Transparency and instantaneity are the main strengths of blockchain technology, an HSBC executive claimed in an interview with French business and tech journal L'Usine Digitale, Feb. 4. Béatrice Collot, Head of Global Trade and Receivable Finance at multinational banking giant HSBC, described the role of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain, in trade finance. She made her comments in the context of the upcoming IN Banque conference in Paris this week. According to Collot, blockchain is poised to transform global trade finance by bringing together all stakeholders and allowing information to be …

Iran is reportedly negotiating with eight countries to carry out financial transactions in cryptocurrency, local daily newspaper Tehran Times reports on Monday, Jan. 28. According to the article, Iran has already entered negotiations with Switzerland, South Africa, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Austria, Germany and Bosnia, and the countries have reportedly visited Iran to discuss the matter. It was not immediately clear whether the news concerns the national cryptocurrency that Iran is allegedly set to launch vin the near future. However, the article notes that the talks on crypto transactions were held order to circumvent the ongoing United States sanctions …

Swiss-headquartered food retail giant Nestle S.A. says that the blockchain-based IBM Food Trust initiative — which counts major global retailers such as Walmart and Unilever as members— is gearing up to onboard new suppliers and retailers this year. Benjamin Dubois, digital transformation manager of global supply chain at Nestle, spoke of the development in an interview with Swiss regional bilingual daily newspaper 24 heures on Jan. 28. As reported, the IBM Food Trust blockchain has been underway since fall 2016, with the first product trials spearheaded by Walmart in China in December 2016. Nestle, for its part, has been engaged …

Chevron, one of largest American multinational energy corporations, and two other major energy companies have joined Vakt, a United Kingdom-based blockchain platform for energy commodity trading. Reuters reported on the development on Jan. 16. Along with Chevron, Total, a leading French multinational integrated oil and gas company, and major Indian refiner Reliance Industries have become members of the Vakt platform. The article stresses that the agreement is a step towards quicker and safer logistical operations. The Vakt platform, backed by JPMorgan’s Quorum blockchain technology, aims to become a digital transaction platform that would transform the oil business worldwide. Thomas Waymel, …

On Jan. 7, activists of the French grassroots political movement the Gilets Jaunes — Yellow Vests — announced a bank run via social media, essentially hoping to meet their goals by destabilizing the local financial system. Dubbed the “Collectors’ Referendum,” the movement’s latest demonstration calls on supporters to withdraw their savings from financial institutions on Saturday, Jan. 12. While the political action does not mention cryptocurrencies, it seems that such a run on the banks could hypothetically affect the crypto market — and vice versa. What’s a bank run? A bank run entails a lot of people withdrawing their money …

Several tobacco shops in Paris, France, have started selling Bitcoin (BTC) for fiat despite regulatory uncertainty, Reuters reports Tuesday, Jan. 8. Reuters has learned that the world’s largest cryptocurrency can now be purchased at six tobacco shops throughout Paris. However, in a contradicting report French magazine Capital has claimed that there are as many as 24 shops currently participating in the experiment backed by Keplerk — a French cryptocurrency wallet provider. According to Capital, customers can purchase Bitcoin for the sums of 50, 100 or 250 euros. The tobacco shop then provides a ticket with an alphanumeric code and a …

French grassroots political movement the Gilets Jaunes — Yellow Vests — is planning a bank run similar to Bitcoin’s (BTC) Proof of Keys, sources revealed on social media Jan. 7. Dubbed the “Collectors’ Referendum,” the latest demonstration by the movement calls on supporters to withdraw all their savings and other deposited cash from financial institutions on Saturday. Speaking in a video uploaded to Facebook, an activist known only as Tahz San said the gesture aimed to “scare this (French) state completely legally and without any violence, yet more effectively than ever expected” throughout the history of the Gilet Jaunes movement. …

A French graffiti artist has hidden $1000 in Bitcoin in his latest project, he confirmed in a blog post Jan. 6. Pascal Boyart, who last year embedded a Bitcoin (BTC) wallet QR code in his work to earn passive income, said he opted for the “treasure hunt” approach to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Bitcoin genesis block Jan. 3. The Bitcoin is contained somewhere in the wall mural “La liberté guidant le peuple 2019,” itself based on Eugene Delacroix’s famous painting as a symbol of the French Revolution. The location of the mural is a secret, and anyone can …

The lower house of the French parliament has rejected the amendments to the 2019 finance bill which would ease crypto-related taxation. French monthly business magazine Capital reported this Tuesday, Dec. 18. The amendments that have been declined by the National Assembly referred to a draft of the government finance bill for 2019. As explained by local crypto news outlet Bitcoin.fr, the parliament rejected four proposals in total. One of them was to introduce a distinction between regular crypto transactions and occasional ones, offering a more relaxed taxation system for the latter. Another amendment proposed to increase the annual volume of …

Major gaming company Atari has entered into a license agreement with blockchain startup Animoca Brands to make blockchain versions of two popular mobile games. The news was announced in a press release published Dec. 18. Atari — famous for being the developer of video games such as Tetris and Pac Man — says the rights agreement allows Animoca to produce and publish blockchain versions of Atari mobile games “RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch” and “Goon Squad” globally, excluding China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau. RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch, the press release claims, has “19 million downloads” worldwide, and has reportedly seen a boost …

The French stock market watchdog, the Financial Markets Regulator (AMF), has blacklisted four crypto-related websites for unauthorized investment offerings, according to an official statement published Friday, Dec. 14. The AMF announcement notes nine companies that are allegedly operating without necessary regulatory approval, including four crypto-related firms. In the announcement, the stock market regulator warns investors about the increasing number of unregistered investment projects, claiming that “new unauthorized actors appear regularly.” The recent blacklist includes such crypto-related websites as iminage.com, elos-patrimoine.com, infoconso.info, and live-crypto.com.net. Elos-patrimoine claims to offer “risk-free” crypto investments, promising “professional support” powered by a “long experience in all …

French political deputies want to spend €500 million (about $569 million) on state-level blockchain deployments over the next three years, local daily news outlet Les Echos reported Dec. 12. Citing a report published Wednesday, the publication said both blockchain and cryptocurrency interaction was high on the agenda of two members of parliament (MP), who are pushing the initiative forward in an effort to make France a “Blockchain Nation.” The politicians are also looking to play an active role in fostering Bitcoin mining in the country. “2018 was the ‘year zero’ for blockchain popularization in France. 2019 should be the year …