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Coinbase has revealed that it received a total of 1,914 requests for customer data from global law enforcement agencies during the first six months of 2020. It is, however, not clear how many of the requests were fulfilled. In its first so-called“transparency report” published Friday, the U.S. crypto exchange – which boasts a user base of 38 million – said 97% of the requests had to do with criminal investigations. U.S. agencies accounted for the biggest number of requests, sending 1,113 requisitions or 58% of the total. At least 441 (23%) came from the U.K., 176 or 16.5% from Germany and the rest from other parts of the world. Inside the U.S., Coinbase disclosed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) requested the most information. It submitted 340 requests followed by Homeland Security Investigations (184), local state agencies (180), and the Drug Enforcement Administration with 104 requests. Other requests were drawn from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Secret Service, the Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Justice, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Paul Grewal, chief legal officer at Coinbase, said the requests from law enforcement largely come in the form of subpoenas. Sometimes, the requests involve search warrants, court orders, and other formal processes, he added. “We respect the legitimate interests of government authorities in pursuing bad actors who abuse others and our platform,” noted Grewal, adding, “yet we will not hesitate to push back where appropriate…” Coinbase’s “transparency report” comes after the exchange’s censure by the digital rights group Economic Frontier Foundation. The group recommended Coinbase publish such reports “for the public to know who is making those requests, or how often.” What do you think about Coinbase cooperating with law enforcement agencies? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Coinbase Received 1,900 Requests for Client Info From Law Enforcement During First Half of 2020 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Cryptocurrency reserves held on digital asset exchanges have been dropping to new lows, as some of the top exchanges have seen significant bitcoin reserve balance drops. A few months ago trading platforms had a lot more bitcoin reserves on hand and onchain data shows a few exchanges have seen customers steadily drain 187,000 bitcoins ($2.1B) from exchange-owned cold wallets. In February, Coinbase had 1 million bitcoin under management and today reserves are down over 9% as 92,000 bitcoin ($1B) has left the exchange. Today, according to Bituniverse’s online exchange balance rank tracker, the San Francisco trading platform has 908,560 BTC under management. 36,000 BTC ($408M) left Coinbase since news.Bitcoin.com’s reserves report published on June 30, 2020. A number of top exchanges below Coinbase have also seen cold wallets drained during the last three months. The top seven exchanges in terms of balance holdings on June 30, 2020, according to Bituniverse’s exchange balance rank tracker. The second-largest exchange in terms of bitcoin reserves held is Huobi and the trading platform is down over 53,000 BTC ($601M) since June 30. Binance’s balances remained the same as the exchange holds 266,000 BTC today and three months ago, Binance held 269k BTC. Similarly, the fourth-largest reserve holder, Bitfinex, didn’t see much movement in the last three months. The top seven exchanges in terms of balance holdings on October 16, 2020, according to Bituniverse’s exchange balance rank tracker. Three months ago, Okex had 240,000 BTC on hand but today, Okex only has 198,000 BTC in reserves. This means 42,000 BTC left Okex since June as 17.5% left the exchange in the last three months. Statistics show out of the top five crypto trading platforms over 187,000 BTC ($2.1B) has left these exchanges since the June report. Just recently, Bitmex had some legal troubles with the U.S. government and since the incident, a lot of bitcoin has left the derivatives exchange. Three months ago Bitmex had 224 BTC in reserves and today the exchange only has 113,000 in cold storage. Onchain data indicates Bitmex lost a whopping 49.55% in BTC reserves since June 30. At the time of publication, Glassnode’s “Exchange Balance vs. Bitcoin” stats show that there’s 2.7 million BTC held on exchanges today. Glassnode’s stats indicate that out of the 21 million BTC cap, exchanges hold 12.85% of all that will exist, and 14.59% of the 18.5 million BTC in circulation. 1.8 million BTC out of the aggregate 2.7 million BTC held on exchanges sits in the world’s top five crypto trading platforms. The top five custodial platforms by BTC reserve status include Coinbase, Huobi, Binance, Bitfinex, and Okex. Exchange balances have been riding lower consecutively for the last 15 months and the last time balances were this low was around May 2019. To many crypto enthusiasts and traders, the low balances on exchanges suggest users are storing assets in a noncustodial fashion as opposed to leaving funds with a third party. The data from Bituniverse and Glassnode also suggests that liquidity and selling pressure may lower. What do you think about the low number of bitcoins held collectively on global exchanges today? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments below. The post 187,000 BTC Drained: Over $2 Billion in Bitcoin Leave the Top Exchanges Since June appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The digital currency exchange Okex disabled cryptocurrency withdrawals on Friday morning and explained that funds were “safe and not affected.” Following the withdrawal announcement, regional reports claim that Okex’s founder Mingxing “Star” Xu was taken away by the police. On Friday morning (ET) a local report from the publication Caixin detailed that the founder of Okex, Mingxing “Star” Xu, was taken away by the police. Hours before the Caixin published the report, Okex’s official Twitter account announced pausing withdrawals on the exchange. “Withdrawals of digital assets/cryptocurrencies Okex are currently suspended,” the trading platform wrote. “Other functions are up and running. Your funds and assets are safe and not affected. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience. Further announcements will be made.” (Left picture) The official withdrawal announcement on Twitter. (Right picture) Okex’s exchange balance reserves according to Bituniverse stats. The withdrawal announcement also provides a blog post link which explains the action in more detail. According to the post, a private key holder from the exchange is currently unavailable and working with law enforcement. The identity of the private key holder is not mentioned in the blog post. “One of our private key holders is currently cooperating with a public security bureau in investigations where required,” the trading platform stressed. “We have been out of touch with the concerned private key holder. As such, the associated authorization could not be completed.” The Caixin report isn’t very clear and it explains that two unidentified sources told the media publication about the incident. Cryptocurrency markets took a hit after the withdrawal announcement and the following local reports concerning Xu. Regional reports also show that Star Xu talked with Shanghai police in 2018 as well in regard to an investigation. Currently, Okex is the fifth largest digital currency exchange in terms of reserves held, according to Bituniverse’s exchange balance rank. The platform presently holds 198,000 BTC or $2.2 billion worth using today’s exchange rates. What do you think about the issues at Okex? Let us know what you think in the comments below. The post Okex Halts Withdrawals Due to ‘Out of Touch’ Private Key Holder, Founder Star Xu Talks With Police appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

DiFy.Finance, like YFI, the platform it is based on, is an environment of decentralized finance (DeFi) lending aggregators: it allows users to provide liquidity for the ecosystem by parking their cryptocurrency tokens in a smart contract vault and earning interest in return. By the virtue of it being an aggregator of lending services, YFIII users are able to optimize their interest yields in an automated manner by frequently rebalancing their investments between available options. What Makes DiFy.Finance Unique? DiFy.Finance is part of the larger trend of decentralized finance: an industry that is focused on building decentralized financial instruments on top of existing smart-contract-enabled cryptocurrencies. These instruments include cryptocurrency lending, insurance, decentralized exchanges and other use cases. As of October 2020, it is a rapidly growing industry with over $10 billion in locked assets, up from just over $500 million in October 2019. YFIII specifically is an aggregator of cryptocurrency lending platforms, same as the platform it was forked from — yearn.finance. It allows users to deposit their cryptocurrency, which is converted into yTokens — on-blockchain obligations that are secured by collateral in a different cryptocurrency. These tokens are then automatically parked in different DeFi lending services in order to maximize the lenders’ profit in the form of interest. YFIII’s unique advantage, and the reason for forking away from YFI, is to provide a more optimized crypto lending experience for mobile platforms. How Many DiFy.Finance [YFIII] Coins Are There in Circulation? YFIII’s maximum supply is limited to 30,000 tokens, all of which are set to be openly distributed among the direct participants of the ecosystem with no pre-sale/ICO stage. According to the team behind the project, none of the YFIII tokens have been pre-allocated to the team members. How Is the DiFy.Finance Network Secured? YFIII, like the project it is based on — yearn.finance — is built on top of the Ethereum blockchain, meaning that its network is secured by the same hash function as ETH — Ethash. Ethash is a proof-of-work function that belongs to the Keccak family of hash functions. DiFy.Finance — Farm: DiFy.Finance — Farm offers cryptocurrency holders to pool their assets together to provide a large pool of liquidity for everyone who wants to exchange this asset, as a return, he receives a lucrative reward straight into the wallet. DiFy.Finance — Stake: It is a modern platform that allows DiFy.Finance and YFIII token holders to store their assets in a specially designed contract. The storage percentage is set automatically depending on the price of the underlying assets and the number of assets in the pool DiFy.Finance — Borrow : DiFy.Finance ecosystem is borrowing — Borrowers can borrow assets in an overcollateralized (perpetual) way, selecting USDT (Tether), Ethereum (ETH), or DAI, and earn YFIII as a reward for using the protocol. DiFy.Finance — Vote : DiFy.Finance — Vote offers a decentralized platform that allows the community to perform on-chain voting. All this voting data is record on blockchain which acts as a decentralized, immutable ledger, leaving no place for bureaucratic manipulation or rigging. DiFy.Finance — Vault : DiFy.Finance — Vault is a protocol that automates yield farming. It uses AI and BigData to look for innovative farming strategies, with the objective of bringing maximum yield to the community. Website: https://dify.finance Twitter: https://twitter.com/dify_finance UniSwap: https://app.uniswap.org/#/swap?outputCurrency=0x4be40bc9681d0a7c24a99b4c92f85b9053fc2a45&outputCurrency=ETH Telegram: https://t.me/difyfinance Coinmarketcap: https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/dify-finance/ This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post DiFy Finance (YFIII) Is an In-Development Software Fork of Yearn Finance (YFI) appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has clarified that its planned digital service tax (DST) will be applicable to cryptocurrencies at a rate of 1.5% on gross transaction value, local media reported. In August, the agency announced new rules for the taxation of what it calls “digital marketplaces.” However, with oblique definitions on such key terms, it has not been clear who exactly will be taxed under the new regulations that come into force on Jan 1, 2020. Now, KRA tax expert Nixon Omondi has appeared to set the record straight. “As the law is, any person who will be offering a digital service – crypto is digital, the platform is digital, the acquisition process is digital, the process of payment is digital – in that respect, DST will be applicable on cryptocurrencies,” he explained, in a report by Bitcoinke. The clarification means that platforms dealing with virtual currencies will be required to pay the 1.5% tax to the Kenyan government. The situation is rather tricky for foreign peer-to-peer exchanges like Paxful and Binance P2P, which have operations in the East African country – they will have to remit the tax each month. Kenyan crypto businesses will make similar payments, too. However, local firms “have the option of claiming back their digital service tax at the end of the year since they also pay other taxes within the Kenyan jurisdiction,” said the report. In its original communication, the Kenya Revenue Authority stated that the digital service tax is to be paid “by a person who derives or accrues income from services through a digital marketplace.” But the term “digital marketplace” proved a source of much consternation because of it being legally and technically ambiguous. Kenya’s Finance Act offered a rather broad definition of the phrase, describing digital marketplaces “as a platform that enables the direct interaction between buyers and sellers of goods and services through electronic means.” Kenya is Africa’s third-biggest bitcoin market after Nigeria and South Africa. What do you think about Kenya’s digital service tax? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Foreign Crypto Exchanges Like Paxful, Binance to Pay 1.5% Tax Under Kenya’s New Regulations appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A shariah compliance expert, the current chairman of the Shariah Advisory Council at Malaysia’s central bank and a shariah board member at many financial companies, says that cryptocurrency is a legit commodity that can be exchanged. Cryptocurrency and Shariah Compliance Cryptocurrency adoption and investments remain low in Muslim countries as people are still unsure of its compliance with Islamic law. At the SCxSC Fintech Conference 2020 last week, Datuk Dr. Mohd Daud Bakar, an expert in shariah compliance, said that investors need more time to understand cryptocurrency from the shariah perspective. Bakar is currently the chairman of the Shariah Advisory Council at the central bank of Malaysia, Securities Commission of Malaysia (SC), and the Labuan Financial Services Authorities. He is also a shariah board member at a number of financial institutions, including the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions, Morgan Stanley (Dubai), Bank of London and Middle East (London), Noor Islamic Bank (Dubai), Jadwa-Russell Islamic Fund (Saudi Arabia), and Salama Islamic Insurance. In Malaysia, the SC Shariah Advisory Council has declared that it is permissible for Muslims to invest in and trade cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, on government-registered crypto exchanges. Bakar explained that cryptocurrency is not regarded as legal tender, but it is a legit commodity that can be exchanged within the market, as long as it is not backed by “ribawi items,” like gold and silver, the Malaysian Reserve reported. The publication quoted him as saying: It is a medium of exchange, and we cannot stop people to use commodities as medium of exchange. It is as good as buying an e-ticket or commodities in the market. “This new development can open up so many interesting areas in Malaysia, in which crypto can be deemed as investment assets where people can buy and hold for trading,” he elaborated. Bakar added that the Securities Commission of Malaysia has also made it possible for companies to issue coins as a method of raising capital, subject to certain restrictions through its fatwa resolution. “Moving forward, the potential of this currency is great as it comes with the growing digital economy of the world,” he noted. “We can even develop our own stablecoin quite easily without any difficulty by the government and respective jurisdiction … We can have the coin backed by certain commodities, ventures or projects.” What do you think about cryptocurrency from the shariah perspective? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Shariah Compliance Expert Says Cryptocurrencies Are Legit Commodities appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Price per Atari Token: $0.25 IEO platform has been enabled for prospective purchasers to pass KYC before public sale NEW YORK/ PARIS – October 16, 2020 – Bitcoin.com Exchange, one of the leading authorities in cryptocurrency exchanges announces the details of the upcoming public sale of the Atari Token (ATRI). Atari is evolving and envisioning a new mission to conquer the crypto space by creating a token to power the videogame industry, enabling access to as many platforms and users as possible via atarichain.com, the Atari wallet and more generally the creation of a blockchain-based ecosystem around the Atari brand. Atari’s objective is to progressively develop the adoption and the use cases of the Atari Token throughout the ecosystem. The Atari Group has recently entered into many partnership agreements to progressively develop the adoption and the use cases of the Atari Token. The first use cases are in the domains where the Group is already active: video games or blockchain games, with objectives to expand into DeFi for game financing. The list of such partnerships is available at www.atarichain.com. The Atari Token is issued by Atari Chain, Ltd (Gibraltar). For more information about the Atri Token, please visit www.atarichain.com. Prospective purchasers of the Atari Token can already register and proceed with KYC/AML procedures, using the registration page set up on the Bitcoin.com Exchange IEO platform here. Details of the Upcoming Public Sale Token Name: Atari Token (ATRI) Token Type: ERC-20 Public Sale Date: October 29, 2020 Offered Price for 1 ATRI: $0.25 Hard Cap: $1,000,000 (one million US dollars) Circulating Supply before the public sale: 68.7 million ATRI Tokens Valuation of the Circulating Supply before the public sale, based on the Offered Price for 1 ATRI: $17.2 million For more information, please visit the Bitcoin.com IEO platform here. With the upcoming IEO, Atari and Bitcoin.com Exchange will coordinate educational and mass awareness campaigns via AMAs, direct interviews, guides, media casts and all other applicable means or direct, and indirect marketing. “Teaming up with Bitcoin.com was a natural choice for Atari” said Frédéric Chesnais, CEO of Atari Chain. “Both teams are working hand in hand to reach mass adoption of the Atari Token, with a goal of delivering the ultimate experience in the video game and interactive entertainment industry”. “The upcoming launch of Atari Token’s public sale has got the team and I ecstatic” said Danish Chaudhry, Head of Bitcoin.com Exchange. “The launch of the IEO platform supplies both teams with a foundation to push marketing efforts across the industry. The platform provides all the necessary details for our community to understand more about the Atari Token, while also giving traders the ability to pass KYC before the public sale, for a speedier process once live.” Be Part of the Progress Bitcoin.com Exchange has initiated the process by opening a portal where users will be able to go through KYC/AML verification before the token sale to take place in November. Kindly click the link below to start your journey with Atarichain’s public sale, and pass through all the necessary requirements to get your account ready for the IEO. Access our platform here. What is a public sale/IEO? In brief, an Initial Exchange Offering, commonly referred to as an IEO, is a fundraising event that is administered by an exchange. In contrast to an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) where the project team themselves conduct the fundraising, an Initial Exchange Offering means that the fundraising will be conducted on a well-known exchange’s fundraising platform, similar to the upcoming Bitcoin.com Exchange Launchpad, where users can purchase tokens with funds directly from their own exchange wallet. About Bitcoin.com Exchange The mission of Bitcoin.com Exchange is to empower people from all over the world to trade cryptocurrencies with ease and confidence, from first-time traders to advanced trading professionals. With high liquidity, 24/7 multilingual support and dozens of trading pairs, complemented with a high level of security, we offer an attractive platform for trading any cryptocurrency. Within one year since launch, on average, our exchange has been visited by more than 500K active traders per month, and this number continues to grow as you read this sentence. About Atari Atari, composed of Atari SA and its subsidiaries, is a global interactive entertainment and multiplatform licensing group. The true innovator of the video game, founded in 1972, Atari owns and/or manages a portfolio of more than 200 games and franchises, including globally known brands such as Asteroids®, Centipede®, Missile Command® and Pong®. From this important portfolio of intellectual properties, Atari delivers attractive online games for smartphones, tablets, and other connected devices. Atari also develops and distributes interactive entertainment for Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo game consoles. Atari also leverages its brand and franchises with licensing agreements through other media, derivative products and publishing. Media Contact Info Bitcoin.com Exchange Contact Name: Antonio Bileci Contact Email: antonio@bitcoin.com Atari Chain, Ltd The Transform Group Contact Name: Transform Group Contact Email: atari@transformgroup.com Internal: Contact Name: Peter Dao Contact Email: Peter.Dao@Atari.com This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post Bitcoin.com Exchange Announces Public Sale of the Atari Token on October 29, 2020 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Bitcoin’s intrinsic value has been heavily discussed in the crypto community this week following a remark by the governor of the Bank of England suggesting that the cryptocurrency may have no intrinsic value. Does Bitcoin Have Intrinsic Value? Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey talked about bitcoin’s intrinsic value during a question and answer session with members of the public early this week. “I have to be honest, it is hard to see that bitcoin has what we tend to call intrinsic value,” he was quoted by Reuters as saying. “It may have extrinsic value in the sense that people want it.” Furthermore, the governor said people using bitcoin for payments makes him “very nervous” because the value of the cryptocurrency is uncertain. Following Bailey’s remark, the crypto community began discussing bitcoin’s intrinsic value in some detail. Michael Saylor, the CEO of Nasdaq-listed company Microstrategy that recently bought $425 million worth of bitcoin for its treasury reserve, tweeted: Bitcoin is the first digital monetary system capable of storing all the money in the world for every individual, corporation, and government in a fair & equitable manner, without losing any of it. If that’s not intrinsically valuable, what is? JPMorgan’s strategists, including Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, wrote in a note on Tuesday about bitcoin’s intrinsic value approaching its market price. “Bitcoin faces a ‘modest headwind’ in the short term based on an analysis of bets in the futures market and an estimate of the cryptocurrency’s intrinsic value,” Bloomberg reported them explaining, adding that they said the price remains about 13% higher than an estimate of intrinsic value. Bitcoin’s market price and intrinsic value. A number of people on Twitter were quick to point out that bitcoin may have no intrinsic value, but neither do fiat currencies. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis published a report back in 2018 stating: Bitcoin is not the only currency that has no intrinsic value. State monopoly currencies, such as the U.S. dollar, the euro, and the Swiss franc, have no intrinsic value either. “They are fiat currencies created by government decree. The history of state monopoly currencies is a history of wild price swings and failures. This is why decentralized cryptocurrencies are a welcome addition to the existing currency system,” the report notes. “There is no such thing as ‘intrinsic value,'” Shapeshift CEO Erik Voorhees opined. “Value is always subjective, in the eyes of the valuer … Gold, bitcoin, fiat, rice: none have ‘intrinsic value.'” Twitter user Bob McElrath shared the sentiment. “Nothing has ‘intrinsic value,’ because the word ‘value’ is human sentiment, and changes with time and circumstance. Anyone who says otherwise is trying to sell you something,” he described. “Despite not having ‘intrinsic’ value, bitcoin has a sophisticated, market-based way to determine its value, not only on the demand side but on the supply side as well. Of course, this statement is true for any commodity.” Cato’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives director George Selgin chimed in: Of course no goods have ‘intrinsic’ value. Some (like any fiat money) also lack ‘non-monetary use value’ … the Bank of England’s observation that bitcoin lacks intrinsic value is an instance of the pot calling the kettle black. What do you think about bitcoin’s intrinsic value? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Bitcoin’s Intrinsic Value: Crypto Community Responds to Bank of England Governor appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Bitcoin’s hashrate climbed to an all-time high (ATH) this week touching 166 exahash per second (EH/s) on October 14. Meanwhile, despite the recent price rise and hashrate ATH on Wednesday, only a small group of next-generation mining rigs are profiting at current bitcoin exchange rates. The price of bitcoin (BTC) is hovering just above the $11K region and during the last few days, the network’s hashrate has touched a new ATH. At the time of writing, BTC’s hashrate is fluctuating between 130 to 140 exahash per second (EH/s), and on Wednesday evening (ET) the metric surpassed 166 EH/s. Interestingly, the rise has continued despite the fact that BTC’s network difficulty has also reached an ATH at 19.69T. This means it is harder than ever before to find a block mining the BTC network, but this hasn’t phased the overall hashrate. The next BTC difficulty change is scheduled to happen in just a hair over two days’ time. On Thursday, October 15, 2020, there are 18 known mining pools hashing away at the chain and a single unknown mining entity in the group as well. The top five pools mining on Thursday afternoon includes Btc.com (23.9 EH/s), F2pool (20.6 EH/s), Poolin (18.7 EH/s), Antpool (15.9 EH/s), and Huobi (11.3 EH/s). While looking at the real-time mining hardware aggregator at asicvalue.com, with the filter set to $0.06 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and SHA256 miners only, the web portal shows only 13 rigs are profiting today by over $2 per day. Statistics from asicvalue.com show 13 mining rigs profit at over $2 per day and 33 mining rigs profit below the $2 range if the mining operators are paying $0.06 per kWh. There are 30 SHA256 mining rigs that are profiting at $0.11 to $1.89 per day at $0.06 per kWh. If the electrical costs are doubled at $0.12 per kWh then only two machines out of the 43 mining rigs profiting at $0.06 per kWh will profit. At $0.12 per kWh, asicvalue.com indicates that only two mining rigs are profiting at today’s exchange rates on October 15, 2020. The two top machines include Bitmain’s Antminer S19 Pro (110 TH/s) and the Microbt Whatsminer M30S++ (112 TH/s). The Whatsminer M30S+ follows, alongside the Antminer S19, Whatsminer M30S, Antminer T19, and the AvalonMiner 1166 Pro respectively. A number of other cryptocurrency algorithms are showing higher profits than the SHA256 consensus algorithm. At the time of publication, the algorithms Equihash, Ethash, Tensority, and Eaglestrong show larger profits for miners mining these types of coins. Currently, miners who mine SHA256 coins (BTC, BCH, BSV) need around $0.06 per kWh to gather some decent profits above $2 per day. Further, it would be better for BTC miners if the price was $1,100 higher than it is today so miners can recoup from the May block reward halving. In February, the blockchain analytics provider Tradeblock estimated a post-halving mining cost of around $12,500 per BTC. Currently, the average coinbase reward value during the last 24-hours is around $71,390 per block with around $6,189 (0.54 BTC) in transaction fees. With BTC’s hashrate rising to new levels, the expected difficulty adjustment on October 17th will be increased a touch more than today. What do you think about BTC’s hashrate touching all-time highs and the current mining rig profitability? Let us know what you think in the comments section below. The post Bitcoin Mining Rigs Struggle for Profits, Despite BTC’s Hashrate Reaching an All-Time High appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

There’s a mining contract scheme people are discussing and making the rounds on the web called “Mining City” or “Bitcoin Vault.” The Philippines SEC recently put out a warning against the operation and the alleged masterminds behind the project. One thing is for sure, there’s been a number of crypto Ponzi operations over the years, and they typically attract a lot of users before they crumble. However, as the story goes with any pyramid scheme when the project crashes, only the top leaders make off with all the money. One particular pyramid scheme called “Mining City” is a cloud mining operation that pays users in a token called Bitcoin Vault or BTCV. Mining City claims to have an offsite datacenter filled with mining rigs and the project sells cloud mining contracts to investors. Mining City sells cloud mining contracts in packages of multi-year terms and depending on the hashrate purchased packages can run up to over $12,000+ a contract. Those shilling the project on crypto forums and social media platforms promise investors $100 a day in returns paid out in BTCV. The Mining City and BTCV schemes were purportedly invoked by the project’s CEO Gregory Rogowski, Philippines group leader Anthony Aguilar, and Jhon Rey Grey. BTCV’s value is listed on the coin market cap aggregator, Coingecko and the token touched an all-time high of $489 on August 1, 2020. Mining City’s token is down -85.27% since then and now trades for $72 per BTCV. There’s a number of reports and studies that show the Mining City project is a pyramid scheme and the findings indicate a myriad of red flags. On September 10, 2020, the Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a warning about Mining City’s operations. The Philippines SEC calls Mining City a blatant Ponzi and says the “so-called smart contracts or Mining City Contracts partake of the nature of securities in the form of investment contracts under the regulatory jurisdiction of the Commission.” The Philippines SEC adds: The aforementioned scheme used by Mining City clearly shows an indication of a possible Ponzi scheme in which new investor money is used to pay ‘bogus profits’ to those who invested first. The regulator also stresses that investors “should not invest” in Mining City or to “stop investing” in the project. The SEC reminds investors it will not be able to protect them when the Ponzi operation crumbles because it is “not covered by prudential and market conduct requirements.” Despite the condemnation from the Philippines SEC, the terms “Bitcoin Vault” or “Bitcoin Vault Price” are breakout searches on Google Trends. Moreover, the tech giants like Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube allow the Mining City Ponzi to flourish, as thousands of posts and videos can be found on these platforms. According to Mining City representatives, the project wholeheartedly refutes the claims made by the financial regulator. In one particular article, Mining City leaders allege the “[Philippines SEC] listing seems to have come as a result of misinformation posted by individuals in the Philippines.” The Philippines SEC warning, however, says that the regulator