Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:35 AM on Tuesday, March 19th, 2019
SPONSOR: KABN, A NEO Financial Services Platform that starts with Biometric enabled Blockchain Validated Identity, empowering digital currency holders and KABN cardholders alike to spend wherever Visa is accepted. Learn More
It appears that Visa is getting into the cryptocurrency game, after many years of discussion about how cryptocurrency would render Visa obsolete.
The payments processing giant listed a new job opportunity
titled “Technical Project Manager, Visa Fintechâ€, and the listing does
not hide its intention that it has to do with cryptocurrencies.
The listing reads
Are you passionate about the
intersection of payments and cryptocurrency? Are you deeply familiar
with permissionless blockchain technology and have a close network of
experts in the fast moving cryptocurrency and fintech ecosystem? Are you
excited about the challenge of developing new products for Visa to
deliver value to fintechs looking to support cryptocurrencies?
Visa would like the hired candidate
to outline a crypto strategy and roadmap and, working with the Visa
Research team, develop new products.
The job listing refers to the impact of crypto on payments:
This highly motivated individual will
be responsible for managing a product roadmap and collaborating with
key stakeholders across…will [also] work in close collaboration with the
Visa Research team to develop new products to deliver value to fintechs
and Visa. This person should…anticipate how cryptocurrencies could
impact payments.
Visa CEO Alfred F. Kelly Jr. has previously been somewhat dismissive of cryptocurrencies, saying that Visa will not process Bitcoin transactions:
We at Visa won’t process transactions
that are cryptocurrency-based. We will only process fiat currency-based
transactions, Visa CEO Alfred F. Kelly Jr. said in January 2018
While Visa’s decision to enter cryptocurrency may invoke ridicule or distrust from the crypto community, given how crypto competes directly with the payments processor,
the fact that Visa is even considering cryptocurrencies shows how
persuasive the technology’s capabilities are, especially if a large
entity such as Visa is entering the space.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 8:46 AM on Tuesday, March 19th, 2019
The KABN Network is an integrated suite of financial services that includes:
1. The Pegasus Flyte Visa Card, an approved crypto-linked prepaid Visa card and mobile integrated multi-currency banking wallet;
2. KABN KASH, a robust loyalty and engagement program and
3. KABN ID (The network anchor), a patent pending,
Always On, GDPR complaint, blockchain and biometrically based, identity
verification and validation platform. KABN ID is a free to use service
for consumers that provides continuous monitoring and proof of identity
online and in conventional marketplaces.
THE PROBLEM KABN SOLVES
As cryptocurrencies and other digital currencies grow globally, there
is an ever-increasing need to convert them into traditional currencies
(i.e. USD and Euros) for use in traditional spending.
KABN’s integrated suite of products, which has received approval by
Visa, solves this major challenge by empowering digital currency holders
to spend in-store and online, as well as, access ATMs globally wherever
Visa is accepted.
HOW BIG IS THE PROBLEM KABN IS SOLVING?
In the US alone, this type of card volume is expected to grow to over
$396B by 2022. Worldwide volume will follow the same trajectory and
expected growth is exponential.
KABN’s integrated suite of products consists of:
KABN’s Pegasus Flyte Visa card offers an “on/off ramp†for
cryptocurrency conversion to traditional currencies (e.g., USD, Euros
and British Pounds, etc.)
*Pre-production cart art subject to network approval
A
mobile banking wallet that manages multiple traditional currencies and
digital currencies via links to crypto partners and exchanges as well as
offering other financial features and services
A robust loyalty and engagement platform, providing Customers with additional value-added services.
KABN’s
anchor product, KABN ID, is a patent-pending, GDPR compliant,
Blockchain and biometrically-based, “Always On†ID validation and
verification platform.
The
KABN ID proprietary process allows for efficient and frictionless
onboarding, allowing Customer’s to control the use of their verified
identification without having to provide confidential documentation to
unknown 3rd parties.
