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Lebanon is facing an unprecedented economic crisis and the local currency has already lost about 60% of its value. The central bank’s policies have come under fire while citizens are protesting how the government handles the economic meltdown which led to people’s living situation deteriorating “terrifyingly.” Lebanon’s Currency Crisis Protests erupted in Lebanon on Friday over the government’s handling of the unprecedented economic crisis that has tanked the local Lebanese currency, devastated people’s savings, and sent prices and inflation skyrocketing. This is the country’s worst economic crisis in decades. The Lebanese government imposed a nationwide lockdown in March after the coronavirus outbreak. At present, 737 covid-19 cases and 25 deaths have been confirmed in the country of 6.8 million people. The lockdown has led to economic collapse with soaring unemployment and business closures. Prices of basic goods have massively inflated, in some cases by over 60%. A market trader in the city of Saida told Arab News that “the living situation had deteriorated terrifyingly,” adding that “Prices of goods have doubled, people are reluctant to buy, and their purchases are limited to essentials.” One of the protesters, Nada Nasif, told The Media Line: Our financial crisis began before the corona crisis, which then caused prices to jump. People lost their jobs and the unemployment rate has reached the highest level ever. The Lebanese pound, pegged to the U.S. dollar, has lost about 60% of its value. People can no longer withdraw dollars from their bank accounts due to capital controls as the central bank mandates that withdrawals must be made in the local currency. The Lebanese pound, pegged to the U.S. dollar for 30 years, has lost about 60% of its value against the dollar so far. The two currencies have been used interchangeably in Lebanon and many people have kept their savings in dollars, which previously could be freely withdrawn from banks. However, withdrawing dollars is now prohibited due to capital controls that have been in place for the past six months. As the pound plunged in value, banks began restricting dollar withdrawals. Then, the central bank said that withdrawals could only be in the local currency at “a market exchange rate” to be determined by banks, Al Jazeera reported. The Lebanese call this policy “plain robbery.” Failed Policies: Central Bank and Government Blamed Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab has distanced the government from the central bank’s policies that he claims led to the collapse of the local currency. The bank went against the government’s policy by allowing all depositors to withdraw money from foreign currency-denominated accounts in the rapidly depreciating local currency, he told the news outlet. “We were not consulted on this matter.” Responding to the government’s criticism, the central bank governor fired back, defending himself in an hour-long video conference last week. He insisted that during his 30-year tenure, his policies have prevented the country from going bankrupt. Instead, Salameh placed the blame for the dire state of Lebanon’s financial, economic and monetary situation on the country’s entrenched political elite. Lebanon’s central bank governor, Riad Salameh, defended his position and policies, claiming that they have prevented the country from going bankrupt. Salameh claims that the law forced him to continue to fund the state’s advances and treasury bonds. He said, “The central bank has funded the state, but it has not spent the money,” noting: We must know who has spent the money, and there are constitutional and administrative institutions that have the task of revealing how it was spent. Protesters in Lebanon have been defying the nationwide lockdown and curfew to resume anti-government protests. They have criticized Salameh for continuing to lead the central bank and for cooperating with the governments that dug Lebanon into staggering debt with little results. Lebanese Skeptical of IMF Assistance The Lebanese Cabinet has adopted a rescue plan that includes a request for assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Prime Minister Diab signed the official request on Friday. Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab signed an official request for assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday. However, not everyone is thrilled with the prospect of getting IMF assistance. Omar al-Mughrabi, a 19-year-old protester in the southern city of Sidon, explained that “the country needs radical change — not reform of failing or ineffective policies.” He was further quoted as saying: Going to the IMF is not the solution … We don’t need any more debt than we already have. Lebanon is one of the most indebted countries in the world; the nation defaulted on its sovereign debt for the first time in March. The economic meltdown led to anti-government protests that erupted in October but subsided in mid-March during a nationwide lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic. Among those opposing the rescue plan is the Association of Banks in Lebanon. Calling the plan dangerous, the association believes that “The process of local restructuring as mentioned in the plan would lead to further undermining confidence in Lebanon locally and internationally, as it bears trends that flow into legalizing of the state of lawlessness.” What do you think about the situation in Lebanon? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Lebanese Currency Collapse: Failed Policies Led to Economic Meltdown appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

According to the National Association of Realtors, pending contracts for property sales dropped by 20.8% in March. Further, the 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate dropped to 3.43%, but a great majority of people are still not interested in buying or renting homes at the moment. Economists predict that home sales could shudder in the next three months losing as much as 40% of activity. Data also shows that indebted Airbnb ‘Superhosts’ are losing their shirts, as the company lost $1.5 billion in bookings since mid-March. March Numbers Are In – Pending Home Sales Slide by 21% Five weeks ago, a decent number of market strategists and economists predicted that U.S. property and real estate prices would drop significantly, due to the Covid-19 outbreaks and government-induced lockdowns. Statistics show that the month of February was 16.3% lower than in 2019, and numbers stemming from March 2020 dropped massively. Recent data stemming from the National Association of Realtors says pending contracts in March have shown property sales dipped by 20.8%. Statistics indicate that across the nation, the Northeast saw a drop of 14.5% and the South dropped 19.5%. Data from the Midwest shows sales reduced by 12.4% annually and close to 22% during the last 30-days. Pending home sales in the West fell by over 26% weekly, and annual stats also show sales dipped by 21.5%. Despite the massive downturn, realtors in America are still hopeful they will see a rebound. However, some speculators believe the drop in pending contract sales and property values will drop even more soon. Most of the U.S. is still on lockdown and with stay-at-home orders, which means open houses and closings have been canceled in great numbers. Economists think that buyers are not going to settle for no-touch video open houses and closings and will simply wait until the shutdown’s end. George Ratiu from the web portal Realtor.com says that homes on the market right now might even be considered desperate sales. “If your house is on the market a buyer is going to assume it’s a sale by necessity,’’ said Ratiu, a senior economist at Realtor.com. “If you don’t have to sell right now, why would you? There will still be transactions, but the number will be so low.’’ Homebuilder sentiment for April 2020 dropped by 58%. Market strategists and economists believe it will drop even lower for the months of May and June. In the Next Few Months, Economists Estimate US Real Estate Market Activity Could Drop as Low as 40% Interestingly, despite the fact that pending contracts are slumping, renters cannot pay rent to landlords, over 30 million Americans are unemployed, and the housing market represents 18% of the U.S. economy, American realtors are clinging to hopium from memories of past sales. Traditionally, the spring selling season is some of the best months for realtors and many may not be able to weather a property slump. Because the pending contracts and sales dipped so much last month, some market strategists think that even larger drops will soon follow. According to Lawrence Yun’s statements during a press conference, the chief economist of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) stressed: Market activity will be lower in the next couple of months. I won’t be surprised if sales activity could be down 30% or even 40% in the next few months. Yun also highlighted that there are other signs that show troubles within the U.S. real estate market and it has to do with the reduction of sellers. March 2020 listings in America indicated that it was the lowest since 1999, and the current supply is only enough for 3.4 months going forward. “Unfortunately, we knew home sales would wane in March due to the coronavirus outbreak,” the NAR chief economist conceded. With the Airbnb Bubble Disaster, Young Home Buyers, Millenials and Those Waiting for a Big Dip In Home Prices May Get Their Wish Another pending problem is the number of U.S. mortgage defaults that are expected to rise significantly. A great number of Americans are landlords who rent their homes and apartments to renters. Some American banks have rolled out some plans for mortgage owners, if they happen to default on their loans. However, many renters are left with little options and there are millions of U.S. citizens who cannot pay or are having an extremely hard time coming up with monthly rent. Another faction of risky landlord schemes and property ownership is the trend of Airbnb Superhosts who are in deep water due to the rental slowdown. There are 25-year old residents in the U.S. with more than 10-25 rental properties under their name and at one time, those rental homes were quite lucrative. Recent reports indicate that many Superhosts are struggling because they are dependent on rent and still have to pay for cleaning services and property maintenance workers. Data shows that Airbnb lost more than $1.5 billion in bookings since the market rout on March 12, otherwise known as ‘Black Thursday.’ The company was able to fend off some of those losses by getting a loan from Airbnb’s institutional and venture capital investors. But Superhosts who are indebted are having a hard time getting help and most cannot get small business (SBA) loans from the government. Statistics from the company Airdna, show that roughly one-third of Airbnb hosts are Superhosts with an average of 25 short-term rental properties. Because Airbnb has grown so popular, rental losses and defaults may have a serious impact on real estate prices across the nation. A financial analyst from Nashville, Austin Hankwitz, believes this might be a shining moment for young home buyers and millennials. “Airbnb is a fantastic tool for those who travel often, but unfortunately, that’s not happening right now,” Hankwitz remarked. “This lack of travel and tourism is already causing Airbnb hosts to slash their prices by more than 80% in some cities. If this goes on for much longer, a lot of these cash-strapped hosts will be forced to sell their properties. This flood of new properties for sale might cause home prices to drop sharply in a short period of time. To add to this scenario, baby boomers that are considering downsizing to pull equity out of their current homes to aid their retirement funds, and you have a recipe for disaster.” What do you think about U.S. real estate prices possibly dropping by 30-40% lower? Let us know in the comments below. The post US Real Estate Market Shudders: Experts Predict 40% Lower Sales, March Contracts Dip by 21% appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

