| The World News , 18 May

The World News Point
📺 18 May 📺

China Ranks Ethereum as the World’s Best Blockchain Network, Bitcoin at #13

"The addition of Steem in the top five rankings of the Chinese government’s blockchain network was unexpected by the community because unlike Lisk and NEO, Steem is not a base layer blockchain technology that can be used to create decentralized applications. Steem is a content distribution platform based on the blockchain with a primary purpose of distributing content. Essentially, Steem is like Reddit based on the decentralized blockchain.

Another surprising addition to its top 10 rankings was Monero at number 9, given that several governments including the Japanese government and its financial services agency (FSA) have expressed their concerns towards cryptocurrencies like Monero and Zcash that are capable of processing anonymous payments that could be associated with money laundering and criminal activities.

The cryptocurrency community was taken aback by the ranking of bitcoin at 13, which was co-ranked with privacy-focused cryptocurrency Verge. The bitcoin community was understandably outraged by the ranking of bitcoin at 13, considering that bitcoin has the longest track record as the most secure and dominant cryptocurrency in the global market.

The argument that bitcoin’s application is limited to a form of money and payment is illogical, as the Chinese government ranked Steem, which has a single application on its blockchain network that is a content distribution platform, as the 2nd best blockchain network behind Steem."

_{Read more:
https://www.ccn.com}

The internet 'needs a native currency' and Jack Dorsey wants to help it be bitcoin

"The CEO, who also runs Twitter, said he's a "huge fan" of bitcoin and appreciates its underlying technology.

Using it or another cryptocurrency as a global currency would lower the barrier for Dorsey's payments company to enter new markets, he said.

"If we were able to use it a currency today, we could release our apps in every app store around the world instead of the five we're in," Dorsey said. Since Square deals with fiat currency, Dorsey said the company has to approach each market differently, find a unique banking partner, and work with different regulators depending on the country.

Square launched cryptocurrency trading through its Cash app in January.

The payments processing company said it sold a total of $34.1 million in bitcoin in the first quarter. Square spent $33.9 million to buy bitcoin to allow people to trade it through its Cash mobile payments app. As a result, adjusted revenue from bitcoin was just $200,000.

Square's mobile payment app is growing faster than PayPal's Venmo and is getting an added boost because it allows transactions in bitcoin, according to Nomura Instinet."

_{Read more:
https://www.cnbc.com}

E-Commerce Giant Alibaba's Jack Ma Says Blockchain Is Not a Bubble, Bitcoin Is

"Jack Ma, the founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, spoke out at the 2nd World Intelligence Conference in Tianjin, saying that blockchain technology is not a bubble, but Bitcoin is, Wednesday, May 16.

Ma said he has been researching blockchain for years, and believes strongly in its potential to address issues of data privacy and security for society at all levels - governments, corporations and individuals - in an "era of big data.” He stressed that security is a top priority for the e-commerce conglomerate, which reported $39.9 bln in yearly revenue in its latest fiscal Q4 earnings release, and has a trading volume of “trillions of transactions.”

Ma added that regrettably, much of the attention the emerging blockchain industry receives comes from speculators who view blockchain as a “huge gold mine.” Ma was wary of Bitcoin even during its peak in December 2017, reportedly telling CNBC Shanghai at the time:

"I don't know about Bitcoin at all. I'm particularly puzzled. Even if it can really work, the rules of global trade and the financial system will be completely changed. I don't think we are ready. So I'm still paying attention to Alipay... to the US dollar, and the euro. We have a team that studies blockchain, but Bitcoin is not something that I want to pursue. We don't care about Bitcoin.""

_{Read more:
https://cointelegraph.com}

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, Stellar, Litecoin, Cardano, IOTA, EOS: Price Analysis, May 16

"St. Louis Fed president James Bullard said that Bitcoin could emerge as a possible competitor to the US dollar in the future. He also did not rule out the prospects of the FED launching its own cryptocurrency, though he said that there was no plan at the moment.Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), the fifth largest bank in the world by assets, is exploring options to launch its own cryptocurrency, known as MUFG Coin. It plans to test it by the next year. The existing cryptocurrencies are gearing up for a likely competition by introducing upgrades that can improve operations. Additionally, the crypto exchanges are launching new products targeting the institutional investors. All of these point to the increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies and the acceptance that the blockchain technology can be a game changer."
_{Read more: https://cointelegraph.com}

Blockchain-Based Fantasy Sports Platform MyDFS Raises US$1M; Ex-Facebook Exec Joins Advisory Board

"MyDFS, a blockchain-based daily fantasy sports platform, has raised US$1 million from LD Capital and added former Facebook and Skype executive Akin Babayigit into its advisory board, the startup announced on Thursday. Babayigit will help MyDFS with the upcoming global launch of its app.

MyDFS said the new funding will be used to improve the existing blockchain platform and expand MyDFS services abroad. It comes just a month after the startup raised US$2 million from investor Frank Fu, managing director at Chinese tech company Meitu, the Chinese photo-sharing platform with more than 450 million users. Fu joined MyDFS as a board advisor.

MyDFS is preparing for the soft launch of its blockchain-based mobile app with a rollout in Australia and India scheduled for later this week. The startup said it will be collecting data and identifying bugs in order to optimize the platform prior to the global launch set to take place in early June 2018, right before the FIFA World Cup, the largest soccer championship of the year. MyDFS said it will be looking for feedbacks from players."

_{Read more:
https://coinjournal.net}

It’s Official: JPMorgan’s CIB Is Now Working on Its Own ‘Crypto Strategy’

"JPMorgan’s evolution of sentiment regarding cryptocurrencies has been an interesting one, to say the least. After the banking powerhouse’s CEO Jamie Dimon said he’d fire any employee who traded bitcoin last year, the institution’s just tapped young in-house fintech exec Oliver Harris to develop JPMorgan’s crypto strategy going forward. "

_{Read more:
https://bitsonline.com}

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