At the World Economic Forum panel discussing digital currencies, the conversation topics included Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). Calibra’s David Marcus highlighted that regardless of the nature of digital currency, these discussions are key to innovate cross-border payments and solve the issue of the unbanked. Retail CBDCs for consumer access Benoît Coeuré, head of the Bank of International Settlements’ Innovation Hub, revealed that as many as 80 percent of worldwide central banks are interested in CBDCs, primarily of the retail variety. Marcus explained the difference between “retail” and “wholesale” CBDCs: “Central banks could distribute the CBDCs in two possible ways. …

At the Crypto Valley Summit during the World Economic Forum in Davos, ecological sustainability for the future is one of the primary talking points. Even though blockchain is on the fringes of global discussion, several experts see its usage in traceability as one of the key technologies for improving sustainability. Industry’s current applications Supply chain blockchain solutions allow tracking of the entire production chain of certain products. Their usage ensures that consumers and companies always know where a particular product or material comes from. This helps prevent counterfeiting, an issue that is hard to detect given the complexity of global …

It’s funny what business leaders can and can’t tell the press. Cointelegraph caught up with Alexander Drummond, co-founder of crypto-enabled payments company GatePay, at the 50th edition of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this week. Drummond was one of several crypto entrepreneurs presenting his company on stage at the CV Labs event on Tuesday. Drummond’s pitch for GatePay goes something like this: retail customers should be able to pay for products with any means of exchange they want, and retail stores should be able to handle it. Offering checkout support for different credit cards and popular cryptocurrencies, GatePay …

Ray Dalio, multi-billionaire and founder of investment firm Bridgewater Associates, said investors should not miss out on traditional markets, CNBC reported on Jan. 21. Dalio warned from holding Bitcoin, saying that it’s neither a medium of exchange nor a store of value. Dalio was interviewed at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he advised investors to hold a global and diversified portfolio in this market, while increasing their stake in stock markets. While Dalio acknowledged recession concerns, he argued that “cash is trash” due to the government’s ability to print it at will — something he believes they …

If mainstream finance does not adopt new technologies, such as those seen in blockchain and crypto, they will fall behind, according to a few experts’ comments at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos Switzerland. Answering a question on comparing this year’s event to last year’s, Monero’s former lead maintainer Riccardo Spagni noted the same presence of “old school” bank and regulatory personalities. Spagni, also known as Fluffypony, told Cointelegraph in a Jan. 21 interview: “I think by a lot of events like this one and some of the other blockchain events, we’re starting to show them that if they …

Major cryptocurrency exchange Huobi is launching its first licensed digital asset brokerage, Huobi Brokerage. Huobi, the fifth-largest crypto exchange by daily trading volume as of press time, will now provide brokerage service to its institutional clients, the firm said in a Jan. 21 press release to Cointelegraph. Huobi Brokerage provides simultaneous access to other exchanges and OTC desks via smart order routing Announcing the news at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, the exchange said that Huobi Brokerage is the first product launched under the Global Institutional Business (GIB), an institutional services-focused division established by Huobi in November 2019. …

It’s the first successful live deployment on the Ethereum mainnet of something called a “scalable Harberger tax contract,” and it might just help save at-risk animals. Cointelegraph attended the CV Labs pitch session in Davos, Switzerland today, an event running alongside the 50th edition of the World Economic Forum. In the basement of the Pöstli Club, crypto entrepreneurs took to the stage to give brief presentations on their current projects. JonJon Clark gave the audience an engaging rundown on his project Wildcards — maybe it’s his charming South African accent, maybe it’s the fact that his company directly connects to …

The annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland is about to start. As usual, the forum will gather the world’s political and business elite, and will last from Jan. 21 to 24. Here’s everything there is to know ahead of time on how this meeting will be vital for the crypto and blockchain industry. WEF is modernizing its agenda This year’s theme is “Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World,” which could be seen as the WEF’s response to criticism surrounding the annual gatherings in the Alps. Over the past few years, Davos has become a symbol of the widening …

Accounting giant KPMG’s US blockchain lead, Arun Ghosh, predicts that blockchain, combined with the Internet of Things (IoT) will be used to manage climate change in 2020. IoT is a term for systems of interrelated devices that are embedded with sensors, software and network connectivity that enables them to collect and exchange data. According to a list of 6 blockchain predictions KPMG shared with Cointelegraph, Ghosh noted: “The convergence of these technologies is enabling organizations to accelerate environmental governance, with blockchain’s chain of custody being deployed as a central component to driving sustainability.” Data shows climate change, but blockchain needed …

40 percent of institutional investors believe blockchain may be the most important innovation since the internet, according to a survey by trade association the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC), shared with Cointelegraph Jan. 24. The opinions of 71 investors, which the GBBC quizzed about blockchain this month and last, were revealed at the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. The GBBC’s findings revealed that 40 percent of institutional investors that responded to its survey think blockchain “could be the most transformative technology since the internet.” In addition, just under a third of investors interviewed believed businesses would need …