Bitcoin traded at a high of $788.49 on Tuesday amid a flight to safety after Chinese stock market jitters - the highest level in 3 years. The previous 2016 high of $781.31 was achieved in the summer when traders prepared for a process known as "halving" – where the rewards offered to bitcoin miners fall,…
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LeapRate Exclusive… LeapRate has learned that Ireland-based FX central clearing provider FXCH, which uses Blockchain to settle FX trades, is trying to raise €8.5 million (USD $9.1 million), at a pre-money valuation of €20 million. FXCH is planning to raise the first €1 million via an Equity Crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs.com. The €8.5 million is…
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Just announced today, global investment banking giant Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) has left the R3 distributed ledger technology consortium it helped to found two years ago, reported by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The multinational finance company was one of nine original members of R3. The consortium however continues to build momentum since its…
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SETL, the London based financial blockchain specialist, has appointed national security expert Martin Clements CMG OBE to its board. SETL was launched in July 2015 to deploy a multi-asset, multi-currency institutional payment and settlements infrastructure based on blockchain technology. The SETL system will enable market participants to move cash and assets directly between each other,…
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Financial innovation company R3 and ten of its consortium member banks have successfully developed a proof-of-concept for a Know Your Customer (KYC) registry that addresses the challenges associated with satisfying regulatory requirements and allows identities to be managed by their owners. BBVA, CIBC, ING, Intesa Sanpaolo, Natixis, Nordea, Northern Trust, Société Générale, UBS and US…
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Clearstream has just announced its October volume report. Despite the thorough Blockchain analysis Clearstream and the whole Deutsche Boerse Group announced earlier today, the highlights last month were: International business Securities deposits were €6,722 billion - just a bit lower (1%), compared to last year. The number of transactions, on the other hand, made a…
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Looking towards the horizon, the FinTech industry is set to be a strong influencing factor on the financial industry. The role that Blockchain may play for example is intriguing – and there’s little doubt that its advantages will potentially be harnessed in the not too distant future. Within a five to ten year timeframe there’s…
Read moreIt was announced today San Francisco & NYC based OTC Exchange Network (OTCXN) closed a fresh Series A funding round for a blockchain-based P2P FX Trading Platform. Figures were not disclosed. Phase one of the rollout will specifically target bank and non-bank market-makers who wish to price directly to retail brokers without Prime Brokerage and other intermediaries…
Read moreCommercial blockchain solutions are rapidly being adopted throughout banking and financial markets, dramatically faster than initially expected, finds two new IBM (NYSE: IBM) studies. 15% of banks and 14% of financial market institutions interviewed by IBM intend to implement full-scale, commercial blockchain solutions in 2017. Mass adoption isn't that far behind with roughly 65% of…
Read moreSeven buy-side and sell side firms, including AB (Alliance Bernstein), Citi, Credit Suisse and HSBC, have collaborated with financial innovation companies R3 and Axoni to explore how blockchain technology could simplify reference data processes. The group, working with R3 and Axoni through the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), recently completed a multi-month proof…
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