ETF PULLED: A long-awaited bitcoin ETF proposal by VanEck and SolidX was withdrawn by the Cboe BZX Exchange Wednesday due to the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. Cboe filed the withdrawal on Jan. 22, but it was not made public until Jan. 23, when Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) deputy secretary Eduardo Aleman published the notice.
The withdrawal is temporary, VanEck director of digital asset strategy Gabor Gurbacs told CoinDesk, and the company intends to re-file the proposal at some future point.
VanEck president and CEO Jan van Eck expanded on the decision in an interview with CNBC, explaining that the proponents of the ETF had been discussing issues around the bitcoin market with the SEC until the government shut down.
“We think we actually have pretty solid answers to those [questions], but we just need to really demonstrate it very, very clearly and convincingly to the regulators,” he said, adding: “We were trying to do that but we obviously can’t have meetings while they’re shut down.” Full Stories
XRP CAPPED: A report by crypto data startup Messari estimates that the circulating supply and actual market capitalization of the XRP cryptocurrency may be much lower than what current data sites present.
According to sites like CoinMarketCap, as well as Ripple, a company closely linked to the digital asset, XRP's circulating supply is roughly 41 billion tokens. However, 27.6 billion of those tokens may not actually be circulating, or may be "subject to significant selling restrictions," according to the report.
As a result, Messari also estimates that XRP’s market cap may be “overstated” by $6 billion. According to CoinMarketCap, XRP’s current market cap is roughly $13 billion as of press time. Full Story
HEALTH CHAINS: A number of major U.S. health insurance providers are teaming up with IBM to determine if a "blockchain-based ecosystem" can improve how sensitive data is stored and shared, as well as make health claims and transactions more efficient.
Announced Thursday, IBM is working with Aetna (which was acquired by CVS Health last year), Anthem, Health Care Service Corporation and PNC Bank, which altogether account for nearly 100 million healthcare plans in the U.S.
PNC Treasury Management head Chris Ward explained that the collaboration should make it easier for patients, payers and providers handling payments, saying “using this technology, we can remove friction, duplication and administrative costs that continue to plague the industry.” Full Story
TOKENIZED DECACORNS: Zilliqa and MaiCoin are partnering to launch a security token exchange in Singapore that will let investors trade traditional asset classes using blockchain technology.
The new Hg Exchange plans to act as a “one-stop solution” for token issuers, buyers, sellers and market makers, allowing investors access to privately held shares and security tokens alike. According to a press release, Hg Exchange will provide access “to high-growth startups and also decacorns such as Uber, Airbnb, Space X [sic], Grab and Didi Chuxing.”
Hg has not explained how it will provide such access. The platform does claim to be the first “member-driven exchange” in southeast Asia, meaning participants must go through the licensed financial intermediaries who have signed up, which at launch include Phillip Securities, PrimePartners, RHT Capital and Fundnel. Full Story
NOTES FROM DAVOS: The island of Bermuda made waves at Davos last year when it issued a challenge to the blockchain industry: If you want to help construct a regulatory framework from scratch – come talk to us.
Five months later, it had unveiled one of the most comprehensive digital asset legislative frameworks created to date. After passage late 2018, more than 60 blockchain companies are now in the pipeline to incorporate in the British overseas department.
Not resting on his laurels, Bermuda Premier David Burt sat down with CoinDesk at the ConsenSys Ethereal Lounge in Davos this morning to outline the next prong in his push to woo crypto and blockchain companies to the island: A framework for issuing portable and tokenized digital identities that can be used with any service provider on the island.
Complying with know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering requirements remains a tremendous burden for companies in the financial services realm, Burt explained. “Identity is a silo. Every company currently has to do KYC procedures. It’s a huge barrier to entry.”
While a foundational element of a future blockchain and token-based financial system, identity solutions have been slow to come to market in a practical way. For Burt, this is more of a governance question than anything else.
“The problem isn’t the technology, it’s the regulation,” he said.
Bermuda is also working behind the scenes to build out the professional services infrastructure that crypto and blockchain companies require, such as banking, custody and insurance – an area the island figures to have a strong competitive advantage given its status as a global hub for the reinsurance industry.
If its showing at the World Economic Forum thus far is a leading indicator, Bermuda remains a key jurisdiction to watch in the crypto universe for 2019.
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