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etf Archives - Coinscious

Mar 25
6

Crypto Exchanges: Make It Or Break It

By | News | No Comments

? Ripple Partners with $19 Billion Bank

FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 2019

Ripple Inc., has partnered with India-based commercial bank, Federal Bank to offer blockchain solutions for cross-border remittances. At the moment, it’s unclear whether cryptocurrency will be directly related as fiat to crypto trading is illegal in India. Federal Bank is estimated to be worth $19 billion dollars with access to 8 million customers. 

SOURCE: ETHEREUMWORLDNEWS

? FINMA Affirms Envion AG’s ICO Was Unlawful

FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 2019

Switzerland’s Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), has found Envion AG‘s ICO launch last July 2018 to be illegal. In their official report, it was discovered that the company accepted funds – in the form of bitcoin, ethereum, and USD – from over 37,000 investors and amounted to over 90 million francs.  

Envion was pitched as decentralized, clean energy for mobile mining units. EVN tokens were issued on cryptocurrency exchanges to its investors. The company has since been taken over by the Swiss Cantonal Court of Zug Switzerland, dissolved and ordered to be liquidated.

SOURCE: BITCOINIST

? CEDEX Secures $50M Worth of Diamonds for ETF

THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2019

CEDEX, a blockchain-based trading platform, has secured over 6,000 diamonds, worth $50 million dollars, for the launch of its diamond exchange-traded fund (ETF). The platform uses blockchain technology and a proprietary algorithm that allows diamonds to become a tradable asset class like gold, overcoming challenges such as lack of transparency, liquidity and fungibility.

SOURCE: COINDESK

⚡ Zebpay Launches Bitcoin Lightning Network Integration

THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2019

Zebpay, a Malta-based cryptocurrency exchange, will be the first platform to enable Lightning Network payments for its bitcoin users. Customers worldwide can use their BTC wallet balances through web, iOS, and Android apps to make Lightning transactions. 

SOURCE: DAILYHODL

? Kraken Enforces 2FA and Launches Security Lab

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019

U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, Kraken, ramps up its security by making two-factor authentication (2FA) mandatory for users. Currently, the two supported options for 2FA are Google Authenticator and YubiKey.

In their official blog post, Chief Security Officer, Nick Percoco, also announced the formation of Kraken Security Labs. The team will be dedicated to enhancing security of their environments and products. 

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? Trustology Launches iPhone Crypto Wallet

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019

TrustVault, by Trustology, is now available for download from the Apple UK app store. The new iPhone cryptocurrency vault currently only supports ether but bitcoin and ERC-20 tokens will be added soon.

Unlike current typical cold wallets, it boasts a combination of hardware security modules (HSMs) with verification processes distributed among individuals at secure data centres. Users will be able to access funds within a matter of seconds. 

Trustology was founded by a team of technologists that previously worked at financial institutions including BNY Mellon, RBS, and Barclays. The company closed a seed round of $8 million last year. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

⚡ Huobi’s US Arm To Launch Lending, OTC Trading & Stablecoin

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019

Huobi Global’s U.S branch, HBUS, is organizing a new team headed by Katelyn Mew to develop solutions for its institutional investors. They will be focusing their time and resources creating services such as token lending, over-the-counter trading, and potential issuance of a Huobi stablecoin. 

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? DragonEx Crypto Exchange Has Been Hacked

TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2019

Singapore cryptocurrency exchange, DragonEx, notified its users via Telegram that it suffered a hack. The cyberattack took place on Sunday, March 24 and resulted in theft from users and platform crypto assets. The crypto exchange administrator provided an update identifying 20 wallet addresses to where the stolen assets were transferred to: here. 

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? Rakuten Granted License for New Crypto Exchange

TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2019

Japanese e-commerce giant, Rakuten, has received licenses for its relaunched cryptocurrency exchange, Rakuten Wallet. The license was issued by the country’s Financial Service Agency (FSA), registering it as a virtual currency exchange service provider. Users can sign up for the new service on March 30, 2019. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

?? Yahoo!-Backed Crypto Exchange to Launch May

TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2019

Japanese cryptocurrency exchange, Taotao – formerly known as BitARG – is set to launch this May. Taotao is currently 40% owned by a subsidiary of Yahoo! Japan. Taotao will launch two cryptocurrencies on its platform: bitcoin and ethereum. Users will be able to leverage margin positions for ripple, bitcoin cash and litecoin. 