KABN’s
technology has been built, their partners are in place, they have been
approved by Visa and they are ready to go for their European launch in
the 2nd quarter with an expected expansion to North America later this year.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 7:14 AM on Friday, March 15th, 2019
Announced that KABN (Gibraltar) Limited will be the first client to launch on its platform to sell equity tokens, representing shares in the company.
United Kingdom / Gibraltar / Canada – March 14, 2019 –
Tokenise, a London based, FCA regulated leader in the creation and crowdfunding of tokenised securities, is pleased to announce that KABN (Gibraltar) Limited will be the first client to launch on its platform to sell equity tokens, representing shares in the company. KABN is a global financial services platform that has developed, among its suite of financial services products, a patent pending, blockchain based, GDPR compliant, ‘Always On’, global identification, KYC and AML support service for investors and clients. KABN will also be providing its services to Tokenise and its partners and participants.
Tokenisation of securities and other assets will transform the efficiency of capital markets. Removing inefficiencies, friction and barriers to participation will democratise the process of matching issuers and consumers of risk capital. This in turn will increase the flow of funds and investment opportunities for market participants. Tokenise intends to provide innovative capital market solutions for the SME sector with frictionless access to a global investor base.
KABN, a financial service platform offering neo banking type solutions, has received approval by Visa to launch its crypto-linked card and banking wallet program. KABN has partnered with European e-money institution Transact Payments Ltd, global processor GPS and platform technology provider Pannovate, to launch the program in the UK and subsequently the EU in the 2nd quarter of 2019.
Called the Pegasus Flyte Visa card, the KABN card program offers an “on/off ramp†conversion process for a variety of cryptocurrencies to fiat, together with multi-currency fiat transactions. Cardholders will be able to use their Pegasus Flyte Visa card to spend in-store, online, and at ATMs wherever Visa is accepted globally.
The Pegasus Flyte program will also offer a robust loyalty and customer engagement platform. The anchor of the program is KABN ID, a Blockchain and biometrically-based, “Always On†validation and verification process. This patent-pending, GDPR compliant process allows for efficient and frictionless customer acquisition and onboarding.
Mike Kessler (CEO of Tokenise) said “Tokenise is delighted that KABN has chosen to issue its equity token through our platform. Not only does this endorse the Tokenise model, it will also be amongst the first issuance of an equity token on a global basis, paving the way for the emergence of a new future in tokenised securities.â€
Expected to launch on the Tokenise platform in April, the KABN Token (www.kabntoken.com) will allow the Tokenise community to purchase equity tokens representing preference shares in KABN. All investors that qualify as per the regulations will be eligible to participate in the equity token sale.
“We are excited to be partnering with Tokenise for both our crowdfunding equity token sale and for our services platform,†said Michael Konikoff, Chief Revenue Officer KABN. “The KABN Token represents an effective way for our stakeholders to participate in our success and benefit from the potential opportunity and liquidity that the Tokenise platform intends to provide to investors.â€
Tokenise is launching KABN’s equity token issuance through its UK crowdfunding platform
Tokenise: a London based, FCA regulated leader in the creation and crowdfunding of tokenised securities
KABN: a financial service platform offering neo banking type solutions
Tokenise 7th Floor Hyde House The Hyde London NW9 6LH
Tags: Bitcoin, blockchain, equity token, ether Posted in KABN | Comments Off on Tokenise to launch KABN’s equity token issuance through its UK crowdfunding platform $HIVE.ca $BLOC.ca $CODE.ca
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, March 13th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Kakao’s Blockchain Arm Raises $90 Million in Private Token Sale
Ground X, the blockchain subsidiary of South Korean messaging giant Kakao, has raised $90 million in a private coin offering.
As reported by Bloomberg on Monday, Ground X CEO Jason Han said that IDG Capital, Cresendo Equity Partners and Translink Capital had participated in the round.
The firm is also reportedly planning to raise “a similar sum†in another round starting Tuesday, before launching its blockchain platform in June.
