TL;DR: Welcome to In Case You Missed It (ICYMI), a daily crypto news update. US lawmakers call upon the Fed to research a digital dollar. Coinbase Pro raises fees. Apple CEO Tim Cook denies the possibility of AppleCoin. Russia approves cryptocurrency and smart contract law. Beaxy CEO allegedly abandons ship, and IKEA was paid with a blockchain currency.



Tim Cook Denies Apple Will Launch Own Cryptocurrency

Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, expressed his views about cryptocurrencies in an interview with the daily newspaper Les Echos. When asked if Apple could follow the steps of Facebook and issue a cryptocurrency of its own, Cook was clear. He declared, “No. I really think that a currency should stay in the hands of countries. I’m not comfortable with the idea of a private group setting up a competing currency. A private company shouldn’t be looking to gain power this way,” he concluded.

US Lawmakers Call on Fed to Study Digital Dollar

Two US lawmakers suggested the Federal Reserve should start developing a digital dollar if they don’t want to be overtaken by other, similar digital cryptocurrencies from private companies. Rep. French Hill and Rep. Bill Foster sent a letter to the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, where they inquired about the possibilities to issue a digital dollar, and the regulations possibly preventing its launch in order to defend it from other digital currencies.

Coinbase Pro Raises Market Fees

Coinbase, the most popular exchange in the US, decided to raise their fees for low volume customers, implementing a new structure that will benefit market makers and will hurt occasional traders. The new maker and taker percentages of traders with less than $10K average monthly trading will have to pay 0.50%, a steep rise from the former fees (0.25% taker and 0.15% maker for the mentioned volumes). This has created discomfort among some users who have taken to social networks to express their disapproval.

Russia Approves Law Defining Smart Contracts and Cryptocurrencies

A new “digital rights” law has been enacted in Russia, referring to tokens, cryptocurrencies and smart contracts. According to Regnum, smart contracts are grouped with auto payment banking utilities that exert certain actions at the behest of the customer. The law also regulates the “collection of significant arrays of anonymous information,” known as big data, by service lenders. Cryptocurrencies are also added in the mix, and now they will have to follow civil code rules, which is perhaps a start for crypto regulation in the country.

Beaxy CEO Reportedly Going Dark

The CEO of Beaxy, a cryptocurrency exchange impacted earlier this year by an XRP hack, has reportedly gone dark, according to reports from beincrypto. Beaxy CEO, Artak Hamazaspyan, supposedly left without answering messages since October 2, with several users wondering what happened. As a result, the value of BXY, the official exchange token, has also taken heavy losses, dropping 50% in less than a week. While some qualify this as an exit scam, still others are concerned and waiting for the CEO to reappear.

IKEA was Paid With Ethereum-Based Currency

The IKEA Iceland store was one of the first stores to settle a payment invoice with an Ethereum-based digital Icelandic krona. The operation was possible using technology from a regulated startup called Monerium, authorized to emit e-money on a blockchain in the country. “As the first company authorized to issue e-money on blockchains, we are delighted to demonstrate the benefits of blockchains for mainstream B2B transactions using a legal form of digital money,” said Sveinn Valfells, co-founder and CEO of Monerium.

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