The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has made new partners to apply blockchain to its registry, settlement and clearing systems (CHESS) in 2021. VMware and Digital Asset step in The ASX confirmed its anticipation of delivering the CHESS replacement system by 2021, following a new agreement with NYSE-listed tech firm VMware and Digital Asset Holding (DA), according to a press release published on Aug. 26. According to the report, the ASX has signed a three-party memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the firms to collaborate on blockchain projects in Australia and New Zealand as well as to jointly develop the application to …

The national tax authority of New Zealand, the Inland Revenue Department (IRD), has recently published binding rulings and guidance for salaries and bonuses paid in crypto, made under s 91D of the country's Tax Administration Act of 1994. This ruling applies only to salary and wage earners and not to self-employed individuals, and only for services performed by an employee for a fixed amount and as a regular part of his/her remuneration. While some may find this as proof that New Zealand has officially declared that income paid in cryptocurrencies is legal, the future of crypto adoption is not as …

New Zealand’s Auckland Saving Bank (ASB) has invested in local blockchain startup TradeWindow. The funding, reported Aug. 13, should expedite the launch of the company’s distributed ledger technology (DLT) trade platform. Applying blockchain to the global supply chain TradeWindow CEO, AJ Smith, believes that this link-up represents one of the first times a New Zealand bank has directly invested in a technology company. The company offers a host of solutions aimed at the global trade and supply chain industry. With 12,000 registered exporters in New Zealand alone, Smith says he is excited about the “\major market opportunity this offers. Nigel …

New Zealand's tax authorities have ruled that income in cryptocurrencies is legal and provided guidance on how exactly it should be taxed. In a tax information bulletin published on July 4, the New Zealand Inland Revenue Department summarized the provisions of the public ruling, made under s 91D of the country's Tax Administration Act 1994. Crypto used must be “money-like” to be taxed Specifically, the guidance on the income tax treatment of crypto assets applies to payments in crypto that form part of the employees’ regular salary and are fixed at a predetermined amount or rate — rather than, for …

Microsoft has registered a suite of applications in Brazil that are designed to improve efficiency in the agriculture sector, according to an exclusive report by Cointelegraph Brazil on June 6. The technology, known as FarmBeats, uses blockchain, drones, IoT, artificial intelligence and big data to improve productivity. It has already been rolled out on farms in the United States, India, New Zealand and Kenya, achieving a 30% reduction in water consumption. Ranveer Chandra, the scientist who created FarmBeats, recently said that the agriculture sector had been left behind by the benefits big data, AI and blockchain can bring — even …

The liquidators of now-defunct New Zealand crypto exchange Cryptopia have released the first report on the state of affairs of the firm, according to the documents published on May 31. Cryptopia’s recently assigned liquidator, Grant Thornton, has released an estimation statement of the financial state of the firm, reporting that the hacked exchange owes a total of $4.22 million to its creditors. According to the report, there are 69 unsecured creditor claims totalling $2.439 million, with the liquidators adding that they expect to receive further claims, thus raising the amount. The report also indicates that the employee entitlements at the …

Liquidators of defunct New Zealand cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia have applied to secure user data stored in the United States as part of refund proceedings, a statement confirmed on May 27. Cryptopia, which suffered a hack in January, has spent months cooperating with law enforcement worldwide in an effort to control stolen funds worth around $16 million. The exchange appointed Grant Thornton to lead the liquidation, which confirmed it had applied for urgent interim relief at the Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York on May 24. The filing further requests the U.S. recognize the New Zealand liquidation process. …

The South Korean Ministry of Science and ICT is going to run a follow-up study on blockchain regulations, according to a Yonhap News report on May 21. The study is called the “Blockchain Regulation Improvement Study Group” and is part of an initiative run by the government’s science and tech arm to figure out how regulations could be improved so that blockchain tech could achieve widespread institutional adoption. The Blockchain Regulation Improvement Study Group was launched in June of last year, and initially focused on improving legal regulations pertaining to blockchain tech such as personal privacy, smart contracts, electronic documents …

New Zealand-based blockchain industry group BlockchainNZ announced that it will request a national blockchain strategy from the government next Thursday, according to a press release on May 21. The executive director of Blockchain NZ, Mark Pascall, will give a presentation to the New Zealand parliament’s economic development, science and innovation select committee hearing on the potential economic advantages of implementing blockchain tech solutions in the country. The presentation will reportedly serve as an introductory seminar on blockchain, bitcoin, smart contracts, security tokens, and decentralized autonomous organisations. Pascall commented that Blockchain NZ wants to have its experts work together with the …

Hacked New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has appointed David Ruscoe and Russell Moore from consultancy and audit firm network Grant Thornton New Zealand as liquidators. The news was revealed in an official Grant Thornthon announcement on May 15. Grant Thornton New Zealand (NZ) is the local network of Grant Thornton International — a major professional services network of independent accounting and consulting member firms. As Cointelegraph has reported in mid-January of this year, Cryptopia revealed that it had been the target of a security breach resulting in significant losses, with the attack continuing for two weeks after its initial detection …

A New Zealand church accused of colluding with a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme in targeting the congregation, has denied knowingly participating in illegal activity in a Facebook statement on May 2. The Samoan Independent Seventh Day Adventist Church (SISDAC) is one of two places of worship accused of having links to OneCoin, which raised hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide by luring investors with the promise of huge returns. According to RadioNZ, the scam specifically targeted New Zealand’s Samoan community — with OneCoin workers using SISDAC and the Samoa Worship Center “to reach a vast network of would-be investors.” One woman …

New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has resumed trading on 40 trade pairs, according to a tweet from the firm on March 18. In the tweet, the company announces that it has “resumed trading on 40 trade pairs that we have quantified as secure. We will continue to expand this list as we clear more coins.” The update follows the exchange’s recent announcement of the plans to reopen trading on its platform by the end of March, following a $16 million hack in mid-January. In January, Cryptopia suspended services after detecting a major hack that reportedly “resulted in significant losses.” The …