Following our introductory “blockchain” post last week (see here), there have been several developments in the sector:

The recent drop in the Bitcoin price has been widely reported, for example here on The Independent’s web site. This is attributed by some to statements from regulators about the future oversight of crypto currencies. For example, the proposed ban in South Korea on some crypto activity is considered to have driven the fall, as reported here on the BBC web site. This article on The Hill looks at comments from Steven Mnuchin on possible further oversight, and this one on Bloomberg on the CFTC’s possible role.

In the meantime, the first settlement of bitcoin futures approaches. This article on the Eth News web site by Matthew de Silva looks at vulnerability of such futures and the benchmark used to price them to manipulation.

Initiatives using blockchain also continue to move forward. This post on The Market Mogul looks at the possibility oif using blockchain based technology to improve regulatory reporting.  The oil sector continues to explore applications, as reported here on Platts or this one by IBM and Maersk, as reported on Reuters.

Each initiative, whether listed here or otherwise has regulatory implications, as discussed in this article by Tanya Wilkie of Charles Russell Speechlys on the Lexology web site. We will continue to provide updates as they occur, which are expected at frequent intervals.