06/03/2018: Biggest Stories in the Cryptosphere

1. Financial Services Giant SBI Invests in Crypto Hardware Wallet Developer

Tokyo-based financial services giant SBI Holdings has invested in a cryptocurrency hardware wallet developer specialising in cold wallets. The SBI Group’s financial services division announced the decision on its website. It now owns 40% of Taiwanese CoolBittX. SBI will use the company’s technology for risk management in areas such as customer assets, as it will benefit its security system. Previously, the company has also discussed the possible creation of its own digital currency for payments and instant P2P transfers. It would be tradeable with Japanese Yen. Lastly, it is not the first time it has partnered with a crypto company — we previously reported about SBI Ripple Asia, a partnership between SBI Group and Ripple.

2. South Korean Kakao Corp To Launch Blockchain Subsidiary Along With Own ICO

South Korean internet company Kakao Corp, owner of the country’s largest messaging app KakaoTalk, is going to establish a blockchain subsidiary along with its own cryptocurrency. Information is limited, but it has been revealed that the subsidiary will investigate possible uses of blockchain technology. More should be disclosed in two weeks during a press conference. However, it is not the first time the company has produced a crypto-related project. Kakao Corp has already launched Upbit, a crypto exchange supporting over 110 cryptocurrencies. Singapore and Hong Kong are currently under consideration as possible locations for the cryptocurrency ‘Kakao Coin’, as South Korea banned ICOs last year.

3. A Chinese Securities Regulator Official Thinks Centralisation Would Improve Blockchain

During the “Two Sessions” conference, which took place on Sunday in Beijing, China’s Securities Regulatory Commission’s Head of Technology Unit, Zhang Ye, claimed that a certain degree of centralisation would improve blockchain. The CSRC Official thinks that technological innovations such as blockchain and Artificial Intelligence would bring great benefits to the public sector. However, he added that a certain level of centralisation would be required in order to enable their adoption. When interviewed by Chinese news outlet Securities Times, Ye argued that blockchain was initially created with a centralised approach. He continued saying that ideally decentralised technologies such as blockchain should be analysed using a centralised architecture.

4. Coinbase Denies Any New Listing as Ripple’s Momentum Fades Away

We reported only yesterday that Ripple was the cryptocurrency that started the week with the greatest growth. The rumour about a possible Coinbase listing of Ripple is believed to be one of the reasons for the hike. However, the crypto exchange denied the rumours on Twitter. At around 15.00 GMT, Ripple fell by 11.58% to $0.93 (when compared the 24 hours previous). Currently, Korean exchanges Bithumb, Upbit, and Coinone are representing 38% of the cryptocurrency trading volume over the past 24 hours.

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