Bitcoin Daily: Winklevoss Twins Get Crypto Patent, Merit Announces ‘First Invite-Only’ Crypto

The Winklevoss twins have won a patent to help settle exchange traded products (ETPs) involving digital currencies through their company, CoinDesk reported. In a patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Winklevoss IP detailed a way to make transactions for ETPs that hold digital currencies “such as bitcoins … Ripple, Dogecoins … Ether.”

The office awarded the patent a few months after the company filed in December. The brothers had also wanted to list an ETF that was related to bitcoin on the Bats BZX Exchange, but the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) nixed the listing due to uncertainty with regulatory issues and trading risks.

And a token that is dubbed “the world’s first invite-only cryptocurrency” has announced $1 million in self-funding, the company said in an announcement. Merit also claims that it is the first digital currency to feature blockchain-based, decentralized vaults and escrows.

“The cryptocurrency has stumbled away from its decentralized roots and diverted to a winner-take-all Wall Street mentality,” Merit founder and CEO Adil Wali said in the announcement. “At Merit, we strive to get back to the original ethos of cryptocurrency: to use the power of blockchain technology to actually make our lives easier. We want it to be so easy to use that our least tech-savvy friends and family could use it every day.”

In other news, astrological signs have encouraged former NFL player Ricky Williams to invest in bitcoin, CNBC reported. The news isn’t entirely out of character, as William studied astrology and holistic medicine following his football career.

“When I look at things, I tend to look at astrology to get insight,” Williams told CNBC. He noticed that Uranus was about to unite with Taurus, and that is important because Uranus is about “revolution” and Taurus is about “resources and finances.” Additionally, Pluto is moving through Capricorn – that “is about our structures, like banks for instance,” Williams said.

Still, Williams was careful not to put too much money into bitcoin: He only invested $50,000.