Messi Joins New Team, South Korea Cracks Down: Best of the Week
- Catch up on last week's top stories.

Trump notices Bitcoin
In response to increasing mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency, the US Department of Homeland Security is working on new legislation. The new bill appears to be bipartisan, and is designed to criminalise the failure to declare ownership of cryptocurrency assets.
[gptAdvertisement]
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that Bitcoin is being monitored and mentioned in briefings.
Transaction costs
The National Futures Association of the US announced that forex dealers must provide a detailed breakdown of transaction costs to customers whenever they demand the information. Firms will also have to inform their clients about the new rule and make sure that they know and can request the information from their brokerage.
Coffee lightning fast
On Thursday we reported that Bitcoin was used to purchase a cup of coffee from Starbucks via the Lightning Network.
This is news because Bitcoin transactions can take hours to process and feature high transaction fees, making such small purchases unworkable. The Lightning Network could change all this.
IOTA
IOTA surpassed Ripple to become the world's fourth-largest cryptocurrency in terms of market cap, when less than two weeks ago it was in ninth position. The IOTA network has several advantages over other networks, including automatic, instantaneous Payments Payments One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl Read this Term, and the ability to make transactions offline.
Crypto Messi
Lionel Messi is now the brand ambassador of Sirin Labs.
The company produces 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 tampe 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 tampe Read this Term-based products and services mainly aimed at the existing cryptocurrency community. Messi wrote on his Facebook page that he is happy to join the project as an ambassador to “make blockchain more accessible through its next operating system for smartphones!”
The cost of the deal was not disclosed.
South Korea bans Bitcoin derivatives
The Financial Services Commission of South Korea ordered two securities dealers to suspend information seminars on Bitcoin futures.
The foreign exchange industry is tightly monitored in South Korea, and the authorities have stated in the past that Bitcoin is not considered a currency or method of payment in South Korea, but a speculative instrument. The government has been actively discouraging speculation and warned that even school children have been purchasing Bitcoin.
Trump notices Bitcoin
In response to increasing mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency, the US Department of Homeland Security is working on new legislation. The new bill appears to be bipartisan, and is designed to criminalise the failure to declare ownership of cryptocurrency assets.
[gptAdvertisement]
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that Bitcoin is being monitored and mentioned in briefings.
Transaction costs
The National Futures Association of the US announced that forex dealers must provide a detailed breakdown of transaction costs to customers whenever they demand the information. Firms will also have to inform their clients about the new rule and make sure that they know and can request the information from their brokerage.
Coffee lightning fast
On Thursday we reported that Bitcoin was used to purchase a cup of coffee from Starbucks via the Lightning Network.
This is news because Bitcoin transactions can take hours to process and feature high transaction fees, making such small purchases unworkable. The Lightning Network could change all this.
IOTA
IOTA surpassed Ripple to become the world's fourth-largest cryptocurrency in terms of market cap, when less than two weeks ago it was in ninth position. The IOTA network has several advantages over other networks, including automatic, instantaneous Payments Payments One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl Read this Term, and the ability to make transactions offline.
Crypto Messi
Lionel Messi is now the brand ambassador of Sirin Labs.
The company produces 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 tampe 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 tampe Read this Term-based products and services mainly aimed at the existing cryptocurrency community. Messi wrote on his Facebook page that he is happy to join the project as an ambassador to “make blockchain more accessible through its next operating system for smartphones!”
The cost of the deal was not disclosed.
South Korea bans Bitcoin derivatives
The Financial Services Commission of South Korea ordered two securities dealers to suspend information seminars on Bitcoin futures.
The foreign exchange industry is tightly monitored in South Korea, and the authorities have stated in the past that Bitcoin is not considered a currency or method of payment in South Korea, but a speculative instrument. The government has been actively discouraging speculation and warned that even school children have been purchasing Bitcoin.