The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) plans to roll out its digital asset platform in 2020, according to an official statement released on March 13. Following recent reports purportedly revealing the plans, the SET has confirmed that it will build a digital asset platform as a part of its three-year strategic plan from 2019 to 2021. In the announcement, the Thai exchange claimed that the local capital market will experience a transformation into the digital age in two areas. The first field will be a complete digitization of the capital market infrastructure in order to provide paperless operations. The second …

The Central Bank of Russia wants to set an annual limit for so-called “unqualified investors” that want to purchase digital assets, local business media giant RBC reported on Tuesday, March 12. According to the documents obtained by RBC, the bank wants to amend the current draft crypto bill, dubbed “On Digital Financial Assets,” which recently passed a second of three readings in Russia’s parliament, the State Duma. The central bank’s paper recommends equating investor limits to the ones set in a draft bill on crowdfunding, which is also being reviewed by the Russian parliament. The head of the State Duma’s …

United States federal law enforcement agency, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), is looking to set up an agent for managing confiscated cryptocurrency, according to public documents released on March 5. The USMS has recently published two draft documents including a Request for Information (RFI) for legal procedures of the management and disposal of forfeited crypto assets. As a key component of the department's Asset Forfeiture Program (AFP) operating within the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), the USMS intends to assign an agent or contractor that will manage and dispose of seized or forfeited virtual currency. By initiating the RFI, the …

Russia’s Duma Committee on Financial Markets is considering the adoption of a mandatory identification process for users of digital assets, local news service Izvestia reports on March 7. The committee chairman, Anatoly Aksakov, revealed that the authority is planning to amend Russia’s crypto regulation, aiming to establish a special identification process for users of digital financial assets, including cryptocurrencies. According to the planned amendment, dealing with crypto by unidentified users will become illegal, Aksakov said. The chairman stressed that the new initiative is concurrent with the existing legislation against money laundering, with violation penalties reaching up to 15 years of …

An exchange has launched a new service designed to take the guesswork out of investing in cryptocurrencies. Lykke says that it is often difficult for crypto users to know where digital assets they’ve acquired will be in the future. They could be the next Google, something that’s going to rise astronomically in the years to come. But on the other hand, they could turn out to be the next MySpace — popular until something else comes along. The exchange has created a service token called LyCI, which enables users to access the top-25 cryptocurrencies based on their market capitalization. Lykke …

Bitt, a portfolio firm of Overstock’s blockchain firm Medici, has partnered with the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) to pilot central bank digital currency (CBDC). Overstock announced the news in a press release on March 6. Barbados-based Bitt initially signed a contract with ECCB to conduct a pilot of the blockchain-issued Digital Eastern Caribbean Dollar (DXCD) on Feb. 21. The digital currency will be used within the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU), and is set to be distributed by licensed financial institutions and non-bank financial institutions in the ECCU. DXCD intends to facilitate peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions between merchants and consumers …

The Central Bank of the Bahamas has announced its key collaborators for the development of a digital fiat currency system in the island country, according to an official document released on March 1. Called “Project Sand Dollar,” the new initiative intends to provide equal access to digital payments capabilities, reducing cash transactions and service delivery costs. The pilot also aims to improve operational efficiency and overall financial inclusion in communities across the Bahamas. In order to implement the project, the Bahamas central bank will reportedly cooperate with transaction provider NZIA.io — bringing “together the collective know-how and expertise of IBM” …

Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued another deadline for the government to adopt regulations for the digital assets industry, according to instructions for the Federal Assembly. The document was published on the official website of the President of Russia, Kremlin.ru, on Feb. 27. According to the document, Pres. Putin has ordered the government to enforce crypto-related regulation by July 1, 2019. The President has required the Council of the Federation of Russia and the lower house the Federal Assembly of Russia (Russian State Duma) to adopt the regulation during the spring session of 2019. Specifically, the document requires the adoption …

Digital payments firm Wirex has released a major platform update, Wirex 3.0, adding ten new fiat currencies, according to an official press release on Feb. 27. From now, Wirex users in the European Economic Area (EEA) can access “unconditional access” to over-the-counter rates for cryptocurrency exchanges, as well as interbank rates for traditional currency exchanges. The press release clarifies that the update also brings these new features to residents of the Asia-Pacific region and Canada, letting said users operate their Wirex accounts in their local fiat currency for the first time. According to the statement on Wirex’s “Money Management” page, …

An upcoming crypto ecosystem has bold ambitions to offer “a much smoother way of moving fiat and cryptocurrency over the internet,” enabling people to pay in the fiat or crypto of their choice — whatever the requested currency — without fees. YPTOspace says it plans to develop a “first-of-its-kind platform that connects blockchain assets to real-world payment platforms,” all with the goal to become a one-stop-shop for payments and transactions for consumers and businesses. The startup argues that the current landscape is a “miserable experience” for consumers and impractical for daily usage. Yet, at the same time, mainstream adoption of …

Curv, a digital asset startup headquartered in the United States, has raised $6.5 million to launch a cloud-based digital asset wallet for financial institutions that does not use private keys, a company press release published on Feb. 26 reveals. According to the statement, the seed round was led by digital asset investment company Digital Currency Group and Israeli cybersecurity company Team8. The round also included participation from Monex Group, Flybridge Capital, Jump Capital and Liberty City Ventures. The funds will reportedly be used to create an institutional digital wallet that allows institutions and enterprises to securely use digital assets and …

Bakkt, the much-anticipated digital assets platform operated by the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), has closed its first acquisition, a tweet from the company revealed Feb. 8. The move marks the finalization of an acquisition of assets in futures commission merchant Rosenthal Collins Group (RCG). “With today’s closing of our transaction with Rosenthal Collins Group, we welcome great new team members to Bakkt,” the statement reads. By acquiring certain assets in the company, Bakkt said it hopes: “RCG’s remarkable heritage, culture and expertise will help us build out a trusted institutional infrastructure for digital assets.” Bakkt had announced the acquisition of assets …