Crypto Noob 86 - Global Crypto Update Network: February 2019

Thursday, February 28, 2019

Early AlphaPoint Employee Goes Full Bitcoin, Joins Casa

Michael Haley has left security token platform AlphaPoint for crypto custody provider Casa, saying he wants “to get back into good old bitcoin.”

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MKR, THETA, ENJ, MET: These 4 Cryptos Outperformed the Market in February

Bitcoin may have ended a six-month losing streak in February, but MKR, THETA, ENJ and MET ensure it wasn't the crypto market's biggest winner.

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New York-Based Signature Bank to Offer Services to Fintech Firms in Bermuda

Signature Bank, a New York-based bank that runs its own blockchain platform, will now offer financial services for unbanked fintech businesses in Bermuda

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California Bill Would Legalize Crypto for Tax Payments From Cannabis-Related Businesses

A new bill in the California State Assembly would allow tax payments from cannabis-related businesses in stablecoins

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Signature Bank to Offer Accounts to Bermuda’s Crypto Startups

Signature Bank of New York is courting licensed fintech firms in Bermuda, including crypto startups that have struggled to secure accounts.

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Crypto Exchange Kraken Offers $100,000 Reward for QuadrigaCX’s Missing Funds

Crypto exchange Kraken is giving a $100,000 reward for info or assistance that leads to the discovery of QuadrigaCX’s missing funds

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Report: Swiss Fintech Market Grew by 62 Percent in 2018

A new study from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences analyzes Switzerland’s fintech sector growth in 2018

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Kraken Exchange Offers $100K Reward for Missing QuadrigaCX Crypto

Kraken is offering up to $100,000 to anyone who can help locate QuadrigaCX's missing cryptocurrency holdings.

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Ethereum’s Constantinople, St. Petersburg Upgrades Have Been Activated

Ethereum’s Constantinople and St. Petersburg upgrades have gone live in accordance with the schedule

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Bittrex Leads $1.5 Million Seed Round in South African Crypto Exchange VALR

South Africa's VALR exchange is launching March 1, expanding bitcoin access across the continent.

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Crypto Exchange Coinbase Adds Support for XRP on Retail Platform and Mobile Apps

Coinbase has launched support for XRP on its retail trading platform and on its Android and iOS apps

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Swiss Crypto Bank Warns Customers About Company Masquerading as Partner

Switzerland-based online crypto bank Dukascopy has warned customers about a “clone” firm misrepresenting itself as a bank affiliate

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Ethereum Upgrades as Hard Forks Constantinople and St Petersburg Activate on Blockchain

The long-anticipated upgrade Constantinople has officially activated on the ethereum blockchain. At 19:57 (UTC), the sixth system-wide upgrade to be released since the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap launched in 2015 has successfully been rolled out onto the main network at block number 7,280,000. But, that’s not all. The unusual part about today’s hard […]

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Hong Kong Entrepreneur Who ‘Made It Rain’ from High-Rise Arrested for Crypto Mining Fraud

An alleged Bitcoin millionaire, who was reportedly involved in “making it rain cash” on the streets of Hong Kong, is now reportedly accused of mining-related fraud

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After a Brief Decline, Crypto Market Cap Is Stable Around $130 Billion, Stocks Are Down

Following a brief sell off, crypto markets continue trading sideways, while total market cap has remained stable around $130 billion

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German Government to Introduce Blockchain Strategy in Mid-2019

An official statement by the Cabinet of Germany says that the country’s blockchain strategy will be introduced in mid-2019

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XRP Is Now Live and Trading on Coinbase’s Consumer App

Coinbase has added XRP to its consumer apps and website, allowing customers in most jurisdictions to trade the No. 3 cryptocurrency.

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Facebook Plans to Launch Cryptocurrency in First Half of 2019: NYT Report

A report from the New York Times says plans to launch a cryptocurrency product in the first half of 2019.

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JP Morgan Is Quietly Testing Cutting-Edge Ethereum Privacy Tech

Fresh off its big reveal of JPM Coin, the megabank is quietly testing a cutting-edge form of ethereum privacy tech.

