NexChangeNOW Daily Briefing – Friday Nov 22, 2019

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What Moved Global Markets
– China will strive to reach an initial trade agreement with the United States as both sides keep communication channels open, the Chinese commerce ministry said on Thursday, in an attempt to allay fears talks might be unraveling: “This is in line with the interests of both China and the United States, and of the world”.
The three major U.S. indexes fell on Thursday after conflicting headlines on U.S-China trade relations and a row between the world’s top two economies over the Hong Kong protest led to uncertainty over the timing of a deal to end the dispute.
– UBS is predicting a decade of low returns and higher volatility for most financial assets. In a report published Thursday, the Swiss bank set out a vision for 2030 which included working-age populations in developed countries shrinking by 25 million, increasing deglobalization and a “less favourable political backdrop” for high-income individuals.

Crypto Prices (from CoinMarketCap)
Bitcoin: Down 4.31% to $7,668.82
Total trading volume (24h): $22.87+ billion USD

Ethereum: Down 7.39% to $162.55
Total trading volume (24h): $8.76+ billion USD

3 biggest movers 24 hours
Biggest Mover 1: DUO Network Token is up 132.35% to $0.113716
Biggest Mover 2: BitBall is up 63.89% to $0.003991
Biggest Loser: ROMToken is down 56.53% to $0.000009

What moved Crypto Markets (i.e. digital assets)
– On Thursday, Canaan Creative listed its shares on Nasdaq under the symbol “CAN,” pricing at $9, the low end of the expected range. As part of the initial public offering (IPO), the bitcoin miner manufacturer raised a total of $90 million by offering 10 million American depositary shares (ADS). Within the first hour of trading, shares traded as high as $11.23, before the price crashed back below $9 within 30 minutes. This marks Canaan’s third attempt to go public after its plans in Hong Kong and mainland China fell through.
– Bitmain, which recently broke ground on a massive bitcoin mine at a former Alcoa plant in Texas, will have competition for that “world’s largest” mantle. A project broke ground this month that would start at 300 megawatts and expand to 1 gigawatt by the end of next year – in Texas.
– South Korea takes legal step to stamp out unregistered crypto exchanges. Virtual asset exchanges were forced to register with the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Those failing to do so would face up to five years in prison or a fine of up to 50 million won ($42,460), according to a report from CoinDesk Korea.

Other Specialties
Fintech: The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) has an agenda to set industry standards across the financial sector, including blockchain, a senior official from the bank said on Wednesday. Speaking at a meeting of the National Technical Committee, PBoC vice president Yifei Fan said the bank aims to better regulate new technologies applied across the financial industry, according to a report from state media Xinhua News Agency. Fan said blockchain is among 17 categories of financial technologies, including cloud services and artificial intelligence, to be regulated under the new standards.
Healthtech: Singapore-based healthtech startup Lucence has raised US$20 million in a series A round led by global healthcare provider IHH Healthcare. Lucence uses liquid biopsy, a blood-based technology that’s less invasive than tissue biopsies, to help clinicians analyze a tumor and make treatment decisions.
Al: IBM’s fast-talking AI machine faces a huge new test: It’s taking part in a Cambridge University debate on the merits of the emerging technology that will feature some of the world’s best human minds. Project Debater, as the IBM machine is known, will participate Thursday in a debate at the Cambridge Union featuring both computers and humans. At issue is whether AI will bring more harm than good to the world.
Smart cities: Verizon Communications Inc and Snap Inc will partner to develop 5G augmented reality features at the wireless carrier’s labs, the companies said on Thursday. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he had asked Apple Inc Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook to look into helping develop telecommunications infrastructure for 5G wireless networks in the United States.

NexChangeNOW Pick of the Day
The People’s Liberation Army Could Get Blockchained. The PLA could reportedly use the technology to store military personnel data including basic information, career path, and missions undertaken.