Summary:
- UNICEF invests $100k in 6 blockchain startups
- PBoC Deputy Governor calls security coin offerings (STOs) as “illegal financial activity”
- Canada’s large city launches its own digital currency
Tuesday’s trading in the cryptocurrency market has begun on the wrong foot as a majority of major cryptocurrencies has experienced falls. Bitcoin (BITCOIN on xStation5), the largest virtual currency, and ETHEREUM (ETHEREUM on xStation5), the third largest cryptocurrency, have moderately decreased. However, Ripple (RIPPLE on xStation5), which is between Bitcoin and Ethereum measured by market cap, has remained almost unchanged. The capitalization of the whole cryptocurrency market sits around the $110 billion mark.
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Bitcoin is still trading around the $3400 handle which may be another technical obstacle for this cryptocurrency. Source: xStation5
UNICEF invests $100k in blockchain startups
UNICEF announced that it had chosen six blockchain startups and would invest $100 thousand in them to “solve global challenges using blockchain technology”, as the UNICEF’s press release reports. The companies, called Atix Labs, Onesmart, Prescrypto, Statwig, Utopixar and W3 Engineers, are selected from more than 100 applications across 50 countries. All of them are based in emerging economies - Mexico, Argentina, India, Tunisia, Bangladesh. These blockchain startups will be focused on “building prototypes and systems for global problems like transparency in health-care delivery, affordable access to mobile phone connectivity, and the ability to direct finances and resources to social-impact projects”, as UNICEF reports.
The $0.30 handle has seemed to be a key level for Ripple in recent days. Source: xStation5
PBoC’s official warns against security token offerings
The People’s Bank of China (PBoC), a Chinese central bank, banned officially securities token offerings on Saturday, according to the South China Morning Post. Pan Gongsheng, PBoC’s Deputy Governor said that “the STO business that has surfaced recently is still essentially an illegal financial activity in China”, as the mentioned source cited his remarks reported by China Central Television. A security coin offering (STO) is a type of an initial coin offering (ICO) backed by tangible assets, for example, assets or profit of a company.
Litecoin (LITECOIN on xStation5) has experienced some losses thus far today. Source: xStation5
Calgary launches its own cryptocurrency
Calgary, a large Canadian city, has created its own digital currency and it has become the first city in Canada having its own virtual money. It was announced by the finance minister of Alberta, a Canadian province, on Friday, as Global News reports. The cryptocurrency, dubbed as Calgary Canadian Dollar, will operate exclusively in the City of Calgary. The idea of the city’s cryptocurrency is a part of the broader initiative focused on small businesses and nonprofits in Calgary.
