Author: Editorial Office CVJ.CH

In June 2019, the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) issued a guidance subjecting the crypto industry to the same compliance standards as financial institutions. One of the most controversial and challenging measures was the application of the travel rule to all virtual asset service providers (“VASPs”). While the FATF rules are guidance for the globe’s regulators, nations that do not fall into line risk being blacklisted. FATF will start reviewing how it has been applied amongst its members by June 2020. Compliance with the travel rule by VASPs might be somewhat against the whole crypto philosophy but could also have…

Bitcoin/USD daily basis Bitcoin USD – New highs since March crash At the beginning of the reporting week the Bitcoin price tested the newly climbed 9000 USD zone. The first test to go higher was followed on Monday by a rejection to 8’500 USD. As early as Tuesday, green candles above 9’000 USD were created again. On Wednesday, the previously climbed 9’500 USD were already tested. The actual breakout from the resistance zone followed on Thursday, which brought the price, including the close of the day, to just under the USD 10,000 mark. Friday and Saturday were marked by selling…

After the fully booked CCFE, the first and only Swiss Crypto Finance certification course is going into the next round – 100% online. Switzerland’s first SAQ-recognized Crypto Finance training course “Certified Crypto Finance Expert” was successfully launched in March 2020. With 20 participants from well-known national and international financial institutions such as Credit Suisse, Swissquote and Deutsche Bank, the first course was fully booked. The participants learned about the emerging world of crypto-banking, blockchain, tokenisation, and crypto-assets in a portfolio context from proven experts. Adrian Schatzmann, Strategic Advisor of the Swiss Bankers Association, impressively demonstrated the opportunities and threats for…

Another Halving is at the door. Expected on the 12th of May, the reward the miners will receive for securing the network in the form of newly created Bitcoins will be halved. What are the consequences of this event? In this paper we will offer the most important information at a glance. What is the halving? Bitcoin as a digital currency has predetermined limits on the supply side. For example, the maximum number of Bitcoins anchored in the code is limited to 21 million. Of these, just under18.32 million coins are currently already in circulation. Newly created Bitcoins are paid…

A media release published today shows that the Federal Council decided on 22 April 2020 to support promising start-ups with corona-related liquidity bottlenecks via the guarantee system. The guarantee organizations recognized by the federal government provide start-ups with easier access to bank loans. The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO, in consultation with the interested cantons and guarantee organisations, has now created the practical conditions. Applications for guarantees can be submitted from 7 May to 31 August 2020. Guarantees of up to CHF 1 million per start-up Based on the existing guarantee system, a special guarantee procedure was created to…

The Colombian city of Bogota, which houses 10.7 million inhabitants (agglomeration), is the largest urban agglomeration in Colombia and has now launched a series of free online courses on the subject of “New Technologies”. Blockchain technology is also part of these courses. As part of these courses, the metropolitan area offers individual units in blockchain technology. The programme, which was created by the Bogota Mayor’s Office, is called “Bogota Aprende TIC” and is designed to strengthen innovation and enable new technologies to make their way into the capital, Bogota. The contents include are Cloud Computing, Big Data, artificial Intelligence, Internet…

Sector Analysis April 2020 Index Performance The index performed around 36%, with some winning and some losing sectors (please see monthly performance relative to Index). One winning sectors was SoV, with an outperformance of 14%; the Payment sector underperformed by 7.75%. SoV (Store of Value) DGB (DigiByte) contributed positively with a performance of 222%. DigiByte is a modification of the Bitcoin protocol design that adjusts confirmation speeds and security assurances when transacting on the base layer. The genesis block was created on January 10, 2014, with an outstanding supply of 105 million. The overall supply is capped at 21…

Most recently, the Geneva-based Libra Foundation returned with a revised white paper and a FINMA application for the authorization of a payment system. This week the admission of a new member in the form of a payment provider was announced. The new payment service provider is the British start-up Checkout.com, who will join the Libra Association as their 24th member. Guillaume Pousaz, CEO and founder of Checkout.com has announced the news in an official statement from the company. The company not only wants to support the technological progress behind Libra, but also to play its part in the necessary regulatory…