TenX’s popular Visa debit card—which lets you spend cryptocurrency without having to manually top up—has launched in Germany and Austria. It supports Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Litecoin (LTC), all of which can be spent anywhere that accepts Visa thanks to the card’s unique auto-convert ability. In an ideal world, we’d be able to spend any cryptocurrency, anywhere we shop. But, in reality, merchants aren’t quite there yet. Luckily, TenX is here to help. Bridging the gap between blockchains and traditional fiat currencies, the TenX Visa debit card lets you spend cryptocurrency like it’s cash. Following high demand, the card recently got the green light (in the form of an E-Money License) to launch in Germany and Austria, where it will serve a combined population of over 90 million people. So how do you know if the TenX Visa Card is right for you? Here, we’ll cover the perks of owning one to help you decide. Move over, manual top-up: auto-convert is here The TenX Visa Card does things differently. Unlike most competitor cryptocurrency cards on the market, which are essentially prepaid cards that you need to keep manually topping up with cash, the TenX Visa Card doesn’t need topping up at all. Instead, it auto-converts your cryptocurrency into cash at the very moment you make a payment. “Part of the TenX mission is to help the world access cryptocurrency simply and safely, supporting users on their journey into the space by making it as easy to spend cryptocurrency as it is to spend cash,” says Toby Hoenisch, CEO and Co-Founder at TenX. Whether you’re getting groceries in-store or renewing your Netflix subscription online, when you make a payment, the merchant receives it in their local currency. This instant, automated conversion allows for a seamless transaction—one that is just as easy as paying with a regular debit card. Switching up your crypto spends The TenX Visa Card and TenX Wallet App go hand-in-hand. When you make a card payment the funds come straight from your connected wallet app, with TenX working their magic behind the scenes to auto-convert your cryptocurrency. These payments can be tracked in-app (much like a neobank app lets you track your money), and you can also use it to lock your card should it go missing. In the app there are three different wallets, one for each supported coin: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Litecoin (LTC). You can set any of these as your primary wallet—the wallet you make payments from—in the app settings, and TenX plans to add support for more cryptocurrencies in the future. Anywhere Visa goes, TenX goes too The TenX Visa Card enjoys all the features of Visa. Thanks to 3D secure—an added layer of real-time security—payments are protected against fraud. And, with over 54 million Visa-accepting merchants stretching across more than 200 countries, you can pay with your TenX Visa Card all around the world. In addition, the card can also be used to withdraw money from ATMs, which is useful for traveling abroad or simply when you’re out and about. There is a fixed fee of $3.25 USD for doing this and, as usual, banks may also charge additional fees—so it’s wise to make yourself aware of this before you go ahead and withdraw any money. Spend, buy, rinse, repeat When you’re spending cryptocurrency, you’ll no doubt want to buy more. TenX has a solution for that too, as Toby explains: “We are thrilled to be able to once again serve customers in Germany and Austria. Our approach to re-launching our card is coupled with a brand new feature within the TenX Wallet app that makes buying crypto super simple.” If you’re based in Australia or Europe you can benefit from this feature right now, with support for more countries in the works. Alternatively, no matter where you’re based, you can add more cryptocurrency to your TenX wallets by sending it from another wallet. It’s worth noting that here that, for the sake of security, TenX recommends you limit the amount of cryptocurrency held within your wallets to a week’s worth of expenditure. Ready to become a TenX cardholder? In light of the current economic climate, TenX is giving the Bitcoin.com community a boost by waiving its card issuing fee. This means, from now until May 31st, you can save $15 USD and get your TenX Visa Card for free using discount code TENXBCOM. Your card is then free to use for the first year and, following that, it’ll remain free if you spend over $1,000 USD each year (otherwise there’s a small annual upkeep cost of $10 USD). To get your TenX Visa Card, download the TenX Wallet App. If you’re located in a supported region (Germany, Austria, or Asia Pacific), you’ll be able to order it through the app. Otherwise, you can register your interest in-app to get notified when the card launches in your region. The post 90 Million More People Can Now Spend Crypto With TenX appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In mid-April, news.Bitcoin.com reported on the unsealed indictment tied to the Onecoin cofounder Sebastian Greenwood. At the same time, U.S. Judge Valerie Caproni had placed a stay order on the case against Greenwood, Konstantin Ignatov, Mark Scott and David Pike. Now Judge Caproni has lifted the stay and the court case against the defendants can proceed. Onecoin Lawsuit in New York Continues – Stay Order Lifted Court filings show that Judge Valerie Caproni has lifted the stay order, that temporarily suspended the case against the defendants Sebastian Greenwood, Konstantin Ignatov, David Pike and Mark Scott. According to court documents, Pike is being charged for bank fraud tethered to the Onecoin Ponzi’s operations. Documents also detail that the former attorney Scott is accused of laundering $400 million for Onecoin and the founder Ruja Ignatova, otherwise known as the ‘crypto queen.’ Ignatova remains at large but Scott, Pike, Greenwood, and the crypto queen’s brother Konstantin Ignatov have all been arrested. The lifted stay order states: I Valerie Caproni, United States District Judge, whereas on May 1, 2020, the parties appeared for a teleconference with this Court; It is hereby ordered that the stay on this case is lifted. No later than May 8, 2020, the parties must jointly submit a proposed schedule for Defendants to answer, move to dismiss, or otherwise respond to the Amended Complaint. Defendants Object to Stay Lift and the Relentless Search for the Crypto Queen The reason behind the original stay is not confirmed, but many believe it had to do with the Covid-19 outbreak and the unsealed indictment stemming from Greenwood’s charges. Another court filing that was submitted on April 27, shows Scott and Pike have objected to the lift and they are hoping Judge Caproni favors their arguments. In the court filing written by the law firm Levi & Korsinsky LLP, most of the participants don’t seem to mind continuing a stay order “pending a final resolution of the criminal cases currently pending against each of them.” Moreover, the attorneys also said: Defendant Konstantin Ignatov’s Position: Defendant Konstantin Ignatov does not object to the continued stay of the proceedings requested by his co-defendants. From left to right: Ruja Ignatova aka the ‘crypto queen,’ Konstantin Ignatov, and Sebastian Greenwood are the three accused creators of the Onecoin Ponzi scam. Some people believe that the stay was due to the 2017 disappearance of Ruja Ignatova. The hunt for the crypto queen has been relentless as the police and even armchair detectives have been hunting down her whereabouts. Investigators have searched for known friends, old phone numbers, and previous addresses. Ignatova was known to visit Schramberg, in Southern Germany often and she allegedly married a German as well. The town of Waltenhofen in Bavaria has been combed as well and people are searching Frankfurt on a regular basis too. This is due to the fact that the crypto queen loved Frankfurt and she had a daughter in the city back in 2016. Allegedly Ignatova’s former husband and biological daughter may still live in the German region. During the hunt for Ignatova’s whereabouts, in April a report disclosed that a new Onecoin spinoff was created by one of the top members of Ignatova’s ranks. Le Quoc-Hung, otherwise known as Simon Le has allegedly started a project called Onelink. Law enforcement officials stumbled upon the Onelink project and Simon Le’s involvement while searching for the crypto queen. The website that uncovers a number of Ponzi operations, behindmlm.com notes that investigators think Le is hiding out in Vietnam or Dubai. Despite the aggressive search for Ignatova, global law enforcement has not found many clues to where she may be hiding. Konstantin Ignatov, her brother, has alluded to the possibility she is in Russia or Greece during his testimony a few months ago. What do you think about Judge Valerie Caproni continuing the Onecoin case? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Onecoin Lawsuit Continues: Judge Lifts Stay Order, Investigators Search for ‘Crypto Queen’ appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Coinmarketcap has revealed the top countries with the largest increase in the number of users. One segment shows the countries with the most user growth in the first quarter include India, Pakistan, Colombia, Canada, and Nigeria. The countries with the most female user growth include Greece and Romania. 46% Increase in Youth Users, Nigeria Up 211% Leading cryptocurrency price and market data provider Coinmarketcap published a report Friday highlighting the crypto market and user trends for the first quarter of this year. The company explained that the data analyzed comes from its “proprietary market capitalization data and user insights from our massive user base.” Besides the cryptocurrency price trends and discussions of events surrounding the March 12 crash, Coinmarketcap found two other trends it deems “promising.” The first is the quarterly growth of 43.24% of female users on its website and the other is the 46.04% quarterly growth of its youth users (ages between 18 and 24). The report details: In relation to the youth user segment (aged 18-24), the continent of Oceania saw the biggest percentage jump of 151.95%, followed by Africa with 91.47%. Continents with the most user growth in the age group 18 to 24. Specifically, Coinmarketcap named nine countries with the highest increase in users between the ages of 18 and 24 in the first quarter compared to the previous one. The nine countries with at least 80% user growth were led by Nigeria, which saw an increase of 210.6%, followed by Australia (158.07%), and Spain (120.71%). Other top countries were Canada (112.45%), Mexico (97.33%), the U.K. (91.48%), Colombia (85.07%), India (83.07%), and Pakistan (81.79%). 43% Increase in Female Users, Greece Up 164% The number of female users has also risen substantially in the first quarter, Coinmarketcap revealed. “While we have consistently seen an increasing number of female users, this segment saw a particularly strong growth of 43.24% compared to the previous quarter,” the company clarified, elaborating: Within the female user segment, the Americas and European regions grew more than 50% in users. Continents with the most female user growth. The company also named nine other countries with the highest increase in the number of women users in the first quarter compared to the previous one. Greece led the pack with a 163.67% growth, followed by Romania (145.09%), Argentina (98.23%), Portugal (89.95%), Indonesia (88.92%), Ukraine (86.68%), Czechia (85.6%), Colombia (82.03%), and Venezuela (80.23%). Furthermore, the company found a 41% increase in the number of users older than 65 years old. Coinmarketcap’s website currently ranks 569th globally for site traffic and user engagement, according to Alexa’s ranking. In April, the company was acquired by Binance Capital Management, which operates one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading platforms. What do you think about the stats provided by Coinmarketcap? Let us know in the comments section below. The post 9 Countries Show Huge Growth in Cryptocurrency Interest: Coinmarketcap appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The US manufacturing activity has plunged to a record low, indicating that the country has entered into a deeper recession. “This recession is the quickest deterioration in economic activity ever recorded,” an economist explained. This data is accompanied by collapsing global demand, ongoing supply chain disruptions, and high levels of uncertainty. US Manufacturing Activity Nosediving The survey from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) released on Friday has painted a grim picture for the U.S. economy. The index of national factory activity dropped to 41.5 in April, the lowest level not seen since April 2009, and its monthly decline was the biggest since October 2008. A reading below 50 indicates contraction in the manufacturing sector. According to the ISM, manufacturers were “strongly negative regarding the near-term outlook, with sentiment clearly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and continuing energy market recession.” Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at MUFG Bank in New York, commented: The ISM manufacturing survey has come late to the recession forecasting party this time, as this recession is the quickest deterioration in economic activity ever recorded. Economists believe the U.S. economy entered a recession in mid-March, as also indicated by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s index. MUFG Bank’s chief economist explained that this U.S. recession “is the quickest deterioration in economic activity ever recorded.” Indicators Fall to Levels Not Seen Since Great Recession Many components of the ISM Purchasing Managers’ Index have fallen to levels not seen since the lows of the Great Recession. The new orders sub-index fell to 27.1 in April from 42.2 in March, the lowest since December 2008, and the monthly decline was the largest since April 1951. Oren Klachkin, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics in New York, was quoted as saying: The backdrop for manufacturers is very bleak, with collapsing global demand, ongoing supply chain disruptions, and high levels of uncertainty all posing very significant challenges … We do not expect output losses to be recouped until 2021. Furthermore, the ISM production index was at 27.5 in April, down from 47.7 in March and a new record low since the survey began in 1948. The factory employment index also dropped to 27.5 last month from 43.8 in March, the lowest since February 1949. The monthly decrease in the employment measure was the largest since the ISM started tracking in 1948. Moreover, in March, the U.S. manufacturing output dropped by the most in over 74 years. The Federal Reserve said it was the biggest decrease since February 1946. Economists do not expect a V-shaped recovery or a rapid reversal in the economic downturn. Rupkey previously said that “it would take a miracle to keep this recession from turning into the Great Depression II.” What do you think about where the US economy is heading? Let us know in the comments section below. The post US Manufacturing Crisis: Fastest Economic Deterioration Ever Recorded, Analyst Says appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