may also pursue criminal liability against the Youtube channel called “Crypto Knight Miner.” Moreover, if charged the Mining City operators could face fines of up to five million pesos (over $100K) and 21 years of imprisonment. What do you think about the recent warning from the Philippines SEC about Mining City? Let us know what you think in the comments section below. The post Philippines Regulator Warns Investors to Steer Clear of Mining City’s Bitcoin Vault Ponzi appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The submission deadline for the Mt Gox civil rehabilitation plan has been extended once again, this time to December 15. The deadline has been pushed back at least three times before, including in the latest case, where submission was scheduled for October 15. Mt Gox’s rehabilitation trustee, Nobuaki Kobayashi said Thursday that he needed more time to finalize the plan, “as there are matters that require closer examination with regard to the rehabilitation plan”. The Tokyo District Court granted Kobayashi, a Japanese lawyer appointed to oversee the repayment of investors, the deadline extension he sought on Oct. 14. Mt Gox went from handling 70% of global bitcoin trades in 2013 to bankruptcy in 2014 after more than 850,000 BTC (worth over $470 million at the time and about $9.7 billion now) were supposedly lost to hackers, with 200,000 bitcoins recovered two weeks later. Following the hack, the court later ordered the civil rehabilitation effort, which started in 2018. The idea was to reimburse creditors in their original cryptocurrency holdings rather than the cash equivalent at the time of the Japanese exchange’s collapse. Kobayashi is reportedly holding up to 150,000 BTC in refund money, but no one has been repaid just yet. The portfolio caused quite a stir in the past fortnight, with suggestions Mt Gox creditors were to be repaid the entire amount, or a part of it, on October 15. If all those coins were suddenly dumped onto the market, analysts said, there was a strong likelihood some investors would consider selling once they received their bitcoin, which could potentially crash the market. When Mt Gox was hacked, each BTC cost just $400. Today, it’s nearly $11,400. However, the deadline extension puts the concerns to rest, at least for now. What do you think about the latest Mt.Gox rehabilitation plan deadline extension? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Mt Gox Rehabilitation Plan Delayed Again to December 15 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Grayscale Investments has announced a record quarterly performance, raking in $1.05 billion in investments, mostly from institutional investors. The company also sees “unprecedented demand” for bitcoin cash. Record Quarter, Over $1 Billion Added Grayscale Investments released its third-quarter performance Wednesday. The company tweeted: We just recorded our largest ever quarterly inflows – over $1.0 billion in 3Q20 – making it the third consecutive record-breaking quarter. YTD investment into the Grayscale family of products has surpassed $2.4 billion. Specifically, the company revealed that the total investment into its products in 3Q 2020 was $1.05 billion, noting that the majority of investment (81%) came from institutional investors, dominated by hedge funds. In the third quarter, offshore investors accounted for 57% of new investment capital into its products. The total investment into Grayscale’s products was $2.7 billion over the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, which was more than double the $1.2 billion cumulative inflow into the company’s products from 2013 through 2019. Unprecedented Demand for 3 Products Grayscale also revealed that three products have seen “unprecedented demand.” The company detailed, “Grayscale’s Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Digital Large Cap [DLC] products have all seen over 10x growth in inflows quarter-over-quarter,” elaborating: Unprecedented demand for BCH, LTC, and DLC … On average, the aforementioned products saw inflows increase by more than 1,400% quarter-over-quarter. “These developments followed FINRA’s verification in July that the required diligence to begin quoting the bitcoin cash and litecoin products … had been completed,” the company explained. Grayscale Investments’ total net asset under management is $6.3 billion as of Tuesday. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) had the most asset under management ($5,157 million), followed by the Ethereum Trust ($867.7 million) and the Digital Large Cap Fund ($92.0 million). The company described: Investors appear to be interested in digital assets because they have outperformed major indices YTD. Meanwhile, the company announced on Tuesday that, like GBTC, its Ethereum Trust had attained the status of a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reporting company. What do you think about Grayscale’s Q3 performance? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Grayscale Adds $1 Billion to Crypto Products in Q3, Sees ‘Unprecedented Demand’ for Bitcoin Cash appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A Nigerian protest group called Feminist Coalition is asking well-wishers to make donations via bitcoin after authorities reportedly blocked the organization’s bank account. Feminist Coalition is one of the many groups spearheading protests against alleged police brutality by a Nigerian police unit, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). Before the blockade of the bank account, Feminist Coalition says it had used donations raised through the account to fund 90 protests across the country. By closing the bank account, authorities are attempting to suffocate a movement whose success has brought the spotlight on crimes committed by security forces. An announcement on Sunday, October 11, 2020, by the Director-General of the Nigerian police that the SARS would be disbanded, has seemingly failed to appease protesters. One protest supporter, who did not wish to be identified, told news.Bitcoin.com the situation on the ground remains tense. She said reports of brutality and killings by the same unit are continuing. Feminist coalition's bitcoin account already has over 1 million in donations already. The government think they're mad? Welcome to digital madness. — Elon Mosque (@That_IjebuBadoo) October 13, 2020 Meanwhile, in a post on Twitter, the Feminist Coalition urged Nigerians to donate via bitcoin since two of its donation channels were now blocked. The post said: For demanding an end to police brutality we are now under attack! Our bank account has been deactivated and so has the Flutterwave donation link. Our members’ lives are also being threatened. Flutterwave, a Nigeria payments gateway, which kickstarted the initiative to raise funds to pay for medical bills of those injured in the protests, appeared to have caved in to pressure from the government. Flutterwave’s unconfirmed decision to close the Feminist Coalition’s donation link is corroborated by reports that company executives were recently summoned by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). By asking for bitcoin donations, Feminist Coalition is confident funds for bankrolling the protests will continue to flow as Nigerians are already familiar with cryptocurrencies. Nigeria is already Africa’s largest cryptocurrency market and many in the country use digital assets like bitcoin and Dash to make payments. The protests, which are fronted by Nigeria’s tech-savvy youth, seek an end to brutality and corruption within the country’s police force. In a statement, the youth say they “also want a psychological evaluation & retraining (by an independent body) of all disbanded SARS officers before they are redeployed.” Meanwhile, Jack Dorsey tweeted in support of the Feminist Coalition on October 14. In his tweet, Dorsey urges his followers to “donate via bitcoin to help #EndSARS.” What do you think of this decision by the Feminist Coalition to ask for bitcoin donations? Share your views in the comments section below. The post Nigeria Protest Group Asks for Bitcoin Donations After Regulators Block Bank Account appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Fidelity Digital Assets (FDA) says diversifying an investment portfolio with bitcoin is especially essential now when benchmark interest rates globally are near or below zero. The opportunity cost of not allocating to bitcoin is simply higher explains FDA in its latest bitcoin investment thesis. FDA’s assertions come as one survey found that as many as 60% of investors surveyed believe that digital assets have a place in a portfolio. As a consequence, Fidelity Digital Assets says that in these uncertain times, a diversified portfolio must consist of assets that lack a correlation with traditional assets over longer periods. Only a few assets possess such an attribute and bitcoin is one of them, according to FDA’s investment thesis titled, ‘Bitcoin’s Role as an Alternative Investment.’ In the thesis, FDA urges “investors looking to recalibrate their portfolios to evaluate the validity and impact of an allocation to bitcoin to determine if it can play a role in a multi-asset portfolio.” The results from an analysis of bitcoin’s correlation to other assets from January 2015 to September 2020 show the digital averaging 0.11. Such a figure, according to FDA, indicates “there is almost no relationship between the returns of bitcoin and other assets.” A low correlation is an encouraging first sign in evaluating alternative investments with portfolio diversification utility. Stone Ridge Reveals Holding $114 Million in Bitcoin This low correlation might be the reason why publicly traded corporations are adding bitcoin holdings to their portfolios. Following Square’s announcement that it had purchased bitcoins valued at $50 million, Stone Ridge Holdings Group (SRHG) has joined this exclusive group after revealing that the New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) will be acting custodian of its 10,000 bitcoins worth $114 million. In the meantime, the number of publicly-traded companies holding bitcoin as a reserve asset has now grown to 18 as data on bitcointreasuries.org shows. The 18 companies hold a combined 612,944 BTC which is equivalent to 2.92% of the total supply. The ongoing embrace of bitcoin by large investors is very much in agreement with the FDA’s earlier thesis, which asserts that the digital asset is an alternate store of value. Yet, despite the conclusions by the FDA and others, some critics are arguing that the excitement sparked off by institutional investors purchasing bitcoin is nothing but just a hype designed to pump the price of BTC. Reacting to the news of Stone Ridge Holdings’ announcement, a Twitter user, Cryptowhale said: “Institutions are gleefully showing off their tiny positions in bitcoin to create hype and eventually dump on