Swiss Financial Watchdog Issues Country’s First Crypto Asset Management License
The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has issued the country’s first cryptocurrency asset management license to a crypto investment fund, Crypto Fund. Crypto Fund is a subsidiary founded in 2017 by Zug-based Crypto Finance AG. The new license will permit the firm to legally offer a wide spectrum of collective investment products that track Bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto assets, including domestic funds and allows the firm to provide investment consultancy services for institutional clients. This summer, local companies partnered with the Zug, known in the crypto industry by the moniker, “Crypto Valley,”to trial a blockchain-based municipal voting system. Switzerland is proactive when it comes to regulating the new crypto space. In February, FINMA published detailed guidelines on ICOs, according to which many projects will be regulated under securities laws, while payment tokens fall under the Swiss Anti-Money-Laundering (AML) Act.
Dubai Government – Backed Digital Currency Will Get Its Own Payment System
Consumers in Dubai will soon be able to use digital currency to pay for goods, services, and utilities following a new government partnership. The deal between emcredit, a subsidiary of the Dubai Department of Economic Development, blockchain payment provider Pundi X, and its partner Ebooc Fintech & Loyalty Labs LLC will facilitate point of sale (PoS) payments in emcredit’s emcash currency. Ebooc will provide PoS terminals for in – store payments, while Pundi Ks plans to increase 100,000 units globally over the next three years. Dubai continues to position itself as a blockchain innovator at state level, with multiple schemes ongoing as part of its goal of becoming a fully blockchain-powered city by 2020.
Mastercard Patent Hints at Plan for Multi-Currency Blockchains
Mastercard has won a patent for a proposed system that would allow for the launch of different kinds of blockchains – including those that support multiple currencies. The patent explains that a group or company may need to store different types of transaction information on a single platform – something that is currently difficult to do on a single blockchain. There is a need for a technological solution to provide a partitioned blockchain that is capable of storing multiple transaction formats and types in a single blockchain, reducing the computing resources and processing power required for deployment and operation of the blockchain, while also providing for enhanced usage of permissions for permissioned blockchains. The patent adds that an appropriately partitioned blockchain can receive information about transaction types from different computing devices.