Blockchain group Plug has just raised $65m to develop its framework March 20, 2018 An international blockchain group has secured $65m (£46m) in investment to continue developing its framework of distributed ledger technology. The company, PL^G, or Plug, is a collaboration between London-based blockchain specialists Qadre, New Zealand-based venture studio, Centrality, and Switzerland-based blockchain media house, SingularDTV. It seeks to build scalable and secure blockchain applications that operate in [...]
Bitcoin regulation: G20 world leaders to discuss cryptocurrency crackdown at this week’s summit in Buenos Aires March 18, 2018 Finance ministers and central bankers from around the world will discuss new regulations for cryptocurrencies at this week’s G20 summit in Buenos Aires. The discussion comes amid concerns that digital currencies are fuelling money laundering and other criminal activity. Thomas Hulme, a solicitor at London law firm Mackrell Turner Garrett said policymakers will focus on [...]
FTSE roundup: Easyjet soars while housebuilders (Berkeley) temper blue chip index gains March 16, 2018 The FTSE 100 index has ended the day up 0.34 per cent, as Easyjet continued to climb after directors scooped up shares earlier this week. However the FTSE 100’s close, at 7,164 points, was substantially lower than last Friday’s close of 7224 points. BP helped to nudge the blue chip index up during the day, [...]
Cashing in on crypto: The world’s 10 most bitcoin-friendly cities March 16, 2018 Some cities around the world have been quicker than others at tapping into the crypto fascination, according to new research by CryptoGo. The cryptocurrency brokerage has conducted research using services such as Yelp and Coinmap to identify the number of firms that accept bitcoin, the number of bitcoin ATMs, and the number of bitcoin meetups [...]
Bank of England says Brexit talks are moving in the right direction – but “material risks remain” March 16, 2018 The Bank of England today said “progress” in mitigating the impact of Brexit on the City has been made over the last few months. However, its Financial Policy Committee (FPC) warned “material risks remain” and called for officials in Westminster and Brussels to their game. Last November the Bank of England said Brexit risks did [...]
DEBATE: Is Google right to ban adverts for cryptocurrency from its searches? March 16, 2018 Is Google right to ban adverts for cryptocurrency from its searches? Dr Savvas P Savouri, chief economist and partner at Toscafund Asset Management, says YES. Those like me convinced that cryptocurrencies are the latest in pyramid schemes should welcome first Facebook and now Google’s decision to place a firewall in front of sites advertising and [...]
Bitcoin price (BTC) drops to a five-week low below $8,000 March 15, 2018 Bitcoin has tumbled to a five-week low of below $8,000 as it continues to be battered by negative news. At the time of writing, bitcoin’s price was down 4.51 per cent at $7,827.21 a coin, according to Coindesk’s aggregate index. This was around $2,000 below bitcoin’s price at the start of the week. Yesterday, Google [...]
Bitcoin exchange Binance offers $250,000 reward to catch hackers March 12, 2018 A bitcoin exchange has offered a $250,000 (£180,000) reward for information leading to the arrest of hackers who attacked its platform last week. Cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance announced the reward yesterday following the attempting hacking attack on 7th March which it described as a “large-scale, organised effort”. The exchange said that in addition to the [...]
Blockchain is more than bitcoin – it has unlimited potential to transform society March 12, 2018 The popularity of crypto assets, such as bitcoin, in recent months has drawn attention to the technology that sits behind them – blockchain. Blockchain is a distributed ledger that records transactions between two parties in a verifiable and permanent way. Blockchain’s main advantage is that it’s decentralised, and therefore avoids the inflexibility and inefficiency of [...]
Cryptocurrency investors unfazed by recent volatility as they plan to buy more digital currencies March 12, 2018 More than half of investors with exposure to cryptocurrencies are planning to snap up more digital assets over the next 12 months despite recent volatility in the market, a new report suggests. Over the next year, 56 per cent of crypto investors plan to buy more, compared with 31 per cent who plan to retain [...]