clueless retail investors. This is a deceptive tactic Wallstreet has used for decades in the stock market, and it works every time!” The Cryptowhale suggests that institutional investors “stockpiled cryptocurrencies several years ago at extremely low prices.” The critic explains that “no one is forced to disclose their BTC positions to SEC, and when they do, you should start to question what their agenda truly is.” Since Square’s announcement, bitcoin has gone up from just under $10,500 to the current $11,350 per coin. What do you think of Fidelity’s latest investment thesis? You can share your views in the comments section below. The post Fidelity Digital Assets Touts Bitcoin Credentials, As Publicly Traded Companies Now Hold Over 600,000 BTC appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Nasdaq-listed Marathon Patent Group has agreed to a joint venture deal with U.S. independent power producer Beowulf Energy to deliver cheap electricity for its bitcoin mining operations in the country’s north. In a statement on Tuesday, Marathon said that it will co-locate a bitcoin mining facility within Beowulf’s Big Horn Data Hub at its 105-megawatt power station in Hardin, Montana. The company will pay Beowulf – which builds and operate electric power plants – $0.028 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for the supply of electricity at the facility. This is 38% below Marathon’s aggregate electricity cost for mining and data center management, currently at $0.034/kWh. Marathon said reduced power costs will also lower its breakeven costs to mine one bitcoin from the existing $7,500 to $4,600. Big Horn Data Hub also known as the Hardin Generating Station in Montana. According to the statement, Marathon will install 11,500 S19 Pro Antminers it recently acquired from Bitmain Inc. at the new site. The machines have the capacity to generate 1.265 exahash per second of bitcoin mining power. The farm is expected to become fully operational by the second quarter of 2021. With 500 miners already at the site, the company says it intends to grow the facility to a hashrate of 3.32 EH/s in the future. “The closing of this joint venture with Beowulf represents the completion of a long journey to own a bitcoin mining facility,” commented Marathon chairman and chief executive officer Merrick Okamoto. “Partnering with an experienced independent power producer enables us to maintain control and certainty of Marathon’s energy and operational costs, at rates that represent some of the lowest in North America.” Beowulf said it has earmarked an additional 500 megawatts of generation capacity for “subsequent blockchain and data center expansion.” Under the joint venture deal, the energy firm will become a shareholder in Marathon, as the later retains 100% of the bitcoin mined at the farm. Shares of Marathon fell 2.5% to $2.36 on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange Tuesday. The stock is down from a 52-week high of $5.25. But it has also dropped to a low of $0.35 over the same period. What do you think about the Marathon-Beowulf deal? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Bitcoin Miner Marathon Agrees to Deal That Cuts Electricity Costs by 38% With US Power Company appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

LONDON, United Kingdom, — YearnSwap.org – Is all set to launch its Decentralized protocols (Lending, Yield Farming, Staking) for public access, YearnSwap aims to provide an Ecosystem with many prominent features available in the market today. With this launch YearnSwap has stepped closer to its goal on creating an ecosystem where users will be able to enjoy all the decentralized Features such as “Staking, DE-FI, Yield Farming, Lending, YearnSwap Exchange etc.” in a Hassle freeway. “YearnSwap would lead to rival against Uniswap, and overcome it, once the ecosystem is completely out there” Said the Company. Up-Coming Decentralized Features Lending – YFSW will provide you with the highest yield in the market today, Upto 23% APR for supported coins (DAI, USDC, USDT, TUSD, BUSD, PAX) Staking – Stake YFSW and Earn 27% APR, YFSW can be unlocked anytime without any lock period or other obstacles on your way. Yield Farming – It is simply based on a farmer who plants and harvests all his crops. The more you farm, the more the harvest, the more the invest the more the profit. With YFSW you will be able to enjoy Yield Farming to its fullest. YearnSwap Exchange – Exchange between your assets without sending anything to anyone or without any fear of loss. Dapp – YearnSwap is also developing their own Dapp running on the Ethereum Network, allowing users to use it from any of their favorite wallet (Trust wallet, MEW, Metamask etc.) to search and use their Decentralized Ecosystem. Official Links Website – https://Yearnswap.org Telegram – https://t.me/YearnSwap Token Public Sale – https://yearnswap.org/#presale Contract Address :- https://etherscan.io/token/0xA1aC1450ee86c35d1F959f2792cB8cef726Bb60d Token Sale The fact that makes YearnSwap unique is its Limited token supply. Talking about limited supply, only 10K YFSW will be available and will be given out only in the form of public sale. There will be no airdrop or any reserved tokens for the team. Token Public Sale – Only 10,000 Token for Sale Name: YearnSwap Max Token: 10,000 YFSW Hard Cap: 500 ETH Price: 1 ETH = 20 YFSW Currency: ETH Min Purchase: 0.1 ETH / 2 YFSW Starts: October 10 (9:00 AM) Ends: November 10 (11:59 PM) Public Sale Address: 0xdDA6FEB395585C7CAffdE2289778D31C4a2e7777 How to Buy? Send Eth to the Public Sale address from your decentralized wallet such as Trust wallet or MEW or Metamask and you will receive YFSW token within a few minutes. TOKENOMICS Token Name: YearnSwap Total supply: 10,000. Symbol: YFSW Type: ERC-20 Contract Address: 0xA1aC1450ee86c35d1F959f2792cB8cef726Bb60d YearnSwap has also made some big announcements such as getting their YFSW Token listed on exchanges like Uniswap, Kucoin and Gate.io before the end of the year with an initial listing price of 250$ per YFSW Token. About YearnSwap Yearnswap.org is a decentralized ecosystem of aggregators that utilize lending services such as Aave, YFi, Compound, Dydx, and Fulcrum to optimize your token lending and a decentralized Exchange with fully automated market making on the ethereum blockchain. You can swap any of your ERC20 tokens with yearswap.org and provide liquidity to earn fees. Yearnswap.org provides Yield Farming too, by providing Liquidity In yearswap.org / uniswap.org, You can earn YFSW tokens. And stake them to get up to 50% APR. YFS, Yearnswap.org’s governance token, is distributed only to users who provide liquidity with certain ERC20 Tokens. With Low amount of Pre-Mined tokens for PRE-SALE, YFS strives to be the most decentralized token. Although most of the ecosystem was built by Us, control of YFS is owned by users themselves, as YFS users Vote for the development of the decentralized protocol and Exchange. As a truly decentralized protocol, any changes to the yearnswap.org ecosystem are always done via on-chain proposals and voting. Owned by RK Group International limited YearnSwap.org is the product of RK Group Int Ltd, which is a leading Blockchain based company having its HO in London, UK. It owns several Cryptocurrency projects which deal with “DE-FI, Global Payments, Blockchain powered Crypto-cards, Mobile wallets, News Networks and More.” “With YearnSwap we are aiming to develop the Decentralized Exchange industry and also compete with the other exchanges such as Uniswap, we have the courage to proceed and develop YearnSwap to lead the Decentralized Exchange Industry in the coming future.” Said Mr. Rahul Keshri (CEO and Co-Founder of YearnSwap & RK Group Int Ltd). ### Media Contact Info Contact Name: Salma Contact Email: Salma@rkgroup.ltd This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post YearnSwap Is All Set to Introduce Its Decentralized Ecosystem appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Another 2010 block reward was spent on Wednesday morning (ET) adding to the great number of ‘Satoshi era’ or so-called ‘sleeping bitcoins’ waking up in 2020. The block reward with 50 bitcoins was created on November 11, 2010, and transferred in block 652,669 after ten years. During the last few weeks, news.Bitcoin.com has been leveraging multiple tools to crawl the BTC blockchain, in order to research a great number of old coins that have moved this year. The term ‘Satoshi era’ refers to the period when Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s inventor, was still participating with the community, until he/she/they left in December 2010. A great number of block rewards from this era have sat dormant for over a decade and blockchain researchers also refer to these coins as ‘zombie’ or ‘sleeping’ bitcoins. It is estimated that there are anywhere between 1.5 to 1.8 million BTC ($20B) that are considered ‘sleeping’ bitcoins from the Satoshi era. However, in 2020, a great number of these coins have been moving randomly and some of them in waves. Our newsdesk discovered the first wave of 21 block rewards that were moved on March 11, the day before the infamous ‘Black Thursday’ March 12, 2020. ‘Black Thursday’ is referred to in this way because global markets; stocks, oil, bonds, including safe-haven assets like gold and digital currency markets lost considerable value. The 2010 block reward move in March saw 1,050 BTC transferred, alongside the corresponding BCH and BSV. Then precisely 151 days later, another 21 block rewards were moved on October 11 and the corresponding BCH was spent as well. Another ‘sleeping bitcoin’ reward from 2010 was caught waking up after ten years on October 14, 2020. Three days later, another 2010 block reward that was created on November 11, 2010, was transferred on Wednesday morning. The action was caught by Btcparser.com just after a block from October 2016 was spent. Statistics from Blockchair show the owner only moved the bitcoin (BTC), and the BCH and BSV still remain. The stash moved was an original 2010 coinbase reward of approximately 50 BTC or ($570k+ using today’s exchange rates) and it was spent in block 652,669. Blockchair’s Privacy-o-Meter shows that privacy was high and the website gives the transaction an 85 score out of 100. For instance, the hash ID shows no output of the same type as inputs and a rare fingerprint. The 50 BTC block reward ($570k+ using today’s exchange rates) was sent with a “moderate” amount of privacy, according to Blockchair’s Privacy-o-Meter. Transactions stemming from 2010 spent on October 11, 2020, were also privacy-centric and had more than the average privacy score. The 2010 block reward of 50 BTC was split into three wallets and one wallet still shows 7.348 BTC unspent. The group of 21 block rewards from 2010 spent on October 11, also show that privacy was taken into consideration at that time. The person didn’t