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Platform Allows Users to Access Numerous Exchanges Via One Trading Termina

A Ukrainian startup has created a terminal that handles trading on several exchanges via one platform #SPONSORED

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New York Times: Facebook Reportedly Shopping ‘Facebook Coin’ to Crypto Exchanges

According to anonymous sources, Facebook is planning to create a crypto-powered payment systems operating from within one, united messaging system

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South Africa’s Standard Bank to Launch Permissioned Blockchain for Overseas Exchange Services

The Standard Bank of South Africa has announced the upcoming launch of its private permissioned blockchain for overseas exchange trades

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Crypto Brokerage Firm Voyager From Uber’s Former CTO Acquires Wallet Startup Ethos

Crypto wallet startup Ethos is being acquired by Voyager Digital, a crypto brokerage firm co-founded by a former CTO of Uber

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Pundi X’s New Phone Can Switch Between Blockchain and Android

Manufacturing startup Pundi X unveiled new specifications for its blockchain phone, which will feature dual operating systems to support both Android apps and dapps.

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French President Says Blockchain Could Put Europe at ‘Vanguard’ of Innovation

Emmanuel Macron has called for increased use of data technologies such as blockchain in the EU to benefit agriculture and consumers.

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China’s 10th Crypto Rankings: EOS Still in First, TRON Joins and Beats Ethereum to Second

China’s state-backed tech workgroup CCID released its tenth crypto rankings, keeping EOS as the first and featuring new entrant TRON as second

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Moscow Government Plans to Use Blockchain Tech in E-Voting for Parliamentary Election

To avoid electoral fraud, the Moscow City Duma intends to use an e-voting system based on blockchain technology

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Crypto Money Laundering Reports Spiked in Japan Last Year, Police Say

Reports of suspicious cryptocurrency transactions in Japan soared last year, but were a tiny fraction of the overall total.

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SingularityNET Platform Launches Beta Decentralized AI Marketplace After $150 Mln ICO

SingularityNET, a blockchain artificial intelligence platform, officially launches the beta version of its blockchain marketplace

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Thai SEC Added 3 Cryptos to List of Crypto Assets Suitable for ICOs and Trading

The list of cryptocurrencies suitable for use in ICO investments and trading pairs has been updated by the Thai SEC

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Crypto Broker Voyager Is Buying Token Issuer and Wallet Ethos.io for $4 Million

Cryptocurrency brokerage Voyager has agreed to buy wallet provider and ICO issuer Ethos for about $4 million.

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Global Demand for Blockchain Engineers Up 517 Percent in a Year, Says Hired

According to a report released by recruitment company Hired, tglobal demand for blockchain engineers is up by 517 percent year-over-year

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Singapore State-Owned Fund Backed Coinbase’s $300 Million Raise: Report

GIC Private Limited, a Singapore government-owned fund, backed Coinbase’s major funding round last year, say Bloomberg sources.

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Bitcoin Price May Rise in March Despite Month’s Bearish Track Record

Bitcoin is heading into a historically weak month on a positive note and could see gains if resistance at $4,190 is breached.

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Morgan Creek Joins $65 Million Series B for Blockchain Home Equity Loan Firm

Blockchain-based home equity loan startup Figure Technologies has raised $65 million in a round backed by Morgan Creek.

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Square Brought in Over $166 Million Through Bitcoin Sales Last Year

Mobile payments firm Square has reported its revenue and profits from bitcoin sales in 2018.

