Tesla Stock on a Blockchain Offers Hint of Where Crypto's Headed

Organised as a weekly newsletter, it presents an overview of the current international blockchain debate. You may find below a selection of the best ideas from the most influential media.
 

Tesla Stock on a Blockchain Offers Hint of Where Crypto's Headed   A digital exchange opening next week will enable investors to trade in companies including Apple Inc., Facebook Inc. and Tesla Inc. outside of the U.S. even when the stock markets are closed. DX.Exchange, which has offices in Estonia and Israel, will offer digital tokens based on share of 10 Nasdaq-listed companies with plans to expand to the New York Stock Exchange as well as in Tokyo and Hong Kong. Each digital security is backed by one regular share and holders will be entitled to the same cash dividends, even though the companies themselves aren’t involved. The exchange’s virtual stock offering will provide a test of investor appetite for products that seek to improve upon mainstream financial markets by using technology from the world of cryptocurrencies. DX will offer digital stocks, or tokens, based on actual shares bought and held by partner MPS MarketPlace Securities Ltd. The tokens will be based on the Ethereum network, with the amount corresponding to demand on the DX exchange. Digital stocks could hold advantages over traditional shares because they can be traded even when exchanges are closed, and traders can choose to buy fractions of a share. They could also give foreign investors the ability to buy and sell U.S. shares they might otherwise struggle to access. Even though U.S. regulators oversee trading of DX’s initial roster of stocks, Chief Executive Officer Daniel Skowronski said he doesn’t need permission from the Americans to offer this service because DX doesn’t operate there. The company says it’s licensed by the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit with full authorization to operate in the European Union. January 3, 2019 by Alastair Marsh READ FULL ARTICLE https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-03/tesla-stock-on-a-blockchain-offers-hint-of-where-crypto-s-headed

Bitcoin’s Institutionalization: Dates to Watch in 2019   It’s been over a year since the Cboe and CME listed the world’s first bitcoin futures contracts, the first ever bitcoin investment product to hit the legacy market. Both futures went live just before bitcoin peaked at its $20,000 all-time high. Out-the-gate trading for the derivatives reflected 2017’s market mania, and Cboe’s futures alone traded over 800 contracts (roughly $12,000,000 at the time) within the first two hours of their launch. With the creation of these markets, the euphoric anticipation of bitcoin’s debut on Wall Street conjured up delusions of grandeur. The seemingly unstoppable asset, which had transcended all-time high after all-time high with ease all throughout the 2017 holiday season, was on the cusp of receiving its largest flush of capital yet. Cue 2018 and the bear. Now, bitcoin is down about 80 percent from its all-time high. Its introduction into mainstream institutional markets obviously did not send us to a new paradigm, and some in the community even believe that the futures invited the opposite effect — that they were the cause of the crash. 2018 was not the year of institutionalization that some bitcoin investors hoped that it would be. Instead, it’s been a Sisyphean struggle to give Wall Street an easier in, perhaps best exemplified by the industry’s repeated trial and failure to get an ETF approved by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Still, there are a handful of outstanding deadlines and tentative launch dates that could make 2019 the actual year that bitcoin makes headway in the institutional investment scene. The products related to these deadlines include two futures offerings and VanEck’s long-anticipated bitcoin ETF. For these products, here are some dates to look out for and a brief explanation of how they work. December 31, 2018 by Colin Harper READ FULL ARTICLE https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/bitcoins-institutionalization-dates-watch-2019/

The Secret for a $1 Trillion Crypto Market? Keep Building Earlier this year, the total value of all crypto assets reached an all-time high of over $800 billion, driven by a flood of retail customers looking to capture opportunities in a new market. Although the ecosystem aimed to attract this influx of interest, in reality, it lacked the necessary infrastructure to sustain this magnitude of participation. The industry hit a critical point, where systems were stress-tested and it became clear that the existing model was not refined nor built to scale at such a rapid rate of adoption. The industry wasn’t prepared, and while volumes have sharply declined, the work to develop the ecosystem over the last year has increased dramatically. Within traditional capital markets, there are different systems in place that work together to enable these markets to operate efficiently. The required crypto asset infrastructure diverges from the more traditional model, which has created several pain points within the space. These hurdles have made it challenging for investors – particularly on the institutional side – to enter these markets. While the industry is addressing these nuances, there are several key obstacles to overcome before it is prepared for the next wave of market participation. Crypto asset market structure is extremely fragmented; there are more than 200 unique exchanges and platforms, each offering their own set of products. Exchanges also operate out of different jurisdictions, which yield different rules, requirements and operational standards and guidelines. In addition, there are still questions to be answered around qualified custodians. The solutions that exist are varied and nascent, each offering different services for different coins. There is simply no one-stop solution in place today. The industry also lacks generally accepted standards or best practices around security controls, operations and research and valuation. You have to think about managing your operational risk in a completely different way than in traditional markets – this is the only market in the world where the operational risk is greater than the financial risk. And while research and methodologies continue to improve, people want access to more standardized metrics, analysis and price discovery to understand how to value these assets. And perhaps most important, concerns around regulatory clarity remain as one of the greatest barriers to entry. While regulators have taken important steps to understand these markets and have provided guidance in some cases — bitcoin classified as a commodity, not a security — we still need clearly defined rules of the road. Anyone sitting on the sidelines today is likely waiting on clarity from regulators before even considering operating in these markets. Jan 2, 2019 by Jim Radeck READ FULL ARTICLE https://www.coindesk.com/if-you-built-it-keep-building-preparing-for-a-1-trillion-crypto-market

