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Also: Blockchain voting after the Voatz debacle, IOTA limps back after cyber attack, smart cities in China, and Forkast.News insights to help you make sense of the top headlines.

A decentralized, digitized and secure voting system could make elections more transparent, honest and trusted. But can blockchain voting also stem violence against voters — and overcome stains from the Voatz debacle?

In the third installment of this special three-part Forkast.News series, we look at some phones on the market that bill themselves as ‘blockchain’ but are only doing a disservice to the industry.

What’s up with South Korea’s new blockchain regulations? And where is bitcoin now legal tender? (Mai oui!) Other headlines around the world: a storm over STEEM, the new Baseline protocol for privacy, HTC’s Exodus 5G Hub, and how the coronavirus has affected blockchain firms in China.

CEO of Hedera Hashgraph explains how distributed ledgers can help front-line doctors and scientists in the battle against Covid-19, and how the emerging techology may be the future of international disaster relief.

Blockchain technology now offers hope to radically transform the African remittances industry in favor of migrant workers and their families.

India’s crypto sector saw a major boost after its Supreme Court ruled to lift a ban on crypto trading, paving the way for more blockchain development.

Blockchain phones aren’t yet able to offer the ability to provide total security for your data.

Specific identification, hard forks and mainstream use: U.S. crypto investors are scrambling to figure out how new guidelines will affect their tax returns.

The uncertain legal status of cryptocurrencies is under the microscope in India.

As increasingly useful and potentially destructive data migrates onto the internet, more and more countries will deploy cyber weapons. Could blockchain provide a defense against future incursions?

In this first article of a three-part Forkast.News series, we will examine how blockchain can — and can’t — disrupt the world’s telecom industry, and take a closer look at where efforts are falling flat.

What are the best face masks to wear to protect against Covid-19, and how to wear them? Which masks are the worst and could increase your risk of illness? A medical doctor and face mask researcher explains all.

Blockchain has had an interesting, albeit slightly paradoxical journey in India. On one hand, the technology itself has seen great support from the startup ecosystem as well as the Government. On the other hand, cryptocurrencies have faced huge regulatory hurdles in India, such as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issuing a directive to ring-fence regulated entities like banks from the risk of trading virtual assets.

Smart-contract platform Ethereum’s new version is set to operate on a Proof of Stake system that may be released in 2020 according to Andrew Keys, co-founder of ConsenSys Capital. Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum explained that Ethereum 2.0 will provide added capacity for users through sharding and scaling, privacy features and more alongside the new Proof of Stake system.

In a 2019 speech, the visionary creator and co-founder of Ethereum describes Eth2’s launch in phases, including proof of stake, data sharding and scaling.

The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) is seeking ways to bridge the traditional financial sector to new blockchain-related industries, including ways to open bank accounts, says said SBA deputy CEO August Benz.

The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) is seeking ways to bridge the traditional financial sector to new blockchain-related industries, including ways to open bank accounts, says said SBA deputy CEO August Benz.

Welcome to The Current Forkast series with Forkast.News Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau and Brian Lio, CEO of blockchain research group Smith + Crown. In this episode we talk about: NBA player Spencer Dinwiddie’s token release, SEC’s warning on Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOs), Bitwise investor bulletin

Taiwan’s cryptocurrency evangelist and former congressman says the island is falling behind in STO guidelines, fintech regulations and forming a tech hub.

Distributed ledger technology could be used by front-line health care responders dealing with the coronavirus epidemic to submit information in real-time around the world regardless of censorship. HashLog, a dashboard designed to publicly track coronavirus developments via distributed public ledger Hedera Hashgraph, could mitigate political influence involved in spreading information, according to Hedera Hashgraph cofounder and CEO Mance Harmon.

IowaReporterApp developed by Shadow Inc. failed to deliver timely results of the Iowa Democratic caucus. Blockchain-enabled voting systems could mitigate similar mistakes.

The Chamber of Digital Commerce is “gravely concerned” about how the U.S. Government is addressing technological challenges and opportunities posed by blockchain according to founder and president Perianne Boring. The U.S. could be ceding technological leadership as well as the dollar’s reserve currency status to other nations including China if it does not revamp policies toward emerging blockchain innovation.

As China, Singapore, Canada and other countries develop digital currencies in part to facilitate cross-border transactions, Ripple’s managing director of South Asia and EMEA Navin Gupta said these currencies would primarily only be used domestically.

Not enough startups and young talent are as gung ho about blockchain as they are about hotter categories such as such as AI, media or the sharing economy.

China has received the largest number of patent applications globally. Intellectual property applications themselves are a revenue source for the government, which generated $35 billion in fees paid for using IP rights.

China’s blockchain policy for enterprises is similar to that of the public sector: provide more efficiency and disintermediation. What’s different about enterprise policy is the added element of competitiveness.

Smith + Crown focuses its attention on headlines and projects it considers as key developments likely to prove influential in determining the course of blockchain events in 2020.

