Crypterium Crypto Digest: all big news in one place

To be the leader, you need to know all the latest news and trends in the industry. From now on, we are going to keep you informed on all important news related to blockchain technologies and cryptocurrencies.

Here is the first instalment of our weekly crypto digest.

• Australia is a great example of a country with an open-minded approach to cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. The Australian government has recently allocated AUD $700,000 (approximately $520,000) from its federal budget to its Digital Transformation Agency in order to support the research of blockchain applications in government services.
• Facebook is assembling a team of blockchain technology specialists. David Marcus, Facebook’s vice president for its Messenger app division and former president of PayPal, is going to supervise the process. While the exact tasks of the team have not been disclosed yet, this is a notable step towards the blockchain-driven future from one of the social media giants. As Marcus has also stated, Facebook Messenger is open to the idea of embracing cryptocurrency payments once the blockchain community can “fix all the issues.”
• Bitcoin Foundation founder Charlie Shrem has predicted May 2018 to be “the last time” Bitcoin’s price is below $10,000.
• Ethereum is under regulatory scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is going to decide whether the company’s cryptocurrency should be classified as a commodity or a security. If Ether (Ethereum’s cryptocurrency) is classified as a security by SEC, the company may be accused of illegal placement of securities, which will get ETH banned from the US exchanges. Other digital assets crowdfunded through ICOs may be affected as a result.
• Global auto giant BMW is piloting a blockchain platform to track mileage in leased vehicles through its startup innovation program. The effort is being carried out in partnership with blockchain startup DOVU — one of five startups to work with BMW Group UK as part of the company’s Innovation Lab, first unveiled back in February. As explained by DOVU’s head of product Alex Morris, the system helps BMW understand how much activity its vehicles are seeing and the impact on them.

Crypto prices according to CoinMarketCap:

• BTC: 9 129.44$ (-2.45%)
• ETH: 732.98$ (-2.62%)
• CRPT: 0.67$ (-8.59%)

Total Market Cap: $423 324 574 519

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