Japan's Financial Services Agency (FSA) will begin more closely monitoring cryptocurrency exchanges from next month.

According to the Japan Times, the increased scrutiny is aimed to ensure that the companies comply to the revised payment services law, passed in April this year, which set out operational standards for exchanges, as well as recognizing bitcoin as a form of legal tender.

An FSA executive reportedly indicated the surveillance is intended both to regulate the exchanges and to ensure the healthy growth of the cryptocurrency market, saying:

    "We pursue both market fostering and regulation enforcement. ... We aim for sound market development."

The payment services law passed earlier this year established anti-money laundering and know-your-customer rules for the exchanges. The law is also intended to enforce security standards aimed to protect the exchanges from the risk of cyberattack.

The law specifies that all exchanges must report to the authorities by the end of September to confirm they are compliant with the new rules. The FSA also has the remit to conduct on-site inspections if deemed necessary.

To monitor the over 20 cryptocurrency exchanges operating in Japan, the FSA last month established a specialised surveillance team, reportedly comprised of 30 staff members.

Japan is no stranger to cryptocurrency based fraud, with 33 cases, representing more than a half of million dollars-worth of loses, reported in the first seven months of 2017.

Further, in 2014, the now-notorious Japan-based bitcoin exchange Mt Gox collapsed, resulting in the loss of millions of dollars in customers' funds. Japanese lawmakers have previously cited the exchange's failure as a key driver in the move to regulate the cryptocurrency industry.

https://www.coindesk.com/japans-bitcoin-exchanges-under-regulator-surveillance-from-october/

China Construction Bank, the world’s second-largest bank by market capitalization, is working with IBM to develop and launch a blockchain-enabled bancassurance platform for its retail and commercial banking arm in Hong Kong.

A ‘bancassurance’ endeavor typically sees sales of insurance products through banks following a partnership between a bank and an insurance company. It’s a profitable, win-win model for both entities as banks can earn additional revenue through selling insurance products while insurance companies expand their customer bases through the bank’s channels and client base. However, the arrangement is often plagued by incomplete customer information and inefficient data transmission.

With yet another blockchain-based solution for the financial industry, IBM is leveraging the decentralized technology to streamline CCB (Asia)’s bancassurance operations that will enable a shared view of insurance policy data in real-time. This would negate the need for status checks that would delay processing times for insurance products. All data will be recorded and shared on an immutable ledger build on IBM’s Blockchain Platform.

IBM Hong Kong general manager Francis Ngai stated:

    "Blockchain enables businesses to transact with less friction and more trust…In working with CCB (Asia) and the partner insurers, we have seen how the technology is disrupting traditional businesses processes. This work sets a standard for local banking and financial institutions in the future."

The blockchain platform is currently in its testing phase between China Construction Bank (Asia) and its insurance providers and their clients. The blockchain-enabled bancassurance solution is expected to launch in Q3 2017.

The blockchain solution was developed using Hyperledger Fabric 1.0, the open-source production-ready blockchain software released by the Hyperledger project, a cross-industry consortium which sees IBM as a founding member.

The blockchain-based solution is already proving successful, according to CCB deputy chief executive Guo Zhipeng.

“After the successful launch of this blockchain-enabled bancassurance project, we plan to extend our experience to other insurance partners in order to optimize our overall bancassurance business,” the banking executive stated.

https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/china-construction-bank-partners-ibm-blockchain-bancassurance-solution/

Russian media has conducted interviews with several representatives of the country’s bitcoin mining industry. The investigation has provided unique insights into an expansive industry that penetrates all levels of Russian society, ranging “from schoolchildren to pensioners”.

Dramatic GPU Shortages Earlier This Year Signify a Sharp Increase in Russian Crypto Mining Activities During 2017

2017’s cryptocurrency boom sparked widespread graphics card shortages globally, with the most extreme shortages being witnessed in low-wage nations such as Russia – where cryptocurrency mining can offer returns that rival many mainstream careers. Following a dramatic increase in mining activities from both the public and private sector, RT, an international news organization funded by the Russian state, has conducted interviews with several miners, seeking to gain insights into Russia’s bitcoin and cryptocurrency mining industry.

