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In order to combat the coronavirus outbreak in Venezuela, President Nicolás Maduro has ordered the entire country to quarantine themselves. With an inflation rate that rises more than 10,000% per year, the country’s citizens have already been dealing with economic turmoil. Maduro has also shut down the national banking system and regional authorities banned gasoline sales. Meanwhile, peer-to-peer cryptocurrency exchanges have seen increased trading volumes stemming from Venezuela as residents search for a reliable payment system. Also read: US Cash Crisis: Withdrawal Limits Spark Bank Run Fear President Maduro and Sudeban Chief Shut Down Venezuela’s National Banking System Over Covid-19 Concerns Venezuela’s economy has been suffering from hardships for a very long time now as the United Socialist Party of Venezuela and President Nicolás Maduro have devastated the country’s financial system. The Venezuelan economy was already dealing with hyperinflation well before the coronavirus outbreak caused havoc throughout the rest of the world. The Venezuelan bolivar has lost so much value, rising well over 10,000% annually, residents from the nation weigh their banknotes on scales rather than counting each bill. For comparison, the annual inflation for countries like the U.S. sees the dollar rise between 2-3% per year compared to Venezuela’s 929,790% in 2018 and 10,000,000% in 2019. Now the covid-19 scare has consumed the country’s leaders as roughly 40 residents out of a population of 33 million have tested positive for the coronavirus. Well before Maduro shut down the national banking system, Venezuela has been suffering from hyperinflation. Rather than counting banknotes, bolivars are often weighed in stacks. The 40 Venezuelans who have covid-19 have caused the United Socialist Party to enact numerous new laws and guidelines throughout the country. Both Antonio Morales Rodriguez, the head of Venezuela’s financial authority, and Maduro have shut down the entire national banking system in order to stop the virus spread. #EsNoticia || Circular enviada a todas las instituciones del sector bancario, relativa a la continuidad del servicio bancario en línea durante el estado de alarma pic.twitter.com/A7ANCww6R0 — SudebanInforma (@SudebanInforma) March 15, 2020 On March 15, the financial regulator Sudeban sent out a circular to all the financial institutions in the Venezuelan banking sector in regard to the continuity of the online banking service during the state of emergency. Sudeban’s chief Rodriguez did not confirm when the banks could open their doors again and Venezuelans on social media showed discontent with the situation. “If ATMs worked in this country or if we could withdraw cash I would not complain — In this country they did not have cash rationed — There is so much crazy that I’m crazy,” a Venezuelan resident tweeted in response to the banking shutdown circular. Peer-to-Peer Crypto Trading Platforms See Increased Listings in Venezuela and Rising Trade Volumes The recent economic events in Venezuela have caused some residents to find refuge in cryptocurrencies and peer-to-peer markets. Bitcoin.com’s local BCH marketplace, local.Bitcoin.com, has a variety of individuals trading bitcoin cash. There are traders with between 20-100+ successful trades who are willing to buy and sell BCH using Banco Mercantil En Linea (bank transfers) and other forms of payment. Furthermore, local.Bitcoin.com also added petro (PTR) as a payment method for Venezuela and the nation state-issued digital currency can be traded on the peer-to-peer platform. Local.Bitcoin.com has a number of listings in Venezuela with people buying and selling bitcoin cash in the region regularly. Bitcoin.com’s peer-to-peer BCH marketplace is a simple, transparent and private platform to buy and sell bitcoin cash in a noncustodial fashion. The analytical data website coin.dance also shows that BTC volumes on Localbitcoins have been trending upwards every week (460-540 BTC per week) since November 2019. The increased volumes have taken place even with the latest KYC requirements and trading restrictions the marketplace has implemented. The marketplace Hodlhodl is seeing a number of Venezuelan traders as well and the platform’s listings show traders are also swapping with petro. Localbitcoins has seen increased trade volumes since November 2019 in Venezuela and the exchange Hodlhodl has a number of listings from the country as well. (Left pic is current Hodlhodl listings and the right pic is Localbitcoins trade volume from coin.dance.) Citizens from Venezuela are trying to weather the economic storm but Maduro is closing everything down over the 40 residents who tested positive for covid-19. Venezuela has some of the largest oil reserves in the world but oil prices worldwide have been devastated, making matters worse. Moreover, the Venezuelan state-issued digital currency PTR is allegedly backed by these oil reserves, hence the name petro. While Maduro and the Venezuelan bureaucrats shut down the national banking sector they also banned queuing for gasoline sales. Gas stations have been systematically shut down throughout the nation causing a shortage even though Venezuela is rich with oil reserves. Right now a great number of gas stations and businesses within the financial sector are indefinitely suspended according to authorities in the country. Sudeban’s circular written by the financial director Rodriguez explains that the new mandate includes all businesses that are involved with direct interaction with clients. “All activities involving direct attention to customers, users and the general public through agencies, branches, offices and administrative headquarters throughout the country will be indefinitely suspended,” the esnoticia (circular) highlights. What do you think about President Nicolás Maduro ordering a national bank shutdown in Venezuela? Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, coin.dance, hodlhodl, Local.Bitcoin.com, Fair Use, and Pixabay. You can now purchase Bitcoin without visiting a cryptocurrency exchange. Buy BTC and BCH directly from our trusted seller and, if you need a Bitcoin wallet to securely store it, you can download one from us here. The post Maduro Orders Venezuelan Bank Closures Amid Coronavirus Scare appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

While its well-known that the revised Schedule 1 form for U.S. taxpayers now contains a question about cryptocurrencies, what is lesser discussed are the legal ramifications this may have for filers who answer incorrectly. The vague nature of the yes or no inquiry has one tax expert doubting the constitutionality of the question, urging all filers to answer ‘yes’ to avoid bitcoiners being unfairly targeted. Further, as anything from frequent flyer miles to credit card points could technically fall under the IRS definition, answering yes could save some from a felony charge, according to the source. Also read: IRS Now Requires Tax Filers to Disclose Crypto Activities The Dreaded Crypto Question “At any time during 2019, did you receive, sell, send, exchange, or otherwise acquire any financial interest in any virtual currency?” the 2019 Schedule 1 question reads. The problem here according to Enrolled Agent Clinton Donnelly of Donnelly Tax Law, is that the inquiry is not only illegal, it’s also far too vague. The question “violates many of the taxpayer’s constitutional rights and is a disturbing overstep of what Congress has authorized the IRS to do,” Donnelly told news.Bitcoin.com. “There is no law supporting this question in tax law.” He elaborated: This question has a chilling effect on First Amendment Rights. It violates taxpayers’ legal protections, violates the excessive fines clause of the Eighth Amendment, along with the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fifth Amendment. Donnelly says that taxpayers should not have to report buying crypto unless in an audit. They only need to report selling it. “The tax law requires reporting income, including capital gains from the sale or exchange of cryptocurrencies. But to ‘receive’ or ‘acquire any financial interest in any virtual currency’ is not something that must be reported to the IRS under Title 26.” Here he refers to Title 26 of the Internal Revenue Service Code. Donnelly notes that “declaring that ‘under penalties of perjury, I have examined this return and accompanying schedules and statements, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, they are true, correct, and complete,’ puts the taxpayer in a position of committing a felony for giving the wrong answer.” He goes on to detail that under the IRS’s definition of virtual currency, even frequent flyer miles and points cards could put people in hot water: From IRS Notice 2014-21: ‘Virtual currency is a digital representation of value that functions as a medium of exchange, a unit of account, and/or a store of value.’ This definition includes many things other than cryptocurrency. “The way the IRS defines virtual currency is as a store of value,” Donnelly goes on. “Frequent Flyer miles are a store of value. Customer Loyalty cards are a store of value. Credit card points to buy things are a store of value. Therefore, it behooves every American to check yes to the Schedule 1 question.” Though the IRS issued new information on policy last year, meant to supplement 2014’s guidance, the definition of virtual currency remains vague, and open to broad interpretation. To Disclose or Not to Disclose Many might disagree with Donnelly, preferring to answer “no” than have a potential audit or investigation on their hands. But that all depends on what the agency knows. If someone’s downloaded a crypto wallet and answers in the negative, that could be a red flag for the agency. The IRS has not been helpful in clearing things up, either, with repeated calls from crypto holders and politicians alike for greater clarification on their seemingly cobbled-together policy. According to Donnelly, it’s an issue of solidarity. “Answering yes is not only accurate, but the IRS is also clearly going after cryptocurrency holders with this question,” he emphasizes. “We need solidarity. We can’t allow the IRS to target a segment of society.” The tax professional summarizes: The safest strategy is for everyone to answer yes to this question. Doesn’t this put me on a list? Yes, but if it is a list with every other Americans’ name on it, it will prove to be a very useless list for the IRS to pursue. A police officer in Rome, Italy enforces the nationwide coronavirus quarantine. Source: Em Campos Tumultuous Times This Tax Season With coronavirus panic gripping the world, markets plunging, medical martial law being instituted, and talk of aid money being given to citizens to help weather an unemployed period of quarantine, many are asking why they should pay taxes this year anyway. Donnelly posted a poll to his Twitter profile addressing the subject of tax deadline extensions due to the virus: Because of the #coronavirus emergency, should the President grant all taxpayers an automatic extension to file their #IRS personal #taxreturns? — Clinton Donnelly (@CryptoTaxFixer) March 11, 2020 One user replied to Donnelly’s Twitter poll by saying: Taxes=Theft…taxes should be completely eliminated forever…taxes are just plain robbery from the biggest criminal association in the universe..’Government’ That may be the case, but theft or not, the IRS wants your money and is serious about getting it. When it comes to whether it is best to check yes or no on the infamous Schedule 1 crypto question, that’s still largely anybody’s guess. Donnelly contends the question is an “unconstitutional overreach,” however, and should be withdrawn. What do you think of Clinton Donnelly’s view on answering ‘yes’ to the crypto question? Could solidarity keep bitcoiners from being unfairly targeted by the IRS? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Image credits: Shutterstock, Em Campos, fair use. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Tax Expert: IRS Crypto Question ‘Unconstitutional,’ Card Points, Flyer Miles Could Be Virtual Currency appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In an emergency situation like the current coronavirus pandemic, anything can turn into currency as the fiat system may experience cash shortages and devaluation. Cryptocurrency users have options to trade bitcoin beyond traditional money. A number of platforms will let you exchange retailers’ gift cards with digital coins or sell you just about any gift card for crypto. Also read: If You Don’t Trust Yourself, These Crypto Vaults Will Help You Hodl Safely How to Sell Gift Cards on P2P Exchanges One of the exchanges that facilitate gift card-crypto trades is Paxful, a leading peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace with global presence. It supports purchases and sales of BTC using a wide variety of payment methods. You can trade over a hundred gift cards for crypto through its website. Popular options include cards issued by well-known retailers such as Amazon, Ebay, Google Play, and Walmart. Domino’s, Uber, and T-Mobile refill cards as well as any Visa, Mastercard or Amex gift cards are also accepted. If you have an Amazon gift card you don’t need but are looking to acquire cryptocurrency, Purse is an online platform that will help you get rid of the card and buy coins quite easily. It offers you to pay for someone’s orders on Amazon and earn BTC or BCH in exchange, while allowing the other side to spend some bitcoin. Once a shopper confirms the merchandise has arrived, you’ll receive the crypto from escrow. Purse can also convert points and credits earned from Mechanical Turk, Amazon Associates, Ebates, Swagbucks, and others. Purse helps you to sell gift cards for BCH and BTC. Redeeem presents itself as a crypto exchange for discount gift cards. The platform operates on a P2P basis and you can buy and sell gift cards from 34 retail brands like Amazon, Ebay, Walmart, Home Depot, and Best Buy, using 32 cryptocurrencies including BTC, BCH, XRP, and ETH. Supporting the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Redeeem recently introduced a 0% trading fee for all grocery store gift cards. The website claims the average discount that gift card buyers get is over 20%. In early March, the exchange launched a Telegram bot, @RedeeemBot, and now traders can sell gift cards in the popular messenger. Another cryptocurrency exchange supporting peer-to-peer trading, Hong Kong-based Coincola, maintains a gift card trading section, where users can buy and sell BTC with cards and e-codes for numerous retailers and other platforms including Apple Store, Netflix, and Spotify. The page lets you choose the gift card you want to sell for bitcoin and filter the offers by fiat options. That latter feature allows cryptocurrency buyers to meet card sellers in their region and obtain the coins using gift cards denominated in local currency. Getting a Crypto Offer for Your Gift Card Some platforms are focusing on specific markets. Pamcoins, for instance, operates in Nigeria which has demonstrated heightened interest towards Bitcoin in the past year. The service helps users trade Amazon, Ebay, Steam, Google Play, and Apple gift cards for either Nigerian naira or BTC and ETH. To do this, Nigerians have to contact Pamcoins on Whatsapp and specify the gift card they want to sell with its amount to get the current rate from an agent. After they upload the card, Pamcoins promises payment within minutes. Crypto Voucher works in a similar way, providing a global exchange platform for gift cards and cryptocurrencies. First you get an offer depending on the card and its balance. Once you provide the card and your personal details, the platform will email you a cryptocurrency voucher you can redeem for a choice of coins including BCH, BTC, ETH, and DASH. Crypto Voucher maintains a global exchange platform for gift cards and cryptocurrencies. Gift cards also provide an opportunity to spend your bitcoins with businesses that don’t accept cryptocurrencies directly. If you are looking to purchase cards for major retailers with BCH and BTC, you can check out Bitcoin.com Store’s Gift Cards section. The cards are sorted in multiple categories from Food, Clothing and Health, to Fuel & Auto and Sports & Outdoors. You can also send a gift card to a friend with a few clicks and a fast crypto transaction. The service is powered by Egifter, itself a platform providing cryptocurrency holders with access to hundreds of gift cards. Bidali is another alternative for gift card buyers offering a rich selection of cards and dozens of supported cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and tokens. Gyft lets you choose between over 200 retailers and pay for gift cards with crypto. Wegift has more than 500 retailers’ gift cards for sale, while Bitrefill claims you can purchase gift cards or mobile refills for more than 1,650 businesses in 170 countries from its website using major cryptocurrencies. What other options to trade gift cards with cryptocurrencies would you recommend? Tell us in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Purse, Crypto Voucher. Do you need a reliable bitcoin mobile wallet to send, receive, and store your coins? Download one for free from us and then head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can quickly buy bitcoin with a credit card. The post 12 Platforms Allowing You to Trade Gift Cards With Cryptocurrencies appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Are you looking for a cool way to earn bitcoin cash privately instead of buying it directly? You can now connect your Steam account to the peer-to-peer marketplace Bitcoin.com Local and trade CS:GO game items for BCH via blind escrow. This is a great improvement for players who were previously vulnerable to scams and other risks as trading can now be done safely, without paying high fees, without KYC and without handing over control of your digital assets to any third party. Also read: Bitcoin.com Exchange to Sponsor Decentralized Collectible Card Game Splinterlands Bitcoin.com Local Integrates Steam Game Items Bitcoin.com Local, the privacy-focused global marketplace for trading bitcoin cash (BCH), has integrated Steam inventory trading and now allows users to buy and sell CS:GO game items on the platform. All a seller has to do to create a new offer for such a game item on Local is to select CS:GO as the category, connect their Steam account via Open ID and provide a link for buyers to inspect the product on Steam. You can see all the new items already available for sale here. If you have been living under a rock for the past few years, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) is a wildly popular team-based multiplayer first-person shooter game published by Valve in 2012. It is played by as many as 11 million players per month, and is a staple of competitive gaming, with many tournaments around the world. Since December 2018, Valve offers the game free to play and gets its profits from the sale of game items. Listing example As such is the case, it is not a surprise that a huge market has developed around the trading of CS:GO game items, but the participants