Crypto weekly is authored by maaria

PRICE CHANGE: WTD/YTD
- BTC ($6,215): -5% / -53%
- ETH ($195): -13% / -73%
- LTC ($52): -9% / -76%
- XRP ($0.42): -11% / -78%
- Crypto Market Cap ($202B): -7% / -66%
- BTC Dominance: 54%

THIS WEEK IN CRYPTO
- Coinbase announced it was adding the 0x protocol token (ZRX) to its

professional trading platform, Coinbase Pro. ZRX is the first ERC-20 token
supported by Coinbase. Coinbase Pro users will be able to trade ZRX/USD,
ZRX/EUR, and ZRX/BTC pairs. The price of ZRX surged 31 percent on the
announcement. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/coinbase-adds-its-first-ethereum-token-to-professional-trading-platform/
.
- Blockchain startup Blockstream launched the Liquid Network, a trading

platform for faster and more secure settlements of digital tokens. The
platform connects exchanges, brokers and financial institutions and
improves liquidity by aggregating volumes. So far 20 companies have signed
up to the network, including Bitfinex, Bitmex and OKCoin. Link
https://www.bloomberg.com/crypto.
- Microsoft is developing two blockchain products designed to give

consumers greater control of their personal data. The first product is
essentially an 'identity hub' which would store user identity information
and require permission for third parties to access it. The second product
is a wallet-like app that would allow users to manage these permissions,
including the option of revoking access. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/microsoft-is-pushing-new-blockchain-id-products-but-theres-pushback-too/
.
- Cryptocurrencies traded down this week, in a move that corresponded

with a significant selloff in global stock markets. Investors have long
debated whether crypto could act as a safe harbor against broader market
declines. Link
https://theblockcrypto.com/tiny/major-cryptocurrencies-crash-along-with-global-stock-markets/
.
- Forbes announced a partnership with Civil, a journalism blockchain

network, to experiment with publishing stories to the blockchain. Civil is
a decentralized ledger that records when things are published and who
published them - eventually the technology can be used by contributors to
publish to various entities across the web. Link
https://www.axios.com/forbes-major-media-company-publish-blockchain-b101f809-7c43-4f68-9b2a-cdb1e81de753.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=twsocialshare&utm_campaign=organic
.
- According to reports the People's Bank of China is looking to recruit

blockchain technology and legal experts as it continues to develop its
central bank digital currency. PBoC is also hiring two experts in finance
and economics to analyze the economic theory and monetary mechanism for
issuing a central bank digital currency. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/pboc-is-seeking-blockchain-talent-to-help-build-its-central-bank-crypto/
.
- Blockstack, the blockchain startup developing Web 3.0, announced

plans to decentralize its structure. The company wrote in a blog post that
it wants to ensure its corporate governance is decentralized, similarly to
how its blockchain platform and app network functions. The company will
create a non-profit foundation, that will begin contributing to the
ecosystem alongside the existing Blockstack PBC and its venture capital
wing, the Signature Fund. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/blockstacks-unveils-plan-to-decentralize-its-corporate-governance/
.
- Gary Cohn, former chief economic aide to President Donald Trump and

president of Goldman Sachs, will serve as an adviser to
blockchain-technology startup Spring Labs. Spring Labs has raised $15
million in seed funding and is using blockchain to allow lenders and data
providers to exchange credit and identity information more efficiently.
Link
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-12/gary-cohn-joins-blockchain-startup-spring-labs-as-adviser?srnd=cryptocurrencies
.
- Christie's, one of the oldest and most noted art auction houses in

the world, announced it would record art sales on blockchain. Christie's is
piloting the technology with blockchain-based digital art registry Artory,
and is expected to test the technology in an upcoming art sale. Artory's
blockchain platform will store data from each sale including the item's
title, description, final price, and date and it will issue a digital
certificate of the transaction. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/leading-auction-house-christies-to-record-art-sales-on-a-blockchain/
.
- Audit giant PWC announced a partnership with decentralized lending

platform Cred to advise on better standards for stablecoin. Cred is working
on its own stablecoin tied to the US dollar. Stablecoins are becoming
increasingly popular, but lack standardization around transparency and
asset reserves. Link
https://techcrunch.com/2018/10/11/with-cred-partnership-pwc-wants-to-help-make-stablecoins-legit/
.
- Coinbase announced it was shutting down its institutional-investor

focused index fund product. Coinbase Index Fund launched earlier this year
and allowed institutional investors to invest up to $20 million in a
market-weighted index fund with bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ethereum, ethereum
classic, and litecoin. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/coinbase-confirms-shutdown-of-crypto-index-fund-product/
.
- Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss Brothers,

announced it was adding Litecoin to its platform. Link
https://www.coindesk.com/gemini-adds-litecoin-trading-with-new-york-watchdog-approval/
.
- Tiberius Group announced it was delaying the sale of its

commodity-backed cryptocurrency until December, blaming high fees from
credit-card processors and an inability to process transactions. Roughly
$15 million of orders were not processed, due to 'restrictions' placed on
credit cards. The cryptocurrency is expected to track a basket of
commodities including copper, aluminum, nickel, cobalt, tin, gold and
platinum. Link
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-27/tiberius-tests-its-metals-in-crypto-backed-by-seven-commodities
.
- Binance announced it would donate all listing fees to its charity,

the Blockchain Charity Foundation, a not-for-profit organization dedicated
to advancing blockchain-enabled philanthropy. The cryptocurrency exchange
often receives fees from companies who want to get their coins listed on
the exchange. The announcement was likely a response to accusations that
Binance had charged as much as $2.6 million for projects to get listed.
Link