Welcome to the latest bi-weekly roundup of the most discussion-worthy news content related to the Litecoin blockchain network & its cryptocurrency LTC. Plus a brief look at periodical price movements.
September 27th
Ron Paul announced as Litecoin Summit Headliner
Former US Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is one of the latest speakers to be confirmed for the second “annual” Litecoin Summit, which is due to take place at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas on October 28th – 29th, 2019.
Litecoin Foundation revealed the new via tweet, hailing Paul for having “literally [written] then book on ending the Fed.” This refers to the US Federal Reserve, a financial entity that was founded in 1913 and has received much criticism from the likes of famed US economist Milton Friedman and others.
This negative criticism has arguably increased since the replacement of the US Dollar over the gold standard under President Nixon in 1971.
Ron Paul isn’t the only Litecoin Summit participant with a history or affiliation with politics, with 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang and many others also in attendance.
September 25th
SoFi Invest Platform Launches Litecoin Trading Feature
On September 25, 2019 consumer finance and wealth management startup SoFi published a press release announcing the introduction of cryptocurrency trading services to its recently launched SoFi Invest platform.
In the statement, it claims that this addition to cryptocurrency trading now makes SoFi Invest “the first platform to offer automated and active investing with stocks, ETFs, and crypto through a single app”. On it website, the team reinforces the fact that it is not currently creating its own token.
SoFi Invest saw public release earlier this year, and purports to offer customers “both automated (robo-advising) and active investing (trading) with no fees on stock trading or account minimums”.
“Feedback from our members has made it clear that a significant percentage are not only interested in learning more about cryptocurrencies but are also already buying and selling crypto…
We’re very pleased to be adding this new product to SoFi Invest, as access, education, and keeping costs low for our members is at the heart of what we do.”
Anthony Noto (SoFi, CEO)
The platform currently includes bitcoin, litecoin and ethereum trading “right alongside stocks and ETFs” and claims to provide customers with a tracking system which covers over 40 digital assets. It also has partnered with “trusted exchanges like Coinbase to complete transactions”.
Additionally, SoFi Invest is offering a reward of $25 value in bitcoin to all new users who continue to trade $10 or more tokens on the platform. The all-in-one crypto app also advertises to customers its security of holdings from fraud and theft.
SoFi claims it will charge customers a “markup of up to 1.25%” on all transactions tendered in one of the three aforementioned cryptocurrencies – with a minimum $10 purchase. It also claims that more tokens are planned for integration into the app “in the coming months”.
Concurrently, SoFi (aka Social Finance Inc) has issued refunds to investors into some of its proprietary ETF products that had been managed by its so-called ‘robo-adviser’ following recent charges incurred from regulatory changes made by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
September 28th
Litecoin Summit 2019 Welcomes Code.org To Its Lineup
Non-profit initiative Code.org has been added to the 2019 Litecoin Summit lineup with CEO Hadi Partovi having been recently confirmed, alongside Ron Paul, as a speaker. The Litecoin Summit will also be opening up a platform, where audience members and attendees can submit donations to Code.Org by using a dedicated donation QR (featured on the Summit website).
“We’re grateful for the support from Litecoin and the cryptocurrency community…
Computer science education is essential for students not only to navigate today’s increasingly technology-driven world, but also to spark the kind of creativity and innovation that gave rise to cryptocurrency.”
Hadi Partovi (Code.org, founder and CEO)
Code.org was created to school-aged children overcome the various obstacles restricting access to the study of, and career trajectory towards Computer Science (Css). It claims to have the specific goal of ‘increas[ing] participation by women and underrepresented minorities”.
Giving a platform to such an organisation puts Litecoin on a similar ideological trajectory to Block.one (EOS), which ran an event back in July associated with the TechGirls initiative where they inducted six girls into its Blacksburg office for a day of seminars and shadowing sessions to help encourage them towards STEM careers.
TechGirls operates under the direction of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and has been active since 2012.
“We are excited to have Code.org join the Litecoin Summit and share their mission with the Litecoin community…
Computer science is the underpinning of cryptocurrency, and without it, the ability for the technology to bring financial access to the traditionally unbanked would not be possible.”
Charlie Lee (Creator of Litecoin, and Litecoin Foundation Managing Director)
The second annual Litecoin Summit will take place in Las Vegas on the 28th and 29th of October 2019, and features its own dedicated app available on the Android Store and Apple App Store.
Code.org’s Hadi Partovi and former US presidential candidate Ron Paul are joined this year by the likes of: Anthony “Pomp” Pompliano, Caitlin Long, Samson Mow, Bobby Lee, and a variety of sports celebrities.