RT spoke with a Siberian miner, Ilya, who describes a rising popularity of bitcoin mining that penetrates all demographics in Russian society. Ilya states that “pensioners come to their grandchildren, and give them gadgets for mining as presents. They hold competitions among their grandchildren who will earn most bitcoins! Essentially, pensioners get their grandkids hooked on mining!”

Cryptocurrency Is Turning Russian Teenagers Into Businessmen

RT met with Dmitry, a 15-year-old schoolboy who has started to mine for bitcoin. Dimitry states that “mining technologies are very promising. An increasing number of people get involved in this, get new skills and improving old practices.” Despite growth in the sector, the student concedes that he has encountered skepticism regarding his activities, including from his parents. “Although I have vividly described to them the mining process and the opportunities of mining, they feel suspicious about it. That’s why I have to do this alone.”

Speaking at the recent “Digital Economy: Generation Z” quiz in Moscow, 16-year-old Yaroslav claimed to have made paper gains of over 12,000% this year through cryptocurrency investments. Yaraslov stated that he “invested 1,000 rubles ($17 USD) in February. Seven months have passed, and now I have 127,000 ($2,200 USD) in cryptocurrency equivalent.”

The Average Monthly Russian Wage Is Approximately 3,800 Rubles ($66.05 USD)

Many Russians have turned to bitcoin mining as a response to prevailing economic hardship. One Siberian miner, Domashko, began mining in order to attain subsistence, stating that “the terrible crisis did not let me live”, and that “even drug and arms trafficking don’t [yeild the] profitability” of mining. Domashko believes that bitcoin is set to achieve widespread mainstream adoption, stating that “[bitcoin] will take the place comparable to the mass capitalization of the dollar and the euro… If it wasn’t worth it, [Russian President] Vladimir Putin wouldn’t talk about it, laws wouldn’t be adopted at the state level by such countries as Japan and Russia.”

Russia’s finance ministry recently announced that it is currently working on a draft bill for the legalization and regulation of cryptocurrencies. Finance minister Anton Siluano stated that “there is no point in prohibiting [cryptocurrencies], it is necessary to regulate them”, confirming that Russia will not seek to prohibit cryptocurrencies. Russia has also recently advanced its plans to foster a globally dominant mining sector, inviting bitcoin miners to create an industrial park for cryptocurrency mining in the Leningrad region. The announcement comes just weeks after The Institute for Internet Development and the Russian Association of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency unveiled plans for the development of a project designed to subsidize the electricity for large-scale cryptocurrency miners.

https://news.bitcoin.com/crypto-mining-more-profitable-than-drugs-and-arms-trafficking-in-russia/

Earlier this week, Cryptocoinsnews reported that the Malaysian government and its financial regulators are set to regulate the Malaysian bitcoin industry and legalize the usage of the digital currency within the country.

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Muhammad bin Ibrahim, a Malaysian central bank official, stated:

“We hope that by year end, BNM will be able to come out with some guidelines on cryptocurrency, particularly those related to anti-money laundering and terrorist financing. We want to ensure that there are clear guidelines for those who want to participate in this sector.”

Why Malaysia’s Potential Legalization of BItcoin is a Big Deal

For many years, the Malaysian government and its central bank have imposed strict capital controls and restricted the outflow of the Malaysian ringgit outside of the country. Consequently, expat workers in Malaysia have struggled to send large sums of money or remittances to their families overseas.

In late 2016, the Malaysian government was hit hard with the massive devaluation of the Malaysian ringgit. In a short period of time, the country’s national currency declined by around 2 percent in value against the world’s largest reserve currencies such as the US dollar. As a temporary solution, BNM and commercial banks imposed strict capital controls, prohibiting any offshore trading of the Malaysian ringgit and derivatives.