During the last two months, the global economy has shuddered and a great number of people still attribute the financial meltdown to the Covid-19 outbreak. However, during the last two weeks, the blame has shifted, as many citizens are now blaming the government lockdowns, overly-predictive models, and industry shutdowns. Moreover, a recently published report notes that the financial crisis in America started five months before Covid-19’s first death report in the United States. The Fed’s Monetary Easing Schemes and Wall Street’s Secret Deals Started Well Before Covid-19 The Covid-19 outbreak has been scary, but a lot of people are more frightened by government regimes than the virus itself these days. Governments worldwide, without vote or discussion, shut down major industries and severe cracks in the supply chain are beginning to show. On May 1, financial columnists Pam Martens and Russ Martens explained in a report that the economic carnage started five months before the Covid-19 virus started to scare the population. For instance, Martens details that the first death in China was reported on January 11, 2020, but the signs of an economic meltdown started on September 17, 2019. In fact, The Federal Reserve gave primary dealers a whopping $6.6 trillion before the first death from Covid-19 was reported in America. Photo via Federal Reserve data and Wall Street on Parade columnists Pam Martens and Russ Martens. The first signal that started showing signs of cracks in the U.S. monetary system was on September 17, 2019. “[The] New York Fed announces it is intervening in the repo loan market for the first time since the Wall Street crash of 2007 to 2010,” the report written by Martens highlights. “The Fed will provide a maximum of $75 billion per day to 24 Wall Street trading houses (primary dealers) with a cap of $40 billion going to any one firm. (This large-cap suggests the New York Fed knows that one or more specific firms are in trouble.),” the research further added. Three days later on September 20, the Fed again said the repo markets would continue and it also added an extra $30 billion to some 14-day repo contracts. By this point market strategists and U.S. economists knew something was wrong. Then on October 1, 2019, JPMorgan reduced its cash-on-deposit with the Fed and reduced holdings by 57%. Three days later, the New York Fed decided to add an additional $75 billion toward specific overnight repo schemes. The $30 billion 14-day plans were increased to $45 billion and they even created a 6-day lend as well. By October 11, Martens’ research shows that the Fed would continue the repo schemes and it would also buy billions worth of American Treasury bonds as well. A week later the rules were changed again, and $75 billion repo contracts were increased to $120 billion. By November 9, 2019, a large swathe of central banks worldwide started following the Fed’s excessive money creation schemes. The first week of November had shown that more than 37 modern central banks were participating in stimulus and easing practices. By December 2019, politicians and Wall Street CEOs were showing a number of signs that something was amiss. 2019 saw a record number of CEO resignations and a large slew of corporate leaders abruptly stepped down. The report written by Martens notes that on December 17, 2019, the New York Fed announced: [The central bank] would beef up its repo loans by adding a 32-day loan of $50 billion to its ongoing, twice per week term loans of 14-days and it will increase its overnight loans from $120 billion to $150 billion on December 31, 2019, and January 2, 2020. It will also add an extra $75 billion overnight loan that settles on December 31, 2019, and matures on January 2, 2020. That’s an extra $185 billion of liquidity over the turn of the year on top of the ongoing repo loans. Unlike the protests after the 2008 bank bailouts, the most recent American protests have been largely against the restrictive lockdowns. However, many citizens from various states in the nation have talked badly about the protestors in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. Many have wished protestors ill and said that they hoped demonstrators would actually contract the coronavirus because they were protesting. After the lockdowns are lifted, it is expected that the protests will not end, as many Americans are aware of the fraud and manipulative acts committed by politicians and the central bank. $6.6 Trillion Was Injected Into the Hands of the Fed’s Private Dealers Before the First US Reported Covid-19 Death By the end of January 2020, the Fed’s balance and repo market spreadsheets had indicated the central bank injected $6.6 trillion to private institutions and there were no U.S. coronavirus deaths at this time. The first coronavirus COVID-19 death reported in America was on February 29, 2020, according to the report. As mentioned above, 2019 saw a record 1,300 top executives step down but January 2020, had also shown a record number of CEO resignations (240) in a one-month period. The list of noteworthy CEOs who stepped down is quite exhaustive but includes people like Hulu’s Randy Freer, Mastercard’s Ajay Banga, IBM’s Ginni Rometty, Tmobile’s John Legere, Harley Davidson’s Matt Levatich, and Linkedin’s Jeff Weiner. What really upset people, however, was the fact that 2019 was one of the best years for Wall Street traders as stocks hit record numbers. Moreover, the world’s wealthy elite grew massively in 2019 and a Wealth-x report specifically cites the Fed’s stimulus programs “as a direct primer of the stock market and growth of very high net worth.” Meaning the Fed’s pumping just made the rich even wealthier than before. Nasdaq saw a new milestone, the Dow Jones and S&P500 broke records and the world’s 1%, solely protected by the bureaucracy, has reaped the benefits. On February 15, 2020, after the Wealth-x report was published, Northman Trader author Sven Henrich sarcastically congratulated the Federal Reserve for the achievement. “Central banks have become the primary driver of wealth inequality. And they refuse to admit the self-evident,” Henrich further tweeted. “They are the driver of excess that primarily benefits the few. Central banking is socialism for the top 1%.” Fraudulent Cover-Ups, Pork Funds, and Special Privileges for Corportists Tucked Into Stimulus Aid Packages After the coronavirus was in mainland America, Wall Street shuddered during the market rout on March 12, 2020, otherwise known as ‘Black Thursday.’ After this important date, the U.S. central bank fired its “financial bazookas,” like allowing private dealers to operate without declaring any reserve status. The Fed cut the benchmark interest rate to zero and introduced 14 foreign currency swap lines and discount windows. The Fed also created a $450 billion slush fund for Wall Street execs and the Commercial Paper Funding Facility (CPFF), a Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), and a Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF). By the end of March 2020, politicians, the Fed and the U.S. Treasury helped pass the Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security Act” (CARES Act). This gave American taxpayers $1,200 each for economic relief, but U.S. lawmakers like Representative Thomas Massie from Kentucky said the CARES Act passing was a fraudulent cover-up. There are 12 Federal Reserve branches that operate in different states within the nation. The Fed has recently granted special powers to Blackrock allowing them to bail themselves out and oversee $27 trillion in corporate bonds and commercial mortgages. Come to find out the CARES Act was loaded with pork funds and raises for members of Congress. The bill (section 4409) is also very controversial because it incentivizes hospitals who were already broke to get $1,300 for classifying Covid-19 deaths. The CARES Act also gives an extra $39,000 per patient for hospitals that had to use a ventilator. Lots of money that could’ve been spent on current healthcare costs like Covid-19 test kits and PPE resources went to pork funds, according to critics. For instance, Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi added $25 million to fund the Kennedy Center and for the National Endowment for the Humanities and Arts in the CARES Act. Other stimulus plans created by the U.S. bureaucracy, Treasury, and the Fed also cheated small businesses because they allowed larger companies to take all the coffers’ money in less than 10 minutes. Making matters worse, after distributing a measly $1,200 check to American citizens, the Fed gave special powers to the equity firm Blackrock. The massive financial institution Blackrock was appointed by the Fed to buy corporate bonds and commercial mortgages. Essentially, Blackrock will oversee $27 trillion and is now considered the most powerful business in the U.S. In fact, Blackrock can even bail itself out and the company’s friends at any time it wants, and most of Blackrock’s buddies are fossil fuel suppliers, big pharmaceutical companies and mainstream media corporations. For years now bitcoin proponents and free-market advocates have called out the cronyism between industry and the bureaucracy. However, the majority of the U.S. populace is still not aware of the fraud and manipulation. “If a reputable polling outfit were to ask Americans what caused the current financial crisis on Wall Street, they would say the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. If Americans were asked in the same poll when the financial crisis on Wall Street started, they would tie it to outbreaks of the virus in the U.S. this year,” the report written by Martens explains. Despite the populace believing what mainstream media tells them, the U.S. economy was in shambles months before the first U.S. Covid-19 death. Historical Revisionists and Propaganda Artists Will Try to Frame the Economic Downturn on Covid-19, But That’s Simply Not True Despite the fact that most of the populace thinks Covid-19 sparked the economic downturn — It is simply not true. Sound money proponents and bitcoin supporters have always said that modern central banking and today’s monetary system is fraudulent and manipulated. Only the historical revisionists will blame the coronavirus outbreak on the virus itself, as most are realizing it really accelerated from government-induced lockdowns and the central bank’s Ponzi schemes. Before Covid-19 even started, Wall Street elites and the Fed’s private friends were given $6.6 trillion with only a few economists asking questions. But now nobody is questioning the motives of the bureaucracy and central bank governors because they still truly believe they were not lied to or defrauded. Unfortunately for them, the proof is in the pudding. All it takes is a quick look at the Fed’s announcements over the last seven months and the corrupt bills American politicians have passed so far. What do you think about the banking system collapsing before Covid-19? Let us know in the comments below. The post Data Shows the US Economy Was Collapsing 5 Months Before the Coronavirus Outbreak appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy. A private matter is something one doesn’t want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn’t want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world. **The following essay was written by Eric Hughes and published on March 9, 1993. “A Cypherpunk’s Manifesto” was originally published on activism.net and is reprinted here on Bitcoin.com for historical preservation. The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any opinions, content, accuracy or quality within the historical editorial.