Julian Hosp, co-founder and president of crypto startup TenX, says he’s still “quite confident” that Bitcoin (BTC) can hit $60,000 in 2018, CNBC reports Wednesday, July 11. During an interview at the Rise conference in Hong Kong, Hosp told Squawk Box co-host Akiko Fujita that he still stands by the initial 2018 forecast he made in December for the leading cryptocurrency: "Back then, December, price was at a $20,000 all-time high. I predicted for 2018, we're going to see $5,000 and $60,000. So $5,000, we’ve pretty much hit it, so let's see if we can do the $60,000. I'm still …

One of the largest Bitcoin (BTC) mining companies globally, Bitmain, is now valued at $12 billion following a Series B round of funding, Chinese news outlet Caixin reports July 6. According to Caixin, Bitmain raised between $300 million to $400 million from Sequoia Capital subsidiary Sequoia China, U.S. hedge fund Coatue, and Singapore-based governmental investment fund EDBI. In September 2017, Beijing-based Bitmain received $50 million in a Series A funding round from Sequoia Capital and IDG Capital. In early June, the company’s CEO Jihan Wu said he is “open” to plans to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) in Hong …

On June 27, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) declared in their annual report that they will “keep a close watch” on crypto and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). According to the watchdog, the new technology “comes with risks,” which is why they plan to “intervene when appropriate.” Indeed, the SFC has stepped in with more definite regulatory policies this year, taking action against local crypto exchanges, ICOs and warning the public about potential risks related to investments in the crypto market. Meanwhile, Hong Kong continues to nurture financial, cross-border initiatives powered by blockchain, steadily gaining a reputation for being …

Blackmoon, a company based in Cyprus, has offered the world’s fourth-largest smartphone producer Xiaomi to tokenize its initial public offering (IPO), news outlet South China Morning Post reported July 2. Blackmoon, which is a blockchain fintech company that establishes and runs tokenized funds, has reportedly offered Xiaomi to sell digitized tokens for its stock on a dollar-for-dollar basis. The payment options could include Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin (BTC) or Litecoin (LTC). Blackmoon will ostensibly apply the income to subscribe to Xiaomi’s $4.7 billion IPO in Hong Kong, which will commence July 9 on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Last week upon …

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) says in their 2017-2018 annual report released today, June 27, that they will “keep a close watch” on crypto and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). The SFC notes that since new technologies “come with risks,” they will be looking closely at crypto and ICOs and “intervening when appropriate.” The report states that the SFC took regulatory action against crypto exchanges and ICO issuers in Hong Kong this year, and released two public warning to investors about the risk of investing in crypto. The SFC report also includes the agency’s supportive actions in the crypto …

Ebang Communication, one of the largest Bitcoin (BTC) mining hardware manufacturers in China, has filed an application for an initial public offering (IPO) with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) today, June 25. The application confirms a Reuters report in May that the Zhejiang-based firm was working with advisers on a Hong Kong float, potentially seeking to raise as much as a staggering $1 billion to fund growth. Today’s filing does not give details on how much Ebang is seeking to raise for its IPO, nor does it give a precise valuation for the firm. However, the filing does include …

Alibaba subsidiary Ant Financial has trialled its first blockchain remittances, sending a transaction in three seconds, Bloomberg reports June 25. The company, formerly known as AliPay, completed a funds transfer between its AliPayHK app in Hong Kong and Filipino payment app GCash, its joint project with local telecoms company Globe Telecom. Part of a growing trend of Blockchain remittances in the Philippines, Ant Financial will establish international outreach in future, CEO Jack Ma told the press on the back of the project. “Using blockchain to achieve cross-border remittances is one of my most concerned projects in the past six months. …

This interview has been edited and condensed. Recently at BlockShow Europe 2018, Cointelegraph got the chance to speak to Bobby Lee — co-founder of Chinese crypto exchange BTCC and a board member at the Bitcoin Foundation — about what he’s been up to in the crypto space since BTCC shut down last fall. Molly Jane: In the past few months, Chinese crypto regulations have steadily been increasing, from the ICO ban in the fall of last year, the January ban of “exchange-like services,” and the February ban of foreign exchanges. With your experience working in China in mind, do you …

The CEO of crypto mining hardware giant Bitmain, Jihan Wu, has confirmed he is “open” to conducting an overseas initial public offering (IPO), Bloomberg reports today, June 7. Speaking in an interview in Hong Kong, Wu, who claims to own up to 28 percent of China-headquartered Bitmain, said an IPO in the region – or any market which U.S. dollar-denominated shares – would be suitable as a means of allowing early backers to cash in funds. The potential move would mimic Canaan, one of the company’s main competitors, which announced its intention to launch an IPO last month. Canaan occupies …

The world’s largest crypto exchange Binance has made an undisclosed investment into blockchain-based esports voting platform chiliZ, according to a press release published today, June 5. According to the announcement, the Malta-based platform in which Binance is investing is part of Mediarex Group, a global sports and entertainment company. Binance and chiliZ will reportedly “join forces” to provide the sports industry with a “fan-driven token ecosystem for traditional sports teams.” According to the press release, chiliZ has already raised $27 mln via an ongoing “private placement”, evidently a closed token sale. The company claims that Binance’s investment will “enable the …

Hong Kong will not currently issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC), citing the existence of already efficient payment infrastructure, according to a government press release published yesterday, May 30. Joseph Chan, the Acting Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury in the Legislative Council, said in response to questions about both the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) issuing digital currencies that although the HKMA is monitoring cryptocurrency development globally, they have “no plan to issue CBDC at this stage.” According to Chan, the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) — made …

Bitcoin captured global curiosity when its’ value skyrocketed in 2017. Yet, financial institutions have been slow to add operational value to the crypto market. The common denominator among places where governments and banks have restrained digital markets is the lack of transparency and control they have in exchanges. Many research initiatives launched by global fintech leaders remain in developmental stages, while government officials and financial actors grapple with the learning curve of the new technology. The two biggest crypto concerns of global banks are debt liability from customers who have no protection from market volatility; and security risks associated with …