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The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT), a Belgium-based facilitator of global bank transfers, has launched a cross-border payments initiative to improve bank customer service by increasing transparency, speed and predictability of payments using the block chain. The project, called the Global Payments Innovation Initiative, will focus on business-to-business payments in early 2016, according to Silicon Angle. The service will help companies strengthen global supplier relationships and improve treasury efficiencies, according to the SWIFT website. Companies will be able to gain payments directly from banks along with features such as end-to-end payment tracking, same-day use of funds, fee transparency […]

The post SWIFT Launches Initiative To Improve Cross-Border Payments Using BlockChain appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Speculation about Satoshi Nakamoto was heightened following published evidence which pointed to an Australian man as bitcoin's possible creator.

On Tuesday, Gizmodo and Wired published the results of separate but parallel investigations into documents that suggested a new candidate for the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. In emails and documents shared with both publications (by an individual who identified themselves to Gizmodo reporters as a hacker) Dr. Craig Wright, an Australian academic and serial entrepreneur, appears to take credit for Bitcoin’s creation in several instances dating back to months before the cryptocurrency was first introduced to the world in 2008. “I need your help and I need a version of me to make this work that is better than me,” Wright appears to write in a 2008 email to Dave Kleiman, an American computer forensics expert who died in 2013. That email is one of several documents in the trove linking both Wright and Kleiman to Bitcoin’s creation.

Read more...

Doubts about Wright's academic credentials and supercomputer achievements hint that he could have faked the clues identifying him as bitcoin's creator.

The post New Clues Suggest Satoshi Suspect Craig Wright May Be a Hoaxer appeared first on WIRED.

The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) announced that it is looking at the blockchain technology that powers Bitcoin as part of new global money transfer initiative.

SWIFT provides a network that enables financial institutions worldwide to send and receive information about financial transactions in a secure, standardized and reliable environment. The majority of international interbank messages use the SWIFT network, and SWIFT bank identification codes are routinely used by consumers to identify the recipient bank in wire transfers.

According to the SWIFT press release, the global payments innovation initiative could dramatically improve the customer experience in correspondent banking by increasing the speed, transparency and predictability of cross-border payments. The initiative, designed in collaboration with the payments industry, will enable businesses to receive an enhanced payments service directly from their banks.

Scheduled for launch in early 2016, SWIFT’s global payments innovation initiative will initially focus on a business-to-business payments service supported by participating banks, able to support desired features such as same-day use of funds, transparency and predictability of fees, end-to-end payments tracking, and transfer of rich payment information.

"This global payments innovation initiative is a reflection of the strength of the SWIFT community and its ability to collaborate and innovate, and deliver a new benchmark in cross-border payments," said SWIFT Chairman Yawar Shah.

The global payments innovation initiative will involve the financial technology development community through Innotribe, the innovation arm of Swift. Launched in 2009, Innotribe was created to identify emerging trends in financial services innovation and generate discussions about how these trends could impact the industry going forward. Bringing together innovators, bank representatives, and investors from leading financial institutions, Innotribe has adopted a proactive approach to innovation and fintech.

Earlier this week SWIFT announced that Innotribe will expand its program to support innovation in emerging fintech ecosystems, and expand its Startup Challenge with a new Industry Challenge initiative. In collaboration with SWIFT member institutions and internal teams, participating fintech solution providers will explore potential opportunities for select business areas and work on proofs of concept that might turn into tangible solutions for the industry.

"Correspondent banking serves the industry with millions of secure cross-border payments day in, day out; with this initiative we are building on those strengths, enabling banks to provide distinctive cross-border payments services and providing real benefits to end customers,” said SWIFT CEO Gottfried Leibbrandt. “This is a critical step in cross-border payments innovation."

"This initiative is an important first step in driving cross-border payments innovation,” said SWIFT Head of Banking Markets Wim Raymaekers. “As part of the initiative we will continue to develop new and enhanced services, utilizing SWIFT's Innotribe initiative to further engage the FinTech community and explore the application of innovations such as real-time payment status tracking, the use of peer-to-peer messaging and blockchain technology."