** If two parties have some sort of dealings, then each has a memory of their interaction. Each party can speak about their own memory of this; how could anyone prevent it? One could pass laws against it, but the freedom of speech, even more than privacy, is fundamental to an open society; we seek not to restrict any speech at all. If many parties speak together in the same forum, each can speak to all the others and aggregate together knowledge about individuals and other parties. The power of electronic communications has enabled such group speech, and it will not go away merely because we might want it to. Since we desire privacy, we must ensure that each party to a transaction have knowledge only of that which is directly necessary for that transaction. Since any information can be spoken of, we must ensure that we reveal as little as possible. In most cases personal identity is not salient. When I purchase a magazine at a store and hand cash to the clerk, there is no need to know who I am. When I ask my electronic mail provider to send and receive messages, my provider need not know to whom I am speaking or what I am saying or what others are saying to me; my provider only need know how to get the message there and how much I owe them in fees. When my identity is revealed by the underlying mechanism of the transaction, I have no privacy. I cannot here selectively reveal myself; I must always reveal myself. Therefore, privacy in an open society requires anonymous transaction systems. Until now, cash has been the primary such system. An anonymous transaction system is not a secret transaction system. An anonymous system empowers individuals to reveal their identity when desired and only when desired; this is the essence of privacy. Privacy in an open society also requires cryptography. If I say something, I want it heard only by those for whom I intend it. If the content of my speech is available to the world, I have no privacy. To encrypt is to indicate the desire for privacy, and to encrypt with weak cryptography is to indicate not too much desire for privacy. Furthermore, to reveal one’s identity with assurance when the default is anonymity requires the cryptographic signature. We cannot expect governments, corporations, or other large, faceless organizations to grant us privacy out of their beneficence. It is to their advantage to speak of us, and we should expect that they will speak. To try to prevent their speech is to fight against the realities of information. Information does not just want to be free, it longs to be free. Information expands to fill the available storage space. Information is Rumor’s younger, stronger cousin; Information is fleeter of foot, has more eyes, knows more, and understands less than Rumor. We must defend our own privacy if we expect to have any. We must come together and create systems, which allow anonymous transactions to take place. People have been defending their own privacy for centuries with whispers, darkness, envelopes, closed doors, secret handshakes, and couriers. The technologies of the past did not allow for strong privacy, but electronic technologies do. We the Cypherpunks are dedicated to building anonymous systems. We are defending our privacy with cryptography, with anonymous mail forwarding systems, with digital signatures, and with electronic money. Cypherpunks write code. We know that someone has to write software to defend privacy, and since we can’t get privacy unless we all do, we’re going to write it. We publish our code so that our fellow Cypherpunks may practice and play with it. Our code is free for all to use, worldwide. We don’t much care if you don’t approve of the software we write. We know that software can’t be destroyed and that a widely dispersed system can’t be shut down. Cypherpunks deplore regulations on cryptography, for encryption is fundamentally a private act. The act of encryption, in fact, removes information from the public realm. Even laws against cryptography reach only so far as a nation’s border and the arm of its violence. Cryptography will ineluctably spread over the whole globe, and with it the anonymous transactions systems that it makes possible. For privacy to be widespread it must be part of a social contract. People must come and together deploy these systems for the common good. Privacy only extends so far as the cooperation of one’s fellows in society. We the Cypherpunks seek your questions and your concerns and hope we may engage you so that we do not deceive ourselves. We will not, however, be moved out of our course because some may disagree with our goals. The Cypherpunks are actively engaged in making the networks safer for privacy. Let us proceed together apace. Onward. What do you think about Eric Hughe’s “A Cypherpunk’s Manifesto?” Let us know what you think comments below. The post Eric Hughes: A Cypherpunk’s Manifesto appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Millions of people worldwide have received sextortion scam emails in 2020 asking for bitcoin. These bitcoin sextortion schemes sometimes include recipients’ passwords to make the threat more real. The authorities have advised what to do if you receive a bitcoin sextortion email. Bitcoin Sextortion Scams Proliferate Globally The number of people targeted by bitcoin sextortion scams in 2020 has increased rapidly. According to an analysis by British security company Sophos, millions of people recently received sextortion scam emails in the week it analyzed. “In fact, the number was probably more like tens or even hundreds of millions,” Sophos senior threat analyst Paul Ducklin wrote, adding that some people received between two and five different varieties of this scam. He explained, “The scams exploited global botnets on compromised PCs to dispatch millions of spam emails to recipients around the world,” elaborating: Vietnam, Brazil, Argentina, the Republic of Korea, India, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Colombia, and Peru are the top 10 countries where these compromised computers were used to dispatch the spam messages. The cybersecurity firm found that 81% of the millions of sextortion scam messages it analyzed were in English, 10% in Italian, 4% in German, 3.5% in French, and 1.2% in Chinese. The top countries sextortion scam emails come from. Source: Sophos What Is Sextortion and Examples of Sextortion Emails 2020 Sextortion is a widely used form of online blackmail where a cyber scammer threatens to reveal intimate images or videos of someone online — often to their friends, family, work colleagues, or social media lists — unless they pay a ransom quickly. The scammer often asks for payment in cryptocurrency, particularly bitcoin. A sextortion mail scammer may claim to have compromised your computer, or other electronic devices, threatening that your webcams have been recording you watching sexual content. “I know pretty much everything about you. Your entire Facebook contact list, phone contacts along with all the online activity on your computer,” the scammer may write. Another sextortion mail may say: “the last time you went to see porn material on webpages, my spyware was activated inside your personal computer which ended up logging a lovely video footage of your masturbation simply by activating your cam.” Sophos also provided some examples, such as “We made a video of you on a porn site with the screenshots and the webcam footage side-by-side” and “We also used this malware to film you via your webcam and to take screenshots of your browser.” Sophoslabs security researcher Tamás Kocsír pointed out: If you are worried about becoming the target of a sextortion scam, disable or cover the camera on your computer. Examples of sextortion scam messages. To make the threat more real, some sextortion mail may include your full or partial passwords as proof that there is actually malware on your computers. One of Sophos’ sextortion email examples reads: Attention. We implanted malware on your computer, which means we have been keeping tabs on you, including grabbing your passwords and getting access to your accounts. However, Ducklin advised that these passwords are often old ones you used before in the past. “In truth, the passwords sent out in these scams have typically been dredged up from old data breaches,” he opined. “Although the password you see may have been your password once, the crooks didn’t get it from your computer recently.” Other than email, sextortion can occur on a number of social network platforms, such as Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, Telegram, Skype, Kakaotalk, Line, and Wechat. In particular, Whatsapp sextortion schemes have been gaining popularity recently. On these platforms, someone can befriend you and ask for selfies or sexy videos of you which can then be used to blackmail you with. Sextortion Scam Emails Asking for Bitcoin A sextortion email often ends with a call for action to hurry the recipient to make immediate payment to prevent their explicit photos or videos from being shown to their friends, family, or other contacts. Ducklin detailed that the email could emphasize, “We know who they are, because we have your passwords,” adding: The extortion demand is typically somewhere from $700 to $4000, payable to a bitcoin address provided in the email. Sextortion scam emails often ask for payment in cryptocurrency, particularly bitcoin. Bitcoin sextortion scams have proven to be lucrative for scammers, according to research by Sophos, since it takes little effort and investment to send scam emails that can result in a lot of money for them. The company recently traced the origins of millions of sextortion scam emails launched between September 2019 and February 2020 and analyzed what happened to the money deposited by victims into attackers’ bitcoin wallets. Kocsír shared: “While most recipients either didn’t open the email or didn’t pay, enough of them did to net the attackers around 50.9 bitcoin, equivalent to nearly $500,000.” The researcher additionally explained that some sextortion scammers use rather sophisticated techniques, such as “innovative obfuscation techniques designed to bypass anti-spam filters.” He further described that some “Examples of this include breaking up the words with invisible random strings, inserting blocks of white garbage text, or adding words in the Cyrillic alphabet to confuse machine scanning.” Sextortion Is Illegal — What to Do if You Receive a Sextortion Email? Receiving a bitcoin sextortion email can be alarming and intimidating. Many people are genuinely worried that the scammers may actually have their passwords or explicit photos and videos. However, anyone receiving a sextortion scam mail should know that scammers typically have no compromising information about them. “It’s all a bluff,” Ducklin believes, asserting that the people behind sextortion email scams “don’t have malware on your computer, don’t have a video of you doing anything, don’t have screenshots of your browsing habits, and haven’t just stolen a list of your friends and family to send their non-existent video to.” The U.K. National Crime Agency has advised how to deal with bitcoin sextortion scams. The organization recommends you report the scam to the police, do not pay any money, stop communicating with the person immediately, report the scam to your internet service provider, and take screenshots with as much information as possible for evidence. Californian District Attorney Jeff Reisig also advised what to do if you get a sextortion mail. He emphasized: You should remember that sextortion is illegal. If you’re targeted in this kind of scam, you get in touch with your local police. It’s also recommended that you save all of the original e-mails from the hacker. What do you think about bitcoin sextortion scams in 2020? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Bitcoin Sextortion: Scams Using Email, Videos, Passwords to Extort BTC appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The euro area is facing an “unprecedented” economic decline, the worst since records began. European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde paints a picture of a central bank in full-on emergency mode after the bank kept its interest rates unchanged. Unprecedented Economic Contraction in Eurozone New data released on Thursday reveals that the 19-member region’s economy contracted significantly to the lowest reading since records began in 1995. Keeping interest rates unchanged, European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde told the press: The euro area is facing an economic contraction of a magnitude and speed that are unprecedented in peacetime. Lagarde continued, “Measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, covid-19, have largely halted economic activity in all the countries of the euro area and across the world.” According to data published Thursday by Eurostat, the euro area’s gross domestic product in Q1 2020 fell 3.8% from the previous quarter, or 14.4% on an annualized basis. By comparison, U.S. GDP declined 4.8% on an annualized basis. Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, said that “The euro area is facing an economic contraction of a magnitude and speed that are unprecedented in peacetime.” Central Bank in Full-On Emergency Mode The European Central Bank did not make any changes to its asset-buying programs on Thursday, including the €750 billion ($832 billion) Pandemic Emergency Purchase Program (PEPP) introduced in March. The massive stimulus package aims to mitigate some of the economic shock caused by the coronavirus crisis. Lagarde affirmed that policymakers are ready to expand those programs if needed. Pantheon Macroeconomics chief eurozone economist Claus Vistesen was quoted by the media as saying: The [ECB] president paints a picture of a central bank that is in full-on emergency mode, and which has had to throw out the rulebook for both policy and standard forecasting. The ECB expects a GDP contraction of between 5% and 12% for the eurozone’s economy this year. The actual decline depends on how long and how effective the lockdowns are in various countries. On Friday, ECB chief economist Philip Lane warned that the economic slump in the second quarter will be “much more pronounced” than at the start of the year because lockdowns were in full force by April. The economic growth projection by the ECB is in line with that of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has foretasted a 7.5% contraction for the eurozone. In April, ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos said he expected the European economy to suffer a worse recession than the rest of the world. Do you think the ECB’s policies will help the European economy? Let us know in the comments section below. The post ECB in Full-On Emergency Mode as ‘Unprecedented Decline’ Hits Eurozone appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Staying at home can pay off, not only for one’s health but also for one’s Bitcoin stash. This statement has never been more true for anyone than the lucky player who just added over 29 BTC to his wallet by playing the exclusive game of Slots. Let’s face it, in most cases, the odds of winning a jackpot in any game of chance are usually stacked against you — but at some point, a game will be played that will change your life forever. However, this does mean that you need to be playing day in day out to hit the big one, just as this winner proved, sometimes lady luck can smile upon you sooner than you’d imagine. In one such game of chance, a lucky winner at Bitcoin Games has struck a fortune by winning a huge pot and cashing out 29.65 BTC (~ $250,000). The player had newly joined the online casino and didn’t have to wait long to win the jackpot. As for the identity of the winner, that remains mysterious as the casino offers users to play and win jackpots anonymously. The gaming portal currently hosts many popular games who have massive jackpots such as Slots with 500 BTC, Keno up to 250 BTC, and Video Poker up to 203 BTC, all amounting to jackpots worth over $5 Million. Bitcoin Games is an online crypto casino that offers instant withdrawals, provably fair exclusive games, and 24/7 customer support – all without ever needing to register. Play with real players on interactive games such as Baccarat at the Live Casino or indulge in a variety of popular casino games on the portal. Do you like to win cryptocurrency jackpots? Then head over to Bitcoin Games today! The post Player Hits $250,000 (29 BTC) Slots Jackpot Staying at Home appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

UK cryptocurrency and blockchain startups are turning focus back to conventional means of raising capital, as initial coin offering (ICO) coffers dry up. According to a new report, initial coin offering (ICO) funding last year plunged 71% to £200 million ($250 million) from £700 million ($875 million) a year earlier. By comparison, equity funding provided £168 million ($210 million) to startups in 2019, almost the same as the year before, says the report by venture capital firm MMC Ventures. In 2017, only £100 million was raised this way. Altogether, equity financing has supported emerging UK crypto businesses to the tune of £525 million since 2013. “As the ICO funding model becomes increasingly difficult, companies are shifting back to traditional capital raising strategies. This has prompted founders to place more focus on company fundamentals,” said MMC Ventures. UK cryptocurrency entrepreneurs had scripted a promising success story over the past few years, with over 2,700 companies founded since 2008, the year of the Bitcoin whitepaper. But only 9% of the startups raised money by means of the sale of shares, as ICOs proved popular, until the bubble burst in 2018. The report states that ICOs failed in the UK because “the majority were not interested in creating long-term value.” Equity financing demands that projects build a strong infrastructure foundation and business case. MMC Ventures said: While capital is less abundant than it was during the ICO bubble, resources are being deployed more efciently and targeted at fundamental areas of the technology stack. The company expects funding for UK startups to slow down through 2020 and beyond due to the coronavirus crisis. But expressed optimism that “the increasingly pragmatic, business-case-first approach of the teams in the blockchain/crypto space makes them relatively well-positioned to weather this downturn…” What do you think about the future of funding for crypto startups? Let us know in the comments section below. The post UK Cryptocurrency Firms Turn to Equity Funding as ICO Coffers Plunge 70% appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

According to recent data, crypto participants known as ‘bitcoin whales’ have been steadily accumulating bitcoins, and not selling since the ‘Black Thursday’ market carnage on March 12, 2020. Onchain data and blockchain analysis firms indicate that the number of bitcoin whales with 1,000 to 10,000 BTC or more on a single address has increased significantly. Small and Mega-Bitcoin Whales Accumulate More Coins During the Market Dip In the cryptocurrency world, investors who hold a large number of digital assets are typically called ‘whales.’ There are also all types of whales like BTC whales, ETH whales, and BCH whales. The definition of a BTC whale would be a person or organization (a single address) with around 1,000 BTC or more. Whales with around 1,000 BTC would be considered small whales and at the time of publication, there are 2,002 addresses with 1K BTC or more. Onchain data from December 17, 2018 (1,754) until May 1, 2020, shows these smaller whales grew by 14.13%. Then there are mega-whales who own 10,000 BTC or more, which is around $87 million using today’s exchange rates. Onchain BTC data on December 17, 2018, and February 25, 2019. Onchain data from December 17, 2018, shows at the time there were 91 addresses with 10,000 BTC or more. Today’s statistics show there are now 106 addresses with 10,000+ BTC. The data highlights that whales with 10K BTC or more have grown by 16.48% since the end of 2018. On February 25, 2019, there were 1,709 addresses with 1,000 BTC or more. Since then, the increase of smaller whales has been around 17.14%. Similarly, on the same day in February 2019, there were 100 addresses and the increase to 106 would be approximately 6%. Bitcoin Addresses With 100 and 100,000 Bitcoins Decreased Then there are even bigger whales than the 10K BTC holders, as there are three addresses with anywhere between 100,000 to 1,000,000 BTC today. A whale address that has 100K BTC is worth around $873 million at today’s exchange rates. Back in December 2018, there were more 100K or more addresses than today, as five of them held these balances. Fast forward to February 2019, and the number remained the same with only five addresses holding 100K BTC. Of course, most of these 100K addresses belong to exchanges that hold BTC in a custodial fashion for their customers. There are all types of whales. Some say small whales own over 1,000 coins, and mega whales own 10,000+. There are only three bitcoin addresses that hold 100,000 BTC or more today. Back in December 2018 and February 2019, there were 5 addresses with 100K BTC or more. Now the much smaller investor, with 100 BTC or more is around 14,000 addresses on May 1, 2020. In December 2018, there were 14,809 addresses with 100 BTC or more, and on February 25, 2019, that number dipped to 14749 addresses. So these types of holders have decreased and it is possible they sold to the much larger whales during the last few months. On March 12, 2020, otherwise known as ‘Black Thursday,’ BTC prices dropped to $3,600 per coin. Reports from popular exchanges like Kraken, Binance, and Coinbase explained that there was a massive amount of buyers during the 24 hours that followed the market rout. The San Francisco exchange Coinbase wrote a blog post on how crypto investors bought the crypto asset when it was much lower in value. Even the famed whistleblower Edward Snowden said he felt like buying the dip. What do you think about the bitcoin whale accumulation? Let us know in the comments below. The post 12 Months of Onchain Data Shows Bitcoin Whales Obtained Hundreds of BTC from Small Fish appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Though the top cryptocurrency exchanges offer charts, many don’t offer the analytical features crypto traders need to make good trading decisions. To help fill this need, CoinTracking has partnered with two companies that specialize in cryptocurrency analytics: IntoTheBlock and Cryptosheets. These new integrations provide a whole new use case for the world’s most popular crypto tax software. What is CoinTracking? CoinTracking was founded in 2012 and went online in April 2013 as the world’s first cryptocurrency tax reporting tool and portfolio manager. The company now has over 585,000 active users, which makes it the leader in the space. While crypto traders are CoinTracking’s main demographic, the company’s powerful portfolio management tools have made it popular among crypto tax and investment firms as well. Now that CoinTracking integrates with IntoTheBlock and CryptoSheets, it has a new use case. In conjunction with the two new plug-ins, CoinTracking can now be used to research altcoins and create entirely new trading strategies. IntoTheBlock’s deep analytical features can be used to make crypto price movement predictions, while CryptoSheets gives traders the ability to create their own custom spreadsheets and charts. Cryptosheets Cryptosheets is a spreadsheet plugin for Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets that’s tailor made for cryptocurrency traders. The plugin can be used to pull data from CoinMarketCap, the mining profits calculator WhatToMine, cryptocurrency data provider CoinMetrics.io, Cryptocompare, ParadigmAPI and many other sources including top exchanges like Gemini, Bittrex and others. The partnership between Cryptosheets and CoinTracking lets CoinTracking subscribers use their portfolio data to create their own customized crypto charts. The integration benefits current Cryptosheets users as well because it expands the number of exchanges that work with the plugin. How to use it Anyone who knows their way around a spreadsheet can use Cryptosheets to quickly and easily create their own crypto charts. Those that need help getting started can use one of Cryptosheets’ many templates as a starting point. Related: Stats junkies: dive deep into coin data with this free new CoinTracking plug-in Free Forever– Cryptosheets’ beginner-oriented subscription option– provides full access to all of Cryptosheets’ features. Usage is the only limitation. Free Forever subscribers can process as many as 1,000 API requests per month. The promo code #ICAMEFROMCOINTRACKING reduces all paid Cryptosheets subscriptions by 20%. IntoTheBlock Several IntoTheBlock-powered widgets are now available directly through CoinTracking. Current CoinTracking customers don’t have to sign up for an IntoTheBlock account to access them, since they’re built into the interface. Even more metrics are available through IntoTheBlock’s paid subscription service. How to use it CoinTracking’s new IntoTheBlock widgets are especially useful for researching altcoins. Prospective investors can see whether or not a coin’s value is concentrated in the hands of a few investors, for example. Additional data is available through IntoTheBlock’s main website via the “Dive Deeper” and “See More Signals” buttons. IntoTheBlock’s paid service supports over 25 metrics, which can be used to determine short and long term price movements. Two two-minute tutorials are embedded below each metric. These explain what the metrics do and how to use them to make predictions. Related: Feature upgrade: Here’s yet another free charts enhancement IntoTheBlock’s standard trial period is seven days, but CoinTracking subscribers can use IntoTheBlock for