NOTABLE MOVES 

As of Wed, Jan 09, 08:00 Singapore Time Zone UTC+8

USDJPY, +0.03%, $108.75
EURUSD, -0.17%, $1.1457
GBPUSD, -0.33%, $1.2738
USDCAD, -0.40%, $1.3245
AUDUSD, +0.24%, $0.7165
NZDUSD, -0.16%, $0.6744

S&P500, +0.97%, 2,574.41
Nasdaq, +1.08%, 6,897.00
Nikkei Futures, +1.33%, 20,337.5

CURRENCY MARKET WRAP 

• The 2-yr Treasury note yield rose seven basis points to 2.59%, and the 10-yr Treasury note yield rose three basis points to 2.72%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased by 0.3% to 95.92.
• Sterling erased all of yesterday’s gains after the UK government lost a vote that would help to prepare for a no-deal Brexit. MPs supported a measure that limits spending on no-deal preparations unless authorized by Parliament. Not only does this reflects May’s weakened power but also makes the government less prepared to leave the European Union with no agreement on March 29.
• A notable mover continues to be the Loonie. Between January 2nd and January 8th, USD/CAD dropped -2.5%, giving up a third of the past 2 months gains. A strong labor market, decline in the Dollar, recovery in risk and rebound in oil prices all played a role in the pair’s steep decline. Later today, the BOC will have their monetary policy announcement. Aside from an interest rate decision, the Bank of Canada will also release their monetary policy report and latest economic projections. This will be followed by a press conference from Governor Poloz and Senior Deputy Governor Wilkins. There will be plenty of opportunities for the central bank to clarify their outlook and pave the way for the next big move in USD/CAD.

 STOCK MARKET WRAP 

• The S&P 500 rose 0.97% on Tuesday, notching its third straight day of gains and its fifth in the last six sessions. The benchmark index did succumb to some early selling pressure, though, surrendering an early 1.2% gain. However, the wave of improved investor sentiment and the buy-the-dip crowd supported the market. In addition, upbeat reports surrounding U.S.-China trade discussions helped keep the positive sentiment and buying interest intact. A scheduled two-day meeting in Beijing is now slated to extend into a third day of discussions on Wednesday. Buying interest was largely broad-based with 10 of the 11 S&P 500 sectors finishing with gains. The real estate (+1.8%), communication services (+1.6%), industrials (+1.4%), and utilities (+1.3%) groups outperformed the broader market. The S&P 500 financial sector (unch) and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (-0.5%) were two notable underperformers on Tuesday. Aflattening yield curve and a profit warning from Samsung Electronics about memory chip demand acted as headwinds for the respective groups. The financial sector, however, managed to claw its way back to its flat line after being down as much as -1.1% intraday.

Japan’s Financial Watchdog Seeks to Regulate Unregistered Crypto Investment Firms

Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is considering the regulation of unregistered firms that solicit investments in cryptocurrencies. The development is reportedly a bid to close a loophole in the country’s existing regulatory framework, in which unregistered firms that collect funds in crypto rather than fiat currencies remain in a gray zone. This situation exists because these firms do not explicitly come under the purview of Japan’s Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, which prohibits unregistered companies from collecting investment funds in cash, but fails to mention funds collected in cryptocurrency form. the FSA has intensified its scrutiny of crypto exchanges’ business practices, and fortified the process of risk screening applicants for its mandatory official exchange operating license. Earlier this month, five further crypto exchanges joined the country’s Virtual Currency Exchange Association (JVCEA), a self-regulatory body that was formed in April 2018 in a bid to establish industry-wide investor safety standards. The JVCEA has formally been granted self-regulatory status by the FSA as of October last year.

KodakOne Blockchain Beta Test Sees $1 Mln in Content Licensing Claims

KodakONE, the developer of a blockchain-based image rights platform licensed by photographic industry giant Kodak has reportedly generated over $1 million in licensing claims for image rights during a limited beta test of its platform. When Kodak first announced its partnership with then-Wenn Digital, the company’s shares surged to a high of $13.25, with onlookers criticizing the move at the time as a bid to cash in on the ICO and blockchain hype. RYDE, together with ICOx Innovations, has overseen the design and development of the KodakONE Platform and its KodakCoin token. The latter is an ERC-20 token, which also uses components of the Stellar blockchain as middleware. The KodakONE platform, meanwhile, uses a hybrid blockchain infrastructure with Ethereum, Stellar and Hyperledger technology. Allegedly, of the $1 million in revenue generated during the PLP beta, KodakONE will pocket around $400,000.