still suffer from a dependency on some centralized platforms. For example, when the dominant venue for trading CS:GO skins at the time (Opskins) was issued with a cease and desist order a couple of years ago, users got just 15 days to withdraw their skins from the platform and close to $2 million worth of items that hadn’t been reclaimed in time were lost forever. Bitcoin.com Local aims to change all that with the power of the Bitcoin Cash network, enabling users to list their items for sale without the risk of trusting any centralized 3rd party with custody. The developers explain that by utilizing Blind Escrow, a feature created on the BCH blockchain, users can transact directly peer-to-peer without having to trust the other party or the exchange provider. With this technology, the developers have created a trustless peer-to-peer market for Steam game items. And unlike other solutions, users do not have to lock their items up with the exchange while they are listed for sale. This means they can continue to use their items in game until a buyer purchases their listing. Additional advantages include low fees, no burdensome KYC requirements, no restrictions on deposits or withdrawals, and no limits on price per item. Preventing Scams With Blind Escrow The trade of CS:GO items has been plagued by risks like chargebacks, sellers failing to send items after receiving payment, and third party custody failures. Bitcoin.com Local set out to solve this problem after community member Luke Lynch recognized that the platform’s blind escrow was the solution and reached out to the Bitcoin.com team. He explained: When I first came across the trustless escrow technology built on top of the Bitcoin Cash network, I was impressed. Previously, I had seen many instances where third party escrow providers had exit-scammed users, resulting in the loss of funds. Following the successful integration, users can now connect their CS:GO Steam inventory to their Bitcoin.com Local account and trade items without risk thanks to the platform’s blockchain-powered blind escrow, which protects both the seller and buyer. Sellers can set any price and will receive BCH for their items, which can then be sold for USD, EUR, and other fiat currencies directly on the platform. This contrasts Steam’s own Community Market, which limits the price to below $2,000 and prevents users from cashing their earnings out from the Steam ecosystem. Local.Bitcoin.com/Steam/Buy Sellers also pay significantly lower fees on Bitcoin.com Local: less than 1% compared with up to 15% on other platforms. Additionally, unlike trading platforms Bitskins and Skinbaron, they can continue to use items that are listed for sale. Luke concluded, “The idea of a trustless marketplace where users can list items for sale and then continue using them in-game, while also saving a huge amount on fees and not having to trust the reputation of the other party in the trade, or the escrow provider in the middle, is very appealing.” Peer-to-Peer Private Trading Platform Bitcoin.com Local was launched in June 2019, soon after the leading platform at the time removed the option for users to transact coins in person for cash. The platform lets traders choose any payment method they want for making transactions, including bank transfers, Paypal, Alipay, Venmo, cash in person and gift cards. And while many centralized exchanges are now forcing users to jump through hoops like submitting a selfie with their passport or government ID to prove their identity, Local enables you to trade anonymously and without any KYC, which has likely contributed to its rapid growth. Beyond exchanging crypto for fiat, the platform recently added a dedicated portal for buying and selling anything else. This Marketplace is a Craigslist-like venue for listing goods to be sold for bitcoin cash. It can allow anyone to earn BCH directly by providing a service and gives bitcoin cash users another venue to spend their crypto in. If you haven’t signed up yet, the process takes less than a minute. After getting an account you can immediately create offers or trades on Bitcoin.com Local. The exchange is protected by two-factor authentication, a wallet backup, and a blind escrow system for secure trading. The blind escrow allows people to trade without worrying about a third party or even Bitcoin.com touching the funds. You release the funds when you want to settle a trade and it’s technically impossible for our website to spend BCH held in escrow. Bitcoin.com Local can provide mediation for dispute resolution but the blind escrow system ensures only the buyer or seller authorizes a withdrawal. You can see all the new CS:GO game items available for sale here. What do you think about the ability to safely trade game items for bitcoin cash? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post You Can Now Trade CS:GO Game Items Safely for BCH Through Blind Escrow on Bitcoin.com Local appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The coronavirus is having a strange effect on the war on drugs. Narcotics activities that were deemed serious crimes only a week ago have been dropped by U.S. law enforcement, who have greater concerns now that cities are under effective lockdown. Meanwhile, darknet vendors are doing their best to match increased demand for mail order drugs, with one seller raising their maximum order size to accommodate bulk buyers. Also read: Darknet Markets Keep Shipping as Shoppers Shun the Streets The War on Drugs Takes a Hiatus Starting on March 17, Philadelphia police have stopped making arrests for all narcotics offenses. Coronavirus concerns have forced them to focus on more important matters, leaving the city’s recreational drug users and sellers to please themselves. Other crimes to have been deemed inconsequential in these straitened times are theft from persons, retail theft, theft from auto, burglary, vandalism, bench warrants, stolen autos, and economic crimes such as passing bad checks, fraud, and prostitution. That’s the view of Philadelphia cops, and it’s one that other U.S. cities seem to share; New York may start freeing jailed suspects. While an unofficial truce on drugs was being called in Philly, on the darknet, it’s been business as usual. Vendors have been tirelessly shipping packages – mostly recreational drugs – to a housebound population, some of whom are living under state-imposed lockdown. “We still ship once a day and we pack under strictest hygiene standards … All our employees are tested negative for Corona,” claims one vendor on the monero-friendly White House Market. “Due to the [coronavirus] situation we have lifted the limit of 20g per day per customer. Every customer can order as many [marijuana packages] as he needs.” Health Guidelines Advise Drug Users to Stockpile During a remarkable week for the recreational drug industry, Yale published a harm reduction guide for substance users who encounter COVID-19. After advising on which regulated drugs are likely to exacerbate coronavirus effects (crack and meth), the guide urges users of all recreational drugs: If you have money and are able, stock up on your drug(s) of choice before things deteriorate. Avoid bingeing on drugs that you are stockpiling so you have access to a supply. Try to buy from people you trust and have as many ways to contact dealers in your area as possible. Darknet buyers have needed no encouragement to load up: most DNMs have reported increased demand, while overworked postal services have caused deliveries to be delayed. As a result, White House Market has asked vendors to consider extending the time before orders auto finalize and funds are released. The notice posted on White House Market Vendors Address the Corona Question The coronavirus is everywhere right now, in meatspace and on the web, where it permeates Telegram groups, seeps through Twitter, colors the markets, and prompts darknet vendors to revise their listings. As news.Bitcoin.com reported last week, some DNM sellers have been capitalizing on the coronavirus through hiking prices, with one blaming Chinese precursor supply shortages for rising costs. Numerous vendors have taken efforts to convince customers that their drugs are packaged in a sanitary environment. “We [will] compensate for this crazy time worldwide,” writes one vendor. “Coronavirus and the bitcoin drop compensation,” they explain before offering a global deal on 300 grams of 72% pure speed. They also assure shoppers that they always wear gloves when packaging items, to assuage corona fears. Another DNM vendor on Empire Market has claimed that “ecstasy is for partying and Molly is for quarantining,” adding that “Molly is a great time when trying to chill at home because unlike the party feel you get from ecstasy, Molly gives a relaxing euphoria,” before proceeding to shill their wares. As for order delays, one Dread user insists that “Coronavirus [is] causing short staffing across the country, legitimate packages are taking longer atm, this ain’t DNM related.” There is evidence, however, that U.S. authorities are applying extra scrutiny to international packages arriving on account of coronavirus. “Our sources are usually incredibly reliable, but this month we have had a few very large packs disappear,” confesses one vendor. “Our theory is coronavirus.” Do you think darknet sales will replace street sales if the coronavirus pandemic gets worse? Do you think police are right to stop arresting drug offenders? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Did you know you can verify any unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction with our Bitcoin Block Explorer tool? Simply complete a Bitcoin address search to view it on the blockchain. Plus, visit our Bitcoin Charts to see what’s happening in the industry. The post Darknet Vendors Work Overtime as Police Halt Drug Arrests appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

