PBoC to release new rules for bitcoin exchanges in June – Report

The People’s Bank of China has been stepping up its efforts to ensure regulatory compliance by domestic bitcoin exchanges since the beginning of this year. Reports now suggest that the central bank is going to roll out new rules for bitcoin exchanges later this month, according to CoinDesk. In a new report dated 10 May 2017, Caixin has stated that the PBoC’s investigations are now complete and new regulations will be released this month.

Montana Governor announces $416k grant to bitcoin mining company

Montana Governor Steve Bullock has announced a grant to a bitcoin mining company in Missoula County, which marks first such initiative in the United States. The aid is a part of the $1,124,030 economic development grants announced by the Governor this week. The grant primarily aims to assist Main Street businesses across Montana with creating 116 jobs, providing workforce training and developing plans for growth and expansion.

New Hampshire Governor signs bill to exempt bitcoin from money transmission regulations

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu has signed a bill that exempts people using digital currencies such as bitcoin from registering as the state’s money transmitters. The bill exempts "persons conducting business using transactions conducted in whole or in part in virtual currency" from money transmission regulations in the state of New Hampshire.

US General Services Administration to work on blockchain pilot project

The United States General Services Administration is going to work on a federal blockchain pilot project this summer, Federal News Radio reported. The initiative is a part of GSA’s ongoing Emerging Citizen Technology program that aims to bring different agencies together to discuss, explore, and eventually adopt new artificial intelligence and other innovative technologies.

Nevada blockchain tax bill gets Governor’s approval

Governor Brian Sandoval has signed the Nevada Senate Bill 398 into law, making Nevada the first state in the United States to ban blockchain taxes, CoinDesk reported. Filed by Senator Ben Kieckhefer in March this year, the bill seeks to prohibit a local government from taxing or imposing restrictions upon the use of the blockchain technology. The bill was sent to the Governor’s office after it unanimously passed both the state Senate and the House of Representatives.

Blockchain Caucus co-chairs request tax guidance for virtual currencies from IRS

After the members of the US Congress sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on the agency’s ongoing tussle with digital currency exchange Coinbase, co-chairs of the Blockchain Caucus have also sent a letter to the IRS. In the letter, Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., and Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz have requested additional guidance on the tax consequences and basic tax reporting requirements for transactions involving virtual currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

SEC wins default judgment against bitcoin mining firms GAW Miners and Zen Miner

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has won default judgments against cryptocurrency mining firms GAW Miners and Zen Miner. The announcement states: “On June 2, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut entered a final default judgment against two Connecticut-based companies, GAW Miners, LLC and ZenMiner, LLC, in a case alleging that these companies and their principal conducted a Ponzi scheme that used the lure of quick riches from virtual currency to defraud investors.”

Bank of Russia working on national digital currency system

The Russian central bank is exploring the possibility of a national digital currency, the bank’s senior official said last week, TASS reported. Olga Skorobogatova, deputy chief of the Bank of Russia, said, "Regulators of all countries agree that it’s time to develop national cryptocurrencies, this is the future. Every country will decide on specific time frames. After our pilot projects we will understand what system we could use in our case for our national currency.”

EU backs 3-year project to curb crime involving digital currencies and blockchain

The European Union is backing a project that aims to curb criminals and attackers from using blockchain technology to avoid law detection, while maintaining the privacy rights of legitimate users. The project, titled TITANIUM – Tools for the Investigation of Transactions in Underground Markets, will see participation of a group of fifteen consortium members from seven European countries.

Conferences/ Events:

Two day conference on ‘The Future of Bitcoin’ to be held in The Netherlands

Funding/Investments:

Blockchain startup Sphre raises $3.7M in first days of XID token crowdsale

Blockchain startup Stratumn raises €7M in Series A funding

Coinsilium invests in blockchain-powered social networking platform ‘Indorse’

Blockchain crowdsale startup Cofound.it raises $14.8M with complete pre-sale tokens sell-out

Blockchain healthcare startup Patientory raises $7.2M in three days

DigitalX welcomes Blockchain Global Limited as investor

Team behind bitcoin-powered marketplace OpenBazaar secures $200k in new funding

Consortium News, Partnerships and More:

BTC.com, Kraken partner to offer in-wallet bitcoin buying option

Purse partners with Mycelium bitcoin wallet

HP partners with R3 to bring Corda to Mission Critical HPE Systems

Tech titans and blockchain industry form new consortium focusing on digital ID

UC Berkeley leverages Bitmark blockchain for public health studies

Digital Currency and Blockchain Initiatives:

TradeIX unveils first open blockchain-powered platform ‘TIX’ for trade finance

Chicago gets new blockchain-focused venture

Agrello selects Ethereum blockchain for distributed legal system platform

Blockchain startup Colu open sources banking infrastructure ‘Bankbox’

Data61 explores blockchain adoption across government and industry in Australia

Social trading network eToro launches cryptocurrencies investment CopyFund

Blockchain startup BTL announces successful completion of European energy trading pilot

Fujitsu develops blockchain-based software to accelerate data interchange using Hyperledger Fabric