Coinbase: Ethereum Classic Double Spending Involved More Than $1.1 Million in Crypto

A deep reorganization of the Ethereum Classic (ETC) blockchain, which included double spending, has involved more than $1.1 million worth of crypto. The team first detected eight reorganizations that included double spends, totaling 88,500 ETC (approximately $460,000). Later, the exchange announced that there were 12 additional reorganizations, totaling 219,500 ETC (around $1.1 million). It was not immediately clear whether Coinbase has increased the number of previously detected attacks to 12, or whether there were 20 attacks in total. If they meant the latter, the amount of ETC that has been double spent could equal up to $1.5 million. Coinbase detected the ETC blockchain reorganization on Saturday, Jan. 5, and indicated that it was a 51 percent attack. The U.S. exchange then temporarily halted all interaction with the ETC blockchain. Coinbase states that its customers were not affected by the attack. The major exchange was soon joined by Japan’s bitFlyer, which also claimed that there was an ongoing 51 percent attack with mass reorganization involving more than 100 blocks, but ETC developers denied the reports about a 51 percent attack.

NOTABLE MOVES 

As of Tue, Jan 08, 08:00 Singapore Time Zone UTC+8

USDJPY, +0.08%, $108.63
EURUSD, +0.60%, $1.1479
GBPUSD, +0.42%, $1.2786
USDCAD, -0.54%, $1.3297
AUDUSD, +0.29%, $0.7145
NZDUSD, +0.18%, $0.6754

S&P500, +0.70%, 2,549.69
Nasdaq, +1.26%, 6,823.47
Nikkei Futures, +0.02%, 20,145.0

CURRENCY MARKET WRAP 

• The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index slipped to 57.6% in December  from 60.7% in November. The key takeaway from the report is that it followed the ISM Manufacturing Index in showing a slowdown in activity in December. That is in keeping with the market’s perception of economic matters and threatens to bleed into a slowdown in earnings growth.
• U.S. Treasuries started the session in positive territory, but spent the bulk of the day in a retreat that coincided with a rally in the stock market. The 2-yr yield rose four basis points to 2.52%, and the 10-yr yield added two basis points to 2.68%. The U.S. Dollar Index fell -0.5% to 95.70, reaching its lowest close since mid-October.
• Euro caught bids amid renewed protests in France and Hungary. Not only does this unrest raise political and social concerns, it also inhibits the recovery in France and could restrain growth for the Eurozone as a whole.  Euro traders were pleased to see the sharp recovery in German and Eurozone retail sales, but the manufacturing sector continues to struggle with factory orders falling a steep -1% in November, against a forecast of -0.2%.
• In the past 4 trading days, USD/CAD has fallen from a high of 1.3665 to a low of 1.3279. The combination of rising oil prices, a stronger IVEY PMI report (59.7 vs expected 58.1) and risk appetite took the pair to its lowest level in nearly a month.

 STOCK MARKET WRAP 

• The major averages opened the session to some tepid buying interest. The S&P 500 briefly dipped into negative territory (-0.3%), but the pullback didn’t gain any traction as the benchmark index steadily climbed to session highs (+1.4%) by early afternoon.This resilience to selling efforts following huge gains last Friday created some fear of missing out on further gains that helped drive up prices. Stocks, however, began to lose steam at around 1:45 p.m. ET, shortly after Trump tweeted that he will address the nation over border security Tuesday evening. Notable movers included PG&E (PCG 18.95, -5.45) plunging 22.3% amid a possible bankruptcy filing and Loxo Oncology (LOXO 232.65, +92.78) soaring 66.3% after an offer to be acquired by Eli Lilly (LLY 115.28, +0.62, +0.5%) at a 68% premium over its Friday closing price. PG&E was an influential drag on the utilities sector.

NOTABLE MOVES 

As of Sat, Jan 05, 08:00 Singapore Time zone UTC+8

USDJPY, +0.64%, $108.53
EURUSD, +0.04%, $1.1395
GBPUSD, +0.81%, $1.2730
USDCAD, -0.81%, $1.3368
AUDUSD, +1.65%, $0.7121
NZDUSD, +0.64%, $0.6731

S&P500, +3.43%, 2,531.94
Nasdaq, +4.26%, 6,738.86
Nikkei Futures, +3.49%, 20,082.5

