Bitcoin in Brief Monday: New EU Rules Kill Another Crypto Venture

The upcoming implementation of a major regulatory push by the European Union to control how companies can operate on the Internet has killed another venture in the cryptocurrency sphere. This story, astrology-based financial investment, and many more feature in today’s edition of Bitcoin in Brief.

Also Read: Marvel, The Simpsons Go Crypto

Parity Shuts Down ICO Passport Service

The team behind Parity Technologies, the developers of the Parity multi-signature wallet, have announced they are shutting down PICOPS, a service used by ICO campaigns to comply with KYC/AML regulations by validating that the owner of an Ethereum wallet has already passed an ID background check. The reason for the closure is a new EU dictate called the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is meant to bring a new set of “digital rights” for EU citizens and guard their personal data. The regulation that will come into force this Friday has already killed other services in the crypto space such as the P2P exchange Cointouch and has forced others to change the way they do business such as Localbitcoins.

The Parity team explained that: “GDPR creates new and untested challenges when storing personal information on the blockchain. These challenges make running a service like PICOPS more difficult. We are looking at ways of resolving the uncertainty and making PICOPS compliant with GDPR while keeping it useful. However, as things stand, the solutions we have identified restrict the service to a very limited set of features. Because of this, the significant resources required to make PICOPS GDPR-compliant, and the fact that PICOPS is not part of our core technology stack, we have decided to discontinue the service, despite overwhelming market needs and demand.”

Indian Ban Case Shifts to Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of India has taken over the cases of Coin Recoil and others challenging the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) ban on local banks from dealing with bitcoin companies. The next hearing of this now combined case is planned for July 20, 2018.

Rashmi Deshpande, Associate Partner at Khaitan & Co., commented: “The Supreme Court has recently transferred the entire batch of petitions pending at High Court level with respect to the contentious issue of RBI effectively banning transactions in cryptocurrencies. This decision highlights the importance of this issue at a national level from not just a legal, but also an economic standpoint. We strongly believe that the RBI’s circular to effectively discourage the business of cryptocurrency exchanges is an arbitrary decision against the freedom of the right to trade guaranteed by the Constitution. We are hopeful that justice will be meted out at the Supreme Court level.”

Written in the Stars

Astrology-based financial investment is apparently a thing, and many practitioners are using it to navigate the tumultuous seas of the cryptocurrency markets. This is according to a Marketwatch report that cited a number of astro-investors and even a professional astro-analyst talking about the practice as well as their predictions.

This matter came into the forefront recently after ex-NFL star Ricky Williams shared his use of the of study of celestial objects with CNBC. “When I look at things, I tend to look at astrology to get insight. The insight that got me interested in Bitcoin was the planet Uranus is about to enter into Taurus,” he explained.

Roboforex to Compete with Wallets

Roboforex, an IFSC (International Financial Services Commission of Belize) licensed financial firm offering crypto CFDs, has introduced a new service for its clients to buy BTC with fiat directly from the broker. The company believes that its regulated status will convince users to use their accounts over existing wallets.

Denis Golomedov, Chief Marketing Officer at Roboforex, said: “Providing the ability for clients to deposit into their accounts in Bitcoin is not only an additional service, which expands clients’ opportunities, but also a standalone product, which significantly dominates over its market counterparts. Security has become very significant issue recently, as more and more information appears about hacking cryptocurrency exchanges and stealing users’ assets. Using the cryptocurrency is much more convenient and safer for clients within the framework of their trading and investment activities, using products and services provided by a regulated broker”.

What do you think about today’s news updates? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

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