• REFG is seeking state licenses in Utah and Vermont to grow industrial hemp after earlier acquiring SpeedyGrow, which is licensed to grow in Colorado
• Research firm projects that cannabis market in North America will surge this year due to greater adult use sales in Canada, California and Massachusetts, as well as medical sales in Florida
• REFG reaches agreement in principle to acquire rights to establish mobile hemp CBD extraction labs; company also offers FinCEN compliant Green processing for cannabis industry

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions (OTC: REFG) is intensifying its focus on cannabis as research firm Arcview Market Research projects that the growth of the legal cannabis industry will re-accelerate in 2018 in North America as adult use sales grow in Canada, California and Massachusetts, along with first time medical cannabis sales in Florida (http://ibn.fm/ep91T).

A report published by Arcview Market Research, in partnership with BDS Analytics, forecasts that adult-use cannabis spending will reach $38.3 billion over the next 10 years, while medical spending will reach $19.1 billion (http://ibn.fm/m5mIe). Separately, Ameri Research, Inc., predicts a global cannabis market of $63.5 billion by 2024, driven by a CAGR of 21.1 percent from 2017-2024 (http://ibn.fm/0Vz8C).

Either way, researchers see the legal and medicinal cannabis markets expanding at a double digit annual rate, and REFG is playing a larger part in it. The Nevada-based firm is seeking up to three state licenses to grow industrial hemp. It has just reached an agreement to establish a mobile hemp CBD extraction lab. Additionally, the company continues to offer Green, a comprehensive financial system for licensed cannabis dispensaries and retail merchants who require an alternative to traditional banking. It is available for online sign up (http://ibn.fm/47b2Z).

The company has agreed in principle with a subsidiary of Paper Lantern, LLC to acquire the rights to operate mobile hemp labs. According to the company, the labs will be at farms owned and operated by REFG, as well as at farms which have entered into processing agreements with the company (http://ibn.fm/BAs6i). In a news release, Jeremy Roberts, CEO of REFG, said, “Our mobile extraction process is another step forward in our plan to participate in the hemp and cannabis industries at strategic levels.”

Roberts noted that REFG would attain a competitive edge by managing supply and demand from seed-to-sale through use of Paper Lantern’s technologies. Kipp Stroden, partner at Paper Lantern, added, “By bringing high tech mobile extraction to the farm, we will give farmers and capital partners the competitive edge needed in this fast-growing emerging market.”

This agreement adds to REFG’s diverse commitment to the cannabis industry. It acquired SpeedyGrow, a Wyoming-based firm licensed to grow and process hemp in Colorado (http://ibn.fm/8NX73).  It says that it will also apply for state licenses to grow industrial hemp in Utah (http://ibn.fm/eZkXk) and Vermont (http://ibn.fm/1esIQ).

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Take.Green

• Virtual Crypto Technologies building a name with ATMs that deal in bi-directional crypto exchanges
• NetoBit platform for ATMs allows rapid verification through predictive application available on Android and iOS
• NetoBit’s flexibility extends to ability to divide transactions between multiple exchanges

Virtual Crypto Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: VRCP) is making it easier for people to finance their needs through virtually deregulated but still-confident peer-to-peer money networks that allow the rapid exchange of bitcoin and cash on a bi-directional ATM platform. The technology company is dedicated to making fintech use by consumers and businesses an efficient, accurate, reliable and virtually instantaneous process utilizing unique algorithms and artificial intelligence technologies on a variety of digital devices.

Virtual Crypto’s NetoBit ATM enables consumers to withdraw cash from their bitcoin accounts and to transfer funds to the accounts without the need for banking institution hurdles and their fees. New press materials, titled “Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Innovators Poised to Reap Rewards as Fintech Reshapes How Money Is Used” (audio: http://ibn.fm/qC3QQ; text: http://ibn.fm/vagLE), highlight how the company is helping to rapidly transform the financial industry by reshaping how money is used at the most basic level.

As the number of ATMs grows, the NetoBit system is becoming a handy way for a mobile society to retain liquidity, and it uniquely offers users the best bang for their buck by comparing the best expected trade outcomes on multiple cryptocurrency exchanges — even if that means dividing a single transaction between multiple exchanges in order to accomplish things.