While the cryptocurrency community deals with floundering market prices, the billion-dollar Kleiman v. Wright Lawsuit continues in Florida. On March 17, a court filing shows that the self-professed Bitcoin inventor Craig Wright has been ordered by the judge to pay $165,500 in attorney fees. U.S. magistrate Bruce Reinhart granted in part some of the legal fees the plaintiffs were asking for but denied the plaintiffs’ motion for the sum of $658,000. Also Read: Attorney Fees Stack up as Craig Wright Fights Court Order Judge Orders Craig Wright Must Pay $165K for the Plaintiffs’ Legal Fees For over a year now, Craig Wright, the man who claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto, has been battling in court against his former business partner’s family. The Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit started in February 2018 and the Kleiman estate is suing Wright for allegedly manipulating 1.1 million in BTC assets and intellectual property as well. On March 11, news.Bitcoin.com reported on the judge overruling a number of Wright’s recent court objections and ordered Wright to provide better testimony and documentation by the end of the week. The plaintiffs had various plans scheduled to depose a number of fact witnesses as well. However, the recent Covid-19 virus scare has made it so depositions need to be done by video conference. Documents must be filed by using a shared file and certain depositions may be rescheduled over international travel concerns. Despite Covid-19 slowing down the court system, Judge Bruce Reinhart decided to make his decision concerning the Kleiman estate’s plea for attorney fees worth over $658,000. Our newsdesk detailed on November 27 that Kleiman’s legal team was advancing a motion for legal fees and Judge Beth Bloom decided to have Judge Reinhart look over the request. The Kleimans’ motion was pursuing approximately $66,023 in expenses incurred during the compel process and roughly $592,558 in lawyer fees. On March 17, Judge Reinhart ruled: Based on the foregoing, plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees and costs is granted in part and denied in part. By March 30, 2020, defendant (Craig Wright) shall reimburse plaintiffs: $165,800. Reinhart Reviews Court Costs and Expert Presentations The recent order handed down by Judge Reinhart shows that he meticulously went over the plaintiffs’ attorney fee request and felt their estimate was far too high. The judge compared current lawyer costs, expert witness payments, and the charges assessed by Dr. Matthew Edman. The cryptography expert Dr. Edman was integral to the plaintiffs’ case against Wright and Judge Reinhart took note of his presentation at the contempt hearing. Edman provided the court with a supplemental affidavit that highlighted the documents Wright submitted to the court as evidence were likely “modified” and “backdated.” “I am aware that Dr. Edman’s assistance was vital to plaintiffs’ presentation at the contempt hearing, however, I agree that it is difficult to assess Dr. Edman’s fees because no information is provided regarding his hourly rate or how he spent his time,” Judge Reinhart ruled. “I find that $40,000 constitutes a reasonable expense for the expert fees associated with this contempt hearing.” The judge’s order has been trending on social media and forums since the filing was first published and the crypto community discussed Wright’s recent situation. “It’s an interesting order — I mean that is a pile of moolah, but the court whacked the rates and hours down quite a bit,” attorney Stephen Palley tweeted. Other people commented on how Wright got lucky he only had to pay for 20% of the original demand from the plaintiffs’ attorneys. Even though Wright has to fork over $165K by the end of the month, the billion-dollar lawsuit continues and the plaintiffs are still seeking $5.1 billion (before punitive or treble damages). What do you think about Judge Reinhart ordering Craig Wright to pay $165K by March 30? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Image credits: Shutterstock, Wiki Commons, Pixabay, Fair Use, and Google Images. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Billion-Dollar Bitcoin Lawsuit Continues – Craig Wright Ordered to Pay Legal Fees appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The entire world has been focused on the economy as the coronavirus outbreak has devastated global markets. While stocks, commodities, and barrels of oil plunge in value, there’s been considerable demand for cold hard cash in certain countries. According to reports, Wall Street’s elite has been trying to withdraw $30-50K per person as they flee the Hamptons. Moreover, various individuals across the U.S. are claiming financial institutions like Chase and Bank of America are restricting cash withdrawal amounts. Also read: Edward Snowden ‘Felt Like Buying Bitcoin’ While Traders Hunt for the Market Bottom US Banks Impose Withdrawal Restrictions as Customers Empty Accounts Demanding Hard Cash Cash is something everyone looks for during times of economic hardship and right now banks are struggling to provide liquidity. During Wednesday morning’s trading sessions, global stock markets and futures continue to lose ground. The price of oil has plummeted even further from last week and is at its lowest value per barrel in 17 years. The price of crude oil is hovering around $43 per barrel and Goldman Sachs predicts the price will drop to $20 per barrel soon. Oil prices have already begun to hurt people within the gas industry as 3,500 Halliburton employees from the North Belt facility in Houston have been laid off due to the price decline. While facing massive layoffs in industries like airlines, tourism, and construction, people are in search of hard cash to help hold them over through the economic storm. Chase is insolvent. Bank run. Proceeded to lie to me to go around outside the drive thru without my mask and she would give me the 5k promised earlier ($2k rationed per customer). I did so and they refused to give me it. Manager demanded I delete the video. $JPM $XLF pic.twitter.com/DOF6Gq6h6I — DONT TEST DONT TELL (@enchiridion47) March 17, 2020 News.Bitcoin.com reported on how in the Hamptons, New York’s elite have been going to banks and asking to withdraw large sums of cash. According to reports, banks like Chase, JPMorgan and Bank of America (BoA) have been limiting withdrawals. This is because the rich from New York have been asking for $30-50K withdrawals so banks have created a limit between $3-10K in some areas. During the market massacre on March 12, Manhattan Bank temporarily ran low on $100 bills after a large rush for cash. A BoA spokesperson told the public that there were only issues with large denominations and individuals are able to withdraw $20-50 notes. “We don’t keep large amounts of cash in big bills in the branches because it’s dangerous for our employees and there is low demand,” BoA stated. Bank of America is limiting cash withdrawals to $3,000. Expect that number to drop over the next few days. — Tatiana Koffman ⚡️ (@tatianakoffman) March 16, 2020 There are people complaining on social media about the withdrawal limits from certain banks in the U.S over the last few days. “Go to the bank today and ask to withdraw your entire balance,” one individual tweeted on March 17. “They are refusing to give out more than $5,000 — Even if your account has $20k. Even if your normal withdrawal limit is $10,000 daily.” On March 14, a person from New York tweeted: “Food chain is broken. Went to Stop & Shop [and] shelves are empty. Meats gone. No more eggs — [and] the bank would only permit a $2,500 limit per day withdrawal.” Another Twitter post shows a man visiting Chase bank and recording a video of a manager refusing to give him $5K. Moreover, the branch manager from Chase asked the person to delete the video. The man said: Chase is insolvent — Bank run. [The bank] proceeded to lie to me to go around outside the drive-thru without my mask and she would give me the $5K promised earlier ($2K rationed per customer). I did so and they refused to give me it — Manager demanded I delete the video. Starting from today I’ll start to withdraw cash amounts until I reach a buffer of 6 months for living expenses. Keep in mind that governments: – will discourage cash withdrawals – can ban the usage of cash payments All because they’re shit scared of an impending #bankrun — Mr. Backwards ® (@Coin_Shark) March 14, 2020 European Banks Shutter, German Banks Impose Withdrawal Restrictions, and Bank Runs from the Past The U.S. is not the only country that is having cash problems as European banks have shuttered hundreds of branches since the Covid-19 spread. For example, the financial institution HVB closed 101 branches across the EU. Reports detail that a few German banks are imposing withdrawal limits and customers can only withdraw 1,000 euros per visit. Ever since last Thursday’s stock market crash, people are reminded of the economic disasters in the past like 2008’s Financial Crisis, ‘Black Wednesday’ in 1992, and ‘Black Monday’ in 1987. Men and women line up in a run on a bank in New York City during the early 1900s. Depictions of bank runs can be seen in classic movies like Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life.” However, those crashes didn’t cause massive bank runs; the last time that happened was during