Masonry Blog

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Folks (on twitter) seem to thing digital currencies are where the action is in Fintech

On my twitter feed, I decided to do a bit of year end fun by asking folks which of four key developments: whether they be in open banking, AI/machine learning, digital currencies or quantum computing/big data, would prove to have … Continue Reading

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Regulators and lawmakers actually do have different jobs

It was quite interesting listening to the venerable Maxine Waters, Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee talk fintech on Fintech Beat–and the conversation got me thinking about how legislators make decisions as compared to regulators. And how those subtle … Continue Reading

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The Libra White Paper Is Undergoing Changes….

…and the results are available in a document comparing the June and November versions here.  You’ll notice, above all, a change in the project’s dividend policy.  And, as I talk about in a new op-ed, the Libra website has removed tabs … Continue Reading

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BIS Issues New Open-Banking Report

The (now traditional!) end of the year push for new guidelines continues:  On 19 November 2019, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision released a cutting edge report on open banking and application programming interfaces (APIs). In the report, available on … Continue Reading

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Thinking about the Future of Money

The Institute of International Finance’s recent panel on the Future of Money is now out, and I really enjoyed the back and forth, especially hearing folks on the front line discussed what they see and hear everyday about the evolution … Continue Reading

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Another One in the Books

From Georgetown Law to Capitol Hill and “The Showroom”–and from the International Spy Museum to rooftop views of the Washington Monument–Washington’s Fintech Week is a wrap!  Thanks to all the many people who came through to support the initiative, it … Continue Reading

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The Libra Association Sinks…Right Before Congressional Hearings

The fintech news of the week was, of course the departure of the major payment processors including Visa, Mastercard and Stripe from Facebook’s Libra project.  The news followed on the high profile departure of PayPal from the venture the week … Continue Reading

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Rethinking the SEC’s Regulation CF study

A new study was released by the SEC investigating incidents of fraud under Regulation CF fundraises. Under Regulation CF, enabled by the JOBS Act, entrepreneurs can raise up to $1 million dollars for essentially start up ventures without having to undergo … Continue Reading

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Thoughts on Digital Custodians

As one expert recently recounted to me, cryptoassets are, at their core, a kind of digital bearer instrument, meaning the holder is presumed to be the rightful owner, and is entitled to any associated privileges. This in turn creates significant … Continue Reading

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Alternative Data is Hitting Mainstream Credit

The Wall Street Journal today, which though not unpredictable, is still breathtaking: For decades, banks and other financiers have relied primarily on consumers’ borrowing history to make lending decisions. Now revenue-hungry companies are considering metrics both mundane and peculiar, like … Continue Reading

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