Day: September 23, 2022

DBS Offers 4 Crypto Trading for Premium Clients in Singapore

by Blockchain News

Singapore-based banking giant DBS announced Friday that it has launched crypto trading through its digibank, enabling accredited investors to trade four cryptocurrencies on its digital exchange.

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The launch of the crypto trading feature comes at a time when DBS wealth clients are increasingly choosing self-directed options, with 9 out of 10 equity transactions executed digitally currently.

By investing from a minimum investment of USD 500, accredited premium clients can trade four of the more established cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum (ETH), XRP on its digital exchange (DDEx).

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The largest bank in Singapore said “having their cryptocurrency holdings makes it easier for clients to stay on top of their investments across traditional and alternative asset classes.”

Senionr executive of the DBS, commented about the latest movement, and said this move would help their clients to grow and protect their wealth. Sim S. Lim, Group Executive, Consumer Banking and Wealth Management, DBS Bank, said:

“We believe in staying ahead of the curve and providing access to the solutions they seek. Broadening access to DDEx is yet another step in our efforts to provide sophisticated investors looking to dip their toes in cryptocurrencies with a seamless and secure way to do so.” 

DBS established digital exchange around two years ago and received a cryptocurrency license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) last year. Per the statement, crypto trading on DDEX was initially “limited to corporate and institutional investors, family offices, and clients of DBS Private Bank and DBS Treasures Private Client only,“

The latest service would also be available to accredited investors in its Treasures segment. DBS said around 100,000 of their clients in Singapore will be able to access the services offered by DBS’ digital asset ecosystem.

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CFTC Files First Lawsuit Against DAO

by Blockchain News

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed its first lawsuit against a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).

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The holders of governance tokens have also been sued alongside the accused DAO.

As part of the lawsuit, a $250,000 penalty and settlement have to be settled by bZeroX, LLC and its founders – Kyle Kistner and Tom Bean.

The bZx protocol gained popularity in 2020 after suffering code exploits. It resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars with crypto. 

According to The Block, the CFTC’s action, including filing a lawsuit against Ooki DAO, could have a broader impact than a lawsuit against the DAO. Ooki DAO in 2021 was used to govern the protocol as part of a decentralization effort.

The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

The CFTC accused Ooki DAO of using its structure to evade regulatory oversight in its complaint.

“A key bZeroX objective in transferring control of the bZx Protocol (now the Ooki Protocol) to the bZx DAO (now the Ooki DAO) was to attempt to render the bZx DAO, by its decentralized nature, enforcement-proof. Put simply, the bZx founders believed they had identified a way to violate the Act and Regulations, as well as other laws, without consequence,” the CFTC said.

This move by the CFTC also proves that DAOs are not immune “from enforcement”.

“The bZx founders were wrong, however,” the agency stressed. “DAOs are not immune from enforcement and may not violate the law with impunity.”

According to the lawsuit, Ooki DAO has been identified by the CFTC as “an unincorporated association comprised of holders of Ooki Tokens.” They are liable in the suit.

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Britain to Introduce New Bill to Crack Down on Crypto Crime

by Blockchain News

The U.K. Parliament passed the first readings of a new anti-money laundering bill against cryptocurrencies on Thursday (Sept 23), which aims to give law enforcement agencies greater powers to seize, freeze and recover cryptocurrencies used in criminal activities.

Organised criminals are increasingly using digital currency for fraud, drugs, and the network crime of money laundering.

The Metropolitan Police reported a significant increase in seizures of cryptocurrencies last year. According to the British broadcasting corporation reported in July 2021, police seized more than 114 million pounds and 180 million pounds of encryption related to international money laundering money.

National Crime Agency chief Graeme Biggar said in a statement:

“Domestic and international criminals have for years laundered the proceeds of their crime and corruption by abusing U.K. company structures, and are increasingly using cryptocurrencies.”

The new bill passed its first reading in the House of Commons Thursday and is expected to go to its second reading on October 13.