a full 90 days before they run into the paywall. Summary In addition to calculating taxes and keeping track of multiple crypto exchange accounts, CoinTracking can now be used to analyze coins and predict future price movements. These new analytical features make CoinTracking an even more essential tool for crypto traders. The post CoinTracking Launches Two Powerful, Free Plug-ins for Crypto Traders appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The private venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has announced the company is investing $515 million into the cryptocurrency industry. The firm says its “excited” to bolster crypto networks and businesses. Further, the company hopes to strengthen ideas like next-generation payments, a modern store of value, decentralized finance, content monetization, and Web 3.0 concepts. Andreessen Horowitz Invests Over $500M Into the Crypto Industry Two executives from the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz; Chris Dixon, and Katie Haun announced a new venture called the Crypto Fund II on Friday. The venture capital firm will invest $515 million into the long-term development of “crypto networks and businesses.” Andreessen Horowitz has been an investor in cryptocurrency solutions and blockchain technologies since 2013. The company’s founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz are firm believers in the digital currency revolution. In 2014 in an opinion editorial for the New York Times, Marc Andreessen wrote an article called “Why Bitcoin Matters” describing the plethora of benefits bitcoin has to offer. “Bitcoin at its most fundamental level is a breakthrough in computer science – one that builds on 20 years of research into cryptographic currency, and 40 years of research in cryptography, by thousands of researchers around the world,” Andreessen said at the time. “Bitcoin is the first practical solution to a longstanding problem in computer science called the Byzantine Generals Problem,” the venture capitalist added. The announcement on Friday shows that the company Andreessen Horowitz and it’s founders still wholeheartedly believe in the cryptocurrency economy. “Investments made in internet technologies over the last several decades have given rise to products and services used every day by billions of people, including messaging, video conferencing, ecommerce, and everything in between,” the company revealed on May 1, 2020. The private investment firm added: We think it’s important to keep investing in the long-term development of the internet to address the needs of the coming decades. That’s why we’re excited to announce a new $515 million fund that will be used to invest in crypto networks and businesses. The Crypto Fund II: Next-Generation Payments and the Modern Store of Value The new Crypto Fund II plans to invest in cryptocurrency and blockchain concepts like next-generation payments, a modern store of value, decentralized finance, content monetization, and Web 3.0 concepts. When it comes to the modern store of value, the venture capital firm tips its hat to safe-haven assets like gold, but also notes that BTC is also moving toward that goal. “Gold has long played the role of a fiat substitute, but Bitcoin is a digital alternative that is gaining acceptance and adoption around the world,” the a16z Crypto Fund II announcement details. Andreessen Horowitz already has lots of money flowing into well known cryptocurrency businesses and emerging startups today. The firm is a member of the Libra Association and the Celo Alliance. The company has invested in projects like Anchorage and Compound and established brands like Coinbase as well. With the current global economy in shock from the recent coronavirus outbreak and the government lockdowns, venture capital investments for a half of a billion dollars is not a common sight. Investments like these reaffirm cryptocurrency supporters that the industry is here to stay and the future of modern finance. What do you think about Andreessen Horowitz investing $515 million into the crypto industry? Let us know in the comments below. The post While the Global Economy Shudders, Andreessen Horowitz ‘Excited’ to Invest $500M Into the Crypto Industry appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Crypto-friendly commissioner with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Hester Peirce, said there is an increase in demand for cryptocurrency as investors seek to diversify their portfolios. The commissioner has been an avid proponent of the SEC approving bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Growing Interest for Cryptocurrency SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, also known in the crypto community as “Crypto Mom,” talked about cryptocurrency and digital dollars during a livestream discussion with Crypto Finance Conference St. Moritz on Tuesday. Noting that the covid-19 pandemic has affected all industries, including cryptocurrency, she said: We’re seeing more interest coming from institutional quarters than we have in the past. I think that will continue … as people are looking to diversify their portfolios, I think people are also likely to look more to the crypto space.‏‏‎ She elaborated, “As people are more comfortable working in a virtual world in every industry now, I think people are likely to turn more interest to the crypto space.” Peirce previously said even before the coronavirus pandemic that one major advantage of the cryptocurrency industry was that it brings together people from across the world and helps them work together virtually. Industry participants don’t have to be in the same place to be working together. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said that she sees increased institutional interest in cryptocurrency and more people will be interested in the crypto space to diversify their portfolios. Peirce was sworn in as an SEC commissioner on Jan. 11, 2018; her term is due to expire on June 5. She has consistently supported the idea of the SEC approving bitcoin exchange-traded funds but so far the SEC has not approved any. In May last year, she said the time was already right for the commission to approve a bitcoin ETF. In February, she announced her Token Safe Harbor Proposal to fill the gap between regulation and decentralization. Commissioner Peirce on Digital Dollars Peirce also talked about digital dollars during the livestream. She said that the subject has drawn more interest to cryptocurrencies and more people are now asking questions about crypto. Noting that “It’s helpful for people to think about the positives and negatives of having it be a government-issued versus a private-issued currency,” she opined: I will say that I think that the idea of a government cryptocurrency, a digital dollar or something like that, is very different than some of the things that we’re talking about with crypto and blockchain and the private sector, but it’s helpful to get people thinking about these things. However, the commissioner cautioned: “You need to think about privacy issues if you’re creating some sort of digital currency. I think that’s a really important question for a society to ask because people don’t really feel comfortable with the government or anybody else monitoring their transactions.” The Federal Reserve has been studying the prospect of issuing a digital dollar, particularly to compete with Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency and China’s central bank digital currency. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has repeatedly said that the Fed has no interest in issuing a digital dollar right now. In March, the term “digital dollar” was included in proposed stimulus bills. What do you think about SEC Commissioner Peirce’s views? Let us know in the comments section below. The post SEC Commissioner Sees Increasing Demand for Cryptocurrency appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Cryptocurrency companies are banned on Google but the platform is allowing phishing sites to impersonate them. London-based bitcoin exchange Coin Corner showed that a fraudulent site mimicking it is allowed on Google’s advertising platform though its own evidence-backed appeals of legitimacy to Google Ads have been constantly ignored. Coin Corner marketing manager Molly Spiers says the policy is exposing customers to fraud. “So @GoogleAds won’t allow @CoinCorner – a long-standing, legitimate business – on their platform, but will allow phishing companies? Pay attention @Google!” she tweeted on April 30. Spiers shared a screenshot showing a Google advert that promotes www.coincornerr.com, an apparent phishing site that impersonates the Coin Corner website. The acceptance of the scam site by Google Ads enables it to come up higher on Google Search. She points out: With Google’s stance on #Bitcoin and #cryptocurrency advertising, any adverts that contain crypto-related keywords are going to be automatically disapproved, so it looks like they have copied our text but removed all references to bitcoin in order to get around Google’s algorithms. In 2018, Google banned cryptocurrency ads supposedly to protect users from scams but partially lifted the ban to allow regulated exchanges in the U.S and Japan to advertise. The continuing embargo on crypto companies outside the exempted territories, however, is not serving its purpose as phishing sites are allowed while appeals from regulated companies are disregarded. Coin Corner has been in business for six years and is registered with the British authority, the exchange’s CEO, Danny Scott, commented in Spiers’ thread. The company has contacted Google a number of times to ask for exemption in the UK to no avail. Scott said Coin Corner reported the scam site to Google but it has not been removed from search results. Google has previously continued to run adverts from phishing sites even after they are exposed. In a related episode of policy inconsistency, Google’s sister platform, Youtube, recently took down Ripple CTO David Schwartz’s videos, claiming that they are impersonations. You Tube is currently facing a Ripple lawsuit for not doing enough to protect users from giveaway scams. The Alphabet-owned platforms need to update their policies and technologies to stop promoting fraudulent initiatives while censoring legitimate businesses and exposing consumers to scams. What do you think about Google’s practices? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Google Profits off Impersonations of Banned Cryptocurrency Celebs and Companies appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The local government of Ya’an city, in China’s Sichuan province, has announced the region is encouraging bitcoin mining in Sichuan if operations leverage the local hydropower plants. The document released by Ya’an city officials is in stark contrast to how Sichuan lawmakers felt about mining in 2018. Back then the government and China’s central bank called the operation “wasteful” and discouraged the business. On April 20, the city of Ya’an in the Sichuan province of China has published a document that encourages bitcoin mining and blockchain operations to use the region’s abundant hydropower stations. It’s likely that the Covid-19 economy has changed the politician’s minds as Sichuan lawmakers didn’t care for mining operations in 2018. Roughly a year ago today, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in China explained a number of industries it wanted entrepreneurs to encourage, as well as businesses the commission wanted eliminated. According to the NDRC, bitcoin mining is “resource-wasteful” and the group promoted the elimination of its practice in China. Despite the NDRC’s statements last year, a two-part study revealed a number of publicly-traded Chinese firms participated in bitcoin mining operations. The city of Ya’an’s statements are totally different from the NDRC’s proposal and after the harsh reality of the coronavirus post-economy, it seems the Sichuan province is open for business when it comes to mining. A translation of the city of Ya’an’s says: “Blockchain companies should construct factories near power plants that have excessive power and are integrated with the State Grid,” the document notes. “For blockchain companies that use electricity privately generated from power plants (without integration to the State Grid) should be rectified in due time.” The document notes that Ya’an’s officials want the Sichuan province to become a blockchain and crypto mining hub. Sichuan has always been known to have a massive concentration of bitcoin mining farms as electricity is very cheap in the area. During the wet season, Sichuan sees a significant migration of mining operations set up shop in order to benefit from the region’s cheap hydro-powered electricity. Wet season operational data shows Sichuan miners can get an astounding 0.08 yuan per kWh or $0.01 per kWh. What do you think about the city of Ya’an encouraging bitcoin mining? Let us know in the comments below. The post 1 Cent per Kilowatt-Hour: China’s Sichuan