Bitcoin was modestly in the green Tuesday morning as it struggles to retain earlier gains, while altcoins were trending down.
Overall cryptocurrency market capitalization was $251.08 billion as of 10.04 am ET on Tuesday on CoinMarketCap.
Here is wrap of the main news from the cryptocurrency and blockchain space over the past 24 hours.
Japan Dy. PM Proposes Uniform Tax Rate For Crypto Transactions
Japan’s Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso has proposed a uniform tax rate for cryptocurrency transactions. Currently, profits or capital gains from crypto transactions are considered as miscellaneous income, and taxed at a progressive rate in Japan. Japan has seven income tax slabs, with the tax rates ranging from 5 percent to 45 percent based on cryptocurrency profits.
Australia & New Zealand Central Banks Unimpressed With Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin and its peers cannot be treated similar to fiat money as they perform poorly as reliable stores of value, thanks to the volatility in their prices, officials at the Australia and New Zealand central banks said separately. “Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are yet to establish themselves as reliable stores of value,” Tony Richards, head of payments policy department at the Reserve Bank of Australia, said in the Australian Business Economists Briefing on Tuesday.
Cryptocurrencies Should Be Treated As Securities: BIS Official
Hyun Song Shin, an official with Switzerland-based Bank for International Settlements or BIS, said cryptocurrencies should be treated as securities. At the annual general meeting, the bank’s economic adviser and head of research said, “If people pay to hold the tokens for financial gain, then arguably they should be treated as a security and come under the same rigorous documentation requirements and regulation as other securities offered to investors for a return.”
US FTC Conducting Workshop On Cryptocurrency Scams
The Federal Trade Commission in the U.S. is conducting a workshop titled “Decrypting Cryptocurrency Scams” that will examine scams involving cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and Ethereum. The workshop, which is free and open to the public, will be held on June 25 at the DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. The half-day event will bring together consumer groups, law enforcement agencies, research organizations, and the private sector to explore how scammers are exploiting public interest in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Litecoin. It will also discuss ways to empower and protect consumers.
Robinhood Looking To Add Crypto-wallet To Its Trading Platform
Robinhood, a commission-free stock and cryptocurrency trading app, is looking to develop a cryptocurrency wallet for the users of its crypto-trading platform. In the job advertisement, which revealed its plan, the company says the Crypto Engineer will be responsible for building out new functionality for its crypto product, such as adding new currencies or providing wallet functionality.
Merck Files Blockchain Patent To Fight Counterfeit Drugs
Pharmaceuticals giant Merck & Co. has filed a patent for a blockchain solution to track counterfeit drugs in the supply chain. The patent application, which was submitted in December 2016 and published last week, details a system to use blockchain to store information about a physical object, such as a single product, and track its progress as it pass through the supply chain.
Current Prices
As of 10.04 am ET on Tuesday, Bitcoin was up 0.85 percent at $6,180, while Ethereum was lower by 2.71 percent at $446.55 on Coinbase.
Read more at: RTT News