CURRENCY MARKET WRAP 

• Nonfarm payrolls exceeded expectations with an increase of 312,000, while average hourly earnings increased 0.4%, lifting the year-over-year growth rate to 3.2%. There were some market concerns about how the Fed would respond to the strong jobs report. The latest comments from Powell, however, eased those concerns, evident from stocks soaring to session highs, and maintaining their gains. Some talking points from the Fed Chair that soothed the market included:
• The Fed will remain patient given the muted reading on inflation,
• Monetary policy will be nimble and shift if necessary, and
• His softer tone regarding previous comments on the Fed’s balance sheet reduction path being on autopilot.
• U.S. Treasuries ended the week sharply lower, surrendering their gains from Thursday. The 2-yr yield dropped 10 basis points to 2.48%, and the 10-yr yield dropped 11 basis points to 2.66%. The U.S. Dollar Index lost -0.1% to 96.17.

 STOCK MARKET WRAP 

• The S&P 500 gained 3.43% on Friday, as Powell signaled patience and flexibility on rates in light of stronger-than-expected jobs data. Friday’s gains helped the benchmark index secure a weekly gain of 1.9%. All 11 S&P 500 sectors closed the session in the green, with gains ranging from 1.0% (real estate) to 4.4% (information technology). Apple (AAPL 148.26, +6.07, +4.3%), for its part, recouped nearly half of its losses from Thursday.The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) fell 4.1 points to 21.38, reaching its lowest level since mid-December.

Kraken Swamped by US Subpoenas, AMD Partners Crypto Studio

The popular cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has released statistics about the volumes and global breakdown of its information requests from authorities during 2018. The data shows that the number of subpoenas has almost tripled from just 160 in 2017 to 475. The numbers also highlight how much of a burden complying with American demands actually is. New York-based trading platform Gemini has launched a controversial marketing campaign across NYC. Ads posted on outdoor billboards, subway stations and taxis by the exchange are proclaiming that “The Revolution Needs Rules” and “Crypto Without Chaos” suggesting that government regulations are good for investors. Also, Consensys, the crypto software studio that was reported to cut over half of its employees last month, has teamed up with one of the companies that suffered most from the decline in the sale of GPUs to cryptocurrency miners last year – AMD. In collaboration with Abu Dhabi-based Halo Holdings, they will develop optimized data-center solutions for emerging blockchain workloads through the creation of W3bcloud. The initiative is focused on providing an independent cloud computing blockchain infrastructure and plans to develop optimized solutions powered by AMD hardware.

Crypto-Friendly Statesman Takes Over Swiss Presidency

On Dec. 5, Ulrich ‘Ueli’ Maurer was elected by the Swiss parliament for a one-year term in 2019 with the impressive support of 201 out of 209 members. Ueli Maurer is among those politicians who saw the threat to Switzerland’s leadership in the crypto space. In May, he invited representatives of the Swiss financial regulator Finma, the Swiss National Bank, and the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) to a roundtable discussion on the matter. Following the meeting, SBA formed a working group to solve the problem. It was tasked to create a set of procedures for banks to follow when opening accounts for entities transacting with cryptocurrencies. Some Swiss banks have since then started to accept clients from the crypto sector. During the G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Buenos Aires last July, Maurer shared his country’s position on cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that digital assets and distributed ledger technologies bring great potential for financial services. At the summit, Switzerland also insisted on a uniform international approach in order to prevent double taxation in the digital economy.

Thousands of Banned Binance Customers Remain Cut off by the Exchange

Binance, the world’s second largest digital asset exchange by traded volume, has withdrawn its services from countries targeted by U.S. economic sanctions, in line with its controversial revised terms of use. However, the ban affects entire populations in countries such as Zimbabwe, where U.S. restrictions are supposed to specifically target individuals and companies. Binance users in Iran, Belarus, Serbia, Bosnia, Myanmar and other restricted jurisdictions have reportedly been cut off for a month now after the global exchange sent a notice of termination. Although Binance’s terms now prohibit individuals and countries on the U.N. Security Council and the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (OFAC) sanctions lists, Russia is conspicuously exempt. The latest Binance terms of use read, in part, “By accessing and using Binance and any of its services, you acknowledge and declare that you are not on any trade or economic sanctions lists, such as the UN Security Council Sanctions list or OFAC.”  These sanctions typically freeze assets of targeted countries, curtail financial transfers to individuals or states as well as suspend services to those on the embargo list.