Bitcoin (Crypto: BTC) and altcoin ATMs are proliferating across North America, with more than 73 percent of the nearly 3,500 reported ATMs worldwide located on the continent (http://ibn.fm/ifST3). That creates more fluid economic opportunities in the Americas, however about two-thirds of those ATMS are “one-way ATMs” that only allow purchases of crypto funds. Virtual Crypto’s platform is among those machine processes that take economic freedom to the next level.

The company’s currency exchange transaction validation (CETV) protocols enable customers to complete cash or fintech coin fund transfers in a matter of minutes, as opposed to the still-cumbersome mining computations that most bitcoin ATMs must wait on to validate the transaction. The CETV’s proprietary API-driven Bit4Sure transaction confirmation solution drastically reduces the 20-minute to 24-hour delay by establishing the probability of a transaction being confirmed by multiple miners even while the verification is taking place, effectively allowing users to confirm a transaction transparently before the blockchain process is completed, and it uses a readily available app that works with Android and iOS to do so (http://ibn.fm/ltumd).

Virtual Crypto is also expanding its horizons by working with other companies that might ultimately serve as clients for its technology. In January, the Delaware company inked an MOU with Israel-based oil refinery relocater Chiron Refineries Ltd. (TASE: CHR), creating a wholly owned subsidiary named Virtual Crypto Technologies Ltd. that will grant Chiron exclusive rights to market the NetoBit technology to casino cashiers, ATM operators, currency exchange offices and coffee shops in the territories of North Cyprus and Turkey (http://ibn.fm/aMeWi). Virtual Crypto is also taking aim at the extensive cryptocurrency usage that takes place within the online video game market, anticipating the possibility of providing services under that industry’s umbrella.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Virtual-Crypto.com

• MCOA focuses on providing products and services to the legal cannabis and industrial hemp industries
• Regulatory change is imminent in these industries
• MCOA is positioned to leverage promising trends in the industry

Based in Escondido, California, Marijuana Company of America, Inc. (OTC: MCOA) focuses on providing turn-key services to the legal cannabis and industrial hemp industries. The company provides varied services and products via its strategic cross-country platform. Fundamentally, MCOA is undergoing development to support an array of portfolio companies that participate within these sectors.

The company’s business model includes a diverse portfolio of interactive business segments. MCOA’s portfolio includes hempSMART™, its New Brunswick hemp project, joint venture entity Covered Bridge Acres Ltd. and an ownership stake in MoneyTrac Technology, Inc.

MCOA’s hempSMART™ is committed to the development of industrial hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) nutritional products. hempSMART sells products via affiliate marketing and is developing a network of independently driven business owners to distribute hempSMART products. The company is dedicated to improving its customers’ health and wellness via education, promotion and distribution of products derived from industrial hemp.

hempSMART’s mission is to find, research, develop and deliver premier natural botanical ingredients centered on wellness and personal care. These proprietary formulations support and enhance the benefits of hemp-based cannabinoids.

The cannabidiol market is expected to achieve rapid and sustained growth due to the positive regulatory changes on the immediate horizon. Cannabis Law Advisor (http://ibn.fm/TgiLJ) noted that, “…industrial hemp continues to gather bipartisan supporters, including Mitch McConnell (R-KY).”

On June 25, 2018, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), for the first time, approved a medicine that uses CBD as its active ingredient. Upon the anticipated passing of the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp and hemp-derived CBD will no longer be classified as a Schedule I drug, opening up vast markets nationally and internationally.

Moreover, Cannabis Tech (http://ibn.fm/Pxd2m) notes that, “…hemp demand is on the rise.  It has been predicted that by 2020, the hemp industry will be a $1.1 billion industry and by 2022, as much as $1.8 billion.”

MCOA is positioned to take advantage of the promising trends in the industry. By way of hempSMART, the company’s aim is to make this wholly owned subsidiary into a passionate movement to help foster the growth of the industrial hemp industry. Its emphasis is on supporting the renaissance of green sustainable hemp-based products and disruptive superior technologies.

