Year: 2018

IBM Is Helping Launch a Price-Stable Crypto With FDIC-Insured Funds

The latest attempt to create a cryptocurrency pegged to the U.S. dollar, or “stablecoin,” combines 21st-century technology with an invention from the Great Depression. Announced Tuesday, a startup called Stronghold is launching USD Anchor, which will run on the rails of the Stellar blockchain and use its consensus mechanism to verify transactions. The token will be backed one-for-one with U.S. dollars held at a Nevada-charted trust company called Prime Trust, which in turn will deposit the cash at banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. New York City-based Signature Bank was…

Coinbase Says It Now Has Regulatory Approval to List Security Tokens

U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has received regulatory approval to acquire several securities firms – a move that could eventually see it supporting trading in tokens deemed as securities. A spokesperson for the exchange said in an email response to CoinDesk on Tuesday that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has approved recently revealed acquisition deals for currently regulated firms. Last month, the exchange announced that it intends to purchase three companies – Keystone Capital Corp., Venovate Marketplace and Digital Wealth LLC – as a means to becoming a regulated platform for offering trading…

Bitcoin Price Retakes 50-Day Moving Average in First Since May

Bitcoin (BTC) scaled the crucial 50-day moving average (MA) on Monday for the first time in nearly two months, taking its price above $6,700. The corrective rally picked up the pace 24 hours ago, possibly due to reports stating that BlackRock, INC – the world’s largest asset manager and exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider – is considering venturing into cryptocurrency markets. Later in the day, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink clarified rumors by stating that he doesn’t see a huge demand for cryptocurrencies from clients, Still, BTC remained bid and closed (as per…

World’s First Bank-Backed Crypto Exchange Finally Opens to the Public

The world’s first bank-backed cryptocurrency exchange is now open to the public after months of delays. Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings formally launched its in-house crypto trading platform, dubbed VCTRADE, last month. Yet, as reported by CoinDesk at the time, the trading service was only available for a group of selected users who pre-registered with the platform last October. In an announcement released on Tuesday, SBI Holdings said the service is now fully open for users aged from 20–70 who reside in Japan. However, a registration service for corporate customers has not yet…

Bitcoin’s Road Back to $7K (And the Chart Hurdles In the Way)

Having defended $6,000 last week, bitcoin (BTC) appears to be building momentum for a price rise, but nearby technical hurdles still present a formidable challenge. At press time, the world’s most valuable cryptocurrency is changing hands at $6,689 on Bitfinex and looks to be gaining steam for another test of $6,838. As such, the level is shaping up to be a make-or-break mark, one that could reveal if a classic trend reversal pattern, known as the inverse head-and-shoulders, will take effect. Indeed, a close above that level would amount to…

2019 CFA Exam Adds Crypto and Blockchain Topics

2019 CFA exam: “We saw the field advancing more quickly than other fields,” says Stephen Horan, the GE managing director at the CFA Insitute. “This is not a passing fad.” CFA Institute is one of the world’s most famous nonprofits, focusing on investment professionals specifically, and offering various certifications in the field, like the Investment Foundations Certificate. It offers a three-level program, which covers a range of topics, from machine learning to artificial intelligence. Some 150,000 financial professionals have received training through this program. Since the crypto industry continues to garner mainstream attention, the Virginia-based…

Crypto Daily News | Crypto World Cup Results, BlackRock, & AMEX

In today’s edition of Crypto Daily News, we’ll cover the winner of the Crypto World Cup, BlackRock eyeing Bitcoin, and the details of American Express’s blockchain exploration. Charles Hoskinson/France Wins it All This Saturday, France duked it out against Croatia in the World Cup, and France won 4-2. Here at CryptoCurrencyNews.com, we held our own ‘Crypto World Cup’ in which we randomly paired cryptocurrency celebrities with countries competing in the global tournament. The Crypto World Cup ended up being a phenomenal event, and we’d like to congratulate Charles Hoskinson/France for…

A Crypto Exchange Is Buying Back $24 Million-Worth of Its Own Tokens

FCoin, a new cryptocurrency exchange that saw spiking trading volume recently due to its controversial revenue model, has revealed a plan to buy back millions of its own tokens to provide capital for a new fund of funds. The exchange announced last Friday that the new fund will be backing a group of selected token funds to further invest in blockchain and cryptocurrency projects. The funds selected will all be accredited sponsors, it added. During an initial phase, it will allocate 100 million of its own FT tokens – worth around…

Bitcoin Eyes Bull Reversal As Volumes Spike From 36-Week Lows

Bitcoin is eyeing change of fortunes above $6,800, having convincingly scaled a key moving average hurdle earlier today. At press time, BTC is changing hands at a six-day high of $6,600 on Bitfinex – up 3.44 percent on the day. The cryptocurrency remained bid over the weekend and rose to $6,400 as expected despite low investor participation. For instance, prices rose above $6,300 on Saturday, but trading volumes fell to $2.92 billion, the lowest level since November 7, according to CoinMarketCap. However, the solid move above the 20-day moving average…

Sex Workers Have Serious Issues With a Crypto-Powered ‘Uber for Escorts’

“Too pimp-like and not safe to use.” That’s how one sex worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described the cryptocurrency platform PinkDate, for which she was invited to test the service but refused. Describing itself as the “Uber of escorting,” PinkDate is one of several sex industry startups launching a crypto-fueled booking app funded by an initial coin offering (ICO). The platform, currently in a closed beta, aims to match sex workers with clients (just as Uber does for drivers and passengers). Except instead of credit cards, clients would…