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Sep
28

Bitcoin ‘more than just a fad,’ Morgan Stanley CEO says

Not every Wall Street bank chief is bearish on bitcoin. Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer James Gorman takes a more measured view on the cryptocurrency than crosstown rival Jamie Dimon, the JPMorgan Chase & Co. head who earlier this month called it “a fraud” that’s in a speculative bubble worse than tulip bulbs. Bitcoin is “certainly something more than just a fad,” Gorman said Wednesday at an event held by the Wall Street Journal. “The concept of anonymous currency is a very interesting concept — interesting for the privacy protections it gives people, interesting because what it says to the central banking system about controlling that.” The digital currency has […]

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Sep
28

Fitbit Pay launches with ANZ, CBA and NAB

Forget having to carry your card in your sports bra whenever you go for a run or figuring out where to stash your wallet the next time you go for a swim. Fitbit is the latest company to jump on the contactless payments bandwagon with the recent launch of Fitbit Pay. And today, it has announced a massive partnership with Aussie banking giants ANZ, CBA and NAB that will kick off next Monday. Fitbit has also confirmed that it’s in talks with Westpac, Bendigo Bank, St.George and some other regional banks for future partnerships. Available with the new Fitbit Ionic smartwatch, customers of the three big banks can link their […]

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Sep
27

‘Robo-adviser’ makes it onto Oxford Dictionaries website

Automated and artificial intelligence-based propositions across the sector will be delighted to see the term ‘robo-adviser’ has made it onto the Oxford Dictionary’s website. A ‘robo-adviser’ (noun) has been defined by Oxford Dictionaries as “an online application that provides automated financial guidance and services”, while the example sentence reads: “a robo-adviser programmed to build wealth over a decade”. The website focuses on current language and practical usage and frequently updates the latest popular words.   Please click on the link below to read more…. Source: ‘Robo-adviser’ makes it onto Oxford Dictionaries website – Professional Adviser

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Sep
27

The world’s first blockchain smartphone is in development

Sirin Labs, the company behind the US$14,000 Solarin smartphone, is now developing an open-source model that runs on a fee-less blockchain. The Finney — named in honor of bitcoin pioneer Hal Finney — will be the only smartphone in the world that’s fully secure and safe enough to hold cryptographic coins. Or so says the company, which is launching a crowdsale event this October (date to be confirmed) to support the phone’s development. According to Sirin, all Finney devices (there’s an all-in-one PC coming, too) will form an independent blockchain network powered by IOTA’s Tangle technology. The network will operate without centralized backbones or mining centers cluttering up the transaction […]

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Sep
27

Nothing to fear from robo-advice: Magellan

Hamish Douglass believes financial advisers should not fear robo-advice in an era where artificial intelligence and big data can dominate discussion.

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Sep
27

Want to learn more about Ethereum? Ethereum Co-Founder explains his cryptocurrency

Etherum co-founder Vitalik Buterin was one of the key speakers at this year’s TechCrunch Disrupt, which was held last week in San Francisco. Asked to explain what Ethereum is to the average user, Buterin defined a blockchain from the perspective of those who understand its current most popular use — in cryptocurrencies, specifically Bitcoin. Buterin said that a blockchain can keep track of how much money a person has at any given time — or what he calls “cryptoeconomics.” But, while that’s the initial use of a blockchain, Buterin and his colleagues have found that such a decentralized system of keeping tabs on transaction records can extend to a far […]

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Sep
27

Why China’s ban on Bitcoin may be temporary

China’s ban on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may be temporary, to appease international agencies and hardcore communist members ahead of the upcoming Communist Party convention. China’s big government and banks cannot tolerate Bitcoin. It threatens their very existence, as it was previously written in a piece here. That’s in the long term, though, when Bitcoin has the potential to replace the yuan in everyday transactions, and as a monetary asset. At present and in the immediate future, however, the size of the Bitcoin economy is far too small to be a real threat to the Beijing government and the banking system it owns and manages. That’s why something else must […]

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Sep
26

Have you got your tickets to LendIt Europe 2017? It’s Europe’s largest global fintech & lending conference

LendIt Europe 2017 is Europe’s largest global fintech and lending conference, and returns to London on October 9-10, 2017. This year’s conference is expanding with the industry to cover the hottest topics in fintech including digital wealth, blockchain, insurtech, digital banking, and much more. Nowhere else can you meet 250+ industry leaders, 150+ investors and 1,000+ attendees from fintech companies, investment firms, banks, service providers, regulators and the media from across Europe and beyond. With six tracks of content including Innovations in Lending, Investor Insights, Policy & Regulation, as well as our PitchIt startup competition, there is content for everyone. You can now save 15% with Australian FinTech! Simply enter […]

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