PRICE CHANGE WTD/YTD
- BTC ($3,754): -17% / -74%
- ETH ($135): -9% / -81%
- LTC ($30): -14% / -86%
- XRP ($0.37): -10% / -81%
- Crypto Market Cap ($128B): -10% / -79%
- BTC dominance: 52%
THIS WEEK IN CRYPTO
- Bitcoin's total trading volume for 2018 surpassed $2 trillion in late November and is expected to reach $2.2 trillion by year-end. It grew by 153% compared to 2017 when total bitcoin volume was approximately $870 billion. Ethereum was the second most traded cryptocurrency, with more than $800 million of trading volume in 2018. Link.
- Estonia is aiming to build a digital government powered by blockchain, in an effort to reduce bureaucracy and increase transparency. As of now, Estonian citizens can vote, access, their medical records, and carry out banking transactions online. Citizens have constant access to their data and can check which government agencies accessed them. The platform is underpinned by a software called X-Road which is a decentralized data exchange system that links databases. Link.
- Crypto mining giant Bitmain is reportedly laying off more than 50 percent of its headcount. The company is reorganizing its core mining operations as well as non-core projects related to blockchain and AI. The news comes months after Bitmain filed for an IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, though news has emerged that the listing is in doubt given the severe market decline. Link.
- Bakkt, the crypto venture founded by Intercontinental Exchange, announced its first round of funding of $182 million to build its platform aimed at driving institutional and merchant adoption in crypto. For 2019 the company has plans to build out new institutional infrastructure, including an institutional grade regulated exchange, and clearing and warehousing services for physical delivery and storage. Investors in the round include BCG, Pantera Capital, Alan Howard, Horizons Ventures, Microsoft's venture arm, and Galaxy Digital among others. Link.
- Crypto exchange Huobi plans to launch an EOS dedicated exchange in the first quarter of 2019. Huobi has been doubling down on efforts to develop EOS and has built a voting platform for the EOS community as well as a test chain for EOS-based projects. Link.
- Bank of America may be eyeing shared networks of ATMs powered by blockchain tech according to a newly filed patent application. The bank is effectively looking to implement "ATM as a Service" to enable customers without existing relationships with a participating financial institution to transfer money across the same ATM network. Bank of America has filed more than 50 blockchain-related patents as of August 2018. Link.
- Italy's Ministry of Economic Development has formed a group of 30 blockchain experts to develop a crypto strategy for the nation, which includes exploring uses cases for both public and private sectors. Earlier this month Italy signed a joint declaration along with six souther EU states saying it would take lead on blockchain in order to transform its economy. Link.
- SEC and state regulators have brought more than 90 cases over the past two years against crypto companies, recovering more than $36 million in investor funds. As the crypto market fell in 2018, the number of cases the SEC filed increased. High profile cases include BitConnect, which was accused of running a Ponzi scheme and AriseBank, which was accused of defrauding investors. Link.
- Visa announced it was acquiring Ripple partner Earthport Plc, a payment network for cross-border transactions, for $250 million. Visa is reportedly working on a blockchain-based digital identity system called "Visa B2B Connect" for cross-border payments, expected to launch in Q1 2019. The system reportedly tokenizes sensitive business data such as banking details and account numbers. Link.
- The Wall Street Journal analyzed white papers of 3,300 ICOs from ICOBench.com, Tokendata.io, and ICORating.com and found that 16% (513) of them showed signs of plagiarism, identity theft, and promises of improbable returns. Link.