U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase will open trading of four more cryptocurrencies for U.K. pound sterling (GBP) Friday, a blog post confirmed Wednesday, September 5. Following a deal with UK bank Barclays to open access to the country’s Faster Payments network in March, residents will now be able to trade altcoins Ethereum (ETH), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) for GBP, in addition to the existing Bitcoin (BTC). “With support for UK domestic bank transfers in GBP via the Faster Payments Scheme, it is now significantly easier, faster and cheaper for UK customers to trade cryptocurrencies on the …

Members of the European Parliament along with blockchain experts met Tuesday, September 4, to discuss possible regulations for Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). At the recent EU event entitled “Regulating ICOs — Is the Crowdfunding Proposal what we were looking for?” the attendees examined the potential complications currently arising in the ICO industry. Ashley Fox, a British Member of the European Parliament, pinpointed three main issues to consider at the meeting: challenges faced by ICOs in raising capital, the existing regulatory approaches on the matter, and the future perspectives of the industry. In his testimony, Peter Kerstens, chairman of the the …

Lloyd's Register (LR), a British tech and business maritime classification society, has created a model of a blockchain-powered class register of ships, according to an official press release published September 4. LR’s new class register is reportedly “the first demonstrator that can register ships into Class” by deploying blockchain technology. Originally, LR published the first “Register of Ships” in 1764 in order to provide both underwriters and merchants with information about the condition and quality of vessels they insured and chartered. In order to transform the system that was introduced in the eighteenth century, LR has partnered with London-based blockchain …

U.K. insurance market leader Lloyd’s of London will insure a crypto custody platform by U.S.-based custodial firm Kingdom Trust, according to a press release published August 28. Founded in 1686, Lloyd’s of London is a British insurance firm that is active in over 200 countries. The company reportedly paid claims in the amount of £68 billion ($87 billion) between 2011 and 2016. Kingdom Trust, which serves over 100,000 customers and has $12 billion in assets under custody, is the reportedly the “first” regulated financial institution to offer qualified custody for digital asset investments. Kingdom Trust provides digital currency storage services …

The British Government is exploring ways to employ Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) to secure digital evidence and identity information, according to a blog post published August 23. Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and the Open Innovation team at the Cabinet Office conjointly held a meeting devoted to the use of DLT in securing digital evidence. The author of the blog, Balaji Anbil, Head of the Digital Architecture and Cyber Security team at HMCTS, says that the Service is looking to apply new technology to traditional procedures like evidence sharing, identity management, and providing more control over individual’s identity …

We're living at a time of unprecedented concern over identity. Fears abound that our personal data is being abused by distant third-parties, while this data has become more valuable to us at a time when our identities and the identity politics we base around them have become more central to our lives. It's in this context that blockchain technology has appeared, and while its application beyond cryptocurrencies is still limited, protecting our online identities and data more securely looks set to be one of its most central applications. In its most basic outline, the use of blockchains in the area …

UK watchdog The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has granted its third e-money license to a crypto-related company, Financial Magnates reports August 23. The new license has been issued to Wirex, whose main product is a prepaid debit card that converts crypto into fiat currency for everyday use. As Cointelegraph has reported, the FCA granted an e-money license to major US crypto exchange and wallet service Coinbase this March, which applies to the firm’s fiat, not cryptocurrency, dealings. The license has facilitated Coinbase’s cooperation with UK banks and its access to the UK’s Faster Payments Scheme (FPS), as well as contributing …

UK-based trading platform eToro has signed an advertising deal with seven Premier League football clubs paid in Bitcoin for the first time, the parties revealed Tuesday, August 21. According to various sources, UK clubs Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton & Hove Albion, Crystal Palace, Cardiff City, Leicester City Football Club, Newcastle United and Southampton announced they had signed up to host eToro advertisements. Blockchain and cryptocurrency integration in football stadiums and the industry will also form a focus for the partnerships, eToro so far not giving details as to the nature of the “exploration.” The move marks a fresh milestone for cryptocurrency …

The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said that crypto investment scams are increasingly targeting British investors, in an official warning published August 17. The watchdog warns that fraudsters often use celebrity images, slick websites or “prestigious” City of London addresses as a smokescreen through which to lure prospective investors. It adds: “Scam firms can manipulate software to distort prices and investment returns. They may scam people into buying non-existent cryptocurrencies. They are also known to suddenly close consumers’ online accounts and refuse to transfer the funds to them or ask for more money before the funds can be transferred.” …

As much as 59 percent of U.K. companies have been affected by cryptojacking malware at some point. Roughly half of those cases took place in the previous month, news outlet Internet of Business reports August 15, citing a research commissioned by Citrix. According to Internet of Business, the research, commissioned by software company Citrix and performed by OnePoll, asked 750 IT executives from U.K. companies that number more than 250 employees about their experience with cryptojacking attacks. Cryptojacking malware employs its victim’s computational resources without their permission in order to mine cryptocurrencies for the attacker. This leads to a wasteful …

British police have warned the public about fraudulent investment schemes involving cryptocurrencies, the volume of which has led to 2 million pounds ($2.55 million) worth of losses this summer, according to an announcement published August 10. In the announcement, the police cite statistics prepared by the Action Fraud national reporting center for fraud and cyber crime, which shows that in June and July victims reported losses of $2.5 million in cryptocurrency scams. The average loss totaled to roughly 10 thousand pounds ($12,700 thousand) per person. Director of Action Fraud Pauline Smith said: “It’s vital for anyone who invests or is …

British investment bank Barclays is sponsoring a hackathon to find the best blockchain solution to increase the efficiency of derivatives contracts processing, according to an announcement published August 9. Barclays is partnering with other market majors like Deloitte, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and Thomson Reuters for the event. At the two-day DerivHack hackathon, participants will be given an opportunity to implement their ideas and apply the ISDA Common Domain Model (CDM) to distributed ledger technology. The final goal of the event is to find solutions to use cases in post-trade processing of derivatives contracts. The ISDA CDM …