Decreasing relevance has consumers straying to bank alternatives, states Earnst & Young
British multinational professional services firm, Ernst & Young (EY), recently published its Bank Relevance Index (BRI). The data shows how banks’ "decreasing relevance has consumers straying to bank alternatives."
Moody’s new report identifies 25 top blockchain use cases, from a list of 120
Moody's Investors Service (MIS) recently released a detailed report that names 120 blockchain projects being explored by various companies. The bond credit rating business then offers 25 top use cases for blockchain technology.
Banks abandon the Caribbean, local bitcoin exchange experiences 33% increase in users every month since February
Smaller, poorer countries are being abandoned by big banks in an exodus commonly referred to as “de-risking” or “de-banking.” In the Caribbean, where many small countries with poorer populations reside close to each other, the problem is getting so bad that local businesses regularly have a hard time receiving remittances and paying suppliers outside of their own country, even when their trading partner is just the next island over.
JPMorgan Chase urges asset managers to adopt blockchain
JPMorgan Chase & Co, and an international management consulting firm, Oliver Wyman, recently released a guide encouraging blockchain technology adoption amongst asset managers: “The report is designed to serve as a guide to how the technology may evolve, the impact it may have on asset managers and the action they can take.”
Bain & Company urges banks to take action on distributed ledgers
Bain & Company recently published a 12-page brief about blockchain technology, “Distributed Ledgers in Payments: Beyond the Bitcoin Hype,” authored by four employees based in London.
UK Government pilot uses blockchain tech for welfare distribution
The UK Government recently unveiled that it is undergoing a blockchain technology pilot to implement “social welfare payments distribution trial for UK’s Department for Work and Pensions.” If the trial is successful, the underlying technology could be useful for everything from tax collection to sharing health records, according to a government report released in January.
Seafile accepts bitcoin after Paypal shenanigans
The open source cloud storage firm, Seafile, has dropped their primary payment processor, Paypal, and started using bitcoin as their preferred payment option.
Ukraine to use blockchain technology in curtailing corruption when selling government assets
The Minister of Finance for the Ukraine, Oleksandr Danilyuk, was a speaker at the sold-out ‘Blockchain Incredible Party’ conference ([BIP001](http://bip001.com/)) which took place Thursday in Odessa, Ukraine. In his speech, Danilyuk gave his vision for Ukraine as the leading nation in blockchain technology use, showcasing it for public service management and improving government efficiency and transparency.
50 shades of blockchain
I’ve written about Bitcoin and blockchain for half a decade, and now banks are all talking about it too. There is a belief that the blockchain technology that came from the Bitcoin structure could revolutionise banking.
Mediachain adds integrity layer to online content
We live in an age where online content often has no attribution attached, from songs to cat gifs and HD movies. Sharing content has become so ubiquitous and easy that ownership information can be quickly lost and hard to track. It then becomes effortless to replace that information, compounding the problem further.
Blueshyft and Bitcoin Australia partner to sell bitcoin over the counter at 1,200 newsagency shops
Access to bitcoin in Australia became far easier today, as a Melbourne-based startup, Bitcoin Australia, teamed up with one of the largest retail networks in Australia, Blueshyft. Anyone with some cash, a phone number, and an email address, can now purchase bitcoins over the counter at more than 1,200 retail locations. The process takes less than 30 minutes, using iPad-based terminals at newsagency shops nationwide.
For all the talk about blockchain, what is really happening?
There is a lot of talk about blockchain. A lot. Loads. But when you get past all the talk, what is actually happening with blockchain? Answer: not enough. I say this because there are some stand out firms out there – like R3, Digital Asset Holdings, Ripple – who have gained traction with the banks, but the banks are still unsure of their commitment to blockchain developments. Talking with several, they see their commitment was funding these firms to do the work for them. Now that they have funded, they feel that’s it.
For all the talk about blockchain, what is really happening?
There is a lot of talk about blockchain. A lot. Loads. But when you get past all the talk, what is actually happening with blockchain? Answer: not enough. I say this because there are some stand out firms out there – like R3, Digital Asset Holdings, Ripple – who have gained traction with the banks, but the banks are still unsure of their commitment to blockchain developments. Talking with several, they see their commitment was funding these firms to do the work for them. Now that they have funded, they feel that’s it.
Ethereum New Zealand Conference to expand blockchain understanding in the business world
The Ethereum conference, “The Blockchain - Disrupting Global Commerce: Understanding the Blockchain, Smart Contracts and Ethereum,” is taking place on May 17 in Auckland and continuing on May 19 in Wellington, New Zealand. It’s got an exciting lineup of speakers to talk about Ethereum, and It’s hosted by an offshoot of New Zealand-based web, mobile, and Internet of Things development company, 3months. The company offers a range of smart contract services including consulting, training, prototyping, and deployment.
Four genuine blockchain use cases
Almost a year after first releasing MultiChain, we’ve learnt a huge amount about how blockchains, in a private and non-cryptocurrency sense, can and cannot be applied to real-world problems. Allow me to share what we know so far. To begin with, the first idea that we (and many others) started with, appears to be wrong. This idea, inspired by bitcoin directly, was that private blockchains (or “shared ledgers”) could be used to directly settle the majority of payment and exchange transactions in the finance sector, using on-chain tokens to represent cash, stocks, bonds and more.
Ethereum New Zealand Conference to expand blockchain understanding in the business world
The Ethereum conference, “The Blockchain - Disrupting Global Commerce: Understanding the Blockchain, Smart Contracts and Ethereum,” is taking place on May 17 in Auckland and continuing on May 19 in Wellington, New Zealand. It’s got an exciting lineup of speakers to talk about Ethereum, and It’s hosted by an offshoot of New Zealand-based web, mobile, and Internet of Things development company, 3months. The company offers a range of smart contract services including consulting, training, prototyping, and deployment.