the Wall Street crash in 1929. During the Great Depression throughout the early 1900s, the 20s and 30s, there was a massive run on savings and loan operations and financial institutions across the U.S. The economic crisis sparked by the coronavirus is causing these fears again. “Bank runs are starting in Colorado,” another man from the U.S. tweeted on March 17. “Smaller towns and small cities are not allowing walk-ins [or] anyone, along with limits on cash withdrawals.” How To Prevent A Bank Run During A Manufactured Crisis pic.twitter.com/K1ZMWRUK3l — Spiro (@o_rips) March 12, 2020 Bitmex Research: ‘Bitcoin Price May Shine in the Volatile Inflationary Aftermath’ In this crazy environment of financial calamity, people are uncertain where cryptocurrencies like BTC will stand. A blog post published on March 17 by Bitmex Research predicts high inflation from all of these events. Just like many crypto supporters, Bitmex researchers think that BTC will shine during the inflationary aftermath. “In such an economic environment, with high inflationary expectations, gold looks set to shine,” Bitmex wrote. “But what about Bitcoin? Bitcoin has crashed by almost 53% (peak to trough) in the 2020 Coronavirus crash, as investors raced to the U.S. Dollar. In many ways this was inevitable. Where the Bitcoin price may shine is in the volatile inflationary aftermath of the response to the crash.” The price of BTC on March 18, 2020, at 10:30 a.m. EST. At press time, BTC is hovering just above the $5K region but the asset’s value seems to be dragging downwards and flirting with sub-$5K. Even with prices so low, people believe the possibility of bank runs and significant cash liquidity issues will drive more people toward cryptocurrencies. “If you think bitcoin isn’t a safe haven asset, just wait until the bank runs begin,” BTC supporter ‘Bitcoin Bacon’ tweeted on Tuesday. The day prior another individual shared a picture of his stacks of $100 bills on Twitter and said: “Advice… just cleaned out one of my accounts to get liquid…bank runs will be here by next week.” What do you think about the economic carnage causing cash shortages and banks adding withdrawal limits? Do you think that cryptocurrencies like bitcoin will benefit from this financial calamity? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Cryptocurrency and global market prices referenced in this article were recorded on March 18, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, and Markets.Bitcoin.com. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post US Cash Crisis: Withdrawal Limits Spark Bank Run Fear appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Bitcoin cash users now have another venue to earn interest on their digital asset holdings. Binance has added support for BCH flexible deposits on its lending platform, alongside ETH and EOS. This development comes just as competition in the crypto lending field is heating up. Also Read: Binance Users in Turkey Can Now Deposit and Withdraw TRY via Akbank Integration Binance Adds Bitcoin Cash to Lending Platform Binance, the popular international cryptocurrency exchange with users from over 180 countries and regions, has announced the expansion of an interest bearing service to its users who hold three additional top cryptos including bitcoin cash. Binance Lending has now added ETH, BCH and EOS to the list of supported digital assets for flexible deposits. These join only BTC, BNB and two stablecoins which were available before. Lending is a financial product that the exchange provides to its users to lend their idle crypto assets on the platform to Binance Margin, and earn interest for it. Flexible deposits is like a savings account for crypto, with the flexibility to redeem funds without a long term commitment and the simplicity of getting daily interest while margin traders are using your funds. The individual maximum limit for bitcoin cash on Binance Lending was set to 1,000,000 BCH but the company says it will adjust interest rates and maximum individual limits on flexible deposits based on market and risk factors. From the point of view of the users that can afford to lend such an amount, the risks of holding any large amount on an exchange should also be considered. Binance is always pretty quick to add support for bitcoin cash to new services it launches after an initial testing phase. In October 2019 it launched BCH trading on the decentralized exchange developed on top of Binance Chain, achieved by listing a token on the DEX which is backed by real bitcoin cash assets. In December 2019 the company also launched BCH/USDT futures contracts with up to 75x leverage on its Binance Futures trading platform. Bitcoin cash was only the third digital asset made available on Binance’s futures trading platform, strengthening its position in the crypto derivatives market. Cryptocurrency Lending Race Is Heating Up The business of lending and borrowing cryptocurrencies, which was previously the domain of specialized ventures, has attracted a lot of attention from new companies such as retail exchanges and wallets. On March 10, Blockchain.com launched Borrow, a product offering retail users USD-pegged stablecoins against crypto assets held in their wallets. This lending service was made available to users in more than 180 countries. The company also said it will be offering retail users access to the same liquidity pool as institutional investors. On March 5, custody service provider Bitgo announced that it has begun offering institutional digital asset lending services after a few months of private beta. The lending service was said to be built by a Wall Street team that understands institutional investors’ needs. That same day, Chinese crypto lending company Babel Finance also provided its outlook on the market in 2020, and noted that “The lending market is increasingly crowded because of the horizontal development strategy adopted by various crypto finance players.” Still, the company’s outstanding loan balance broke a new record high this year, reaching $380 million on February 18, 2020. What do you think about Binance Lending adding BCH, EOS and ETH to flexible deposits? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post Binance Lending Adds Bitcoin Cash to Flexible Deposits Letting Users Earn Interest on BCH appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The government of India has informed Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, about the Ministry of Corporate Affairs’ inspection of cryptocurrency businesses. Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Singh Thakur provided details of two companies in particular. This follows the landmark ruling by the country’s supreme court which quashed the banking ban imposed by the central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Also read: Bitcoin Legal in India — Exchanges Resume INR Banking Service After Supreme Court Verdict Allows Cryptocurrency Ministry of Corporate Affairs Inspects Bitcoin Companies Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Shri Anurag Singh Thakur answered several questions in Lok Sabha on Monday regarding the government’s inspection of bitcoin companies. He specifically mentioned two crypto businesses: Zeb IT Services Ltd. and Unocoin Technologies Ltd. According to Lok Sabha’s record, the questions concern “fraud by bitcoin companies.” Particularly, Thakur was asked about companies dealing in bitcoin that “are repeatedly violating rules laid out by the Corporate Affairs Ministry by not filing annual balance sheets.” In his written answer to Lok Sabha, Thakur explained: “Bitcoin companies are not defined under the Companies Act. However, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has conducted inspection through Registrar of Companies (RoC), Ahmedabad, in the matter of Zeb IT Services Private Limited to examine the aspect with regard to dealing in bitcoins.” He elaborated: Based on the findings, prosecutions have been filed for violations under various provisions of the Companies Act and the same also have been concluded on payment of penalty on the compounding application(s) filed by the company. Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Shri Anurag Singh Thakur told Lok Sabha about an inspection of cryptocurrency companies, mentioning Zeb IT Services and Unocoin Technologies. Furthermore, the minister clarified that Zeb IT Services has filed its balance sheet and relevant annual return as of March 31, 2019, adding that the company is under liquidation. He also revealed that there is another bitcoin company registered with the Registrar of Companies in Karnataka. Unocoin Technologies Private Limited “is in the business of developing online market platform to facilitate and conduct buy, sell, store, and accept bitcoins,” Thakur told Lok Sabha. He proceeded to confirm that this company “is up to date in filing statutory returns and no complaint has been received.” While India still does not have laws to directly regulate the crypto industry, experts have suggested that the Companies Act can be used to indirectly regulate cryptocurrency businesses. Many crypto companies, however, are registered outside of India. Zeb IT Services operated crypto exchange Zebpay which shut down its Indian operations in September 2018 after the RBI banned banks from providing services to crypto businesses. The company subsequently moved overseas. Zebpay relaunched in India earlier this month with new management. It is now operated by Awlencan Innovations Australia Ltd., a company located in Camberwell, a suburb of Melbourne. The inspection of Zeb IT Services dates back to 2018. In July that year, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs was asked similar questions in Lok Sabha. In his reply, then Minister of State for Law and Justice and Corporate Affairs, Shri P. P. Chaudhary, explained that regarding this company, “the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has, vide order dated 15/3/2018, ordered inspection of books of accounts … to examine inter alia the aspect of dealing in bitcoin.” India’s cryptocurrency industry is growing rapidly after the supreme court lifted the RBI ban despite the bear market and the coronavirus scare. Indian Crypto Sector Rebuilding Post Supreme Court Verdict The Indian crypto industry has seen many changes so far this year. On March 4, the supreme court quashed the RBI’s April 2018 circular that banned regulated financial institutions from dealing in cryptocurrency. The court ruled that this circular was unconstitutional. Following the supreme court verdict, cryptocurrency exchanges in India resumed INR services. However, some major banks — including HDFC and Indusind Bank — still refuse to open accounts for crypto businesses as they are waiting for the RBI to provide further instructions regarding the banking ban. HDFC is India’s largest bank by market capitalization. The RBI is reportedly planning to file a review petition with the supreme court on the grounds that the anonymous nature of cryptocurrency poses a threat to India’s banking system. The central bank has until April 3 to do so. Meanwhile, more global companies have started expanding their operations into India. Do you think the Indian government has warmed up to cryptocurrency after the supreme court verdict? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, the Deccan Herald, and Anurag Thakur. Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here. The post Indian Government Reveals Inspection of Bitcoin Businesses, Informs Parliament of Results appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Hodling in difficult times has historically proven to be a long-term winning strategy. Keeping your cryptocurrency in your own cold storage is by default a good idea as far as security is concerned. But if you don’t trust yourself to not lose a small hardware device or a piece of paper, then there are alternatives that involve trusting others, for good or bad. Also read: An In-Depth Look at the Multi-Currency Cold Storage Card Ballet Bunker in the Alps Sounds Like a Good Option Companies providing vault storage services for crypto assets gained prominence a couple of years ago, following the Bitcoin boom that brought many new investors into the space. A few of them have already established themselves as reliable platforms for crypto storage. Hong Kong-headquartered bitcoin wallet and cold storage provider Xapo is a good example. In the spring of 2018, it was revealed that the company held an estimated 6.25% of BTC’s almost $160 billion market capitalization at the time, or more than 1,000,000 BTC. Xapo, founded by Argentine entrepreneur Wences Casares, attracted media attention with its focus on building ultra-secure facilities for cryptocurrency storage. The company had reportedly built a network of underground vaults on five continents, most notably one in a decommissioned military bunker in Switzerland, where clients’ private keys are kept on encrypted drives behind steel doors designed to withstand a nuclear blast and guarded by security personnel and systems. Even owners would need a couple of days to get access to their money. In August 2019, U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase bought Xapo’s institutional businesses. Announcing the acquisition, the trading platform revealed that its Coinbase Custody subsidiary had grown to over $7 billion in assets under custody in just over a year since its launch in July 2018. The funds are stored on behalf of more than 120 clients in 14 countries, the company detailed. Coinbase acknowledged Xapo’s expertise in security techniques. Its custody arm now serves hedge funds, family offices, endowments, and proprietary trading desks, supporting major cryptocurrencies like BTC, ETH and XRP. The assets are insured by global leaders such as Lloyd’s of London. Switzerland a Magnet for Crypto Riches With its crypto-friendly regulations, Switzerland is very attractive for companies operating with cryptocurrencies and over 800 of them are based or represented in the country, including providers and developers of crypto custody solutions. Another company working in the niche, California-based Bitgo, announced in February the establishment of new custodial entities in Switzerland and Germany, which introduced a licensing regime for crypto custodians. The Swiss subsidiary is based in Zug, epicenter of the Alpine nation’s Crypto Valley. Both firms are regulated in their respective jurisdictions and will address increased European demand. Bitgo is a major player with global presence in the market for institutional grade security solutions for blockchain-based currencies. Its Bitgo Custody platform employs a multi-signature system to secure your digital assets including security tokens. It supports a total of more than 100 coins and tokens that can be held with the Bitgo Trust Company, a qualified custodian and liquidity provider, in a cold storage bank-grade vault. The service implements various controls including multiple approvals, spending limits, and whitelists, Bitgo’s website explains. The company’s $100 million insurance policy covers crypto assets when the private keys are held exclusively by Bitgo Trust Company or Bitgo Inc., in the event of third-party hacks, copying, theft or loss of private keys, insider theft or dishonest acts by Bitgo employees or executives. Bitcoin Suisse is a Zug-based company specializing in crypto-financial services offering cold storage for digital assets. The Bitcoin Suisse Vault has been built to provide institutional-grade and fully audited crypto asset custody. The platform caters to the specific needs of its clients allowing them to customize the multi-signing process and define who can view and withdraw the stored assets. Besides corporate users such as financial service providers and institutional investors, private investors can also use it to store a list of cryptocurrencies including BTC, BCH, ETH, XRP, LTC as well as ERC20/223 tokens. Bitcoin Suisse Vault is based on a solution developed by Swiss Crypto Vault AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bitcoin Suisse AG. Clients can deposit funds into the Swiss Crypto Vault by sending the coins to a unique public address, and their holdings are never mixed with assets belonging to others. Withdrawals are initiated by filing a request through the online portal which has to be verified independently by the user, Swiss Crypto Vault and Bitcoin Suisse before its execution, which can still be canceled by controllers appointed by the client. Before a transaction can be broadcasted to the blockchain, it must also get the green light from approvers, again chosen by the account holder. More Providers Working on Storage Solutions Other companies are developing their own safe storage solutions for cryptocurrencies. Metaco’s institutional custody platform, Silo, implements a hot-to-cold digital asset management technology. It’s a solution that integrates both software and hardware elements. It’s designed for banks which need a self-custody infrastructure that gives them control over their custodial activities. Silo was announced in January 2018 and has been developed together with data security agency Guardtime. It’s used by platforms such as Swiss Crypto Exchange (SCX). Metaco is now preparing to launch Cargo, a regulated service for smaller institutions looking for external digital asset storage. Traditional financial institutions venturing into the crypto space are also working to offer custodial services. Last year, Arab Bank (Switzerland) joined forces with the blockchain company Taurus to provide its customers with custody and brokerage for their crypto holdings. Taurus is also helping Bank Vontobel to operate a digital asset vault allowing institutional investors to store and trade cryptocurrencies outside their balance sheets. Falcon Private Bank and digital trading platform Swissquote provide custodial solutions to investors interested in token sales through partnerships in the crypto industry. In January, Swiss bank Julius Baer teamed up with licensed crypto bank SEBA to offer storage for digital assets, and Liechtenstein’s blockchain banking provider Bank Frick introduced support for bitcoin cash (BCH) to its storage solutions. Would you use crypto custody services to store the coins you want to hodl? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Do you need a reliable bitcoin mobile wallet to send, receive, and store your coins? Download one for free from us and then head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can quickly buy bitcoin with a credit card. The post If You Don’t Trust Yourself, These Crypto Vaults Will Help You Hodl Safely appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Since March 12, the Makerdao community has been struggling with the stablecoin DAI which has been over $4 million undercollaterized since the crypto market carnage started. On March 18, the developers plan to auction newly minted maker (MKR) tokens in order to remove the outstanding debt. However, the auction might not be enough and the Makerdao community is debating on adding the stablecoin USDC as collateral. Also read: ETH Price Strains Defi Collateral Loans as ‘Black Swan’ Event Strikes Makerdao Makerdao Community Debates Adding USDC for Collateral The price of ethereum (ETH) has lost more than 40% in fiat value during the last week. News.Bitcoin.com reported on how the decentralized finance (defi) community watched Makerdao’s significant issues which resulted in over $4 million in DAI undercollateralized. Because the project uses ethereum (ETH) as collateral, the combined effects of the price of ETH falling and oracle discrepancies hurt the project’s collateralized loans. The price of ethereum (ETH) has slid over 40% downwards since March 12, 2020. This has caused more than $4 million worth of loans to be undercollaterized. To tackle the issues, Makerdao developers revealed they would be auctioning newly issued MKR to remove the debts incurred by the market bloodbath. The auctioning of new MKR is described in the project’s whitepaper as a method that can be used to stave off undercollateralized positions. However, in the eyes of a few MKR leaders, the auction to mitigate DAI liquidity risk in an uncertain market might not be enough. According to a recently published community forum post, the team is debating whether they should use the stablecoin USDC as collateral. Basically a stablecoin to make sure the other stablecoin holds its peg. “Given the ongoing liquidity risk of DAI in an uncertain market, both the community and members of the Maker Foundation have been making noise in the official chat about onboarding USDC as collateral as an emergency measure to help mitigate this liquidity risk,” explains a post written by the MKR forum user Longforwisdom. “Naturally this would need to be confirmed by governance, and go through an executive vote, but at this stage, the Foundation is making the technical preparations to make this possible.” ‘A Band-Aid to a Deeper Underlying Liquidity Problem’ Longforwisdom also lists a number of pros and cons that would apply to the project if they leveraged USDC for collateral. A few positive examples include helping to “create DAI liquidity and push the DAI peg back towards $1,” that would “[allow] vault holders to close their vaults without eating the loss,” and it could bolster “FLIP [and] FLOP auctions.” Negatives to adding USDC would be things like “reducing the ‘purity’ of DAI,” “[it] comes with regulatory risk,” and a “‘blacklist’ risk” as well. If Makerdao was to add USDC they would need to address the stability fee, liquidation ratio, debt ceiling, and possibly getting away without using oracles, Longforwisdom underscored. “I think it’s a good idea to add USDC as collateral, to enable liquidity to be added to the market for emergencies,” the forum user Jiecart responded. “Currently DAI is trading >1.07, there’s a lot of demand for DAI liquidity.” “To me, it sounds like a band-aid to a deeper underlying liquidity problem which ought to be solved with careful consideration,” MKR community member Aeno wrote. The Makerdao supporter added: As to the USDC proposal itself, there are new economical risk that can sneak in with such a solution and mixing it with an otherwise decentralized system … Lastly, I echo the sentiment that I am in this project for its pure decentralized nature and would not want to see it becoming inter-mixed with USDC. If it were, I would rather just want to stick with USDC altogether. The Coinbase and Circle Financial backed stablecoin USDC has seen enormous growth since the market carnage on ‘Black Thursday.’ “USDC surging in market demand over the past days, reaching new ATH at $568M in circulation,” Circle cofounder Jeremy Allaire tweeted on March 14. At the time of publication, single collateral DAI is struggling to keep balance and is showing liquidity issues. The price per DAI is around $1.03 per token right now and the stablecoin has been fluctuating wildly since March 12. Sometimes a DAI can be less than $1 and other times it will trade for a few cents above like it is today. If the price of ethereum drops even further then the millions worth of ETH currently held in collateral will be liquidated. Meanwhile, the stablecoin USDC has seen significant growth since the crypto market dipped last Thursday. What do you think about the Makerdao community members discussing whether or not they want to include the stablecoin USDC as collateral? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Cryptocurrency prices referenced in this article were recorded on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, coinmarketcap.com, Markets.Bitcoin.com, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, Makerdao Logo, DAI logo, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Devs Debate Using USDC for Collateral After DAI Stablecoin Faces Liquidity Issues appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

These days, it’s taken as a given that KYC must be endured to trade cryptos on centralized exchanges. In fact, there are still dozens of exchanges you can access without having to risk your personal documents and identity. The following guide examines six such platforms, and considers precautions you should take when using KYC-less crypto exchanges. Also read: BTC Hashrate Follows Price Drop – 20% Lower Before Bitcoin Halving Keep Your Privacy, Swap Your Crypto Know Your Customer (KYC) legislation requires businesses to verify the identity of individuals using their service, particularly where the transmission of money is involved. This includes virtual currencies. As a result, the majority of crypto exchanges now enforce KYC. However, it is not mandatory to use a KYC exchange (also referred to as “surveillance exchanges” by their detractors) to trade. A number of exchanges legally operate in jurisdictions that do not mandate KYC, or have no official headquarters, placing them in a grey area in terms of legal obligations. Generally speaking, KYC exchanges that are fully regulated offer better protections for their customers, and there may be greater redress in the event of something going wrong, such as a hack. However, this does not mean that KYC-free exchanges are less trustworthy; it is the duty of each trader to perform their due diligence and choose a reputable exchange. It is not the case that only shadowy individuals seek KYC-less exchanges, such as for tax evasion or criminal purposes. In fact, many traders flock to these platforms because they recognize that KYC requirements make everyone less safe through creating a honeypot for hackers. If you value your privacy, and wish to keep your personal details out of the reach of busybodies and criminals, it makes sense to seek platforms where you can exercise your right to trade cryptocurrencies in peace. Here are six exchanges that fit the bill. Nominex Low fees, a fast trading engine and advanced bidding tools are among the features that Nominex flaunts. Up to 3 BTC a day can be deposited and withdrawn without requiring KYC. The Seychelles-based exchange (registered in the same locale as Bitmex) operates a popular affiliate program, offers demo accounts for traders finding their feet, and is about to launch daily trading tournaments. Stop, Stop Limit, Trailing Stop, and Scaled are among the order types that can be placed on Nominex. There’s 24-hour customer support and trading fees are reduced by 50% for holders of the native NMX token. Bybit Bybit is a popular derivatives exchange that could become a lot more popular if Bitmex introduces KYC, as has been rumored. Founded in Singapore, Bybit doesn’t require KYC, although U.S. residents are excluded from trading. Its most popular product is its BTC-USD perpetual swap, although Bybit also offers futures for XRP, EOS, and ETH. Bybit features a clean and intuitive layout and good customer support that operates around the clock and in multiple languages. One of the best things about Bybit is its guides to margin trading. These help traders learn the terms, tricks and tips required to effectively swap derivatives products. There’s a Bybit mobile app available on the iOS and Google Play stores, while regular trading competitions keep things fresh. Binance The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange is also a bastion of KYC-less trading. There are some caveats though. For one thing, U.S. citizens must trade on Binance US, which comes with KYC. Moreover, there are signs that Binance may transition to full KYC at some stage as it’s compelled to comply with the numerous jurisdictions where it operates. For now, though, spot trading can be accessed without requiring KYC, and you can withdraw up to 2 BTC per day. For margin trading, however, as well as various other Binance products, KYC is required. Bitmax Bitmax is a popular altcoin exchange that’s carved out a niche since launching in 2018. There’s reasonable liquidity, margin trading, a wide range of coins listed, and a native BTMX token that provides discounted trading fees and other benefits. The exchange holds regular airdrops and allows users to earn USDT for lending BTMX. Fiat deposits can be made with credit or debit card and there’s no KYC requirement, with a 2 BTC daily withdrawal limit. Kucoin Many exchanges operate partial KYC, Kucoin among them. What this means is that most traders will not be required to complete verification unless there is suspicious activity or in the case of them wishing to exceed the 2 BTC daily trading limit. Like leading exchanges Binance and Huboi, Kucoin has transitioned into a crypto company that offers a broad range of services, operating under various subdivisions. Although the liquidity could be better, Kucoin has a lot of things in its favor. It’s easy to use for one thing and lists a number of tokens that aren’t available on major exchanges. Bitcoin.com Exchange There’s a lot more to exchange.Bitcoin.com than merely the ability to sign up without undergoing KYC. BCH trading pairs, SLP tokens, and useful assets that aren’t available on other platforms are among its many attributes. There’s also the strength of the Bitcoin.com brand, which gives the exchange greater credibility than some of the other KYC-less platforms on the market. The clean and intuitive interface is free of clutter, and there’s a community feel to Bitcoin.com Exchange, which is particularly popular with BCH proponents. DYOR and Don’t Leave All Your Crypto on Exchanges It’s important to do your own research before signing up for a cryptocurrency exchange. Read reviews, check its policies on accessing the platform from different countries, and determine the quality of its customer support. Finally, and this applies to using all centralized exchanges, regardless of KYC, don’t leave all your crypto on there. Only deposit what you actively need for trading purposes and keep the rest of your stack in a noncustodial wallet. Trade safe, be smart, and keep your identity private by avoiding surveillance exchanges. What KYC-free exchanges do you recommend? