SEC Reaches $24 Million Settlement With EOS Parent Firm Block.one

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reached a settlement with Block.one to pay $24 million in penalties for conducting an unregistered initial coin offering (ICO). On Sept. 30, the SEC announced in a press release that it has settled the charges against the firm behind the EOS network and corresponding token in the form of a civil monetary penalty. Block.one settled the charges without admitting or denying the findings. According to the press release, Block.one’s ICO of Read more …

Financial Giant Fidelity Backs Bitcoin Derivatives Yield Fund

The Los Angeles-based Wave Financial has announced the launch of a bitcoin derivatives-based yield fund and Fidelity will provide custody for the fund’s BTC reserves. Wave Financial’s crypto fund commencement is part of a growing trend toward launching BTC derivatives products. CME Group has also revealed the derivatives marketplace will provide options on its bitcoin futures during the first quarter of 2020. Also read: Fidelity’s Cryptocurrency Arm Starts Offering Institutional Investor Services Wave Financial Launches Bitcoin Derivatives Yield Fund Option Read more …

Binance Research: Bakkt to Blame For September’s Bearish Performance

The crypto industry lost significant momentum during September. Binance Research claims that one of the potential reasons for this may have been people ‘selling on the news’ of Bakkt launching. Bakkt Launch Fell Flat Most notably, on September 23, 2019, Bakkt Bitcoin futures contracts started trading. However, what was hoped to be a groundbreaking moment for the market turned out to be a massive anticlimax. One of Bakkt’s promises is to bring institutional investors into the crypto market. For Bakkt Read more …

Ethereum Surges Over 5% as Analysts Eye Movement to $220

Ethereum has extended its upwards momentum after briefly facing a bout of selling pressure yesterday that sent it reeling into the $160 region. Today, however, ETH has surged over 5% and is now nearing the $180 region. This upwards momentum has come about as the aggregated crypto markets recovered from a sharp drop that occurred overnight, and analysts are now eyeing significantly further upside for ETH in the near-term. Ethereum Surges Towards $180 as Buyers Flex Their Strength At the Read more …

EOS Maker Block.One Settles With SEC Over Unregistered Securities Sale

EOS maker Block.One must pay $24 million in penalties for conducting an unregistered securities sale, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced Monday evening. The SEC said in a press release that Block.One “raised the equivalent of several billion dollars” over a one-year period in an unregistered initial coin offering (ICO). (A total of $4.1 billion was raised.) Block.One agreed to settle the charges, according to the SEC. The fine amounts to 0.0058 percent of the initial raise. Notably, Read more …

US Department of Homeland Security Awards $143K Grant to Blockchain Firm

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has awarded $143,478 to Vienna-based Danube Tech to develop blockchain security solutions. Silicon Valley Innovation Program On Sept. 26, the United States DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced in a press release that Danube Tech was awarded a contract to assist the department in its ongoing fight against forgery and the counterfeiting of certificates and licenses.  The news release states that services such as U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Read more …

Crypto Markets Showing Signs of Recovery, Bitcoin Hovers About $8,200

Monday, Sept. 30 — Bitcoin (BTC), together with most altcoins, has been trading relatively flat in the last 72 hours, but the overall crypto market seems to be ready to turn around. Cryptocurrency market daily overview. Source: Coin360 Bitcoin has not yet been able to recover from last Tuesday’s double-digit losses, but the coin is showing signs that a recovery phase might be on the horizon. While billionaire technology investor Mark Cuban said that he would be happier owning bananas Read more …

A Royal Bitcoin Request? Scammers Pray on Britain’s Brexit Fears

Bitcoin has been involved in some pretty brazen efforts to scam people out of money. However, the latest might just be the most ludicrous. A fake letter, apparently from the desk of a member of the Queen of England’s staff, has been reported. In it, her royal highness appeals to the reader to donate Bitcoin to help save the UK economy from ruin in the wake of an unfavourable Brexit. Bitcoin to Save Britain? Hmm… According to a post on Read more …

Are Trading Vehicles Dragging Crypto Into Maturity?

Just a decade ago, speculating on cryptocurrency prices meant figuring out a way to buy Bitcoin (BTC) and add it to your blockchain wallet. This was a feat that was worthy of bragging rights: In 2010, there were few exchanges, low liquidity and barely any infrastructure, meaning that crypto was less a financial instrument and more a digital novelty.  Larger centralized exchanges unlocked the idea that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have relative value and made it possible to speculate on their value Read more …

Early Arrival of Ethereum’s Istanbul Hard Fork Causes Testnet Split

Ethereum’s system-wide activation of the Istanbul hard fork has arrived two days early and caused a split of the Ropsten testnet. Huge miner pushing the non-forked chain On Sept. 30, the community manager of the Ethereum Foundation, Hudson Jameson took to Twitter to explain that there are miners mining on the old Ropsten testnet, while others are already mining on the new one. Cointelegraph previously reported that Jameson said that the testnet launch of the hard fork was scheduled to Read more …

Join Us in Tokyo for a CoinDesk On Tap Event

CoinDesk will be visiting Tokyo in two weeks and we’d love to meet some of our readers for an informal gathering on Monday, October 14 at 6 p.m. We haven’t chosen the official location yet but are open to suggestions for venues. Please fill out the recommendation form below. In addition to the meetup, we are interviewing locals making an impact in the region. Please include your nominations in the form as well. Because this isn’t sponsored – we simply Read more …

Bitcoin Forms Bullish Tweezer Bottom; Analyst Anticipates Swift Relief Rally

After incurring a sharp sell-off last night, Bitcoin’s bulls stepped up to the plate and were able to propel the crypto back into the lower-$8,000 region. This latest bout of volatility further confirms the notion that the upper-$7,000 region is a bastion of support for BTC. Importantly, this price action also allowed the cryptocurrency to form a bullish formation that typically precedes long-term bottoms, although it is critical that BTC extends its upwards momentum in the near-term in order for Read more …