CryptoCann™ Report: PNC Bank adopts Ripple’s xCurrent payment tech; North Bud Farms gears up for public debut

The Crypto Report

A hallmark of cryptocurrency is that it is not ruled by any one central authority and therefore it should technically be immune to government interference or any outside manipulation.

A report from the New York State Attorney General Barbara Underwood’s office suggests that may not be the case, joining the chorus of other regulatory bodies that have expressed similar concerns.

Entitled the “Virtual Markets Integrity Initiative Report”, the report found that cryptocurrency exchanges are vulnerable to market manipulation and don’t provide consumers with the same level of protection as other financial markets.

“The industry has yet to implement serious market surveillance capacities, akin to those of traditional trading venues, to detect and punish suspicious trading activity,” said the report.

READ: Bitcoin vs Altcoins: Why does bitcoin dominate the crypto market?

The report suggested retail investors ask themselves a series of questions before using a crypto exchange, including what security measures have been put in place to thwart hackers and what insurance policies have been put in place in the event of a hack.

Although the world of cryptocurrency is viewed by many as a gray area, major financial institutions have been testing the waters nonetheless.

The PNC Financial Services Group Inc (NYSE:PNC) has adopted Ripple’s xCurrent technology to process international payments, as per a Reuters report.

PNC Treasury Management will use xCurrent to help its US business clients get paid invoices by international buyers more quickly.

Ripple’s cryptocurrency currently has a market cap of US$32.377bn.

The Cann Report

Uruguay is the only country in the world with full legalization of marijuana with Canada following suit in the fall. There are other countries making progress though.

South Africa’s Constitutional Court has decriminalized the private possession and adult-use of cannabis, known locally as “dagga”, as per a High Times report.

“It will not be a criminal offense for an adult person to use or be in possession of cannabis in private for his or her personal consumption,” said Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo.

The court did not set a limit on exactly how much cannabis a person can have for private use, but will leave that decision to its parliament.

READ: Short-seller Andrew Left’s Citron Research says surge in cannabis company Tilray is ‘beyond comprehension’

As legalization continues to spread, more companies are carving out a piece of the space for themselves.

Cannabis company North Bud Farms Inc plans to list its shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange on under the stock symbol “NBUD”.

The company has plans to build a state-of-the-art purpose-built cannabis production facility located on 95 acres of agricultural land in Quebec.

North Bud Farms plans to focus on pharmaceutical and food grade cannabinoid production, preparing for the legalization of edibles and ingestible products scheduled for October 2019.

Story by ProactiveInvestors