R3 Doubles London Office Size in Anticipation of Growing Branch

R3 is doubling the size of its London branch in anticipation for over forty new hires by the start of 2020, as the CEO predicts a prosperous post-Brexit environment.

New York-based enterprise software firm R3, known for its enterprise blockchain platform Corda, has doubled the size of its London Wall office. Business intelligence firm Mondo Visione reported on the company’s new hiring goals on Aug. 1.

According to the report, R3 has increased the size of its London branch as partial accommodation for the company’s intended 85 global hires by the end of 2019. Out of the 85, over half are intended to be installed in the company’s London office. R3 is reportedly primarily recruiting software engineers, but will also onboard some commercial and client-facing professionals.

Additionally, the report states that the London expansion is a cornerstone of R3’s rapid growth plans. The company reportedly is seeking to add a new engineering center by early 2020, and is currently mulling over the best location for its new building. R3 is reportedly scheduled to announce the location some time in the coming months.

According to R3 CEO David E. Rutter, the United Kingdom’s impending departure from the European Union will position London in a favorable economic position:

“There is enormous opportunity for London post-Brexit. While there clearly remain some uncertainties, we believe the city is well placed and established to thrive in the coming years. That’s why we are confident in making this substantial long-term commitment now. 

Three years after Britons voted to leave the EU, Brexit has still not been accomplished as the Parliament has failed to reach any substantive agreement. In May, the President of the European Council Donald Tusk predicted a 20-30% chance of it being cancelled outright, while Business Insider states that a Scottish court could rule out Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s plan to suspend Parliament and force a deal through.

R3 blockchain in Brazil

As previously reported by Cointelegraph, R3 has moved to develop a blockchain platform in Brazil as of June. More specifically, R3 has partnered with the banks Bradesco, Itau and B3 stock exchange to build a platform for foreign trade and insurance. R3 executives apparently shared the news at an R3 Consortium meeting, the members of which are from large banks and tech companies. The consortium has also said that the Brazilian stock exchange is currently using R3’s signature Corda platform for digital identification.

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Coinbase CEO Armstrong Thinks Crypto Is the Path to Financial Inclusion

“Coinbase can’t do it alone, there needs to be thousands of companies out there," said Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.

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Blockchain Browser Brave Launches Token Tipping Service for Twitter Users

The blockchain-based browser Brave has moved from testing to public launch for its Twitter token tipping service.

The blockchain-based decentralized internet browser Brave now allows Twitter users to tip content creators with its native Basic Attention Tokens (BAT).

Brave discussed the public launch of its token tipping service in an announcement on Aug. 1, wherein users can reportedly specify the amount they wish to tip a given Twitter account, and the recipient will receive their tip in BAT directly. 

The announcement also lists a number of features associated with the tipping service, including setting up regularly recurring tips as well as a mechanism for Tweeting at a tipped creator to tell them how to claim their donation. 

Brave began testing its Twitter tipping service in May on its testing and development browser version called Brave Nightly.

As detailed in the announcement, the new feature comes as new in-browser offering via Brave Rewards. Users who have opted into Brave Rewards will now see a tip option on Twitter posts when viewing Twitter through their Brave desktop browser. Brave Rewards also supports tipping on YouTube and Twitch, and will reportedly be coming to Reddit, GitHub and Vimeo.

Brave Rewards users can also earn the token by watching privacy-preserving ads or through traditional purchases. 

At press time, BAT has a market capitalization of over $302 million and is trading at $0.237, down 3.4% on the day, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Content creation and crypto

As previously reported by Cointelegraph, the blockchain organization Props recently received approval from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission to offer its token under Regulation A+. Props is an Ethereum-based token that is designed to be easily implemented in external applications for rewards. The first app on the Props network is reportedly YouNow — a streaming service that now offers token rewards in exchange for streaming.

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Brazilian Cryptocurrency Brokerage Wins Lawsuit Over Closed Bank Account

A Brazilian cryptocurrency brokerage has won a lawsuit against a bank that closed its account due to purported concerns about fraud.

Brazil-based cryptocurrency brokerage M Intermediação e Prestação de Serviço Ltda. has won a lawsuit against Banco Bradesco, which was initiated after the bank closed M Intermediação’s account.

Cointelegraph Brazil reported the legal victory in a report on August 1. According to the report, M Intermediação uses the Bitcoin network as well as traditional bank accounts to let their users make deposits and withdrawals in both Bitcoin (BTC) and Brazilian reals.

The Banco Bradesco decided to block the brokerage’s account in 2018, claiming that their security system detected unusual activity. The bank subsequently blocked the account in order to prevent alleged fraud.

The presiding judge reportedly did not find any evidence that would substantiate Bradesco's claims, and so ruled that Bradesco must keep M Intermediação account open.

Crypto vs banks: South American lawsuits in 2018

As previously reported by Cointelegraph, the bank Santander similarly lost a lawsuit— and subsequent appeal — brought by a Brazilian crypto company who complained that its bank account had been closed without cause.

The crypto company in question was the cryptocurrency exchange Mercado Bitcoin, who also filed its suit in 2018. Santander argued that it froze the exchange’s account due to concerns about the origins of the funds the exchange was depositing.

Elsewhere in South America, three Chilean crypto exchanges filed complaints with an appeals court over their accounts being frozen in 2018. The banks Itau Corpbanca and Scotiabank in particular had locked the accounts for the exchanges BUDA and CryptoMKT, while the public bank Banco del Estado de Chile had frozen Orionx’s account alongside BUDA’s and CryptoMKT’s.

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Dow Futures Bounce After Stock Market’s Biggest Selloff in Months

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures rose on Thursday after the stock market’s worst day in months. The recovery comes as traders search for nuance in the Federal Reserve’s landmark rate cut on Wednesday, the first in a decade. Dow sell-off triggered by disappointing Fed policy The Dow Jones ended Wednesday more than 300 points […]

The post Dow Futures Bounce After Stock Market’s Biggest Selloff in Months appeared first on CCN Markets

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Malta Business Registry Will Adopt Blockchain, Gov’t Official Confirms

A Maltese government official announced that the nation’s business registry will employ blockchain technology.

Junior Minister for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation in the Government of Malta Silvio Schembri announced that the nation’s business registry (MBR) will employ blockchain, local financial service firm Zeta reports on July 31.

First blockchain-based government agency?

Per the report, when making his remarks at the Prime Minister Dr. Joseph Muscat’s inauguration of the new premises of the MBR on June 28, Schembri also claimed that the initiative will create the first government agency to be run on a blockchain-based system and artificial intelligence. 

The news has been seemingly confirmed by the official account of the Italian-Maltese Chamber of Commerce, which has published a link to the article.

Less bureaucracy, more transparency

According to a report by local news outlet Malta Independent, Schembri further explained that the goal is to increase the system’s efficiency and lessen unnecessary bureaucratic procedures through an extensive investment in information technology. The new MBR will also allegedly allow for new services that were previously not possible.

The country’s prime minister Dr. Muscat reportedly said during his inaugural speech that the development complements the broader modernization process that the Malta Financial Services Authority started.

As Cointelegraph illustrated in the second part of its documentary dedicated to the place now known in the industry as the “blockchain island” published earlier this month, Malta is becoming the global capital of blockchain-based developments.

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Bitcoin Price on the Rise After First Fed Rate Cut Since 2008

Bitcoin has eked out moderate gains amid the U.S. Federal Reserve’s announcement of its first rate cut in over a decade.

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