This article is brought to you by STASIS, a company that aims to promote transparency by providing daily statements from account providers along with weekly verifications and quarterly audits by a top 5 global accounting firm.
Regulation and monetary policy
New EU AML Compliance Laws Could Disrupt the Crypto Industry
On Jan. 10, the European Union’s 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5AMLD), was officially signed into law. The legislation will give sweeping powers to compliance organizations and law authorities. However, aside from tracking dirty money to offshore paradises, the law brings about a series of restrictive demands on crypto companies in a way never seen before.
South Korea to Introduce 20% Tax on Crypto Gains
South Korea's authorities are exploring the possibility of introducing a 20% tax on crypto-related gains, local news outlet Pulse has reported citing several government sources.
Davos: Giancarlo’s Digital Dollar Project Will Focus on Benefits of a US CBDC
The former chairman of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has some new remarks regarding his Digital Dollar initiative, speaking in Davos. On Jan. 22, Ex-CFTC chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo confirmed that the Digital Dollar project will consider the advantages of a United States’ central bank digital currency (CBDC).
India's Central Bank Says it Did not Ban Cryptocurrencies
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the country's central bank, has said it never banned cryptocurrencies in the country.
World Economic Forum Debuts Framework for Central Bank Digital Currency
The World Economic Forum (WEF) — together with some of the world's major central banks — has created a central bank digital currency (CBDC) policymaker toolkit.
Deloitte Approves Gemini Crypto Exchange in High-Level Security Evaluation
U.S.-based crypto exchange and custodian Gemini has finished a SOC 2 Type 2 evaluation, proving the operation’s security.
Competitors
Tether Claims to Be Okay With Merger of Class-Action Lawsuits Against It
Currently facing multiple lawsuits, cryptocurrency stablecoin issuer Tether (USDT) received a request from prosecutors asking for consolidation, combining three lawsuits into one, which Tether has not denied.
Paxos Standard Token Trading 0.3% Lower Over Last Week (PAX)
Paxos Standard Token traded 0.2% higher against the US dollar during the 24-hour period ending at 7:00 AM E.T. on January 24th. In the last week, Paxos Standard Token has traded down 0.3% against the US dollar.
Analytics and opinions
How Real World Use Cases Will Drive Crypto Growth in 2020
In reflecting on the history of cryptocurrencies over their lifetime, there’s one pattern that immediately jumps out. Each successive wave of interest in the cryptocurrency space has been galvanized by new developments in the ecosystem. In particular, two significant catalysts were the rise of crypto exchanges and the initial coin offerings craze.
Circle’s Jeremy Allaire: Asset Tokenization Will Go Mainstream in Two Years
Jeremy Allaire, CEO of crypto payments firm Circle, projected that in the next two or three years the securitization of assets through tokenization will become much more realistic.
Japanese Ex-Central Banker: Libra Spurred Us to Take CBDCs Seriously
The former head of payments and settlements at the Bank of Japan (BOJ) says Facebook’s Libra galvanized central banks globally to look seriously into digital currency issuance.
OKEx at Davos: Blockchain Best Placed to Meet the Needs of the Unbanked
Major cryptocurrency exchange OKEx is at the 50th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos this week, promoting blockchain technology as a new motor for the global financial system.
BIS: No Evidence of Mass Transition From CBDC Research to Pilots and Experiments
A new survey from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) revealed that only 10% of central banks are likely to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC) for the general public in the short term.
Facebook and Calibra’s David Marcus: The Problem of Global Unbanked Is “Unacceptable”
At the World Economic Forum panel discussing digital currencies, the conversation topics included Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). Calibra’s David Marcus highlighted that regardless of the nature of the digital currency, these discussions are key to innovate cross-border payments and solve the issue of the unbanked.
MIT Research Group Calls Crypto a Testing Ground for a Central Bank Digital Asset
MIT’s crypto and distributed ledger tech research group, the Digital Currency Initiative, recently explained that a central bank digital currency (CBDC) will eventually use some of the concepts and technology currently at play in the experimental crypto space.