Kakao first revealed its plan to set up a blockchain subsidiary back in March 2018, soon after confirming that it had launched Ground X to develop a blockchain-powered platform as a foundation for application developers. Kakao’s top execs said at the time that the plan was to integrate future blockchain-based services with Kakao’s existing internet offerings, such as the Kakao Talk messaging app.
Ground X launched
a test network (or testnet) for its proprietary blockchain network,
dubbed Klaytn, last autumn. It has already partnered with 26 companies
that aim to run apps on Klaytn, Han told Bloomberg. These include South
Korean video game developer Wemade and video streaming platform Watcha,
as well as a unit of Chinese travel agency Zanadu.
The subsidiary has also said it
will work with the Seoul Digital Foundation, an organization created by
the Seoul Metropolitan Government, to develop blockchain projects
focusing on social and public services.
Ground X could be summed up as “partial or gradual decentralization,†Han told CoinDesk Korea last year, adding that some of Kakao’s services could be decentralized.
He added:
“The token economy is a business model that no one could have
imagined before. Until now, Kakao has only operated in Korea, but
through blockchain we could expand into the global market. That means
taking a portion of the profits we earn as an intermediary and using it
to expand our market by sharing it with users.â€
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 8:58 AM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
Polymath formed a consortium in close collaboration with KABN (www.kabn.network),
Polymath is leading the effort to make it easier for organizations to create digital securities from traditional assets through partnerships and a community that supports a transparent and compliant process for issuers and investors
TORONTO & SAINT MICHAEL, Barbados & GIBRALTAR — Polymath (www.polymath.network), the global leader in software solutions that enable assets to be digitized, distributed, fractionally owned, and ultimately liquidated, has formed a consortium in close collaboration with KABN (www.kabn.network), a global financial services platform that has developed, among its suite of products, a patent pending, blockchain based, GDPR compliant, Always On, global identification and accreditation as a support service for investors and other types of contributors.
Polymath is leading the effort to make it easier for organizations to
create digital securities from traditional assets through partnerships
and a community that supports a transparent and compliant process for
issuers and investors. Through its extensive service provider network
with firms like KABN, Polymath provides security token issuers with
access to top quality service providers.
“Our solution supports the creation of digital securities from a wide range of traditional and non-traditional assets,†said Kevin North, CEO of Polymath.
“The intention of this partnership is to create a best practice model
for customers who need help with the full lifecycle of an STO (Security
Token Offering). In this model, the issuer would work with an integrated
network of providers who are committed to ensuring that offerings are
compliant with securities laws, rules, and regulations across multiple
jurisdictions and trading platforms, increasing the value proposition by
reducing the distance and friction between investors and issuers. To
date, the full STO path is not clear for most of our issuers, so we
formed this partnership with the intention of making this a less
daunting journey.â€
KABN will also be the first organization to launch its digital
securities offering using this process. More information about the KABN Security Token Offering can be found at: www.KABNtoken.com
“Working with Polymath, KABN supports the compliance requirements for digital securities with its Always On
solution providing a faster, better and more economical solution for
issuers and investors to validate and verify identity, KYC and AML, and
manage liquidity programs,†said Ben Kessler, CEO of KABN.
“KABN is also the first company to tokenize its company assets and
create digital securities with this process, proving the model and
paving the way for others to do the same in a manner that meets
jurisdictional securities rules and regulations and supports a value
proposition for stakeholders, the Blockchain community, issuers and
investors.â€
Polymath and KABN are receiving overwhelming support from the capital
markets and blockchain communities as it introduces the framework to
program partners to advance the creation of digital securities and make
it easier for issuers and investors to interact through decentralized
platforms globally.
Together with Pegasus Fintech (Gibraltar) Limited, a consultant
organization, a consortium of Professional Service providers, Broker
Dealers, Blockchain Developers, Exchanges, Authorized Agents and other
Solution Providers have committed to supporting this process and the
KABN Token offering. The initial parties committing their support to
this growing consortium include:
Polymath Network (Polymath) is a decentralized platform that makes it
easy to create security tokens. The platform simplifies the complex
technical challenges of creating a security token and aims to bring the
multi-trillion dollar financial securities market to the blockchain.