Raymaekers said that the new global payments initiative was phase one of a process, which could eventually "look at changing correspondent banking settlements and maybe having blockchain technology rather than bilateral correspondent accounts," International Business Times reports.

Raymaekers outlined especially promising applications, for example to cross-border payments, securities, and settlements, as well as SWIFT’s work to develop a strategic blockchain roadmap.

However, Raymaekers added that regulatory compliance, identity management and verification are important issues for distributed blockchain systems, which should have built-in business controls and engagement rules. In fact, banks will not adopt a new open technology framework if those control mechanisms are not there.

"It's a great technology, but you still must know who you are transacting with. So there must be identity, there must be some kind of organization around this," he said. “Technology doesn't necessarily change business behavior. Technical measures alone are not enough. We need those business rules."

SWIFT, which has been exploring blockchain technology for some time, joins other top financial institutions in realizing that the potential benefits of blockchain technology in the financial industry – faster and cheaper transactions, permanently recorded in tamper-proof shared ledgers – are too big to ignore. At the same time, the concerns expressed by Raymaekers indicate that SWIFT could opt for a private, “permissioned” blockchain.

The post SWIFT to Launch Global Payments Innovation Initiative, Develop Blockchain Roadmap appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

In a Form S-3 filed with the SEC on November 10, Overstock.com sought approval to issue up to $500 million in new securities “from time to time” in the form of common stock, preferred stock, depositary shares, warrants, debt securities or units. But approval of this S-3 is in not an immediate sign that Overstock is issuing any securities.

“This prospectus provides you with a general description of the security we may offer,” Overstock wrote in its S-3. “Each time we sell securities, we will provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of that offering.”

Further, while Overstock looked to gain approval to issue up to $500 million in new securities, it cannot be assumed that this is a one-to-one relationship to what the company might look to offer through its t0 platform.

“We may decide to offer securities as digital securities, which may pose unique risks to investors in such securities,” Overstock wrote.

According to the SEC form, “our digital securities will be issued, available for purchase and traded exclusively on a specific trading system that is registered with the SEC as an alternative trading system, or ATS — namely, the Pro Securities ATS. Moreover, only customers of the sole broker-dealer that will be licensed to provide access to the Pro Securities ATS digital securities trading platform with respect to Overstock digital securities, which will initially be DriveWealth, will be able to buy and sell our digital securities on the Pro Securities ATS.”

DriveWealth, a broker-dealer based in New Jersey, is a privately held firm founded in 2012. It is an investment platform targeting retail investors around the world.

In its filing, Overstock admitted that by using only the Pro Securities ATS, there would be significant risk for investors. In particular, “it is likely that there will be a limited number of holders of digital securities.”

Overstock goes on to say that, “because each series of securities offered as digital securities will be their own separate class of securities, distinct from any other securities trading on the NMS [National Market Systems], the Pro Securities ATS is likely to experience limited trading volume...”

On a national exchange, there are many broker-dealers attached, allowing for the potential for significant liquidity. By operating through the Pro Securities ATS and through only one broker-dealer, there won’t be nearly as many investors trading the offered securities.

Overstock admits that, due to this decrease in volume, that there could be “limited liquidity, resulting in a lower or higher price or greater volatility than would be the case with greater liquidity.” The ability to sell an asset in a timely fashion is not guaranteed.

Technology Remains Untested

While there are certainly risks with investing in the securities due to volatility and low liquidity, there remain considerable risks due to the technology.

The first has to do with its t0 technology.

“Our digital securities will be traded on a novel, untested system developed by the Pro Securities ATS specifically for trading digital securities,” the filing said. Some of the untested risks included regulatory uncertainty, technical flaws with the t0 technology, security breaches of the blockchain and the need for the Pro Securities ATS to halt trades for a period of time necessary to fix flaws.

Overstock also revealed the balance between incredible security and creating a system that is usable by the average person. “The general public, however, is not yet accustomed to using secure cryptographic methods and managing private keys.”

