Welcome to the daily crypto news :

• Crypto News From the German-Speaking World: Oct. 13–19 in Review;

• Bittrex International Halts Service in Venezuela and 30 More Countries;

• IDology COO Christina Luttrell Recognized as One of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Women Who Mean Business;

• HTC Launches Exodus 1S, First Phone That Can Run a Full BTC Node;

Crypto News From the German-Speaking World: Oct. 13–19 in Review

The German-speaking world has seen another week of events in the crypto industry, with a new survey revealing that 27% of Germans are interested in using Facebook’s planned Libra stablecoin, which has been discussed all over the world since its announcement in June 2019. Despite existing criticism of Libra, global regulators do not plan to ban either Facebook's crypto initiative or other stablecoin projects, the European Central Bank (ECB) director claimed earlier this week.

Here is the past week of crypto and blockchain news in review, as originally reported by Cointelegraph auf Deutsch.

Lykke launches utility token to bet against crypto markets

As reported by Cointelegraph auf Deutsch on Oct. 14, Swiss blockchain startup Lykke recently launched a new token designed to track the performance of the top 25 cryptocurrencies by market cap as well as to put bets on falling prices in the crypto market. Dubbed Short LyCI, the new Lykke’s utility token reportedly includes 73% of Bitcoin (BTC), 9.6% of Ether (ETH) and 5.9% of XRP.

Lykke founder Richard Olsen, who is also a co-founder of private financial services firm Oanda, noted that Short LyCI is a simple investment product to manage risks and hedge exposure during downturns on crypto markets.

Ormera, new platform for electricity billing

On Oct. 14, Swiss companies PostFinance and Energie Wasser Bern (EWB) announced the launch of Ormera, a new startup providing a tool for measuring and automatic billing of self-generated electricity. Based on blockchain technology, Ormera's platform intends to cut administrative costs by supporting effective use of energy generated in decentralized production, EWB said in the announcement.

Combining internet-of-things and blockchain components, Ormera targets energy supply companies, energy and real estate service providers and property management firms, the report notes.

Bauwens invests in Germany's first provider of real estate tokens

German real estate giant Bauwens invested in the Foundation Group, which is known as the first-ever provider of real estate-based security token offerings regulated by major German financial authority, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). As reported by Cointelegraph auf Deutsch, Bauwens intends to expand its expertise in the new business field of digitizing real estate investments by investing in the Foundation Group.

Bundesbank board member: stablecoins underpin the importance of central banks

As reported on Oct. 16, a board member of the German Bundesbank recently declared that the emergence of stablecoins — cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat currencies to provide a stable value — underpins the importance of central banks. In a speech on Oct. 8 in South Africa, Burkhard Balz claimed that stablecoins benefit from a kind of indirect stability, which could be interpreted as a complement to the successful and stability-oriented monetary policy by central banks.

Libra news

On Oct. 18, Cointelegraph reported on a new survey showing that 27% of German people are planning to use Facebook’s planned cryptocurrency Libra. Powered by French online survey firm Toluna, the survey shows 73% of German residents have completely rejected Libra, with 42% saying that they do not trust Facebook, while 31% of respondents noted that they only believe in centralized currencies.

Also on Thursday, BaFin's president Felix Hufeld expressed concerns over Libra, claiming that Facebook’s planned cryptocurrency sees a number of unresolved questions and represents a parallel currency created privately.

Despite existing concerns, global financial regulators are not planning to ban either Facebook’s Libra or other stablecoins, ECB director Benoit Coeure said in an interview on Oct. 17. However, Coeure stressed that such initiatives will have to meet high regulatory standards prescribed by the ECB.

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Bittrex International Halts Service in Venezuela and 30 More Countries

Bittrex International, Malta-based international unit of United States’ crypto exchange Bittrex, will cease operations in Venezuela and 30 other countries.

No clear reason for the action

In an email to Venezuelan customers, Bittrex International announced that the exchange will halt account and trading access to users on Oct. 29, asking them to withdraw their funds with the exchange before that date, Cointelegraph en Español reports on Oct. 19.

According to the report, the Malta-based international trading platform of Bittrex has informed its entire user base in Venezuela that it will stop its services for users in the country without citing a clear reason for the action.

31 countries totally banned from the service

However, Venezuela is not the only country that will have to stop using Bittrex’s services this time, according to information acquired by Cointelegraph en Español. The firm confirmed to the Cointelegraph en Español team that it is actually halting the service for a total of 31 countries, including Afghanistan, Egypt, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Tunisia, Ethiopia, Uganda and Yemen.

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IDology COO Christina Luttrell Recognized as One of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Women Who Mean Business

Luttrell’s Security Technology Leadership and Innovations in Global Identity Verification Recognized for Helping Shape Industry and Pave the Way for a Trusted Digital Economy

IDology, a GBG company, announced that Christina “Chris” Luttrell has been deservingly recognized as one of the Atlanta Business Chronicle‘s Women Who Mean Business. Each year, the publication honors female leaders who have made significant strides in their careers and are making a difference in their communities, blazing a trail for others and leaving an indelible mark on the Atlanta business community. Luttrell’s significant contributions to the global identity verification market have helped businesses in Atlanta and around the world interact securely with customers.

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HTC Launches Exodus 1S, First Phone That Can Run a Full BTC Node

Taiwanese electronics giant HTC has launched its new smartphone Exodus 1s, enabling users to run a full Bitcoin (BTC) node on mobile.

First smartphone to support full Bitcoin node

In line with an announcement in May 2019, HTC launched the Exodus 1s at the Lightning Conference in Berlin on Oct. 19 and started selling the first devices during the even using the Lightning payment network, the firm said in a press release to Cointelegraph.

The new Exodus 1s is a lower-cost version of the pioneering HTC’s blockchain-powered phone Exodus 1, which recently added support of Bitcoin Cash (BCH). Priced at €219 ($233), the new device is available to buy using Bitcoin, Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Binance Coin (BNB) and Bitcoin Cash, the firm said.

Apart from featuring buy, sell, send, receive, trade and lend and borrow options, HTC claims that the Exodus 1s is the first-ever smartphone capable of running a full Bitcoin node.

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