just simply transfer the 21 blocks worth of coins, as these transactions were all collected on a single P2SH address and later split within multiple BECH32 addresses. It was also discovered that 9.9999 BTC ($112,000+) was sent to the Free Software Foundation (FSF) based in Boston. Another 9.9999 BTC ($112,000+) from this 2010 spending wave was sent to the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER) as well. We don’t know why so-called ‘sleeping bitcoins’ from 2010 have been waking up this year in greater numbers, but there’s been more historical spends in 2019 and 2020 than in 2018. The price change may have something to do with it, as 2018 prices were far lower than in 2017 and the last two years as well. Before the March 11, 21-block spend there were only two other historical block rewards spent, besides the famous February 2009 reward moved at block height 627,404 on May 20, 2020. Prior to the large move in March, the last consecutive number of 2010 blocks spent was on November 24, 2019. At this time, at block height 605,182, the miners spent a large group of 2010 block rewards that were all mined in the same exact time span. In fact, all three uninterrupted successions of 2010 spends were all mined in the same time frame. The web portal theholyroger.com’s The (Not) Satoshi’s Bags Tracker gives users a visual perspective of historical blocks (2011 & under) spent over time. The very small white box is the infamous May 20, 2020 block reward from 2009, a block created a month after Satoshi kickstarted the network. The larger white rectangle shows the three consecutive waves of 2010 blocks spent. In November 2019, a large group was spent at block height 605,182, in mid-March, roughly 21 block rewards from 2010 were spent, and on October 11, 2020, approximately 21 blocks from 2010 moved. The span of time would be from July to November 2010, with zero blocks stemming from December 2010 the month Satoshi left. The last time coinbase rewards from the month of December 2010 were spent, was a month prior to November’s set of consecutive 2019 spends. All of the spends can be seen visually as well by leveraging The (Not) Satoshi’s Bags Tracker The block reward spent on October 14, 2020, from November 11, 2010, alongside the consecutive lines of 2010 spends three days ago, the ones from mid-March, and the November 2019 spends could be considered the same miner. One could lazily assume the coins stem from Satoshi, but everyone knows there were quite a bit of bitcoin miners between July 2010 up until he left. This period in time saw Jed McCaleb invoke Mt Gox and the first public OpenCL miner was introduced. Most of the 2010 coins spent in recent days were also born before the infamous block 74,638 bug. To add to the fact, by that same time period in 2010 there were many miners mining bitcoins, was the original creation of the first mining pool dubbed “Slush Pool” in November of that year. What do you think about the recent 2010 block reward spends? Let us know what you think in the comments section below. The post Another ‘Sleeping Bitcoin’ Block Reward from 2010 Was Caught Waking Up After Ten Years appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The Hong Kong-based crypto exchange Gate.io has launched a new type of hardware wallet that features fingerprint recognition. The device supports over 10,000 cryptocurrencies with wallet.io and multi-signature functionality with over 40 public chains. The well known cryptocurrency exchange, Gate.io, has announced the launch of the S1 hardware wallet that supports multi-signature functionality and a unique way to keep funds secure. The S1 device is different because it comes with fingerprint recognition located on the in-built display. Gate.io’s CMO, Marie Tatibouet, detailed that the fingerprint creates an exclusive and unique password for every S1 owner. “The private key is locked in the hardware itself, safely away from the internet, and it makes it more convenient in signature signing when the user makes a daily use transfer,” Tatibouet explained during the announcement. The company claims all the owner needs is a computer or smartphone and then they can authorize a transfer transaction with a fingerprint. Gate.io believes the S1 framework will also bolster the firm’s Gatechain project and decentralized finance (defi) use cases. “Wallet S1 can be used in combination with a Vault address at Gatechain,” Gate.io notes. The exchange considers the new S1 device to be “the first hardware wallet with the world-leading fingerprint recognition algorithm which can auto initialize when detecting brute-force attack.” S1 is also powered by the flagship SOC chip and a unique dual- CPU architecture. Gate.io believes crypto asset security is extremely important in the defi space and noncustodial services allow crypto users to limit themselves from restrictions imposed by a centralized platform. According to the firm, the S1 hardware wallet will start at $50 and each unit is 60mm x 20mm x 6mm in size. The hardware device works in unison with the wallet.io platform. The Hong Kong trading platform’s new device joins a myriad of hardware wallets available on the open market today. This includes products from Trezor, Ledger, Ellipal, Keepkey, Ngrave, Bitbox, Coolwallet, Bitlox, and Coldcard. What do you think about Gate.io’s S1 hardware wallet with fingerprint recognition technology? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Hong Kong Crypto Exchange Launches Hardware Wallet With Fingerprint Recognition appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The 48-year old former programmer and criminal cartel boss, Paul Calder Le Roux, was deemed a Satoshi Nakamoto suspect in the spring of 2019. The suspicion caused a few people to believe Le Roux is the most credible Satoshi yet, and to this day individuals still think it is him. The following editorial is the eighth installment of news.Bitcoin.com’s “the many facts” series, with a comprehensive look at the circumstantial evidence that is tethered to Paul Le Roux and Bitcoin’s mysterious creator. Paul Le Roux is a former cartel boss, DEA informant, and software programmer who resides in jail after he was arrested for various crimes in 2012. There are a number of reasons why people believe Le Roux may have created Bitcoin and the first circumstantial evidence appeared during the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit. During the discovery period in the lawsuit, Craig Wright filed a motion for a protective order and the filing had a significant number of redactions. However, there was one unredacted footnote in Wright’s filing called “Document 187,” which was the URL to Paul Le Roux’s Wikipedia page. Paul Le Roux’s name and Wiki link in Document 187 in the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit. As soon as this unredacted footnote was made public it went viral on cryptocurrency forums and social media platforms like Twitter. People began to suggest that Le Roux was possibly Bitcoin’s creator and somehow Wright obtained access to the criminal’s hard drives. Individuals also suggested that Le Roux being a former software engineer shows he had the technical expertise to create the cryptocurrency. For instance, Le Roux is responsible for creating an open-source disk encryption platform called E4M. Additionally, a fork of E4M called “Truecrypt” was also released but Le Roux denies involvement with the project. When he was arrested in 2012, people believe this may be why Satoshi Nakamoto dipped out of the public’s eye in December 2010. U.S. law enforcement arrested Le Roux on September 26, 2012, for narcotics charges, seven murders, and operating a criminal cartel. Then after the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit redaction leak, an anonymous individual posted a screenshot of Le Roux’s Congo Republic ID card on 4chan. The card’s description notes Le Roux calls himself “Paul Solotshi Calder Le Roux.” Moreover, the anon writer on 4chan’s messageboard wrote: Bitcoin was a project of an evil genius … Paul Solotshi Calder Le Roux. He intended it simply for the purpose of money laundering … Unfortunately, soon after he went quiet with the Satoshi identity, he was captured by law enforcement, and he’s going to spend the rest of his life rotting in a jail cell. Furthermore, another piece of circumstantial evidence tied to Le Roux is his E4M Manifesto which bolsters ideas of a “strong Encryption is the mechanism.” Then after the rumors of Le Roux being Satoshi settled in the spring of 2019, in July investigative journalist Evan Ratliff explained in a Bitcoin.com podcast archive that he thinks Le Roux is “the most credible Satoshi yet.” Ratliff also explained in a Wired article that he believes the criminal mastermind Le Roux created the Bitcoin network. Investigative journalist Evan Ratliff said he believes Paul Le Roux is the most credible Satoshi Nakamoto yet. Then in a surprise plot twist in 2020, Paul Le Roux told the Manhattan Federal Judge, Ronnie Abrams, he was going to “start a business selling and hosting bitcoin miners.” Le Roux said in great detail that he created a custom application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) with “special optimizations.” “These optimizations have allowed me to create an ASIC chip design, and therefore ASIC miners, that have an order of magnitude faster at bitcoin mining than any current design, to this end I plan to pub my knowledge and skills to a better and legal use,” Le Roux stressed to the judge. There is some circumstantial evidence that Le Roux could be Satoshi Nakamoto but the evidence is quite weak. There’s really no smoking guns that suggest Le Roux is Bitcoin’s creator except for the possibility of technical expertise and the coincidental disappearance timeframe. In addition, the circumstantial evidence and speculation stemming from the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit, which is loaded with discrepancies too. So far, no one has been able to substantially connect Paul Le Roux with Satoshi Nakamoto and clues lead to a number of dead ends. What do you think about the claims that say Paul Le Roux may be Satoshi Nakamoto? Let us know in the comments below. The post The Many Facts Pointing to Paul Le Roux Being Satoshi Nakamoto appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEX) operators say they are unfazed by the increasing trading volumes on decentralized exchanges (DEX) because the latter’s liquidity is still too insignificant to cause user mass migration. The majority of CEX operators also insist that it is very unlikely the DEXs’ liquidity would surpass their own liquidity in 2 years’ time. The comments by operators of CEX platforms come at the time when traded volumes on DEX applications are increasing courtesy of the rapidly growing Defi ecosystem. Underlining this growth is Uniswap’s monthly trade volume which exceeded that of Coinbase in