As the saying goes, how can this system be made friendly for Grandma?

“To make the system more user-friendly, the Pro Securities ATS and DriveWealth are each expected to hold the private keys of digital securities holders. Among other things, this will enable digital securities holders to manage their digital securities account with a simple login and password. If the repository is hacked and private keys are stolen, the thief could transfer affected digital securities to itself and sell the digital securities.”

Fundamentally, Overstock reveals one of the pain points many in the Bitcoin space have found. “The risk of theft of private keys is heightened so long as the centralized repository holds the private keys on behalf of digital security holders, as the thief is able to target a single security system for breach of multiple accounts.”

Fundamentally, the primary risks for investors are that this is a new initiative that Overstock is undertaking and is not an equivalent to common stock. Specifically, these shares won’t trade on a “stock exchange” and it is not pegged to any common stock. A share of Overstock on Nasdaq could be valued very differently than a digital security on the Pro Securities ATS.

Bitcoin Magazine will continue investigating the Overstock Form S-3 filing.

Jacob Cohen Donnelly is a consultant and journalist in the bitcoin space. He runs a weekly newsletter about bitcoin called Crypto Brief.

The post Overstock.com S-3 Filing Details up to $500 million of Digital Securities on the Bitcoin Blockchain appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Venture capital and Wall Street have been eager to get in on the technology behind Bitcoin. But does the currency itself make a good investment?

Facebook, Sony, Google, HTC, Microsoft, and just about every other company under the sun appear to be prepping for a future ruled by virtual reality, interactive holograms, and dorky-looking goggles.

But Apple, the most valuable company in the world, has not joined the chorus of so-called "mixed reality" supporters — at least, not yet.

That could be changing, and there's a growing body of circumstantial evidence to suggest that Apple is working on something big in virtual reality.

In this light, the weird analyst speculation that Apple is going to buy GoPro begins to make a lot more sense.

At this week's Business Insider Ignition conference, top Apple analyst Gene Munster identified CEO Tim Cook's biggest challenge as navigating the ripple effects that virtual reality is already starting to show in the smartphone market. 

"I think it's going to start slow, but ten years from now, I think the iPhone is going to be a much smaller part of Apple's overall business. And I think navigating that is probably the most stressful thing that [Cook] has to deal with," Munster said.

Earlier this year, GoPro and Google struck a partnership to create Google Jump, a system of 16 cameras that can take 360-degree video primed for capturing virtual reality-ready video. If Apple is really preparing to get into virtual reality, that's the kind of expertise and hardware it would want on its side. 

And while, as Munster says, it would be a years-long transition, having GoPro on board would give Apple a head start on building a consumer-ready product. After all, it's not like Apple has ever been shy about taking years and years to get something right. 

In the meanwhile, Apple has been quietly making some strategic hires in the virtual reality space, including a key engineer from Microsoft's HoloLens holographic goggles. Over the past couple of years, Apple also snapped up a few startups working in virtual reality, including PrimeSense and Metaio. 

So the picture starts to come into focus. And if Apple is indeed looking to play a long game with virtual reality, GoPro is a likely acquisition target.

SEE ALSO: What's keeping Sundar Pichai, Tim Cook, and Mark Zuckerberg up at night

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NOW WATCH: Mark Zuckerberg just got on stage and raved about the future of virtual reality

Bitcoin price is pushing closer to its November closing highs and technical analysis suggests a price correction to the downside is due. This analysis is provided by xbt.social with a 3-hour delay. Read the full analysis here. Not a member? Join now and receive a $29 discount using the code CCN29. Bitcoin Price Analysis Time of analysis: 14h30 UTC BTCC 1-Hour Chart From the analysis pages of xbt.social, earlier today: So far, so good for our trade from $315 and 2730 CNY that now seems to be reaching a ceiling. The price wave may not reverse here, but draw sideways […]

The post Bitcoin Price Approaching November Closing Highs appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

By Catherine Evans

LONDON (Reuters) - After years of waiting, it's finally here. No, not the new "Star Wars" movie: Fed week.