Province Encourages Hydro-Powered Bitcoin Mining appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A district court in China has reportedly ruled that Ethereum’s cryptocurrency is legal property with economic value. This ruling follows a couple of other verdicts on the legality of cryptocurrency, including bitcoin, by various Chinese courts. While cryptocurrency is not legal tender in China, people can hold and transfer them like property. Court Ruling: ETH Is Legal Property in China The Shenzhen Futian District People’s Court in Guangdong Province, China, has ruled that ether is legal property, protected by Chinese law, local media reported last week. This means that the Chinese are not barred from owning or transferring the cryptocurrency, local publication 8btc explained, adding that according to the court ruling: The crypto assets represented by ETH have economic value and can be traded publicly. A district court in Shenzhen, China, has ruled in a cryptocurrency theft case that ether is legal property with economic value. Details of the Cryptocurrency Theft Case The theft case involved a blockchain engineer, known by the name Li, who worked at a company called Shenzhen Xinyijia Technology Co. Ltd. in March last year. The following month, he participated in a project called “Haode Star,” a joint venture between his company and Shenzhen Haode Trade Co. Ltd., the plaintiff of the case. Li was in possession of the project’s private key and payment password. He left his employer on May 31 last year after his probationary period ended. Unhappy with the termination, Li used the Haode Star project’s private key and payment password on June 20, 2019, to log into Haode Trade’s account at the cryptocurrency exchange platform Imtoken. He allegedly stole 3 ETH and 4 million Haode coins. The court also found that on July 15, 2019, Li stole an additional 0.4 ETH from the same account using the same credentials, the news outlet detailed. He proceeded to transfer the plaintiff’s cryptocurrency to his own accounts at Okex and Imtoken. The cryptocurrency theft case involved a blockchain engineer, Li, who allegedly stole ETH and Haode coins from the plaintiff, Haode Trade Co. Ltd. According to the transaction records provided by Haode Trade, the value of the supposedly stolen ETH was more than 6,000 Chinese yuan ($846). Li has returned all of the Haode coins and the 0.4 ETH he took. In addition to paying the plaintiff 5,536.99 yuan, he was sentenced to seven months in prison and ordered to pay a fine of 2,000 yuan. This is not the first time a Chinese court has ruled that cryptocurrency is property. In 2018, the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration ruled in favor of protecting an “equity transfer agreement” involving bitcoin, bitcoin cash, and bitcoin diamond. In the same year, the Shanghai Hongkou District Court found that ETH was property protected by Chinese law in the general legal sense. While China does not recognize the monetary properties of cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ether, the court said at the time that “we cannot deny the fact that ether should be protected by law as a general property.” What do you think about the Chinese court’s ruling on ethereum? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Chinese Court Declares Ethereum Legal Property With Economic Value appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In less than two weeks, the Bitcoin block reward halving will take place and BTC miners will receive half the reward going forward after May 12. Since ‘Black Thursday’ (March 12), bitcoin prices have gained 103% since then rising from $3,800 to $7,750 per coin. With the halving fast approaching, many cryptocurrency proponents believe the event will create significant demand for the digital asset bringing the price back to all-time-highs. The Great Bitcoin Halving One of the most anticipated events in Bitcoin history is taking place on or around May 12, 2020. The event is called the “Bitcoin Halving,” and it means that the block reward miners receive for finding blocks on the BTC chain will see the reward slashed in half. When the BTC network first launched, miners got 50 BTC per block found, and in 2012 that reward changed to 25 coins per block. Then in July 2016, miners saw the second halving, which saw rewards cut in half from 25 coins to 12.5 BTC per block. In less than two weeks, the 12.5 coinbase reward will be chopped in half, and miners will only obtain 6.25 coins per block plus transaction fees. The reason this happens is because Satoshi Nakamoto created a mathematical and predictable system that encourages scarcity and savings. On Tuesday, April 28 there are 18,349,900 BTC in circulation and there will only be 21 million BTC in existence after the last coin is mined. Between now and the halving, roughly 25,000 virgin coins will be obtained from mining before the event. BTC still has an inflation rate per annum of around 3.65% per day, with $13,923,540 worth issued per day. If prices were to remain the same as today, the $13 million will be chopped in half and the per annum inflation rate will drop to 1.8%. However, the 18.3 million BTC in circulation is not a correct representation of what’s really in circulation. Millions worth of BTC have been lost or stolen, and many investors are holding their BTC for dear life in hopes the price will spike higher. A good example of this trend stems from the data provided by Glassnode, which notes that 42.83% of all circulating BTC has not moved in at least two years. The Twitter account @cryptounfolded states that this figure has increased by 10.4% during the last 12 months. ‘Nonsensical Narratives’ Not everyone on ‘crypto Twitter’ has the high expectations that BTC prices will skyrocket after the halving. The well known bitcoin proponent on Twitter known as @joe007, told his 28,000 followers that he doesn’t believe the price will spike after the halving event. “No, of course, it’s not priced in,” he sarcastically tweeted. “On the very day of The Great Halvening, everybody will finally realize how underpriced BTC is, and they will all rush to buy it. In droves. With their unemployment checks.” Following @joe007’s tweet, many people didn’t care for his speculative attitude. He replied to them saying: It’s one thing being bullish, quite another being drunk on hopium and buying into nonsensical narratives. Not that I care, really. Everyone is free to donate their money to the cause of their own choosing. Weiss Ratings: ‘A Rare Trigger Event Is About to Unleash a New Cryptocurrency Superboom’ Despite the bitcoin pundit’s opinion, many other investors and think tanks believe the halving will catapult BTC’s price northbound. The founder of Weiss Ratings, Dr. Martin Weiss recently revealed his opinion of the aftereffect of BTC’s next halving. Weiss Ratings has been around for quite some time, and the researchers have developed a web portal called Weiss Cryptocurrency Ratings. The website gives cryptocurrencies different grades like you would get in school from an A+ rating to an F. Weiss says historically, the BTC halving has “unleashed a historic bull market in cryptocurrencies, creating massive wealth for investors.” The doctor further noted that leveraging the team’s “Crypto Timings Model” and “Crypto Ratings Model” would lead to avoiding low-rated cryptocurrencies. A cryptocurrency with an overall B+ rating would be the best crypto assets to research. Weiss explained that if Villaverde’s Crypto Timing Model existed years ago, anyone could have turned $1,000 into $1.5 billion by investing. For this halving event, Weiss stressed investors should purchase the “best” if Villaverde’s Crypto Timing Model says to buy and sell when the model indicates you should sell. The report written by Dr. Martin Weiss states: A rare event will soon trigger a massive cryptocurrency superboom, sending Bitcoin and other select coins to new, all-time highs.Because this trigger event is built right into the code. No government, no organization, and no group of individuals, no matter how rich or powerful can prevent this trigger from being pulled. And every time this event has occurred in the past, it has always unleashed a historic bull market in cryptocurrencies, creating massive wealth for investors. When asked if the term “massive wealth” was an overstatement, Weiss said that it really wasn’t. “It’s actually an understatement,” the doctor replied. “If you bought bitcoin during the last trigger event, you could have multiplied your money more than 30-fold … turning every $10,000 invested into more than $300,000,” Weiss added. Right now, in the eyes of many, the halving is a big deal but a lot of investors think it will be a non-event as well. Crypto proponents are also aware that there is a lot of money invested in stablecoins at the moment, as a decent amount of those funds could find their way into markets like ETH, BTC, or BCH. In the last 30 days, BTC prices are up 20% and the firm Tether has issued $1 billion stablecoins this past month. In fact, the USDT crypto market cap is half of the size of XRP’s market valuation, as USDT’s cap is steadily advancing toward the third-largest position. What do you think about the upcoming Bitcoin halving? Let us know in the comments below. The post Bitcoin Halving Theories: Whale Says Price Rise Is a ‘Nonsensical Narrative,’ Weiss Ratings Expects ‘Massive Crypto Superboom’ appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Switzerland’s “crypto valley” is asking the government for 100 million Swiss francs ($102.7 million) in funding, local media reported. The once flourishing Swiss cryptocurrency industry is struggling to survive following the withdrawal of private equity investors. About 80% of 203 firms surveyed by the Swiss Blockchain Federation recently warned of imminent bankruptcy. Only half of the 50 biggest companies in crypto valley expect to last a year in business. Now, the industry is turning to government, requesting for a fund that is expected to draw on federal guarantees, local government and private investments, according to Zug finance director Heinz Taennler. The celebrated blockchain hub is located in Zug and other towns of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Taennler noted that the 154 million francs credit facility for startups recently announced by the Swiss government will not be enough for the cryptocurrency sector’s ambitious financing needs. He wants a separate, dedicated fund for Zug companies. While start-ups are generally threatened by the Covid-19 impact, “crypto valley”’s loss of venture capital constitutes an underlying condition. A mid-2019 analysis of the 50 top companies valued them at $40 billion, which was two times their value at the beginning of the year. The report also listed six unicorns. As a whole, the “crypto valley” had more than 800 companies with over 4,000 employees. However, even then, a number of companies like Tend had already started to close shop without revealing much about their disappearance. Crypto Valley Association (CVA) president Daniel Haudenschild indicates that the hub is a hardened community whose members simply take up a new venture after one fails. According to marketing firm Relevance House co-founder German Ramirez, it is normal for 80% of startups to fail in any industry, outside the Covid-19 impact. The picture of contrasting fortunes in the 2019 survey may support his view and lend case against recent reports about the “drying up” of the Zug-centred crypto industry. Historical funding challenges, as well as decreased risk appetite by investors have prompted the “crypto valley” to turn to government though Haudenschild maintains: The modus operandi of the crypto scene does not include surviving on state handouts – we are not a state-sponsored industry. Ramirez predicts long-term success for Swiss crypto startups as blockchain innovations are expected to disrupt traditional financial infrastructures after the pandemic. The CVA president says the sector is already hardened by adversity including being frozen out by banks, which then cannot be expected to issue the firms emergency loans. What do you think about the funding needs of the Swiss cryptocurrency industry? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Switzerland’s Famed “Crypto Valley” Seeks $103 Million Government Bailout appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Hong Kong, 27 April, 2020 – CoinEx, a global and professional cryptocurrency exchange service provider, is pleased to announce its new global strategic partnership with Matrixport, the one-stop digital asset financial service platform span off from Bitmain. This partnership allows CoinEx‘s users to access Martrixport’s over-the-counter (OTC) service when they are in need of exchanging sizable fiat to crypto. “CoinEx’s users around the world will benefit from this strategic partnership as the OTC service makes transfers between fiat and crypto more convenient. Matrixport has the potential to become a key player in the industry and I look forward to a long-term partnership between us,” said Haipo Yang, Founder and CEO of CoinEx. Headquartered in Singapore, Matrixport was established in February 2019 and it now provides a wide range of services such as crypto trading, custody, lending and asset management. CoinEx has also been using its Cactus Custody service since 2019 to ensure the digital asset security. “Teaming up with CoinEx is clearly a win-win situation. We believe that CoinEx’s market presence will enable us to reach more crypto enthusiasts and drive a rapid development of our business,” said John Ge, CEO of Matrixport. In March, CoinEx integrated its first fiat onramp to the platform, and this collaboration represents another step forward to meet the needs of the market. CoinEx will keep working to build a better platform, as well as further develop its ecosystem. About CoinEx As a global and professional cryptocurrency exchange service provider, CoinEx was founded in December 2017 with Bitmain-led investment and has obtained a legal license in Estonia. It is a subsidiary brand of the ViaBTC Group, which owns the fifth largest BTC mining pool and is also the largest BCH mining pool in the world. CoinEx supports spot, perpetual contract, and other derivatives trading. Its service reaches global users in nearly 100 countries/regions with various languages available, such as Chinese, English, Korean and Russian. Website: https://www.coinex.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/coinexcom Telegram: https://t.me/CoinExOfficialENG About Matrixport Matrixport, span off from the crypto giant Bitmain and officially established in February 2019, is a one-stop crypto financial services platform offering digital currency trading, institutional custody (branded as “Cactus Custody”), lending as well as asset management to both institutional and retail customers. The digital currencies traded on its platform include Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Tether, and many others. Matrixport was co-founded by Jihan Wu and John Ge, who were both mining industry veterans and co-founders of Bitmain. Matrixport has 150+ staff globally with headquarter in Singapore and offices in Hong Kong, Zurich, and Moscow. With rich industry resources and leading technology capabilities, Matrixport aims to make crypto easy for everyone and create the next generation digital financial service experience. Matrixport’s vision is to enable a more open and equal financial system using blockchain technologies. For more information, please visit https://www.matrixport.com or contact marketing@matrixport.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 CoinEx Announces Global Strategic Partnership with Matrixport to Provide Over-the-counter Service appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Digital asset manager Grayscale Investments bought about 50% of all newly mined ethereum so far this year. It now holds the equivalent of 1.1% of ETH in circulation, according to a post on Reddit. Grayscale operates 10 cryptocurrency investment products focused on institutional investors. As of April 24, the company had $2.7 billion worth of digital assets under management. The Ethereum Trust accounts for $234.7 million of investments while more than $2.3 billion are held in the Bitcoin Trust. Other funds cover BCH, zcash, XRP, and more. As per the post, Grayscale bought 756,539 ETH since the beginning of this year. That’s 48.4% of all coins extracted since the start of 2020. In total, 1,563,245 ether have been mined during this period. The Redditor opined: Given the recent increase in investments, this percentage could be much larger in the future. Grayscale has been aggressively stockpiling ethereum. The cryptocurrency asset manager reported that its ETH inflows reached an all-time high during the first quarter of 2020. It said inflows to the Ethereum Trust reached $110 million in the quarter, compared to combined inflows for the previous two years of $95.8 million. With the Grayscale Ethereum Trust, institutional investors can gain exposure to ETH but without actually owning any coins. This means Grayscale will have to hold large amounts of ether in its portfolio. There’s also the planned upcoming Ethereum 2.0, which might be leading investors to take positions in ETH. The system upgrade will reward new coins to “validators” holding at least 32 ETH. The price of ethereum has risen sharply since the March 12 crash, spurred by the network’s imminent switch from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake or the so-called Ethereum 2.0. ETH is up more than 40% in the last 30 days and about 8% in the last week. At the time of writing, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap was down 0.93% to $193.20 over the past 24 hours, according to data from markets.Bitcoin.com. What do you think about Grayscale’s ethereum purchase? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Grayscale Buys 50% of All Ethereum Mined in 2020 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The mysterious Craig Wright, the man who claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto, was recently ordered to produce 11,000 documents and answers after Judge Beth Bloom overruled the defendant’s recent objections. However, the coronavirus outbreak has given Wright some leeway, as the Florida court system is slow and not up to par right now. Moreover, Wright’s ostensible Satoshi story has a new twist, as he claims that Satoshi Nakamoto never used the forum Bitcointalk.org to communicate. Craig Wright Says Satoshi Nakamoto Never Used the Forum Bitcointalk Craig Wright has claimed to be the inventor of Bitcoin for many years now, but he has never proven this claim to the greater crypto community. In fact, there are hundreds of articles and a great number of social media posts that indicate Wright is not Nakamoto. Despite the general opinion from the crowd, Wright continues to say that he invented Bitcoin, and more recently explained Satoshi never used the forum Bitcointalk.org. The website is one of the earliest known bitcoin forums out there, and there are many posts that derive from an account claiming to be Satoshi. However, Wright’s blog post disagrees Satoshi used the platform to communicate, and he says Nakamoto using the website is a “myth.” “It is a myth that all the posts on Bitcointalk (bitcointalk.org) from my account (Satoshi) are in fact mine and have not been edited or changed and that the login on the website belongs to me,” Wright wrote at the time. He added: Satoshi (I) never used Bitcointalk. My final post, in fact, links to a domain that does not exist. The last post Satoshi wrote on the website Bitcointalk.org. The Court Is ‘Puzzled’ by Wright’s Arguments In the Kleiman Case Craig Wright is also still engulfed in the Kleiman lawsuit and Judge Beth Bloom has overruled his recent objections in court. Her order has compelled Wright to produce around 11,000 documents and ruled that Wright’s defense was inadmissible. Bloom also explained that Wright’s attorney-client privilege claims were mischaracterized and he must produce information at a certain date. Of course, the coronavirus outbreak has made the court case far more difficult, and it’s likely the demand dates will be extended. “The court has reviewed the objection, the response, the reply, the record, and applicable law, and is otherwise fully advised,” Bloom wrote. “For the reasons that follow, the defendant’s objection is overruled.” Bloom continued by adding: [The] Court is puzzled by Defendant’s apparent argument that Judge Reinhart must blindly accept items produced by Defendant such that Judge Reinhart cannot rely on his past experiences with Defendant in this litigation (including his history of providing forged materials and giving perjured testimony) in evaluating whether Defendant has carried his burden as to privilege. That is not how fact-finding works. The court order – “It is ordered and adjudged that the discovery order, ECF No. 420, is affirmed and defendants objection to the Discovery Order, ECF No. 434, is overruled. The news about Wright’s latest court dealings and his blog post about Satoshi allegedly not using Bitcointalk.org, follows him ending the legal battle with Blockstream CEO Adam Back. Despite the fact that Judge Beth Bloom is saying the court is puzzled, Wright has said that he’s “99.9999 and a few more 9s percent certain” that he will gain access to the ostensible bitcoin hoard worth billions. What do you think about the latest news about Craig Wright? Let us know in the comments below. The post Craig Wright Claims Satoshi Nakamoto ‘Never Used Bitcointalk’ to Communicate appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Several economists have predicted where the U.S. economy is heading. One said it would take a miracle to keep the recession from turning into another Great Depression. Some believe that a fast or V-shaped recovery is unlikely. Meanwhile, Apple CEO Tim Cook reportedly told President Trump the opposite, predicting that the U.S. economy will have a V-shaped recovery. Great Depression II A number of strategists and economists have predicted a gloomy outlook for the U.S. economy as unemployment swells to unseen levels since the Great Depression. Data released last week shows that one in six Americans are out of a job as the coronavirus crisis deepens; approximately 26 million people have filed for jobless aid in five weeks. Chris Rupkey, managing director and chief financial economist at MUFG Union Bank, was quoted by Yahoo Finance as saying: At this point it would take a miracle to keep this recession from turning into the Great Depression II. On Sunday, White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett told the media: “We see an unemployment rate that approaches rates we saw during the Great Depression … During the Great Recession we lost 8.7 million jobs in the whole thing. Now we’re losing that many every 10 days.” At the worst point during the 2008 financial crisis, 15.35 million people were unemployed. “It is going to take years not months to put these pandemic jobless workers back to work at the shops and malls and factories and restaurants across the country,” Rupkey opined, noting that the job losses in the last five reports were “more than the entire Great Recession a decade ago.” MUFG managing director and chief financial economist Chris Rupkey believes that “it would take a miracle to keep this recession from turning into the Great Depression II.” The MUFG economist further stated: “Net, net, jobless claims are warning that the worst isn’t over yet for the American economy with businesses and consumers alike being sucked down into the abyss of the pandemic recession.” He concluded, “The risks to the outlook are that the economy is digging itself such a big deep hole that its ill become harder to climb back out of it.” Fast or V-Shaped Recovery Unlikely A growing number of economists and analysts, including Rupkey, have explained that a fast or V-shaped recovery of the U.S. economy is unlikely. A V-shaped recovery involves a sharp decline followed by a sharp rise back to its previous peak. ING chief international economist James Knightley explained last week that job losses are spreading beyond retail and hospitality sectors into suppliers and other industries, Yahoo Finance conveyed. Due to the covid-19 fear, people may remain reluctant to go shopping or eat at restaurants, so employment is not going to rebound quickly. “As such, it would be another signal that a V-shaped recovery for the U.S. economy is highly unlikely,” he was quoted as saying. Sharing his gloomy view of the U.S. economy, BNY Mellon chief strategist told the publication: “We’re sitting here today at a 17% unemployment rate, which is a disaster for the country … Because the longer this goes on, the greater the likelihood that those individuals… become detached from their employers.” Glassdoor senior economist Daniel Zhao was also quoted as saying: Today’s report shows the labor market is almost certainly pushing into new territory, jolting the unemployment rate up above the Great Recession’s 10% peak and wiping out more jobs than we’ve gained in the recovery. However, some people are saying the opposite, predicting a fast or V-shaped recovery. President Donald Trump, for example, told the media Friday that Apple CEO Tim Cook has predicted a V-shaped recovery for the U.S. economy following the covid-19 outbreak. Recently, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) declared a global recession, the worst one since the Great Depression. The Federal Reserva Bank of Chicago’s monthly index indicates that the U.S. economy entered into a recession in March. In addition, many banks have forecasted severe recession with billions in loan losses, tanking their profits. Do you think the U.S. is heading into another Great Depression? Let us know in the comments section below. The post Economists Predict Great Depression II for US Economy: Fast or V-Shaped Recovery Unlikely appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article