KABN, a integrated financial service platform offering neo banking
type solutions, has received approval by Visa to launch its
crypto-linked card and banking wallet program. KABN has partnered with
Transact Payments Ltd, a European e-money institution and Principal
Member of Visa, global processor GPS and platform technology provider
Panovate to launch the program in the UK and subsequently the EEA in the
2nd quarter of the year.
Branded the Pegasus Flyte Visa card, the KABN card program offers an
“on/off ramp†conversion process for a variety of cryptocurrencies to
fiat together with multi-currency fiat transactions. Cardholders will be
able to use their Pegasus Flyte Visa cards to spend in-store, online,
and at ATMs wherever Visa is accepted globally.
The Pegasus Flyte program will also offer a robust loyalty and
customer engagement platform. The anchor of the program is KABN ID, a
Blockchain and biometrically-based, “Always On†validation and
verification process. This patent-pending, GDPR compliant process allows
for efficient and frictionless customer acquisition and onboarding.
Pegasus Fintech is a full-service Blockchain, technology and
accelerator growth advisory that supports regulatory compliant programs
and offerings.
Forward-Looking Statements: Except for
historical matters contained herein, statements made in this press
release are forward-looking statements. Without limiting the generality
of the foregoing, words such as “mayâ€, “willâ€, “toâ€, “planâ€, “expectâ€,
“believeâ€, “anticipateâ€, “intendâ€, “couldâ€, “wouldâ€, “estimateâ€, or
“continueâ€, or the negative other variations thereof or comparable
terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors, which may cause our actual results,
performance or achievements to be materially different from any future
results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Also, forward-looking statements represent
our management’s beliefs and assumptions only as of the date hereof.
Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements publicly, or to update the reasons actual
results could differ materially from those anticipated in these
forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in
the future.
Tags: Bitcoin, bloc, blockchain, code, hive, Polymath Posted in Blockchain stocks, KABN | Comments Off on Polymath and #KABN Announce Consortium to Accelerate the Creation, Distribution, and Management of Digital Securities Across Multiple Jurisdictions and Platforms $HIVE.ca $BLOC.ca $CODE.ca
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:55 AM on Monday, March 11th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Kakao Corp raises $90M for its blockchain platform
Raised $90 million in a private coin offering for its upcoming blockchain platform, as reported by Bloomberg.
The company is planning to have another round, similar in size, in March
Kakao Corp., the parent company of a South Korean messaging app KakaoTalk, raised $90 million in a private coin offering for its upcoming blockchain platform, as reported by Bloomberg. The company is planning to have another round, similar in size, in March. IDG Capital, Crescendo Equity Partners and Translink Capital participated in the round, per Bloomberg.
The blockchain platform dubbed Klaytn, which is planned to launch in
June, will start with popular third-party services such as games and
travel apps but eventually could support some messaging features
of KakaoTalk. Klaytn already has 26 partnerships lined up with apps that
already have millions of daily active users. The platform aspires to
attract a user base of 10 million accounts within the first year.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:54 AM on Monday, March 4th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
KPMG: Tech Execs See the Future- It’s Blockchain
Almost a full 50% of the executives polled (76% of whom are C-level executives — meaning they have titles like CTO, CEO, COO) firmly believed that blockchain is ‘very likely’ or ‘likely’ to change the way their company does business — within three years. That is a short time, especially in the business world.
By R.R. Hauxley
Plenty of people love blockchain.
Plenty more hate it. But the biggest chunk of people by far are those
who are neutral about it. They neither love it nor hate it. They’re just
waiting for the world to make up its mind — like when VHS fought
Betamax or Bluray fought HD-DVD. Well, the world is making up its mind
right quick — and the winner is blockchain.
A survey was recently released. A big, meaningful one. It was released by KPMG,
one of the top four auditor agencies in the world. They call it the
Technology Industry Innovation Survey and it polls over 740 gigantic
tech leaders across twelve countries around the world. The results are
fascinating.