If passed, the bill would expand powers and capabilities for law enforcement agencies such as the National Crime Agency, giving them the ability to stop illegal activities related to cryptocurrencies and making it easier and faster to seize, freeze and recover cryptocurrency assets.

The bill -“The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill”, first announced by Prince Charles (now as known as King Charles III) in May in a speech delivered to both houses of the Parliament for the Queen before she passed away, was designed to help regulators impose sanctions on Russia and freeze related assets in the country.

In addition to addressing the cryptocurrency issue, The British Act also aims to prevent the abuse of limited partnerships. The UK government also calls for UK-registered companies to verify their identities and strengthens the UK Companies Registry’s powers to oversee and Cross-check the legitimacy of companies and limit the use of shell companies to launder money.

In May, MONEYVAL is the generic and official name of the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and Terrorist Financing, which released a report arguing that cryptocurrencies pose a significant threat to regulators’ efforts to combat money laundering.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has warned that a large number of cryptocurrency businesses have failed to meet UK requirements to prevent money laundering.

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Crypto Trading Robot Platform 3Commas Raises $37m in Series B Funding

by Blockchain News

On September 23, 3Commas, the largest automated crypto trading robot platform, announced the completion of a $37 million Series B financing.

This round of financing, led by Target Global, Alameda Research, Jump Capital, and Dmitry Tokarev, the founder and CEO of Copper, will be used to advance the development of 3Commas’ digital asset trading automation and portfolio management technology ecosystem.

Yuriy Sorokin, CEO and founder of 3Commas, expressed his desire to expand access to complex crypto trading strategies with powerful trading bots, help users achieve financial freedom, and provide developer tools to more democratize building cryptography.

Founder and Partner Mike Lobanov said that:

“The leadership and talent 3Commas has put in place has put them in a very strong position to be the dominant platform to onboard the next 100 million users to crypto through their automated trading and portfolio management capabilities.”

In addition, 3Commas used the financing to hire a research and development team to create DeCommas, which aims to provide users with easily accessible opportunities to automate decentralized finance (DeFi) transactions

3commas is a trading terminal and auto trading bot. 3commas was created in 2017. Typical competitors are coinmama, and more.

The trading platform establishes a crypto investment ecosystem that helps users earn profits by offering manual and automated trading strategies in all market conditions.

3Commas completed a $3 million seed round in November 2020 with participation from Alameda Research.

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Mining firm Compute North Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

by Blockchain News

Crypto mining firm Compute North has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a federal court.

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The bitcoin mining hosting provider had been struggling to survive due to the decline in bitcoin pricing and rising power costs.

Compute North filed the petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on Thursday.

“After any administrative expenses are paid, no funds will be available for distribution to unsecured creditors,” the company claimed in the filing.

Kristyan Mjolsnes, head of marketing and sustainability, stated that the company is seeking “the opportunity to stabilize its business and implement a comprehensive restructuring process.”

“(It) will enable us to continue servicing our customers and partners and make the necessary investments to achieve our strategic objectives,” Mjolsnes added.

Even though the company has revenue and capital, it has managed to go bankrupt.

According to the bankruptcy filing, Compute North claims to have between $100 million-$500 million both in estimated liabilities and estimated assets.

Earlier this year, the company raised $385 million in equity and debt funding to finance its new bitcoin mining data centres. $85 million in equity funding came from Mercuria, a global energy and commodities trading company, Generate Capital, an infrastructure investment firm, and other investors. While $300 million came from Generate Capital.

U.S.-based investment group Post Road Group had also invested $25 million in the company. According to The Block, Compute North in July planned to increase its capacity by 1.2 gigawatts over the next 12 months.

Compute North also had the top biggest bitcoin mining firms as clients, including Marathon, which recently started energization at a colocated 280-megawatt bitcoin mining facility in West Texas. The two companies also closed an additional 42-megawatts hosting deal in July.  