September. CEXs Rule Liquidity and Fiat Compatibility As data from the survey conducted by cryptocompare.com shows, CEX operators are conceding that volumes on DEXs are growing, but they suggest different reasons why this is happening. To begin with, the survey data shows that about 46.2% or 12 out of 26 of the responding operators “believe that the anonymity afforded by DEXs was the primary reason users traded on DEXs.” About 19.2% (5) believe the self-custody feature is the secondary driver of volumes on DEXs. Meanwhile, four CEXs or 15% of respondents say yield farming is another driving factor while just two exchange operators believe the lack of a third party operator to be the reason users are flocking to DEXs. However, on the flip side, the respondents thought that “liquidity and fiat compatibility were the two main reasons why users preferred CEXs over DEXs.” When asked about the possibility of DEXs usurping CEXs in the liquidity stakes, over 70% thought this will not happen anytime soon. The survey says: Exchange operators felt their deeper liquidity would be an unassailable competitive advantage in the next 2 years. Over 70% of respondents thought it was unlikely or very unlikely DEX liquidity would surpass CEX liquidity in 2 years’ time. Interestingly, the survey data shows that 40% of the respondents say “they are actively building or may build a DEX in the near future.” With respect to the issue of user experience (UX), the respondents were less emphatic about the prospects of CEXs on this. According to the findings, just “57% of respondents believe it was unlikely or very unlikely that DEXs will have better UX in 2 years.” Only 11% of respondents thought that DEXs will have better UX than CEXs in 2 years’ time. Operators Expect Fees to Fall Meanwhile, the survey notes that as more digital asset exchanges are launched, “questions are being raised around the legitimacy of the volumes garnered by these upstarts.” Some analysts predict that there will be a decline of exchanges either through mergers and acquisitions or competition driving out weaker exchanges. On this subject, cryptocompare.com shows that opinion is almost evenly divided as 42.3% of respondents expect to see an increase in this number next 2 years while 46.2% are expecting to see the number decline. On the question of fees, “there was more alignment with 65% of exchanges expecting to see trading fees decrease and only 11.5% expecting fees to increase.” On the question of institutional investors entering the sector in the next two years, there was near unanimity as 92% of exchanges were optimistic that there will be a rise in institutional investors entering the sector in that period. What do you think will be the outcome of the rivalry between DEXs and CEXs in a year’s time? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. The post Centralized Exchange Operators Believe Low Liquidity on DEX Platforms Stops User Migration appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Macro strategist Raoul Pal says the price of bitcoin will reach $1 million in five years. He attributes the price increase to adoption by large pools of investors and the “enormous wall of money” coming into bitcoin, rather than because “the world is collapsing.” $1 Million Bitcoin in 5 Years Former hedge fund manager Raoul Pal shared his view on the economy, gold, and bitcoin last week in a podcast interview with Daniela Cambone of Stansberry Research. Pal previously co-managed the GLG Global Macro Fund in London after departing Goldman Sachs where he co-managed the hedge fund sales business in Equities and Equity Derivatives in Europe. He then founded Global Macro Investor and Real Vision Group. “The economy is not going to recover for a lot longer than we expect,” he began. “There’s no stimulus around and we’ve got more problems to come in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere. And businesses don’t have enough cash flow, they’re closing in droves and that’s what I called the insolvency phase.” The former hedge fund manager added, “The only answer is more from the central banks, so that’s why I started to buy more and more bitcoin.” His portfolio used to be equally distributed between U.S. dollars, gold, equities, and bitcoin. However, he revealed during the podcast that his bitcoin allocation is “probably above 50% now.” While acknowledging that this BTC allocation exposes him to a 50% downside, he said it is ok for him because the upside is “so much bigger.” Pal explained that he has reduced his cash holdings and put the funds into bitcoin. “My trading positions are relatively small because I don’t think there’s as much opportunity as the room is in bitcoin. So really, mainly a bit of cash, some gold, and bitcoin. And I’m even toying with the idea of selling my gold to buy more bitcoin,” the founder of Global Macro Investor shared, elaborating: I don’t dislike gold but when you get to the macro opportunity … if bitcoin starts breaking out of these patterns that it’s been forming, it is going to massively outperform gold. I’m 100% sure of that so in which case why would I have the gold allocation. The former Goldman Sachs manager clarified that he is “not fearful of hyperinflation, default or anything else,” adding that he is interested in people “adopting a different monitoring unit for their savings and reserve assets.” Pal has a bullish forecast on the price of bitcoin, predicting that it will be $1 million within five years. He explained: It’s going to be not because the world is collapsing [but] it’s because there’s gonna be adoption by the real large pools of capital. He sees bitcoin adoption happening in waves, starting with retail and moving into hedge funds. However, he noted: “We are not there yet. You can’t prime broke bitcoin assets but that’s coming. We’re starting to see family offices in the space. Next is the institutions, the endowments, the pension plans, and within that you’ll find some government … suddenly say we have allocated 5% in bitcoin.” He believes that it will be a country such as Nicaragua or one with constant problems of currency devaluation. When that happens, he says it will be “another huge story,” much like the story of Microstrategy moving $425 million treasury reserve into bitcoin. Emphasizing that “the pipes aren’t there” to allow large institutional investors to invest in bitcoin yet, he said, “but that’s coming … it’s on everybody’s radar screen and there’s a lot of smart people working on it.” Pal further shared: From what I know, from all of the institutions, [and] all of the people I speak to, there’s an enormous wall of money coming into this. Do you agree with Pal? Let us know in the comments section below. The post ‘Enormous Wall of Money’ Coming Into Bitcoin, Price to Reach $1 Million in 5 Years, Says Raoul Pal appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Spain’s government has reportedly approved a bill that requires cryptocurrency owners to disclose their crypto holdings and any gains on their assets. Spain’s Finance Minister and the government’s spokesperson, Maria Jesus Montero, said at a press conference following the weekly cabinet meeting that this bill is part of broader legislation to crack down on tax fraud, several Spanish news outlets have reported. The bill was sent to the Spanish Congress of Deputies on Tuesday and will now go to parliament for discussion and final approval. “This is a bill that will add to the work already being carried out by tax authorities,” Montero explained but did not go into detail about how the rules will be enforced. It is one of the latest efforts by the government to raise tax revenue amid a severe coronavirus pandemic-driven economic crisis. The bill, entitled “Law on preventive measures to combat tax avoidance,” seeks greater control over cryptocurrencies, Criptonoticias publication described, noting that the government intends to “oblige citizens to provide detailed information on balances and transactions carried out inside and outside of Spain.” If approved, crypto activities that must be reported to the authorities include “acquisition, transmission, exchange, transfer, collections and payments,” the news outlet conveyed. The Spanish tax authority, the Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT), began sending out tax notices in April to remind cryptocurrency owners of their tax obligations. According to Global Legal Insights, capital gains from the sale of cryptocurrencies by a resident of Spain are taxed between 19% and 23%. The higher rate applies to gains in excess of €50,000 ($58,666). The exchange between cryptocurrencies and euros is VAT-exempt. Meanwhile, all 350 Spanish deputies were sent bitcoin last week as part of an educational campaign by blockchain platform Tutellus and Observatorio Blockchain. This initiative is similar to the Crypto for Congress campaign that recently sent bitcoin to all Members of Congress in the U.S. What do you think about Spain requiring crypto owners to disclose their holdings? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Spain Approves Bill Requiring Cryptocurrency Owners to Disclose Crypto Holdings appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

There’s a new avenue darknet market (DNM) customers have found that allows them to purchase illegal wares 24 hours a day via a robot drug dealer hosted on Telegram. The platform dubbed ‘Televend,’ is an automated software program that peddles illicit narcotics for people paying with bitcoin and during the last few months, the complex system has grown massively. While many darknet markets have fallen to the wayside, a slew of new types of methods when it comes to selling illegal drugs online has risen. For instance, the world’s largest DNM in Russia, Hydra, leverages a complicated system of vendors who utilize drop zones. Additionally, a great number of DNM customers have used messenger applications like Facebook Messenger, Signal, Telegram, Whatsapp, and others to procure some drugs. More recently, DNM users have been leveraging a new messenger route that utilizes a Telegram software program or bot called “Televend” to facilitate drug trades. It’s not too hard to locate the relevant Televend links in order to catch a glimpse at this growing black market platform. According to the program’s learning channel, there are a number of obstacles one must complete before leveraging the Televend route. The channel’s pinned message also gives a brief description of what the bot does and how drug vendors can use the app. “Televend is an auto-shop bot network for direct dealers, we administer the bots and vendors run them like private shops,” the channel’s message reads. “Customers can visit them and pay with bitcoin, track orders and payments, plus leave feedback and ratings. Vendors control the listings and configuration of their bot via a .onion Tor-based control panel so no Telegram account