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IBM Reveals Blockchain Supply Chain Trial with Singapore Port Operator A major port operator in Singapore has inked a deal to work with IBM and a regional shipping firm to test a new blockchain-based supply chain network. Announcing the news, PSA International, which operates ports in Asia, South America and Europe, said today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with IBM and Pacific International Lines (PIL), one of the largest liner services in the world. The three firms will "work together to explore [proofs-of-concept] using technologies like blockchain," according to an  announcement  published today. The goal of the trial is to automate the flow of documents between trading partners, providing transparency along the way. Tan Chong Meng, group CEO of PSA, said of the deal: "Blockchain has the potential to reduce inefficiencies and gaps within the supply chain, promote more cost-efficient transactions and facilitate the continued g...

AMD Releases New Software Package for Cryptocurrency Mining Graphics card (GPU) maker AMD is rolling out a new software driver geared specifically toward cryptocurrency mining. As detailed on its  website , the "Radeon Software Crimson ReLive Edition Beta for Blockchain Compute" is described as a beta-level driver aimed at improving the performance of GPUs that are being used for mining. Mining is an energy intensive process by which new transactions are added to a blockchain, creating new tokens as a reward along the way. AMD's release comes amid  a period of growing demand  for GPUs, which is being driven by elevated prices in markets for cryptocurrencies like ethereum. Indeed, both AMD and rival chip maker Nvidia have been taking advantage of the boom for graphics cards. Both   companies  have issued statements on the subject in recent days, though in the case of AMD, the company has taken a somewhat bearish stance on the future of the cryptocur...

Lawmakers Want to See Bitcoin Become an Official Currency in Australia Lawmakers in Australia are reportedly pushing for the recognition of bitcoin as an official currency. According the  Sydney Morning Herald , representatives from the country's centre and left-leaning political parties are behind the ambitious initiative, one that comes amid a broader call for the government to better accommodate  blockchain technology  and its evangelists. Leading the effort are Liberal Senator Jane Hume and Labor Senator Sam Dastyari, who are arguing that Australia should be more proactive about both cryptocurrencies and blockchain. As part of those efforts, Hume and Dastyari have formed a group, dubbed Parliamentary Friends of Blockchain, to advance the issue. Also among the proposals is a call for Australia's central bank to consider the launch of its own cryptocurrency. "This will be a revolutionary leap for ...

Wikileaks is Now Accepting Zcash Donations Non-profit media group Wikileaks has announced that it is now accepting donations in the privacy-oriented cryptocurrency zcash. The information sharing site  revealed  that it would take the new payment option in a tweet earlier today, making zcash the third cryptocurrency it will accept for donations following bitcoin and  litecoin . Zcash was notably included as one of the options in  a poll  the nonprofit held on Twitter at the start of the month. Of the options presented – monero, zcash and ethereum (misspelled as "etherium" ) – zcash garnered 11 percent of the 12,204 votes submitted, compared to 21 percent for monero and 45 percent for ethereum. Twenty-three percent opted for "other." Wikileaks, which gained notoriety for its release of materials including footage from the Iraq War and the emails of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton,  began accepting bitcoin  b...

Bitcoin Cash Eases Mining Difficulty as Blockchain Adjusts Bitcoin Cash adjusted its mining difficulty over the weekend, a move that comes just under a week after the alternative version of the bitcoin blockchain was created. As a result of both blocks ( 478,647  and  478,648 ) having a Median Time Past (MTP) that was 12 hours greater than the six blocks prior, each block adjusted difficulty down by 20%. A special rule to the network, Bitcoin Cash implemented the measure as part of its hard fork  last week . As a result, Bitcoin Cash is now 16.7% as difficult as bitcoin to mine. This has lead  more blocks to be found , both because it's easier and because more bitcoin miners are now mining Bitcoin Cash. Since the difficulty adjustment, Bitcoin Cash is averaging about 18-minute blocks, implying a hash rate of around 650 PH/s. At this rate, we can expect another difficulty adjustment in about 13 days, at which point, the network should have roughly 1...

Swiss Government Says It's 'Swiftly' Developing Digital Currency Rules Switzerland's government said today that it is "swiftly" moving toward a legal designation of digital currencies. In a statement, the Swiss Federal Council – a body of seven that collectively serve as Switzerland's head of state – revealed the first major steps of its plans to regulate fintech development in the country. CoinDesk reported in February that the government was moving to put  a legal framework  for fintech in place. The new rules, approved on July 5, go into effect in August. Among the initiatives launched today is a regulatory "sandbox" aimed at creating a more accommodative environment for startups. Firms that accept fewer than 1 million Swiss francs (roughly $1m USD) "will be exempt from authorization" the Federal Council said. The group clarified that depositors with these firms would not be covered under the country's deposit protect...

JPMorgan Denies Involvement with Blockchain Startup DIT Financial JPMorgan Chase has shot down claims of its involvement in a blockchain project publicized last week. A company called DIT Financial stated in a  press release  published on July 6, that it was working with JPMorgan on a project called DIT Wealth Chain. The headline of the press release states that the two companies are "[co-operating] to develop a new blockchain project." Further, the release contained a picture of an event with both firm's names on a presentation screen. Yet, when contacted for comment, a representative for JPMorgan said they had no involvement with, or knowledge of, the project. DIT Financial published a second press release on July 11, which, while this time making no reference to a relationship with JPMorgan, refers to "a new report from JPM." Yet the passage it quotes is actually sourced from a report  published in July 2016 , co-written with co...

US Accounting Standards Body Weighs New Digital Currency Rules The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), a financial accounting standards body in the US, is reportedly considering whether to undertake a new initiative on digital currencies. According to  Reuters , the FASB – which sets accounting standards for publicly traded US firms – hasn't yet decided if it will develop new guidelines for companies dealing with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. However, the non-profit is apparently assessing whether it should begin that process following a request from the Washington, DC-based Chamber of Digital Commerce (CDC) – a trade organization for companies and groups working in the digital currency and  blockchain  space. In a  letter  to the board, dated June 8, CDC founder and president Perianne Boring argued that the lack of standards is creating a barrier for both investors and entrepreneurs: "The ab...

How to Sell Bitcoin Selling bitcoin isn't quite as straightforward as buying bitcoin, but fortunately SafeTechnologies is here to help. This guide will give you all the information you need to cash out your digital currency. When deciding how to sell your bitcoin, you first need to consider which method best suits your situation:  selling   bitcoin  online  or  selling bitcoin  in person . Each option has its own advantages and disadvantages. Selling bitcoin online Selling bitcoin online is by far the more common way of trading your bitcoin. There are now three ways to go about selling bitcoin online. 1. The first way involves a direct trade with another person, an intermediary facilitating the connection. 2. The second way is through an online exchange, where your trade is with the exchange rather than another individual. 3. New peer-to-peer trading marketplaces that allow bitcoin owners to obtain discounted goods with t...