Ripple makes a huge investment, a new blockchain partnership across Europe, trading trouble for Long Island, and a lawsuit surrounding JP Morgan’s cryptocurrency purchase fees — enjoy!
Ripple Invests $25 Million in Blockchain Capital’s $150 Million Venture Fund
After an announcement last month that Blockchain Capital had raised $150mm to invest in equity and cryptocurrency assets, Ripple has announced an investment of $25mm in a new venture fund from Blockchain Capital. According to Fortune, the new venture fund, Blockchain Capital Parallel IV, only accepts contributions in cryptocurrencies and so Ripple’s contribution consisted of $25mm worth of XRP. In an interview regarding the investment, Ripple’s SVP of Strategic Growth said, “This is the first fund that we’ve contributed to, and it won’t be the last.”
22 European Nations Form New Blockchain Partnership
A collection of 22 European nations including Germany, France, U.K., Spain and the Netherlands have formed what is being dubbed the European Blockchain Partnership. As reported by Coindesk, the partnership is intended to avoid “fragmented approaches” to the technology by sharing technical and regulatory expertise among member states. The European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, stated that all public services will use blockchain technology in the future, and that the partnership would turn the “enormous potential of blockchain into better services for citizens”. This decision follows a study that was conducted last November by the EU in regards to the potential of an EU-wide Blockchain infrastructure.
Nasdaq To Delist Long Blockchain as Pivot From Tea Fizzles
As reported by the Wall Street Journal last night, the formerly named Long Island Ice Tea Corp (recently Long Blockchain Corp.) has been delisted from Nasdaq due to it’s inability to keep its market value above the exchange’s $35 million minimum requirement. After rising 188% in value, the stock price has since fallen further than the cryptocurrency market this year. Long Blockchain said it would continue to trade publicly and transition to the over-the-counter market. According to the company the transition will “not diminish the focus of its efforts to become a leader in blockchain technology.” Trading of the shares on Nasdaq will be halted at some point today.
JPMorgan Sued over Fees for Cryptocurrency Purchases
According to Reuters, JPMorgan Chase & Co has been hit with a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court accusing it of charging surprise fees when it stopped letting customers buy cryptocurrency with credit cards in late January and began treating the purchases as cash advances. Filed on Tuesday on behalf of a proposed nationwide class, the lawsuit said Chase (JPM.N) charged both extra fees and substantially higher interest rates on the cash advances than on the credit cards and refused to refund the charges when customers complained. The named plaintiff in the lawsuit, Idaho resident Brady Tucker, was hit with $143.30 in fees and $20.61 in surprise interest charges by Chase for five cryptocurrency transactions between Jan. 27 and Feb. 2, his lawsuit said. Hundreds or possibly thousands of other Chase customers were hit with the charges, Tucker said.
The lawsuit accuses Chase of violating the U.S. Truth in Lending Act, which requires credit card issuers to notify customers in writing of any significant change in charges or terms. The lawsuit is asking for actual damages and statutory damages of $1 million. The case is Brady Tucker et al v Chase Bank USA, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No 18–3155.
Source: ICO Alert