Search results: AR

Key Highlights The Kik case is the first case that the SEC has brought in litigation that has been contested by the company where there are no allegations of fraud “The SEC has made clear that virtually all ICOs are going to be treated as offerings of securities.” Even if a company is offering ICOs […]

“What is a coin?” Lawyers who work in the digital assets space have become very familiar with multiple variations of that question over the last few years. “It depends” is the answer with which issuers have become equally familiar.   There is much legal confusion about the exact nature of a coin or token. This […]

Minneapolis, MN – The world’s biggest brewer is increasing its stake in a blockchain trailblazer helping some of the world’s smallest businesses. Anheuser-Busch InBev announced today it boosted its Series A investment in Minnesota-based BanQu (pronounced Bank-You), a blockchain startup working to help entrepreneurs and small-business owners, most in the Third World. Exact terms of […]

LISBON — Portuguese champions Benfica are the first major European football team to accept cryptocurrency. Fans can now use crypto to purchase tickets and merchandise directly from the club. “We recognize that many of our supporters are now digital users first, so we want to be ahead of the curve when it comes to adopting […]

BOSTON — Blockchain voting platform Voatz announced today it raised $7 million in Series A funding, including backing from Medici Ventures, the subsidiary of Overstock.com created to boost blockchain. “Voting is a great application of blockchain technology,” said Medici Ventures President Jonathan Johnson. “Many of the key issues facing the world today cannot be addressed until we have […]

Adding Blockchain Faces to Facebook: the Acquihire of Chainspace Facebook hired the founding team of Chainspace in Feburary 2019. Chainspace is a blockchain startup developing new technology to scale and speed up the execution of smart contracts on the Ethereum platform. The social media giant seems to be more interested in acquiring Chainspace’s talent than […]

Reports say Facebook will announce its rumored cryptocurrency sometime in June, and will allow employees working on the project to take their salary in it. Facebook appointed former PayPal executive David Marcus last year to explore opportunities with blockchain. Insiders say Marcus has focused on a digital currency, which users will be able to store, […]

American insurance giants State Farm and USAA want to use blockchain to speed up auto claims.  They’re focusing on the last part of the claims process called subrogation. Subrogation is the legal right that allows one party (e.g., your insurance company) to make a payment that is actually owed by another party (e.g., the other […]

Ripple (XRPJPY) is edging higher again as it appears to be readying to play catch up to Bitcoin (BTCUSD) which has outperformed XRPJPY in recent months.  XRPJPY will be less bogged down this week by the somewhat overbought conditions slowing BTCUSD’s torrid advance, and has stronger momentum heading into this week. With massive gains on Bitcoin […]

Move over Facebook, a new kid is on the block. Voice, a new blockchain-based social media platform, will launch promising users more control over their posts and photos. “The truth is, current social media platforms are designed to use their users,” said Brendan Blumer, CEO of Block.one.  “By design, they run by auctioning our information […]

To seek diagnoses and treatment, patients have to share with healthcare institutions detailed information, including biological samples from blood tests, scans and other assessments as determined relevant by clinical staff. A patient’s medical history should be a comprehensive collection of such information, kept up-to-date on records secured and accessible to individual patients and their healthcare […]

Cash is not only not a king, but there is increasing realization among cities and states, that the cost of cash is not worth it. From reducing costs of producing physical money, increasing administrative efficiencies, to even reducing cash-related violent crimes — going cashless is where many are going, including Singapore. I stumbled across a […]

Introduction The blockchain revolution is happening so fast, that it too is being revolutionized. Until now, the de facto mechanism to reach consensus on distributed ledgers has been Proof of Work (PoW), in which computers compete to solve fictitious mathematical problems. However, this system wastes a lot of energy and computer power. But now a […]

Key Highlights As of December 2018, UNICEF has invested into six blockchain companies in five countries UNICEF now accepts cryptocurrency donations and allows donors to easily mine cryptocurrency just by visiting their donation site Across UNICEF’s projects, blockchain technology is being used to improve traceability of donations and to better track outcomes of donated funds […]

Risk-averse, regulation-crazy, deflationary Japan was never an obvious epicenter for Bitcoin trading. And yet the government has openly welcomed the crypto industry, betting that blockchain innovation would catalyze a startup boom and create new wealth and jobs. So should the Bank of Japan (BOJ) go one step further and issue its own cryptocurrency? “This will […]

In 2017-2018, a wave of “initial coin offerings” (ICOs) swept the global markets, as companies looked for innovative ways to raise capital.  The United States regulatory authorities, particularly the Securities and Exchange Commission, took a dim view of these capital raises, however, and cracked down on such unregistered coin offerings.  For those companies that joined […]

Key Highlights Introducing digital currencies would allow countries like Japan to incentivize economic behavior, such as putting greater spending power in peoples’ hands Japan’s demographics make it an interesting test case: given its shrinking population and risk-averse culture, what is the balance between harnessing innovative technology like blockchain? Japan currently taxes cryptocurrency gains at 55% […]

Edited June 23, 2019 Key Highlights Dec. 9, 2018 — Gerald Cotten QuadrigaCX CEO dies of complications from Crohn’s disease while in India. Dec. 10, 2018 — Jaipur Police release NOC (No Objection Certificate) to Cotten’s widow, allowing her to return to Canada with the body of her husband. Jan. 2019 — QuadrigaCX announces CEO’s death. It […]

This is the first part of an insight series by Tanner De Witt partner, Pádraig Walsh, in which he gives his legal perspective on security token offerings. In this article, he starts from the basics, and asks and answers what are security token offerings and why we should care. What is a token? A token […]

For investors, risk assets appear more attractive, at least in the near-term, as global central banks walk back plans to raise interest rates. The Federal Reserve’s dovish pivot in recent months has fueled a rebound in stocks. Although some people remain skeptical of the recent rally, investors don’t seem to have many alternatives given the […]

I Sold My Soul in Bitcoins, by Jake Adelstein Prologue I sold My Soul in Bitcoins, by Jake AdelsteinBefore the police knocked on the door, they called, and a week before they called, they politely leaked to the Japanese press that they would be arresting Mark Karpeles, the former CEO of failed bitcoin exchange, Mt. […]

Bitcoin (BTCUSD) prices fell this week from a 4 month high but remains above the psychologically key $5,000 mark. Longer term investors are increasingly taking advantage of price dips as the overall industry gains more interest from mainstream technology and financial institutions. Facebook is reportedly developing a coin for its WhatsApp messenger app while JPMorgan […]

Bear markets are painful. Plain and simple. Looking back, there were numerous signs in mid-to-late 2017 a price bubble was forming. But then again, hindsight is always 20/20. It’s important (and if nothing else reassuring) to remember: we’ve been here before. Bitcoin surged more than 10x in the second half of 2013, peaking over $1,000 […]