Kurt Russell In Movie About Cryptocurrency

Emanuel Adrade
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Kurt Russell In Movie About Cryptocurrency

Kurt Russell joins the cast of a new movie about cryptocurrency…

The popularity of blockchain and cryptocurrencies continue to reach industries outside of technology and finance. The cinema is now included on the list of industries that have been influenced by these new technologies. According to a press release from the Hollywood Reporter, acclaimed actor, Kurt Russell, will star  in an upcoming film focused on the decentralized technologies.

The film, entitled ‘Crypto’, will focus on a US federal anti-money laundering agent who is investigating a case of fraud and corruption invloving cryptocurrencies in New York. Russell will play the father of the aforementioned agent. The film features an incredible cast including Alexis Bledel, Luke Hemsworth, Jeremie Harris, and Vincent Kartheiser. The film will be directed by John Stalberg.

According to Jordan Yale Levine, the producer of the film:

“Digital currencies have captured the attention and imagination of thousands of consumers and entrepreneurs around the world, but it has never been explored in the cinema in such a nuanced and exciting way as with this film.”

The producers have not yet revealed the release date; however, many in the media speculate that Crypto will be the next large-scale production on the world of cryptocurrencies and that its success could be matched to that of the film The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo. It is not the first time that cinema and television are linked to digital financial issues. Since 2016, episodes of series focusing on this theme have been premiered, including: The Big Bang Theory, Mr. Robot, CSI Cyber, NCIS Los Angeles and the popular series, Billions.

 

by Emanuel Andrade

US National Security & Blockchain Technology

Samuel Paz
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US National Security & Blockchain Technology

     The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded the blockchain  project Factom with $193,380 to support the testing of a platform that aims to secure  information from border police cameras and sensors, the Department announced last Friday.

This project seeks to integrate blockchain technology with existing technologies, according to Anil John, Program Manager in the Cyber Security Division (CSD) in the DHS.

“Also, in phase IV, Factom will use its technology in realistic field environments with Customs and Border Protection to understand its possible impacts.”

Factom, a Texas based company, seeks to integrate the information collected by sensors and cameras into a blockchain, which will ensure the information and thus avoid the possibility of being spied on, modified or destroyed. This project will be tested in environments with limited internet access and changing climatic conditions in order to determine their applicability and performance in border patrol scenarios.

The grant awarded by DHS, will be the fourth payment promised to this company in the  framework of their innovation program, which allows companies to apply for up to $800,000 in funds over a period of 24 months. Currently, 23 companies, including Factom, are working on solutions for DHS with the help of these funds, incorporating diverse technologies that point to cyber security in financial systems, global travel evaluation systems, passenger processing sytems and much more.

 

by Samuel Paz

Russian Banks Will Support Investment in Crytpocurrency

Samuel Paz
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Russian Banks Will Support Investment in Crytpocurrency

     Two of the biggest and most high profile banks in Russia plan to support cryptocurrency portfolios for their clients, according to local press reports. Under the supervision of the central bank, Alfa Bank and Sberbank will offer their clients special actions to mop up six of the most important cryptocurrency exchanges in the world,  including Bitstamp and Kraken.

Alfa Bank is considered the largest in the Russia, and Sberbank, is responsible for the most payments processed for public employees, so their entrance in to the world of cryptocurrencies will be both innovative and revolutionary for the nation.

Both banks plan to retain the assistance of the investment fund AddCapital, the National
Settlement Depository and the IB Group.

“We will like to offer our clients a completely transparent way of investing in digital assets, also complying with regulations that allow them to invest in the products that interest them”,

said Sberbank VP, Ana Ivanchuk.

Anton Rakhmanov, manager of Alfa Bank, commented that his goal was to speed up the recognition of digital assets as legitimate and reliable financial currencies as soon as possible.

It should be noted that AddCapital is the same investment fund that recently participated in
the pre-sale of Telegram Tokens, which could revolutionize the business model of this project. In addition, CEO, Alexey Porkofyev, suggested that the investment process will allow investors to buy a portion of the fund.

This portfolio will include 6 of the most popular cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash, with the fund reviewing the coin combination up to 4 times per year, and balancing their proportions using a trading algorithm. Likewise, Porkofyed commented that the shares will be liquid and customers could exchange them for fiat currencies at the time of their preference.

