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Law Commission of England Proposes New Form of Property For Bitcoin

01/08/2022 by Idelto Editor

The proposal from England’s Law Commission outlines a new form of property for digital assets, custodial operations, and a framework for legal proceedings.

The Law Commission of England and Wales, an independent consultant firm for legal reform originally commissioned by the parliament, has proposed a new category of property to encompass digital assets such as bitcoin in a 549 page proposal.

How could this change the way the United Kingdom interacts with and recognizes bitcoin, and why was it necessary?

Reforming Legal Structure

In the UK there are currently two recognized forms of property: things in possession, and things in action.

Property belonging to the category of things in possession simply refers to tangible objects that can be held or touched, such as a gold bullion, whilst property categorized as a thing in action is a concept or idea that is upheld through legal actions or proceedings.

However, bitcoin cannot meet any of this criteria. Bitcoin cannot be held in possession in a tangible way, nor can legal action dictate bitcoin’s existence. Thus, the Law Commission proposed the addition of data objects as a form of property.

Data objects are composed of data which is represented in an electronic medium. This designation can include computer code, as well as electronic or analogue systems. Additionally, data objects must exist independently of persons and the legal system, meaning the data object must be separable from both the individual and legal rights.

Moreover, the data object must also be “rivalrous,” meaning no two persons can simultaneously use the same data object. While two people cannot both use the same computer to write a book at the same time, so too those individuals can not spend the same unspent transaction output (UTXO), or bitcoin.

Not only does the Law Commission outline this new understanding of property, the proposal also proposes how it should be enforced.

Owning Data Objects

The Law Commission states the owner of a data object should hold “control” over the asset.

Control is classified as being able to exclude others from the property (private keys), being able to execute its use (control spending), capacity to identify oneself as capable of the previously mentioned criteria.

Indeed, the Law Commission goes on further to set a framework for operating as a custodian, but more importantly, the criticality of taking custody of one’s own data object, or private keys.

In fact, the proposal warns against current practices plaguing the broader ecosystem concerning the incentives of staking, or providing a custodian access to private keys in exchange for a return.

“Additionally, the custodian could use the tokens and entitlements for direct or indirect participation in transaction and block validation activities to support the operation of Proof of Stake consensus- based crypto-token networks,” reads the proposal. “There are no general common law principles that would prevent the custodian from retaining for its own benefit any portion — or indeed all — of the revenue generated by such activities.”

Additionally, the Law Commission details consumer risk can become high due to events “where a custodian enters insolvency proceedings and where users rank as unsecured creditors,” leading to funds being indefinitely locked up by the custodian.

Thus, the Law Commission states that it hopes self-custody will remain a core foundation of data objects through its proposed framework:

“Indeed, the disintermediation of traditional communication and payment systems and the ability to control exclusive access to one’s own data objects (that can persist through transactions in some modified form) is one of the core foundational tenets of decentralized crypto-token systems.”

In Conclusion

The Law Commission’s 549 page proposal is embedded with prominent Bitcoin phraseology such as “not your keys, not your coins,” cites many thought leaders throughout the ecosystem, and empathetically offers a rigorous and philosophical take on the evolution of property.

As the UK looks to embolden its presence within the bitcoin and greater digital asset ecosystem, this proposal seeks to mark a stepping stone for the future of digital assets.

Euro Drops to 20-Year Low Against the US Dollar, Tapping $1.028 per Unit — Analyst Says Parity Is Imminent

05/07/2022 by Idelto Editor

Euro Drops to a 20-Year Low Against the US Dollar Tapping $1.028 per Unit — Analyst Says Parity Is Imminent

The euro has had a sluggish start to the second half of 2022 as the fiat currency slid to a 20-year low against the U.S. dollar. The drop adds to the fear that the global economy is in a recession and analysts believe that the risk of “parity is just a matter of time now.”

Euro Nears Parity With US Dollar

Policymakers at the European Central Bank (ECB) have been dealing with record inflation levels but have been much slower than the U.S. in terms of raising the benchmark interest rate. On June 27-29, members of the ECB met at the European Central Bank’s annual forum and ECB president Christine Lagarde said: “Monetary policy is at a difficult juncture.”

During the forum meeting, Lagarde further mentioned that the European Union’s (EU) first rate hike this year would happen in July, with a quarter-point percentage increase. She also noted that a rate hike would likely take place in September but would be a larger hike than July’s increase. Frederik Ducrozet, the head of macroeconomic research at Pictet Wealth Management, believes that ECB members probably wish they raised the bank rate sooner.