 

As of Fri, Jan 04, 08:00 Singapore Time zone UTC+8

USDJPY, +0.39%, $107.86
EURUSD, +0.70%, $1.1394
GBPUSD, +0.91%, $1.2630
USDCAD, -1.13%, $1.3478
AUDUSD, +1.33%, $0.7010
NZDUSD, +0.90%, $0.6690

S&P500, -2.48%, 2,447.89
Nasdaq, -3.04%, 6,463.50
Nikkei Futures, +0.09%, 19,382.0

CURRENCY MARKET WRAP 

• U.S. ISM Manufacturing PMI 54.1 vs expected 57.7. The key takeaway from the report is that the December decrease was fuelled by a sharp pullback in the New Orders component, which is the same element that lifted the November ISM Manufacturing Index into the neighbourhood of its high from 2018.
• Fears over growth and corporate earnings had investors flocking to risk-free U.S. Treasuries. Consequently, the 2-yr yield and 10-yr yield fell 11 basis points each, to 2.38% and 2.55%, respectively. The rally in Treasuries took place amid building expectations for a rate cut by the end of the year. The fed funds futures market now sees a 46.1% implied likelihood of a rate cut in December, up sharply from yesterday’s implied probability of just 9.6%. The U.S. Dollar Index lost -0.6% to 96.23.

 STOCK MARKET WRAP 

• The S&P 500 dropped -2.48% on Thursday, as a revenue warning from Apple (AAPL 142.19, -15.73, -10.0%) and weak manufacturing data stoked worries about a slowdown in global economic growth. Apple rattled the market when it lowered its revenue guidance for the first time since 2002. CEO Tim Cook attributed the lower outlook to weaker demand in China, where the economy has been decelerating notably. Selling accelerated after the ISM Manufacturing Index for December came in below consensus at 54.1, falling from 59.3 in November. While growth concerns are not new, Thursday’s setbacks exacerbated fears that economic growth might be slowing more quickly than anticipated, which would present a headwind to corporate earnings.
• Delta Air Lines (DAL 45.61, -4.48), for its part, fell -8.9% after its pre-announced fourth quarter results included softer than expected unit revenue.

 

Chilean Treasury Launches Blockchain Platform to Process Public Payments
The Chilean General Treasury of the Republic (TGR),  a dependent institution under the Ministry of Finance has launched a blockchain platform to process payments. The platform stores transactions that are processed by Chilean public institutions such tax payments or patent fees on blockchain. Before recording the transaction, all nodes participating in the process are obliged to approve it. Allegedly, a common database used both by government, institutions and banks will help to eliminate data discrepancies, reduce time spent on payments, as well as cut operational costs, while providing the necessary level of security for personal data. The Chilean government is exploring blockchain in several areas, including the energy and finance sectors. In April, Chile’s national energy regulation organization announced the launch of a project based on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain to record data from the nation’s energy sector.

 

Nasdaq-Powered Exchange to Launch EU-Regulated Tokenized Stock Trading
Estonian digital trading platform DX Exchange will begin offering tokenized stocks on the Ethereum blockchain next week. DX, which will reportedly be the first exchange to offer such trading in a fully regulated environment in the European Union, will use Nasdaq’s Financial Information exchange (FIX) protocol to deliver the product. According to the company’s press release, cryptocurrency users will be able to purchase tokens that will be backed by stocks in various major companies, including Google, Facebook and Amazon. The shares will be purchased on users’ behalf by MPS MarketPlace Securities Ltd., with which DX has an exclusive partnership agreement. DX first appeared as a concept in May last year, with the latest move making it a regulated trading environment for cryptocurrency, fiat currency and digital stocks. Nasdaq has already dedicated itself to a future involving cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, with its own Bitcoin futures contracts rumored to launch in the first half of 2019.

 

Thai National Tech Development Center to Introduce Blockchain in Voting
The National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC) of Thailand has developed blockchain technology for e-voting. NECTEC is a statutory government organization that operates under the purview of the National Science and Technology Development Agency and the Ministry of Science and Technology. The organization chiefly promotes the development of computing, electronics, IT and telecommunications. The technology reportedly can be deployed in tandem with traditional voting as Thais become more technologically literate. According to NECTEC, once 5G is eventually adopted, all votes will be connected with the new technology.  In order for the system to function, it requires a controller, voters and candidates. Prior to the election, the controller can verify voter identity and candidate qualifications. Voters will purportedly be able to vote by email and must be verified by mobile camera. Other countries have also been considering using blockchain technology to secure and conduct election processes. Following the 2018 federal mid-term elections in the United States, the Secretary of State of West Virginia reported a successful trial of mobile blockchain voting for West Virginians in the armed services stationed overseas.

