Over $12.4 Billion USD Transacted On China’s Official Blockchain Project, PBoC Affiliate Report — Lujan Odera

After studying trade and finance as the main use of the blockchain, the bank launched the first sovereign blockchain in 2018, registering a couple of patents along the way. So far, the country ranks as the largest blockchain patent holder in the world.

The PBoC maintains the bank will not support any public blockchain yet as it focuses on its own blockchain project. So far, its blockchain project that offers multi-stage accounts receivable financing, a fast track for rediscounts and supervision over foreign trade payments is on the rise. Watch out for blockchain adoption across China.

CoinGape
Over $12.4 Billion USD Transacted On China’s Official Blockchain Project, PBoC Affiliate Report

Lujan Odera

bne Intellinews — Russia's Banking Sector Is Embracing the Blockchain Technology With a Vengence

“Blockchain can change the world just as much as the Internet. This technology is very important to the banking sector as it allows expenses to be reduced, significantly increases the speed and security of transactions and provides an unprecedented level of trust and transparency for all transactions,” commented Andrey Shemetov, Sberbank’s Vice President and Head of the Global Markets Department.

“I’m sure that our joint blockchain project with the NSD and MTS is just the beginning, and products and services using blockchain, including smart contracts, will become commonplace in the future,” he added.

Russia Insider
Russia's Banking Sector Is Embracing the Blockchain Technology With a Vengence

bne Intellinews

Don Quijones — ECB Just Launched “Better Than Blockchain” Instant Payments System

On Friday the ECB launched, with minimal fanfare, a brand new system aimed at enabling banks to settle payments instantaneously across Europe, helping them to compete with PayPal and other global tech giants. Developed in little over a year, the ECB’s not-for-profit TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) system will let people and businesses in Europe transfer euros to each other almost instantly, at extremely low cost, and irrespective of the opening hours of their local bank....

Wolf Street
ECB Just Launched “Better Than Blockchain” Instant Payments System

Don Quijones

Lucinda Shen — Alibaba's Ant Financial Just Launched a Blockchain-based Remittance Service

Though Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma may think Bitcoin is in a bubble, the firm still believes in blockchain, the technology underlying cryptocurrencies.

Ant Financial, Alibaba’s $150 billion financial affiliate, launched a blockchain-based service that lets Hong Kong’s large Filipino working population send funds to family back home quickly and securely. For now, the program is in a three-month trial period during which transaction fees will be waived....

Fortune
Alibaba's Ant Financial Just Launched a Blockchain-based Remittance Service

Lucinda Shen

Bill Black — Bitcoin Frauds Keep Growing

One of the prime myths that white-collar criminologists have to refute repeatedly is that blockchain makes fraud impossible. Blockchain, in some settings, is a costly means of making some frauds much more difficult. Blockchain is useless against the most important frauds. The primitive worship of blockchain as a supposed garlic capable of warding off evil breeds complacency, and complacency produces increased fraud and greatly extends the life of fraud.…

Sheriff Bill is on the case.

New Economic Perspectives

Bitcoin Frauds Keep Growing

William K. Black | Associate Professor of Economics and Law, UMKC

John Aziz — Bitcoin Is Failing As Money—But Bitcoin Cash Isn’t

There's a huge amount being written about Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and blockchain with the focus on Bitcoin volatility. so I am going to be selective in posting. John Aziz is a good analyst and MMT-friendly. He sorts through some of the complication.

azizonomics

Bitcoin Is Failing As Money—But Bitcoin Cash Isn’t
John Aziz

Peter Schiff says bitcoin is going to zero. That's exactly why you should buy every dip.

Peter Schiff, the guy who has been so wrong about everything, is now saying that bitcoin is going to zero. This is why you should probably buy every single dip.

Remember Schiff's predictions?

QE will cause hyperinflation.
The Chinese will stop "lending" to us and interest rates will skyrocket.
Gold is going to $10,000.

And more.

Bitcoin is not a bubble. It's a symptom of the world's desire to "de-dollarize." And while it will not become any kind of mainstream currency anytime soon because of its highly finite nature (like a gold standard or fixed FX regime, only worse), it reflects the desire on the part of people, institutions and nations to diversify out of the dollar.

