Digital Tech Is Driving Growth in Transportation Management Systems

A recent market report by Grand View Research suggests that blockchain is one of the digital technologies driving market growth in the global transportation management systems (TMS) sector, according to a press release on July 11. According to Grand View Research, a market research company based in San Francisco, the TMS market is expected to reach $198.82 billion by 2025 with a compound annual growth rate of 16.2%. A number of digital technologies are credited as driving forces for current and projected TMS market growth alongside blockchain, including Artificial Intelligence…

Fed Chairman Powell Validates Bitcoin as a Store of Value in Front of US Senate

Bitcoin and the aggregated crypto markets have been facing tremendous selling pressure over the past couple of days which was sparked by BTC’s rapid surge into the $13,000 region. Although this drop is certainly negative from a technical perspective, it is important to note that the cryptocurrency is still incredibly fundamentally robust. One such example of Bitcoin’s fundamental strength can be found while looking towards Fed Chairman Powell’s recent comments about Bitcoin, where he described it as a perceived alternative to gold – a statement that is largely being interpreted…

Props Announces First SEC-Approved Consumer-Facing Blockchain Token

Delaware-based blockchain organization Props PBC has released a token approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under Regulation A+, according to a press release on June 11. According to the company, this is “the first consumer facing crypto token qualified by the SEC” via Reg A+. As previously reported, Reg A+ is an alternative to conducting an IPO that is intended to accommodate startup businesses seeking initial funding. This token has been issued on the Ethereum blockchain. According to the announcement, the Props platform is capable of abstracting a blockchain…

FDD Assesses Risks of Crypto Use by Countries Under US Sanctions

The American Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) has assembled an assessment of current and future risks of cryptocurrency use by countries adversarial to the United States in a report published on July 11. In the report, the agency outlines possible future scenarios that would make blockchain technology sanctions resistance a larger threat. Specifically, the FDD analyzed how countries such as Russia, China, Venezuela, and Iran are deploying digital currency technology, and in what way this phenomenon could influence United States sanctions in future. In the report, the FDD warns…

Fidelity, Deloitte and Amazon Now Support Workshops for DLT Startups

Major global firms Fidelity, Deloitte and Amazon, have begun supporting a new blockchain accelerator program called Startup Studio, according to a press release on July 11. The companies are backing the program along with 20 other firms, including Ethereum Foundation and ETH Global, Stellar Foundation, crypto analytics firm Messari, and Coinbase-backed NEAR Protocol, among the others. The new blockchain accelerator is an initiative of IDEO CoLab Ventures, the venture capital division of United States-based design consultancy firm IDEO. Supported by Fidelity, Deloitte and Amazon, as well as major crypto industry…

Brazilian Coffee Farming Cooperative to Issue a Coffee-Backed Token

Brazilian coffee farming cooperative Minasul plans to issue a coffee-backed token, Bloomberg reported on July 11. According to Bloomberg, Minasul’s president Jose Marcos Magalhaes declared at the Global Coffee Forum in Campinas that Minasul intends to launch the token this month. Farmers will reportedly be able to use the coin to buy fertilizer, machinery and other non-farm products — including cars and food — in a digital marketplace. Per the report, farmers will also be able to acquire the token in exchange for current and future coffee beans production: 30%…

Mob Burns Down Purported Crypto Ponzi Schemer’s House in South Africa

An angry mob in Ladysmith, South Africa has reportedly torched the residence of Sphelele Mbatha, known as Sgumza, a manager of alleged crypto Ponzi scheme Bitcoin Wallet. The mob was likely a collection of victims who lost money through Bitcoin Wallet, according to the report by Ladysmith Gazette on July 10.  The local police have been investigating an unnamed Ponzi Scheme in Ladysmith, as reported by IOL. According to the report, however, Bitcoin Wallet minimally appears to have made get-rich-quick promises to prospective investors.  An unnamed community member reportedly told…

Bitcoin Payments Platform Foldapp Adds Lightning Support 

Foldapp, a platform that enables users to spend their bitcoin (BTC) at various retail stores in the United States, including Starbucks, has added support for the Lightning Network, Bitcoin’s Layer-two scaling solution. With this, it is now to possible for users to pay with bitcoin in a super fast and cheap way, according to a blog post on July 10, 2019.  Fold Integrates Lightning  With the integration of Lightning, Fold says all users of its platform can now spend their satoshis instantly, with nearly zero fees at various retailers including…

Crypto Markets Continue Trading in Red, Oil Reports Losses

Thursday, July 11 — major cryptocurrency markets are trading in the red zone, with just a few coins reporting moderate gains, according to Coin360. Market visualization courtesy of Coin360 The leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) has continued coming down after yesterday;s sharp drop to trade at around $11,740 as of press time. The coin has lost 4.39% over the past 24 hours. During the day, Bitcoin has been trading in a narrow corridor between $12,191 and $11,377. As reported earlier today, Bitcoin trading in Zimbabwe has continued to surge after the government…

Iran Plans to Allow Crypto Mining, Central Bank of Iran Governor Says

Iranian authorities are planning to authorize cryptocurrency mining, as the governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) declared, news agency PressTV reported on July 10. CBI governor Abdol Hemmati reportedly claimed that the Iranian government has approved some parts of an executive law that would authorize mining of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) in Iran. Hemmati’s claim follows a lengthy back-and-forth on the legal status of cryptocurrencies in Iran. As Hemmati explained, the planned law will require crypto mining in Iran to abide with the price of electricity for…