Zion Market Research Report Explains: Global Blockchain In Energy Market likely to grow to USD 11,899 Million By 2024 Zion Market Research has published a new report. According to the report, the global blockchain in energy market was valued at around USD 208 million in 2017 and is expected to reach approximately USD 11,899 million by 2024, growing at a CAGR of above 78.20% between 2018 and 2024. Blockchain, also know as decentralized ledger technology has no core system or a central server. The authentication of these servers is handled publicly. It helps people to trade energy among themselves. The applications of blockchain in the energy market include payment schemes, grid management, governance risk, and compliance management, energy trading, and supply chain management. The ‘blockchain in energy market’ is developed and will be able to fulfill the increasing power demand across the globe. These new systems are beneficial, as they offer fast and secure transaction at a low cost without involving any conventional intermediates. This, in turn, is likely to drive this market in the future. The power and utility companies are exploring different ways to develop and implement blockchain technology, as it provides efficient ways to record and process data. With this system, customers can have streamlined and accurate access to their bills. It also provides effective access to various energy sources and accurate utilization of the service data. Because of these features, blockchain energy is gaining more popularity in the power sector, and thus, is likely to become the driving technology of the future. However, the lack of a clear set of regulatory standards and uncertainty of the regulatory landscape might hinder the market. Nevertheless, advancements in the international trade and supply chain management are expected to provide many opportunities for the key players working in the global ‘blockchain in energy’ market. The global ‘blockchain in energy’ market is segmented based on type, component, application, and end-user. By type, this market is bifurcated into private and public. The component segment includes platform and services. The application of global blockchain in energy market includes grid management, energy trading, government risk, compliance management, payment schemes, supply chain management, and others. By end-user, this global market is divided into power and oil and gas sectors. In 2017, the power sector dominated the market and is expected to continue the trend over the forecast time period. This can be attributed to the rising demand for renewable energy around the globe. December 27, 2018 by Richard Kastelein READ FULL ARTICLE https://www.the-blockchain.com/2018/12/27/zion-market-research-report-explains-global-blockchain-in-energy-market-likely-to-grow-to-usd-11899-million-by-2024/

Bitcoin Futures Exchange Bakkt Raises $182.5 Million from BCG, Microsoft, Pantera Capital, and Others   Bakkt was launched by the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent firm of the New York Stock Exchange, along with several other influential derivatives and futures bourses to satisfy the institutional interest in cryptocurrencies. Bakkt aims to become a trusted gateway for trading bitcoin-focused financial products. Apart from price speculation, ICE is also looking to facilitate the use of bitcoin in everyday payments and cross-border money transfers. Initially expected to launch in November 2018, Bakkt’s operations were postponed to start in December 2018, and then again to “early 2019” on the count of necessary permissions from regulators such as the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Unlike most crypto-firms, Bakkt did not offer a tokens sale to raise funds. Instead, it followed the traditional venture capital approach with investors bidding their positions in exchange for equity in the business. Some notable stakeholders include Microsoft’s M12 ventures, PayU, CMT Digital, Pantera Capital, and the Boston Consulting Group. The round was completed Dec. 31st, with a total of $182.5 million raised. Few details are available on how equity was divided between the different investors. Bakkt’s “killer app” is bitcoin contracts delivered within one day. Moreover, Bakkt offers a ‘physical’ warehousing option for cold storage, rather than having private keys stored in an exchange cloud server, which tend to have non-transparent security standards. An Active Year for Crypto The project is led by Kelly Loeffler, the former head of communications and marketing at ICE. Under her purview, Bakkt has finalized deals with Microsoft for their cloud services, and Starbucks to enable real-time conversion of bitcoin—allowing for in-store coffee purchases. In a blog post, Loeffler noted 2018 was the “most active year for crypto,” unlike what most amateur investors might think. She added: “This [active year] was evidenced by rising investment in distributed ledger technology and digital assets, as well as by blockchain network metrics such as daily bitcoin transaction value and active addresses. Yet, these milestones tend to be overshadowed by the more narrow focus on bitcoin’s price, which has been seen by some, as a proxy for the potential of the technology.” January 2, 2019 by Shaurya Malwa READ FULL ARTICLE https://cryptoslate.com/bitcoin-futures-exchange-bakkt-raises-182-million-bcg-microsoft-pantera-capital/

 

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