University Of Bahrain Will Utilize Blockchain To Issue Digital Diplomas

Many of the proponents of blockchain technology has long been advocating the use of blockchain technology beyond the use in financial ecosystem.

As a concrete example a university in the middle east as already started issuing digital diplomas for their students.

The University of Bahrain will issue diplomas on the blockchain using the Blockcert open standard and its partnership with a startup called Learning Machine.

Together they will provide a system to issue verifiable official records using the blockchain.

The Government of Bahrain has emphasized the importance of blockchain technology in their economy.

According to the Minister of electricity and water affairs Abdulhussain Mirza, blockchain ability to protect user’s data is a true mark of progress especially due to the fact that it can be applied to a vast number of industries.

The blockcerts platform is the same platform used by the Massachusetts institute of Technology in the US.

The prestigious university issued diplomas on the Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain through its Blockcerts platform.

This is an attempt to distribute academic credential making sure that it cannot be tampered with or changed.

The same technology can be used in a variety of ways in the academic as well as in professional level.

Durham University Professor Says That Bitcoin Will Bite the Dust

There are always people in the world that think Bitcoin will soon fade into oblivion, failing to see any future value for the number one cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

One of this man is a Professor of Finance and Economics named Kevin Dawd who is also the co-author of the 2015 Bitcoin Will Bite the Dust.

He said that Bitcoin is bound to fail because of two main reasons, first is that bitcoin mining industry is a natural monopoly which undermines the bitcoin’s core value proposition and second with Zero regulatory entry barriers, an inferior product cannot survive long-term.

The only problem with his reasoning is the fact that the professor might not be qualified to determine if bitcoin is a natural monopoly as he might not understand fully the inner workings of the bitcoin network and how it is designed not to be monopolistic or too centralized.

Of course developers of the bitcoin are well aware of this and have designed the bitcoin to address this scenario.

Bitcoin will continue to evolve and as new technologies emerge new solutions will be created that will ensure that monopoly will not happen in the sector.

Four years after writing the book, the bitcoin network is still the most decentralized monetary system in the world.

With regards to his second reason, the good professor might well be interested to read up on current events around the world where cryptocurrencies are already being regulated.

Perhaps he is referring to the regulatory landscape of the U.S. which has been dragging its feet to give a clear regulatory stance on cryptocurrencies.

Nevertheless there has been some progress in the regulatory landscape that has prompted traditional financial institutions to enter the market such as the operators of the New York Stock Exchange, NasDaq, Fidelity as well as the higher education institutions like Harvard, Standford and Yale taking up position in the sector.

Maybe the professor thinks he knows bitcoin better than the people from these institutions.

Blockchain Insurance Pilot Launched In Vermont State

In its attempt to create a transparent and validated record of transaction through blockchain as well as be more cost effective in record-keeping methods, the U.S. State of Vermont is launching a blockchain pilot project.

The project will be a collaboration of the Office of the Vermont Secretary of State and the Vermont Department of Finance Regulation.

The pilot will examine the potential of the said technology in digital record keeping and registration as well as regulatory processes.

The project gives captive insurers in the state the option to file registration and reporting documents using a private blockchain technology.

It hopes that by using blockchain technology, it will be able to cut cost compared to traditional record-keeping methods as well as secure the integrity of the data stored in the system.

According to Jim Condos Vermont Secretary of State the pilot will allow them to examine whether the application of blockchain technology in digital record keeping can improve aspects of the state regulatory process.

The state has already begun identifying the participants in the pilot via a Request for information process.

Stablecoins And Tokenization Of Securities - Future Of Crypto According To Winklevoss Twins

During an interview with a mainstream financial news outlet Tyler and Cameroon Wiklevoss stated that stablecoins as well as tokenize securities will usher in a bright future for the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

The statement comes at a time when the twins are trying to remold crypto’s image with an emphasis on robust regulation and compliance-driven market practices.

The twins believe that a compelling new use for crypto will be virtual security tokens backed by real assets.

Cameron likens the ICO mania of 2017 of that of Pets.com of the securities world which were unregistered and chaotic in terms of regulatory landscape.

He states that the next wave will see the real innovation with tokenized real assets such as real estate.

Tyler on the other hand pitched in to point out that USD-pegged stable coins are better suited for use in retail payments than coins such as bitcoin since they have less price volatility.

It could also be used to issue dividends in prospective tokenized securities sector.

He also states that with majority of the USD dollar are now held abroad the USD-pegged stablecoin might be poised to alter the global currency market.

Ripple Lauded By European Bank

The momentum that Ripple was able to build last year seems to be carrying over to 2019 with another banking partner embracing their technology.

While it may not be the most popular cryptocurrency in the market as well as the cryptocurrency space, it was able to get the most number of traditional financial institutions on their side with more than 200 members in its Ripple network.

Now a lesser known London bank, Euro Exim Bank has joined the ranks of banking partners of Ripple and will make use of XRP and xRapid.

This means that the bank will utilized XRP to quell liquidity and visibility issues that are present in cross-border financial processes.

According to Graham Bright, Exim’s head of operations and compliance, the bank wants to create a smooth and frictionless way of transacting money for both local and international transactions.

This is important to the bank’s clients that are situated in over 80 nations.

It has been reported that the interest of the bank for Ripples technology started during the Swell industry event organized by Ripple which saw former President Clinton addressing the crowd.

The banks’ interest was further bolstered when the money transfer of Exim to another bank was lost via SWIFT, the traditional system most banks are using now.

With the use of Ripple’s blockchain technology solutions issues of long transaction times and high fees are solved as well as lost transaction as all of these transactions are visible in the ledger.

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