February, 2018 | Club Laura

Bitfury’s North American Mining Proxy Hut 8 to List on TSX This Month

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Canada appears poised to become a new global hub for bitcoin miners. Already known to be attracting Chinese miners diversifying away from their home market with its cheap hydro-power electricity and cold climate, the country’s latest draw is easy access to capital. Firms such as Hut 8 are set to tap its welcoming market for early stage ventures. Also Read: Cryptocurrency Mining Demand Exceeded the Expectations of Nvidia in Q4 Bitfury IPO Vancouver-based Hut 8 Mining Corp., a part of the Bitfury Group, is scheduled to list on the TSX…

Ripple and Western Union Testing XRP Transfers

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

San Francisco-based Ripple has not had the best of starts to 2018. Its cryptocurrency, XRP, has been on a downward slide since the first week of January and has lost almost 70% of its value. However, things could be about to turn around for the company as Western Union is now test driving its transfer technology. The list of banks and financial institutions that are using and testing Ripple’s products is growing by the week. Fortune has reported that global payments giant Western Union can be added to that list…

It’s High Time Financial Institutions Consider Crypto as a Tool for Efficient Money Transfers

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Blockchain technology is causing massive disruptions across a wide range of industries, markets, and economies. Bitcoin, the most popular blockchain application has shown the world first-hand how the decentralized nature of blockchain could cause a paradigm shift in the global economic landscape. Beyond Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies have sprung up to solve some of the biggest business and financial problems ailing the global economy. Ripple is one of such blockchain applications – Ripple (XRP) is a real-time payment settlement system built on blockchain technology to solve the settlement problems associated with…

British Couple Lawyer Up as $840k Cryptocurrency Divorce Heats Up

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Divorce is never fun and rarely simple, but when one party – generally the male – owns cryptocurrency, there’s an added layer of complexity. With cryptocurrency still relatively new as an asset class, there have been very few cases to date in which the unhappy couple have squabbled over altcoins. A British law firm professes to be handling three such cases at present, with the largest involving a tug-of-war over crypto valued at $840,000. Also read: Divorce is Messy – Especially When You Own Bitcoin Kissing Goodbye to the Ball…

Indian Cryptocurrency Exchanges Plan to Maintain Shared User Database

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Indian cryptocurrency exchanges are reportedly planning to create a database of crypto traders and their transactions. User account data would be tied to either an Aadhaar ID or a Permanent Account Number. This proposal comes amidst the Indian government actively working on crypto regulations. Also read: Japan’s DMM Bitcoin Exchange Opens for Business With 7 Cryptocurrencies Database of Crypto Traders Cryptocurrency exchanges in India are reportedly “planning to create a central repository of users that will help create and maintain a real-time record of transactions,” the Economic Times reported. The exchanges…

B2Broker Launches Cryptocurrency Payment Gateway

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

More retail forex brokers around the world can now offer their clients the option to fund their trading accounts with cryptocurrency. A tech provider from the FX industry, B2Broker, has created a simple platform for the online businesses to roll out. Also Read: Independent Ratings Agency Alerts Investors About Dangers of Tether B2Broker Cryptocurrency Payment Gateway B2Broker, an aggregator and provider of turnkey, cloud, and liquidity solutions for the foreign exchange (FX) industry, has launched a new cryptocurrency payment gateway. The system is fully automated for both deposits and withdrawals…

IRS Stymied Over American Cryptocurrency Traders’ Reluctance to Report Earnings

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

As cryptocurrency investors continue to see gains, it appears they’re also continuing to stay quiet about their earnings to avoid taxation from the IRS. Where are the American Crypto Taxpayers? With roughly a month and a half left until the April 17th tax filing deadline, the IRS has reportedly only received 18.3 million individual tax returns so far, 13% of the total expected. Although it is still early in the tax season, it appears as though American taxpayers are loath to report their gains and losses this year and the IRS…

FX Aggregator B2Broker Launches Cryptocurrency Payment Gateway for Merchants

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Seven UK Companies Form Cryptocurrency Trade Body

February 15, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

Seven major crypto companies operating in the UK have announced the formation an independent cryptocurrency trade body. The group, Crypto UK, has stated that its principal aim is to “improve industry standards and engage policymakers.” Also Read: Independent Ratings Agency Alerts Investors About Dangers of Tether Leading Cryptocurrency Companies form Crypto UK Trade Body Seven leading cryptocurrency companies operating the UK have formed an independent trade body tasked with developing self-regulatory standards for the cryptocurrency industry, in addition to “engag[ing] policymakers.” The members of Crypto UK are Coinbase, Etoro, Cex.io, Blockex,…

Token Holders Don’t Give a Damn About Voting Rights and Community Governance

February 14, 2018 clublaura_e7xtqv

You’ve probably heard of The DAO and you’ve certainly heard of the ICO. Now say hello to the DAICO, an “innovative fundraising model” that aims to combine the best of both frameworks. The Abyss Platform is the first project to utilize this hybrid organizational structure, which has been credited as the brainchild of Vitalik Buterin. There’s just one problem with The DAO, the ICO and the mutant DAICO it’s spawned – the public couldn’t give a damn about key tenets such as voting rights and community governance. All they want…