Moonday Mornings: Apple says no to cryptocurrency, Mastercard says yes to blockchain

Good morning! It’s the first day of a new week so you know what that means. It’s time for Hard Fork’s wrap-up of the weekend’s top cryptocurrency and blockchain headlines.

Take a look.

1. Owners of Apple’s hotly anticipated credit card will not be able to buy cryptocurrency with it, Reuters reports. A customer agreement posted to Apple Card partner Goldman Sachs’ website last Friday said the card “cannot be used to purchase cash advances or cash equivalents that include cryptocurrencies…” Hey, at least they recognize cryptocurrency as cash, kind of.

2. The Bitcoin blockchain network is going from strength to strength this year. According to the latest figures from BTC.com, the average hash rate over the last two weeks reached 71.43 EH/s (quintillion hashes per second), CoinDesk states. Back in June, the Bitcoin network set a record hash rate of 65.12 EH/s. Three cheers for decentralization.

3. According to The Block, Mastercard could be the latest big corporate to dip its toe into the blockchain waters. The global payment services firm has recently begun advertising three job listings for directors and a vice president in “blockchain product management.” The roles will lead the firms dive into cryptocurrency, “focusing on payments and wallet solutions,” The Block writes.

4. Samsung is forecasting a strong third quarter of the year, and has cryptocurrency to thank. According to the tech giant’s recent Q2 report, it is expecting sales of its High-Performance Computing chips – those used in ASIC mining machines – to increase. For Q2, Samsung’s semiconductor business posted consolidated revenue of $13.26 billion, and an operating profit of $2.8 billion.

5. The Texas State Securities board has ordered an Australian firm to refund and repay investors after admitting to illegally selling unregistered securities. The firm from down under promised investors returns of up to 200 percent from its cryptocurrency mining business. The news comes almost 10 months after the Texan regulator slapped the firm with a cease-and-desist for making unrealistic promises.

Well there you have it, now go get on with your week.