Several large-scale multi-billion dollar Western commercial banks were threatened by BNM and the country’s financial regulators of repatriation. According to an executive of a major Western bank who requested to anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, the Malaysian central bank demanded commercial banks to comply with the capital controls and new regulations. BNM also told the banks that the failure to comply to newly established regulatory frameworks will result in the central bank disallowing commercial banks to move their investments and money outside of Malaysia.

“There’s a massive back and forth going on between banks and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) now. This is a type of indirect capital control … I see a flood of people exiting Malaysia,” a banker at a foreign bank in Malaysia which deals in foreign currency transactions told Reuters in an interview.

Since then, for the past 10 months, both commercial banks and remittance service providers have been subjected to strict capital controls and inefficient regulations. Expat workers have been struggling to search for secure and cheap methods of sending money back to their families in their home countries.

The legalization of bitcoin in Malaysia could provide an alternative financial and remittance system to expat workers and foreign investors to move money out of the country efficiently. Already, leading bitcoin remittance service providers and brokerages such as Coins.ph, which recently secured $19 million in funding from leading venture capital firms including Nasper, have expanded their operations to Malaysia.

Through the decentralized network of bitcoin, expat workers will be able to send money back to their families. Most countries in Asia including the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, and South Korea have evolved into established and well regulated bitcoin markets.

Increasing Usage of Bitcoin as a Remittance Method in Southeast Asia

In countries like the Philippines, many workers and expat employees utilize bitcoin platforms to send remittances. WIthin two years of operation, Coins.ph has gained millions of new active users that are using the Coins.ph platform to send money, settle utility bills, purchase goods and bitcoin.

Philippine bitcoin startups were able to grow at an exponential rate due to the Philippine government’s legalization of bitcoin as a remittance network. In February, Bankgko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the cnetral bank of the Philippines, announced:

“The Bangko Sentral does not intend to endorse any VC, such as Bitcoin, as a currency since it is neither issued or guaranteed by a central bank nor backed by any commodity. Rather, the BSP aims to regulate VCs when used for delivery of financial services, particularly, for payments and remittances, which have a material impact on anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT), consumer protection and financial stability.”

https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/how-malaysias-legalization-of-bitcoin-could-bring-millions-of-new-users/

In recent days, several governments have issued statements pertaining to bitcoin regulations. The Indonesian and Ukrainian central banks have clarified that bitcoin will not be recognized as a means of payment, whilst Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC Thailand) has made preliminary statements regarding initial coin offerings (ICOs).

The Central Banks of Indonesia and Ukraine Will Not Recognize Bitcoin as a Means of Payment

Speaking at a recent Ukrainian Financial Forum event, the deputy chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine, Oleh Churiy, has revealed key insights into the government’s determinations regarding impending Ukrainian bitcoin regulations. Churiy stated that Ukrainian officials have concluded that bitcoin is not a currency due to the absence of a government issuer and that bitcoin will not be legally recognized as a form of payment. “We can say that it is definitely not a currency as it has no central issuer. We also cannot recognize cryptocurrency as means of payment”.

At the start of the month, Ukrainian lawmakers met to conduct preliminary discussions regarding the legality of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies within the country, agreeing to finalize their determinations within “3 weeks”. The preliminary discussions suggested that Ukraine may move to develop a permissive regulatory apparatus pertaining to cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, with the Chairman of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission stating that “blockchains, bitcoins, tokens and other technology solutions have already become an integral part of the financial market”. Less than a week later, Reuters reported that Ukraine’s Justice Ministry had conducted the country’s first trials of blockchain technology being conducted by the state, with the ministry planning on utilizing blockchain technology in conducting auctions of seized assets as part of an initiative designed to “modernize state institutions and eliminate corruption.”

