Cryptocurrency

Holding: Courts may toss investors a crypto-curve

16 Mar 2018

To hear U.S. regulators tell it, initial offerings of many crypto-currencies are actually securities, and subject to strict rules. That’s far from clear, though, judging from cases moving through the legal system. With the jury still out, Congress needs to step in.

Coin-offering boom carries seeds of its own demise

1 Mar 2018

The SEC is cracking down on initial coin offerings with subpoenas, the Wall Street Journal reported. Tighter scrutiny is welcome given the billions being raised. With hundreds of ventures in the pipeline and many business plans sketchy, the odds of success get longer by the day.

Venezuela’s crypto-currency reeks of snake oil

21 Feb 2018

President Maduro says early sales of its oil-backed petro raised $735 mln. Investing in the virtual coinage is tantamount to a bet on the increasingly autocratic administration’s probity, transparency and basic grasp of economic reality. Good luck with that.

U.S. watchdogs put crypto-currencies on long leash

6 Feb 2018

Regulators warned Congress that bitcoin and the like test the limit of current law. But for now they seem willing to let the volatile $370 bln market develop rapidly as long as they can keep a handle on fraud. A measured approach makes more sense than Asia’s heavy-handedness.

Cox: Sliding stocks don’t surprise our readers

5 Feb 2018

From Mumbai to Milan, we polled participants at our Predictions 2018 summits. Even before last week's rout, most thought investors are too exuberant, bitcoin is a bubble and Donald Trump is doing poorly. More surprising were regional takes on NAFTA, Italian elections and Brexit.

Banks’ crypto caution reveals double standards

5 Feb 2018

Lloyds Banking Group’s ban on credit card customers buying bitcoin is part of a broader backlash against crypto-currencies. Lenders are protecting customers from losses, while trying to avoid future fines. It makes the futures markets’ embrace of bitcoin all the more jarring.

South Korea’s bitcoin-trading tweak is encouraging

23 Jan 2018

A sensible curb on anonymous accounts will limit criminal activity, but hardliners are still calling for a full ban on exchanges. That could backfire by pushing traders to use riskier venues instead. Japanese-style market regulation would be a better way to protect investors.

Crypto-FOMO is a shaky market foundation

22 Jan 2018

Hackers have purloined a tenth of the $4 bln raised through initial coin offerings, according to EY. The consultancy says fear of missing out makes investors overlook projects’ flimsy underpinnings. The same could be said of the hype surrounding digital currencies and blockchain.

ICO represents last-gasp hope for struggling Kodak

9 Jan 2018

The iconic company went bankrupt by fumbling the shift to digital images. Now it’s betting its future on an initial coin offering to help photographers sell their work. The crypto buzz more than doubled its stock, but is unlikely to revive falling sales and profit.

Chancellor: Bitcoin will never be real money

9 Jan 2018

The leading crypto-currency has monetary characteristics. But without state backing and a means for circulating credit in the capitalist economy it lacks the nature of money and is destined to fail. That’s why some more modest bitcoin alternatives, like ripple, look more promising.

Hadas: Albanian mania is cautionary crypto tale

28 Dec 2017

Back in 1996, the Balkan state went wild for investment funds offering 30 percent monthly returns. The final cost was 2,000 lives and five years of lost GDP growth. Bitcoin’s 24 percent monthly gains in 2017 show similar foolishness, but a quick collapse could limit the harm.

Best of Breakingviews 2017: Our readers’ top picks

28 Dec 2017

From Snap's IPO to Saudi's economic transformation, readers’ taste for agenda-setting insight was diverse and voracious. Donald Trump's first year as U.S. president jostled for attention with bitcoin's coming wipeout, Chinese tech and, naturally, anything on Wall Street bonuses.

Ebenezer Scrooge is ripe for shareholder activism

22 Dec 2017

Companies are swerving toward more active corporate giving and better conditions for workers. Investors should be pleased, but they might also have to recalibrate their idea of what makes a good company. One activist fund in particular isn’t feeling the festive spirit.

Viewsroom: Saudi Aramco’s path may lead to China

21 Dec 2017

That the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will join Riyadh in hosting the world’s largest IPO is one of Breakingviews’ 2018 predictions. We also explain the method to our fortune-telling and lay out why China will win the 5G standards race and why Wall Street will learn to love bitcoin.

Bitcoin insider trading lends veneer of normality

20 Dec 2017

Coinbase is investigating possible insider trading after the price of bitcoin cash surged just hours before the digital-wallet provider added the crypto-currency to its platform. Wealth always attracts fraudsters. And that, in turn, strengthens the case for regulation.

Five possible triggers of the next market shock

20 Dec 2017

It takes a catalyst to set off a downturn and other reagents to sustain it. Breakingviews runs through a few more and less obvious elements: central-bank shocks, wayward exchange-traded funds, doubts about “crisis alpha,” unforeseen hedge-fund trouble and, yes, crypto-currencies.

Bitcoin finds unlikely ally in Asian watchdogs

20 Dec 2017

Japan and South Korea make up half of global trading volumes in the $300 bln bitcoin market. Tokyo has officially recognised digital currency exchanges. Seoul is mulling the same. Regulations help contain risk but also increase acceptance and allure of this untouchable cash.

Chancellor: Bitcoin speculators face total wipeout

13 Dec 2017

Bubbles - in tulips, railroads or the Mississippi Co - aren’t just about the madness of crowds - nor are they simply manifestations of excess money. And they always offer a premonition of the future. Whatever the future for crypto-currencies, it’s clear that bitcoin has none.

Bitcoin futures set scene for more gambling

11 Dec 2017

The 20 pct surge on new CBOE cash-settled contracts is sedate by crypto-currency standards. There’s still cause for concern. Rather than being a useful hedge, futures make it easier to trade bitcoin without actually owning it. For now they have little utility beyond speculation.

Crude-backed crypto-coin is mostly snake oil

8 Dec 2017

An ex-CFTC commissioner is launching a digital currency backed by the commodity. His promise of stable value sits oddly against bitcoin’s wild ride. While it offers a tax edge over oil-backed ETFs, it’s hard to imagine this coin existing if not for the wider crypto craze.