Japanese credit card issuer JCB

Japanese credit card issuer JCB develops blockchain payment system

The largest credit card issuer in Japan, JCB, has announced a partnership with the technology accelerator TECHFUND to create a blockchain-based payment system.

According to the statement, JCB will apply TECHFUND's STO and staking expertise to create a new blockchain payment platform. The companies also plan to use machine learning for collaborative research.

The technology accelerator TECHFUND is based in Tokyo and, among other things, promotes the ACCEL BaaS program, which aims to accelerate blockchain adoption among startups and enterprises. JCB announced in December that it plans to deploy a new blockchain solution for payments between businesses.

Despite the fact that credit card issuers are wary of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, they are gradually starting to enter the industry. Visa recently filed a patent application for a "digital fiat currency" that will have the advantages of cryptocurrencies, but be issued by a "centralized authority."

Vitalik Buterin: "antitrust services and blockchain have common goals"

Vitalik Buterin urged lawmakers to be more open to blockchain protocols, saying they can help government agencies fight monopoly and anti-competitive behavior.

Ethereum's co-founder has partnered with competition advocate and Harvard University researcher Thibault Schrepel to publish an article titled "Blockchain Code as an Antitrust Tool" that explores how blockchain can help antitrust authorities.

Buterin and Shrepel argue that blockchain and antitrust services "have a common goal" in preventing an apparent centralization of economic power. According to them, antitrust agencies promote decentralization by punishing anticompetitive behavior, like blockchain, which is based on decentralization.

The authors noted that ensuring blockchain prosperity will benefit antitrust authorities. Since anyone can transact on the blockchain regardless of location, the technology can provide a fairer environment in jurisdictions where antitrust enforcement does not exist or is not effective enough.

The article argues that in the short term, antitrust agencies, including the US Fair Trade Commission (FTC), should support the development of technology. For example, create regulatory sandboxes for blockchain companies, where they can develop and operate in the face of weakened regulatory oversight and with fewer regulations.

Schrepel clarified that such initiatives could include reducing oversight of "anti-competitive blockchain applications that are developed in a highly decentralized way," as well as "not overly strict regulation of these blockchains." In the long term, antitrust authorities can help create a new regulatory framework and facilitate the creation of regulatory sandboxes.

Bitcoin Demand Remains High Even After Halving

A study by Cointelegraph Markets and Arcane Research shows that despite investor concerns, demand for bitcoin remains strong even after the miner reward is halved.

Analysts note that over the past year, the number of bitcoin vending machines has increased by 90% to reach 8,000. In addition, according to Coinstar, the use of ATMs has increased by 40% since February this year.

The volume of transactions in bitcoin also continues to increase - on average, transactions in the bitcoin blockchain amount to $ 10 billion per day. For comparison, the volume of transactions in ETH and LTC does not even reach $ 500 million per day.

After halving the reward to miners, the price of the first cryptocurrency increased and now bitcoin is trading at $ 9,400. At the same time, the growth of the first cryptocurrency rate was accompanied by large trading volumes, which is a positive sign.

In addition, interest in Bitcoin continues to grow among both retail and institutional investors. Thus, the number of open positions in Bitcoin options on the CME exchange has increased significantly, and the volume of such positions reached $ 140 million.

The researchers stressed that the popularity of decentralized lending products has also increased markedly.

Qiwi Co-Founder Agrees to Renew TON Investment as Credit

Co-founder of the Russian payment service Qiwi Sergei Solonin agreed to provide a loan to Pavel Durov, writes Forbes.

Solonin is one of the participants in the token sale of the TON blockchain project developed by Durov's company. In 2018, Telegram raised $ 1.7 billion for the development of TON, of which $ 17 was provided by Solonin.

At the beginning of the week, Durov announced the closure of the project, explaining that the American court did not allow to finish what had been started. Not long before that it became known that the company offered investors another deferral on credit terms with the possibility of receiving 110% of the invested funds in a year. Subsequently, American investors were excluded from this proposal - they are only given the opportunity to withdraw 72% of the invested funds.

“I decided to re-register as a loan. Pavel has a smart team, I hope they will come up with something, ”Solonin said in a conversation with the publication.