Opinion

October 27, 2020 @ 12:37 pm By JD Alois  |  

    Recently, Kik settled a long legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In the end, Kik must pay a $5 million settlement pertaining to an initial coin offering (ICO) that was deemed to be an unregistered security offering. Additionally, for the… Read More

October 26, 2020 @ 10:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

SignKeys, a Singapore-based digital asset solutions provider, notes that recent positive news for Bitcoin (PayPal adding support for BTC and other cryptos) may have led to a 15% increase in its price (around $13,000 at the time of writing). SignKeys points out that Bitcoin still… Read More

October 25, 2020 @ 2:57 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Adena Friedman, President and CEO of Nasdaq, the world’s second-largest stock exchange with a market cap of over $17 trillion, says that emerging technologies (Emtech) continue to “drive the evolution” of capital markets.  As covered, Friedman believes that Cloud technologies will transform financial services and… Read More

October 23, 2020 @ 12:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently caught up with Mark Smargon, CEO of Fuse.io, a Fintech company that aims to connect everyday payments to the blockchain without compromising on user experience. Fuse.io is focused on leveraging the latest decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure to offer a unique platform to businesses… Read More

October 22, 2020 @ 3:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

There should not be any question that financial innovation is good for consumers, good for businesses, and good for the economy in general. Fintech is bringing a degree of financial sophistication and inclusion previously unattainable. Underserved or underbanked markets may now access services once available… Read More

October 22, 2020 @ 11:57 am By JD Alois  |  

The law firm of Ellenoff, Grossman, and Schole (EGS) has long been a leading Manhattan firm in the SPAC sector (Special Purpose Acquisition Company). This year, SPACs have boomed, including multiple high profile issuers as well as several Fintech focused SPACs. So how did SPACs… Read More

October 21, 2020 @ 10:23 pm By JD Alois  |  

Today’s news that PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) will start allowing it’s over 360 million users to use crypto placed a firm stamp of establishment approval on digital currency. PayPal partnered with Paxos to provide the service – a digital asset firm that has always placed regulatory compliance… Read More

October 21, 2020 @ 11:29 am By JD Alois  |  

With the announcement that PayPal will now enable trading and payments in crypto, the world’s most popular digital currency – Bitcoin has jumped in price. At last glance, Bitcoin is trading over USD$ 12,700 – earlier today it was under $12,000. Shares in PayPal neared… Read More

October 20, 2020 @ 11:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Triyono Gani, the head of digital finance innovation at Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), notes that it may have taken a long time for people to understand one of Bill Gates’ quotes, “Banking is necessary, but banks are not.”  Gani points out that Gates actually… Read More

October 20, 2020 @ 8:15 am By Brian Williamson  |  

I have been impressed, not only with the economic levers Rishi Sunak, has used to stimulate the economy but with the measured and calm way he has dealt with a crisis that could have been a poison chalice for many another Chancellor. A few weeks… Read More

October 16, 2020 @ 2:30 am By Omar Faridi  |  

  We recently spoke to Meltem Demirors, the Chief Strategy Officer at CoinShares, a digital asset treasury management firm that manages over $1 billion in assets. Demirors talked about how financial markets reacted after US President Donald Trump tested positive for COVID-19. She also discussed… Read More

October 15, 2020 @ 12:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, the US Department of Justice published a white paper, crafted by the Cyber-Digital Task Force, that outlines its approach to enforcement when it comes to digital assets (or cryptoassets). US Attorney General William Barr issued the following statement on the framework: “Cryptocurrency is… Read More

October 14, 2020 @ 9:00 am By Emma Channing  |  

Back in December, I wrote a piece for Coindesk’s Year in Review 2019 entitled “Security Token Offerings Are (Finally) Set for Takeoff in 2020”.  This was before word of COVID-19 became widespread and before many of the cataclysmic events of 2020 were even imaginable.  Thus… Read More

October 13, 2020 @ 3:15 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, the UK Financial Conduct Authority announced a ban on the sale of crypto derivatives and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) that for retail investors. The ban, which goes into effect on January 6, 2021, has no impact on spot trading of cryptoassets. Some crypto-industry insiders criticized… Read More

October 12, 2020 @ 8:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms are increasingly being used by Fintech platform developers to make more intelligent or informed decisions regarding key processes. This may include using AI to identify potentially fraudulent transactions, determining the creditworthiness of a borrower applying for a… Read More

October 12, 2020 @ 9:00 am By Therese Torris  |  

How did the pandemic impact the P2P crowdfunding sector, the part of alternative fundraising financed exclusively by individual contributors and retail investors? To answer this question, the French crowdfunding association Financement Participatif France (FPF) together with the state bank, Banque des territoires commissioned a study…. Read More

October 11, 2020 @ 10:45 am By JD Alois  |  

Last week, LendingClub (NYSE:LC) filed an 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) indicating its intent to stop offering retail notes by the end of the year. The leading marketplace lender in the US started as a peer to peer lender but over the… Read More

October 9, 2020 @ 8:31 am By Omar Faridi  |  

UK-based Fintech Payhawk, a corporate expense management solution provider that secured €3 million in seed funding in March 2020, notes that “the ticket to ride the rollercoaster of hype in any emerging technology is expensive.” Hristo Borisov, the co-founder and CEO at Payhawk who’s focused… Read More

October 8, 2020 @ 11:30 am By Brian Farber, General Counsel, Securitize  |  

  Tokenization Provides Endless Possibilities for Teams and their Fans. Professional sports have been deeply stitched into the fabric of American society for well over a century, providing a daily source of joy (or pain if you’re a Mets fan), and serving as a refuge… Read More

October 6, 2020 @ 6:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Joel Edgerton, COO at bitFlyer, a crypto-asset exchange that’s licensed to operate in Japan, the United States, and Europe, recently shared his views about the court case and charges brought against the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange (BitMEX), a leading digital asset derivatives exchange. Edgerton also shared… Read More