Barring a shock, the Federal Reserve will raise U.S. interest rates on Wednesday for the first time since June 2006, a full year before the global financial crisis began.

Data releases will meanwhile give clues to the robustness of other economies, some of which are seen as vulnerable to investment outflows as higher interest rates make U.S. assets more attractive. Especially in emerging markets, where currencies and other assets have plunged in value this year, that process has already started.

The weekend should see Chinese industrial output and retail sales numbers while markets will watch the second round of French regional elections in which tactical voting may defeat far-right first round victor Marine le Pen's National Front.

The Bank of Japan's tankan survey on Monday is expected to show business sentiment among big manufacturers receding for the second consecutive quarter, reflecting China's slowdown and lackluster domestic demand.

After unexpectedly strong readings in November, the monthly Ifo and ZEW surveys are expected to show German business and economic morale remain relatively robust although they may fall short of last month.

The Ifo jumped to 109 in November, its highest since June 2014, shrugging off an economic slowdown in China, the Volkswagen emissions scandal and the Islamist attacks in Paris, while the ZEW rose for the first time in seven months.

"Weaker growth in the emerging markets and easing tailwinds from the FX market will weigh on business sentiment. Thus, the Ifo business climate and the Purchasing Managers' Indices for the euro zone probably fell in December," said Commerzbank analysts in a note.

Flash PMIs for France, Germany and the euro zone are due on Wednesday, hours before the Fed announces its decision.

Thursday's survey of French business sentiment will be the first taken in the euro zone's second-largest economy since the attacks that killed 130 people in its capital on Nov. 13.

Wednesday also brings the final reading of November euro zone inflation, after an initial release on Dec. 3 showed annual price growth at a lower than expected 0.1 percent and core inflation -- excluding volatile energy -- unexpectedly slowing.

That helped prompt further stimulus measures from the European Central Bank last week, one of 43 central banks which in contrast to the Fed have loosened monetary policy this year to help spur inflation and growth.

The coming week sees rate decisions from the central banks of Japan, Uganda, Sweden, Norway, Hungary, Mexico, Indonesia, the Philippines, Egypt and Chile, some of which are already battling to support currencies hit by expectations of a U.S. hike.

Franklin Templeton's star bond investor Michael Hasenstab said recently that higher U.S. rates would magnify differences between emerging market economies in 2016, although he said concerns about a "systemic crisis" were exaggerated.

Hasenstab said stronger economic fundamentals should make countries like South Korea, Mexico and Malaysia resilient but that weaker Turkey and South Africa, both of which have hefty current account deficits, could be more negatively affected.

South Africa's rand slumped to an all-time low on Friday following the finance minister's sacking, prompting speculation the Reserve Bank may call an emergency meeting to increase interest rates for the second time in two months.

The Fed remains the week's star attraction, however, even if after 2-1/2 years of speculation about policy tightening and several false starts, most recently in September, its first, modest hike is unlikely to cause any major ripples.

Ninety percent of economists in a recent Reuters poll predicted the federal funds rate would be raised by quarter of a percent point on Dec. 16, taking it to 0.25-0.5 percent.

The same poll saw a very gradual pace of subsequent increases, with the rate rising to between 1 and 1.25 percent by the end of next year and to 2.25 percent by end-2017.

(Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)

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Bitcoin press release: Bitjoy, the world’s first Bitcoin-based user engagement and in-app purchase platform for mobile app developers, enters public beta this month. Over 2 million in-app engagements have already been paid out to users. Austin, Texas – With support for iOS, Android and Unity, Bitjoy empowers thousands of mobile app developers with the ability to accept Bitcoin for in-app purchases and reward Bitcoin to users completing engagements within their apps. Lynn Duke, founder of Bitjoy says, “…as 7-year veteran app developers ourselves, we saw a giant gap between Apple and Google tools compared to what’s available in the Bitcoin […]

The post BitJoy Brings Bitcoin Based in-App Purchases and Rewards to iOS, Android and Unity appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

The price of bitcoin has hit its highest level in the last year, trading at $436 and climbing at press time.