“Based on the information available at this time, it is our understanding that this filing will not impact our current mining operations. We are in communication with the hosting provider and monitoring their progress as they work through this process,” a Marathon spokesperson said.

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Bitso Rolls Out Crypto QR Payment Tool in Argentina

by Blockchain News

Bitso, Latin America’s leading crypto exchange, announced on Thursday that it is preparing to roll out a new QR code payment tool in its wallet app that will enable users in Argentina to pay with cryptocurrency at retail shops.

The new payment method is expected to give consumers an alternative to using the Argentine peso and will be beneficial in curbing the country’s inflation.

Beginning on September 27, members of the Bitso exchange in Argentina (estimated to be more than a million users in the country) will gradually be given access to the QR code option.

In a country where inflation is approaching 80% compared to last year, and the purchasing value of the peso is falling, the QR codes will give Argentina consumers another way to save money in crypto and spend it in actual stores.

Bitso’s Senior Vice President of Product Santiago Alvarado commented: “The idea is to make crypto more useful in more places and allow all citizens to live their lives in crypto by buying everyday services.”

The Bitso wallet software will be able to scan the QR codes in many stores in Argentina and give customers the choice of purchasing using Bitcoin, Ether, the Dai stablecoin, U.S.-dollar pegged stablecoins or Argentine Pesos. At the time of purchase, Bitso will automatically convert the merchant’s crypto into Argentine pesos.

Bitso’s wallet will be able to scan QR codes from “all other systems approved by the central bank,” Alvarado said.

Why the QR code surge in LATAM

QR codes are a popular payment method in Argentina – a nation that has the highest rate of QR code usage in Latin America, according to data from the Mastercard New Payments Index.

In a historically cash-based economy where a big chunk of the population remains unbanked (over 40% of Argentina residents are unbanked and in other related countries, including Colombia, Mexico, and Peru), digital payments are surging at a high rate in Latin America. QR code payments have surged in popularity, whose widespread use was significantly triggered by the covid-19 pandemic.

QR, which stands for “quick response”, — and codes can be encrypted with payment information to facilitate contactless digital purchasing. QR codes allow consumers to make payments simply by scanning the code with their smartphone camera, which then withdraws funds from their digital wallet.

Companies facilitating QR code payments in Latin America are emerging all across the region. In Argentina, companies such as Mercado Pago, TodoPago, ValePEI, Ualá, PIM, and Rapipago allow users to pay via QR codes from their digital wallets or accounts.

The Argentina Central Bank recently spurred the bandwagon, allowing several digital payment provider companies to offer QR code payments. This marks a huge step towards transforming the payment methods of a society that traditionally depends on cash.

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Cardano’s Vasil Upgrade is Finally Complete

by Blockchain News

Cardano’s Vasil upgrade has been completed. The much-awaited set-off will enable increased network capacity, higher throughput, and lower transaction costs on the peer-reviewed, proof-of-stake blockchain platform.

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“The Vasil hard fork moves us towards this goal by improving Cardano’s foundational features, upgrading the technology’s capacity to transform our traditional financial and social systems, and ultimately advancing decentralised economic empowerment,” Frederik Gregaard, CEO of the Cardano Foundation, told The Block.  

The Vasil hard fork focuses on optimisation, scalability and interoperability. It is part of Cardano’s Basho era — one of the critical development phases on the Cardano roadmap.

During the upgrade, Vasil required no action for regular ADA holders using Cardano for transactions and dApps as the transition happened behind the scenes.

The upgrade was initially planned for June, but the postponed upgrade also activated Plutus v2 enhancements to Cardano’s smart contracts.

The Vasil upgrade has taken the blockchain platform closer in line with the capabilities of Ethereum – the largest smart contract platform. It further opens up the potential for current and new Cardano DeFi projects to create more powerful, efficient, and cost-effective applications.

