Blockchain & Digital Assets

January 27, 2022 @ 8:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Criminal investigators at the US Internal Revenue Services (IRS) say that virtual currencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is an industry segment that can be exploited by actors engaging in fraudulent activities. These abusive activities may include actions involving money laundering, market manipulation, and even attempts… Read More

January 27, 2022 @ 8:54 am By JD Alois  |  

Facebook/Meta’s (NASDAQ:FB) digital currency venture Diem will be sold to Silvergate Capital for $200 million, according to WSJ.com. It was previously rumored that the failed cryptocurrency project was on the auction block as Meta threw in the towel on a project that once sought to… Read More

January 27, 2022 @ 8:31 am By Omar Faridi  |  

West Realm Shires Services Inc. (FTX US) has announced the closing of a $400 million Series A round valuing the firm at $8 billion. As mentioned in an update shared with CI, this investment round is notably the first for FTX US and included contributions… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 8:49 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Cactus Custody, an institutional custodian solution powered by Matrixport, today announced it is a MetaMask Institutional (MMI)-integrated custodian able to support MMI’s multi-chain capabilities and all Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible chains. This feature, called DeFi Connector, and offered by Cactus Custody, allows institutional clients to connect with decentralized finance… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 6:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

EarlyBird, the platform that aims to make it simpler for parents, family members, and friends to collectively invest in a kid’s future, has announced today the introduction of EarlyBird Crypto. Along with more traditional assets, parents may now choose to add Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 5:42 pm By JD Alois  |  

Institutional blockchain firm Blockdaemon has raised $207 million in a Series C funding round that values the firm at $3.25 billion. The funding round was led by Sapphire and Tiger Global, with participation from existing investors SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Boldstart Ventures, StepStone Group, Matrix Capital… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 4:56 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Polygon’s hopes for Polygon Studios got a major boost this week as they added a former YouTube executive to lead its efforts. Ryan Wyatt is leaving the video service after more than seven years to run Polygon Studios, where he will focus on growing its… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 11:52 am By JD Alois  |  

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is telling El Salvador not to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. In a statement by the IMF, the international agency noted that since September 2021, the Salvadoran government has adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. But the IMF believes the adoption… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 11:42 am By JD Alois  |  

CoinShares (OTCQX: CNSRF) has announced the launch of physically-backed crypto exchange-traded products (ETP). CoinShares Physical Staked Tezos and CoinShares Physical Staked Polkadot will be listed on Germany’s main market Xetra. The new ETPs utilize CoinShares’ platform to provide exposure to proof-of-stake protocols and the rewards for… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 11:29 am By JD Alois  |  

Luna PR, a digital asset-focused marketing firm, has announced the creation of Luna VC – a venture company launched to invest in early-stage crypto companies. Apparently, Luna VC has already invested in ten crypto firms claiming a 4000% return during the first quarter of its… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 10:06 am By JD Alois  |  

Canadian crypto exchange CoinSmart (NEO: SMRT; FSE:IIR) has announced a “long-term national sponsorship agreement with the Canadian Hockey League (CHL).” CoinSmart will become the CHL’s Official Crypto Trading Partner across its three-member leagues, the OHL, WHL, and the QMJHL. The CHL is the world’s largest… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 9:48 am By JD Alois  |  

Ownera has joined the Global Digital Finance (GDF) Patron Board. Global Digital Finance is a UK-based organization that aims to support the digital asset sector of Fintech. In a public statement, Global Digital Finance said it will work with Ownera to promote standards and best… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 8:50 am By JD Alois  |  

Global X ETFs, a member of Mirae Asset Financial Group with more than $620 billion in assets under management, has announced the Global X Blockchain ETF (BKCH) on the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Börse Xetra. BKCH is designed to provide investors with a portfolio… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 8:41 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Finvault Exchange OÜ, the Fintech firm that’s licensed and regulated by the Estonian FIU as an authorized digital currency exchange, is transforming the way individual consumers and businesses save, invest, transfer and spend their funds and digital wealth. Finvault announced that it has opened up… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 8:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Scalability has been the “hottest topic” in the crypto space during the past few years, the team at Qtum notes in a recent update. Qtum‘s developers write in a blog post that they have seen several projects “adopt a centralized stance just to speed up… Read More

January 26, 2022 @ 8:33 am By Omar Faridi  |  

American Express (NYSE: AXP) Chair and Chief Executive Stephen Squeri seems to have been proven right for his careful approach to introducing digital currency services via the payment company’s platform. In statements shared with Yahoo Finance, Squeri remarked: “What I’ve said from the beginning is… Read More

January 25, 2022 @ 11:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Baton Systems, the Fintech firm that’s focused on transforming post-trade processing by leveraging distributed ledger technology (DLT), has appointed David Ornstein to serve as the firm’s Chief Operating Officer. Ornstein joins the company at an important time, as industry demand continues to grow steadily for… Read More

January 25, 2022 @ 11:18 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Several geopolitical and macroeconomic factors are behind the crash in cryptocurrency prices to begin 2022, two industry watchers believe. For Eli Ndinga, a research lead at cryptocurrency issuer Amun, the crash, at least in the short term, can be correlated with macroeconomic events such as… Read More

January 25, 2022 @ 10:22 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Everest, a Fintech company with blockchain solutions for identity verification, eKYC, crypto custodianship, and financial services, this week announced an integration with Polygon, a leading platform for Ethereum scalability and infrastructure development. By making its EverChain fully interoperable with Polygon PoS chain, Everest brings its… Read More

January 25, 2022 @ 8:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Committee on Financial Services has posted the February hearing schedule and digital assets are on the list. According to an email from the Committee on February 8, 10 AM ET, a hearing will be held entitled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance:… Read More