The world’s largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), is at a defining moment in history, according to analysis from United States investment bank Citigroup. Bitcoin is now at a “tipping point” to either become the preferred currency for international trade or face a “speculative implosion,” Citi analysts reportedly said. According to a Reuters report Monday, Citi analysts are confident that Bitcoin is on the cusp of going mainstream. According to the report, Bitcoin’s tremendous potential has been fueled by recent big Bitcoin moves by companies like Tesla and Mastercard. Citi analysts wrote, “There are a host of risks and obstacles that stand …

Following a Citi report downgrading business intelligence firm Microstrategy’s stock to a “sell” rating, analysts for popular trading website the Motley Fool have recommended a lesser-known bank stock that also has an emphasis on cryptocurrencies. Last Tuesday, Citi analyst Tyler Radke downgraded Microstrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) shortly after the firm announced a debt purchase that would bring its Bitcoin holdings up to a nearly $1 billion mark. The report chided the company, which at points has seen share prices more than triple from $92 yearly lows, for its “disproportionate” focus on bolstering its BTC holdings, and said that the current run is …

Shares of MicroStrategy fell on Tuesday after Citibank reportedly downgraded the business intelligence firm over its “disproportionate” Bitcoin focus. Citi analyst Tyler Radke issued a “sell” rating on MSTR shortly after the company announced it was raising more money to buy Bitcoin (BTC). Radke says CEO Michael Saylor’s “disproportionate focus on bitcoin” puts investors at considerable risk, especially after an “overextended” rally since September. He wrote: “MSTR's bitcoin investment has returned $250M (or worth $26/share or +20% towards stock) since August '20. While impressive, it pales in comparison to the 172% return in the stock. At the current stock price, …

Online payments giant and Cash App owner Stripe is stepping into a new realm of financial services for vendors. Per a Wall Street Journal exclusive on Thursday, Stripe is looking to offer customers bank accounts and debit cards. However, these financial products will be limited to vendors and merchants for now. The new initiative will also involve collaboration with banking giants Goldman Sachs and Citi, which is part of a broader push from both to incorporate online business services and new technologies. In 2015, Stripe was an early payments platform to onboard Bitcoin (BTC) functionality, which it dropped three years …

A recent Bitcoin (BTC) technical analysis reportedly prepared by CitiFX for its institutional clients points to a potential high of $318,000 sometime in December 2021. In a supposed note to clients seen by Twitter commentator Alex on Nov. 14, Citibank managing director Tom Fitzpatrick looks at the long-term trend of Bitcoin price, characterized as it has been by “unthinkable rallies followed by painful corrections.” Notably, the three major bullish periods of BTC so far have been increasing in length. Initially, there was a 10-month run from 2010–2011, followed by a two-year run from 2011–2013, and finally a three-year run covering …

Singapore-based multinational banking firm DBS Bank has joined the blockchain trade-finance network Contour, which is built over R3’s Corda. Contour is due for a main-launch later this year. According to a May 11 report by the business news outlet The Business Times, DBS Bank is the first bank from Singapore to join the network. Major institutions such as BNP Paribas, Bangkok Bank, ING, HSBC, Standard Chartered and Citi Ventures founded Contour. Digitizing for efficiency DBS looks forward to digitizing its end-to-end letters of credit settlement process through the platform’s blockchain solutions. The bank aims to reduce settlement time, decrease the …

U.S.-headquartered bank Citi has upped its investment in the Ethereum-based decentralized trade financing startup Komgo. Kris van Broekhoven, the global head of commodity trade finance at Citigroup, revealed that the bank has “topped up” its equity in Komgo “to allow the company to continue developing,” while speaking with ConsenSys on March 10. Komgo was launched in 2018 in partnership with ConsenSys, and seeks to streamline trade financing in the commodities markets. Komgo’s platform allows equities traders, financial institutions, and trade service providers to communicate across blockchain technology. As “one of the largest global trade finance banks in the world,” Broekhoven …

IBM, Citibank and video game giant Ubisoft have signed up to Singapore-based Tribe Accelerator. Corporations mingle with blockchain startups Local news outlet The Straits Times reported on Sept. 18 that the companies have joined as corporate partners for the second edition of Tribe's four-month program. According to the report, Tribe helps blockchain startups in their growth stage by connecting them with major corporations. Startups in this second group operate in fields such as media and advertising, cybersecurity, healthcare, fintech and supply chain management. The list of participating startups includes Binance-backed digital identity and password management firm Torus, distributed database service …

This week, a number of banks shed light on their respective crypto-related projects, following the recent expansion of JPMorgan Chase into the field. IBM was the big mover. A joint announcement by IBM and Stellar (XMR) said that as many as six global banks might issue their own stablecoins on IBM’s blockchain-powered payments network, dubbed “Blockchain World Wire” (BWW). The question now is whether this marks a turning point for cryptocurrency’s use, or if it merely continues the experiments that have marked the early stages of digital money. While quite a few financial institutions seem ready to go blockchain and …

Hyperledger has onboarded 12 new members, including such major firms as Alibaba Cloud, Citi, and Deutsche Telekom, according to an announcement published on Dec. 11. Launched in 2016, Hyperledger is an open source project created by the Linux Foundation and created to support the development of blockchain-based distributed ledgers. The new members were announced at the Hyperledger Global Forum in Basel, Switzerland. The latest general members that joined the initiative include Alibaba Cloud, a subsidiary of the e-commerce giant; financial services firm Citigroup, Deutsche Telekom, one of the largest telecoms providers in Europe; and European blockchain trading platform we.trade, among …

Major U.S. cryptocurrency wallet and exchange Coinbase announced in a July 31 blog post that ex-Pershing exec Jeff Horowitz will join the company as its Chief Compliance Officer. Horowitz previously worked as the managing director and global head of compliance at Pershing LLC — a BNY Mellon Company — as well as leading a variety of compliance and anti-money laundering (AML) programs at Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Salomon Brothers, and serving as a banking regulator with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). According to Coinbase COO and President Asiff Hirji, Coinbase hired Horowitz to guide them as the company “expand[s] …

Former Secret Service agent Shaun Bridges plead guilty to stealing over US$800,000 worth of bitcoin while investigating Silk Road; a Goldman Sachs global investment research analyst praised blockchain technology, and more top stories for September 1. Silk Road Investigator Shaun Bridges Pleads Guilty in Bitcoin Theft Former Secret Service agent Shaun Bridges has plead guilty to stealing over US$800,000 worth of bitcoin during an investigation into online black marketplace Silk Road. The 33 year old Bridges admitted to money laundering and obstruction of justice in federal court in San Francisco . Bridges also admitted that his theft made convicted Silk …