Almost a full 50% of the executives polled (76% of whom are C-level
executives — meaning they have titles like CTO, CEO, COO) firmly
believed that blockchain is ‘very likely’ or ‘likely’ to change the way
their company does business — within three years. That is a short time, especially in the business world.
Taking that one step further, 41% of these higher-ups also believed
that, in these next three short years, the company they direct will, in
fact, implement blockchain tech.
Perhaps the most telling statistic, however, is the change from last
years survey. Despite the crypto bear market, despite hacks and scams,
the executives who were neutral last year are moving bullishly into the
blockchain believer category. Last year a full 42% of respondents were
neutral on all this and 30% even responded that blockchain changing
things would be “very likely.†Today the neutral camp has shrunk to 24%
— with the majority moving camp to the “we will use blockchain†side of
the story.
So you see, the battle between blockchain believers and
doubters is coming to a close. High powered executives running
multi-billion dollar companies (which produce products and services that
we all use) are learning about blockchain, believing in it, and will be
shaping their companies to use it — all in the next three years. It’s
high time, then, that those who are also neutral take a page from the
tech exec playbook and read “An Introduction to Blockchain.â€
These titans of industry are not making their decisions because of
tabloid headlines. They are educating themselves about blockchain with
proper guides. That is the only way to make proper profits. We should
follow such footsteps if we want to profit from blockchain too.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:58 AM on Friday, March 1st, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
10 Major Blockchain Trends in 2019
While cryptocurrencies took a hammering, 2018 was huge for Blockchain, the technology that underpins Bitcoin and a myriad of other coins.
Blockchain has plenty of use cases outside of the cryptocurrency space with IBM, Oracle, and Amazon and other multi-billion dollar companies trying to capitalize on the disruptive technology.
Now, it’s time to find out what major Blockchain trends will define the current year.  Â
By: Alex Morris Â
From the Internet-of-Things (IoT) convergence to startups for the unbanked — find out what to expect from Blockchain in 2019
While cryptocurrencies took a hammering, 2018 was huge for Blockchain, the technology that underpins Bitcoin and a myriad of other coins. Blockchain has plenty of use cases outside of the cryptocurrency space with IBM, Oracle, and Amazon and other multi-billion dollar companies trying to capitalize on the disruptive technology. Now, it’s time to find out what major Blockchain trends will define the current year.  Â
STOs replacing ICOs
Security tokens (STOs)
have been a hot topic in the crypto space, and it looks like they will
continue to be hot now that Overstock’s tZERO announced the launch of
the new STO platform on Jan. 21. The Blockchain-powered platform will
provide any company with the opportunity to raise funds by launching its
own STOs. Prior to that, the startup made an announcement about the
completion of its utility token distribution.
STOs, which combine the best features of the stock market and
cryptocurrencies, arose as a fully regulated alternative to ICOs, which
turned out to be the passing fad of 2017.
Tokenization creating more investment opportunities
The launch of the Estonia-based DEX,
which buys the shares of the biggest companies in the world in the form
of ERC20 tokens, proved that 2019 is all about tokenization. The
Ethereum-powered startup will allow non-US investors to engage in the US
stock market without any limitations pertaining to their location or
investment amount.
Crypto startup Zilliqa also recently introduced Hg Exchange, a fully regulated exchange that allows accredited investors to buy US stocks.
Tokenization already became a pervasive trend in 2018, going far
beyond the stock market, but this is the year when pretty much
everything will be tokenized – art, wine, real estate, etc.
Blockchain and IoT forming an alliance
Back in January, leading digital security company Gemalto released a report
that states that 23 percent of responders think that Blockchain
technology could be a boon for securing IoT-powered devices. Meanwhile,
almost 91 percent of businesses who do not utilize Blockchain consider
making use of the technology in the future.
The number of IoT-powered devices is expected
to reach 26.66 bln in 2019, but less than half of all businesses can
detect whether their device experienced a security breach.
