Major Stablecoin Basis to Close, Return Funds to Investors: Sources
Major United States-based stablecoin project Basis will shut down operations and return most of its funds to investors, crypto news outlet The Block reports today, Dec. 12.
Stablecoins are Beginning to See Traction Outside of Crypto Exchanges
According to statistics published in Diar, stablecoins have seen more than 1000% increased transaction activity on-chain since September. This is not to speak to the massive volume at which they are traded internally on crypto exchanges, which numbers in the several billions per day.
Top Stablecoin May Shut Down Due to Regulation, What Went Wrong?
"The problem the project may have faced with regulators in the U.S. market, which still remains unknown, is that there is no tangible evidence to prove that the asset’s 1:1 peg with the U.S. dollar can be maintained."
Basis Stablecoin Confirms Shutdown, Blaming 'Regulatory Constraints' - CoinDesk
"Basis, the most well-funded stablecoin startup, has confirmed that it is shutting down and returning all of its remaining funds to investors."
Basis | A stable, algorithmic cryptocurrency protocol
"Unfortunately, having to apply US securities regulation to the system had a serious negative impact on our ability to launch Basis."
It turns out “bond tokens” and “share tokens” might just be classed as securities | FT Alphaville
"Basis is closing down. The reason? Regulators appear to have told them that “bond tokens” and “share tokens” are a bit like “bonds” and “shares” and need to be treated as such. (God knows why.)"
BitUSD Divorces Wildly From $1 Target
"The global downturn in cryptocurrency prices has likely played a big role in the devaluation of the BitUSD token. In order to effectively redeem tokens for a dollar’s worth of cryptos, the cryptos held in the BitShares contracts must hold a value that enables them to do so."
This Brazilian Bank Is Using Ethereum to Issue a Stablecoin - CoinDesk
"A state-owned bank in Brazil is about to issue a crypto token designed to maintain parity with the national currency. The Brazilian National Social Development Bank will launch a pilot in January 2019 for the BNDES token, which runs on the ethereum blockchain and is backed 1-for-1 by Brazilian real. The bank has been experimenting with the stablecoin throughout 2018 and will now use it for tax-deductible contributions to cultural institutions."
Are Crypto-Collateralized Stablecoins Ticking Bombs?
Crypto-Mystery Clues Suggest Tether Has the Billions It Promised - Bloomberg
As Tether grew into a multibillion-dollar engine of the cryptocurrency market, skeptics kept warning that the digital coin, whose main selling point is that it’s pegged to the dollar, wasn’t actually backed by an enormous pile of cash. Bank statements reviewed by Bloomberg News suggest those fears may be unfounded.
Facebook could be building a cryptocurrency for WhatsApp
Facebook Inc. is working on making a cryptocurrency that will let users transfer money on its WhatsApp messaging app, focusing first on the remittances market in India, according to people familiar with the matter
Mongolia Issues First Digital Currency License to Local Telecom Operator
"Now licensed as a state-approved financial instrument, Mobicom’s virtual currency — dubbed “Candy” — is considered a “non-cash payment instrument” whose value is pegged to Mongolia’s fiat currency, the tugrik."
Stablecoins | Allen & Overy LLP - JDSupra
"In this publication we not only provide an overview of the main stablecoin models, but we also explore the potential advantages of stablecoins and discuss how these need to be balanced against regulatory and policy goals covering matters such as consumer protection, financial services regulation, market integrity and financial crime."
A stablecoin for the Singapore dollar just launched. Here’s what it’s about
"Against this backdrop comes the launch of the first Singapore dollar-backed stablecoin called SGDR (short for “Singapore dollar rate”). Created by the team behind blockchain startup Rate3, which raised US$15 million in an initial coin offering, SGDR is “a 1:1 Singapore dollar-backed stablecoin, guaranteeing users full redeemability for Singapore dollars on demand,” according to the FAQ."
Stablecoin Issuers May Need Licenses in Texas, Unlike Most Crypto Startups - CoinDesk
"Stablecoins may qualify as “money” under Texas law, according to updated guidance from the state Department of Banking. A memo published Wednesday by Texas Banking Commissioner Charles Cooper outlines how cryptocurrencies are to be treated under local and federal regulations, in particular adding details of how stablecoins backed by sovereign, or fiat, currencies may be assessed. The guidance builds upon a previous memo released by the state in 2014, which described how cryptocurrency companies with operations in Texas should treat the nascent asset class."
Why Facebook’s Stablecoin is Good News for Crypto | AIER
"The minor inconveniences faced by WeChat’s payment system, multiplied by a billion, make clear why Facebook is interested in entering not just the payment system business but the crypto business as well. Imagine the daily flow of payments that users could make in the full Facebook/WhatsApp ecosystem. Initially focusing on a single use case like remittances is likely good business strategy, but shopping, transfers between friends, games, and native apps may be next."
