A draft document issued by the European Union suggests that the union should consider issuing its own digital currency. Will the EU wage war on crypto? Reuters reported on Nov. 5 that the draft in question — which is still subject to amendments — urges member states to develop a common approach to cryptocurrencies, possibly banning high-risk projects. If the draft in its current form is approved, which could happen as early as next month, it could have far-reaching consequences. More precisely, Reuters suggests that such a law could escalate into an EU regulatory campaign against cryptocurrencies. European Central Bank …

Carbon exchange AirCarbon launched a global tokenized carbon credits trading platform in Singapore. Business news outlet Business Times reported on Oct. 30 that the platform will allow firms such as airlines to buy and sell tokens representing carbon offset credits or Eligible Emission Units (EEUs), approved by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The first token representing an EEU has been created today by Senior Minister of State at the Ministry of Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon upon the platform’s launch at the Asia Clean Energy Summit 2019. The front end of the platform has been designed by United …

An executive at a Chinese economics think tank has said that China’s central bank will be the first to launch a digital currency successfully. According to Chinese tech news outlet Pandaily, Huang Qifan, vice chairman of China Center for International Economic Exchanges (CCIEE), confidently believes that China’s central bank will win the race for the first central bank digital currency (CBDC). A digital renminbi to replace SWIFT Qifan’s remarks came at the Inaugural Bund Financial Summit of 2019 in Shanghai. Per the report, Qifan was dissatisfied with current dependence on the United States’ SWIFT and CHIPS payments systems, on which …

Lithuania’s central bank, Bank of Lithuania, has selected technology behemoth IBM and IT services firm Tieto as the finalists contending to develop its blockchain platform. Financial technology news outlet FintechFutures reported on the contest’s developments on Oct. 23. Per the report, both firms will test their platform and the winner will be selected later in 2019 as part of the project dubbed LBChain. The project's manager at the Bank of Lithuania Andrius Adamonis commented: “The final testing session will show which solution is most suitable for market needs. [...] We believe that the greatest advantage of LBChain is its versatility. …

Banks may be bound to stop working with social media giant Facebook if the firm launches its Libra stablecoin, according to ING CEO Ralph Hamers. Bank can choose to “not accept the client” Financial news outlet Financial Times reported on Hamers’ remarks on Oct. 22. Per the report, he explained that institutions like ING have to guard the financial system to prevent criminal activity. Because of this, concerns over Libra’s potential for illegal use may result in a response from the banks: “We can take measures and exit the client, or not accept the client, so those are discussions you …

Assistant Governor at the National Bank of Cambodia Serey Chea said that blockchain payments will enable greater financial control and remittance efficiency in an interview with CNBC published on Oct. 22. Chea said that the National Bank of Cambodia has experimented with domestic blockchain payments for retail, but the main interest is testing them for cross-border transactions. She noted that the institution has been collaborating with Malaysian bank Maybank. It has already been recently reported that Maybank has signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Bank of Cambodia on blockchain cross-border payments and remittances, though the details of the …

IFinex, the parent company of major cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex filed a discovery application to regain access to $880 million in funds. Discovery is a law allowing each party to obtain evidence from the other party or parties through the law of civil procedure before the actual trial. According to the application and supporting declaration by Bitfinex chief financial officer Giancarlo Devasini uploaded by industry news outlet The Block on Oct. 20, the firm filed the document in the Southern California district court on Oct. 18. The request is related to the purportedly inaccessible funds kept in bank accounts in Poland, …

Major bank HSBC has announced the successful enactment of a letter of credit (LC) on a blockchain in Malaysia. The transaction English language local fintech news outlet Fintech News Malaysia reported the development on Oct. 14, noting that the transaction involved packaging firm Simply Packaging importing resin from an unspecified Singaporean chemicals company. The issuing bank was HSBC Malaysia and the nominated bank was HSBC Singapore. Per the report, this is the eleventh blockchain-powered transaction carried out by HSBC and the first such pilot carried by its Malaysian branch. HSBC Malaysia CEO Stuart Milne commented on the successful test: “I …

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has defended Facebook’s choice to create a new currency. Canadian news outlet TheStar reported Carney’s remarks on Oct. 15, noting that he highlighted the shortcomings of the current traditional financial system. Because of the inefficiency of the payments, Carey thinks that firms such as Facebook should be involved in projects like Libra. The current payments industry is lacking More precisely, he reportedly criticized the high costs of moving money, saying that they penalize small businesses and can cost firms as much as 200 basis points per transaction, besides being processed too slowly. According to …

The Italian Banking Association (ABI) successfully processed the reconciliation data of an entire year of local banking activity on a blockchain platform. The association announced the successful test of the Spunta Project’s system in a press release published on Oct. 12. The successful test of the framework has been first announced by Italian media at the end of September though with little details. Platform viability has been demonstrated Now ABI reveals that the test has seen 200 million data entries being processed by the blockchain banking reconciliation system, effectively simulating one year of Italian banking activity. The successful test allegedly …

What is the Crypto Finance Conference? The CFC bills itself as “the most exclusive blockchain investors’ confidence in the industry.” Held on an invitation-only basis, just 200 attendees will be at the Crypto Finance Conference in St. Moritz from Jan. 15–17, 2020. According to the organizers, the rationale behind limiting the event’s size is ensuring that those present have the opportunity to establish meaningful connections. Countless experts are on hand as keynote speakers — addressing topics that explore the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for decentralized finance. Talks will explore the critical role for stablecoins in financial inclusion, an insight into …

United Kingdom-based digital banking app Revolut announced a major partnership with Visa to expand its services globally across 24 new markets, including North America. According to a Sept. 30 press release, this will bring 56 markets worldwide in total into Revolut’s reach. North, Latin American and Asian markets Per the release, the terms of the agreement stipulate that Revolut will primarily issue Visa-branded cards as it pursues its global expansion push. Visa will enable the app to launch services initially in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore and the United States. This first group of jurisdictions will be …