ALL THAT GLITTERS: Florida financial regulators are investigating a German company that claimed to raise $100 million in a 2018 ICO, CoinDesk has learned. Karatbars International GmbH began promoting a KaratBank Coin connected to a “cryptocurrency bank” in Miami, a claim the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) is looking into. Further, Karatbars claims that the gold supposedly backing its token was mined in Madagascar. Yet CoinDesk was unable to independently verify that such a mine exists, or that Karatbars has any in the country. Full story
PAYPAL OUT? One of the founding Libra Association members may be on the verge of pulling out. The Financial Times reported Thursday that payments giant PayPal is considering leaving the Facebook-led crypto project due in part to the regulatory backlash Libra has received in recent months. The FT said that PayPal representatives did not attend a Libra Association meeting on Thursday, in what may be a sign of the broader turmoil. Full story
FEE HIKE FURY: Coinbase Pro, the cryptocurrency exchange’s platform for professional and institutional traders, is set to increase its fees early next week. On Oct. 7 at 22:00 UTC, Coinbase will usher in higher rates and new tiered accounts for those transacting under $10,000 and between $10,000–$50,000 monthly, according to a blog post. Coinbase said the increase is "slight" and a response “to client needs." Popular macro crypto analyst Alex Krüger pointed out, however, that a hefty 150-percent increase is coming for some low-volume accounts. “That sucks for the little guy,” said one online commentator. Full story
NO APPLE COIN: Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company would not launch a cryptocurrency. In an interview with Les Echos, Cook said, “I deeply believe that money must remain in the hands of states. I am not comfortable with the idea that a private group creates a competing currency. A private company does not have to seek to gain power in this way.” The comment may be a dig at Facebook, which is developing a stablecoin payments project called Libra that has been under fire from regulators worldwide over its potential risk to financial stability and monetary policies. Full story | 