SOURCE: CRYPTOGLOBE

⛓ OKEx Launches New Blockchain Platform & DEX

MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2019

Cryptocurrency exchange, OKEx, announced its latest projects including its new blockchain, OKChain, and decentralized platform, OKDEx.

OKChain is currently in its final stages of development and the testnet is set to launch June 2019. OKEx’s OKB token will start on the ERC-20 blockchain and migrate to the mainnet once it becomes ready. 700 million OKB tokens will be delayed for release between 2020 to 2022.

SOURCE: BITCOINEXCHANGE

? Seed CX Partners with Hydra X To Expand To Asia

MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2019

United States cryptocurrency exchange, Seed CX, has partnered with Hydra X, a Singapore-based FinTech firm, to offer its services in Asia. The integration of Seed CX’s exchange platform with Hydra X’s trading platform, Sigma, will allow users to view prices, trade and monitor their portfolio, as well as gain access to a fiat-cryptocurrency gateway. 

SOURCE: BLOCKTRIBUNE

? eToro Lists Tron

MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2019

eToro, the United Kingdom social trading platform, announced its listing for  Tron (TRX). This announcement comes after the company revealed it is offering its trading service in the United States. The platform currently lists 13 cryptocurrency assets including bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), ripple (XRP), litecoin (LTC), bitcoin cash (BCH), and stellar (XLM).

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

?  Blockchain Watch: Whale, Hello There

FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 2019
THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2019
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019
TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2019
MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2019

SOURCE: TWITTER

Images courtesy of Shutterstock

Mar 11
8

Crypto Launches & Previews

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? Bittrex Cancels Its First Initial Exchange Offering

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

Crypto trading platform, Bittrex International, has cancelled its first public Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) for RAID tokens intended to take place today.  The decision came after Bittrex learned startup RAID ended its vital partnership with e-gaming data analytics company, OP.GG. In a swift move to protect its users, the IEO to raise $6 million dollars was cancelled hours before its launch. It still remains unclear the true relationship between RAID and OP.GG as statements from both parties conflict one another. 

SOURCES: CCN, BITTREX

⚖ Mt. Gox CEO Receives Suspended Jail Term

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

The Tokyo District Court found Mark Karpeles, the former CEO of the now dissolved cryptocurrency exchange, Mt. Gox, guilty of tampering financial records, but innocent of embezzlement and breach of trust. Karpeles was given a suspended sentence of two and a half years, and will not have to serve jail time provided he does not commit another violation within 4 years. 

SOURCE: BLOOMBERG

? SEC Not Likely to Approve Bitcoin ETF Any Time Soon

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

During CoinDesk’s Consensus: Invest event yesterday, Jay Clayton, the chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) highlighted key stances U.S. regulators currently have on the cryptocurrency space. Major takeaways from Clayton’s panel discussion include:

  1. bitcoin exchange traded funds (ETF) not likely to be approved soon
  2. regulated exchanges are needed to prevent price manipulation
  3. crypto trading requires anti-money laundering protections
  4. ICO-funded startups should go see the SEC, and
  5. courts may see ICO’s differently than regulators.

SOURCE: COINDESK

? USDT Not Entirely Backed By Fiat

THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019

Tether has quietly updated their website terms stating that the dollar-peggedstablecoin, USDT, is backed 100% by “reserves”, not only fiat. These reserves collectively consist of traditional currency, cash equivalents, and other assets and receivables from loans made by Tether to third parties. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

? Nasdaq Licences Framework to Cryptocurrency Ecosystem Developer

THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019

Nasdaq, has licensed its Nasdaq Financial Framework to Bcause, a cryptocurrency trading platform. Bcause will leverage Nasdaq’s technology for its spot trading activities such as clearing and “market surveillance.” Bcause’s spot market is set to launch during H1 2019.

SOURCE: BITCOIN.COM

? Thai Stock Exchange To Launch Digital Asset Platform in 2020

THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) confirmed it is building a digital assets platform that is set to launch in 2020. President of SET, Pakorn Peetathawatchai, advised the platform is part of their 3-year strategic plan between 2019-2021, focusing on developing infrastructure and a “one stop” digital capital market. 

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? Coinbase Pro Lists Stellar Lumens

THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019

Coinbase Pro has added support for Stellar Lumens (XLM), the eight largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. XLM trading will go through three stages – “transfer-only,” “post-only,” and “limit-only.” – before the fourth “full trading” stage commences. More details can be found on their official blog post. 

