Upon its inception, Bitcoin was envisioned as a borderless currency that could be used by its owners without being affected by the regulatory impositions of any centralized agency or government body. And while this idea in itself is quite grand, the fact of the matter is that today's crypto owners (across the globe) are subject to varying tax restrictions on their digital holdings by local regulatory bodies. Also, over the course of the past few months, a number of tax agencies around the globe, (such as the United States Internal Revenue Service) have been in the process of creating new …

Antitrust regulators at the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, have sent out a questionnaire to determine whether Facebook’s proposed stablecoin Libra is an anti-competitive project. Bloomberg learned of the news via a private document, per a report on Aug. 20. According to the report, the commission sent out a questionnaire earlier in August in an attempt to figure out whether rival entities would be able to compete with the Libra Association and its product on a fair basis. Officials reportedly believe Libra may hinder competition via its exchange of information and use of consumer data. Moreover, …

London-based bank and financial services firm Standard Chartered has completed its first joint blockchain-based supply chain financing transaction. Standard Chartered announced on Aug. 5 that the institution successfully ran their first joint deep-tier supply chain financing transaction in partnership with China-based supply chain financing service provider Linklogis. The news follows a memorandum of understanding signed by Standard Chartered and Linklogis in February 2019, when the firms agreed to collaborate on expanding the bank’s supply chain visibility, as well as to support sustainable growth of China’s economy and innovation. Linklogis platform is based on blockchain tech from Tencent Specifically, the new …

About 71% of German citizens are skeptical about Facebook’s Libra stablecoin, while only 12% welcome it, according to a survey published by German financial association Bürgerbewegung Finanzwende on July 23. Most Germans already have an opinion Notably, the survey also showed that almost every one of the 2,093 German adults surveyed had an opinion on the matter, with only 17% saying that they are not sure what to think about the stablecoin. Furthermore, 52% of the respondents also pointed out that Facebook’s impact on society is already problematic today, and over a quarter (26%) stated that they believe further growth …

The Republic of San Marino has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with blockchain application platform VeChain. Per the agreement, the two entities aim to deploy blockchain technology to incentivize sustainable ecological behavior from citizens, local news agency askanews reported on July 22. The MoU was signed between San Marino Secretariat of Industry, Craft, Trade, Labor, Cooperation and Telecommunications, Republic of San Marino Innovation Institute S.p.A, management systems certification body DNV GL Business Assurance Group AS, and VeChain Foundation Limited. “To become the first zero-emissions country in the world” The cooperation is part of San Marino’s strategy to create and …

In the premiere episode of the new Cointelegraph series “Coffee and Crypto,” head of editorial Olivia Capozzalo and head of news Molly Jane Zuckerman discussed the latest news in the cryptocurrency industry. Latest news in the cryptocurrency industry In the video, Capozzalo and Zuckerman discuss United States President Donald Trump criticizing Bitcoin (BTC) and Facebook’s Libra stablecoin, the European Central Bank’s recent statements about Bitcoin, and whether BTC is a currency. Zuckerman also talked about the hack of Japanese exchange Bitpoint, which yesterday published the breakdown of crypto assets stolen in the 3 billion yen (~$27.8 million) hack of its …

The United Kingdom Finance Minister Philip Hammond said that regulators and not lawmakers should decide on how to regulate Facebook’s stablecoin Libra, CNBC reported on July 15. In an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Hammond said that lawmakers should not decide to require the social media giant Facebook to acquire a bank license as it is “an issue for regulators to determine, not for politicians to determine.” Hammond said that Libra could be “a very positive thing” once it is properly regulated, and added: “We’re not going to turn our back to it or try to stop it. We’re going …

Finland-based cryptocurrency firm Prasos has secured a payment institution license via the Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority (FFSA). The news comes by way of an official announcement via its crypto exchange website on July 12. According to the announcement, Prasos is now the third crypto firm in Europe to secure a payment institution license. According to its website, Prasos operates a crypto exchange, a crypto investment platform, and Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs. Prasos stated that, thanks to its new license, its crypto investment platform Coinmotion is now capable of supporting a payment service in the European Economic Area, which includes EU member …

Central Bank of Germany representative Burkhard Balz said that cryptocurrencies do not pose a threat to financial stability. Balz’s comments came at a talk at the European Parliament, as reported in a post published on the institution’s website on July 9. Burkhard Balz, Member of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank, stated that “crypto-tokens currently do not pose a risk to monetary or financial stability.” Furthermore, he also noted that “gaps may occur where they fall outside the scope of regulators’ authority or where there is an absence of international standards.” This idea is in line with the claims …

Spanish law enforcement pointed out that Bitcoin (BTC) automated teller machines (ATMs) show a gap in European Union’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations, Bloomberg reports on July 11. Per the report, Spanish police uncovered a local gang that used Bitcoin ATMs to transfer more than 9 million euros ($10 million) for drug traffickers in Colombia and other countries. Bloomberg cites anonymous representatives of Guardia Civil (a type of Spanish law enforcement) alleging that the group hired two machines from trading platforms and installed them in an office in Madrid. The office in question masqueraded as a center for remittances and cryptocurrency …

The European Central Bank (ECB) doubled down on its dismissive stance on bitcoin (BTC) July 9, refusing to recognize it as currency in a Q&A session. Responding to a private query as part of its regular interactive Twitter program, which it administers under the hashtag ‘#AskECB,’ the bank said it had no plans to add bitcoin to its reserves. “Bitcoin is not a currency, it rather is an asset and it is very volatile,” officials wrote quoting chief economist, Philip Lane. The response continues the ECB’s underwhelming reaction to cryptocurrency it has already propagated in other public statements. In May …

Italy, Sweden and the Czech Republic will share the next one-year presidency of the European Blockchain Partnership, Cointelegraph Italy reported on July 9. Following a meeting of the European Blockchain Partnership today in Brussels, the three countries took on the one-year presidency, which will last from July 2019 to July 2020. Marco Bellezza, Legal Advisor to Minister Di Maio for communications and digital innovation and Coordinator of the Italian delegation of the EU Blockchain Partnership, said: "The Italian Presidency of the EU Blockchain partnership is a first acknowledgment of the activity carried out on this front on the impulse of …