IBM also illustrated the benefits for this convergence with the help of
their game-changing platform Watson IoT. Apart from bringing more
security to the table, Blockchain significantly simplifies the task of
managing different devices and increases the efficiency of the
transaction.
Wall Street transitioning from dabbling to actions
The fact that cryptocurrency prices took a nosedive in 2018 doesn’t
mean that the global financial industry is going to suddenly give up on
Blockchain. As U.Today reported earlier, Bakkt,
the ICE-backed exchange, was supposed to go live in January, but its
launch was eventually delayed due to the longest government shutdown in
history. Speaking of other ‘big-fish’ players, NASDAQ and the NYSE
plan to launch Bitcoin futures while also being keen on Blockchain.
Since the crypto hub died down, there is a good reason to believe that
2019 will be the year of exciting developments in the Blockchain space.
More decentralized exchanges appearing on the horizon
Decentralized exchanges, while actually living up to Satoshi’s
vision, have numerous usability issues that take a toll on their
popularity. There is no centralized authority that manages the users’
funds, but it’s also a double-edged sword problem – there is no way to
revert a certain transaction if private keys are stolen or lost. Keep in
mind that there are certain degrees of centralization. Case in point:
the Bancor DEX, which suffered from a $13.5 mln hack, though Charlie Lee later claimed that no decentralized exchange can lose its funds.
With that being said, major crypto startups – from Binance to Tron – have launched their own DEXs in order to spearhead the shift towards decentralization in the crypto world.
Governments will continue looking into Blockchain
The wide variety of Blockchain applications are being explored by
governments across the globe (even those ones who are openly hawkish
towards cryptocurrencies). China cracked down on Bitcoin, but this
country is hell-bent on becoming the leader in the Blockchain race.
Shanghai, Guangzhou and other major cities are all supporting Blockchain
developments. As reported by U.Today, the Ministry of Industry and
Information Technology (MIIT) launched
an initiative to incentivize business who are working with the DLT
technology. Moreover, there are specific Blockchain guides in China for
educating government officials.
Estonia is yet another country
that is focused on the e-Estonia program that will digitize the
government. Meanwhile, Dubai could become the very first government that
is powered by Blockchain. The implementation of Blockchain could help Dubai save up to $1.5 bln per year by cutting the red herring and creating a fully paperless government.
Blockchain-powered startups banking the unbanked
Africa, where a substantial part of the population remains unbaked,
represents a breeding ground for different startups that utilize
Blockchain technology in order to increase economic inclusiveness. The Rohingya Project
went even further by using Blockchain to restore the identity of
stateless Rohingyas and give them access to banking services.
Real-word use cases beyond fintech
It is worth noting that Blockchain is the most disruptive technology
of the last decade, but it remains unknown to the general public. Yes,
along with Bitcoin, Blockchain was one of the buzzwords in the tech
space, but it’s all about real-world adoption. According to PwC research,
84 percent of companies have dipped their toes into Blockchain, but
they are not ready to embrace it due to numerous ‘trust issues.’ Those
who will be able to integrate Blockchain into their businesses will turn
out to be the true winners of 2019.
Scalability becoming one of the main issues
Without a doubt, scalability is one of the major bottlenecks of
Blockchain, which poses a major hindrance to mainstream adoption. That
became very evident when CryptoKitties, one of the best-known dApps,
created congestion on the Ethereum network. Bitcoin and Ethereum are
only able to handle seven and 25 TPS (this level of scalability doesn’t
hold a candle to mainstream payment processors in the likes of VISA).
Hence, many promising solutions, such as sharding and sidechains, are expected to be implemented in 2019. Bitcoin’s Lightning Network (LN),
for example, is witnessing growing popularity with major industry
players, with an eye-popping 830 percent surge in half a year. LN will
significantly boost Bitcoin adoption while solving scalability pain
points.