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

➡️ Coinbase Completes First OTC Trade From Cold Storage

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2019

Coinbase Custody has successfully conducted its first over-the-counter trade (OTC) directly from cold storage. On their blog, the cryptocurrency exchange stated that Custody is now directly integration with the OTC desk at Coinbase Pro and allowed for the completion of the OTC trade. Coinbase’s OTC desk launched quietly last year and its services are offered to accredited investors in the U.S., Asia, and Europe.

SOURCE: BITCOINEXCHANGEGUIDE

⚖ QuadrigaCX’s CEO Used Personal Funds During 2018 Litigations

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2019

Gerald Cotten’s widow, Jennifer Robertson, revealed that the CEO of the Canadian crypto exchange, QuadrigaCX, had put personal funds into the exchange during its legal battle with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) in 2018. The major bank froze five accounts holding a total of $21.6 million and as such Cotten needed a way to fund customer withdrawals. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

? Binance’s Trust Wallet Now Supports XRP & Credit Card Payments

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2019

Trust Wallet, the official wallet of cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, now supports Ripple’s XRP token and credit card purchases. The wallet also currently supports bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), litecoin (LTC), bitcoin cash (BTC) as well as ethereum-based tokens such as ERC20, ERC223 and ERC 721. Users can now buy crypto directly with their credit cards, with payment being processed by Simplex. More details to be revealed on which major credit and debit cards will be accepted and if there are any fees associated.

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? Bittrex To Conduct Its First Initial Exchange Offering

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2019

Crypto trading platform, Bittrex International, will be launching its first public Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) through its platform on Friday, March 15. Bittrex users will be able to use bitcoin (BTC) to purchase RAID (XRD) tokens. There will be a hard cap of 17 billion XRD, worth $6 million dollars. RAID is a South Korean startup that is developing a blockchain-powered game data ecosystem. Full details of the IEO can be found here. 

SOURCES: CHEPICAP, BITTREX

? SEC Agrees With Analysis: Ether Is Not A Security

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2019

U.S. Security and Exchange Commisison (SEC) chairman, Jay Clayton, confirms staff analysis that ethereum and similar decentralized digital assets are not securities. In a letter to U.S. House representative, Tedd Budd, Clayton did not directly reference any specific cryptocurrencies, but rather stated he agreed with William Hinman, the SEC Director of Division of Corporate Finance, and his securities classification of crypto assets from June 2018.

SOURCE: CCN

?Ledger Reports On Trezor Wallets Vulnerabilities

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

Ledger, the French hardware wallet manufacturer, released a report on the vulnerabilities of wallets from its direct competitor, Trezor. The report investigates the weaknesses of wallets Trezor One and Trezor T and highlights features that them susceptible to cyberattacks. The five vulnerabilities analyzed are: 

  1. Genuineness of the device
  2. Secure PIN protection
  3. Confidentiality of data inside the Trezor One
  4. Confidentiality of data inside the Trezor T
  5. Analysis of the cryptographic stack

SOURCES: COINTELEGRAPH, LEDGER

? Kakao’s Blockchain Unit Raises $90M

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

Ground X, the blockchain unit of South Korean messaging giant, Kakao Corp ,raised $90 million dollars through a private coin offering. Ground X has partnered with 26 companies – including game developer Wemade, video-streaming service Watcha, and unit of travel agency Zanadu – to run applications on their platform. The platform is set to launch in June. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

? ‘Facebook Coin’ Could Generate $19B Revenue

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

Barclays’ analyst, Ross Sandler, says the launch of Facebook’s digital currency, Facebook Coin, could add $19 billion dollars in revenue by 2021.  Sandler asserts that this will be a huge opportunity for the company to grow especially with the inclusion of a payment method for its premium content. Facebook currently has 3 million users, but the crypto community remains divided by the social media giant’s potential launch into the crypto space.

