Opinion

Editorial opinions and perspective on Fintech.

Is South Korea Backtracking on ICO Ban? FSC Vice Chair Moderates Stance on Token Offerings as New Task Force is Formed

This past week saw a bit of reversal in South Korea’s stance on Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). In September, it was reported that Korea had decided to totally ban ICOs following a similar approach by China. But during a presentation at the National Assembly by… Read More

Yawn: Bitcoin Now Over $17,000 in Value

Another day, another record for the worlds most popular cryptocurrency. Bitcoin has been hurdling along toppling records in thousand dollar leaps. We last reported, two days ago, that Bitcoin had topped $12,000. In hindsight, that report (and amount) seems premature as Bitcoin seems rather determined… Read More

Why Massive Discounts & Short-Term Liquidity Are Bad For Most ICO Investors

In the early days of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), basically for much of this year, one of the keys of a successful ICO raise was ability to snag a crypto-influencer onto one’s advisory board – or to get them to be an early investor in… Read More

The Bitcoin Foundation Updates on Impending US Legislation that May Cripple All Cryptocurrencies

The Bitcoin Foundation has been working diligently to mitigate language of pending legislation, “The Combating Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Counterfeiting Act of 2017″ (S.1241), in the US Senate that would define anyone issuing, redeeming or cashing Bitcoin as a financial institution. Think about what that… Read More

ICOs: The Dual Token Conundrum

It is clear that the SEC is going to do an enforcement action against a number of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), and the people who are selling utility tokens to investors for Bitcoin or Ether cryptocurrencies. Most ICOs are conducted by companies that have not… Read More

Bitcoin Ought to Be Outlawed: NOT! – An Open Letter to Joseph Stiglitz

It was recently reported that the former chief economist of the World Bank wants Bitcoin banned, saying “Bitcoin is successful only because of its potential for circumvention, lack of oversight” You missed something crucial. Because of the ‘McKinsey’ factor. The operative rules (laws of nature from… Read More

2018: When ICOs Will Light a Great Big Fire Under Fintech

Until now ‘Fintech’ has had a rather timid relationship with crowdfunding – and to put it bluntly many Fintech founders would have rather be seen dead in a ditch than crowdfunding a million dollars or two – even as a first step. Until now. Initial… Read More

Q&A YieldStreet CEO Milind Mehere: Excited about Growth and YieldStreet’s Future

    Launched in NYC in 2015, YieldStreet aims to allow people to invest in alternative investments that are backed by real collateral. With the ultimate mission of “prosperity for all,” YieldStreet has plans to help “millions” of investors attain financial independence. With a world-class advisory… Read More

Another Day, Another Class Action: Tezos ICO Sued by GGCC, LLC in California

The Tezos legal battle continues as the Restis Law firm in San Diego, along with Lite DePalma Greenberg, have filed a class action law suit in the state of California on behalf of GGCC, LLC against Dynamic Ledger Solutions (DLS), Tezos Stiftung (a Swiss Foundation), Kathleen Breitman… Read More

The Price of Bitcoin Rockets Past $10,000 – Can the Price of Bitcoin Go Higher ?

The price of Bitcoin (BTC) has been on an absolute hyperbolic ascent this past year. Yesterday, Bitcoin topped $10,000 and currently stands over $11,0000. One year ago, Bitcoin was priced at around $730. Think about that for a moment. IF you had purchased Bitcoin last… Read More

Priming the ICO Pump: Don’t Get Sucked In

If you’ve been under a rock for the last year or so, you might not know that “initial coin offerings” or ICOs are the hottest thing in the financial market today. As if the fact that the overwhelming majority of ICOs aren’t regulated in any… Read More

It is Time for Empirical Analysis of Securities Disclosure

On September 13, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies held its final meeting.  The SEC will replace this Advisory Committee with the new statutorily established Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee. At this meeting, the Advisory Committee adopted… Read More

Richard Cordray Tells CFPB Staff Leandra English is Acting Director. President Trump Appoints OMB Director Mick Mulvaney as Acting Director. So Who Wins ?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has endured a stormy odyssey in its short tenure as the newest federal bureaucracy in Washgton, DC. Yesterday, the storm strengthened as outgoing Director Richard Cordray selected Leandra English to lead the CFPB as Acting Director. In a one-two punch,… Read More

Autumn Budget 2017: Feedback from Alternative Finance

Many people are still sorting through the various proposals announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond during the Autumn Budget statement from the past week. Parsing through the nuances of the many policy pronouncements is an annual affair. So what is in the Budget… Read More

Joseph Otting Has a Lot on His Plate as the New Comptroller

Joseph Otting, a former banker and CEO of OneWest Bank, was approved by the Senate in a party line vote last week to take over the helm at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). As Comptroller, Otting will be stepping into an… Read More

Chancellor Proposes Changes to EIS to Increase Investment Limits to £2 Million, EISA calls Changes “Good News” for Entrepreneurs & Investors [u]

The Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond proposed an update to the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) in the Autumn budget presented at the House of Commons today. The measures will increase the annual limit for individuals to £2 million – provided that anything over £1… Read More

Ricky Knox, Founder of Digital Challenger Bank Tandem, Tells Chancellor to “Keep it Simple” Ahead of Budget

The much anticipated Autumn budget will be revealed by Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond soon. In advance of the speech at the House of Commons there has been much speculation and plenty of rumors as to what exactly will be included in the exceptionally… Read More

Early Stage Investing vs. Real Estate Investing: Similarities and Differences

Both venture capital (VC) investing and real estate investing involve some level of risk assessment, they both have the potential for big returns, and investors have the opportunity to help someone else reach a desired goal. Despite this common ground, there are some distinct differences…. Read More

Cardozo Blockchain Project Publishes New SAFT Approach for ICOs, Provides Regulatory Alternative for Nascent Token Market

The Cardozo Blockchain Project is an initiative from Cardozo Law School that seeks to address the legal issues and challenges related to Blockchain technology and the fast emerging Initial Coin Offering market. The project is directed by Prof. Aaron Wright but includes the input and… Read More

Report Indicates Chancellor to Announce Multi-Billion Pound Fund to Fuel UK Scale-Ups

Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond’s Autumn budget will be revealed this week and there is plenty of chatter as to what may, or may not, be included in the important policy statement. With Brexit pressure compelling policy makers to do everything they can to… Read More

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