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The opening ceremony of a new mining farm touting itself as one of the “world’s largest” was held in the Armenian capital Oct. 18, according to a report by local platform News Armenia. The Armenian Prime Minister and other top officials were reportedly in attendance. The new mining farm is reportedly a joint venture by major Armenian conglomerate Multi Group, founded by oligarch and politician Gagik Tsarukyan, and controversial international mining firm Omnia Tech. Tsarukyan is the founder of Tsarukyan Alliance, which represents the second biggest parliamentary bloc in the Armenian Parliament, having sealed over 27 percent of the vote in the country’s 2017 elections; he is also reportedly a “key” business partner of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan. Multi Group employs over 25,000 people through its various subsidiaries, according to News Armenia. Aside from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Tsarukyan, the event is reported to have been attended by numerous internat...

Indian government is “evaluating” the possibility of issuing a state-backed cryptocurrency , sources have told local news outlet Quartz India on Wednesday, Oct. 10. An unnamed “senior official” has told Quartz that the government has set up a panel that will discuss questions regarding cryptocurrencies and blockchain. While, according to Quartz’s source, the government is looking to “encourage” blockchain studies, the launch of a state-backed cryptocurrency is only an option to be considered. The source has also said that the panel will discuss new amendments to the existing draft bill on cryptocurrencies. One of the proposals is reportedly to make any possession of cryptocurrency without the government’s approval a punishable crime. The panel was created in December 2017 by India’s Ministry of Finance to discuss crypto regulations in the country, Quartz notes. It is expected to present its report by the end of 2018. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) first announced its ban on p...

The South Korean government is literally doubling down on its efforts to trial blockchain in the public sector, adding more projects and increasing available funds for 2019. The Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) – a sub-organization of the Ministry of ICT – has said it is aiming to increase the number of blockchain pilot projects in the public sector from six this year to 12 in 2019, as CoinDesk Korea  reported on Tuesday. “In the next year, we are considering expanding blockchain pilot projects in the public sector to 12, and plan to support more than three private-led blockchain national projects,” said Min Kyung-sik, head of KISA’s blockchain team. Further, the government agency will also boost the blockchain pilot budget for 2019 to more than 10 billion Korean won, or $9 million, in addition to the previously reported $9 million fund for both 2018 and 2019. In June, the Ministry of ICT revealed a development plan that would see it work with other relevant...

The U.S. Senate has held a hearing on the energy efficiency of blockchain and similar technologies, according to an announcement published August 21. The hearing on energy and natural resources, held by the U.S. Senate Committee in Washington, DC, focused on the application of blockchain and related technologies, as well as the cybersecurity possibilities of using such technologies in the energy industry. In particular, the committee considered the issue of the possible increase in electricity prices following the rising power demand in blockchain applications. The hearing also touched on the methods of evaluating whether blockchain can improve the cybersecurity of the computing systems used to supply energy. Among the speakers, Thomas A. Golden, program manager at Electric Power Research Institute (ERPI), reported that the institute’s research on blockchain and its capabilities led to several pilots that have demonstrated potential promise in the deployment of blockchain to...

The BlockShow Americas 2018 conference kicked off Monday, Aug. 20 in Las Vegas. The first panel discussion involved a heated debate between proponents of two opposite views of how — and if — blockchain should be regulated and adopted by institutions around the globe. BlockShow is a series of fintech and crypto events, usually held in Singapore and Europe; the previous BlockShow took place in Berlin in the spring of this year. The opening panel, titled “Wall Street vs Crypto,” brought together a number of industry experts to discuss the future potential of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin ( BTC ), and the importance of regulatory involvement in the crypto sphere. Panelists debated the role of governments and financial institutions in paving the way for a “tsunami of innovation” enabled by blockchain. Moderated by TechCrunch ’s editor-at-large Mike Butcher, the panel was comprised of five experts from the finance and crypto industries, including leading IT analyst and Forbes c...

The South Korean government will invest over $880 million next year in order to boost the development of innovative technologies including blockchain. According to a government release on Tuesday, deputy prime minister Kim Dong Yeon hosted a ministerial meeting on Aug. 13 to address the administration’s investment plan for innovation growth in the next five years. Data  disclosed on the website of the Ministry of Economy and Finance shows that the government is set to allocate 1 trillion won (about $880 million) in 2019 – an 80 percent growth compared to that in 2018 – for technologies including blockchain, big data and AI. Further, the authority said it will invest a total of $8–9 billion in the same areas over the coming five years. The goal is to “focus on promoting big data and AI, developing blockchain technology to ensure data management security and boosting the sharing economy,” according to the statement. The high-level investment plan doesn’t yet provide...