MCOA recently added an industrial hemp cultivation site in Scio, Oregon, to its operations. This is a 109-acre site in the Willamette Valley. The company established this in collaboration with Global Hemp Group (CSE: GHG) (OTC: GBHPF). In addition, the two companies are working together on a hemp cultivation project in the Province of New Brunswick, albeit it on a significantly larger scale. Therefore, MCOA has in place its business strategy to leverage the potential of the industrial hemp industry.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.MarijuanaCompanyofAmerica.com

• LXRP’s patented DehydraTECH technology will be employed by each wholly owned subsidiary, with applications applied to the industry segments
• At its 2018 Annual General and Special Meeting (AGM), all motions were passed, including election of board members and approval of its conversion plan
• Move to convert the company from a U.S.-based firm to Canada-based is placed on ‘indefinite hold’ due to inequitable tax treatment issue; LXRP to seek a resolution

At Lexaria Bioscience Corp.’s (CSE: LXX) (OTCQX: LXRP) 2018 Annual General Meeting, all motions were passed. The company is proceeding on schedule with its reorganization into four new wholly owned subsidiaries to serve the nicotine, hemp, pharmaceutical and cannabis industries. All of these subsidiaries will utilize the company’s patented DehydraTECH® proprietary absorption technology for application to their own sectors (http://ibn.fm/U61dv). The company said that the reorganization will assist in the growth and evolution of each of the four subsidiaries, including, but not limited to, the areas of research, development and finance.

Also during the annual meeting, Chris Bunka, John Docherty, Nick Baxter and Ted McKechnie won election as directors. In addition, the appointment of auditors was approved, as was the plan of conversion.

LXRP is a biotechnology company that out-licenses its disruptive delivery technology that promotes healthier ingestion methods. It results in lower dosing and higher effectiveness. LXRP holds a patent for oral delivery of all cannabinoids. It has a growing IP portfolio and will license in any of the 40 countries worldwide where its technology already has a patent or is patent-pending.

It was also decided that the planned change of domicile of LXRP from a U.S.-based company to a Canadian-based firm will be placed on ‘indefinite hold’ due to the issue of inequitable tax treatment of a certain class of stockholders. LXRP reported that tax experts informed the company that the move may create punitive taxes for some shareholders.

If a resolution to the tax issue is found, the plan of conversion could take place in the future. If inequitable tax treatment cannot be resolved, the conversion will not occur, LXRP noted.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.LexariaBioscience.com

• Core drilling program completed at San Roque property in Argentina
• Up to 600 core samples are being shipped to a certified laboratory for assay, with management optimistic about “favorable results”
• Company also pursues cobalt and lithium, two other minerals risking global shortage due to increased demand

Reputable mining experts have issued stern warnings in recent weeks that the global supply of gold is declining at an alarming rate, with yet no viable substitutes to replace the precious metal. The world has reached “peak gold,” with reserves being mined much faster than they are being replaced by new discoveries and with virtually no new major gold deposits being identified, according to gold and mining experts quoted by Sovereign Man (http://ibn.fm/yludE). Aiming to help meet the growing demand for gold, Marifil Mines Ltd. (TSX.V: MFM) (OTCQB: MFMLF) recently completed a drilling program at a flagship Argentinean property where it searches for gold and zinc.

Based in Vancouver, Canada, the exploration company also pursues cobalt and lithium – two minerals that are also facing a growing global demand and potential shortage as a result of their use in lithium-ion batteries. Demand for lithium-ion batteries is primarily being driven by their use in electric vehicles, a fast-growing industry, as several European countries and China have passed legislation aiming to replace standard gas and diesel-powered vehicles with EVs. It is expected that at least 14 percent of all cars worldwide will be battery-powered by 2025 (http://ibn.fm/2Ogoi).

Engaged in the exploration, evaluation and acquisition of mineral-rich properties in Argentina, and keeping its primary focus on gold, lithium and cobalt, Marifil Mines is uniquely positioned for growth and success in its market segment. The company is optimistic about its prospects, in particular about the results of its recently completed drilling program at San Roque, in southwestern Argentina’s Rio Negro province, where it resumed its search for gold after a six-year hiatus.

The drilling program consisted of four drill holes for a total of 846.5 meters (2,836 feet), bringing overall drilling on the property to 15,683 meters (51,453 feet) across 112 holes, the company said in a press release (http://ibn.fm/XoQQ2). All drilled cores are being geologically and geotechnically logged and analyzed, with up to 600 core samples set to be further assayed by a specialized laboratory in Mendoza, Argentina. The laboratory has so far received 185 samples.

