Bitcoin Trading Generated $875M in Q2 Revenue for Square; Travala Adds 600,000+ Hotels to Their Crypto Booking Platform; XRP Sales Increased 19-Fold

Last week (3-8 August) in the Blockchain & Crypto world was another interesting one - The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) plans to launch its blockchain-based securities lending pool in November; Travala.com has recently added an additional 600,000 hotels to its crypto-powered online travel platform thanks to a recent partnership with booking giant, Agoda; Sales of Ripple’s XRP token in Q2 surged after hitting a low in the first quarter, while the firm’s On-Demand Liquidity network remains popular; Square, Inc. has published its second-quarter financials for 2020, revealing $875 million in revenue from Bitcoin trading on its Cash App product, and more!

About this and more, in the newest issue of Weekly Blockchain & Crypto Digest. Enjoy!

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange to Launch Blockchain Securities Platform

Israel will have its first central securities lending platform this November, built on blockchain technology.

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) plans to launch its blockchain-based securities lending pool in November.

In an announcement on July 28, TASE said the platform will serve an essential function in the country’s capital markets, which currently lack a central system for securities lending.

Contrary to the current set-up — which fails to meet the needs of investors, in TASE’s view — the new blockchain-based system will concentrate all securities lending activities under one roof and enable direct borrowing among investors across a range of major financial instruments.

In March of this year, TASE launched a dedicated testing environment for the platform, allowing members to execute loan transactions. Drawing on these results, the exchange is adjusting its systems in the run-up to November.

The exchange has highlighted the value offered by blockchain technologies; in particular, support for peer-to-peer transactions, smart contract functionality, and increased transaction security due to blockchain’s immutable quality.

TASE states that this lets the exchange custodians and clients operate at cheaper costs with a higher level of security.

In a statement, Orly Greenfeld — senior vice president and director of the TASE clearing department — said, “Blockchain technology will enable securities lending trading while securing information and supporting the increase in the number of transactions.”

Travala Adds 600,000+ Hotels to Their Crypto Booking Platform

Travala is expanding its crypto-powered offerings thanks to a new partnership.

Travala.com has recently added an additional 600,000 hotels to its crypto-powered online travel platform thanks to a recent partnership with booking giant, Agoda.

Travala’s CEO, Juan Otero, said that the number of properties on the platform has now reached over 2.2 million in total. He claimed:

We can safely say we are the world's largest blockchain-based online travel agency by number of accommodation options available with over 2,200,000 options to book covering 90,124 destinations.

Agoda is a travel industry giant that — according to company data website Owler — employs over 4,300 people and has a yearly revenue of $1.2 billion.

State-Run Bank in Switzerland to Launch Crypto Services

Swiss cantonal bank Basler Kantonalbank becomes the first bank in Switzerland to announce its crypto plans.

Basler Kantonalbank, or BKB, a government-owned commercial bank in Switzerland, is planning to launch cryptocurrency services through its banking subsidiary.

According to an Aug. 3 report by local news agency Finews, BKB’s subsidiary and a national banking group, Bank Cler, are working on services that will allow customers to trade and store cryptocurrencies. BKB holds a majority stake in Cler, though the subsidiary possesses its own banking license separate from BKB. 

The BKB representative said:

In the BKB Group, we are working to offer our clients a solution for the trading and deposit of selected cryptocurrencies. As an established regional (Basler Kantonalbank) and indeed national (Bank Cler) banking group, we wish to give our clients secure access to these new financial products.

The spokesperson did not specify what types of cryptocurrencies will be available through BKB. Development is currently at an early stage and there is not yet a tentative date for launch.

Ripple Q2 2020 Report: XRP Sales Increased 19-Fold

The XRP Markets Report shows Ripplenet’s On-Demand Liquidity network experienced 11x growth compared to 2019, while XRP sales surged in Q2.

Sales of Ripple’s XRP token in Q2 surged after hitting a low in the first quarter, while the firm’s On-Demand Liquidity network remains popular.

According to Ripple’s quarterly report released on August 3, sales of the firm’s XRP token were 18.6 times higher in Q2 2020 compared to Q1. The crypto firm stated XRP sales were $32.55 million from April to June this year, up from $1.75 million in the first quarter. The company has been criticized for propping up its balance sheet with XRP sales.

Ripple said the sales were due to the firm prioritizing over-the-counter (OTC) sales over programmatic ones. This is reportedly part of the effort to provide increased XRP liquidity to RippleNet’s On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) customers. RippleNet had 11 times year-over-year growth in ODL transaction volume from the middle of 2019 to 2020.

Bitcoin Trading Generated $875M in Quarterly Revenue for Square

Bitcoin trading drove $875 million in quarterly revenue for the U.S-based financial services firm Square, comprising a 75% gain over Q1 2020.

Jack Dorsey’s financial services company Square, Inc. has published its second-quarter financials for 2020, revealing $875 million in revenue from Bitcoin trading on its Cash App product.

With Cash App’s Bitcoin business incurring $858 million in quarterly expenses, Square’s BTC services generated $17 million in gross profit, with extreme market volatility and hype for Bitcoin’s block reward halving driving customer demand.

Cash App now has 30 million active monthly users. 

The quarterly performance comprised a 600% increase in revenue and a 710% gain in gross profit year-over-year, and a 150% increase in gross profit compared to the first quarter of 2020.

Bitcoin-related business represented roughly 2.85% of Square’s total gross profit of $597 million for the quarter. 

However, the report notes that “government stimulus programs” likely contributed to the uplift in Bitcoin investment activity.

Week in Brief:

Israel will have its first central securities lending platform this November, built on blockchain technology.

Travala is expanding its crypto-powered offerings thanks to a new partnership.

The XRP Markets Report shows Ripplenet’s On-Demand Liquidity network experienced 11x growth compared to 2019, while XRP sales surged in Q2.

Bitcoin trading drove $875 million in quarterly revenue for the U.S-based financial services firm Square, comprising a 75% gain over Q1 2020.

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About: I am a business developer, sales professional, FinTech strategist, as well as Cryptocurrency and Blockchain enthusiast. I'm highly passionate about Financial Technology and Digital Innovation, and strongly believe that it will change the world for the better. Apart from my daily job at a global payments startup where I'm leading company's expansion into Europe , I'm an active member of FinTech community and a TechFin evangelist.

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