A federal law enforcement agency within the U.S. Department of Justice has recently announced a bid auction for approximately 660 confiscated Bitcoins (BTC), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) reports Thursday, Oct.18. The bid, held by the USMS, will take place on Nov. 5, but the participants have to register themselves no later than Oct. 31 and deposit $200,000 in order to take part. The auction is divided in two parts: the first is made up of six sets of 100 BTC, and the second with 60 BTC. Once a bid is set, the participants won't be able to change it …

Major crypto exchange Bitfinex has introduced an “improved” fiat deposit system, shortly after temporary suspension of deposits last week, according to an official blog post Tuesday, Oct. 16. Last week, on Oct. 11, Bitfinex temporarily halted fiat deposits in four fiat currencies – the Euro (EUR), U.S. Dollar (USD), Japanese Yen (JPY), and Pound Sterling (GBP) – without specifying a reason for suspension and claiming that fiat deposits are “expected to resume within a week.” Yesterday, October 15, the crypto exchange posted an update on fiat deposits, explaining that Bitfinex had “temporarily paused” fiat deposits for “certain user groups [...] …

Major international crypto exchange Binance has announced that its fiat-to-crypto exchange will open in Uganda this week, the company reveals Monday, Oct. 15. CEO and founder of Binance, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), had told Cointelegraph in an exclusive interview in June of plans to open the Ugandan crypto-fiat exchange. As per Binance Uganda’s press release, the new branch will officially start accepting deposits and withdrawals of Ugandan shillings (UGX) Wednesday, Oct. 17. Binance Uganda notes that exchange has already begun its know-your-customer (KYC) procedures. An additional press release reports that Uganda’s national fiat can only be traded with Bitcoin (BTC) and …

The Chinese central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), has opened four positions for crypto-related professionals, according to a document published Wednesday, Oct. 10 on the bank’s website. Per the paper, PBoC is seeking two engineers at their Digital Money Institute with experience in blockchain and cryptography, security, and chip design. The bank wants the engineers to develop a secure big data platform and a chip processor that would allow crypto transactions. The engineers will be responsible for digital currency related software systems, encryption technology and security models, as well as transaction terminal chip technology research and development. PBoc …

Major crypto exchange Bitfinex has temporarily suspended all fiat wire deposits for the Euro, U.S. Dollar, Japanese Yen and Pound Sterling. This is according to several reports today, Oct. 11. While the exchange has not specified a reason for the suspension, it states that deposits are “expected to resume within a week.” As reported Oct. 8, the exchange has recently been prompted to officially respond to online rumours that claimed Bitfinex was insolvent and/or facing banking issues. As part of its recent statement, the exchange acknowledged that “complications continue to exist” for Bitfinex “in the domain of fiat transactions,” but …

The Chinese government should consider launching its own yuan-backed stablecoin despite the current ban on cryptocurrencies, an op-ed in Chinese financial journal CN Finance reports Tuesday, Oct. 9. An expert from the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), Li Liangsong, and professor of Fudan University Wang Huaqing wrote an article called “Analysis of Digital Stable Coins” for CN Finance — a bimonthly journal affiliated with the PBoC. In the opinion piece, the authors provide a brief review of USD-backed coins, such as Tether, the Gemini dollar, and Paxos Standard. The researchers expect them to increase the role of dollar on a …

From bartering to blockchain, the world of money – and the way we transfer it – has never stood still. Indeed, even the assets we prize have changed. Although it might be nice to have some vegetables in your fridge, using it as a form of currency has probably never crossed your mind. It’s easy to take financial systems for granted. But every advancement over the centuries has caused some major disruption and a lot of getting used to. With each new system came imperfections and pitfalls – and in some ways, this is good. Cryptocurrencies hold a lot of …

Japanese internet conglomerate GMO Internet Co. Ltd confirmed plans to release a cryptographic stablecoin, Cointelegraph Japan reports Tuesday, Oct. 9, pegged to the Japanese yen. GMO, which entered the Japanese cryptocurrency exchange market in May last year, intends to begin issuing tokens, dubbed GMO Japanese Yen (GJY), during the 2019 financial year. The news marks a further potential player in the yen-pegged stablecoin market, with several other corporations signalling their intentions to launch assets of their own in recent months. GMO confirmed the main impetus behind its decision was to target international remittances. “We have banks and trust licenses in …

Lithuanian authorities held a seminar examining the “threats and potential benefits” of Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) to the country’s economy, a press release reported Wednesday, October 3, amid an ongoing investigation into cryptocurrency trading habits. The Financial Crime Investigation Service (FCIS) organized the meeting, which included representatives from government ministries, the central bank, and the General Prosecutor. According to the press release, the gathering revealed that Lithuanian processes “huge” turnover from crypto to fiat. Antonio Mikulsk, head of the FCIS, said: “Virtual currency has huge cash flows, but (there are) worries about converting them into dollars and euros as quickly …

MaiCoin, the largest one stop digital asset platform provider in Taiwan, recently launched it’s MAX Exchange. The exchange initially started by offering Taiwan Dollar (TWD) to crypto pairs and it currently lists 16 crypto/TWD pairs. As part of its global aspirations, MAX Exchange has recently launched a total of 51 crypto to crypto pairs which include both USDT and TWDT stablecoin pairs. MAX Expansion While TWD fiat trading is only open to citizens of Taiwan, crypto-to-crypto pairs are now available for the global market, requiring MAX users to register with an email address for Level 1 access. According to the …

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) is considering launching a state-owned digital currency based on blockchain, local news outlet Vesti Ukraine reported Tuesday, September 25. NBU says that the blockchain-based hryvnia, or e-hryvnia, has to be centralized and remain under government control, Vesti Ukraine writes. The state-backed coin is expected to increase the rate of non-cash payments, along with reducing their cost. Ukraine has brought up the "digital coin" idea several times already within the framework of project called the “Cashless Economy”. For instance, NBU had revealed plans in January to launch an e-hryvnia that would not be based on …

Circle Internet Financial Ltd. is launching a USD-backed digital token dubbed the “USD Coin,” Circle’s blog reports Wednesday, September 26. A consortium called Centre — which includes Bitmain Technologies Ltd. among its members — will act as a platform for deposits and fiat conversions for the stablecoin. Bloomberg notes that although Centre is a “wholly owned subsidiary of Circle,” there are plans in plan to turn it into an independent organization. The USD Coin (USDC) will reportedly be available on Circle’s Poloniex exchange, as well as Huobi, OKCoin, KuCoin, and digital wallet and exchange Coinbase. As per Circle’s release, over …