Bitcoin in Iran
On Monday we reported that Iran is preparing to adopt Bitcoin. A government official said in an interview with Farsi newspaper Shargh: “The ministry of communications and information technology has already conducted a number of research studies as part of efforts to prepare the infrastructure to use Bitcoin inside the country.”
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For Iran, digital currency could be a handy way to bypass stringent economic sanctions.
Formax acquires Zulutrade
On Monday we exclusively reported that copy trading pioneer Zulutrade has been acquired by Formax Group. Formax has subsidiaries in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Vietnam, and branches in 33 major cities in China including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Chengdu.
Plus500 posts record results
Plus500 revenues for the third quarter of the year totalled $116.5 million, a 50 percent increase from a year ago.
CEO Asaf Elimelech commented: “Our results for the third quarter continued the strong progress of the first half, with record revenue and a record number of new and active customers.”
CME causes Bitcoin rise
On Tuesday we reported on CME Group's plans to launch Bitcoin futures by the end of 2017, pending regulatory review. In response to the announcement, the price of Bitcoin jumped to a record $6350. Terry Duffy, CME Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Given increasing client interest in the evolving cryptocurrency markets, we have decided to introduce a bitcoin futures contract.”
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On Thursday, optimism over this announcement caused Bitcoin to hit $7000 on the GDAX. Coinsource CEO Sheffield Clark said: “Today is a big day for bitcoin.”
US FX market data
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) published its anticipated monthly report for September 2017, covering data for Retail Foreign Exchange Dealers (RFEDs) and those included as broker dealers that hold retail Forex obligations in the United States.
The FX funds held at registered brokerages operating in the United States came in at $531.9 million in September 2017, which is 2 percent more than the $521 million reported in August. Three of the four FX firms listed notched increases in Retail Forex Obligations.