Marifil Mines has implemented a systematic quality assurance control on the drill cores and has hired an independent consulting geochemistry expert to analyze the credibility of assay returns. A report on the drilling program results for all four holes will be made public as soon as all assays are completed and verified.

The company’s drilling program also aims to augment confirmation of the Zone 34 gold find and expand the reported size of the deposit by testing a kilometer-long geophysical anomaly that is believed to have been created by sulfides possibly bearing gold and zinc.

“This drilling campaign was nicely executed and done so within budget by our Argentinean crew. From the look of the drill cores, we are hopeful for some favorable results,” Marifil Mines Vice President Richard Walters, who is also a professional geologist certified by the American Association of Professional Geologists and a qualified person by Canadian National Instrument 43-101 standards, stated in a news release.

In addition to the San Roque property, Marifil Mines is taking steps to revive its lithium exploration program, in the so-called “Lithium Triangle” of the Argentine Puma, which was halted in 2009. The company owns three unexplored mine rights and is planning to purchase a fourth property from a competitor, who has recently announced the discovery of potentially economic lithium brines. Marifil is seeking to leverage its cobalt-bearing property, Las Aguilas, in a joint venture equity exchange for the lithium property. Las Aguilas’ patented mining claims spread over 359 hectares (887 acres) and are 100 percent owned by the company.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.MarifilMines.com

• International efforts to reduce global pollutants continue to fuel expectations for energy-efficient lithium products
• QMC Quantum Minerals upgrading historical assays of its Manitoba properties’ lithium resources
• Global lithium market forecasts predict a 9.33 percent CAGR through 2023

QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. (TSX.V: QMC) (FSE: 3LQ) (OTC: QMCQF) hopes to help awaken a sleeping mineral giant in southern Canada’s lakes region amid the international focus on reducing the pollutants in fossil fuel emissions. In recent months, the natural resource exploration and development company has been increasing its holdings and accelerating the analysis of lithium mineralization in the province’s bountiful Cat Lake-Winnipeg River Pegmatite Field as it searches for commercially marketable products.

Lithium and its modern-tech battery companion cobalt have been enjoying renewed interest as countries from China (http://ibn.fm/mCT2e) to Britain (http://ibn.fm/OFOb6), as well as the United States (http://ibn.fm/P1txd), push to reduce the petroleum-based pollution emitted by internal combustion engines. India’s Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) has attracted the interest of some 130 companies with its automotive and space industry-friendly development of an already-tested lithium-ion battery that is expected to add impetus to the zero emissions movement (http://ibn.fm/Br0lh). Not only passenger cars, but commercial vehicles are also beginning to get onboard with the emissions-reducing efforts, as exemplified by Chinese automobile manufacturer BYD’s expansion of its North American fleet from electric-powered buses and trucks to Class 6 step vans with 221 kWh batteries for consumer product deliveries (http://ibn.fm/RT4NS).

Because anticipated demand for the metals exceeds the currently available supply, commodity prices have seen big jumps in recent years, and automobile manufacturers have tried to shore up their production strategies by locking in long-term resource contracts for the highly efficient, high energy density batteries. Market analyst Mordor Intelligence predicts that the global lithium market will grow with a 9.33 percent CAGR until 2023 (http://ibn.fm/mj7S3).

The historical exploration of lithium in Manitoba, including ongoing productivity from the world-class Tanco lithium-cesium-tantalum deposit about 12 miles from QMC’s flagship Irgon Lithium Mine property and regionally accessible Namew Lake District VMS properties to the north, is leading Manitoba to anticipate a possible revitalization of its mining industry and ancillary businesses (http://ibn.fm/abOXZ). The province’s mining and petroleum industries comprise the second-largest primary resource industry of its economy, according to the government (http://ibn.fm/YMFMX).

QMC’s preference for hard rock mining is focused on a 60-year-old production field where 22 adjoining mineral claims encompass 11,325 acres north of Winnipeg. The company has been involved in proving up historical assays of 1.2 million tons of lithium oxide-bearing pegmatite graded at 1.51 percent Li2O so that the reporting will meet modern NI 43-101 regulatory standards.