is needed to vend. At this control panel, they can add listings, process orders, answer messages, and other features.” News.Bitcoin.com took a look at how Televend operates and the program simply works like any bot hosted on Telegram. Televend’s bot gives a list of commands, products, order records, vendor feedback, and more. The creators of Televend claim that the system has around 200,000 users to-date, but it’s hard to verify as there are various Televend channels with different amounts of subscribers. The bots notify clients when some drugs are being sold at a discount or if a new blend of cannabis comes in. Televend claims to have 200,000 users worldwide, but the system of channels and the number of subscribers is hard to verify. There are multiple channels like the “Televend France” screenshot above that have more than 10,000 users and some channels have up to 20,000 subscribers. Users can leave feedback ratings so other patrons can get a glimpse of trusted vendors operating within the Televend network. However, unlike operations like Openbazaar or the myriad of DNMs on the deep web, Televend bot use is entirely based on trust. There is no escrow system and there’s a much higher chance of being ripped off by scammers preying on newcomers. A look at interacting with the Televend bot. Different vendors have a variety of names for their bots and they all sell different items and some have reviews on the Televend Review channel and on Dread forums as well. About a month ago, a Reddit user posted a question about Televend on the subreddit r/darknet in order to get information on this new platform. One person said a vendor told him that he left the DNM Icarus to sell his drugs using the Televend system. Another user also noted that “Televend was great.” The creator of the thread described the software program as a “messaging system,” which is “used for drug deals.” “No escrow so you have to rely on feedback/trusted vendors,” the r/darknet subscriber wrote. “Lots of scammers are on there, so you need to be extra, extra careful, but I research vendors and only use those that are verified/trusted/good feedback from other sources. There’s a group chat so scammers tend to be identified pretty quick and the good vendors sussed out,” he added. Users can obtain all types of drugs including cocaine, cannabis, MDMA, LSD, ecstasy, special K, pharmaceuticals and more. The Televend admins also detail a number of instructions people should follow before utilizing the bot’s service. For instance, admins recommend that people don’t register with their phone number and join Telegram by using a SIM hosting/SMS service like 5SIM. When registering with a service like 5SIM, Televend operators say the user should choose an alternative country but avoid using Russia or Ex-soviet countries, as there are issues for Telegram users. Televend admins also recommend setting up the Telegram client to proxy it through the TOR network. A look at one of the Televend Review channels that people use to give feedback on specific vendors selling drugs. Feedback typically touches on dealing with the vendor, the shipping process, and the quality of the narcotics as well. The Televend creators also suggest setting up two-factor authentication with Telegram as well. “This is important because your temporary number would be unavailable for you to use again, but will be in circulation for others. With 2FA your account can not be stolen,” the Televend community learning channel says. Televend has a bustling community of customers and drug vendors, as the bot removes a number of tedious tasks from the drug dealing process. The Televend bot charges a vendor commission for all the sales executed for using the program as well. Additionally, the core Televend team has been paying bounties for people who help bolster the network and for those who write vendor reviews on the DNM forum Dread. “Televend is paying 100 EUR in BTC for every vendor you refer to our network,” explains one administrator dubbed ‘@TelevendPR.’ “All they need to do is mention your Telegram username and make their minimum initial deposit of 200 EUR” In another thread, posted to the r/darknet forums, a couple of users say that Televend has hosted “some of the UK’s finest vendors.” The biggest warning most Televend users give, however, is for newcomers to research vendors thoroughly, because the bot system is entirely based on trust. “I’ve used it,” explained another Reddit user on r/darknet. “I love it. Just research your vendors very well because there is no escrow. Some of the best and most trustworthy vendors are on there if you know how to find them.” What do you think about the new Televend robot service that sells drugs for bitcoin via Telegram? Let us know what you think in the comments section below. The post A System of Robot Drug Dealers on Telegram Allows People to Buy Illegal Products for Bitcoin appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

ATLANTA, GA – October 13th, 2020. The global fintech platform Ternio, announced today that it has joined Visa’s Fast Track program as a cryptocurrency focused enablement partner. By becoming part of Visa’s Fast Track program, Ternio will be able to make it quicker and easier for fintechs to leverage Visa’s global payments network and introduce new crypto-friendly payment experiences. Ternio’s existing Blockcard platform provides users a seamless way to interact with cryptocurrencies using linked debit cards and bank accounts which can act as an easy on and off-ramp from fiat to cryptocurrencies. “We are excited to partner with Ternio as a cryptocurrency focused enablement partner that can help fintechs of all sizes access the reach, scale and security of the Visa network,” said Terry Angelos, Visa’s Global Head of Fintech. “Ternio’s focus and expertise in the crypto ecosystem will help Fast Track companies focused on digital currencies to quickly and easily access Visa’s platform and its scale. We have strategically evolved both our platforms and how we work with partners and customers to encourage a broadening fintech ecosystem. Our work with Ternio is a stepping stone in that evolution and we look forward to further supporting them on their journey.” Ternio is already powering many other debit card programs in the cryptocurrency space, including the Litecoin Card which was a partnership with the Litecoin Foundation. By becoming a Visa Fast Track enablement partner, Ternio is excited to help emerging fintechs accelerate the growth of digital payments through its Blockcard platform. Ternio aims to bring its unique blockchain enabled solutions to market with its “better, cheaper, faster” mindset. “Ternio is the leader in white-label technology for companies in the cryptocurrency space and we’re thrilled to deepen our partnership with Visa to further drive interoperability between blockchain and legacy financial systems. By becoming part of Visa’s FastTrack program, Ternio will be able to further accelerate and scale our existing Visa card programs while simultaneously offering a suite of additional services.” – Daniel Gouldman, CEO & Co-Founder By becoming part of Visa’s Fast Track program, Ternio will be able to continue to build even better products that solve real world problems for consumers, while bridging the gap between traditional fintech and cryptocurrencies. Visa’s embrace of digital payments is symbiotic with Ternio’s focus on providing real world utility and applicability of blockchain technology in fintech. And with over 61 million merchants worldwide accepting Visa, Ternio’s Blockcard platform can be used globally. ### About Ternio: Ternio is a global fintech platform built on blockchain. Ternio’s platform connects traditional enterprise, fintech, banking, systems with blockchain infrastructure giving real world utility to digital assets. Our products, like BlockCard, enable instant remittance and the transfer of value on blockchain rails in a compliant and regulated environment. https://ternio.io/ About BlockCard BlockCard allows people to buy what they want with crypto at over 50 million merchants worldwide. Within minutes a user can create a BlockCard account, deposit 12+ cryptocurrencies in 1 transaction, pass KYC, and immediately get a virtual card to use while a physical card is mailed to them. BlockCard account holders can also earn 6.38% crypto back rewards on merchant purchases as well as get a free checking account for buying cryptocurrency with US dollars. https://getblockcard.com/ Ternio Press and Media Assets Contact: marketing@ternio.io This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post Ternio Joins Visa’s Fast Track Program As New Enablement Partner appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Ripple chief executive officer Brad Garlinghouse has threatened to move the company’s headquarters overseas should the U.S. fail to level the playing field with an unambiguous regulatory framework. In a series of tweets on Oct.12, Garlinghouse said: “The lack of a single national regulatory framework is putting U.S. innovation and U.S. companies at a significant disadvantage. All we’re asking for is a level playing field – if we need to move to another country to get that, then that’s the path we will have to take.” Garlinghouse’s clarification follows comments issued recently by Ripple cofounder Chris Larsen to the same effect. The company argues that it has continued to operate in a regulatory grey area. For example, former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chairman Chris Giancarlo described Ripple’s eponymous XRP token as not a security. But the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) position on this is still not clear. The CEO maintained that the $10 billion company does not intend to “evade U.S. regulation”, but that the lack of regulatory clarity made it difficult for it to stay put in the country. He noted that “Ripple abides by and supports critical laws”, including the Bank Secrecy Act as well as anti-money laundering rules. Garlinghouse also took aim at the crypto enforcement framework announced by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) last week. [The] DoJ report lists eight separate U.S. reg bodies each with a different view: crypto is property, crypto is a commodity, crypto is a virtual currency, crypto is a security, etc. Regulation shouldn’t be a guessing game. Japan, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and Switzerland have reportedly been thrown around as possible destinations for Ripple. XRP is claimed to be a real-time gross settlement system, currency exchange, and remittance service. What do you think about Brad Garlinghouse’s intentions to relocate Ripple to another country? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Ripple CEO Threatens to Relocate Company Overseas Due to Unfavorable US Regulation appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article