As of Thu, Jan 03, 08:00 Singapore Time zone UTC+8

USDJPY, -2.08%, $107.43
EURUSD, -1.30%, $1.1315
GBPUSD, -1.85%, $1.2516
USDCAD, -0.05%, $1.3632
AUDUSD, -1.91%, $0.6918
NZDUSD, -1.30%, $0.6630

S&P500, +0.13%, 2,510.03
Nasdaq, +0.46%, 6,665.94
Nikkei Futures, -2.62%, 19,365.0

CURRENCY MARKET WRAP 

• A FX flash crash gripped currency markets in early Asian trading on Thursday as the break of key technical levels triggered massive stop-loss sales of the Dollar and Aussie dollars in thin markets. Most major currencies collapsed against the Yen in a matter of seconds. The move was attributed to a liquidity void, with Japan still on holiday after the New Year. There was speculation that the catalyst was tech bellwether Apple Inc, when they shocked investors by cutting its earnings guidance, citing sluggish iPhone sales in China. The news sent U.S. stock futures sliding and sparked a rush of funds to safe-haven bonds.
• The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.7% to 96.82. Longer-dated U.S. Treasuries extended gains, pressuring yields. The 2-yr yield declined one basis point to 2.49%, and the 10-yr yield declined three basis points to 2.66%.

STOCK MARKET WRAP

• Wall Street finished slightly higher on Wednesday despite global economic growth concerns and volatility extending their reach into 2019. The S&P 500 managed to squeeze out a gain of 0.13% after being down as much as -1.6% in the opening minutes. Stocks opened sharply lower after weak economic data from China reminded investors that a slowing Chinese economy could adversely impact global growth and corporate earnings growth. The latest data showed a contraction in China’s manufacturing sector for the first time since May 2017 (Caixin Manufacturing PMI at 49.7 vs expected 50.1). Energy stocks abruptly reversed course after oil prices swung into positive territory. WTI crude increased 2.0% to $46.38/bbl after reports that Saudi Arabia decreased its crude exports in December by roughly 500,000 barrels per day.
• In early Thursday, Apple (AAPL) warned investors to expect lower sales from the holiday quarter due primarily to “lower than anticipated” iPhone sales in China amid an ongoing trade war with the U.S., as well as other factors like the company offering cheaper iPhone battery replacements. Apple now expects revenue for the three months ending in December to be about $84 billion, down from an earlier estimated range of between $89 billion and $93 billion. In his letter to investors, Cook touted continued traction in Apple’s “non-iPhone businesses,” including wearable devices and supplementary services, like iCloud, Apple Pay and the App Store. But he admitted that the downward revision of its sales forecast is “disappointing.” Apple fell -7.48% in after hours trading.

Customs authorities in Saudi Arabia have concluded a pilot scheme linking its cross-border trade platform FASAH with IBM and Maersk’s TradeLens blockchain platform. TradeLens is intended to be a basis for digital supply chains and launched with almost 100 entities willing to take part in the pilot. For Saudi Arabia, the move forms part of authorities’ desire to expand the country’s economy via the Vision 2030 initiative. According to Saudi Customs governor Ahmed Alhakbani, the recent pilot to link FASAH to the TradeLens platform clearly illustrates that they are on the right track. In line with its neighbor, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Riyadh has stepped up activities aimed at integrating blockchain technology at state level in recent months.

Top Cryptos See Modest Gains After Short Wavering

The top 20 coins are seeing moderate gains over the 24-hour period. Bitcoin has scaled back above $3,800 after falling below the mark earlier. Bitcoin (BTC) is up 3.1 percent and is trading at $3,863.18. On its weekly chart, the major cryptocurrency is still down by over five percent, and is lower than the Dec. 29 high of $3,961. Ripple (XRP), is up over three percent on the day and is currency trading at $0.362, down from a weekly high of $0.390 on Dec. 26. Ethereum and XRP have market capitalizations of $14.7 billion and $14.79 billion, respectively and Ethereum is up nearly six percent on the day and is trading at $141. Some altcoins that are seeing gains are Bitcoin SV and Monero (XMR), which are up 7.74 percent and 5.47 percent over the 24-hour period. Total crypto market capitalization is currently $129.8 billion, down slightly from its weekly high of $134.3 billion.