Kaspersky Lab CEO and co-founder Eugene Kaspersky says that cryptocurrencies are a brilliant invention while noting their viability in a single world government. He adds that if and when they start supplanting national currencies, governments will move in to ban them. Eugene Kaspersky revealed his thoughts about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin at a recent event in Russia. Speaking to assembled journalists during Kaspersky Digital Radio an open talk conference along with other prominent governmental and banking figures from Russia, Kaspersky sees the innovation and the creation of cryptocurrencies as a “brilliant invention.” The full video of the talk event, courtesy […]

The post Eugene Kaspersky: Cryptocurrencies Will Be Banned When They Unsettle National Currencies appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank in net assets intends to join the R3-led international blockchain consortium, according to reports. As reported by Russian news publication Kommersant, Sberbank, Russia’s biggest bank with over three times the net assets over its closest competitor is keen on joining the global consortium of 30 banks and financial institutions led by New York-based R3. Speaking to be publication, Sberbank’s First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Leve Khasis, confirmed the bank is keeping a close eye on the evolution of blockchain technology. He added the bank is looking into the documentation pertaining to R3 and pending […]

The post Russia's Biggest Bank Wants to Join R3, Embrace Blockchain and Avoid Bitcoin appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Following a document trail that claimed high-performance computing firm SGI was partnering with Craig Wright and his supercomputer firm, Cloudcroft Supercomputers, SGI has now denied any relationship with alleged Bitcoin creator Craig Wright. A letter, complete with the SGI letterhead and the signature of SGI APAC service director Greg McKeon had the computing firm contend that it was assisting Cloudcroft Supercomputers Australia and its founder & CEO Craig Wright in developing “hyper-density machines and supercomputers.” The letter also claimed a previous endeavor between SGI and Cloudcroft to build the latter’s first supercomputer called Sukuriputo Okane, deemed to be ranked #327th […]

The post Supercomputer Firm Denies Links with Speculated Satoshi Craig Wright appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Did Craig Wright, whom reports claim is the likely Bitcoin creator, lie about being a doctor with a PhD in computer science? A university statement would suggest so. Suggestions he is probably the real Satoshi Nakamoto are unravelling fast.

Dr Craig Steven Wright, the Australian named as the alleged creator of bitcoin, runs a company that spent tens of millions building the fastest computer in the Southern Hemisphere.

And it was working on blockchain technology — the software that underpins bitcoin.

His company was in the process of commercialising work on "smart contracts" and other applications using the blockchain when he disappeared.

He was also trying to revive another bitcoin company he set up that had fallen into administration, according to documents uncovered by Business Insider.

Dr Wright, an unknown Australian computer science and cyber security entrepreneur, was this week named by Wired and Gizmodo as the potential anonymous creator of bitcoin.

Somebody or a group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto invented bitcoin in 2009. Bitcoin is a type of digital currency that uses cryptography to move money and records it in a ledger without the need of a bank.

Dr Wright has disappeared in the wake of the accusations, scrubbing all digital records of himself and unreachable at his home.

But snooping by Business Insider has revealed some interesting details about what he was up to before he vanished.

'The fastest computer managed in the southern hemisphere'

A document dated May 11, 2015 on the website of Australian company DeMorgan — which Dr Wright is CEO of — shows the company was due for a tax refund worth A$54 million (£25.8 million, $39.1 million) for building a supercomputer to work on blockchain and cryptocurrency projects.

The blockchain is the software that underpins bitcoin, recording who owns what and enabling transactions. It's the "Trust machine" in the system that has got everyone from Goldman Sachs to The Economist excited.

The document, since removed from DeMorgan's website, says: "Under the scheme, companies with a turnover of less than A$20 million (£9.5 million, $14.5 million) are entitled to a cash refund of up to 45 cents per dollar spent on eligible research and development activity."

