Summary:

• Swiss National Bank (SNB) governing board member Maechler says private digital currencies have advantages over central bank cryptocurrencies
• South Korean prime financial regulator is going to inspect three banks over their compliance with new AML norms
• The Singaporean government plans to develop blockchain technology so as to improve financial inclusion for South-east Asian countries

Despite the news regarding Soros’ involvement in cryptocurrency trading Bitcoin recovery we saw yesterday morning fizzled out. Consequently, the cryptocurrency came back below a 7$k mark, and right now Bitcoin is trading just a shy of $6700. Other digital currencies are going nowhere as well, but it needs to point that most of them keep trading close to their critical technical support levels. Moving to the newest revelations coming from the cryptocurrency world let us begin with the news regarding the Swiss National Bank (SNB). Namely, governing board member Andrea Meachler said during her speech on Sunday that private virtual currencies hold advantages over those being issued by central banks. She argued that a government-issued cryptocurrency could increase the risk of so-called “bank runs” as opposed to those issued by central banks. Elaborating on possible risks stemming from central banks’ cryptocurrencies she said “Digital central bank money for the general public is not necessary to ensure an efficient system for cashless retail payments. It would deliver scarcely any advantages, but would give rise to incalculable risks with regard to financial stability”.

Bitcoin is moving close to its short-term trend line which has served as a support twice so far. If this line keeps underpinning buyers, it could result in an upward corrective move toward $7300. Source: xStation5

South Korean prime financial regulator is going to inspect three banks over their compliance with new AML norms

The South Korea’s financial regulator (FSC) informed that it was going to inspect three major domestic banks whether they complied with new Anti-money laundering (AML) norms as well as know-your-customer (KYC) rules. A statement said that inspections will be carried out between 19 and 25 April. Amid the mentioned three banks is NongHyup Bank which, in particular, is worth paying attention to as it’s a notable institution for servicing Coinone and Bithumb – the two South Korean largest digital currency exchanges. Apart from these inspections it’s worth mentioning that the Korean government is also preparing a cryptocurrency taxation framework being set to unveil in June this year. Taxation should begin in 2019.

Litecoin failed to break above its downtrend line despite a try taken yesterday. As a result, there is the likelihood to see the price going down toward $105 where a demand zone is placed. Source: xStation5

The Singaporean government plans to develop blockchain technology so as to improve financial inclusion for South-east Asian countries

Heng Swee Keat, Singaporean finance minister, met with his counterparts from South-east Asian countries on Friday, and outlined the government’s plans to support innovations such as blockchain in order to improve access to finance in the region. He added that the distributed ledge technology creates many opportunities for cheap and secure transactions nonetheless neither details have been disclosed as of yet.