1. British Regulator FCA Prepares a Potential Ban of Crypto CFDs for Retail Investors
British financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), is preparing a potential ban on the sale of crypto derivatives to retail investors, according to an official document released on July 1.
In the document, titled “Restricting contract for difference products sold to retail clients,” the FCA revealed that the regulator will soon publish a consultation paper (CP) on a potential ban on crypto derivatives such as bitcoin (BTC) futures and other crypto-related trading products.
[Source: Cointelegraph] ✩✩✩✩
2. Binance Exchange Is Launching Crypto Futures Trading
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, is soon to launch futures trading.
During a presentation at the Asia Blockchain Summit in Taipei on Tuesday, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, founder and CEO of the exchange, showcased a futures trading interface on Binance with features including longs and shorts on crypto assets.
[Source: Coindesk] ✩✩✩✩
3. U.K. Regulators Approve a Crypto Hedge Fund for First Time
Prime Factor Capital Ltd., a London-based hedge fund manager set up by former employees of BlackRock Inc. and RWE AG, became the first investment firm focused on cryptocurrencies to win the stamp of approval from U.K. regulators
[Source: Bloomberg] ✩✩✩✩
4. ethereum Leaders Are Slowly Courting Gulf Coast Royals and Investors
Ethereum’s leaders are pursuing a “moonshot” in the Middle East.
The Ethereum Foundation’s head of special projects, Virgil Griffith, told CoinDesk the nonprofit is partnering with finance experts in the Gulf Coast to show that the world’s second largest blockchain is compatible with Islamic law. Islamic finance customs adhere to certain beliefs, including the prohibition of earning interest on loaned funds.
The move is seen as a first step toward potentially securing investment from the region’s plutocrats.
[Source: Coindesk] ✩✩✩✩
5. Gemini to Apply for Broker-Dealer License in Bid to Trade Crypto Securities
The Winklevoss-owned cryptocurrency exchange Gemini will apply for a broker-dealer license from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), CoinDesk has learned.
This is the first step toward becoming an approved Alternative Trading System, where customers can lawfully swap digital securities.
Gemini previously partnered with the tokenized securities platform Harbor, which allows institutional investors to buy securities with Gemini’s GUSD stablecoin and to also receive dollar-denominated dividends via GUSD. It stands to reason that Gemini would also want to facilitate the trading of such securities on its own platform.
[Source: Coindesk] ✩✩✩
6. IOTA Foundation Launches Trinity, a New Software Wallet for IOTA tokens
The IOTA Foundation has launched the Trinity wallet, as the organization announced in a press release on July 2.
The announcement advertises the Trinity wallet as an improve to both ease-of-use and security for users conducting transactions in IOTA, with the purported goal of appealing to both new and advanced users.
[Source: Cointelegraph] ✩✩✩
7. UN Using Blockchain to Promote Transparency in Rebuilding Process in Afghanistan
The United Nations will reportedly use blockchain technology as part of its efforts to aid the redevelopment of Afghanistan. The plan forms part of the supranational body’s “City for All” programme aimed at modernising the infrastructure of the nation’s urban centres.
Blockchain technology is hoped to bring much-needed transparency to the redevelopment process. The management of Land Records is one area that the immutable data sharing innovation will be used in.
[Source: NewsBTC] ✩✩✩
8. Ripple has ploughed $500 million into the XRP ecosystem
One year in and Ripple’s ecosystem initiative, Xpring, has racked up quite the bar tab.
Xpring has invested $500 million in more than 20 companies in the blockchain space, with the ultimate goal of building out an ecosystem focused around the cryptocurrency XRP. The coin is mostly used for cross-border payments but Ethan Beard, SVP of Xpring, argues that it can be used for much, much more.
[Source: DecryptMedia] ✩✩✩✩
9. CloudFlare Outage Takes Down Coinbase, CoinMarketCap and Other Top Crypto Websites
A brief outage Tuesday morning at 10:00AM Eastern took down a number of crypto information and trading sites including Coinbase and CoinMarketCap. The issues cleared up around 10:18AM and most sites seem to be running again.
[Source: CoinDesk] ✩✩✩
10. Nestlé US plans blockchain pilot for its palm oil, but it won’t run on IBM tech
Nestlé has bragged it’s the first major food and beverage company to announce a blockchain pilot that will allow consumers to track product sustainability and provenance.
The company’s DLT program will start by tracing milk from producers in New Zealand to Nestlé’s factories and warehouses in the Middle East. Nestlé expects to add palm oil sourced in the Americas at a later date.
[Source: TheNextWeb] ✩✩✩
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