Indonesia’s central bank, the Bank of Indonesia, has reaffirmed that bitcoin transactions are not legally recognized according to its “Service Provider of Payment System” (PSJP) legislation. Indonesia media outlets have reported that Executive Director of Payment System Policy Department, Eny V Panggabean, stated that Bank of Indonesia “forbid Bitcoin to be transacted in PJSP,” at a recent Indonesia Banking Expo seminar.

CNN Indonesia reports that Oscar Dermawan, the CEO of Bitcoin Indonesia, has criticized the central bank’s position, implying that the government has failed to fully recognize the technological phenomenon and innovative potential that bitcoin encompasses. Dermawan described bitcoin as “a remarkable technological achievement”, stating that “the workings of [bitcoin] are even commented on by Bill Gates as … a technological tour de force.” When asked to discuss the development of Indonesia’s domestic bitcoin economy, Dermawan said that “transactions in Indonesia are still very low.”

SEC Thailand Has Issued a Preliminary Statement Regarding ICO Regulations

The Securities and Exchanges Commission of Thailand has warned that ICOs issuing tokens that “resemble financial returns, rights and obligations in similar ways to securities under the Securities and Exchange Act” will fall under the regulatory jurisdiction of the SEC Thailand. The SEC states that “in cases where an ICO constitutes [the] offering of securities, the issuer will need to comply with applicable regulatory requirements under the SEC Thailand’s purview.”

The SEC Thailand is seeking to adopt a balanced policy with regard to ICOs, expressing a desire to “strike the balance between supporting digital innovation and protecting investors from potential ICO scams.” The SEC highlights concerns that “in some cases ICO may be deliberately used as a tool for fraud or scam”, before stating that the “SEC Thailand encourages access to funding for businesses, including high potential tech startups, and realizes the potential of ICO in answering startups’ funding needs.”

Ultimately, Thailand’s SEC “realizes that ICO may not yet fit neatly with SEC Thailand’s current regulatory framework…. and welcomes comments and suggestions from the private sector.”

https://news.bitcoin.com/regulations-round-up-bitcoin-bad-in-ukraine-and-indonesia-icos-reviewed-in-thailand/

The Russian State Duma is holding a tender for a detailed study on the subject of cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, and initial coin offerings (ICOs). The government will pay the winner 2.5 million rubles out of the federal budget. The deadline for submissions is October 10.

Calling Crypto Researchers

According to the Russian government’s public procurement website, the State Duma is holding a tender for the implementation of an expert-analytical study on financial technologies, including the cryptocurrency market, ICOs, and blockchain technology, local publications reported on Friday.

The deadline for applications is October 10. Each submission will be reviewed and evaluated on October 17. The contract’s winner will receive an initial maximum payment of 2,498,800 roubles, worth approximately $43,400 USD. The source of the financing is listed as the Russian federal budget.

Business Online elaborated:

        "The winner of the contest will have to conduct a market analysis of cryptocurrencies…and analyze the possibility of using ICOs as an alternative channel for attracting investments."

https://news.bitcoin.com/russian-government-cryptocurrency-researchers-2-5-million-rubles/

Indian officials revealed last week that the country’s tax agency and investigation taskforce have concerns about money laundering and black market activities associated with bitcoin. India’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) is in the midst of drafting a report detailing problematic issues regarding the decentralized cryptocurrency.

Indian Officials Concerned With How Bitcoin Operates

According to an Indian publication, The Economic Times, government agencies in the country have concerns about illegal activities that could be tied to bitcoin. An unnamed source explained that the SIT taskforce is currently drafting a report about these concerns, and the final draft should be completed in a month.

“There are concerns on the way [bitcoin] operates — Some unaccounted money could be flowing into [cryptocurrencies],” explained the source familiar with the matter.