Digital currencies issued by central banks will be a hot topic in 2020. Meanwhile, many central banks have already discussed the advantages and disadvantages of CBDC’s, and some nations are already working on their own digital currency. In a survey conducted this year by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) among 66 central banks, 80% of the institutions surveyed stated that they are actively involved in the design of a CBDC. 40% of the banks have already skipped the theoretical research of CBDC’s and are now in an experimental phase. Dutch central bank wants to take a “leading role” in development The Dutch central…

Bitcoin/USD daily basis Source: Tradingview.com Bitcoin USD – New highs since March crash At the beginning of the reporting week, the Bitcoin price was still testing the newly created support zones around USD 6,800. From the middle of the week onward, it climbed again and closed above the USD 7,000 mark. Already on Thursday, an advance into higher regions was seen, which came to a temporary halt at USD 7,800. The following days were characterized by a slightly higher trend in the share price. Consistently slightly higher daily lows in the last three trading days of the week, with narrow…

The following article is an overview of the Tezos project, including an exclusive interview with foundation board member Hubertus Thonhauser about the current status of the blockchain-based smart contract platform. The Tezos project was first presented in a white paper published in 2014. The network is designed in such a way that stakeholders or validators can vote for proposed changes. Proposed changes will only be introduced if a majority of voters are present, thus reducing the risk of splitting the network (hardforks). Software teams will be paid if their proposed changes are implemented. At the core of the code base is…

The Bitcoin price has fallen sharply in recent months in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this has not reduced public interest in crypto-currencies. Some of the US government’s helicopter money is also being used to buy Bitcoin. As Forbes magazine reports, several Americans are using the $1,200 stimulus checks to purchase crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin. A high volatility of the Bitcoin price usually attracts investors as well. According to the report, crypto exchanges have seen increased account and trading activity after the price fall in March, with crypto exchanges specializing in derivatives in particular — posting record volumes. Number…

Among other things, blockchain is ideally suited for the tokenization of assets. This can typically include illiquid assets such as real estate. An STO (security token offering) has just been launched in Germany for a real estate project in Berlin. The Berlin real estate STO is being conducted by Black Manta Capital Partners, a German company specializing in asset tokenization. According to a company spokesperson, the offer will be regulated by the German BaFin. Black Manta Capital has reported that BaFin had some questions to clarify, but then confirmed the project. Initially, only German and Austrian investors will be able…

Bitcoin/USD daily basis Bitcoin USD – Range between 6’500 and 7’000 USD The Bitcoin price tested the zone below USD 7,000 at the beginning of the reporting week. Already on Monday there was a downward movement to just under USD 6,500. However, the price recovered to over USD 6,800 on the same day. On Wednesday the next detour to 6,500 USD took place and on Thursday another attempt to bring the price below 6,500 USD was clearly rejected. As a consequence, higher daily lows and highs followed over the next 3 trading days, which in turn brought the price…

If your bank account was compromised during a hacker attack, your bank can “easily” refund the money you have lost. However, if your crypto wallet has been hacked and your bitcoins have been sent to the wrong address, your bitcoins are permanently lost. The reason for this is that most cryptocurrencies are not controlled by a central authority. As a result, there is a great need for secure custody solutions for bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies. One of the most common ways to protect your bitcoins from attackers is to sign transactions using hardware wallets, where the signing process takes place…

For a long time it was quiet around the planned stable coin social media company Facebook. Now the Geneva-based Libra Foundation is back with a revised whitepaper and a FINMA application for a licence to be considered payment system. As can be seen from the announcement on the Association’s blog, the project wants to support central banks in the future, in their development of central bank digital currencies (CBDC’s). Efforts are being made to bring blockchain technology inline with recognized regulations. The updated white paper provides an overview of the categories of network participants, including virtual asset service providers (VASP’s).…