Blockchain News for 15 Aug 2017
Nasdaq Inks Blockchain Trading Deal With Swiss Stock Exchange
Nasdaq has signed a deal with the operator of Switzerland's primary stock exchange to integrate blockchain into its over-the-counter product services.
According to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing from July 26, Nasdaq – which has been working with blockchain technology since as early as 2015 – struck the agreement with SIX Swiss Exchange, a subsidiary of SIX Group. Notably, the group has also been experimenting with blockchain through its SIX Securities business line.
The SEC filing revealed the new deal, stating:
"In July 2017, Nasdaq also signed an agreement with SIX Swiss Exchange to implement a distributed ledger technology based solution for the OTC structured products business from SIX, highlighting further commercialization of blockchain with the Nasdaq Financial Framework."
Full story at http://bit.ly/2uzxc9U
Source: CoinDesk
Gibraltar Stock Exchange Plans Blockchain-Powered Trading System
Gibraltar's primary securities exchange has revealed a plan to "fully integrate" blockchain into its trading and settlement systems.
To help with the integration, the Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSE) also announced a strategic partnership with a firm called Cyberhub Fintech, which has become a shareholder in the exchange as part of the deal.
"The investment signals the Gibraltar Stock Exchange's continued commitment to expand its capital markets network and influence in Asia as well as its ambition to become one of the world's first regulated exchanges to fully integrate use of blockchain into its operational processes from ICO to IPO," the GSE said in a statement.
Few details on the integration have yet to be released, however. A representative for the GSE did not immediately respond to CoinDesk's questions about the announcement.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2uzxX2K
Source: CoinDesk
Will Blockchain Ignite Fractional Ownership Market For Homes?
The second quarter of 2017 was a wild one for blockchain companies and investors with nearly 60 ICOs closed in the quarter for more than $750M, and it looks like it’s just the beginning. Blockchain is going to affect almost every industry as it renders intermediaries obsolete. This is the reason for global giants such as SAP, IBM and others to invest in blockchain: they are trying to become the disruptor, not the disrupted.
The real estate industry has always been slow to adopt new technologies, however, it is becoming more open to the idea that blockchain has the potential to transform the way we buy and sell real estate by lowering hidden costs, expedite the process, reduce frauds and increase transparency.
Chicago’s Cook County Recorder of Deeds, for instance, recently completed an eight month pilot program with velox.RE to test transferring ownership of real estate on the blockchain and subsequent recording of that conveyance into the public record. The pilot was considered a success as several tests of a Bitcoin blockchain real estate conveyance with a Chicago property owner were completed and met the all the legal, procedural, and software requirements agreed upon by the pilot program participants. Cook County Recorder of Deeds approved the legal instrument that velox.RE and its user?—?property owner could use to publicly record a blockchain conveyance.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2uzxBJs
Source: Forbes
Why MyBit is Creating Blockchain-Based Decentralized Solar Energy Distribution System
An increasing number of both blockchain and existing energy companies are utilizing blockchain technology to create decentralized blockchain-based solar energy distribution systems.
An increasing number of both blockchain and existing energy companies are utilizing blockchain technology to create decentralized blockchain-based solar energy distribution systems.
Earlier this year, Sonnen GmbH, a major German company which develops home energy systems for private households and small businesses, announced its plans to develop a solar energy distribution system which will utilize blockchain technology to incentivize distributors and record the distribution process.
“We must be flexible with regards to our management of energy production, namely solar and wind, that is inconsistent and highly contingent on the weather. Utilizing blockchain technology offers us new ways to network even locally distributed systems both safely and intelligently across multiple regions with one provider. This helps us to limit the use of network-stabilizing measures, such as the costly regulation of wind farms,” Urban Keussen, CEO of TenneT TSO GmbH, explained.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2uzxFca
Source: NewsBTC
3 Ways Business Owners Can Prepare for Blockchain and Digital Payments
Blockchain and bitcoin are two of the most covered -- and yet most confusing -- topics in financial services today. Industry executives and business owners of all sizes are still grappling with what the technology means for their companies and what it will do for their businesses.
Case in point: According to the Payments Pulse report my company released last month, a majority of the 500 CFOs we surveyed said they are extremely confident in their understanding of blockchain (61 percent) and expect that it will change their accounts payable operations (50 percent). But, only six of the respondents had a concrete notion of how it will be used it to make their business more competitive.
So while there is consensus that the future of payments is digital and data-driven, the number of actual use cases of the technology is limited. Business owners can’t afford to sit back and wait for change to come, though. The first step to stay ahead of the curve is to understand the differences between the two and how they work together.
Blockchain is the platform that makes bitcoin possible -- it’s a decentralized, secure, publicly shared database that simplifies transactions. Bitcoin is just one (arguably the most high-profile) application that takes advantage of the technology. Blockchain is primarily an enabler that allows for other applications to be built on top of it. And with potential benefits like increased payment speed, improved security and transparency, a simplified process and significantly reduced costs overall, there’s little doubt that the business world will work through its fears and adopt blockchain in a major way.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2uAaLBk
Source: Entrepreneur
Sony wants to digitize education records using the blockchain
Sony said today that it has finished developing a digital system for storing and managing educational records on the blockchain. The Japanese firm is now looking to commercialize the product, in partnership with selected educational institutions, next year.
The idea — which was first announced 18 months ago — is to make use of the blockchain as a centralized ledger for storing educational information, such as degrees, diplomas, tests and more, as a kind of ‘digital transcript.’ Sony said the system has been developed to prevent fraud, while providing access to third-parties for job interviews and assessment among other purposes.
The idea is to improve on current practice of storing candidate education histories within individual schools and institutions themselves, which requires records to be shared over email or by a physical copy. It believes that there’s a modern alternative. Sony’s blockchain-based system instead allows data from various institutions to mix together, making it more convenient and easier to share or track a person’s ‘live’ resume.
For example, securing partnerships with universities and high schools would mean candidates school and graduation records are baked into their profile and accessible to third parties, such as when applying for jobs or further education. Then there is the potential to add bespoke testing and other information.
Full story at http://tcrn.ch/2uzxKfY
Source: TechCrunch
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