As China’s digital currency is said to be “progressing smoothly,” Indonesia is also working on releasing their own white paper this year, according to Indonesian Blockchain Association cofounder Pandu Sastrowardoyo.

Indonesia is a country of 17,508 islands and 260 million people, including 171 million internet users. It’s a huge market, dominated by the digital economy that’s ripe for blockchain disruption.

Universities simply haven’t caught on to the need for blockchain education as they grapple with teaching other emerging technologies, such as big data or AI.

As protests continue to rock Hong Kong and China’s economy slows, concerns are rising about the Special Administrative Region’s future as Asia’s premier financial hub.

The Chinese government has identified blockchain technology development as an issue of national importance, along with other emerging technologies such as AI, deep learning and IoT. President Xi Jinping has outlined the importance of blockchain technology to China’s industrial maturity, urging continued development so China can lead the way in defining international standards.

SIX Digital Exchange’s blockchain-based digital assets platform and distributed central securities depository are designed to democratize investment. The digital exchange platform is a subsidiary of leading Swiss stock exchange SIX.

Getting blockchain right is hard enough – not to mention building consortium, says Steve Cerveny, founder and CEO of Kaleido, a Consensys Enterprise Business that offers blockchain as a service.

Blockchain technology and digital assets have the potential to change the entire finance industry. These blockchain-powered payments networks enable cross-border payments to be hassle-free by having a standard set of technical specifications and standards – reducing confusion and ensuring that all members of the network have access to the same technology, says Ripple’s Navin Gupta.

The central bank’s digital currency efforts, ironically, would give it more control over the economy.

Identification on a protocol level could help blockchain become mainstream for blue-chip companies like MasterCard, Volvo and Geely if international regulations are met. Anonymity is “exactly what is hindering wider use of blockchain,” said Concordium CEO Lone Fonss Schroder.

And that’s a good thing for legitimizing blockchain and paving the way to tokenize real assets across industries, the enterprise blockchain creator said at Hong Kong FinTech Week 2019.

The Fintech Advisory Services monthly report details the main crypto-metrics and indicators for the past month: News, Market Performance, Networks, Mining Activity, Public Sentiment, and Academic Publications. The report also covers the latest “Hot Topics” in the crypto space. This month: Facebook’s Libra, Telegram’s TON, China’s CBDC, and quantum computing.

Investment in Chinese blockchain projects reached USD$367.7 million in the first half of 2019. Blockchain Global CEO Sam Lee says Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent have fueled a breadth of tech talent.

Alternative AI founder Eberhard Schoeneburg speaks with Forkast.News at Hong Kong FinTech Week 2019 about how artificial intelligence should adapt to quantum technology.

The PBOC’s new token could wipe out the need for remittance services like TransferWise. But if the eurozone is any foreshadowing, uniting several countries with a single currency is a complicated endeavor.

Executive Summary It has been 40 years since Deng Xiaoping launched China’s Open Door Policy. By several metrics, China’s economic miracle has been extraordinary, with some 800 million people lifted out of poverty in just a few decades and the country playing a critical role in the global economy. But this growth was neither stable […]

Public support in India is strong for cryptocurrency ownership. But regulators’ blanket ban may lead to a gray market, increasing the chances of fraud.

The crypto exchange has a presence in China, but not an official registration.

There has been a resurgence of AI during the last five to six years.  I use the word resurgence because we have had previous eras when AI was seen as being imminent. Alan Turing devised the eponymous Turing Test in 1950 and brought mainstream attention to the possibility of machines that could think. The Dartmouth […]

Digital Asset aims to provide a uniform developer experience, regardless of the technology you’re using.

From supply chain to finance, implementation of the technology is building trust, efficiency and new opportunities.

Ethereum has amassed a nearly unbeatable network effect, but regulatory compliance is still a major hurdle.

Mu Changchun, the Deputy Director at the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), launched an online audio course about Libra and digital currency in a popular Chinese education app De Dao on August 4, 2019. It is not the first time Mu talked about Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra and digital currency. After Facebook announced Libra in June […]

Chinese blockchain companies received a substantial windfall following President Xi Jinping’s bullish support for the development of the technology, and Shanghai-based Neo was one such enterprise. Forkast.News Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau sits down with Da Hongfei, Co-Founder of Neo to find out about the technology and how it will affect various industries in China. Key Highlights […]

President Xi Jinping emphasized the development of blockchain technology and called for more research, investment, and regulations for it on October 24. “Blockchain plays a core role in the next round of technological innovation and industrial transformation,” said Xi according to comments recorded by news agency Xinhua during a meeting with members of the Communist […]

Over the past few decades, the internet boom has been helping fill the information gap in our society. Online businesses such as those in e-commerce and social media emerged to help the world share information more efficiently, allowing for the digital transformation of traditionally “offline” industries. Despite the many years of effort, however, this digital […]