The state-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation Ltd. is turning to blockchain technology to innovate its unwieldy electronic invoice system, according to an announcement republished on a government site August 13. The article, from official state newspaper People’s Daily , was posted yesterday by the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence and outlines how blockchain will help innovate the supervision of invoices for tax purposes nationwide. As the article notes, statistics indicate 1.31 billion Chinese electronic invoices were in circulation in 2017. By 2022, the number is forecast to hit 54.55 billion, according to a projected average annual growth rate of over 100%. China Aerospace’s existing electronic invoice services are end-to-end, covering issuance, delivery, filing, inspection and reimbursement for the country’s taxpayers and authorities. It has already issued some 2.5 billion invoices to date, the article notes. Wh...

A governmental committee of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has warned the public that trading digital currencies is illegal in the country, according to an August 12 announcement by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA). The warning was issued by the Standing Committee for Awareness on Dealing in Unauthorized Securities Activities in the Foreign Exchange Markets. The standing committee was established by supreme decree headed by Capital Market Authority (CMA), and contains such ministries as the Ministry of Media, Ministry of Commerce and Investment, SAMA, and the Ministry of Interior. According to the statement, digital currencies are not recognized by the government and no entities are licensed to deal with them. In the warning, the committee notes “high risks” and “negative consequences” associated with virtual currency trading, and urges the public not to fall for so called “get-rich schemes” as they imply “high regulatory, security, and market risks.” The statement ...

The U.S. District Court, Northern District of California has ruled to deny a motion to remand against Ripple , its subsidiary XRP II, and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse , according to an official document issued August 10. The original lawsuit was first initiated by XRP investor Ryan Coffey in a San Francisco court on May 3, 2018, claiming that he lost $551.89 while trading XRP tokens. The class action was filed by law firm Taylor-Copeland, alleging that Ripple sold XRP tokens in violation of both the U.S. the Securities Act and the California Corporations Code. The plaintiff also claimed that XRP is not genuinely decentralized . According to court documents, the plaintiff failed to show whether the presence of a Securities Act issue was sufficient to bar the defendant from removing an action under the Class Action Fairness Act . In the ruling the court found that, “The parties candidly admit that their research failed to turn up any case directly addressing this question and...

China’s Communist Party is moving to make blockchain literacy the norm across public offices with the publication of an explainer for officials and members. Released by the publishing house of the People’s Daily – the party’s news outlet – the book is titled “Blockchain – A Guide for Officials”, according to a report from the Daily on Monday. Starting with an explanation of the origin and features of blockchain, the guide moves onto the current and future applications and challenges the tech brings to the business and legal world. According to the People’s Daily, the goal is to help government officials better understand the concept of blockchain as part of a wider effort to facilitate the development and adoption of the technology. Ye Zhenzhen, head of People’s Daily, writes in the book: “The biggest impact of blockchain lies in its operation mechanism … which seeks to achieve consensus as a way to govern a community. It offers us a brand new angle to think about and resol...

The Indian government is considering whether to allow crypto tokens to be used in the country, despite its hardline stance on cryptocurrencies, local news outlet DNA India reports August 10. A committee set up by the finance ministry, under the chairmanship of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) secretary, is reportedly working on a set of regulations and roadmap to allow certain crypto assets to be used in India. Once the draft proposals are finalized, the legislation will be tabled before the Parliament, according to DNA’s source. DEA secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, who is heading the committee, is quoted by DNA as saying: “The committee is studying the possibility of using cryptocurrencies or crypto technology (distributed ledger technology) for financial transactions and also what kind of regulations are needed for that…[while] the currency is totally banned, the committee is discussing its other usage and how it can be mainstreamed in India.” While emphasizing that ...

The Democratic candidate for governor of Colorado, U.S  Representative Jared Polis, has added a blockchain policy to the list of issues of his gubernatorial campaign this year, according to an announcement on Polis’ website. Having set a goal to establish Colorado as a “national hub for blockchain innovation in business and government,” Polis added a set of blockchain-related proposals to his gubernatorial platform on Wednesday, Aug. 8. In his campaign, Polis advocates for implementing five blockchain-related initiatives, such as developing cybersecurity infrastructure to ensure the integrity of elections, and building a statewide ‘safe harbor’ to exempt digital currencies from state money transmission laws. Polis also advocates for blockchain-based solutions in the state’s energy grid, the reduction of government bureaucracy while improving government services, and conducting a survey on further blockchain applications. Following in the footsteps of Wyoming , which cre...