Stephanie Tower for The CoinGeek Pulse

The CoinGeek Pulse Episode 44: VXPASS joins Lesotho vaccination program, Relica’s Pay-to-View and Bitcoin DevCon 2021

YouTube video

The future of the healthcare system is powered by blockchain.

The Kingdom of Lesotho, a landlocked country in South Africa, has selected blockchain-based VXPASS for its COVID-19 vaccination program rollout. VXPASS is a platform built to manage, store and verify records for global COVID-19 vaccination programs using Bitcoin SV.

On Tuesday, VXPASS announced that it has reached an agreement with the Sesiu sa Tšoele le beta Poho Fund (SESIU), the public-private partnership responsible for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations in the country. SESIU will administer the first 560,000 vaccinations in Lesotho managed, stored and verified by VXPASS. The plan is to have a full 1.2 million people vaccinated and verified by the end of 2021.

With VXPASS and a camera phone, patients can complete the two-dose treatment at different point of care providers. All data is stored on BSV, which enables both governments and the public real-time access and monitoring. It also allows individuals to own their data.

In a statement, founder Zachary Weiner said, “It is our firm belief that good data is key for a successful vaccination roll-out.” The African nation of Lesotho’s blockchain-based vaccination initiative is a step closer to a blockchain-powered healthcare system in the future.

While Lesotho gets into blockchain for its programs, other countries continue to tighten regulatory control of the digital currency sector.

In South Korea, regulators seek banks’ cooperation to disclose details on digital currency firms’ clients.

In a media report, the undisclosed regulatory agency has said banks must provide exchanges’ details that have yet to implement real name accounts for its digital currency users. They are also working on identifying the exact number of digital currency exchanges operating within the country. They have until September 24 to register with the authorities, or face penalties under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information.

In a similar attempt to crack down on users, a federal court in the Northern District of California U.S. authorizes the IRS to serve a John Doe summons on Kraken. The exchange has to provide the records of its American users and their related trading activity in excess of $20,000 between 2016 and 2020 to the IRS.

In a statement, Acting Assistant Attorney General David Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division said, “Those who transact with cryptocurrency must meet their tax obligations like any other taxpayer.” The United States’ petition does not allege that Kraken has engaged in any wrongdoing in connection with its digital currency exchange business.

In the latest BSV ecosystem updates, Bitcoin-powered photo sharing app Relica will soon allow users to generate even more income with its new Pay-to-View feature. In a tweet Wednesday, Relica has teased the new function will come soon. The Pay-to-View feature will open up another revenue-earning model while introducing an abundance of new quality content to the platform. Visit Relica to sign up.

Bitcoin SV DevCon 2021 will kick off this week! The virtual event on May 15 to 16 will gather leaders, business executives and blockchain visionaries to lead interactive sessions and workshops. Developers will learn how businesses are leveraging BSV’s unbounded scaling to create new applications and services. Don’t miss out this event! You can still register on bsvdevcon.net.

YouTube video

New to blockchain? Check out CoinGeek’s Blockchain for Beginners section, the ultimate resource guide to learn more about blockchain technology.