Bitcoin (BTC) will likely hit lower levels of up to $6,000 but will avoid bigger losses, the CEO of derivatives giant BitMEX says. In the latest edition of the exchange’s Crypto Digest on March 12, Arthur Hayes joined other trading sources warning that Bitcoin was not safe from current market turmoil. Hayes tells of “intense volatility” Hayes stated that the content of the post should not be republished or reproduced outside of its original location. On Twitter, he described it as “a look into my trader brain during this time of intense market volatility.” In the short term, Hayes thinks …

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group — the second firm to launch Bitcoin Futures in the United States — will close its Chicago trading floor effective March 13 in proactive response to coronavirus being named a pandemic by the World Health Organization. Importantly, trading will still continue per usual. This is simply about keeping 450 traders and trading floor staff out of the same physical space to guard against infection. Financial markets across the U.S. have been severely affected by the outbreak, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1,500 points in 24 hours at the time of writing. Closing trading …

The World Health Organization, or WHO, just officially classified coronavirus as a pandemic. At present, it is unclear whether Blockchain markets will be negatively impacted by this news, or provide safety from the storm. Officially known as COVID-19, the WHO said coronavirus has spread enough globally to warrant classification as a pandemic, CNBC reported on March 11. “In the past two weeks the number of cases outside China has increased thirteenfold and the number of affected countries has tripled,” Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO’s director general, said at a press event, CNBC noted. “In the days and weeks ahead, …

Over 20 banks in Chongqing China have used a trade finance platform powered by blockchain to process over $56 million in foreign trade transactions. It has completed a total $460 million in export trade financing after a year-long pilot program, according to Chongqing Daily’s March 11 report. The blockchain platform reportedly allows stakeholders to verify export receivables, tax documents and credit information automatically, which reduces labor-intensive processes and red tape. Chinese regulators hope to leverage distributed technology to digitize financial data and information and share it instantly and securely. The trade finance blockchain platform has played a key role during …

As equities markets across the globe continue to post hefty losses, Bitcoin (BTC) traders fought to keep the digital asset above the $7,800 support. Less than an hour ago the Dow closed down more than 1,400 points and the S&P 500 posted a 4.89% loss as the World Health Organization officially announced that the Coronavirus is now classified as a pandemic. The WHO announcement was followed by an ominous statement issued before the US Congress by Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. According to Dr. Fauci, the number of COVID-19 viral …

The Blockchain Africa conference kicked off on Wednesday in Johannesburg, South Africa, despite rising concerns about the Coronavirus outbreak. South Africa’s first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed at the beginning of the month. As of March 11, thirteen South Africans have tested positive for the virus. Despite the relatively low infection rate in the country, the South African government has taken a proactive and cautious approach to the virus. They have based their considerations on the dire situation in countries like China and Italy. Nevertheless, the ongoing crisis and travel restrictions have led to some difficulties for Blockchain Africa’s attendees. …

On March 11, the co-founder of decentralized login service provider TorusLabs, Zhen Yu Yong (Zen), tweeted that he had been diagnosed with coronavirus COVID-2019. Zen urged people who may have been in contact with him during the ETHLondon hackathon held from Feb. 28 until March 1, or the Ethereum Community Conference (ECC) held from March 3 to March 5 in Paris, to take “extra precautions and/or get tested.” ECC exempt from French ban on large indoor gatherings The coronavirus threat has impacted several major cryptocurrency conferences in recent weeks, with the Paris Blockchain Week 2020 recently being postponed until Dec. …

Bitcoin (BTC) price took a bullish turn on March 10 as the digital asset surged to $8,150 before encountering resistance, which saw the price temporarily pullback to $7,730. The S&P 500 and Dow followed a similar trajectory by surging at the opening bell before pulling back sharply in the afternoon trading hours. “Unfortunately, a downward trend for now” Both indexes rallied into the close, possibly on the release of additional details about U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to shore up the US economy by extending relief funds to key industries, and a payroll tax to assist workers hurt by COVID-19’s …

Billionaire Jack Ma, owner of payment app Alipay, seeks to lure 44 million merchants to expand services for the app’s 900 million users in everything from real estate purchases to restaurant and cinema bookings, according to a March 10 report by Bloomberg. Alipay is aiming to attract these merchants and service providers in China with mini programs — lite apps that sit on top of its interface and provide quick access to services. Coronavirus has boosted demand for online services Demand for online services has reportedly surged in China since the outbreak of Coronavirus in December. He Yongming, vice president …

Bitcoin (BTC) price has taken another dip below $8,000, dropping 5.11% to $7,728 after touching a daily high at $8,149. The pullback occurred shortly after the New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that a 1-mile containment area of New Rochelle, a suburb of New York City, would be quarantined for at least two weeks. Cuomo also deployed the US National Guard to the area and all schools and public facilities will remain closed as the National Guard will assist with distributing food to those quarantined in their homes. Cuomo described the situation as a “matter of life and death.” …

Amid intensifying fears over the coronavirus, the United States stock market saw another historic day causing whopping losses for the world’s richest people. On March 9, the U.S. stocks experienced another dismal day, with major stock indices like the S&P 500 and Dow Jones plunging more than 7%. This coincided with a major bloodbath in crypto markets, with Bitcoin (BTC) dropping nearly 10% over a day. According to some reports, Monday, March 9 became the worst day for U.S. stocks since 2008. At $6 billion, Bernard Arnault suffered the biggest losses on the day Referred to as Black Monday, the …

Blockchain-based education technology provider Odem has announced it will provide its platform to schools and universities that were disrupted as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. In a press release published on March 9, Odem states it is offering its “online integrated learning platform and certification management system free for use to schools and educators to continue educating students until it is safe to return to campus.” Odem freely offers platform to schools disrupted by coronavirus In an interview with Cointelegraph, CEO and co-founder of Odem Richard Maaghul stated that the coronavirus “is a big concern for us and we …