Recent 3D modeling of the site led the company to determine that exploration and development at the site has only occurred on a portion of the Irgon Dike, leading to expectations that there may be more untapped tonnage available. Because the dike is open along strike and depth, the company expects to increase the historical reported resource.

“Ultimately, we think our NI 43-101 will establish much more than the 1.2 million tons of 1.5 percent lithium oxide along the strike of the dike that the old survey estimated,” the company’s website states.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.QMCMinerals.com

• Increasing electric vehicle adoption driving demand for battery grade cobalt
• Multi-project, vertically integrated pure-play cobalt company
• Added two more drill rigs at Iron Creek Project in Idaho
• Second cobalt mineralization trend identified at Cobalt Camp in Canada

Recent developments indicate that First Cobalt Corp. (TSX.V: FCC) (OTCQX: FTSSF) appears to be having its cake and eating it too. In quick succession, the company announced, first, that it had identified a second cobalt mineralization trend in the Kerr Area of Cobalt Camp, Canada, and, then, that it had intensified exploration activities at its Iron Creek Project in Idaho, USA, by adding two more drill rigs. Together, these two announcements show that the company is cementing its position as a multi-project cobalt exploration company.

Demand for cobalt continues to rise as global adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) spreads; the metal is used in a variety of battery technologies. First Cobalt Corp., with headquarters in Canada, is a vertically integrated North American pure-play cobalt company with three significant North American assets: its Iron Creek Project in Idaho, which has a historic mineral resource estimate (non-compliant with NI 43-101); the Canadian Cobalt Camp, with more than 50 past producing mines; and the only permitted cobalt refinery in North America capable of producing battery materials.

Cobalt is used extensively in lithium battery technologies as a cathode material. It comprises about 10 percent of lithium-nickel-cobalt-aluminum-oxide (NCA) batteries, 15 percent of lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt-oxide batteries (NMC) and 55 percent of lithium-cobalt-oxide (LCO), according to Statista (http://ibn.fm/T22VN), and at least an additional 90,000 metric tons of the metal will be needed by 2025 to meet demand, according to Reuters, citing a report by Swiss bank UBS (http://ibn.fm/Lmnk0).

The bank has based its forecast on expectations that EV penetration will grow to 16 percent globally, up from about one percent currently. As a result, First Cobalt’s identification of a second cobalt mineralization trend within the Kerr area is timely and raises the prospect of cobalt supplies nearer home. The Kerr mineralization is, fortuitously, near surface, extending over a 500-meter strike length. It is located parallel to and 400 meters north of the previously identified Kerr #2 Zone, which has been traced over 350 meters to date (http://ibn.fm/hSXiU).

Even closer to domestic industries is First Cobalt’s Iron Creek Cobalt Project in Idaho, where the company has accelerated exploration activity with two additional drill rigs (http://ibn.fm/afQrU). A total of 81 holes and over 29,000 meters are planned, primarily from new surface drilling stations constructed earlier this year. Drilling will test down dip extensions of known cobalt-copper zones to over 300 meters below surface and test lateral strike over one kilometer to extend mineralization beyond the current 520 meters. The Iron Creek Project is located close to the centers of the U.S. automotive industry in California and Michigan.

First Cobalt’s assets also include a mill and the only permitted cobalt extraction refinery in North America capable of producing battery grade material. The First Cobalt Refinery is a hydrometallurgical cobalt-silver-nickel refinery located approximately five kilometers east of Cobalt, Ontario. The facility was commissioned in 1996 with a nominal throughput of 12 metric tons per day. A second autoclave was later added to the pressure oxidation circuit to double the throughput to 24 metric tons per day, but the second autoclave was never fully commissioned. The current footprint includes an empty feed warehouse that once housed a mill. The facility is located on a 40-acre property that can be expanded to 120 acres with two settling ponds and an autoclave pond.

First Cobalt is considering utilizing the mill and refining facilities on surface material at Cobalt Camp, where studies are now underway on muck pile and waste rock material. The muck pile sampling program was launched in 2017, while waste rock material and mill residue piles near the company’s mill are being studied in a separate program. First Cobalt is assessing whether the mill facility could be relocated and reactivated at the permitted First Cobalt Refinery Complex to generate early cash flow from the production of a saleable concentrate. Further processing of the concentrate into refined battery materials may also be possible.

