Latest Blockchain News: Finextra Research

Cryptocurrency firm Gemini hires Starling co-founder Sawyer to lead European expansion

Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange set up by the Winklevoss twins, has hired Starling Bank co-founder Julian Sawyer to spearhead a move into the European market.

04 December 2019

Company update/Blockchain

Financial firms struggling to assess risks of disruptive technologies - Accenture

The majority of UK financial firms do not believe they can adequately assess the risks of disruptive technologies, as technology advancements move faster than the skills of their risk managers, according to a new report by Accenture.

04 December 2019

News/Blockchain

First transactions executed on Deutsche Bourse's blockchain-based securities lending platform

Commerzbank, Credit Suisse and UBS have successfully executed the first live transactions on Deutsche Börse's HQLAx securities lending platform.

03 December 2019

News/Blockchain

Figure Technologies aims for $103 million fund raise

Figure Technologies, a San Francisco-based blockchain-based startup for providing loans against mortgage equity is close to raising $103 million in financing in a bid to enter the student loan market.

02 December 2019

News/Blockchain

Ex-Barclays Antony Jenkins predicts demise of traditional banking

Former Barclays chief executive believes its the end of the banking world as we know it...and he feels fine.

02 December 2019

News/Blockchain

NatWest looks to DLT for mobile-based home buying

NatWest is joining forces with a consortium of software firms to develop a distributed ledger technology-based system that lets customers go through the entire home buying process through their mobile phones.

29 November 2019

News/sustainable

Bitcoin's impact on climate change not as great as feared

Despite previous claims that the carbon footprint of bitcoin mining was on par with entire countries, a new study has shown that its impact is much smaller than was feared.

28 November 2019

News/Blockchain

EToro: Facebook should give up on the idea of launching its own cryptocurrency

If Facebook is to stand any chance of getting its cryptocurrency business off the ground it needs to forget about launching its own virtual coinage and instead use stablecoins issued by regulated third parties, according to a position paper by online brokerage eToro.

28 November 2019

Company update/Blockchain

Seba Bank debuts crypto-index

SEBA, an integrated bank focused on digital assets, launches its investment solutions and introduces a new index for cryptographic assets.

27 November 2019

News/Blockchain

Crackdown in China to blame for bitcoin price plunge

Bitcoin fell to a six-month low just above $6500 on Monday after two dramatic price drops in less than a week shaved nearly $20 billion off its market cap.

26 November 2019

News/Blockchain

French central bank floats European CBDC

France's central bank is urging Europe to explore the development of a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC).

25 November 2019

News/startups

MGV plans EUR150m fintech fund

A new fintech-focused investment firm, MiddleGame Ventures (MGV), is planning to put together a EUR150 million fund to target post-seed startups in Europe and North America.

25 November 2019

News/Blockchain

What the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce's legal statement on cryptoassets doesn't do

Cryptoassets are now recognisable under English law after a statement by the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce (UKJT), regarded as a big step for integration of crypto trading into mainstream finance.

22 November 2019

Company update/Blockchain

Sberbank first in Russia to get blockchain repo patent

Sberbank is the first in Russia to have obtained a patent for a repo deals solution and an execution system that utilize distributed ledger technology. The solution was developed by the bank only.

20 November 2019

News/Blockchain

New York state grants Fidelity digital asset charter

Plans by Fidelity Investments to launch a digital assets business have been given a boost New York's Department of Financial Services, which has grenlighted the firm's move into the state's rapidly growing virtual currency marketplace

20 November 2019

News/regulation

PayPal invests in cryptocurrency compliance startup TRM

PayPal has joined a $4.2 million funding round for cryptocurrency compliance and risk management platform TRM Labs.

19 November 2019

News/Blockchain

Deutsche Bourse and Swisscom use tokenised assets and DLT to settle securities transactions

Deutsche Bourse and Swissccom have completed a successful proof of concept for settling securities transactions using distributed ledger technology and the exchange of equity and cash tokens.

19 November 2019

Company update/Blockchain

IStox secures $5 million in funding

2019 iSTOX, the first regulated capital markets platform in any major financial center to support the one-stop issuance, custody, and trading of digitized securities, announced today that it has secured USD 5 million in funding from Japan-based Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings (Tokai) via Singapore subsidiary, Tokai Tokyo Global Investments.

18 November 2019

News/regulation

UK charges ahead with legal certainty for smart contracts and cryptoassets

In a landmark statement, the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce of the Lawtech Delivery Panel today set out the recognition of cryptoassets as tradable property, and smart contracts as enforceable agreements under English Law.

18 November 2019

News/Blockchain

JP Morgan and Baton use DLT to automate derivatives margin payments

JP Morgan has teamed up with distributed ledger technology specialist Baton Systems to develop a DLT-based platform that helps automate derivatives margin payments.

14 November 2019