NEW YORK: Bitcoin fell sharply on Friday after a report from a Chinese news outlet said China was planning to shut down local crypto-currency exchanges, although analysts said this was just a temporary setback.
Sources close to a cross regulators committee that oversees online finance activities told Chinese financial publication Caixin that authorities plan to shut key bitcoin exchanges in China.
Reuters was not immediately able to verify the report. But two sources in direct contact with officials at three Chinese bitcoin exchanges — Beijing-based OKCoin, Shanghai-based BTC China, and Beijing-based Huobi — said the platforms told them that they have not heard anything from the Chinese government.
The news follows China’s move earlier this week to ban so-called “initial coin offerings,” or the practice of creating and selling digital currencies or tokens to investors in order to finance start-up projects.
Greg Dwyer, business development manager at crypto-currency trading platform BitMEX, said there was confusion over whether China would close bitcoin exchanges following the ICO ban.
“If this turns out to be true, then this sell-off is substantiated, and we could see further downside over the weekend, as it could mean the large bitcoin/Chinese yuan exchanges will need to halt trading,” he added.
Bitcoin dropped to a low of $4,227 on the BitStamp platform and last traded at $4,309.80, down 6.6 percent. On September 2, it hit a record high of nearly $5,000.
Sharp losses such as Friday’s are par for the course for an asset like bitcoin, analysts said. Over the course of its eight-year history, bitcoin has on a daily basis risen as much as 18 percent and fallen as much as 13 percent.
Still, bitcoin was still up nearly 346 percent this year.
John Spallanzani, chief macro strategist at GFI Group, said Friday’s losses could be short-lived. “Bitcoin is here to stay,” he said.
Jehan Chu, a partner at Jen Advisers, a Hong Kong-based early-stage blockchain venture capital firm, noted that should China shut down bitcoin exchanges, it will not be the end of the crypto-currency world in the country.
Blockchain, a digital ledger of transactions underpinning bitcoin, has leapt to prominence as it enable users to track and record assets across all industries.
“This is just China pressing the ‘Pause button,” said Chu.
A big part of bitcoin’s recent surge was the ICO craze, which exploded this year. Bitcoins and ether, another digital currency, are used to purchase tokens for ICOs.
By mid-July, tech firms had raised about $1.1 billion in 89 coin sales this year, roughly 10 times more than in all of 2016, data from crypto-currency research firm Smith + Crown showed.
Bitcoin tumbles on report China to shutter digital currency exchanges
Bitcoin tumbles on report China to shutter digital currency exchanges
Saudi-French cooperation to localize veterinary vaccine manufacturing
RIYADH: In the presence of sector leaders, the National Livestock and Fisheries Development Program signed a memorandum of understanding with French company Ceva under the patronage of Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli, who also chairs the program’s board.
The agreement aims to localize vaccine manufacturing, transfer technology and technical expertise, and expand the industrial and commercial production of veterinary vaccines across the Kingdom.
According to the MoU, the two parties will work to achieve high efficiency in mass production scale-up and establish a clear path for sustainable commercial operation that meets the needs of the local and national market, as well as strengthen the biosecurity and food security system.
The MoU also includes the development and modernization of messenger RNA vaccine technologies, along with joint research and development of a Middle East Respiratory Syndrome vaccine for camels. This involves designing, evaluating, and developing vaccines specifically tailored to combat the virus.
The agreement also covers the development of a rabies vaccine and related solutions, as well as supporting national efforts to control the disease through vaccine provision, capacity building, and the implementation of integrated prevention strategies.
The collaboration between the program and Ceva aims to meet the needs of the poultry vaccine market in the Kingdom, currently estimated at around SR750 million ($199 million).
The company will work to cover approximately 30 percent of this market with an initial investment of around SR250 million.
With continued government support for poultry projects and increased production in the sector, the market is expected to grow at a rate exceeding 10 percent annually, reaching approximately SR1.25 billion by 2030.
The addition of the world’s leading poultry vaccine manufacturer to Biotech Park highlights the program’s key role in developing new industries within the livestock and fisheries sector.
It also highlights the program’s commitment to building international partnerships with global companies, organizations, research centers, and universities to support advanced biotechnology industries and attract high-quality investments. It also seeks to create new economic sectors based on biotechnology, enhance veterinary health security, and support the sustainable economic development of the livestock sector, as well as empower national and emerging companies and provide advanced research and industrial infrastructure.
This will solidify the Kingdom’s position as a global hub for biotechnology industries and the development of national capabilities.
Ceva is the first international partner to join Biotech Park, the future veterinary biotechnology city launched by the program in Dhurma Governorate. The city is the world’s first specialized and fully integrated hub for veterinary biotechnology, serving as a benchmark for sector development and a platform supporting markets across the Kingdom, the Gulf, the Middle East, Africa and beyond.
The signing of Ceva is a significant step, given its position as the world’s leading manufacturer of poultry vaccines and medicines, and one of the most prominent international companies in the field of biotechnology.
The MoU aims to localize the veterinary vaccine industry, ensuring its compatibility with the strains of poultry diseases prevalent in Saudi Arabia. This includes the transfer of technology and technical expertise from Ceva, along with the implementation of specialized training programs to guarantee that manufacturing facilities comply with international Good Manufacturing Practice standards.