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson said, “(We) knew that, over time, we could get to what Ethereum has done, but we understood a road map to get there,” ahead of the upgrade about the blockchain platform’s gradual approach to adding new capabilities.

The upgrade date was finalised earlier in September by the Cardano-focused research and development company, Input Output Global (IOG). The decision was made after the critical mass indicators required were completed and successfully gained assurances from staking pool operators, exchanges, and dApp communities stating that they were ready for Vasil.

According to The Block, the Vasil upgrade was conducted in collaboration with people from across the Cardano ecosystem from the core development team, the Cardano Foundation, IOG, Emurgo, and the wider Cardano community via technical Cardano Improvement Proposals (CIPs).

Cardano stated that the upgrade promises increased functionality, performance and scalability. The new Vasil capabilities will be available on the mainnet after one epoch, on Sept 27.

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Over 81% Helium Community Approves Migration to Solana Blockchain

by Blockchain News

The Helium Foundation on Thursday announced the migration of its decentralized wireless Internet of Things (IoT) network, the Helium Network, to the Solana blockchain. The foundation approved the decision after a successful community vote on the proposal.

Since its establishment in 2013, the Helium network has been operating on its own blockchain, known as HIP 70.

On Thursday, the foundation disclosed that a majority community vote of 81.41% approved the Helium Improvement Proposal (HIP 70) aimed at developing the network to meet user demand. The proposal requirements demanded participants to stake the Helium native token (HNT) in order to engage in the voting exercise.

According to the final results, 6,177 members voted in favour of the migration by staking some 12 million HNT ($57 million) versus 1,270 members who voted against the proposal.

The Helium Foundation stated that the transition will allow HNT to become more compatible with other projects and crypto applications in non-fungible tokens, decentralized finance (DeFi), and other Web3 applications.

Helium Foundation COO Scott Sigel said: “Solana has a proven track record powering some of the world’s most important decentralized initiatives, and they were an obvious choice for us to partner with. Moving to the Solana blockchain allows us to focus our efforts on scaling the network as opposed to managing the blockchain itself.”

Challenges to be Fixed

The proposal comes after the Helium core developer team recently called for the need to fix various technical issues to improve the network’s capabilities. Last month, the developers acknowledged that there have been challenges facing network participants with much reduced Proof-of-Coverage activity because of network size, blockchain/validator load, and packet delivery issues.

Their announcement came after node hotspot operators in the Helium subreddit in July posted about the dwindling rewards made from their efforts, despite the hundreds of millions of dollars worth of investment into Helium.

Such criticisms of the Helium blockchain project stirred a strong debate over the company’s long-term prospects.

As a result, the Helium developers made the proposal, dubbed HIP 70, on August 31. They forwarded the HIP 70 proposal to improve data transfer and network coverage abilities. They said the move is aimed to “bring significant economies of scale through the vast range of composable Solana developer tools, features, and applications.”

They said the move aims to scale Helium to meet the demands of builders and users as part of efforts to accelerate the decentralized wireless network of Helium 5G and over 945,000 Internet of Things (IoT) user-managed hotspot devices across the world.

According to the Helium Foundation, the migration will see Helium’s ecosystem tokens, including HNT, IOT and MOBILE tokens and Data Credits (DCs), soon be issued on Solana. Once the migration is completed, Helium will roll out a new version of the Helium Wallet App to be available for users, the foundation said.

The news comes after Nova Labs, the company behind the Helium network, on Tuesday formed a five-year deal with T-Mobile’s 5G services to embark on filling the gaps in Helium’s coverage. Blockchain.News reported the matter.

Helium is an open-source blockchain network designed to power Internet of Things (IoT) devices with wireless connectivity. Founded in 2013, the decentralized wireless network has grown to become a huge continuous wireless network across the globe. Helium has a presence in 65,000 cities and 170 countries, focusing on serving the Internet of Things (IoT) around the world.

