The non-custodial crypto wallet solution ZenGo has created an open source project that purportedly provides proof-of-concept (PoC) for its ability to support social media giant Facebook’s virtual currency Libra, according to an official announcement by ZenGo on July 2. According to the announcement, this proof-of-concept project shows that it is possible to perform Libra transactions on the Libra testnet blockchain. However, the findings are limited, as the report cautions: “Obviously, this experiment is only based on a testnet and we will have to explore further once Libra makes its mainnet available. Additionally, there is no user interface in this PoC …

Facebook’s new cryptocurrency project really can boost bitcoin (BTC), new sources, among them a report from equity research platform Seeking Alpha, said this week. Capitalizing on existing theories about the social media giant’s Libra protocol, the brief report suggested that publicity from mainstream consumers will ultimately flow into bitcoin. The collateral attention will only help the bitcoin price and its overall acceptance, particularly in the face of global market uncertainty. “I believe that Libra will allow users to be more inclined to use bitcoin as a peer-to-peer payment system while the uncertainties of the global markets are having investors flock …

Social media giant Facebook has applied for a cryptocurrency business license to use its announced virtual currency Libra in New York, according to a report by Reuters on June 28 New York requires a special license for crypto operations called the BitLicense, which is a product of the state’s finance regulator, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). According to the report, Facebook has also been in contact with regulators in England and Switzerland, presumably to discuss the terms of Libra compliance. Facebook is reportedly aiming to launch Libra by 2020, and a spokesperson for the social media …

Russia will not develop a separate regulation for Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra, according to Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev, Interfax reported on July 1 Moiseev stated that Russia will not introduce separate legislation for Libra as there will be uniform rules for all circulating digital currencies. "No one is going to introduce a ban. A large number of businesses ask when it will finally be possible to legally conduct an ICO [initial coin offering] transparently. This will definitely be regulated, permitted, and that is about it," Moiseev said. Moiseev noted that the issue is whether "cryptocurrency will have approximately the same …

Cyber threat intelligence firm Digital Shadows has discovered over 100 fake domains registered relating to Facebook’s forthcoming stablecoin Libra, the Independent reported on July 1 As of June 19, researchers at Digital Shadows had found over 100 domains registered relating to Libra and several dozen referring to the associated digital wallet Calibra, with some of them containing malicious content. The firm divided the websites into two groups — those impersonating Libra’s official website, and those promoting scams. “Instead of relying on media buzz and hype around the brand, these types of scams instead aim to convince victims that they are …

Facebook has removed ads for a bitcoin (BTC) scam that masqueraded as posts by the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, UAE news site The National reports on June 30 According to the report, a recent scam on social media — dubbed “Bitcoin Loophole” — claimed that Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, personally endorsed a scheme that guaranteed riches within a week through bitcoin trading. The social media giant reportedly deleted the fraudulent posts after thousands of investors handed over personal information and money to criminals based in Ukraine …

The increased penetration of cryptocurrency in the digital payment arena appears to be affecting the landscape of cross-border remittances. Financial institutions and other mainstream establishments are now jostling with blockchain startups for control over an industry that could possibly experience massive growth over the next few years. With more participants comes greater competition and an emphasis on creating the most robust operating technology. To achieve this aim, some players are leveraging their status as giants of their respective mainstream fields while others are pursuing partnerships and collaborations. For historically unbanked and underbanked areas of the world, the emerging landscape is …

Speaking to Cointelegraph at Blockchain Week Rome, Teck Chia, partner at Binance Labs, said that he sees Facebook’s Libra Project at a step forward for crypto and increasing public awareness. In Chia’s own words: “I think having a company like Facebook, with such tremendous reach and distribution, into all different countries around the world – having them be interested in cryptocurrency and launching one is a very very positive thing for our industry. It brings a ton of awareness to people who have never heard of cryptocurrency.” Binance is one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world at present. …

Only 66 stablecoins — 30% of total announced tokens — are actually live and operational, according to a study published by the blockchain research group Blockdata on June 26 The remaining 70% are either still in development or have shut down entirely. Researchers from Blockdata believe that one consequence of this is that 2019–2020 may see a record high of new stablecoins going live, with 119 estimated to launch in 2019. Researchers also examined possible factors may have led to the closure of failed stablecoins. Failed stablecoins, according to the study, tend to be commodity-backed by assets such as gold. …

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is developing a blockchain platform for banking in its R&D branch, according to a report by BusinessLine on June 28 The blockchain platform will reportedly host a number of blockchain applications, and is slated to launch next year. This model platform is reportedly being designed to serve banks; according to the director of The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology, RBI’s R&D branch, the platform is “for blockchain applications for the government in banking.” While RBI appears to be moving into the blockchain industry, it has historically not been keen on cryptocurrencies. …

Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Media, published on June 25 an open letter to Mark Zuckerberg, advising to back Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra with gold. In the letter, Forbes strongly encouraged Facebook’s crypto initiative, emphasizing Libra’s potential to become one of the greatest inventions in the world, which eventually “could replace the U.S. dollar as the global currency.” At the same time, to become “one of history’s truly seminal creations,” Libra has to be backed by gold as a basic condition, Forbes argued in the letter, opposing it to the current Facebook’s plan to back the coin by a …

Goldman Sachs is performing “extensive research” on tokenization, the group’s chief executive told France’s Les Echos newspaper on June 27. David Solomon said he believes global payment systems are heading in the direction of stablecoins — cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat assets such as the U.S. dollar. Although he stopped short of confirming whether Goldman Sachs has had discussions with Facebook about its upcoming libra cryptocurrency and Calibra wallet, Solomon said his corporation finds the concept “interesting.” When asked whether Goldman Sachs will follow JPMorgan Chase in launching its own virtual currency, Solomon said: “Assume that all major financial institutions around …