Topic: Cryptocurrency and Blockchain – Industry News – (08.02.19 – 08.09.19) (Read 117 times)

Total Market Cap, as of 08.09.19 at 12:00pm (PST): U.S. $302,670,290,417 (+ 6.97%)

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STORY OF THE WEEK
• A rumor is circulating online of a large-scale KYC data breach of Binance users which was leaked on a public Telegram channel. The exchange has since offered a reward of up to 25 to anyone that can help catch the individual. An ongoing investigation by the firm suggests there are “inconsistencies with the data” shared on social media relative to the data it holds in its systems for KYC compliance.

CRYPTOCURRENCY TRADING SERVICES
• Bitcoin(dot)com has announced the launch of a cryptocurrency exchange service on its site slated to launch early September 2019.

• Japanese based exchange BitPoint resumes operations amid its hack which occurred on July 11th, 2019.

• U.S. based stock and crypto trading app Robinhood to expand in the UK after receiving regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

• Coinbase lists Tezos (XTZ) on its web, Android and iOS versions of the platform.

REGULATION
• The department of Federal Revenue of Brazil has issued guidance stating that cryptocurrency transactions in excess of $30,000 Brazilian reals must be reported to tax authorities.

• Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) of Thailand has stated the agency has intentions to amend the Anti-Money Laundering Act to require digital currency exchanges to report their activities.

• Coinbase Inc will face a negligence lawsuit due to how the firm handled the launch of its digital currency bitcoin cash back in December 2017.

• The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has plans to bring cryptocurrency exchanges under direct regulation. This is a change to its current practice of regulating exchanges by providing administrative guidance to domestic banks.

• Local police in China are investigating decentralized exchange EtherDelta for an alleged major scam in China.

• A tax bill dubbed “Virtual Value Tax Fix Act of 2019” has been introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill seeks to introduce amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 which would result in cryptocurrencies to be excluded from double taxation under the existing Internal Revenue Code.

• Under the guidance of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), fifteen nations will be collaborating to setup a system to monitor cryptocurrency transactions.

TECHNOLOGY
• Analysts at cybersecurity firm Zscaler have found a new type of trojan that targets cryptocurrency users. The malware, dubbed “Saefko”, is a remote access trojan (RAT) that can, retrieve browser history affiliated with cryptocurrency, credit cards, business, social media and other forms of data from a targeted computer.

• Litecoin has reduced its block rewards from 25 LTC down to 12.5 LTC after reaching the trigger block height of 1,680,000 at 10:16 UTC on August 5th, 2019.

• Samsung has expanded its blockchain and DApp software development kit by introducing two new services. It has integrated a digital analytics DApp dubbed “Jupiter” and a QR code-based password wallet “Mars” into Galaxy S10 and newer version of Samsung smartphones.


INSTITUTIONALIZATION
• No significant developments this week pertaining to institutional developments or forays into cryptocurrency/blockchain technology

PEOPLE
• In an internal memo, Circle’s Head of Trading, Dan Matuszewski, has announced his departure at the firm. The position will be filled by Nick Gustafson, a Kraken and UBS alum.

• On Mastercard’s job board, the organization is looking to fill three senior-level positions to lead efforts in cryptocurrency, focusing on payments and wallets solutions.

TWITTER
• @cryptoSqueeze – Financial roadmap: 1. BTC breaks ATH & moon hard 2. Alts capitulate another 50% from here 3. Buy alt capitulation 4. Sell alt for 5x, get back to BTC & HODL 5. Cash out 80% BTC by end of 2020 6. Financial crisis should be ending soon 7. Buy into stocks and real estate 8. Retire

• @TimDraper – Nasdaq down 3.4% Dow down 2.9%. Bitcoin up 3.2%. Bitcoin may be a remarkable hedge. #bitcoin

• @jason_yanowitz – 4 people who changed the course of money forever 1260, Kublai Khan: Paper Money 1397, The Medicis: Credit w/ Interest 1971, Richard Nixon: Gold Standard 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto: Bitcoin