Bank of England explores distributed ledger technologies

According to a transcript of a cancelled speech that was to be given by Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, the central bank is exploring the use of distributed ledger (DL) technologies in its core activities, including the operation of RTGS. In addition, the BoE has launched FinTech Accelerator and has partnered with PwC on distributed ledger Proof of Concept. 

Ethereum community votes in support of DAO soft fork

Following the recent DAO hack which resulted in over $50 million ether theft, the Ethereum community is now voting whether they should go ahead with the proposed soft fork solution. Ethpool, Ethermine and more recently Dwarfpool have enabled a voting system, whereby miners can vote for their preference.

Ethereum-based prediction platform Augur co-founder named 2016 Thiel Fellow

The Thiel Foundation has announced the names of 29 new members who have been accepted into the 2016 class of Thiel Fellows, which included Augur co-founder and core developer Joey Krug. He joins Vitalik Buterin, founder of Ethereum, who was selected as a Thiel Fellow in 2014. To date, companies created by Thiel Fellows are together worth more than $1.4 billion.

ASX increases investment in blockchain startup Digital Asset Holdings

Australian Securities Exchange Ltd (ASX) has exercised its right to purchase further equity in the US-based firm Digital Asset Holdings and invested US$7,157,065, increasing its holding in Digital Asset to approximately 8.5%. In addition, ASX announced that it will also appoint a representative to the board of Digital Asset.

Bitcoin Foundation appoints new executive director

The Bitcoin Foundation announced the appointment of Llew Claasen as executive director during Blockchain Training Conference at Toronto. Claasen will swear-in as the executive direction from July 1 and will replace Bruce Fenton.

MAS signs fintech pact with ASIC

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) have signed an agreement in a bid to help innovative businesses in Singapore and Australia in their foray to the respective markets. The two financial regulators have also committed to exploring joint innovation projects together and share information on emerging market trends and their impact on regulation. 

BTC/USD rallies on new found momentum, jump till 725 likely

It has been quite an eventful week for bitcoin price. BTC/USD saw a massive plunge this week and hit a low of $540. However, it has regained its strength and recovered above $600 levels. The upswing seems to be driven by the UK’s European Union referendum.

Important deals, partnerships, and more:

• BNP Paribas Securities Services, Caisse des Dépôts, Euroclear, Euronext, S2iEM and Société Générale have signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the development of post trade blockchain infrastructure for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) across Europe
   
• Digital currency exchange Gemini expands to the U.K.
   
• Deloitte blockchain experts launch new startup ‘Nuco’
   
• Blockchain-based Factom receives $199K from U.S. DHS
   
• Circle raises $60 mln in latest funding round, reveals expansion plans
   
• Euroclear, itBit partner to explore blockchain technology for London gold markets
   
• Blockchain startup Colu raises $9.6 mln in series A funding
   
• Hyperledger welcomes 7 new members
   
• R3 blockchain consortium adds first automotive financial services provider
   
• Coinbase rolls out PayPal and credit card support in beta