Tech giant IBM has launched a pilot for a blockchain-powered platform designed to streamline bank guarantee process. In a press release shared with Cointelegraph on July 3, IBM stated that the pilot was launched in partnership with four Australian financial services companies. The pilot — dubbed Lygon — is backed by IBM, the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, Commonwealth Bank, real estate operator Scentre Group, and Australia’s first bank Westpac. The pilot is set to run for eight weeks for a test group of retail property leasing customers starting today. Essentially, Lygon is a blockchain-based platform that digitizes …

Throughout May 2019, United Kingdom-based nonprofit organization Oxfam International executed a month-long trial that saw MakerDAO’s DAI stablecoin distributed as a means of exchange among citizens of Vanuatu. The Oxfam initiative, named UnBlocked Cash, was conducted in partnership with MakerDAO, ConsenSys and Australian tech startup Sempo. The Australian government also supported the program. Tsunamis, cyclones and volcanic eruptions comprise a constant concern for the citizens of Vanuatu, with WorldRiskReport describing it as the world’s most at-risk nation to natural disaster for five consecutive years. The month-long program saw 200 residents of the Vanuatu villages of Pango and Mele Maat issued …

Following a recent oracle issue, asset issuance platform Synthetix will reverse the misplaced 37 million synthetic ether (sETH) in exchange for a bug bounty, Synthetix founder Kain Warwick stated on June 25. According to the statement, Synthetix has now resumed trading and transfers after the platform yesterday suffered an oracle error that led to several trades with profits of 1000x, resulting in more than $1 billion in profits in under an hour. Warwick, who is also CEO of Australia-based payment operator blueshyft, has described the details of the accident, noting that the error, which led one of APIs on the …

Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Philip Lowe, cautions that Facebook’s announced virtual currency—Libra—may not attain mainstream usage in the near future, according to a report by Bloomberg on June 20 The report quotes Lowe as follows regarding Libra: “There’s a lot of water under the bridge before Facebook’s proposal becomes something we’re using all the time [...] There are a lot of regulatory issues that need to be addressed and they’ve got to make sure there’s a solid business case, so we’ve got to be careful before we jump to conclusions.” Lowe reportedly also criticized the top …

International charity organization Oxfam has partnered with Australian tech startup Sempo and blockchain company ConsenSys to test stablecoin Dai’s (DAI) suitability for aid in regions suffering from natural disasters, local news outlet Micky reported on June 17. The parties launched a philanthropic initiative dubbed UnBlocked Cash with the support of the Australian Government. To test the system, Sempo and Oxfam chose purportedly the world’s most natural disaster-prone country, Vanuatu. During the trial, 200 residents of the island Efate were given tap and pay cards containing around 400 vatu each ($50 at press time) connected to an Ethereum (ETH) address credited …

Australia’s central bank said bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrencies would remain outside mainstream payments in a dedicated article issued on June 20. Titled ‘Cryptocurrency: Ten Years On,’ the document from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) appears to commemorate the past decade of bitcoin’s existence while admitting zero faith in its future beyond a niche asset. “Despite achieving some name recognition, cryptocurrencies are not widely used for payments,” its abstract summarizes. “This article examines why Bitcoin is unlikely to become a ubiquitous payment method in Australia, and summarises how subsequent cryptocurrencies have sought to address some of the shortcomings of Bitcoin …

Major global banking group HSBC has implemented tokenization technology into its receivables infrastructure for corporate clients in India, according to an announcement on June 18. The British multinational financial services company has reportedly launched its Digital Accounts Receivable Tool (HSBC DART), based on tokenization technology developed by Australian blockchain-powered Fintech company Identitii Ltd., the firm said in the announcement. According to the statement, HSBC DART was developed for HSBC’s Global Liquidity and Cash Management (GLCM) business and deploys Identitii’s approach to tokenization within HSBC’s existing infrastructure of receivables to enhance involved processes. The instrument is designed to automate the accounts …

Craig Wright has been ordered to appear personally at mediation to address allegations that he stole 1.1 million bitcoin (BTC) from Dave Kleiman, court documents filed on June 10 show. The Australian entrepreneur had requested permission to appear by videoconference, arguing that physically attending the courtroom would have caused him “unjustifiable hardship.” However, his motion was opposed by the plaintiffs, who argued that the discovery already performed so far in the case delivered “sufficient information to fairly evaluate the claims at issue.” The court sided with the plaintiffs, with Judge Beth Bloom ruling: “Personal appearance by the parties will promote …

At the start of June 2019, reports emerged that Binance DEX’s website was blocking users with IP addresses from 29 countries. This news immediately caused confusion with some commentators, using it as an opportunity to reaffirm their stance that Binance DEX is not truly a decentralized exchange (DEX). However, as it turned out, the initial reports were somewhat inaccurate, as the geoblocking only applied to Binance.org — the website for the DEX platform. Traders could still access the DEX via some supported wallet apps, bypassing the need to go through the website to reach the DEX service. Responding to the …

Australia’s tax agency, the Australian Tax Office (ATO), is investigating 12 major international tax avoidance schemes, with a key focus on cryptocurrency-enabled activities. The news was reported by local broadsheet The Sydney Morning Herald on June 6. The ATO’s intensified cross-border investigations were reportedly revealed following a meeting of the J5 — also known as “The Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement.” As previously reported, the J5 is an international taskforce of tax enforcement authorities from Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was established in July 2018 in a bid to tackle cryptocurrency- and …

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) on May 30, 2019 published an updated guideline for initial coin offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrency trading. These new guidelines are aimed at helping cryptocurrency-related businesses understand their compliance requirements vis-à-vis existing laws contained in the Australian Corporations and ASIC Acts. The ASIC’s revampled ICO and cryptocurrency trading framework does not, however, cover guidelines for other regulators like the country’s tax agency and consumer protection group. The securities regulator say crypto businesses will have to refer to the published laws by those respective bodies. By updating its ICO regulatory provisions, the ASIC is setting …

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) published new initial coin offering (ICO) and cryptocurrency guidelines on its official website on May 30. The regulator detailed the prerequisites that a cryptocurrency business needs to follow in order to comply with both the Australian Corporations and ASIC Acts, but did not cover regulations enforced by other national institutions. Notably, the guideline specified that if a crypto asset is a financial product, then the issuer and firms dealing with it are required to hold an Australian financial services license. The report also notes that miners will be considered part of the clearing …