Following this statement, the news outlet reported that India’s income tax agency is also concerned with money laundering and illegal transmissions. “There are issues with large investments flowing into this currency,” said a senior tax department official. Moreover, an Indian central bank official told the press on September 13 that the institution still feels uneasy about bitcoin. “In regard to non-fiat cryptocurrencies, I think we are not comfortable,” explained Sudarshan Sen, Executive Director at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Despite Government’s Opinion, Bitcoin is Thriving in India

After the RBI director’s statements, the bitcoin-based trading platform Unocoin said that bitcoin is thriving in the nation despite the central bank’s opinions.

“The Indian Bitcoin ecosystem is thriving — In metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai, there are a large number of existing and upcoming bitcoin quarries that are running in temperature controlled rooms, around the clock, every day,” explained Unocoin.

The company said that domestic Indian Bitcoin transactions have increased exponentially. By the end of 2016, the country had over 500 bitcoin-accepting merchants. “The number of Indian bitcoin investors is increasing at 2,500 a day,” claimed Unocoin. “In fact, it’s well known that bitcoin can be freely converted anywhere in the subcontinent into any physical currency — USD or INR.”

        "So it’s safe to say that India is indeed welcoming bitcoin with — semi-opened — arms, with the RBI keeping the handcuffs in place."

While Unocoin said it does not know if BTC will obtain legal status, it noted that “bitcoins aren’t necessarily ‘banned’ in India.” For now, Indian residents and Bitcoin startups will have to continue operating within the legal uncertainty until the government and the RBI come to a decision.

https://news.bitcoin.com/indias-government-agencies-still-have-concerns-about-bitcoin/

On September 20 the Spanish bitcoin payment platform, Bitnovo, announced residents from Spain can now purchase redeemable bitcoin cards at fifty Carrefour retail stores located across the country.

Loaded Bitcoin Voucher Cards Now Available Throughout Fifty Carrefour Retail Locations

The startup Bitnovo is continuing to expand throughout Spain, launching pre-loaded bitcoin cards that can be purchased at over fifty of the well-known Carrefour shops located in the country. Spain is Carrefour’s second most popular market next to France, with the company currently operating in more than 30 countries worldwide. The Carrefour redeemable bitcoin card sales are part of Bitnovo’s launch of over 4,000 new physical locations throughout Spain and the startup’s Visa brand bitcoin debit card.

“With our eagerness to continue bolstering cryptocurrency to all the corners of the planet we have launched a new product,” explains Bitnovo’s translated announcement.

        "You can now buy bitcoin at Carrefour —  Easy, fast and safe and no need for records."

https://news.bitcoin.com/bitnovo-offers-loaded-bitcoin-cards-at-fifty-spanish-carrefour-retail-stores/

Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne has scoffed at recent remarks by Jamie Dimon who labeled bitcoin ‘a fraud’ while adding that the crippling measures enforced by China to ban bitcoin exchanges are decisions made out of fearing bitcoin as a decentralized currency.

In a televised interview with Fox Business, Overstock chief executive Patrick Byrne – having just returned stateside from China last week – was asked about Jamie Dimon’s comments and China’s draconian clampdown on the local bitcoin ecosystem.

He replied:

    "China is taking a position just like Jamie Dimon where they’ve come out and said ‘oh, suddenly they’re (Dimon & China) all afraid of it.’

Byrne, a noted advocate of bitcoin and its underlying technology – the blockchain, compared banker Jamie Dimon and governments like China to the established elite who weren’t pleased to see new technologies and innovations coming to the fore.

Notably, he stated:

    "The guys who belong to this financial world of debt-based, fiat-money, central-banking Keynesian spending – this magic money tree they all grew up in – they don’t like a form of currency that cannot be controlled by a government. What a surprise."

Byrne also revealed he personally knows Jamie Dimon for about 20 years, a banker he labelled as “a good guy”.

TV host Maria Bartiromo then repeated Dimon’s much-publicized quotes about bitcoin, including the statement that he would “fire” any JP Morgan trader engaging in bitcoin activity “in a second” for being “stupid.”