The need to move away from the dollar has been prompted by increasingly aggressive and antagonistic policy emanating out of Washington. It's policy that is intended to use the dollar and the global, dollar-based, clearing and transaction system as a weapon.

No nation, not even one that is a U.S. ally, can afford to have the risk of being shut out of that system so the search is on for alternatives. Witness--bilateral, non-dollar trade agreements in yuan between Russia and China. Venezuela accepting yuan for payment of oil. Yuan-based oil trading, etc.

Technology (blockchain, etc) and need (US policy) have created the impulse behind bitcoin. There will be other cryptocurrencies emerging and, like I said, none of them will end up being the new global currency, but the desire to diversify into non-dollar units of account is very real and that means bitcoin is not a bubble.

Maduro introduces Venezuelan cryptocurrency

Venezuela's plans to issue a cryptocurrency are an early warning of an attack on the Western-dominated global financial system.…

The kicker.

To keep its dominant role in the global financial system, the West is essentially interested in holding back progress. That, perhaps more than anything else, gives non-Western powers, including rogue ones, a potential technological advantage born of strong incentive.…

Good luck with holding back progress.

Bloomberg View
Government-Run Digital Currencies Could Disrupt U.S. Dominance
Leonid Bershidsky, columnist

Se also

Fort Russ
Russia, Venezuela launch Cryptocurrency counter-attack on Globalist Bankers
Joaquin Flores

also

The Duran

EL PETRO: Venezuela rocks cryptocurrency world by announce oil backed crypto
Adam Garrie 

Sputnik — Vladimir Putin Endorses Russia's New Cryptocurrency

Rumors confirmed.

After months of speculation and conflicting messages, ministers have announced the Russian Federation is to issue its own official cryptocurrency - the CryptoRuble. The landmark development makes Russia the very first government in the world to official pursue virtual tender.

China likely not to be far behind.

Interesting article. Short and worth a read in full.

Sputnik International
Vladimir Putin Endorses Russia's New Cryptocurrency

China Daily — PBOC inches closer to digital currency China Daily

The People's Bank of China, China's central bank, has completed trial runs on the algorithms needed for digital currency supply, taking it a step closer to addressing the technological challenges associated with digital currencies, according to a top official associated with the project.

Yao Qian, director-general of the Institute of Digital Money at the PBOC, said China's central bank has successfully designed a prototype that can regulate the supply of its future digital fiat currency.

The successful simulation of money supply paves the way for the central bank to become the future sole regulator and policymaker governing the value of digital fiat currency, said Yao.

Digital fiat currencies are the digital forms of a sovereign currency that is backed by the central bank.

Unlike Bitcoin or other digital money issued by the private sector, the digital fiat currency has the same legal status as the Chinese yuan, the only fiat currency issued by the People's Bank of China.

There is no timetable for the introduction of the currency, but once introduced, China is likely to become the first country that would deploy a digital fiat currency....

The rapid development of the electronic payment sector and thriving private digital currencies have made it imperative for China's central bank to move quickly in digital finance.

Looking ahead, deploying the digital fiat currency is expected to be smarter and more intelligent compared to the payment providers using existing currencies, such as Alipay, according to Yao.

Ecns.cn
PBOC inches closer to digital currency

China Daily

Michael Roberts — Blockchains and the crypto craze

Are blockchain and cryptocurrencies as over-hyped? Michael Roberts thinks so and explains why.

Michael Roberts Blog
Blockchains and the crypto craze
Michael Roberts

Timothy B. Lee — It looks like China is shutting down its blockchain economy

Looks like the central bank (PBOC) is asserting its control of currency.

As Yves Smith says, "prosecution futures."

Ars Technica
It looks like China is shutting down its blockchain economy

Timothy B. Lee

Alex Gray — Finland has created a digital money system for refugees

MONI has developed a prepaid debit card that circumvents the need for a bank account or identity papers. The card is linked to a unique digital identity stored on a blockchain – the same technology that underpins Bitcoin and other digital currencies.

Two years ago, MONI partnered with the Finnish government to provide refugees with their monthly allowance, which until then had been paid in cash....