“With hindsight, I think many governing council members would have liked to hike rates already in June,” Ducrozet explained. “But it’s a very difficult situation because you know that we are heading into a slowdown,” the Pictet executive added.

Inflation and issues tied to the war in Ukraine have put the EU in a financial pickle with fewer choices on the table. The dreary European economy has also put significant pressure on the euro, the region’s sovereign fiat currency that’s leveraged in 19 economies. The euro tapped a 20-year low on July 5, 2022, hitting $1.0281 per euro, which is the lowest value against the U.S. dollar since December 2002.

Mizuho FX analyst Neil Jones told Bloomberg on Tuesday that parity with the U.S. dollar is “just a matter of time now.” Bloomberg’s options price models indicate that there’s a 60% chance the euro will reach parity with the U.S. dollar. Dominic Bunning, the head of European FX research at HSBC told Bloomberg that it’s “hard to find much positive to say about the EUR.” The analyst added:

With ECB sticking to its line that we will only see a 25bp hike in July – at a time when others are hiking much faster – and waiting for September to deliver a faster tightening, there is also little support coming from higher yields.

Pound Sterling Hits 2-Year Low Against the USD, Euro Expected to See More Volatility

In addition to the ECB dealing with inflation and issues connected to the war, the United Kingdom is suffering as well. The Bank of England has detailed in a report that the U.K.’s economic outlook seems grim, and the central bank notes U.K. households are expected to have payment difficulties. In mid-June, the British pound sterling (GBP) faced the same issues as the euro, as the world’s oldest fiat currency dropped below $1.20 against the U.S. dollar.

The GBP has not dropped that low against the dollar in two years since March 2020. Analysts expect the euro to see more volatility between fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar and the Swiss franc. “The FX market is not back up to full liquidity given the U.S. holiday,” Mizuho’s FX analyst concluded on Tuesday. “Any given size of trade is likely to have a greater impact on market movement.”

What do you think about the euro nearing parity with the U.S. dollar? Do you think that it will hit parity in the near future? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

UK Fintech App Mode Relaunches Bitcoin Cashback Program With Higher Payouts

03/05/2022 by Idelto Editor

Mode has relaunched an affiliate program allowing users to earn up to 12% cashback in bitcoin on eligible online purchases.

Mode, a UK-based fintech company listed on the London Stock Exchange, has relaunched its bitcoin cashback program.
The updated program allows affiliate advertisements to pay Mode users up to 12% in bitcoin rewards.
The original launch of bitcoin cashback with Mode capped existing users at 5% cashback, and new users had a one-time 10% cashback offer.

Pro-bitcoin London Stock Exchange (LSE) listed fintech group Mode Global Holdings PLC (LSE: MODE) has relaunched its bitcoin cashback program with a brand new look and over 100 new participating brands, the company said in a blog post Tuesday.

Mode users only need the fintech’s latest mobile app version and an active account to utilize the new features and earn cash back in purchases at select online retailers. Once in the Mode app with a functioning account, simply look at the “Rewards” tab and browse all of the companies participating in the program and start shopping.

Each store has a different cashback rate which will allow users to earn anywhere from 1% to 12% back in bitcoin for their purchases. Select retailers will give exclusive deals on specific products offering higher amounts of cashback at specific times.

Mode leverages an advertisement affiliate program to provide this feature to its users. This affiliate program is why tracing the cookies is a necessary part of the process. A user clicks the link within the Mode application letting the participating company and Mode know that the purchase came from within the Mode app. Mode is then paid its affiliate fee for facilitating the purchase, and then Mode passes through some of that profit to the user.

In order for users to be paid in bitcoin, the user has to shop within the Mode browser in the application and allow the tracking of cookies in order for the in-house tech team to correctly identify eligible purchases. Going directly to the website of a participating brand and making a purchase will not allow the user to earn bitcoin cashback.

No billing information is provided to retailers from Mode, simply fund purchases with a Mode balance that can be linked to a UK-based bank account. The cashback feature was initially launched in October of last year which capped existing users at 5% cashback and one-time new users at 10%.

Google Trends Study Shows SHIB Is the Most Popular Crypto in the UK

27/04/2022 by Idelto Editor

22 days ago, Bitcoin.com News wrote about a Coin Insider trends study that combed through Google Trends data in the United States. According to the report, dogecoin was the most Googled cryptocurrency in the country. Another study — published by askgamblers.com — has covered similar data, but concentrated on the U.K.’s and Europe’s Google searches. According to the report, while bitcoin is the most popular crypto asset in Europe, the study of the trends shows that the meme token shiba inu is the most popular in the United Kingdom.