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Report: Singapore’s Wealth Fund GIC Among Those to Raise $300 Mln for Coinbase in 2018

Singapore’s Government Investment Corporation was reportedly one of the investors to have helped raise $300 million for crypto exchange Coinbase in 2018

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Japan: Reported Cases of Crypto-Related Money Laundering Increase 10-Fold in 2018

Over 7,000 cases of suspected money laundering tied to crypto were reported to Japanese police in 2018

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Square Bitcoin Revenue Success Contrasts Profit Warnings After Record Q4 Results

Square, which shares its CEO Jack Dorsey with Twitter, achieved just over $52 million in Bitcoin sales for Q4

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Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Big Four Auditor PwC Publishes Crypto Insolvency Guide, Cautions Directors

Big Four audit and consultancy firm PwC Hong Kong has published guidance for financially distressed or insolvent businesses in the crypto sector

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Cryptopia Could Open by March 4 as Officials Hint at Sums Lost in Hack

Ahead of imminent relaunch, Cryptopia says it lost it at most around 10 percent of funds in its hack

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Bitcoin Lightning Tech Expands Beyond Invoices in Step Toward Better UX

New tech by a principal developer could soon make it possible for bitcoin's lightning network to expand to new use cases.

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Report: Blockchain Home Equity Loan Platform Raises $65 Million

Figure, a new financial services startup founded by SoFi founder and former CEO Mike Cagney, has raised $65 million from major venture capital funds

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Swiss Blockchain Hackathon in June Includes Partnerships With PwC, Amazon Web Services

Switzerland will host the Swiss Blockchain Hackathon in June 2019; the event has partnered with major firms like Amazon Web Services and PwC

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European Regulatory Chair Supports New Digital Asset Regulations

The chairman of the European Securities and Markets Authority advocated for new regulations on digital assets in order to help investors

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Crypto Mining Service Coinhive to Shut Down Operations in March

Cryptomining service Coinhive will discontinue its operations in March 2019, since it has reportedly become economically inviable

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New York-Based Entrepreneur Charged With Fraudulent Cryptocurrency Scheme

The U.S. Department of Justice has charged a New York citizen with the development of an allegedly fraudulent cryptocurrency and marketing it to investors

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Coinomi Wallet Addresses Vulnerability Concerns

Software wallet firm Coinomi has denied claims that the wallet sends unencrypted recovery phrases through Google’s remote spell checker

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Wall Street Journal CIO Network: Blockchain Adoption Is Still Early

CIOs and experts from the world’s leading tech companies at The Wall Street Journal CIO Network said that blockchain technology adoption is still in its early stages

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Constantinople Incoming: Tomorrow’s Two Ethereum Hard Forks Explained

Tomorrow is the big day for ethereum's sixth (and seventh) backwards-incompatible upgrade since mainnet launch back in 2015. Having faced a number of setbacks already, the highly-anticipated activation of Constantinople may or may not go as planned.

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Coinbase, R3 and Other Major Firms Respond to CFTC’s Request for Input on Ethereum

Over 30 major crypto and finance firms, including R3, Circle, the Ethereum Foundation and Coinbase, have filed comments in response to the CFTC’s request on Ethereum

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Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, EOS, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Stellar, TRON, Binance Coin, Bitcoin SV: Price Analysis, February 27

Legendary investor Warren Buffet has doubled down on his criticism of Bitcoin, but what do the charts point to in the short term? Let’s find out

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Crypto Exchange Gemini Joins British Telecom’s Radianz Cloud Broker Community

The BT Radianz Cloud broker community has been joined by Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins

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Ex-PayPal COO Hails Bitcoin ‘Acceleration’ as He Joins Lightning Torch Relay

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman participates in Bitcoin relay transaction, Lightning Torch

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Russian President Putin Orders Government to Adopt Crypto Regulation by July 2019

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the state to adopt digital asset regulation by July 1, 2019 after making a similar order last year

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ShapeShift Presents Six-Episode Show Dedicated to Crypto Enthusiasts

Shapeshift, a crypto exchange based in Switzerland, has released a six-episode show about crypto enthusiasts, including its CEO Erik Voorhees

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Crypto Exchange Huobi Adds Support for Ethereum-Based Tether

Huobi exchange has launched support for Ethereum-based USDT, in addition to Bitcoin’s Omni Layer-based version

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Bitcoin Approaches $3,900 as Crypto Markets Stabilize, Stock Market Slightly Down

Bitcoin approaches the $3,900 mark again as most of the top 20 cryptocurrencies are reporting a mix of slight gains and losses

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A Crypto Project That Raised $20 Million Is Caught Faking Its Founding Team

BHB in China raised $20 million in 2018 touting a three-person team. The only problem? At least two were fake.