Switzerland is positioning itself to become a crucial hub for the global blockchain industry as investment group Crypto Valley Venture Capital (CVVC) reports that the top 50 blockchain-related companies in the country are valued over US$40 billion in 2019. CVVC Founder and CEO Mathias Ruch told Forkast.News’ Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau that the country’s regulation and […]

Speaking from the main stage of Hong Kong FinTech Week, Securities Futures Commission (“SFC”) CEO Ashley Alder said the SFC will publish a new regulatory framework that would allow it to regulate virtual asset trading platforms. In a highly anticipated keynote speech at Asia’s largest global financial technology conference, Alder noted the new regulations will […]

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission has announced that they will issue licensed for digital trading platforms in the city, a move which is sure to shake up financial services in Asia. Forkast.News’ Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau had a brief behind-the-scenes interview with Ashley Alder, CEO of the regulator moments before he made the announcement at […]

The imminent economic collapse in Lebanon which the Lebanese Central Bank Governor has warned of may be averted as Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced his resignation amid the country’s largest protests in 15 years. These protests were in response to Hariri’s government announcing austerity measures which included a tax on WhatsApp calls. Protesters demanding Hariri’s […]

Forkast.Insights, the research vertical of Forkast.News, will be releasing the “China Blockchain Report” in its new report series about blockchain technology in countries around the world. The report, which has been months-in-the-making, will be released off the heels of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent endorsement of the need to accelerate the development of this technology […]

While many other countries have been taking a back seat and waiting to decide how exactly they should approach blockchain technology, China has been proactively exploring its application in decentralized finance. This week China announced a certification system to regulate a broad range of fintech products. China is clearly priming itself to become a leader […]

With Ethereum 2.0’s release just around the corner, co-founder Vitalik Buterin has been busy talking about what to expect from the new system and its use of proof-of-stake validation. Ethereum 2.0 is meant to address a number of issues that the current system has. It is billed as improving scaling, security, and other issues in […]

The innovation behind Tandem Bank involves using apps to help its users save money. The “neo-bank” provides all types of traditional services including personal banking, savings accounts, and credit cards. However, their use of emerging technology is what sets it apart from conventional banks, and helps attract users. “Last year we hit 500,000 customers when […]

TransferWise is designed to facilitate the growing market of global remittances by reducing costs the cost of sending money internationally.  Instead of sending money at high transaction fees to other countries through banks or other third parties, TransferWise internally exchanges currency to be sent using real market rates from Reuters or Google exchange rates. By […]

Ron Tucker, Founder and Chair of the Australian Digital Commerce Association, describes his long-running involvement in the industry and the reasoning behind his faith in the technology. As the head of a crypto exchange, Tucker has been involved in navigating and advising the regulatory steps that institutions such as FATF are taking. Contrary to concern about these new policies stymying the growth of the industry, Tucker asserts that the regulation is necessary in providing a safe environment for cryptocurrency to grow.

Facing mounting uncertainty surrounding Britain’s looming departure from the European Union, the British pound has experienced a period of considerable turbulence. As is commonplace with fiat currencies, political events often have a substantial impact on the value of the pound sterling (GBP). Recent developments in British politics are no exception. Recently on Sept. 24, the […]

As the Managing Director, Global Blockchain Lead at consulting firm Accenture, David Treat spends his days engaging with enterprise leaders across various industries about blockchain, from understanding the topic until implementation. Forkast.News spoke with Treat on the sidelines of OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum to find out how these conversations play out, and how Treat […]

There are a multitude of factors that influence the value of currencies –- from rising political tensions, wars, major economic policy announcements, civil upheaval, and foreign trade to confidence in government. One consideration which is often overlooked is the potential effect of natural disasters. Floods, tornados, wildfires, earthquakes, and hurricanes not only put a country’s […]

What is the world of cryptocurrency like in the Middle East? How does it differ from other markets, and what challenges and opportunities arise from dealing with the industry in that region? Forkast.News Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau sits down with Joseph Dallago, Co-Founder and CEO of Rain, the first Bahrain-based digital currency exchange, in order to […]

Catalonian Minister of Digital Technology and Policies Jordi Puigneró talks regulation, popular appeal, and what blockchain can do for a country. As a member of an elected public administration, Puigneró believes that he has the obligation to serve the people. In the case of blockchain, Puigneró expects that the technology will create a new class […]

Ethereum (ETHUSD) continued an ongoing bottoming effort this past week just below the psychologically key 200 whole figure level, trying to position for a more sustainable bounce as hinted by the bottomish weekly and daily RSI, Stochastics and MACD.  Nevertheless, before bulls get excited, most will want to first see ETHUSD reclaim the September high.  […]

As institutional interest in crypto grows, most investors are entering the digital asset space through OTC trading or investing in digital asset index funds. However, many institutional investors are seeking new ways of exposure to this nascent asset class that secure predictable returns without the extra steps and volatility that traditional digital assets investments involve. […]