCore, a proprietary blockchain jointly created by Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan-supported Axoni, Forbes reported on April 29. The ConsenSys spinoff, which makes tools that are widely used by Ethereum developers, has reportedly raised $3 million as it aims to expand into enterprise-grade solutions. According to the Forbes report, Truffle plans to use the investment to complete a suite of blockchain development tools designed to appeal to enterprise clients. An estimated 60% of Truffle’s current revenue comes from liaising with startups, larger corporations and governments that want…

Amazon Web Services Launches Managed Blockchain Service

Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud computing platform subsidiary of retail giant Amazon, has made its Amazon Managed Blockchain (AMB) generally available, according to an announcement on April 30. The product will purportedly allow customers to set up blockchain networks within their organizations, and uses the Ethereum and Hyperledger open source frameworks. Notably, Amazon states that AMB can scale to support thousands to millions of transactions. Amazon states that the blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) will allow businesses to develop their own networks more quickly and at a lower cost, as it eliminates…

20 Percent of Leading Global Grocers to Use Blockchain by 2025

20 percent of the top 10 global grocers will use blockchain by 2025, according to information released by research firm Gartner Inc on April 30. Per Gartner, the main advantage of blockchain for grocers is that it provides a high degree of transparency. For grocers, this means they can use blockchain as a way to convey reliable information to their customers and retailers. Gartner even claims that blockchain “appears as an ideal technology to foster transparency and visibility along the food supply chain.” Gartner says that grocery sales are increasing…

New York District Attorney Charges Two for Shadow Banking Crypto Companies

The Southern District of New York Attorney has charged an Arizona man and Israeli woman for allegedly shadow banking cryptocurrency companies, according to an official announcement published on April 30. Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the arrest of Reginald Fowler for allegedly operating an unlicensed money transferring business and bank fraud. His purported co-conspirator Ravid Yosef has also been charged with bank fraud and is still at large, according to the announcement. In 2018, the accused allegedly worked for several…

Former Barclays Exec Joins Fidelity Investments to Work on Digital Assets

A former executive of British investment bank Barclays, Chris Tyrer, has joined Fidelity Digital Assets, the crypto platform of American financial services corporation Fidelity Investments, Finance Magnates reported on April 30. Tyrer began working on digital assets for Fidelity Investments after serving over 13 years at Barclays as Head of Digital Assets Project, Head of Commodities Trading, and Global Head of Crude Oil Trading, according to his LinkedIn profile. Tyrer and commodity trader Matthieu Jobbe Duval reportedly attempted to establish a digital currency trading desk at the bank, but the…

Only 74% Backed by Cash, How Will Bitcoin React?

By CCN.com: According to an affidavit filed with the Supreme Court of the State of New York by Stuart Hoegner, the general counsel to Tether and major bitcoin exchange Bitfinex, only 74 percent of Tether’s holdings are backed by cash. “As of the date [April 30] I am signing this affidavit, Tether has cash and cash equivalents (short term securities) on hand totaling approximately $2.1 billion, representing approximately 74 percent of the current outstanding tethers,” the affidavit read. The affidavit sparked debates within the cryptocurrency community. Some industry executives argued…

Microsoft Outlook Security Breach Targeted Bitcoin Accounts

Earlier in April 2019, Microsoft Hotmail, MSN, and Outlook email accounts suffered a severe security breach. Now, a  good number of the victims have revealed that their cryptocurrency wallets were hacked during the ugly incident, reports Motherboard on April 29, 2019. Microsoft Customer Support Account Hacked Per the report, the login details of a customer support staff at Microsoft was illegally obtained earlier this month. The breach enabled the attacker to access several email accounts including those on Outlook, MSN, and Hotmail. Armed with the login details, the cyberpunks were…

Bitcoin Price | Analysts Indicate BTC Could Drop to $4,000

Most analysts and investors viewed the recent reaction of Bitcoin price to the Bitfinex/Tether controversy as an indication of improving fundamental strength. According to one analyst, it may be too early to celebrate yet as Bitcoin price is likely to drop into the $4,000 region before gaining any significant support that will allow it to continue with the momentum of growth. Tether/Bitfinex Controversy Traders and investors are expected to be ready for this bearish possibility, but analysts have pointed to a long-term trend line that demonstrates how Bitcoin price is…

Mixed Cryptocurrency Transactions Up 300% as Crypto Users Pursue Anonymity

Mixed cryptocurrency transactions now represent 4.09% of all bitcoin (BTC) payments, according to data published by Longhash on April 29. So-called “CoinJoins” have risen by 300% in the space of nine months. By blending multiple transactions together before they are sent to the recipient, the technique is regarded as a way of obscuring the sender’s details. The data was provided by Adam Fiscor, the CTO of the company that runs Wasabi Wallet, a product that aims to deliver greater levels of anonymity to bitcoin users. It shows that CoinJoin transactions have reached their highest…