Byrne was quick to remind viewers of Dimon’s shareholder letter from 2015, when the banker stated bitcoin startups and others from Silicon Valley were coming “to eat our lunch.”

“He was scared to death of it,” Byrne added. “I think what they thought was they could get in front of it and they’re realizing they can’t get in front of it.”

He went on to state, in entirely noteworthy quotes again:

    "I’d love to debate the metaphysical status of this thing bitcoin – that comes out of thin air with…couple of years ago, [US Fed Chair] Janet Yellen was creating 85 billion new something…I think they called them dollars. At least, this bitcoin stuff is governed by the laws of mathematics and how much gets created. No one governs these government mandarins when they whisk new dollars into existence."

As CCN reported in late 2013, Overstock became one of the earliest companies to accept bitcoin. By the end of 2014, Overstock had processed orders worth over $3 million in bitcoin. In 2015, the retail giant offered its employees the option to get paid in bitcoin.

https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/theyre-afraid-bitcoin-overstocks-patrick-byrne-dimon-china/

The well-known international diamond and luxury jewelry retailer, Samer Halimeh New York, has announced the company will now start jewel trades and sales in Bitcoin.   

Luxury Diamond Retailer Samer Halimeh NY Will Accept Bitcoin for Sales and B2B Trading

The luxury diamond retailer headquartered in Knightsbridge, Samer Halimeh NY, has decided to start accepting bitcoin for the jewelers’ retail services and business-to-business (B2B) gemstone trades. The company was created by the entrepreneur, Samer Halimeh, a Lebanese-born American who made his mark as a luxury international jeweler. The Samer Halimeh NY brand has shops in London, Riyadh, and New York. The jewelry store’s founder has also provided valuable trinkets to celebrities such as Elton John, Naomi Campbell, Oprah Winfrey, and the royal families of Saudi Arabia.

The Samer Halimeh firm says they will be using Bitpay for its bitcoin merchant services, and the Atlanta-based company will also help facilitate B2B trades. Samer Halimeh, the chief executive of Samer Halimeh NY believes his shop is one of the first ‘bond street’ diamond and luxury jewelry dealers to accept bitcoin.

“We are the first diamond dealer and ‘bond street’ level luxury jeweler to start accepting and trading using bitcoins,” explains Halimeh. “This is because we have seen rising inquiries for this digital currency from clients, suppliers and trading partners.”

        "Our high-net-worth clients and contacts are currently holding large quantities of Bitcoins within their investment portfolios and have decided to exchange some of their stock for hard assets such as diamonds, artwork, gold and fine wine."

https://news.bitcoin.com/bond-street-level-jeweler-samer-halimeh-ny-now-accepts-bitcoin/

The Chinese authorities may be moving toward a broad clampdown on Bitcoin, including peer-to-peer (P2P) exchanges and over-the-counter (OTC) trading platforms. Using the Great Firewall to block IP addresses, access to foreign bitcoin exchanges could be blocked and the Bitcoin transaction network could be disrupted within the country. Bitcoin miners are also worried that their operations could be restricted.

Broad Clampdown Includes P2P & OTC Platforms

Chinese authorities have reportedly informed several industry executives at a closed-door meeting in Beijing on Friday that they are “moving toward a broad clampdown on bitcoin trading,” according to the Wall Street Journal on Monday. Citing people familiar with the matter, the news outlet wrote:

        "Regulators have decided on a comprehensive ban on channels for the buying or selling of the virtual currency in China that goes beyond plans to shut commercial bitcoin exchanges."

“Until last week, many entrepreneurs in China’s Bitcoin circles had thought authorities might shut down only commercial trading activity while tolerating peer-to-peer, or over-the-counter, bitcoin platforms, which enable buyers and sellers to find each other and trade directly,” the publication further detailed.