SOURCE: NEWSBTC

⚡Blockchain ETF Live on London Stock Exchange

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

Invesco, partnered with London-based investment firm, Elwood Asset Management, to launch a blockchain exchange traded fund (ETF) on the London Stock Exchange. The new product, “Invesco Elwood Global Blockchain UCIT ETF,” targets companies with potential to generate real earnings from blockchain technology. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

Image courtesy of Wealth Management

?Samsung Galaxy S10 Wallet Supports ETH, ERC20 Tokens, dApps, But Not BTC

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

 The Samsung Blockchain Wallet on the upcoming Galaxy S10 phone will not support bitcoin (BTC), despite pre-released images. Currently, the native wallet is only compatible with ethereum (ETH) and other ethereum-based ERC20 tokens. At launch, the wallet will also support 4 decentralized apps: Enjin, Cosmee, CryptoKitties, and CoinDuck. 

SOURCE: COINDESK

?  SIX May Soon List Ripple (XRP) ETP

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

Swiss stock exchange, SIX, may soon introduce ripple (XRP) exchange-traded product (ETP) following the now live bitcoin ETP and ethereum ETP tickers, ABTC and AETH, respectively. Amun AG, the crypto firm responsible for the existing crypto ETP listings on SIX, say they’re optimistic XRP ETP will be launched within the next two months under the ticker AXRP.

SOURCE: CHEPICAP

? Blockchain Watch: Well, Well, Whale

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019

Over 27.9M XRP moved worth $8.8 million dollars

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2019
TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2019
MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2019

SOURCE: TWITTER

Images courtesy of Shutterstock

Feb 26
6

⚡️ Cryptocurrencies Go Live!

By | News | No Comments

?Bitcoin Finally in the Green After 6-Month Losses

FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2019

Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market cap, ends its 6-month losing streak; finally out of the red. It closed at $3,900 at the end of February. Even in this crypto winter, BTC’s bullish momentum show signs of recovery.

SOURCES: NEWSBTC, CHEPICAP

? Ethereum Hard Forks Now Activated

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2019

Ethereum (ETH), the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, successfully implements system upgrades Constantinople and St. Petersburg. Originally planned for January, the Constantinople fork was delayed due to concerns about potential security vulnerabilities. Both forks officially took place at block number 7,280,000. The upgrades are intended to increase the network’s efficiency and will reduce miner block rewards from 3 to 2 ETH.

SOURCE: ETHEREUM WORLD NEWS

?Facebook & Telegram To Rollout Their Own Digital Currency

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2019

Internet messaging giants like Facebook, Telegram and Signal, will be rolling out their own cryptocurrencies in next year. Their intent is to allow users to transfer money directly from their message platforms with the use of blockchain. The projects have been highly secretive and the question still remains whether the tech companies will fully control their cryptocurrency or if it there will be some form of decentralization.

SOURCE: NYTIMES

? Kraken Offers $100K Reward For Info On Quadriga’s Missing Funds

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2019

Cryptocurrency exchange, Kraken, announced they are offering a $100,000 reward to anyone who can provide the best lead on the discovery of missing coins from recently collapsed Canadian crypto exchange, Quadrigacx. It is estimated that a total of $190 million USD of Quadriga’s client funds remain inaccessible.  Kraken’s official blog highlights what is known to-date and any new tips can be submitted: here.

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

? Blockchain Watch: Ripple & Stellar On The Move

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2019
  • Ripple: 50 separate transactions of 10M XRP each moved from Bittrex to Upbit. The total value of the transactions is equivalent to $159 million USD
  • Stellar: 22 separate transaction of  10M XLM each moved from Bittrex to an unknown wallet. The total value of the transactions is equivalent to $19 million USD. 

SOURCE: DAILYHODL

☑️ Ripple Now Listed on Coinbase Pro

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2019

Users on crypto exchange, Coinbase Pro, can now buy and sell ripple (XRP) – the third largest cryptocurrency by market cap. Despite regulatory concerns, Coinbase stands its ground and makes XRP available to its users in the US (except New York), Canada, UK, supported EU nations, Singapore and Australia, with more jurisdictions to be added in the near future. Further developments can be found on Coinbase’s official blog post.

SOURCE: COINDESK

? Bitcoin & Ethereum Indices Now Live on Nasdaq

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2019

Nasdaq’s integration of Brave New Coin‘s bitcoin liquid index (BLX) and ethereum liquid index (ELX) is now live. The real-time indices are available for clients using Nasdaq’s Global Index Data Service SM (GIDS). This move affirms Nasdaq’s optimism towards cryptocurrency with Adena Friedman, president and CEO, previously expressing it is a “tremendous demonstration of genius and creativity.”

