SF Express, the second-largest courier services provider in China, is exploring the use of blockchain to transport critical supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 30, the Global Times — an English-language newspaper within the CPC-owned People’s Daily Group — reported that the Shenzhen-based firm is finding the technology to be beneficial for tracking the provenance and checking the quality of medical goods. While the extent and status of SF Express’ implementation of blockchain is not detailed, it has reportedly “already begun to establish the use of blockchain,” specifically for the transportation of medicines and foods, both of which necessitate …

Roger Ver, the prominent Bitcoin Cash (BCH) advocate and former CEO of Bitcoin.com, appears to think that the world’s reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionate. In a tweet published on March 29, Ver tweeted a screenshot of statistics ostensibly comparing the global COVID-19 death toll with that of other illnesses — including seasonal flu, malaria and traffic fatalities — between Jan. 1 and March 25, 2020. The screenshot was accompanied by Ver’s remark that “if YOU are worried about the coronavirus, YOU should self isolate. Leave the rest of us alone.” Ver notably did not disclose the source of …

The coronavirus pandemic is causing the worst global economic recession among all business sectors since 1929. Advertising and marketing budgets alone could see a $3 billion loss in 2020. Both traditional brands and crypto companies are replacing their high profile ads with low budget posts in an effort to combat the rising pandemic. Crypto industry is taking on the social responsibility Triffic, a free augmented reality game which rewards players with cryptocurrency, is doing their part to promote social distancing among their user base. On March 26, the startup announced on twitter that beta users can now collect limited indoor …

A consortium of Dutch companies has launched the “Tech against Corona” initiative. Participating firms will freely provide the Dutch government with access to innovative technologies that can be used in the fight against COVID-19. Netherlands-based distributed ledger technology (DLT) firm, Tymlez, is one of more than 10 companies who are freely providing their services and technologies to the government. Tymlez’ blockchain platform to bring transparency to medical supply chain Tymlez has offered its blockchain platform as the underlying technology to “model the medical goods ecosystem through a platform that matches supply and demand.” The firm's blockchain will be used to …

The Berkeley Blockchain Xcelerator, an incubator program for distributed ledger technology, or DLT, startups run out of UC Berkeley, has welcomed Snark Health into its spring cohort. Snark Health seeks to combat COVID-19 by “building a framework for data-driven discussions and shared learnings” to enable the “rapid dissemination of information to improve patient outcomes.” Health startup fighting coronavirus joins UC Berkeley blockchain incubator Snarks platform aims to facilitate the sharing of best practices and information regarding the coronavirus pandemic between individuals, non-governmental organizations, and government agencies at local, state, and national levels. Snark’s website states: “There remain many unanswered questions …

Coming every Sunday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week A calmer week for Bitcoin — but price may not return to $10,000 soon Bitcoin remained largely steady in the mid-$6,000s for most of this week but failed to punch through levels above $6,900. Analysts, such as Cointelegraph’s Michaël van de Poppe, have warned BTC isn’t in any bullish market right now, even as global …

Proof-of-stake cryptocurrency platform Algorand has created a global survey intended to compile an open database on the spread, status, and symptoms of the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 27, the company tweeted that its ‘IReportCovid’ survey app will contribute to a global data repository that updates in real-time to inform about pandemic relief efforts. Algorand launches survey to build global coronavirus database In a blog post, Algorand states the initiative seeks to address the lack of real-time data about the pandemic coming from individuals in the community. Survey responses are publicly posted to the Algorand blockchain to allow permanent open access …

Numerous cryptocurrency media outlets have published recent reports asserting that China’s Blockchain Service Network will launch in April 2020. However, these predictions appear to be based on local reports published prior to China’s first official fatality resulting from COVID-19. China’s Blockchain Service Network commences testing in October 2019 On October 15, 2019, Chinese state-operated media outlet, Xinhua news, reported that the country’s Blockchain Service Network, or BSN, had commenced testing. The project’s six-month internal testing phase was initially scheduled to finish at the end of March 2020. The development of the network’s core technologies was then nearing completion, and more …

A team based in Madrid, one of the epicenters of the coronavirus pandemic, has released an Iota Tango platform that helps combat the coronavirus. AidSquad GeoDB is a decentralized peer-to-peer big data sharing ecosystem which returns value to its creators, the users. Luis Gelado, GeoDB CEO and founder shared with Cointelegraph his rationale for creating AidSquad: “Having stayed home for a few weeks, one weekend, I felt a little bored, so I started thinking: we have to do something. We have a chance to develop something for a concrete problem, give back to society”. Source: GeoDB A user inputs his …

The World Health Organization (WHO) has partnered on March 28 with major blockchain and tech companies to launch a distributed ledger technology (DLT)-based platform for sharing data concerning the coronavirus pandemic. The platform, MiPasa, is built on top of Hyperledger Fabric and seeks to enable “early detection of COVID-19 carriers and infection hotspots. MiPasa has been launched in partnership with technology company IBM, computer firm Oracle, enterprise blockchain platform Hacera and IT corporation Microsoft. WHO launches blockchain-based platform to fight COVID-19 The platform purports to facilitate “fully private information sharing between individuals, state authorities and health institutions.” The project cross-references …

The crypto industry is young, and in emerging tech, a handful of companies often lead the charge. For those holding equity in these companies, this is generally considered something to be encouraged. For everyone else, it is not. The recent rise of decentralized finance has been no different, and the company holding the torch is MakerDAO. When market conditions are favorable, these powerful companies can be trailblazers for the industry. However, if they face an existential threat, they can drag the entire sector down with them. To say that the COVID-19 pandemic is a black swan now seems like an …

A number of international blockchain-based solutions have taken up the challenge of preventing further outbreaks in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the most recent country to propose solutions reliant on a distributed database. As reported by the Emirates News Agency on March 25, the UAE’s Ministry of Community Development (MOCD) has begun using digital channels to provide government services. MOCD’s “stay-at-home” priority The MOCD would be relying on the use of digital identity through blockchain-based systems and chat systems for the digital authentication of official certificates and other documents. This removes the need …