Japan: Regulators Approve Startup’s Bitcoin Sidechain Trial for Exchanges
"The product, dubbed Settlenet, uses Liquid as part of an arrangement allowing exchanges to issue yen-pegged stablecoins and trade against Liquid Bitcoin (L-BTC), Blockstream’s sidechain. The feature also makes use of so-called ‘atomic swaps,’ the ability to make cross-blockchain transactions without manually converting assets."
Signature Bank Unveils Proprietary Digital Payments Platform, Signet™ | Signature Bank
"The Signet Platform will leverage blockchain technology in its architecture, allowing Signature Bank’s commercial clients to make payments in U.S. dollars 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. The Signet Platform will be open to all commercial clients effective January 1, 2019 at 12:01 A.M. Eastern Time, and can be accessed then at www.signet.com. Transactions made on the Signet Platform settle in real time, are safe and secure, incur no transaction fees, and require a minimum account balance of $250,000. Typically, in the case of real-time payments, funds are transferred between two different institutions. With Signet, funds are transferred in real-time between commercial clients of Signature Bank, eliminating any dependence on a third party."
Signature Launches Institutional Payments Using Permissioned Ethereum Blockchain
"Commercial bank Signature Bank is launching a new payments platform for institutional clients powered by a permissioned version of the ethereum blockchain. Developed in partnership with trueDigital Holdings in New York, the Signet Platform lets Signature Bank clients move money in 30 seconds, 24-hours a day, seven days a week by converting U.S. dollars into tokens compliant with ethereum’s ERC-20 standard."
Bitcoin's Liquid Sidechain Welcomes Japanese Yen Stablecoin - Bitcoinist.com
Blockstream has announced Crypto Garage, a joint venture with Digital Garage and Tokyo Tanshi, to serve the Japanese Bitcoin market. The partnership will soon launch the Liquid sidechain based SETTLENET suite, the first application of which will be a yen-pegged stablecoin.
Will people ditch cash for cryptocurrency? Japan is about to find out
MUFG, which has also tested its own crypto-token, is far from alone. Mizuho Financial Group, a large holding company, has been experimenting with blockchain technology for several years as part of a project dubbed “J-Coin” and plans to release its own digital currency for retail payments in March. SBI Holdings, a big financial-services firm, says it’s building its own token, also for retail payments, called S Coin.
Digital Garage to Test Yen-Pegged Stablecoin on Blockstream Network - CoinDesk
"An arm of Tokyo-listed internet group Digital Garage is working with bitcoin infrastructure startup Blockstream to test the issuance of a Japanese yen-pegged stablecoin."
Hong Kong Gets its First HKD Backed Stablecoin | Fintech Hong Kong
"itspark, a cryptocurrency money transfer platform, has launched Sparkdex.HKD. The company claims that is the world’s first market-ready cryptocurrency pegged to the Hong Kong Dollar (HKD)."
Maker Price Analysis - A complex stablecoin system » Brave New Coin
"Maker (MKR) is a smart contract platform leveraging Ethereum (ETH) to back and stabilize the value of a stablecoin called Dai (DAI). The MKR token circulating supply is currently 728,228, generating a market cap of US$285 million, with US$591,000 traded in the past 24 hours."
South Korean Fintech Firm Launches ‘First’ Won-Backed Stablecoin
"South Korea-based fintech firm BxB Inc. has launched the first supposed stablecoin backed by the Korean won, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph on Jan 29."
Why we don’t rate Tether, TrueUSD and other stablecoins - Weiss Cryptocurrency Ratings
"Stablecoins are simply digital assets acting as proxies for a particular fiat currency. That’s what makes them stable. But it also takes away any semblance of achieving the core mission of cryptocurrencies — to give the people a new form of money only they control."
A Comprehensive Guide to Decentralized Stablecoins – Hacker Noon
A stablecoin is any cryptocurrency whose value is pegged to a single national fiat currency, a collection of fiat currencies, or a basket of goods in a consumer price index. A stablecoin can also be alternatively defined as a cryptocurrency whose value is pegged to the value of one or more financial assets that individually or collectively have a stable value.
A Bitcoin-Backed Stablecoin Has Launched on the Ethereum Blockchain - CoinDesk
"A new token backed one-to-one with bitcoin is now live on the ethereum blockchain. “Wrapped BTC” (WBTC) officially launched its ERC-20 token Wednesday evening. The project was first unveiled in October as a joint initiative between decentralized exchange startups Kyber Network and Republic Protocol, as well as cryptocurrency custody company BitGo. As stated on the project’s website, the aim of WBTC is to bring “greater liquidity to the ethereum ecosystem including decentralized exchanges and financial applications.”"
Ex-Tether Exec Joins Venture Launching Stablecoin Clearinghouse - CoinDesk
"Still in development, the platform – called Stablehouse.io – is aimed to addresses patchy liquidity, stability and accessibility that currently “prevent the stablecoin market from reaching critical mass,” according to an announcement."
Winklevoss Exchange Gemini Shuts Down Accounts Over Stablecoin Redemptions - CoinDesk
Two over-the-counter trading desks say their accounts at Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by U.S. investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, were abruptly closed without explanation over attempts to redeem GUSD, the company’s stablecoin first introduced in September.