For more information, visit the company’s website at http://ibn.fm/FTSSF

• More than 100 billion mobile apps downloaded worldwide in 2017
• Four out of five small businesses will be “fully adapted” to the cloud by 2020
• UMI platform offers innovative expertise to optimize multi-channel marketing in all market sectors of fintech space
• Total e-commerce sales expected to reach more than $4 trillion in 2020, representing more than 14 percent of total retail spending

Software development and mobile solutions company Consorteum Holdings, Inc. (OTC: CSRH), a specialist in the delivery of complex mobile solutions for a diverse client base, has the capability to deliver a uniquely flexible Universal Mobile Interface™ (“UMI”) for a variety of sectors, including e-commerce, banking, mobile entertainment, social media, compliance gaming and other mobile-based platforms.

Developed by one of Consorteum’s wholly owned subsidiaries – 359 Mobile Inc. – the UMI platform is state-of-the-art, using advanced data analytics, top-of-the-line security and automated management systems designed to integrate any stream of data onto mobile devices, regardless of the operating system. Designed with open APIs, which can be re-engineered to suit the individual needs of any business, Consorteum’s flagship product supports the development of mobile-based applications and delivers a content-rich mobile experience to end users (http://ibn.fm/djfd7).

Consumers have fallen in love with their smart mobile devices, as numerous industry reports point out, and spend more time than ever on their devices. In a report by Statista, the estimated number of mobile phone users around the globe ballooned to five billion people in 2017, with mobile subscriptions poised to outnumber the world’s population by 2020 (http://ibn.fm/sJsis). A substantial number of consumers around the world used their smart devices to make mobile payments to the tune of more than $700 billion in 2017, an article in Entrepreneur states (http://ibn.fm/RPegZ).

Companies that want to successfully make the transition to this brave new world – where consumers want enriching experiences and expect to receive them from their interactions with online businesses – will find UMI’s cutting edge technology the perfect solution. Consorteum’s UMI platform provides a full-service approach for mobile strategies that strengthens connections to consumers and allows for a personalized experience. At the Mobile World Congress 2018, held earlier this year in Barcelona, Spain, much of the discussions reportedly centered on “the customer experience and just how far you can go with mobile devices and technology,” an article in Forbes states (http://ibn.fm/mtTU4).

Consorteum’s UMI platform, which also allows cross operating system development to support all mobile devices while addressing the complex and highly regulated needs of the mobile fintech industry, is strategically positioned to help clients bridge the mobile and online divide (http://ibn.fm/i6tgW).

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Consorteum.com

• Blockchain and cryptocurrencies being assimilated into mainstream finance
• Equity analysts must now study blockchain and cryptocurrencies
• CIIX offers course in cryptocurrency trading in New York City

From 2019, aspiring Chartered Financial Analysts (CFAs) will have to tackle topics on cryptocurrencies and blockchain as part of a new curriculum covering ‘Fintech in Investment Management’, for the CFA Institute has updated its syllabus in response to intense interest from the equity research and fund management communities. Referring to blockchain, the technology that underlies bitcoin and other alt-currencies, Stephen Horan, managing director for general education and curriculum at the CFA Institute, commented, “This is not a passing fad. We saw the field advancing more quickly than other fields and we also saw it as more durable”, according to a Bloomberg report (http://ibn.fm/1Xp9W). So did ChineseInvestors.com, Inc. (OTCQB: CIIX), which in April 2018 announced plans to launch its Bitcoin Trading Academy. Now the company, which hosts a leading financial information portal for Chinese-speaking investors in mainland China and the Diasporas, has officially launched the program, which offers instruction in cryptocurrency trading (http://ibn.fm/cViRS). With the update to its programs, the CFA Institute appears to be following the lead set by CIIX.

That neither cryptocurrencies nor blockchain appear to be passing fads is becoming increasingly evident. Bitcoin futures were first traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) in December 2017, and contracts can now be bought and sold at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the world’s largest futures exchange. Earlier this month, Blackrock CEO Larry Fink said that his firm had “assembled a working group to look at blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin,” according to Reuters (http://ibn.fm/EuLWi). Blackrock, with $6.3 trillion in assets under management (AUM), is the world’s largest asset manager.

