Banking giants sign up for a trial blockchain project: Nine banking giants including Citigroup and Barclays are participating in an app store trial for programs based on the technology. The currently in-trial app store, LedgerConnect, was announced Monday by foreign exchange processing giant CLS and tech titan IBM. It’s expected to launch in the coming months.

Binance acquires Trust Wallet in push to expand crypto services: Binance, the world’s biggest crypto exchange, has purchased Trust Wallet, a decentralized wallet service for digital tokens that also serves as a browser for so-called decentralized applications. This is Binance’s first acquisition, and points to the future ambitions of a company that emerged from nowhere in 2017 to be an industry leader that reportedly posted profits of between $500 million and a billion last year alone.

Asset management firm Northern Trust to start crypto custody business: Northern Trust Corp., which provides investment management, asset and fund administration services, is looking to get into the business of safeguarding digital assets such as cryptocurrencies. The 129-year-old Chicago-based company has begun developing a way to secure digital assets held in custody while seeking to charge lower fees than existing crypto custodians.

U.S. blockchain investment in 2018 has already outstripped 2017’s total: New analysis from KPMG shows that blockchain investment in the U.S. in the first half of 2018 has exceeded the overall total seen in 2017. KPMG suggests that blockchain tech is “moving beyond experimentation” to draw “significant” attention from investors in the first two quarters of 2018.

Iran is planning to launch its own cryptocurrency: Iran is moving ahead with a plan to introduce a national cryptocurrency, partly as a way of busting U.S. sanctions. The Iranian government said in April that it had developed an experimental domestic cryptocurrency. With the U.S. having since pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal and restored more sanctions—a ban on buying U.S. dollars comes into force next month, and crude oil sanctions will follow in November. https://www.rt.com/business/434537-iran-national-cryptocurrency-oil/1. Iran is planning to launch its own cryptocurrency: Iran is moving ahead with a plan to introduce a national cryptocurrency, partly as a way of busting U.S. sanctions. The Iranian government said in April that it had developed an experimental domestic cryptocurrency. With the U.S. having since pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal and restored more sanctions—a ban on buying U.S. dollars comes into force next month, and crude oil sanctions will follow in November.

Crypto bank Galaxy Digital loses $134M in first quarter: Galaxy Digital, chaired by billionaire investor Michael Novogratz, said it saw a “net unrealized loss” of $85.5 million on digital assets, and a further $24 million loss on investments, totaling $109.6 million overall in its first-ever quarterly earnings report. The firm also spent $11 million in operating expenses and saw a $13.5 million loss from its income, resulting in roughly $134 million lost in the first quarter, according to the report.

‘Crowd psychology’ drives Bitcoin’s price, survey finds: According to a recent survey, more than half (52%) of the respondents said they believe crowd psychology is the main driver of the price of the No. 1 digital currency. “Finance professionals make their livings by analyzing asset values through the lens of fundamental/quantifiable factors. That more than half of respondents believe valuation in the crypto space is ‘purely a function of crowd psychology’ is refreshing in its honesty,” wrote Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research.

Coinbase finds no insider trading of Bitcoin Cash: Coinbase, the biggest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, launched an inquiry last December into whether its employees engaged in improper trading related to the digital currency known as Bitcoin Cash. The company has wrapped up the investigation and concluded no wrongdoing took place.

Bitwise files with SEC to launch crypto ETF: Digital asset manager Bitwise has filed with the SEC to launch a regulated exchange-traded fund for cryptocurrency. The Bitwise HOLD 10 Cryptocurrency Index will include 10 cryptocurrencies, and will track the Bitwise HOLD 10 Private Index Fund that was founded in November.

Controversial blockchain project Tezos to be audited by PwC: The Tezos Foundation has announced that the international professional services giant PricewaterhouseCoopers Switzerland will conduct an external audit of its finances and operations. The project claims to be “committed to operating with the highest degree of integrity.”3. Controversial blockchain project Tezos to be audited by PwC: The Tezos Foundation has announced that the international professional services giant PricewaterhouseCoopers Switzerland will conduct an external audit of its finances and operations. The project claims to be “committed to operating with the highest degree of integrity.”

Singapore Airlines launches blockchain-based loyalty wallet: Singapore Airlines has launched its own airline loyalty digital wallet that uses blockchain technology. The software has been co-developed by Microsoft and KPMG Digital Village. The new wallet converts frequent flyer miles into digitized ‘KrisPay miles’ that can be used to pay for retail purchases via a mobile app.

TRON acquires major P2P platform operator BitTorrent: TRON’s long-rumored acquisition of BitTorrent Inc., the operator of popular torrent client uTorrent, has been confirmed by TRON founder Justin Sun. The BitTorrent protocol launched in 2001 and relies on distributed “seeding’” by users who upload shareable content.