Friday News Roundup
Top News from Tuesday to This Week
Reports from China show that Bitmain cut its AI team from 360 employees to 100. From a geographical distribution, the AI teams in Chengdu, Wuhan, Shanghai, and Shenzhen are “dead”. http://bit.ly/2t4ADFS
Chinese crypto users lost a massive $20k per capita in scams last year. http://bit.ly/2ThF37b
China’s capital flight through cryptocurrencies trading stands at $11.4 billion in 2019, according to security firm Peckshield. http://bit.ly/2TciqRd
Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao: Vietnam is the Next Big Market, Binance will host the annual Binance Blockchain Week in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam on Feb 29-Mar 4, 2020.
Exchange News
Singapore COSS exchange unexpectedly locks down $2 million of users funds for up to a month. http://bit.ly/2N8lTfU
Binance Europe’s head of operations has left the exchange to go to Crypto.com. http://bit.ly/36DibT7
South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is set to invest 10 billion won (~$8.6 million) in Busan city’s “regulation-free” zone for blockchain development. http://bit.ly/2FvCy99
Binance Research: Ethereum’s growth gist in 2019 has been DeFi. http://bit.ly/35IjFKV
Investments
Thailand-based blockchain financial platform Lightnet completed a US $ 31.2 million Series A financing led by UOB Venture. Other investors include HashKey Capital, Hanwha Investment, Seven Bank, Uni-Presiedent, Signum Capital, Du Capital. Google translate
Coins
Voice, the social media app developed by Block.one, has recruited Forbes’ global chief digital officer Salah Zalatimo as CEO. http://bit.ly/37URuKc
Nervos Network has set up a $30 million public grant fund to sponsor external developers building on its blockchain infrastructure. http://bit.ly/2QDJYxx
Ripple partners with Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) to create cross border payment app. http://bit.ly/36FREon
Ethereum, Tron, EOS racked up $23 billion in dapp volume in 2019. http://bit.ly/2QVOypG
Bitmain cancels operation partnership for its Texas mining farm. http://bit.ly/2TamAsV
Japanese SBI Holdings, GMO Internet set to mine Bitcoin at 300MW facility in Texas. https://bloom.bg/2FzsImM
One of North Korea’s top hacker groups, Lazarus, is focusing on the Telegram app to snatch people’s bitcoin. http://bit.ly/2TdzZ3w
EOS-based Horseman GO game promises ‘autonomous’ economy. http://bit.ly/2NbToxO
🧳 Business
Baidu is launching the public beta version of its blockchain service for businesses. http://bit.ly/2T86HTN
Samsung Electronics’ blockchain smartphones, such as Galaxy S10, are set to feature Elrond project’s gaming app – “Battle of Elrond.” http://bit.ly/2R8weJU
Chinese fintech firm Ant Financial announced a launch date for an enterprise blockchain that experts believe could pave the way to mass adoption of the technology. http://bit.ly/36BM7PC
European Ubisoft launches lab for blockchain and social entertainment startups. http://bit.ly/2QEPv6R
⚖️Regulations
Five Crypto Exchanges are Expected to Enter Regulatory Sandbox in Hong Kong: http://bit.ly/2uAuRwa
China’s nationwide blockchain network, the Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN), will launch in April 2020, six months after it was rolled out for testing. http://bit.ly/35Eum0T
China’s central bank says it has completed ‘top-level’ design of digital currency. Google translate
Bank Accounts are Banned to Facilitate Cryptocurrency Trade, An Official From China’s Regulator Says. http://bit.ly/2s7ZvvU