The three-part course being offered by CIIX will offer investors some explanation of this surging interest in alt-currencies and bitcoin in particular. Part I also provide answers to a host of questions, such as how to open and trade on different cryptocurrency trading platforms, how to set up a cryptocurrency wallet, how to use bitcoin futures to properly hedge a bitcoin portfolio, and how to properly use beginner-friendly trading techniques. Bitcoin futures trading strategies, both long and short, will also be covered. Part II focuses on coins such as ethereum, including coins with significant underlying technology such as EOS, XLM, ADA and NEO, and altcoin trading platforms, such as Binance and Bittrex. Part III will teach students what to look for when vetting new cryptocurrency offerings, including how to read a white paper, how to analyze the professional teams and advisory boards associated with an offering, the role that technology and marketing trends play and what pitfalls to avoid.

The first live course offerings, in both Chinese and English, will be held in New York City. In the coming months, the course will be offered to markets in Asia.

CIIX’s educational course in cryptocurrency trading is just part of its foray into digital currencies. The company operates a bitcoin ATM at its San Gabriel, California, headquarters and has acquired high-powered machines for virtual currency mining at a datacenter near Seattle. The company also sponsors and hosts the Bitcoin Talk Show, which was launched in June, under a one-year contract with Phoenix North America. The show features local Chinese investors and business owners discussing developments and news in cryptocurrency and blockchain.

CIIX offers a range of intriguing consulting services, information products and web-based tools for investor education, including real-time market commentary, analysis and education in Chinese-language character sets.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ChineseInvestors.com

• Energy efficient devices market is expected to reach $908 billion by 2022
• Residential and commercial buildings account for up to 45 percent of total energy consumption
• Regulatory targets for reduction in energy consumption and concerns over climate change are big factors driving overall market growth
• Zero Cost Energy Savings Program offers savings with no upfront customer expenditures

Temperatures are warming up, and the cost of electricity is a concern for every residential and commercial customer seeking a more efficient, cost-effective way to power homes and businesses. Zenergy Brands, Inc. (OTC: ZNGY), the nation’s leading next-generation utility headquartered in Dallas, is primed with an answer to those skyrocketing energy prices through its Zero Cost Energy Savings Program that reduces utility expenses by 20 to 60 percent.

On a global scale, residential and commercial buildings account for up to 45 percent of the total energy consumed through heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lighting, water heating, plug loads and various other energy-consuming functions, according to a report by Navigant Research (http://ibn.fm/RIaHA). As both individuals and countries around the world begin to take action to combat rising energy costs and global warming, some of the first lines of defense are installing energy efficient devices and embracing conservation methods.

Zenergy’s Zero Cost Energy Savings Program (http://ibn.fm/0ejLA) is a financing mechanism designed to allow customers to reduce water, natural gas and electricity expenses through the use of smart controls, building automation, LED lighting solutions, refrigeration optimization, efficient water systems, EC motor controls, demand-size management and load factor correction—all at no out-of-pocket cost to the client. A unique Managed Energy Services Agreement (MESA) allows the partner who is financing the upgraded, retrofit equipment and installation costs to retain a portion of these utility savings until a specified repayment period ends. After that, the client reaps all the financial rewards of the technologies implemented.

Zenergy Brands’ dedication to delivering comprehensive smart energy service to its customers is being augmented with a new business development initiative called the ‘Zenergy Associate Program’. Operated under the umbrella of Zenergy’s new marketing and business development subsidiary, Zenergy & Associates, Inc., this associate program will certify qualified individuals to build a portfolio of income by working individually or as an organized team to originate new customers, projects and, ultimately, sales.

Zenergy CEO Alex Rodriguez said that the new associate program was created to support sales of the company’s full suite of products and services.

“We firmly believe in a direct sales or relationship-based model where well-connected individuals can leverage their relationships to produce sales, and this program allows us to tap into such a similar powerful distribution channel, so I am excited about the opportunity that is the Zenergy Associate Program,” Rodriguez said in announcing the initiative (http://ibn.fm/SbGC2).

The global forecast for the energy efficient devices market calls for growth to more than $908 billion by 2022, according to a report by Research and Markets (http://ibn.fm/8pvnE). The development of smart cities and green technologies, along with rising consumer interest in becoming more tech-savvy when it comes to energy conservation, are projected to be driving factors in the market’s growth.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ZenergyBrands.com