The First week of September was positive for Bitcoin enthusiasts as the currency is healthily trading over $600 levels. With steady volumes being traded, analysts are expecting a big swing that might take the price upwards of $720. While Microsoft launching Smart Contracts might be one factor, let’s look into other positive highlights of the week:
Microsoft and Smart Contracts
Microsoft has announced that it is forming a dedicated group for improving smart contracts security. The group named as ‘Kinakuta’, aims to make it easier to share information and tips about smart contracts. Smart Contracts refer to self-executing blockchain-based code that could automate complex transactions. Concerns about the contracts have grown after vulnerability led to the collapse of the technology’s first large-scale implementation. There has been a growing realization that smart contracts are new and can sometimes be dangerous if used improperly.
However, Microsoft’s director of business development and strategy Marley Gray believes new tools might help developers avoid future mistakes.
Gray told:
“We feel there’s a huge opportunity here to involve the community. Kinakuta is the community building around Microsoft best practices and elsewhere, to collect best practices and tools and involve developers in creating these best practices.”
Australia to end Bitcoin Double Tax
The Australian Treasurer and the FinTech Advisory Group met on Friday to further discuss the development of innovation. Among topics focused on were blockchain technology and ending the double tax for digital currencies, including bitcoin. The meeting discussed various FinTech topics, including a review of opportunities for blockchain technology. Also, the government reiterated that its intention is to stop the ‘double taxation’ of digital currencies under the GST regime. Currently, consumers in the land down under are ‘double taxed’ when using digital currency to buy anything already subject to Goods and Services Tax (GST). The Australian Tax Office (ATO) does not consider bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies money or foreign currency.
On the same lines popular peer to peer bitcoin exchange LocalBitcons has announced reduction of trading fee for bitcoin trades in UK. After Brexit, there was a fall in Sterling Pound Valuation. This move is aimed at increasing bitcoin trades among UK customers. Starting from September 5th, the transaction fee has been halved for all the customers in UK.
Japanese organizations launch Blockchain Collaborative
The University of Tokyo, The University of Aizu, Center for Global Communications (GLOCOM), and Soramitsu Co. have partnered to study “smart currency” effects on regional development. The working groups will experiment with distributed ledger technology. The Universities and Global communications have taken up theoretical research on the applications in most of local regions. Fintech startup Soramitsu, a company using blockchain technology to create a digital identity platform, is handling the industry application part. Soramitsu is a member of the Linux Foundation’s Hyperledger Project, which aims to create international industry-wide distributed ledger standards.
How ripples of these events would further effect the price, has to be seen in the coming week.