Major Spanish banking consortium Niuron announced they are developing a blockchain platform for client digital identification verification, EuropaPress reports Monday, June 18. The group of banks reportedly plans to create the platform by the end of 2018, with the goal of developing a blockchain technology-based system to identify and record clients when they open an account for the first time. Niuron believes that the new blockchain platform will improve the speed of operations, reduce fraud, and prevent money laundering. The platform will reportedly benefit clients in that it will decrease the time required for the registration process and provide clients …

On May 30, the Spanish Congress unanimously supported draft legislation that would favorably regulate blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies in the country. While the move marks pro-crypto tendencies among local politicians, there are complications that the reform might stumble upon, namely EU compliance laws and the very recent overthrow of prime minister Mariano Rajoy. The “sandbox” concept Currently, there is no regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in Spain. Bitcoin is thus not considered legal currency in the country. According to the Library of Congress, however, it may be viewed as a “digital good” and can therefore comply with the rules of barter …

Draft legislation that would favorably regulate blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies has received unanimous support in the Spanish Congress, Europa Press reported yesterday, May 30. The draft initiative, agreed upon with the majority parliamentary party Partido Popular (People’s Party), won the support of all parties present at the House Finance and Public Function Committee meeting on Wednesday. The document calls for a review of regulations pertaining to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), as well as to blockchain, proposing to introduce the technology to the Spanish market through “controlled testing environments,” commonly referred to as ‘regulatory sandboxes.’ The Congress has agreed to …

Barcelona Tech City will create a specialized space for blockchain technology development, local news outlet La Vanguardia reports today, May 24. The blockchain space will consist of a second building near to Pier01, the headquarters of Barcelona Tech City that opened in summer 2016, and will most likely be occupied by Spanish blockchain network Alastria, according to unnamed sources. Pier01 currently houses 1,000 professionals from tech startups and innovation hubs as part of the city’s digital ecosystem in the reconverted Palau de Mar. La Vanguardia writes that the different buildings of Barcelona Tech City will be connected by electric vehicles …

The governor of the Bank of Spain has come out in favor of the possibilities of blockchain, but against the risks of cryptocurrencies, local news outlet Europe Press Financial reports Wednesday, May 23. Luis María Linde referred to blockchain as a technology that “offers interesting possibilities,” but is yet “not quite mature” in a speech at a meeting of leaders of the financial sector organized by Deloitte and two Spanish organizations. Linde notes that the current global move to a digital economy requires regulators to encourage innovation without bringing the risks beyond “reasonable limits:” “The move to a more digital …

Banking group Santander will be partnering with Ripple to release an international money transfer app using Ripple’s Blockchain xCurrent and RippleNet platforms, Business Insider reports today, March 24. When speaking about the upcoming app release at the International Fintech conference in London yesterday, March 23, Nathan Bostock, the UK CEO of Santander said: “This spring, if not [sic] one beats us to it, we will be the first large retail bank to carry out cross-border payments at scale with Blockchain technology.” At the end of January of this year, Ana Botin, the CEO of Santander, had mentioned the app launch …

The General Directorate of Taxes (DGT) has announced that virtual currencies such as bitcoin will be exempt from value-added tax (VAT) in Spain, following the leads of the United Kingdom and Germany, who recently stated that they are considering taking bitcoin as a complementary currency. In response to the Binding Consultation V1029-15 submitted on the March 27, 2015, the DGT has announced that virtual currencies, which are considered to be a medium of payment, will be classified as financial services rather than simple goods or commodities. Under the “DIRECTIVE 2006/112/EC of November 28, 2006 on the common system of Value …

The Spanish tax authorities have published a statement classifying bitcoin as a means of payment exempting it from VAT charges. Some of the UK's top bankers are to discuss bitcoin among a fintech discussion panel this week. BitSIM hardware proposes piggybacking a sim-card to provide secure mobile payments without carrier support and more top stories for April 20. Bitcoin exempt from VAT in Spain A department of the Spanish tax authority has published an opinion stating that bitcoin should be treated as a means of payment, and will therefore stand exempt from VAT calculations. The move puts Spain inline with …

DarkWallet is inching another step closer to its first beta version, as it has released its eighth and – probably - final alpha version this past week. Most notably, this newest edition of the anonymizing Bitcoin wallet software includes the option to withdraw cash from thousands of ATM's throughout Spain. In order to realize the new cash-for-bitcoin service, the DarkWallet team has established an informal partnership with the Spanish e-money converter Chip Chap, enabling users to withdraw cash money at the thousands of ATM's in Spain using the HalCash ATM service on the Telepay network. This option might be extended …