5 Years Ago

Fund managers specializing in cryptocurrencies are appealing for patience from investors, after a year in which huge falls in prices severely dented their performance.

In a December letter to investors, San Francisco-based Pantera Capital admitted that 2018 had been “a difficult year for all cryptocurrencies and tokens”. “After such a prolonged drawdown in the market, it’s important to reflect and re-evaluate the thesis behind utility tokens,” wrote Mr. Morehead and Joey Krug, co-chief investment officer, in the letter. Galaxy Digital, a crypto and blockchain-focused merchant bank set up by Mike Novogratz, a former hedge fund trader, and Goldman Sachs partner, also found the going tough.

“The asset class continues to show signs of maturity, as headlines that once would have led to frenzied trading sessions have given way to patient market participants who want to see and react to results, not headlines,” Galaxy wrote in a November letter to investors. In November Mr. Novogratz told the FT that 2018 had been “ challenging” but he has predicted that financial institutions will move from investing in cryptocurrency funds to investing in cryptocurrencies themselves, early this year. “That’s when prices start moving again,” he said.


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Cryptocurrency
Finance
Investment Funds
https://www.ft.com/content/46f022a2-0e65-11e9-a...8c761d2745
The UK financial regulator is probing more than a dozen companies in connection with cryptocurrency transactions amid concerns about growing market risks.

The Financial Conduct Authority is investigating 18 businesses involved in the sale of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. The regulator has also issued alerts and warnings about dozens of companies suspected of cryptocurrency investment scams. Currently, the transfer, purchase , and sale of cryptocurrencies is not regulated in the UK. However, companies that sell regulated investments with an underlying cryptocurrency element, may need FCA authorizationto do so depending on their activities.

The UK government in December 2018 said it “stands ready” to give the FCA more power to oversee cryptocurrency assets after MPs urged increased regulation of a “ Wild West” market where investor losses and money laundering are deemed big risks.  


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Bitcoin
Cryptocurrency
Finance
https://www.ft.com/content/04e22444-0c32-11e9-a...9976f1533b
If Western Union will deal in cryptocurrencies could this mean you do not need digital exchanges?

The president of Western Union Global Money Transfer has claimed the company is “ready to adopt any kind of currency,” potentially including cryptocurrencies. Odilon Almeida stated there is no big difference between cryptocurrencies and regular digital payments, the likes of which Western Union has been handling for years. Almeida believes that the firm’s long-term stance makes it potentially ready to launch any type of currency, including blockchain-based ones. However, Almeida thinks that in order to achieve mass adoption, cryptocurrencies have to solve problems with volatility, governance, and compliance. As per the Western Union exec — hinting at the concept behind some stablecoins — the issue with volatility in crypto markets can be addressed by pegging coins to some “strong currencies, such as the [United States] dollar.”

Apart from cryptocurrencies, Western Union is also exploring the use of blockchain. According to a press release accompanying the video, the firm has already partnered with Ripple to “test whether sending payments by blockchain was faster and less expensive,” adding that the “tests are ongoing.”


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Banking
Cryptocurrency
https://altcointoday.com/western-union-consider...a560076-l/


Co-founder of TeamBlockchain, Thomas Power, with over 30 years of experience building online digital communities, believes that it is just time before the FANGs - Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google start gobbling up the leading crypto players. Just like Dotcom, there will be a handful of winners from the 5,000 ICOs we have seen to date as they give way to the more compliant institutional friendly security tokens.

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Cryptocurrency
Digital Currency
Social Media
https://decryptmedia.com/2018/12/19/why-crypto-...nd-apple//
Dealing in Digital assets is not a user friending experience, however, doing this on a mobile phone could further accelerate the use of Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies.

While Samsung has denied rumors it is about to launch a Crypto enabled phone, it has been bust filling patents blockchain and crypto related patents. Meanwhile, rival phone manufacturer, HTC, has confirmed that their latest phone will be crypto enabled.

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Blockchain Influencers
Cryptocurrency
Mobile Phones
https://www.newsbtc.com/2018/12/14/crypto-and-b...e5a560076-


You may find this checklist helpful before you talk to your lawyer! A list of the types of questions a lawyer will want answers to given STOs will need to comply with Security legislation in different jurisdictions. While this process is lengthy those that follow the rules and have a digital asset that can be traded potentially 24/7/365 globally could steal a real advantage of their competitors…

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Cryptocurrency
Security Token
https://www.koreconx.com/2018/09/12/top-questio...sa-canada/


Co-founder of TeamBlockchain, Thomas Power with over 30 years of experience building online digital communities believes that it is just time before the FANGs - Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google start gobbling up the leading crypto players. Just like Dotcom, there will be a handful of winner form the 5,000 ICOs we have seen to date as they give way to the more compliant institutional friendly Security Tokens.

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Cryptocurrency
ICO
Security Token
Social Media
Source: Why crypto will be eaten by Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple
For regular readers you will know we have been questioning when will Facebook launch a digital currency, well they have now confirmed that they are indeed doing this using WhatsApp and targeting the Indian remittance market.

Typically it takes days and can cost Indians who work overseas up to 15% using traditional payment agents like Transferwise banks or WesternUnion using a Cryptocurrency. Facebook will be able to offer almost instant transfers and a fraction of the cost.

Possibly, more importantly, Facebook needs to find a way to keep its users more engaged, particularly the millennials who are not as engaged as they once were,  being able to send money using WhatsApp will help. However, once the Indian trial is complete, Facebook can create a rival market place to Amazon, slashing merchant fees to ZERO and monetizing the increased traffic while seeing what their 2.5 billion users are buying and selling.

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Cryptocurrency
Digital Currency
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-12...-transfers