Blockchain jobs will become more common
Despite Bitcoin, the major use case of Blockchain, taking a hammering
in 2018, the number of Blockchain-related jobs continued to grow
throughout the year. Moreover, as reported by CNBC,
the salaries of Blockchain engineers skyrocketed to $175,000 per year,
which means that they receive the highest salaries in the software
development niche on par with AI specialists. According to Hired CEO
Mehul Patel, ‘there’s a ton of demand for Blockchain.’ On top of that,
Upwork, the leading freelance platform, had a 35,000 percent uptick in
the number of Blockchain freelancers (it’s the fastest-growing freelance
sector).
However, earning a six-figure salary is not an easy feat. Blockchain developers
have to code in numerous languages, including Go and Solidity. As
mentioned above, major companies do not want to miss the boat on
Blockchain, so they are striving to hire talented programmers.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 11:04 AM on Monday, February 25th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Mastercard, Amazon and Accenture Partner To Establish Transparent Blockchain Supply Chain
Mastercard, Amazon and Accenture plan to connect consumers and producers through its work on a blockchain-based supply chain.Getty
Today Accenture introduced a “circular supply chain†allowing consumers to make more sustainable choices about what they buy. Consumers are also able to tip producers, directly rewarding them for their choices in production.
All of this is made possible through digital identity management and blockchain technology.
Accenture is collaborating with
Mastercard, Amazon Web Services, Everledger and Mercy Corps to build its
supply chain capability. Everyday, whether we think about it or not, we
interact with a global supply chain, for example when we shop, and
these innovations could help us better navigate the system. A recent Nielsen study
shows nearly two-thirds of Americans want a frictionless online
shopping experience and want to support more efficient and eco-friendly
farming and manufacturing. The problem today is that we don’t have much
access to how things are made or who makes them.
David Treat, a managing director and global blockchain lead at Accenture says,
Over the past several years, we have built upon our
longstanding identity work with a focus on the more than 1 billion
people in this world who lack any form of recognized identity. We saw
directly linking consumers and the value created at the end of a supply
chain directly back to help small producers at the beginning as critical
to actually driving real social and environmental change.â€
Treat says Accenture and its partners
are working on in-store, web and app-based implementations where
consumers could scan a unique digital identifier on an item registered
to the people who produced it. Scanning the tag on a pair of jeans, for
example, would give customers its supply chain origins from start to
finish, along with the opportunity to send a token of appreciation to
the people who produced them. This allows the system to benefit not
just huge corporations who know the system well, but also individuals
such as smallholder farmers, who grow crops on small plots of land.
For the 3.4 billion people –
almost half the world’s population – that still struggle to meet basic
needs, we believe that digital technologies are largely untapped.â€
says Tara Nathan, Executive Vice President, Humanitarian &
Development at Mastercard, “Through our work with smallholder farmers in
Kenya, India, Mexico and elsewhere, we’ve deployed digital solutions
helping to drive commercially sustainable social impact – and we
understand that collaboration is essential for this journey.â€
Why Blockchain?
A blockchain provides a public, independent digital record called
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). By distributing a public ledger,
Amazon, Mastercard, Accenture, consumers and smallholder farmers can all
interact with the same information without risk of someone altering the
data.
DLT could benefit consumers and
farmers interacting across the supply chain, helping people across the
entire process by increasing transparency and sharing profits more
deliberately throughout.
Source:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/leslieankney/2019/02/25/accenture-mastercard-and-amazon-partner-to-establish-transparent-blockchain-supply-chain/#393a39341f81
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Why 2019 May Become The Year Of Enterprise Blockchain
Last year, 95% of companies across different industries were investing in blockchain tech projects.
In 2019, those pilot projects are finally moving from the test stage to the end users.
Goldman Sachs, a former vocal skeptic of the blockchain, has launched a crypto-investing product for their clients in the end of last year.
Last year, 95% of companies across different industries were investing in blockchain tech projects. In 2019, those pilot projects are finally moving from the test stage to the end users. Goldman Sachs, a former vocal skeptic of the blockchain, has launched a crypto-investing product for their clients in the end of last year. Beyond investing and finance, major blockchain projects have been released in several other industries including cybersecurity, healthcare and agriculture.
