VeradiVerdict - Apple's Move, The Cryptokit - Issue #41
VeradiVerdict - Apple's Move, The Cryptokit - Issue #41
Hi, I am Paul Veradittakit, a Partner at Pantera Capital, one of the oldest and largest institutional investors focused on investing into blockchain companies and cryptocurrencies. I focus on early investments and want to share my thoughts and what’s going on in the industry in this weekly newsletter.
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Editorials
Previously, I wrote about Facebook’s project Libra and cryptocurrency network, and now Apple just came out with something for developers. At the 2019 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple launched a framework called CryptoKit that allows developers to carry out common cryptographic operations on Apple devices.
In the past, IOS developers wishing to implement cryptographic operations had to rely on a library named Common Crypto written in a different language from Swift (the common language used for IOS software development). This inconvenience is now addressed by CryptoKit (written in Swift) by allowing the following operations:
Compute and compare cryptographically secure digests
Use public-key cryptography to create and evaluate digital signatures, and to perform key exchange
Generate symmetric keys, and use them in operations like message authentication and encryption
Hashing, key generation, key exchange, and encryption are essential operations for building cryptocurrency wallets, and CryptoKit allows the storage of private keys in the secure enclave which significantly increases key protection.
Yet the current implementation still does not support the secp2561k1 curve used by Ethereum, and therefore places some limitations on the type of crypto applications it can support. During the Cryptography and Your Apps session of WWDC, CryptoKit’s use cases beyond crypto were brought up and they include data protection, key and credential protection, and remote parties verification, etc. Other cases where CryptoKit can be applied to more than just crypto-related applications are password generation, back-ups, secure e-mailing, and micro-transactions.
It Looks like Apple is on a path to create hardware wallets using Apple devices, and the effort is similar to Samsung’s launch of Galaxy S10 earlier in the year that featured an integrated wallet. Meanwhile, providing support for IOS developers can increase the number of blockchain and crypto-related applications in the market.
Digests
Deloitte’s 2019 Global Blockchain Survey Blockchain gets down to business
Deloitte’s 2019 blockchain survey suggests that the technology is moving beyond fintech—and that more executives see blockchain as a top priority.
Annotated Guide to the SEC's Complaint against KIK — Katherine Wu
This morning, the SEC announced that it was suing Kik Interactive Inc. for
conducting an illegal $100 million securities offering of digital
tokens. Here is my annotated guide for you to read the 49-page complaint.
:)
In the Tweets
The programmer/developer and the architect of Bitcoin have never actually met in person. They've never even had so much as a two way correspondence. The dev was given very explicit instructions on where to rendezvous in 10 years, how to get the architect there,
(1/5)
9:30 PM - 19 Oct 2018
The Ethereum community seems to stoked about a new Apple framework called CryptoKit. There are a few misconceptions I’d like to clear up. (Thread)
9:42 AM - 4 Jun 2019
News
Facebook plans June 18th cryptocurrency debut. Here’s what we know – TechCrunch
Facebook is finally ready to reveal details about its cryptocurrency codenamed Libra.
Binance Confirms Stablecoin Offering Coming Soon: Report - CoinDesk
Binance, the top crypto exchange by adjusted trading volume, has confirmed it will soon issue its own stablecoins.
Above $125: Litecoin Jumps to Highest Price in Over a Year - CoinDesk
Litecoin’s price hit its highest level in over a year on Monday.
Regulations
SEC.gov | SEC Charges Issuer With Conducting $100 Million Unregistered ICO
Washington D.C., June 4, 2019 —
The Securities and Exchange Commission today sued Kik Interactive Inc. for conducting an illegal $100 million securities offering of digital tokens.
G20 Reaffirms It Will Apply Expected Tough New FATF Rules on Crypto - CoinDesk
The G20 group of nations has reaffirmed it will align with standards for anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the funding of terrorism (CTF) set to be finalized by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) this month.
New Products and Hot Deals
Apple set to introduce CryptoKit in iOS 13 - The Block
Apple is set to announce CryptoKit, a new framework to “perform cryptographic operations securely and efficiently,” at WWDC 2019.
Fraud-Fighting 'Watchtowers' Are Coming With the Next Big Lightning Release - CoinDesk
So-called lightning network “watchtowers” — a much-anticipated next step for securing the network — are coming soon.
Budweiser Owner Invests in Blockchain Startup Working to Alleviate Poverty - CoinDesk
Budweiser’s parent company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, is doubling down on its interest in using blockchain tech to assist unbanked workers.
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