Gibraltar Set to Provide License to Blockchain Firms

The British overseas territory of Gibraltar is set to regulate the booming Blockchain Blockchain Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others. Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamper with. The Evolution of BlockchainBlockchain was originally invented by an individual or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The purpose of blockchain was originally to serve as the public transaction ledger of Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.In particular, bundles of transaction data, called “blocks”, are added to the ledger in a chronological fashion, forming a “chain.” These blocks include things like date, time, dollar amount, and (in some cases) the public addresses of the sender and the receiver.The computers responsible for upholding a blockchain network are called “nodes.” These nodes carry out the duties necessary to confirm the transactions and add them to the ledger. In exchange for their work, the nodes receive rewards in the form of crypto tokens.By storing data via a peer-to-peer network (P2P), blockchain controls for a wide range of risks that are traditionally inherent with data being held centrally.Of note, P2P blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability. Consequently, hackers cannot exploit these networks via normalized means nor does the network possess a central failure point.In order to hack or alter a blockchain’s ledger, more than half of the nodes must be compromised. Looking ahead, blockchain technology is an area of extensive research across multiple industries, including financial services and payments, among others. Read this Term industry - next month it will issue the world’s first license to fintech firms which are working on the development of distributed ledger technology.

This will attract blockchain firms to the peninsula, as the presence of regulatory rules will ensure their security.

At present blockchain-based firms are emerging all around the world but no countries are acknowledging them with specific legislation. So firms have to find some loophole in the rule book and registering as a firm in some other sector.

For example, in Japan, cryptocurrency exchanges are registered as e-commerce firms, and traders are considered customers.

Operating in such a manner is risky as the government may crack down on the firms at any time, citing any reason. This has already happened in China, where the government banned all cryptocurrency exchanges within its borders.

Countries like the US and Japan have specific rules regarding cryptocurrency exchanges, but none of them regulate the industry.

On Friday, the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) will publish a detailed guideline describing the laws applicable to all blockchain-based firms within the territory. These new laws will come into effect from January 1st, 2018.

As quoted by Reuters, the GFSC’s head of risk and innovation, Nicky Gomez, said: “This is the first instance of a purpose-built legislative framework for businesses that use blockchain or distributed ledger technology.”

“Many firms have been craving for a jurisdiction to regulate them,” Mr. Gomez added.

Blockchain technology has huge potential to revolutionize the financial sector. Banks all over the world are researching the feasibility of integrating the nascent technology into their infrastructures.

New York-based blockchain startup R3 has partnered with over 100 banks and financial institutions across the world to research and develop its own blockchain, called 'Corda', to ease the worldwide financial services.

Banks in South Korea and Japan also partnered with US blockchain-development firm Ripple Ripple Ripple was co-founded by Jed McCaleb and Chris Larsen and was debuted in 2012 as both a digital disbursement network and a pre-mined digital coin denoted as XRP. Possessing less market cap than both Bitcoin and Ethereum, Ripple ranks as the third-largest cryptocurrency.Its dual open-source and peer-to-peer (P2P) decentralized platform whose network is capable of working with any form of money such as GBP, Ethereum, Yen, etc. What is Ripple Used For? Known as a gateway, participants of Ripple may send and receive currencies to public digital address codes through the Ripple network. You can think of a gateway as a payment intermediary for Ripple. Serving as a bridge currency, XRP allows for a seamless exchange of any currency (fiat or cryptocurrency) due to each currency possessing its own gateways such as BitPay, CoinsBank, Blockonomics, and CoinGate. Unlike Bitcoin, the Ripple network does not support proof-of-work (PoW) or proof-of-stake (PoS) systems. Instead, a consensus protocol is employed to authenticate and verify that each transaction and account balance match.This ensures the integrity of the Ripple network while lessening the risk of double-spending, all while these confirmations take no longer than 4 seconds to complete.Ripple’s IOU gateway is similar to the traditional banking systems, where contractual obligations are upheld while the potential of transactions defaulting is a constant variable with counter-party risk. Coincidentally, banks are said to be increasing their usage of the Ripple payment system while its market cap shows evidence of its value and demand. All transactions performed over the Ripple network are logged and may be seen on the Ripple consensus ledger. For trading, XRP is generally traded in the form of CFDs. Ripple was co-founded by Jed McCaleb and Chris Larsen and was debuted in 2012 as both a digital disbursement network and a pre-mined digital coin denoted as XRP. Possessing less market cap than both Bitcoin and Ethereum, Ripple ranks as the third-largest cryptocurrency.Its dual open-source and peer-to-peer (P2P) decentralized platform whose network is capable of working with any form of money such as GBP, Ethereum, Yen, etc. What is Ripple Used For? Known as a gateway, participants of Ripple may send and receive currencies to public digital address codes through the Ripple network. You can think of a gateway as a payment intermediary for Ripple. Serving as a bridge currency, XRP allows for a seamless exchange of any currency (fiat or cryptocurrency) due to each currency possessing its own gateways such as BitPay, CoinsBank, Blockonomics, and CoinGate. Unlike Bitcoin, the Ripple network does not support proof-of-work (PoW) or proof-of-stake (PoS) systems. Instead, a consensus protocol is employed to authenticate and verify that each transaction and account balance match.This ensures the integrity of the Ripple network while lessening the risk of double-spending, all while these confirmations take no longer than 4 seconds to complete.Ripple’s IOU gateway is similar to the traditional banking systems, where contractual obligations are upheld while the potential of transactions defaulting is a constant variable with counter-party risk. Coincidentally, banks are said to be increasing their usage of the Ripple payment system while its market cap shows evidence of its value and demand. All transactions performed over the Ripple network are logged and may be seen on the Ripple consensus ledger. For trading, XRP is generally traded in the form of CFDs. Read this Term to test the cross-border payment system.

With all these advancements, Mr. Gomez is expects that blockchain firms, probably numbering in the double digits, will seek the authorization of the regulated jurisdiction.

Sian Jones, a senior advisor to the Gibraltar government and regulator on DLT, said: “We have been talking with law firms and advisors helping companies to get established here,” according to Reuters.