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Polymath Tests Show Security Tokens Can Be Compliant on a DEX

Polymath says its tests showed security token trades on a decentralized exchange would only complete if authorized.

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Fidelity Joins $1.9 Million Round in Blockchain Data Startup Coin Metrics

Coin Metrics, an open-source data research project, will now offer commercial services to institutional investors.

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Pangea Blockchain Fund Debuts With $22 Million Round Supported by Roger Ver

Pangea Blockchain Fund has debuted its new fund, securing $22 million from key investors, including Bitcoin.com CEO Roger Ver

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LinkedIn Founder, Fidelity Latest to Carry Bitcoin’s ‘Lightning Torch’

The latest big names to join the bitcoin payments experiment are financial giant Fidelity Investments and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman.

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Crypto-Fiat Payments Firm Wirex Launches Major Update, Adds 10 New Fiat Currencies

Regulated digital payments firm Wirex released a major platform update, featuring ten new fiat currencies and new crypto and interbank rates

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Blockchain Fund Launches With $22 Million Round Backed By Roger Ver

Switzerland-based Pangea Blockchain Fund is launching after closing a $22 million seed round backed by crypto investor Roger Ver.

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Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak on Bitcoin: ‘We’ve Seen Massive Value Creation’

When asked about Bitcoin’s potential, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak declared that he thinks “we’ve seen massive value creation”

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Developer of Blockchain Project ICON Denies IPO Plan Reports

South Korea-based ICONLOOP, the firm behind blockchain project ICON, has denied reports it's moving to go public.

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National University of Singapore and Chinese Tech Firm to Research Blockchain: Report

As part of a new deal, The National University of Singapore will provide blockchain technical expertise to a Chinese tech firm

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New Ecosystem Says It Allows Sending and Receiving Crypto or Fiat With No Fees

An upcoming ecosystem says it will offer a one-stop-shop for consumers and businesses, giving them the freedom to pay in fiat or crypto with no fees #SPONSORED

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Confirmed: Sony and Fujitsu to Trial Blockchain for Educational Record Integrity

Sony Global Education, Fujitsu and Fujitsu Research Institute set to trial blockchain for improving the integrity of course records and grade data

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Bitcoin Price On Track to End Six-Month Losing Streak

Bitcoin looks set to end its record six-month losing streak with modest gains in February.

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Hacked Exchange Cryptopia Discloses Estimate of Stolen Crypto

New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has given an idea of the losses arising from a hack on its platform last month.

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London Stock Exchange Leads $20 Million Investment in Finance Tokenization Startup

The London Stock Stock Exchange Group has led a $20 million investment round in the startup behind the world’s reportedly first crypto-denominated, blockchain-settled bond

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Sony, Fujitsu Aim to Make Educational Data ‘Unfalsifiable’ With Blockchain

The two Japanese tech giants have partnered for a trial using blockchain to provide educational records that cannot be faked.

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Litecoin Foundation Partners With Glory Kickboxing to Make LTC League’s Official Crypto

The Litecoin Foundation is partnering with premier kickboxing league Glory to become the official crypto for its online merchandise platform and international events

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London Stock Exchange Leads $20 Million Fundraise for Blockchain Startup Nivaura

Nivaura, a startup tokenizing traditional financial instruments on public blockchains, has raised $20 million from investors led by the London Stock Exchange Group.

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Tuesday, February 26, 2019

How the Coming Constantinople Hard Fork Could Stir Up Ether Markets

Ether price volatility could spike in the days ahead, courtesy of an upcoming ethereum upgrade scheduled for Thursday. The Constantinople hard fork, a planned two-part upgrade to the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, is scheduled to occur once block 7,280,000 on the ethereum blockchain is mined. At the time of writing, ether’s block height is 7,272,826, meaning the […]

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