In March 2020, COVID-19 was declared by the World Health Organization to be a pandemic. Just over six months after that declaration, there have been almost 33 million cases of the disease worldwide and nearly 1 million deaths. While most of the stories from the pandemic involve its astronomical cost in terms of human life and suffering, the disease has also revealed a number of problems in our global economic infrastructure. A surprising number of these weaknesses might be addressed, or at least reduced, with blockchain technology. As a result…
Tag: Pandemic
ICO fines company flouting the law in order to profiteer from the coronavirus pandemic
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has fined Digital Growth Experts Limited (DGEL) £60,000 for sending thousands of nuisance marketing texts at the height of the pandemic. Seeking to capitalise and profit from the pandemic DGEL sent the texts, of which 16,190 were received, between 29 February and 30 April 2020 promoting a hand sanitising product that it claimed to be “effective against coronavirus”. The messages were all sent to people who had not consented to receive them. Andy Curry, Head of Investigations at the ICO, said: “DGEL played upon people’s concerns…
World’s largest banks lost 3x Bitcoin’s market cap during the pandemic
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the world’s 14 largest banks have lost $635.33 billion in market capitalization. This is more than three times the current market capitalization of Bitcoin (BTC) and almost double the capitalization of all cryptocurrencies. Market capitalization of the world’s biggest banks. Source: Buy Shares. The starting point for this data is December 19. For reference, Bitcoin’s market cap at the time was $130 billion. As the world was entering the pandemic induced recession, six of the banks on the list had a market cap higher than…
Pandemic has accelerated adoption of digital currency: ECB President
The pandemic has seen consumers adopt digital payments in increasing numbers and the trend was accelerating, said the President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde. She also indicated a panel of euro-zone central bank officials is set to reveal a verdict on a European central bank digital currency (CBDC) imminently. Speaking at an online conference hosted by Deutsche Bundesbank on Sept. 10, Lagarde, stated that EU residents had embraced digitalization, with e-commerce sales increasing roughly 20% between February and June, even as total retail sales declined 1.2%. She…
Pandemic Will Speed Bitcoin Adoption, Says DBS Bank Economist
“A pandemic-led acceleration of adoption.” That’s how Singapore-based DBS Bank describes the current state of digital assets in its quarterly report on cryptocurrencies published in August. It’s interesting to hear such an observation from a respected multinational bank and its chief economist, Taimur Baig. However, there have lately been murmurings about certain large financial institutions – particularly in places like Singapore, Switzerland and Germany – fielding a new wave of demand for crypto, filtering through from smaller private banks and wealthy clients. On the subject of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin (BTC),…
Ryanair Moves to Sell Eurobond to Scale Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic
Shortly after getting 400 million euros from selling the new stock the previous week, Ryanair now plans to raise $592 million in a five-year eurobond sale. Ryanair Holding Plc (LON: RYA) is planning to sell its first Eurobond since 2017. With this, the company hopes to weigh investors’ willingness amid massive airline debt caused by the coronavirus pandemic. According to unnamed sources, the Irish carrier will announce a potential five-year bond to investors on Monday. The chief financial officer (CFO) Neil Sorahan will lead the call as the company plans…
Blockchain-based app easing pandemic travel launched
A blockchain-based app aimed to make travel during the pandemic easier has been launched. The app, called ICC AOKpass, allows users to verify their COVID-19 status instantly. Dorjee Sun, CEO of blockchain firm Perlin, told CIR Magazine that ICC AOKpass “uses a common global standard that can be deployed and used anywhere in the world today. It can adapt to the rules of any given country and allows users to instantly verify their COVID-19 compliance status anytime, anywhere.” ICC AOKpass was tested by a couple of companies, including Singapore-based firm…
Let’s Hope ‘Pandemic Hoax’ Conspiracy Theorists Avoid Kate Winslet
In an exclusive interview, Kate Winslet said that she was “ready” for the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to her role in “Contagion.” According to the Oscar-winning actress, art imitates life, which imitates art. Thanks to her statement, she may have emboldened conspiracy theorists. Kate Winslet was ready for COVID-19. The Oscar-winning actress has revealed that her role in “Contagion” made her ready for the ongoing pandemic, nearly 10 years later. While I’m sure she means well, I’m afraid she may have inadvertently emboldened conspiracy theorists. Kate Winslet Is An Actress —…
U.S. to Kick Pandemic by September, Leading Stocks Higher: Analyst
Fundstrat’s Tom Lee thinks the United States will soon become one of the world’s safest countries for Covid-19. Declining infections feed the ‘keep buying stocks’ narrative following the Fed’s unprecedented liquidity operation. Peter Schiff warns that Main Street’s misery is Wall Street’s gain. The stock market’s return to record highs is only just getting started, according to one strategist who called the market comeback following the “great liquidity crisis” of March. Tom Lee of Fundstrat Global Advisors thinks Covid-19 cases have not only peaked in America, but the country will…
Qatar’s National Solarized Fintech Strategy Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
The nation of Qatar is a World Bank “high-income economy,” backed by the world’s third-largest natural gas and oil reserves. It has the third-highest GDP per capita in the world (by purchasing power parity), with very high human development. Similar to other Gulf Cooperation Council states — which also include the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain — Qatar has had to deal with the decline in global oil and gas prices after they first collapsed in 2014, and the situation has been made even more difficult…