JPMorgan Wants to Use Blockchain to Issue ICO Tokens

American investment banking giant JPMorgan Chase is pursuing a patent for a distributed system that uses blockchain technology to issue virtual depository receipts that sound suspiciously like initial coin offering (ICO) tokens. JPMorgan Wants to Host IPOs on a Blockchain The patent application, filed by JPMorgan in January and published by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) on Thursday, outlines a method whereby users on a distributed network such as a blockchain can tokenize assets and trade these virtual depository receipts. To create a security token, an originator such…

Barclays Pursues Blockchain Patents to Create Digital Currency Network

Barclays, the UK’s biggest bank, has applied for three U.S. patents that collectively outline a system that uses blockchain technology to combine the pseudonymity of cryptocurrency with the legacy financial system and its KYC/AML regime. The London-based bank first applied for the three patents in July 2016, though they were only published by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) on Thursday. Create & Destroy Digital Currency Units In one patent, Barclays proposes a system that allows particular users on the network to create and destroy units of digital currency…

Malta Stock Exchange Inks Deals to Build Security Token Exchanges

MSX, the newly launched fintech arm of the Malta Stock Exchange, has inked several new deals aimed at creating new marketplaces for tokenized securities. The newly inked deal sees MSX team up with Neufund, a platform for securities tokenization and issuance, to build a “regulated and decentralized, global stock exchange for listing and trading tokenized securities alongside crypto-assets,” according to a press release. Exactly what will make the new exchange decentralized was not explained, however. The partners are already planning a pilot later this year, which will include a public offering of tokenized…

Ex-Trump Advisor Steve Bannon Is Making a Cryptocurrency

Steve Bannon, former chief strategist to U.S. President Donald Trump, confirmed that he wants to launch a cryptocurrency of his own. Speaking to CNBC on Wednesday, the Breitbart co-founder said “they’re the future,” adding that “we’re working on some tokens now, utility tokens, potentially, for the populist movement on a worldwide basis.” Bannon first hinted at the idea in June, though at the time he was hesitant about revealing too many details of his cryptocurrency plans, according to the New York Times. He did contemplate naming his token the “deplorables…

Bitcoin Price Prepares to Test $8K After Bull Breather

Bitcoin’s (BTC) minor price pullback yesterday has likely recharged the bulls for a rally towards $8,000, technical charts indicate. The leading cryptocurrency has spent a better part of the last 15 hours trading in the $7,240–$7,440 range, having clocked a 40-day high of $7,588 at 18:00 UTC yesterday. Moreover, BTC was looking overbought at multi-week highs, hence a minor correction was expected. More importantly, the price pullback and the subsequent consolidation, when viewed against the backdrop of the high volume inverse head-and-shoulders breakout, indicate that BTC has likely gathered steam…

Digital Currency Group Founder Barry Silbert

Seven months into a severe cryptocurrency market downturn, the bears have finally run out of steam, leaving the bitcoin price primed for a breakout. That’s according to Barry Silbert, founder of the Digital Currency Group (DCG), perhaps the cryptocurrency industry’s most prolific investment fund. Speaking with CNBC on Tuesday, Silbert said that the recent surge above $7,000 likely indicates that the bottom is in for the bitcoin price. “I think the bears just kind of ran out of energy,” he said, noting that “a lot of institutional money” was looking…