News Topic: Digital currencies

Former Barclays CEO John Varley was accused of trying to obtain funds to avoid a government bailout; borrowing to pay for weddings surged last year. ... Read full article

Facebook's plans to launch its Libra cryptocurrency dominated much of the discussion at American Banker's Digital Banking conference last week, but attendees also debated what big tech company might strike next and what future digital innovations ... Read full article

If Libra becomes a major financial force, the stability of global finance is on the line. ... Read full article

The new digital-currency unit at Facebook has a logo that's nearly identical to that of challenger bank Current, which has been around since 2015. ... Read full article

Readers weigh in on big tech companies walking away from OCC's fintech charter, House committee wanting Facebook to halt Libra, calls to stop Congress from delaying CECL, and more. ... Read full article

Community bank executives, payments officials and others said Libra faces an uphill battle amid heavy competition and regulatory scrutiny. ... Read full article

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the agency is closely monitoring leveraged lending risks, but suggests further regulations on banks aren’t warranted. ... Read full article

Digital currency plans spark concerns from global financial regulators and U.S. legislators; departures continue as two top dealmakers seem ready to leave. ... Read full article

Many people still distrust banks, but many also look askance at the social media giant, making it an unlikely savior of the unbanked. ... Read full article

House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters and Rep. Patrick McHenry, the top GOP panel member, said Facebook must testify about Project Libra. ... Read full article

The Italian family that founded a bank in the 14th century and pioneered branches and letters of credit is now setting up a tech-forward, crypto-friendly disruptor in the United States. ... Read full article

Martin Chavez, global co-head of the securities division at Goldman, suggested the bank is unlikely to fully support crypto until such currencies have the backing of the U.S. government. ... Read full article

Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex is protesting New York's decision this week to deny it a virtual license exchange, claiming that its rationale contains factual errors and its personnel were not well versed in blockchain. ... Read full article

The tech company has taken World Wire, its blockchain-based cross-border payments network, live in 72 countries. ... Read full article

Fincross, based on the island of Mauritius, is launching a regulated investment bank for digital assets. It faces tough competition. ... Read full article

Crypto exchanges are adopting anti-fraud surveillance tools as they attempt to root out pump-and-dump schemes, insider trading and bogus orders. ... Read full article

Readers weigh legislative proposals on pot banking, consider JPMorgan's new digital coin, debate the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s brokered deposit rules and more. ... Read full article

JPMorgan is prototyping its own digital currency to be used for cross-border payments and, later, other purposes. Will banks find this a palatable alternative to today's most well-known options? ... Read full article