Monthly Archives: January 2020

Telegram lawsuit update shows the SEC bashing TONâ€™s blockchain development and lack of Gram token use cases. In the latest from U.S. Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) ongoing lawsuit against Telegram for its offering of Gram tokens, the commission bashes the messaging service’s blockchain and related token. In a lengthy filing with the court of the Southern District of New York the SEC responded to Telegram’s earlier motion for summary judgment. In it, the SEC disparaged the Telegram Open Network (TON) — Telegram’s blockchain — as well […]

Financial services and mobile payment company Square gets a patent to turn fiat into crypto in real-time point-of-sale transactions. Financial services and mobile payment company Square thinks it has found a way to turn fiat into crypto in real-time point-of-sale transactions. How it works On Jan. 21, the United States Patent Office awarded Square a patent for a technology that the team argues cracks a present barrier in merchant transactions: “All cryptocurrencies face the same drawback in that they are not widely accepted. Presently, cryptocurrencies, like bitcoin, […]

We canâ€™t officially confirm it, but a credible source suggests yes. It’s funny what business leaders can and can’t tell the press. Cointelegraph caught up with Alexander Drummond, co-founder of crypto-enabled payments company GatePay, at the 50th edition of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this week. Drummond was one of several crypto entrepreneurs presenting his company on stage at the CV Labs event on Tuesday. Drummond’s pitch for GatePay goes something like this: retail customers should be able to pay for products with any means […]

As cryptocurrency exchanges beef up their security to defend themselves against cyberattacks, hackers are responding in kind by amping up their techniques â€” and the data shows that theyâ€™re finding success. Cryptocurrency exchanges faced more successful attacks in 2019 than in any other year since bitcoin began trading on public exchanges in 2011, according to data compiled for a recent report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. While the 11 attacks recorded in 2019 nearly doubled those conducted in 2018, the total damage ($282.6 million stolen in cryptocurrency […]

Indiaâ€™s central bank, RBI, says it banned regulated crypto offerings, not overall cryptocurrency usage in the country. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said regulated entities cannot offer crypto assets in the country, but that does not equate to an overall digital asset ban. In a Jan. 21 article, The Economic Times of India cited a document the RBI submitted to the country’s supreme court in September, which said: “Firstly, the RBI has not prohibited VCs (virtual currencies) in the country. The RBI has directed the entities […]

Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of cloud-based messenger Telegram, says that Appleâ€™s cloud service iCloud is â€œnow officially a surveillance tool.â€� Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of major encrypted messenger Telegram, argues that Apple’s cloud service iCloud is “now officially a surveillance tool.” Citing a Jan. 21 Reuters report, Durov claimed that applications like WhatsApp — which rely on iCloud to store private messages — are “part of the problem.” Telegram CEO delivered his verdict in a post on his official Telegram channel on Jan. 21: “iCloud […]

Traders are taking a break after the most recent volatility which suggests that most major cryptocurrencies will remain range-bound for the next few days. Recently Hiromi Yamaoka, the former head of payments and settlements at the Bank of Japan, said that Facebook’s Libra has forced central banks to research and consider issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDC). Currently China is leading the race in developing a CBDC but it appears that other nations are now attempting to play catch up. In a press release, the Bank of […]

The global markets company Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has seen considerable demand since launching its options contracts in the wake of the firm’s bitcoin futures. On the first day of swaps, CME’s bitcoin options saw 55 contracts ($2.3 million). By the end of the week, the firm’s bitcoin options volume more than doubled with 122 contracts ($5.3 million) sold. Also read: Bitcoin Futures Hit 3-Month High in Frenetic Tuesday Trading CME Bitcoin Options See Steady Growth Regulated crypto derivatives products have seen strong demand and just recently […]

Around 6 to 8 million Venezuelans were airdropped half a Petro each by the government, with many trying to sell it for half the official price. Venezuelans are reportedly selling the state-launched Petro (PTR) cryptocurrency that was airdropped to them recently. Though the government claims to have fixed the value of one PTR at $60, the market price on LocalBitcoins is reported to be only half of that. According to a Reddit thread, Venezuelans are turning to LocalBitcoins to sell their airdropped Petro amid disastrous economic conditions. […]