The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued guidance for banks on how to handle the risks associated with “crypto assets”, according to a letter posted on the FCA’s website June 11. Per the statement issued by Executive Directors of Supervision Jonathan Davidson and Megan Butler, banks should apply a highly individual approach to clients dealing with crypto assets since “the risk associated with different business relationships in a single broad category can vary.” The statement continues: “Following a risk-based approach does not mean banks should approach all clients operating in these activities in the same way. Instead, we expect …

Recently hacked Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck will end trading for four privacy-oriented cryptocurrencies, Monero (XMR), Zcash (ZEC), Dash (DASH), and Augur (REP), Cointelegraph Japan reported May 18. Following reports from back in March, the exchange has now officially confirmed the removal of the four anonymity-focused coins will come into effect June 18. According to Coincheck’s blog, the exchange will remove the four cryptocurrencies to comply with counter-terrorist financing (CFT) and anti-money laundering (AML) measures recently issued by Japan’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA). The FSA has been especially active in regulating domestic crypto exchanges, specifically around customer protection, …

Bitcoin is just the first app we are using when dealing with the Blockchain. Soon we will see more ways people can squeeze the most out of Blockchain. Back in the 90s when the Internet was first becoming profit-oriented, no one would possibly have imagined that the Internet would breed Facebook, Google, Uber, online streaming, etc. This is where we are with the Blockchain now. There exists a whole world of opportunities out there. In order to realize that potential, it’s critical that law enforcement has the ability to chase down the individuals who use the Blockchain for unrighteous things. …

Users of the digital currency Bitcoin have the option either to reveal their identity or to be anonymous when sending transactions. How to identify the parties in a Bitcoin transaction In order to transact using Bitcoin, neither the sender or the receiver are required to identify themselves or provide any other personal information. However, many transactions contain some clues that could help identify the parties involved. Among the clues are the amounts of Bitcoin transacted, the time stamps and the IP address of the sender. Additionally, coins used in a transaction might be “tainted,” or associated a user’s known Bitcoin …

Some people blame Bitcoin for its use in criminal situations. In the past we have seen Ross Ulbricht, Silk Road creator’s case as well as Trendon Shavers’ case, who has plead guilty to running a Bitcoin Ponzi scheme starting back in 2011 until 2015. All these revelations were based in the Blockchain that Bitcoin transactions create. Academic researchers and Bitcoin experts helped law enforcement put an end in these cases. But are Bitcoin transactions traceable? Traceable unless designed not to be Derick Smith, Architect at Protocol in Blockchain Solutions, comments: “They are traceable unless they are expressly designed not to …

Note: This is the second part of How NOT to build an Orwellian Reputation System. For part 1, go here. *** Step Three: make it pseudonymous and opt in Lets face it. Using personal, or even biometric data as the ‘security’ foundation of an international, online, non retractable reputation system is a terrible idea. Being hacked once could be a life changing disaster and our personal security is far too compromised already. Today, if you ask any random person if they believe they have any privacy online, they are very likely to give you back a flat ‘NOPE’. Corporations the …

NXT, the finance 2.0 blockchain platform, has voted unanimously to implement CoinShuffle, a coin mixing anonymity technique to NXTcoin and other 'Monetary System' tokens. Implementation is expected on the next major release. Landslide vote A vote was posed to the community this July 18 on whether the coin mixing implementation would apply just to MonetarySystem (MS) tokens or also to NXT's core token, NXTcoin. After only a day, the community's response was incontrovertible with nearly 100% of the votes supporting coin mixing implementation to NXTcoin. The votes will be weighed on July 26 based how much NXT each voter holds. …

Cointelegraph tapped into the experience of several startup founders to get an idea of things aspiring entrepreneurs should avoid when starting their own business in the cryptocurrency industry, which for many is still uncharted territory. Before big banks began taking a serious look at Bitcoin, some visionaries realized the potential of this new technology early in the game. Many have since started their own companies, such as CoinBase or BitPay, while others’ ventures fizzled out or fell victim to “wild west” conditions of this volatile space. So what are the most common mistakes that Bitcoin entrepreneurs make? In a follow-up …