Japan: E-commerce Giant DMM Shutters Crypto Mining Business Due to Declining Profitability

Japanese e-commerce conglomerate DMM.com Ltd. will shut down its crypto mining business, citing deteriorating profitability as the main cause. The decision was reportedly taken in September 2018, and initial steps to dismantle mining operations — including selling the company’s mining hardware — will extend over the first half of 2019. DMM.com, which has over 27 million clients for its e-commerce business, first announced its entry into the crypto mining business in September 2017, with a focus on mining major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC). DMM is also reconsidering its launch of a crypto trading app dubbed “Cointap,” which had been slated for release on Dec. 25 2018. The company reportedly considers that both the bearish crypto market and the high-profile hack of Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck in January 2018 have made attracting new traders to the sector more difficult. There has been no indication that DMM will cease to operate its regulated cryptocurrency exchange. Also, Japanese internet giant GMO Internet Group has recently announced it will no longer develop, manufacture and sell Bitcoin miners, after reporting high losses in Q4 2018.

NOTABLE MOVES 

As of Wed, Jan 02, 08:00 Singapore Time zone UTC+8

USDJPY, +0.09%, $109.68
EURUSD, -0.07%, $1.1461
GBPUSD, -0.05%, $1.2752
USDCAD, -0.11%, $1.3623
AUDUSD, -0.06%, $0.7048
NZDUSD, -0.09%, $0.6713

S&P500, +0.85%, 2,506.85 (31st Dec Close)
Nasdaq, +0.77%, 6,635.28 (31st Dec Close)
Nikkei Futures, +0.32%, 19,885.0

MARKET WRAP 

• Thin trading conditions for most of 31st Dec 2018 contributed to another volatile session on Monday, though all 11 S&P 500 sectors did finish in the green. The health care (+1.4%) and consumer discretionary (+1.1%) sectors remained constant leaders, while the real estate (unch) and utilities (+0.2%) sectors underperformed. Stocks jumped out to a gain of 1.0%, helped by another hopeful trade tweet from Trump, but the early advance provided another excuse to sell into strength. The benchmark index would slip into negative territory (-0.1%) at around 11:30 a.m. ET. The S&P 500 quickly recovered and traded in positive territory for the rest of the day, but not with the same confidence that contributed to its strong start. Buying conviction was reserved with no news catalysts or economic data to sway investors, until a last minute swarm of buyers pushed the indices to near session highs.
• U.S. Treasuries ended the abbreviated bond market session with gains across the curve, despite the positive disposition in the stock market. The 2-yr yield decreased two basis points to 2.50%, and the 10-yr yield decreased five basis points to 2.69%, reaching its lowest level since February.

The Iranian government has taken further steps against Telegram’s cryptocurrency development, the Tehran Times reports Dec. 31. Secretary of the Criminal Content Definition Task Force Javad Javidnia has declared that any cooperation with the encrypted messaging app to launch its Gram token will be considered an act against national security and a disruption to the national economy. Iran first banned the app in April when supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that government agencies would no longer use the app. The country’s judiciary subsequently forbade its use altogether. In December 2017, Iran temporarily blocked Telegram and photo-sharing app Instagram in order to “maintain peace” amid widespread protests. Prior to the ban, Iranian officials criticized the app, stating that its initial coin offering (ICO) was potentially “undermining the national currency of Iran.” The go-to messaging app of the crypto industry was also banned in Russia due to concerns over its ICO, with the possibility of a “completely uncontrolled financial system” reportedly leading to the block.

India: Media Reports Central Bank Has Postponed ‘Crypto-Rupee’ Plans

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is pausing its plans to release a digital currency, Indian business news outlet the Hindu Business Line reported on Jan. 1. India’s central bank had originally announced its intentions to consider a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in April of this year, at the time noting the establishment of an interdepartmental group to look into potential advantages and feasibility. In August, RBI confirmed the creation of the group, specifying that it was researching a CBDC that would be backed the rupee for reasons including the cost of printing paper and the rising popularity of using digital tokens. Now, amid confusion over the group’s exact findings, which remain a mystery, Delhi has apparently had a change of heart.

Senator and Crypto Critic Elizabeth Warren Enters 2020 US Presidential Race

United States Senator and cryptocurrency critic Elizabeth Warren has announced her bid for President in 2020, the New York Times reported on Dec. 31. Following her announcement, Sen. Warren made plans to visit the state of Iowa, which hosts the first presidential caucuses in the country in February 2020. Warren is the senior U.S. senator from Massachusetts and has held office in the Senate since 2013. The senator is known for her criticism of cryptocurrencies, having repeatedly expressed concerns that cryptocurrency consumers could be hurt by scam initial coin offerings (ICOs) while also stating that crypto is “easy to steal.”