This news came after Beijing had ordered bitcoin exchanges to shut down, which many have already complied with, including Btcchina, Huobi and Okcoin. Following the regulatory crackdown, bitcoin’s prices initially fell but have since recovered. China’s trading volume has dropped to the fourth position globally, as traders migrated business to OTC markets and exchanges outside of China. Trading volumes on Localbitcoins subsequently spiked exponentially, news.Bitcoin.com recently reported.

Last week, Bitkan suspended its OTC cryptocurrency trading service. The suspension, which began on September 14, affects the platform’s mobile app and site for BTC and BCC OTC services, the company announced.

https://news.bitcoin.com/china-block-all-bitcoin-transactions/

I am very satisfied with Edgeless roadmap and todays news update. Beta version in 28 September, Licensing in October. All information stated very clearly, just pity that whales plays very dirty, and a lot of people lose their money today, but if you really believe in the project, wait and hold, tokens will definitely rise.

You sure, maybe your had in mind September 25? Thank you for your answer.

Not less important how possible Chinese mining farm ban could affect BTC price. Besides huge farms are very significant factor for chip manufacturers to constantly increasing computing power.

It`s also interesting what will happen soon with Etherium. At the moment ETH price rise and falls depending from BTC price, but ETH has too many promising projects like stox and propy, furthermore upcoming update, all these could pump ETH very soon.

It has come to light that well-known illegal piracy site, The Pirate Bay has been “borrowing” its visitors CPU processing power in order to mine digital currencies as a source of revenue.

Exposed by Torrentfreak, it seems that the illegal torrent site has been secretly testing a Javascript Cryptocurrency miner on their page that allocates a large chunk of the visitor’s processing power to their mining operation.

Unhappy pirates

While The Pirate Bay is a well-known site, it’s one that clearly struggles with a revenue stream in the classical manner. Advertising and ad placement on the site is largely unavailable due to the nature of the content and as such, it seems as if the administrators of the site went looking elsewhere.

Mining cryptocurrency seemed to be their prefered choice, but this isn’t sitting well with users of the site, who were caught unaware by the sudden spike in their CPU’s usage while visiting.

“That really is serious, so hopefully we can get some action on it quickly. And perhaps get some attention for the uploading and commenting bugs while they’re at it,” a Pirate Bay user named “Sid” wrote in a comment, according to Torrentfreak.

Simply a test

According to The Pirate Bay, who responded to Torrentfreak, this was a test, and it was only to be performed for 24 hours.

Despite what The Pirate Bay says, they still have a few questions to answer, and furthermore, they raised a few philosophical questions about the regulation of mining.

Cryptocurrencies, as well as newly formed ones in the form of ICOs, have recently come under huge scrutiny, as places like China have upped their regulation, even inflicting bans.

This exploitation of users and their CPU power seems to be ethically wrong - even if it is done by a pirate website. Thus, should there be certain policies to restrict who can mine crypto, or should they subject erring users to penalties?

If the use of cryptocurrencies are being regulated, should the mining of said coins not also have some sort of laws and rules around them?

A balance must be struck, otherwise people are left unprotected and exposed to potentially exploitative methods — like those who “borrow” your CPU to earn a few virtual coins.

https://cointelegraph.com/news/the-pirate-bay-is-pirating-your-processor-for-bitcoin-mining

In what is called one of the largest wins for Bitcoin in the country, the Pick n Pay in Cape Town will accept the cryptocurrency for payments starting today.

The payment system is being powered by Electrum, a software platform created to process payments in different currencies. Jason Peisl, IS executive at Pick n Pay, said:

    
Widening Acceptance

As the growth in payment methodologies continues, the overall currency value of Bitcoin continues to grow as well. This is a critical aspect of increasing mainstream acceptance, and increasing liquidity as well.

Liquidity and mainstream acceptance produce greater levels of awareness, and therefore greater levels of use. This process has been referred to as a ‘virtuous satoshi cycle.’  Despite substantial negative news, acceptance appears to be growing for Bitcoin.

https://cointelegraph.com/news/south-africa-pick-n-pay-online-retailer-to-accept-bitcoin

Just recently the Japanese exchange Coincheck announced they have become a fully licensed exchange in Japan after being approved by the country’s Finance Bureau Director.