World Economic Forum
Finland has created a digital money system for refugees

Alex Gray

Michael Krieger — The 1% Has Started To Embrace Bitcoin - Why It Matters

This is a no-brainer. Large-scale money laundering. The push to delete cash to control crime is quickly being met by the rise in use of blockchain "currencies."

As Yves Smith has said, "prosecution futures."

Liberty Blitzkrieg

The 1% Has Started To Embrace Bitcoin - Why It Matters

Michael Krieger

bne IntelliNews — Russia Starts Working on Blockchain Standardization

Russia’s Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology (Rosstandart) appointed a new technical committee to work on the standardization of “the software and hardware of distributed register and Blockchain technologies", East-West Digital reported.

“The standardization of Blockchain will allow these technologies to develop at a new level,” expects the agency, acknowledging that Blockchain technology is “actively spreading” across Russia.

Blockchain technology will develop through “internationally-agreed methods, more intense international cooperation, social adoption, new usages and, finally, increased trust in such operations,” believes Rosstandart....

Russia Insider
Russia Starts Working on Blockchain Standardization
bne IntelliNews

Ryan Browne — Estonia wants to launch its own government-backed cryptocurrency called 'estcoin'

• Estonia has proposed to launch its own state-backed cryptocurrency, called "estcoin".
• Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin apparently gave feedback on the digital currency.
• It would be launched via the digital coin community's version of crowdfunding - an initial coin offering (ICO).

Provocative article.

Last month Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid said that her nation was "the only truly digital society," underpinned by the state.

"Almost all our citizens' interactions with the government, including voting, can be done securely online, and our 'e-residents' can incorporate and run their businesses in Estonia without ever having to set foot here," she said in an article for the Telegraph.

"Seeing this digital revolution up close has made me question whether the state as we know it today is fit for the 21st century."...

CNBC
Estonia wants to launch its own government-backed cryptocurrency called 'estcoin'
Ryan Browne

Anna Lutskova — Russian airline cuts trade operations from 14 days to 23 seconds

Blockchain is here.

Alfa-Bank:

“Implementation of the blockchain platform ethereum opens the door for optimization of business processes for both the carrier and its partners. Speed of computation has revved up from 14 days to 23 seconds. Thus, the airlines don’t delay payment to an agent which receives the money shortly after the ticket is processed.”

Agents do not have to deal anymore with the termination payment security (TPS) typically used to eliminate the risk of non-payment. Automation of the procedures speeds things up and reduces the paperwork for the airline and the agent. Before drawing a payment, the new system makes sure there is a balance in an account. 

Moreover, blockchain eliminates the human factor and boosts system reliability and transparency of trade operations....

The Duran
Russian airline cuts trade operations from 14 days to 23 seconds
Anna Lutskova

American Banker — Bank of England completes cross-border payment proof of concept

The Bank of England is on a mission to replace the settlement service. Despite its view that blockchain technology is "not sufficiently mature to support the core RTGS system," the central bank wants the next version of the system to be compatible with distributed ledgers in the private sector, according to the release.

While the proof of concept was conducted on a simulation isolated from the actual system code, its successful conclusion reinforced this aim, the Bank of England said....

Goin' for it.

American BankerBank of England completes cross-border payment proof of concept

Brian Patrick Eha

Reuters — PBOC adviser: bitcoin can be an asset but not a currency

Sheng Songcheng says bitcoin does not have attributes needed of a currency that can meet modern economic development needs….

He also said that Chinese monetary authorities should study issuing a central bank virtual currency that it can regulate and run properly.

Asia Times
PBOC adviser: bitcoin can be an asset but not a currency

Reuters

Joe Mulin — If you’d bought $1,000 of Bitcoin in 2010, you’d be worth $35M

Price of Bitcoin has doubled in 2017, and other currencies have jumped even more.

The next great opportunity, or the next great tulip bubble?

Ars Technica
If you’d bought $1,000 of Bitcoin in 2010, you’d be worth $35M

Joe Mulin

See also

Macrobusiness
Bitcoin: Ponzi gone global
Houses and Holes in Global Macro

ht Lambert Strether at Naked Capitalism

Reuters (May 24)
Bitcoin soars above $2,400 to all-time high