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH

⚖️ US Government Retrieves & Returns Bitcoin to Bitfinex

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2019

The United States government has retrieved and returned 27.66270285 BTC (worth $104,000) to cryptocurrency exchange, Bitfinex. A total of 119,756 BTC were stolen during the hack of August 2016; the return represents only 0.023 % of this total.

SOURCE: COINDESK

Feb 21
7

All Eyes on Crypto Past, Present & Future

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? Samsung Galaxy S10 Features Blockchain Wallet

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2019

Samsung officially unveiled the latest specs of its new Galaxy S10 phone on Wednesday, subtly hinting that it features the ability to store cryptocurrency private keys. In-store previews now confirm the built-in cryptocurrency wallet through its “Blockchain Keystore” app.

SOURCES: COINDESK

⏱ Korea Waits For Bitcoin ETF Decision By SEC

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2019

An anonymous official from Korean Exchange (KRX) is reportedly waiting on the United States SEC’s decision on bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). As South Korea’s blockchain industry continues to grow, the US’s decision will heavily influence decision to launch ETFs its own country.

SOURCES: COINTELEGRAPH

? FBI Seeks BitConnect Victims For Its Investigation

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

The FBI continues its investigation into the now obsolete crypto exchange, BitConnect (BCC) which collapsed January 2018. They released a quick questionnaire seeking help from potential victims of the Ponzi scheme from January 2018.

SOURCES: ETHNEWS

? Blockchain Movements: 47,200,000 XRP Transferred & Multiple Large BTC Transactions Overnight

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2019

47,200,000 ripple (XRP), worth $15.7M, were transferred from a known OTC distribution wallet to an unknown wallet. This is the largest XRP movement seen to-date.

Multiple significant bitcoin transactions were processed last night, with the below totalling over 18,000 BTC, worth $70M.

? Bitcoin Futures Reach Highest Volumes of the Year

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2019

Bitcoin futures contracts see surge in trading volumes reaching its current high of the year. CBOE Bitcoin futures contract had its first day above $2,000 indicating new interest in the crypto market. Bitcoin continues to rally in this bear market, currently trading around $4,000 but has yet to break beyond this price.

SOURCE: CNBC

? Ethereum Mining Pool Freezes Unusual 2,100 Block Reward 

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2019

On Tuesday, Sparkpool, an ethereum (ETH) mining pool, received a payout of 2,100 ETH (worth $300,000) for mining block number: 7238290. This is 600 times the standard block reward, normally around 3 ETH. Today, Sparkpool temporarily freezes the 2,100 ETH as they reach out to the sender to determine a solution.

SOURCES: CRYPTOGLOBE, ETHERSCAN

Feb 14
5

New Beginnings for Cryptocurrency

By | News | No Comments

⏱ Countdown to Bitcoin ETF Approval Begins

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2019

An SEC commissioner stated earlier this week that bitcoin ETF would be approved “eventually“. In the wake of this announcement, NYSE Arca and Bitwise Asset Management filed a bitcoin ETF rule change proposal for review. Today, the SEC has published the filing in the Federal Register and the countdown begins.

SOURCE: COINDESK

? Ordering Delivery? Use Bitcoin

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2019

Pizza: the great people equalizer. Domino’s US customers can now easily order pizza using the Lightning Network. This week, over 150 people have already placed orders through the web-based portal set up by cryptocurrency payment startup, Fold.

SOURCE: THE DAILY HODL

? JP Morgan introduces “JPM Coin”: 1st US bank-backed cryptocurrency

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2019

JP Morgan created big buzz in both the financial and crypto markets by announcing the “JPM Coin”. Despite CEO, Jamie Dimon’s past public criticisms towards bitcoin, JP Morgan will be launching the first major US bank-backed cryptocurrency to settle payments for its clients in the wholesale payments sector.

SOURCE: CNBC

? Nasdaq Adds Bitcoin & Ethereum to Indices

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2019

NASDAQ announced it will be adding bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) indices effective Monday, February 25, 2019: details here. BTC index will be calculated back to 2010 while ETH back to 2014.

SOURCE: NASDAQ

?? Quadriga Loses Another 103 BTC, By Mistake

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019

Vancouver cryptocurrency exchange, Quadriga, inadvertently transferred 103 BTC, valued at $354,300 USD, to an inaccessible cold wallets. Ernst & Young, the appointed monitor, reported that this transfer took place February 6, 2019.

SOURCE: COINTELEGRAPH