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Crypto Firm Bits of Gold Obtains Capital Markets License from Israeli Regulator

by Blockchain News

Bits of Gold, an Israeli-based firm engaging in crypto trading and brokerage services, announced on Thursday that it has obtained a license from Israel’s financial market regulator, the Capital Markets, Insurance and Savings Authority.

With the license from the watchdog, Bits of Gold said it will be able to partner with local banks and financial institutions. The crypto firm said the license, along with the recent guidelines from Israel’s central bank, will help resolve many issues associated with relationships between local banks and crypto.

The move makes Bits of Gold the first local crypto provider to obtain the license. The company said it applied for the license back in 2018.

Bits of Gold is preparing to develop a platform that will enable local and European banks and fintech firms to offer cryptocurrency services to customers. The company wants to start offering crypto custody services through its new digital wallet starting next month.

Is This the Beginning of Crypto Trading in The Country?

In the past, local banks had taken an ad hoc approach to accepting deposits tied to crypto investments. But that changed in November last year when the country’s capital market regulator approved Israel’s new anti-money laundering (AML) and anti-terrorist financing rules for crypto asset service providers. The rule cleared the way for local banks to more easily accept customers from the crypto sector.

The new AML rules cover the identification and verification of crypto recipients, reporting requirements for crypto companies, and the layout of a risk-based approach to dealing with money laundering.

In March, Israel’s central bank published draft regulations that further opened up the country’s financial system to crypto firms by requiring banks to examine the crypto firms individually rather than imposing blanket refusals on them.

In late March, Bank Leumi became the first Israeli bank to start facilitating crypto trade. Early this month, Israel’s financial market regulator granted a first permanent license to a local private firm, Hybrid Bridge Holdings Ltd., to engage in cryptocurrency activities. As a result, Hybrid Bridge Holdings is now building a crypto custody and exchange platform.

In Israel, many firms seeking to engage in the crypto industry are still obtaining approval from the regulator.

In February, the Binance exchange came under the regulator’s scrutiny over licensing issues. The watchdog ordered Binance to suspend marketing to Israeli users and stop all activities focused on Israel until the issues are addressed.

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Coinbase Secures Registered VASP from Dutch Central Bank

by Blockchain News

Nasdaq-listed digital currency trading giant Coinbase Global Inc has announced its official registration as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) with the Dutch Central Bank (De Nederlandsche Bank — DNB).

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The exchange is currently listed in the DNB’s register as a crypto service provider and will ply its trade in compliance with all the country’s relevant laws. According to the trading platform, the license will enable it to offer its full suite of crypto products that will make it serve both its retail and institutional clients in the country. 

The exchange said it welcomes functional regulations and it’s happy to operate in the Netherlands as it can build products through well-guided innovations.

“As part of Coinbase’s ambition to be the world’s most trusted and secure crypto platform, we have taken strides to work collaboratively with government, policymakers, and regulators to shape the future in a responsible way. Coinbase prides itself on being a compliance-led business. The Netherlands is a critical international market for crypto, and I am really excited for Coinbase to bring the potential of the crypto economy to the market here,” said Nana Murugesan, Vice President, International, and Business Development at Coinbase.

Besides being one of the oldest and the few publicly listed crypto trading outfits around, Coinbase Exchange is setting the pace in terms of aggressive entry into new markets, particularly in Europe. 

Back in July, the digital currency trading platform secured the license to operate in Italy from the  Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM). While the license grants access to entire countries in the European Union, Coinbase has shown it prefers a more customized local regulation embrace. 

The move from Coinbase to explore the Italian market is also similar to those from competitors like Binance exchange and Crypto.com. However, while Coinbase has secured the license from the DNB, Binance’s application is still under consideration after the firm was fined €3.3 million back in July for operating in the country without prior registration.

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Bitcoin (BTC) $ 26,587.12 0.04%
Ethereum (ETH) $ 1,593.25 0.05%
Litecoin (LTC) $ 64.74 0.27%
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 208.81 0.20%