Ethereum Watch

Cambridge Analytica planned ICO before Facebook controversy

According to a report from Reuters, the catalyst of the much publicized Facebook data controversy, Cambridge Analytica, had approached a firm that advises companies on how to navigate an initial coin offering. One of the sources claims the firm was looking to raise $30 million.

The British data analytics company has been under intense scrutiny since both the Observer and the New York Times published stories claiming that it gained unauthorized access to the data of millions of Facebook users during the 2016 election. A spokesperson from Cambridge Analytica did not make it clear if the company is still pursuing a plan to launch an ICO, but did comment that the firm was looking into using blockchain.

Telegram messaging platform blocked in Russia

More than 4 million Russian IP addresses were blocked from the popular messaging application Telegram after the media regulator Roskomnadzor gained court approval to ban the app. According to BBC News, Alexander Zharov, the head of Roskomnadzor, informed Amazon and Google on Tuesday that they were blocking IP addresses in an effort to ban Telegram use in Russia.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov says the block is unconstitutional, claiming that it violates privacy rights, and has vowed to find a way around the ban for users in the Russia. Durov has gone so far as to offer “millions of dollars [in]” bitcoin funding to those running virtual private networks (VPN) in an attempt to bypass the censorship.

Bitcoiner Xdite runs for mayor of Taipei City

Yi-Ting Cheng, better known in the crypto community as “Xdite”, recently announced in a Facebook post that she is putting in her bid to become the mayor of Taipei City. According to bitcoin.com, Cheng described the current candidates as “nearly 60 years old or older than 70. None of them know what’s going on in the world.”

The Taipei mayoral election, part of the Taiwanese municipal elections, will take place on November 24, 2018. “I am not losing my mind,” Cheng explained. “I am running for mayor for one reason: to make Taipei great again. Let’s make Taipei the pioneer blockchain city in Asia. Taipei has great potential to be a blockchain city. It is near Japan, Korea, and China”

Cryptocurrency company Riot Blockchain issued SEC subpoena

Riot Blockchain, a company whose stock price more than tripled after changing their name from Bioptix, has been issued a subpoena by the SEC. According to Riot Blockchain’s latest 10k report, “SEC Chairman Jay Clayton warned that it is not acceptable for companies without a meaningful track record in the sector to dabble in blockchain technology, change their name and immediately offer investors securities without providing adequate disclosures about the risks involved, As a result, we could be subject to substantial SEC scrutiny…”

According to CNBC the company, operating under the name Biopix, was known for having a patent related to veterinary products and testing for diseases in animals. The company changed its name in October of 2017.