Bitcoin Daily: Bank Of Russia Would Back Crypto Ban; Fidelity Develops Digital Token As Employee Incentive

The Bank of Russia has voiced its support for a ban on cryptocurrency payments, saying that “private cryptocurrencies cannot be equated with fiat money and cannot be legal tender.”

“If it is decided to ban cryptocurrencies as a means of payment at the legislative level, we consider it appropriate to support this position,” the banking authority said, adding that “we continue to believe that cryptocurrencies carry significant risks, including in the field of laundering of proceeds from crime and financing of terrorism, as well as in conducting exchange transactions due to sharp exchange rate fluctuations.”

In other news, Fidelity’s Center for Applied Technology (FCAT) announced the completion of trials involving a new digital token that will reward employees for performance and attendance.

Fidelity partnered with San Francisco-based security token platform TokenSoft to create and deploy the internal token using the ERC-1404 token standard, which is compliant with US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) guidelines for securities.

“For employees, it’s a real use case for restricted tokens and gives them an opportunity to get hands-on experience with tokens, wallets, and other blockchain technology to understand how it works and how we might apply this in other areas,” said Juri Bulovic, blockchain product manager at FCAT.

And IBM has won a blockchain patent that would stop drones from stealing packages from consumers.

“The confluence of the increase in drone use and the increase in online shopping provides a situation in which a drone may be used with nefarious intent to anonymously take a package that is left on a doorstep after delivery,” the patent description states.

The patent, titled “Preventing anonymous theft by drones,” will use an Internet of Things (IoT) altimeter that would be outfitted on packages. The sensor would only go off if it detects a change in altitude “exceeding the threshold … expected when the object is lifted away by a drone.” The sensor would then periodically update the blockchain, and the package’s recipient, with its altitude.