That implies that DeMorgan spent at least A$120 million (£57.3 million, $86.9 million) developing the supercomputer, assuming the company received the full 45 cents per dollar rebate.

The computer is included in the TOP500, a list that ranks the 500 most powerful computers in the world, and the document states that the rebate, and other R&D refunds to related group companies, will allow DeMorgan to fine-tune its computer to "place us in the top 20 supercomputers globally and the fastest computer managed in the southern hemisphere."

Both Wired and Gizmodo noted that Dr Wright had supercomputers, with Wired saying he had two — including Co1n, the most powerful privately owned supercomputer in the world.

The document on DeMorgan's website goes on to say (emphasis ours):

Our CEO, Dr Wright is excited that this will allow us to start accelerating cryptocurrency and smart contract and property research to new levels in the southern hemisphere and to create opportunities in Australia that have not been imagined before

The rebates relates to work already done on "the development of smart contract and Blockchain-based technologies." The statement says it hopes investment of the money can make "Australia a global leader in HPC [high-performance computer] technology as well as in the emerging crypto-currency financial fields."

It would also help DeMorgan commercialise the blockchain research it had done, according to Dr Wright. He is quoted in the statement as saying:

This rebate will strengthen the group’s cash position and is an important source of funds for our development activities. We acknowledge the Government’s support of important R&D activities, and we look forward to the successful commercialisation of our Blockchain and smart contract systems research.

The document concludes by saying DeMorgan is:

A pre-IPO Australian listed company focused on alternative currency, next generation banking and reputational and educational products with a focus on security and creating a simple user experience. In the six years since the first company in the group started, we have completed several Bitcoin-based research projects that have lasted over six years and are now ready to start commercialisation

DeMorgan's website has been taken down since its website and the related documents but you can see screengrabs of the release that Business Insider got before it was taken down below.

Reviving Hotwire

Meanwhile, it looks like Dr Craig Steven Wright was in the process of trying to revive another defunct bitcoin company he founded when he was allegedly unmasked by the press.

Hotwire, one of several companies set up by Dr Wright, was put into administration in June 2014 with debts of A$12 million (£5.7 million, $8.7 million) last year.

Wright owned just over 75% of the business, putting in A$23 million (£11 million, $16.6 million) worth of bitcoin. But it ran up debts of A$12 million (£5.7 million, $8.7 million) it couldn't meet and was taken over by administrators McGrathNicol last year.

The company, which had 40 staff, was set up in 2013 to try and set up a bitcoin bank, according to Wired. McGrathNicol lists the business of Hotwire as: "Research and development on e-learning systems and e-payment systems and software. Hotwire acquired its software through a range of complex bitcoin-related transactions."

A document dated two weeks ago from McGrathNicol shows DeMorgan is currently trying to reach a deal with its creditors to re-take control of Hotwire.

DeMorgan and the company directors are offering an immediate 10 cents on the dollar to creditors, with the promise of a further 20 cents on the dollar once a 5.5 million Australian dollar (£2.63 million, $3.9 million) tax rebate comes through. That rebate covers "complicated, related party transactions involving Bitcoin and software research and development."

The company doesn't have much in the way of assets, with McGrathNicol listing only a tax rebate claim and job contracts of "minimal realisable value." And, as revealed by Business Insider Australia, the Australian tax office was challenging the tax rebate and fined Hotwire $1.7 million Australian dollars (£810,000, $1.23 million).

Like most of the tech journalists in the world, we've tried to reach Dr Wright for comment but have been unable to.

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During a talk at Finnovasia 2015, ANX CTO Hugh Madden said he believes concerns about the bitcoin blockchain’s ability to scale are a “red herring”.

A new Deutsche Bank Research report suggests the bitcoin network is in some ways failing to live up to its original vision.

 Satoshi Nakamoto doesn’t exist. He is not one person. He is not even controlled by a single entity. And although I would argue much of his writings were produced by one person and edited by committee, it is important to bitcoin that he not exist. His lack of existence, in a very real way, is what will help bitcoin survive this decade and morph into what it will soon become. Satoshi… Read More