Enterprises no longer question whether blockchain is even worth the attention, according to Sky Guo, CEO of Cypherium,
a startup offering enterprise-ready blockchain solutions. On the
contrary, Guo says they are now proactively seeking new ways of
incorporating this technology in their legacy systems. Henri Arslanian,
head of fintech and crypto department at PwC, said that
2018 ‘cleared the noise’ in the blockchain space, and 2019 will be the
year when big players enter the crypto world. Indeed, in the first
months of 2019, several major companies have signed off new partnerships
with blockchain startups (ING Bank and R3); invested in blockchain projects (Nasdaq and Symbiont); and new consortium partnerships emerged (Wall Street Blockchain Alliance and R3).
Further in 2019, we should see more
enterprise-level decentralized ledger technologies (DLTs) emerging on
the market as the underpinnings for those a strong.
1. Ready-to-use software is now available from top vendors
Amazon, IBM and most recently Oracle offer enterprise-grade blockchain solutions. R3 – an international blockchain consortium, also plans to unveil its platform, Enterprise Corda, later this year.
“Unlike the open-source blockchain
software, enterprise solutions come with better scaling mechanisms,
security, privacy and additional protocol changes that make them more
attractive to the private sector,†Guo
said. “In our case, we have improved upon the existing Ethereum
consensus mechanism to maximize decentralization and scalability,
without sacrificing one for the other. This, in turn, allows to achieve higher transaction speed and smart contract execution time.â€
The particular appeal of
enterprise-grade DLT is that it also enables unprecedented collaboration
opportunities not just within large organizations, but cross-company as
well. Several of the largest world food suppliers including Nestle,
Unilever, Walmart, Kroger and others, are working with IBM to create a global food tracing system on blockchain.
The collaboration is a crucial factor here to reach complete visibility
into the origins of potentially hazardous goods and rapidly trace the
source of contamination. Guo said enterprise-grade solutions set unified
standards for such collaboration, enabling faster adoption and better
interoperability between companies, ultimately benefiting everyone in
the industry.
2. Interoperability has significantly improved
Lack of connectivity mechanisms
between different types of blockchain solutions was a major roadblock to
wider adoption. But these days, tech companies are presenting new
viables ways for establishing connections between different ledgers.
Ripple has released an Interledger –
mid-ware arbitrary protocol that can “connect†different types of
ledgers, both distributed and traditional centralized ones. Its main
goal is to improve interoperability between financial institutions. The
additional benefit is that Interledger allows users to store aggregate
transaction data off a public blockchain by using a connector to
transfer funds between private versions of the Ripple network.
“Customer data privacy remains a sore
point for enterprises as they must constantly upgrade their systems to
remain compliant with emerging regulations,†Guo said. “By leveraging
blockchain businesses can actually reduce their data ownership. Customer
information recorded on the distributed ledger doesn’t have to change
hands when transactions are executed. Instead, users can simply grant
permission for access to those records whenever needed. This, in turn,
allows enterprises to remain compliant with less effort, and users can
benefit from greater privacy and security.â€
3. The overall improved understanding and sentiment around blockchain
Blockchain is no longer viewed as an abstract technology supporting crypto-currencies. Over a half (58%) of investors and 55% of consumers feel
that blockchain are optimistic about the blockchain’s potential for
money transfers. What’s more important though, is that customers’
perception of the blockchain is changing too. Per Deloitte survey,
only 18% of respondents in the US consider blockchain to be just “a
database for money†with little other applications outside the financial
industry. For the majority, it’s a promising new technology capable to
transform a multitude of business processes.
In fact, that’s how most businesses now view blockchain. According to
the same survey, 74% of companies state that they already have a
“compelling business case†for blockchain technology; 34% already
initiated a blockchain deployment.
As the sector clears of opportunistic
ICO projects and speculative use cases, Guo argues that enterprises are
becoming the key market players. And as more successful projects
emerge, legacy companies are feeling an increasing pressure to innovate
as well. With ready-to-use software and a burgeoning ecosystem of
blockchain consortiums joining the bandwagon has become easier than
ever.