Japan’s Financial Services Agency Approves Coincheck’s  Cryptocurrency Trading Platform Registration

On September 13 the Japanese bitcoin trading platform and payment processor, Coincheck, announced the firm had been approved to be a licensed “virtual currency exchange.” The exchange registration approval follows the provisions of Article 63-3 of the country’s fund settlement law. After bitcoin was legalized as a form of payment on April 1, 2017, all domestic exchanges in Japan must receive authorization from the treasury department and Financial Services Agency (FSA) to operate a virtual currency exchange business.

At the time Coincheck was extremely pleased to see the Japanese statutes pass and said the “newly made law and regulations on bitcoin are going be enormous.” Further, the exchange revealed at the time that all exchange providers must be approved by the FSA.

“In order to make the exchanges more secure, cryptocurrency has been handed over to the authority of the FSA,” explains the Coincheck blog this past June.

       
https://news.bitcoin.com/coincheck-becomes-the-first-licensed-japanese-bitcoin-exchange/

Many universities across Russia have added new courses to their existing finance curricula that are focused on cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin, and blockchain technology. They will offer these courses for the first time this academic year due to high demand.

Cryptocurrency Courses

A number of top universities in Russia will begin offering special courses and master’s degree classes devoted to the topics of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology for the first time this year, the universities told RT. The courses will be incorporated into the schools’ existing programs in the academic year 2017-2018.

The publication interviewed five universities in particular. Moscow State University (MSU) is a reputable, coeducational public research university. Sergey Studnikov, a managing board member of the MSU economical faculty, runs the Financial Analytics master’s program. He told the news outlet about the school’s new cryptocurrency courses:

       
At the Higher School of Economics (HSE), which is one of the leading and largest universities in Russia, the topic is included as part of the school’s Financial Technologies course. This course is part of the Financial Technologies and Data Analysis master’s program which was jointly launched this year with the state-owned Russian banking and financial services company, Sberbank.

The Saint Petersburg State University of Economics (Spbgeu) is devoting two sections of its existing program on banking, finance, and financial markets to cryptocurrency and blockchains. According to an associate professor of the school’s Faculty of Economics and Finance, Denis Gorulev, “to introduce a separate course here, we rely on a number of formal things – this needs to be coordinated with the Ministry of Education a lot and for a long time.”

https://news.bitcoin.com/russian-universities-cryptocurrency-courses/

After falling for most of the week like a stone, Bitcoin, the “people's currency,” made a sharp turn upwards on Friday and early Saturday morning, gaining close to 12 percent within 24 hours.

Other cryptocurrencies followed suit. Ethereum also gained close to 12 percent, while Litecoin fared even better gaining close to 19 percent.

That should come as a relief to cryptocurrency investors, especially to those who purchased at much higher price than the current levels, before China shut Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). But is the worst over? Can cryptocurrencies reach $5000 again without China?

Stelian Balta, Founder and Managing Partner of HyperChain Capital, thinks so.

“If we look at Bitcoin or Ethereum from a technology perspective, the bad news is not entirely relevant. Miners will continue to mine and developers will continue to create great code and projects. Digital assets are a global phenomenon and the ecosystem is in its early days.”

Balta further argues that cryptocurrencies can survive and thrive without China. “I am very optimistic regarding the global digital assets market,” he says.“Digital assets can be considered commodities trading on supply and demand. There is fixed supply and increasing demand.  China is an important market and the recent news of exchanges shutting down and ICO funding being banned certainly has a short term negative effect on the prices. However, digital assets are a global phenomenon. Huge Internet businesses like Facebook or Google are banned in China and are doing pretty well.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/2017/09/16/can-bitcoin-prices-reach-5000-again-without-china/2/#598408546eb3