Coinbase’s Visa debit card has expanded support for five more cryptocurrencies in ten new jurisdictions, the firm announced in two separate tweets on Nov. 14. Launched in April 2019, Coinbase Card now supports a total of nine cryptocurrencies in 29 countries in Europe. The Coinbase Card’s new supported cryptos include XRP, Stellar (XLM), Basic Attention Token (BAT), 0x (ZRX) and Augur (REP), enabling users to spend using the listed currencies. The five coins join other major supported cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC). Coinbase Card allows users to make purchases using crypto from Coinbase …

Europe has the potential to become a global leader in crypto-assets if it succeeds to create a common approach to regulating the sector. So goes the argument in a new report from financial markets advocacy group, The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME), in a new report published on Nov. 14. Coordination remains the top priority AFME’s new report sets out five recommendations for achieving supervisory convergence in regulating crypto assets across the bloc. Chief among these is to establish a pan-European crypto-asset classification scheme, which can foster a common understanding of various terms and activities relating to crypto-assets …

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has issued a cease and desist order to Karatbit Foundation to immediately stop unauthorized business in Germany. BaFin alleges that Karatbit Foundation is issuing the KaratGoldCoin (KBC) without the necessary license, according to a Nov. 11 announcement. Karatbit describes itself as a provider of a blockchain-based payment system that enables users to conduct transactions with gold, as well as trade gold with cryptocurrencies. The company claims that over 500,000 acceptance points around the world and ten crypto exchanges support trading of gold and gold products for KBC. Absence of the necessary licence and …

Dutch police have arrested the founder of blockchain game development startup Komodore64 that allegedly raised 78 million euros ($86 million) from investors, business-focused news outlet Sprout reported on Nov. Komodore64 — which launched in June with the objective to create a game platform where transactions are tracked on blockchain — appeared to be a fraudulent scheme that deceived both investors and its own employees. The project and its native crypto coin K64, which have reportedly secured roughly $86 million in investments, have declared bankruptcy. Involvement of a “well-known investment company” Komodore64’s founder Sam N. allegedly lured investors claiming that the …

A Dutch court has ruled that Facebook must remove Bitcoin (BTC)-related fraudulent investment ads following local billionaire and television producer John de Mol’s lawsuit against the company, Reuters reported on Nov. 11. De Mol initiated judicial proceedings against the social media giant in June 2019, claiming that Facebook failed to respond to multiple requests to remove ads of a scam that misused his and other celebrities’ images and eventually resulted in the loss of 1.7 million euros ($1.8 million) by investors. The ruling, fine and Facebook’s stance Following de Mol’s claim, a Dutch court ruled that Facebook must pull the …

Bitcoin (BTC) lacks the characteristics of a currency and is purely speculative, according to the European Central Bank’s former president Jean-Claude Trichet. Chinese news outlet South China Morning Post reported on Nov. 10 that Trichet made remarks at Caixin’s conference in Beijing. “I am strongly against Bitcoin” During the event, Trichet also expressed doubt that cryptocurrencies could ever become the future of money. He said that Bitcoin lacks the characteristics of a real currency: “I am strongly against Bitcoin, and I think we are a little complacent. [...] The currency itself is not real, with the characteristics that a currency …

The European Union is doubling down on its commitment to block the launch of Facebook’s Libra should it deem the project to present “unmanageable or excessive risks.” A draft document to be discussed at a meeting of E.U. finance ministers this Friday states that “all options should be on the table” — including impeding the stablecoin’s very development. The news was reported by EU policy site EurActiv on Nov. 6. Libra’s lack of clarity makes decision “impossible” The document is an initial text prepared by Finland, which currently holds the six-month rotating presidency of the E.U. Council. Beyond emphasizing that …

German banks have presented a position paper in which they make several arguments for the digital euro. On Oct. 30, in a paper released by the Association of German Banks (Bankenverband), which represents more than 200 private commercial banks and eleven member associations, banks stated that the “economy needs a programmable digital euro.” Monetary policy is the state’s responsibility, says Bankenverband The paper states that the responsibility for the monetary system lies with sovereign nation-states and that any currency provided by banks or private companies must fit into a state-determined system. “Anything else would ultimately lead to chaos and instability,” …

Five European Union member countries have reportedly teamed up to prevent the issuance of Facebook’s stablecoin Libra. Private meetings to turn EU against Libra Following a series of private meetings in October, France is reportedly leading the anti-Libra effort with Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, political news publication Politico Europe reports on Oct. 30. Citing sources familiar with the matter, Politico states that the countries’ deputy finance ministers have presented their unified position against Libra to other EU ministers at a private meeting on Oct. 28 in Brussels. According to the report, the group intends to prevent Libra from …

Swiss crypto broker Bitcoin Suisse has purchased a minority stake of CoinRoutes Inc., a provider of pan-exchange smart order routing and algorithmic trading software. The investment and a new director Bitcoin Suisse announced the news on Oct. 22, specifying that it acquired a $3 million share of CoinRoutes. Niklas Nikolajsen, the chairman of the Bitcoin Suisse Group, became a member of the board of directors of CoinRoutes’s United States and Swiss entities. Bitcoin Suisse had tested CoinRoutes’ Smart Order Routing and patent-pending Consolidated Best Bid & Offer offerings for a year prior to the acquisition to assess the products’ capabilities. …

The German Federal Ministry of Finance has expressed concerns about rising use of privacy tokens due to their association with criminal activities and difficulties in tracking them. Published on Oct. 19, the ministry’s “First Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing National Risk Assessment” for 2018-2019 provided analysis aimed at the identification of existing and future risks in the field of anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorism financing (TF) in Germany. Among other challenges, the report examines circulation of cryptocurrencies in the darknet for criminal purposes. Pseudo-anonymous vs. anonymous tokens The report marks a distinction between pseudo-anonymous and anonymous tokens, noting that pseudonymity …

German Federal Minister of Finance Olaf Scholz has doubled down on his previous statement that policymakers should prevent the issuance of Facebook’s Libra stablecoin. At the International Monetary Fund and World Bank fall meeting on Friday, Scholz stressed that stablecoins could pose international risks, Reuters reported on Oct. 18. Scholz expressed his utter skepticism regarding the social media giant’s plans, stating: “We will carefully monitor the situation with all the means at our disposal. I am not in favour of the successful creation of such a world currency because that is the responsibility of democratic states.” Scholz notes that the …