Blockchain startup Modex announced the launch of its blockchain-based database platform for simplified blockchain deployment, which will be piloted by Dietsmann, a major oil and gas firm. Simplifying blockchain adoption On Sept. 19, Modex announced the release of its latest product, the Modex Blockchain Database platform (Modex BCDB) which simplifies the way companies can deploy blockchain technology projects. According to the announcement, Modex BCDB enables companies to start blockchain projects in just a few hours, instead of days or even months. Mihai Ivascu, CEO and founder of Modex said: “With the launch of Modex BCDB, we’re excited to usher in …

Authorities in the United States have arrested two individuals who allegedly threatened to destroy a startup crypto company if they were not paid millions of dollars in cryptocurrency. Extortion of crypto startup On Sept. 18, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, together with the FBI, announced the arrest of Steven Nerayoff and Michael Hlady. Both individuals were charged with extortion of a cryptocurrency startup and have already made their initial appearance in federal court. Nerayoff, a lawyer himself, was purportedly hired to assist in a Seattle-based company’s initial coin offering (ICO) and brought in the …

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 …

The crypto community has seen a tectonic shift in fundraising trends: from the decline of initial coin offerings (ICOs) to the hype around security token offerings (STOs) and then the rise of initial exchange offerings (IEOs). The inclination for fundraising seems to evolve every year. Similarly, 2019 brought with it a new way for crypto businesses to launch their tokens. Fundraising is the key to any business to take off. Crowdsourcing trends have taken off globally across all sectors, especially in the decentralized world of cryptos — though the way to crowdsource changes as technology progresses and as society progresses. …

Audius, a blockchain startup that aims to disrupt the music streaming industry, has uploaded its public beta version. The open source code for public use of Audius is available on GitHub as of Aug. 15. Additionally, the startup has issued an open invitation to run network nodes in exchange for compound rewards distributed in Audius’ native token. Decrypt reported the startup’s recent developments on Aug. 15. According to Audius CEO Roneil Rumburg, Amazon Web Services is one provider that users can take advantage of to run a node for the music network for staking. Rumburg explained that “every time a …

Over 50 members, including officers from companies such as Ethereum Foundation, Blockchain Capital and Messari, have joined blockchain accelerator Startup Studio backed by Fidelity. In a blog post published today, July 18, IDEO CoLab Ventures — which stands behind the blockchain accelerator program — revealed that over 20 leading organizations joined Startup Studio, bringing more than 50 mentors to the project for 2019. Announcing the new program members, IDEO wrote: “last week you met our blockchain Startup Studio’s 20+ partner organizations [...], today we’re excited to share the humans behind them — and many more — who deeply care about …

American blockchain firm Near has raised over $12 million in its Series A round from a range of high-profile investors, including Coinbase Ventures and Pantera, according to a press release on July 10. Near — a startup that develops a public, proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain focused on usability and scalability — has secured $12.1 million from industry players such as Coinbase Ventures, the investment arm of crypto exchange Coinbase, investment firm Pantera Capital, crypto hedge fund Multicoin, and Ripple’s developer ecosystem project Xpring, among others. Unlike an initial coin offering-like approach, Near decided to secure funds in exchange for native tokens. …

Blockchain healthcare startup Solve.Care has partnered with Uber Health to transport patients, Solve.Care announced in a press release shared with Cointelegraph on July 9. Per the release, Uber Health’s transportation services will be integrated into Solve.Care’s personal healthcare coordination and administration app Care.Wallet. Within the app, patients will reportedly be able to schedule an Uber Health ride, which claims to be compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. Furthermore, patients will also be able to pay for the service with their Care.Wallet and share the costs with family members, employers, insurers, or other relevant people. Uber …

Blockchain company Algorand has raised over $60 million in a token sale on financial services platform CoinList, according to a company press release on June 19. The Algorand Foundation — a firm that implements an open source public ledger and cryptocurrency payment system utilizing the Byzantine Agreement message-passing protocol — has reportedly raised $60 million in a sale of its native Algos token. The recent equity funding was on top of the $66 million the company raised over the past year from investors such as venture capital firms Union Square Ventures and Pillar Venture Capital. During the recent token sale, …

Last week, Russian officials revealed plans to build a major financial center on an island in the Far East, which would cater to cryptocurrencies, among other things. Notably, the creation of special economic zones for crypto has been an enduring idea both in Russia — similar proposals have been previously made in regard to Crimea, a territory that is claimed by Russia — and the rest of the world. Here’s the list of countries that have been establishing special hubs for cryptocurrencies and blockchain on their soil. Bolshoi Ussuriyskiy offshore crypto zone and similar concepts in Russia The news that …

North Carolina-based Fluree has raised $4.7 million in its first funding round for the company’s blockchain-based database system, according to a report by Tech Crunch on June 3. The firm’s blockchain database product, FlureeDB, purports to be “an immutable, time-ordered blockchain database” according to its documentation. Additionally, users can reportedly choose to run the database privately or on a federated blockchain network. CEO Brian Platz explained: “If you want 100% decentralization, something like Bitcoin, it’s going to be slow. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. If you need to, you can decrease the amount of centralization. So …

Blockchain startups RepuX and JoyToken have reportedly pulled a joint initial coin offering (ICO) exit scam, according to an exposé by Hard Fork of The Next Web (TNW) on May 16. RepuX and JoyToken reportedly ran their ICO promotions during March and April of 2018, and are now walking away with $4.7 million and $3.3 million, respectively. As far as the startups’ stated plans were concerned, Hard Fork reports: “RepuX claimed that it was trying to build what it called a ‘blockchain-powered data marketplace,’ while JoyToken was trying to create a decentralized gambling platform, powered by its own JOY token.” …