The National Settlement Depository, an important part of the Moscow Exchange Group,
serves as the guardian of operations. It should be noted that launching this portfolio will take about 45 days and the specific dates have not yet been published.

 

by Samuel Paz

India’s Ban On Cryptocurrency Businesses

Samuel Larreal
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India’s Ban On Cryptocurrency Businesses

     Last April, regulated financial institutions in India where forbidden from providing services to cryptocurrency businesses. This came after a statement published by the Reserve Bank of India, which prohibited dealing in virtual currencies. In response to these measures, a group of cryptocurrency businesses turned to the Supreme Court, requesting this decision to be overturned and arguing that the prohibition was,

“arbitrary, unfair and unconstitutional”,

resulting in a hearing which will be held on July 20th. When asked about the measure in a Right to Information (RTI) request, RBI officials confirmed the authority did not establish a committee to determine the risks of cryptocurrency trading nor did it conduct internal research on the subject. The institution refused to answer any questions in detail, if at all, citing a loophole in the RTI act, exempting them from giving out more information.

According to India Times, a panel formed by the government, with the task of “looking into cryptocurrency”, agrees that a straight-out ban is not the right solution.

“The government panel is not in favor of banning cryptocurrency and may suggest  [regulation of] cryptocurrency with riders”,

reported the news outlet. These “riders” come in the form of regulations, which, if put in place, could bring relief to virtual currency investors and businesses in the country, by providing an alternative to the blockade put forth by the RBI.

 

by Samuel Larreal

Michigan Cryptocurrency Regulation

Samuel Larreal
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Michigan Cryptocurrency Regulation

     After the cryptocurrency “boom” of the past few months, many states in the US have found themselves in the need to update their legislatures, in order to make sure any new concepts are properly treated within the law. While many states choose to amend their current legislation, Michigan is taking an unusual approach. The state has decided to define “distributed ledgers” and “cryptocurrency” in its criminal statuses, treating crimes committed with these new technologies just as if they where committed with paper or fiat currency.

There have been 4 bills introduced to this date. The first one, HB6257, would amend the penal code related to fraud and forgery of documents, providing distributed ledgers an equal legal status to legal financial documents, such as promissory notes and deeds. This would result in the same punishment of a 14-year maximum sentence for someone who commits fraud with either distributed ledgers or physical documents.

The next two bills, HB6253 and HB6254, put embezzlement and money laundering with cryptocurrency in the same criminal status of the respective crimes committed with fiat money. Also, both bills offer the following definition of cryptocurrency:

“’Cryptocurrency’ means digital currency in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, and that operates independently of a central bank.”

The last bill, HB6258,  adds cryptocurrency and distributed ledgers to the list of “financial transaction devices”, theft or fraudulent possession of which is a felony and therefore punished by law.

 

by Samuel Larreal

University of Texas is First to Receive Funding From Ripple

Emanuel Adrade
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University of Texas is First to Receive Funding From Ripple

     The University of Texas is one of the first academic institutions to receive funds from Ripple, the company that created the XRP token, which focuses on distributed accounting technology. The donation was made within the framework of the company’s initiative to invest around US $2 million, at the university, in the next 5 years to encourage research on blockchain technology, according to the Daily Texan.

The donation to the University of Texas is part of the $50 million dollars fund that the  company would use to finance university programs throughout the world, such as MIT, Princeton University and 14 other universities.

At the moment, the University of Texas does not have a specific plan for how these funds will be used, according to Cesare Fracassi, a finance professor there who also runs the blockchain program, but did indicate that the funds would serve both for active students and for graduates.

“Not only the business school, but all  branches of the University may Participate,  for example, the medical school expressed interest in conducting research with blockchain,”

said Fracassi.

This relatively new initiative emerged in April of this year, when the school held its first blockchain technology conference with only about 300 participants, according to the professor.

The conference was attended by industry people like: Jim Schneider, fintech researcher from Goldman Sachs; Jason Kelley, member of IBM Global Blockchain Services; Radia Perlman, from Dell; Ryan Gaylor, Director of Corporate Payments from Ripple; and Dave Hirsch, attorney at the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Fracassi announced that they would hold another conference sometime next year aiming, according to their website,

“to support the students and graduates of the school in their research With blockchain, as well as to teach students the main concepts related to This  technology, digital payments  and cryptocurrencies, in addition to facilitate relations with industry and the media.”

 

by Emanuel Andrade

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