Trends Study Highlights the Most Popular Crypto Assets in Europe, UK — Bitcoin Reigns in Europe, While Shiba Inu Takes the UK

This week Bitcoin.com News was sent a report from askgamblers.com that analyzes Google Trends (GT) data over the last year in order to find out what the most popular crypto assets are in the U.K. and Europe. According to the findings, bitcoin (BTC) is the most popular digital currency in Europe as it was the most searched crypto in 21 countries. BTC outpaced the competitors in the askgamblers.com study, as the leading crypto asset rules the roost in countries like Germany, Finland, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Belgium.

While bitcoin (BTC) was the top crypto across Europe, shiba Inu (SHIB) is the most popular cryptocurrency in the U.K., according to the researcher’s collected Google searches. The meme token SHIB saw a significant increase in popularity during the last 12 months. The study’s findings show SHIB commands six different countries and the United Kingdom. In fact, SHIB is huge in Russia, France, Spain, Ukraine, Italy, Hungary, and Switzerland, in terms of GT searches.

Additionally, ethereum (ETH) was the third most popular in the study capturing interest from Sweden, Czechia, Latvia, and Slovenia. Then cardano (ADA) held the fourth position in terms of GT search data, as Andorra, the Netherlands, and Bulgaria showed a lot of interest in ADA. With dogecoin (DOGE) being the most popular in the U.S., it is the fifth in Europe as the meme crypto is popular in Albania and Greece.

“With 38 million crypto users in Europe, and thousands of cryptocurrencies on the market to choose from, it is fascinating to see which one people are the most interested in investing in,” a spokesperson from askgamblers.com told Bitcoin.com’s newsdesk. “Although bitcoin is the most popular overall, the interest in shiba inu has grown to surpass bitcoin in major countries such as Russia and the U.K.”

In the U.S. research study published by Coin Insider, shiba inu (SHIB) only captured seven states across the country. Dogecoin was named the leader in that study as DOGE was the most popular in 23 states in the U.S., in terms of GT searches. SHIB’s popularity in the U.S., according to the data in that specific report, was ranked the fourth most popular crypto in the country.

What do you think about the popularity of bitcoin in Europe and the shiba inu interest in the U.K.? Let us know what you think about this research study in the comments section below.

Bank of England Says Crypto Assets ‘Present Financial Stability Risks,’ Bank Begins Sketching Regulatory Framework

24/03/2022 by Idelto Editor

The Bank of England has revealed that it is working on sketching a regulatory framework for crypto assets, according to statements stemming from the central bank’s Financial Policy Committee on Thursday.

BOE Stresses Crypto Assets Need Effective Public Policy Frameworks

On Thursday, the Bank of England (BOE) told the press that it is sketching out a regulatory framework for digital currencies. The BOE statements derive from the central bank’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) and the bank mentioned sanctions tied to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. In recent times, financial regulators and bureaucrats worldwide have been concerned that Russia could bypass economic sanctions via crypto assets.

“While crypto assets are unlikely to provide a feasible way to circumvent sanctions at scale currently, the possibility of such behaviour underscores the importance of ensuring innovation in crypto assets is accompanied by effective public policy frameworks to… maintain broader trust and integrity in the financial system,” the BOE press statement mentioned on Thursday.

BOE Says Crypto Assets Could ‘Present a Number of Financial Stability Risks,’ Central Bank Is Concerned About Stablecoins

Members of the BOE have criticized the cryptocurrency economy for quite some time. In mid-November last year, the governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, raised concerns about El Salvador making bitcoin legal tender in the South American country. The following month in December, Sir Jon Cunliffe, the BOE’s deputy governor for financial stability, said that crypto asset prices could drop to zero.

The report on Thursday stemming from the FPC mentions financial stability. “The FPC continues to judge that direct risks to the stability of the UK financial system from crypto assets are currently limited, reflecting their limited size and interconnectedness with the wider financial system,” the central bank’s committee noted. The FPC further added:

However, if the pace of growth seen in recent years continues, and as these assets become more interconnected with the wider financial system, crypto assets will present a number of financial stability risks in the future.

Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, politicians worldwide have been either discussing, proposing, or even implementing legislation to research and regulate digital currencies. Statements from the FPC meeting on Thursday further indicate that the BOE wants crypto assets to fall under the same regulatory umbrella as traditional financial assets.

In addition to sketching a regulatory framework for crypto assets, the FPC mentioned stablecoins, and that a major one without a reliable deposit guarantee could pose a threat to the financial system. “The FPC judges that a systemic stablecoin that is backed by a deposit with a commercial bank would introduce undesirable financial stability risks,” the committee added.

What do you think about the Bank of England prepping to sketch out a regulatory framework for crypto assets? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.