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Did you know you can verify any unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction with our Bitcoin Block Explorer tool? Simply complete a Bitcoin address search to view it on the blockchain. Plus, visit our Bitcoin Charts to see what’s happening in the industry. The post 6 Cryptocurrency Exchanges That Don’t Require KYC appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

After bitcoin prices dropped below the $5K region on Monday morning, gold also slid significantly. It saw a small spike in value after the Federal Reserve announced slashing the benchmark rate by 100 bps, but gold prices subsequently dropped below $1,500 per ounce hours later. The current sentiment has led people to question why gold hasn’t been a safe haven during the economic crisis. However, patterns from history and statements from analysts today indicate that central banks are offloading gold reserves in order to keep the economy afloat. Also read: Edward Snowden ‘Felt Like Buying Bitcoin’ While Traders Hunt for the Market Bottom Analysts Speculate Central Banks Are Offloading Gold Reserves Gold bug Peter Schiff has had a bone to pick with bitcoin lately as he’s taken the opportunity to remind everyone that the cryptocurrency is not a safe haven. Even though digital assets have seen a significant decline in fiat value, gold prices have been soft as well, losing considerable value during the last week. Since March 12, gold’s spot price per troy ounce lost around 6.2% when it was $1,574 and at press time the price is roughly $1,476 per ounce. Gold bug and economist Peter Schiff thinks the crisis will spark a rush toward gold. However analysts like Price Futures Group’s Phil Flynn say that investors are “scared” and there’s also speculation that central banks are offloading gold reserves. Schiff’s own news publication noted yesterday that central bank gold purchases have slowed significantly and January’s central bank gold purchases were 57% lower than the year prior. Gold’s value jumped right after the Fed dropped the interest rate to 0% and cryptocurrencies like bitcoin followed the same pattern. But by Monday morning, both gold and digital currencies saw more losses and dropped below the support levels seen the day before. Since then, various gold news outlets have been reporting that market participants are being cautious about buying into a falling knife situation with gold. Additionally, speculators and analysts suspect that central banks are dumping their gold reserves to save their economies. On March 16, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group Phil Flynn noted there might be a small gold spike but investors were shaken by the market rout. “If there is any support coming into the [stock] market, there might be a bid [in gold]. But right now, people are running scared, so they’re afraid to step in,” Flynn told Kitco news. Flynn also told the news outlet there’s speculation that central banks are offloading their gold. The analyst believes “central banks will have to sell some of their gold reserves.” A number of hardcore gold bugs like Peter Schiff won’t tell you that central banks did the same thing throughout 2007 and 2008. Back when the Fed bailed out the corporate bank Bear Stearns, gold spot prices jumped considerably over $1,000 per troy ounce. Precious metal proponents at the time would have told you the sky was falling and that everyone should move their money into gold. But instead, central banks offloaded their gold reserves through the monetary easing process using bullion banks. On Twitter, Peter Schiff has taken every opportunity he can to bash bitcoin and cryptocurrencies during the market rout. Gold Was Supposed to Be a Safe Haven After the 2007 Bear Stearns Emergency Bailout, But Central Banks Dumped Gold to Provide Liquidity Gold dropped to a low of $730 per troy ounce and at the year’s end it did rise to $870 an ounce. But the asset lost roughly 13% after a great number of investors were told that gold would see a ridiculous bull run after the Bear Stearns bailout. Most people do not realize that quantitative easing (QE) policy can stretch its tentacles into gold markets. QE represents large scale asset purchases and when Bloomberg or the Wall Street Journal publish stories on this matter they only report on Treasury and securities purchases. Gold wasn’t a safe haven in 2007 through 2008 after Bear Stearns needed an emergency bailout. Central banks and bullion banks flooded the gold market and people who flew to the asset’s safety after the Bear Stearns collapse lost 13% by the end of 2007. Central banks also use overnight repo markets to acquire predetermined amounts of government bonds, but central banks like the Fed can do the same thing, but with bullion banks using gold liquidity. So in 2007 and 2008 when the economy was on the brink of collapse people wondered why gold wasn’t a great safe haven. This was because the Fed and various other central banks leased their gold reserves to bullion banks which then found its way into spot and futures markets causing a price decline or oversaturated market. Gold may be a long term safe haven but during times of economic hardships, central banks flood the market with their hoarded gold reserves. Central Bank Gold Hoarding in 2019 Touched a 50-Year High – New York’s Elite Demand Cold Hard Cash Bitcoin participants do have to worry about early investors dumping large amounts of coins and cryptos being sold on the market that stem from hacked exchanges. This is definitely a concern for bitcoin holders but it’s not nearly as problematic as the world’s central banks offloading their gold reserves. The cryptocurrency market cap did lose a considerable amount of value during the last week but the 6.2% decline in the gold market was significantly larger by a long shot. Comparatively to gold’s market cap of $3-9 trillion, the market carnage (negative 6.2%) was much worse compared to what happened with bitcoin prices. Estimates say that the gold market worldwide is around $3-9 trillion so if the cryptoconomy was hit as hard as gold, the entire coin market cap would be wiped clean. Further, the history of central banks selling gold in 2007 and 2008, plus the speculation from analysts like Phil Flynn, shows that gold might not be the best safe haven asset during the current economic crisis. What’s even more frightening for gold investors is the fact that central bank gold hoarding worldwide touched a 50-year high in 2019. Central banks worldwide purchased massive amounts of gold last year. They can and have flooded the market in the past in order to help save their economies. At the moment banks are facing a crisis and will need to attend to dollar liquidity as cash is being depleted. An example of this issue can be seen in New York where the coronavirus outbreak is much worse than most areas in America. In the Hamptons, where hedge fund managers and Wall Street’s elite own summer homes, there’s great demand for cold hard cash right now. Reports note issues with ATMs and certain banks like Chase and Bank of America have been limiting withdrawals to $5-10K amounts. This is because New York’s affluent members are demanding cash withdrawals between $30-50K. Demand for cold hard cash can be seen right now during the coronavirus outbreak scare as hedge fund managers and Wall Street’s elite have been demanding large sums of cash. Because the rich in the Hamptons seek $30-50K withdrawals, banks like Chase and Bank of America have limited cash withdrawals to $5-10K per person. The last time banks faced a crisis was when the subprime mortgage disaster made banks realize they had little collateral so they begged the Fed for emergency funds. But it was far too much for the Fed and the current interbank market system, so they resorted to solutions like leasing gold so private banks could acquire USD liquidity. The patterns of the past indicate that gold might not be the safe haven answer to the current economic hardship. Even Peter Schiff’s news publication schiffgold.com reported on March 16 that central bank gold purchasing was high in January 2020, but “the rate of purchases slowed somewhat.” And even January’s net gold purchases by central banking authorities that month “represented a 57% decline year-on-year.” Central banks do buy lots of gold, but they offload it and saturate the markets whenever they want as well. What do you think about gold prices during the current economic situation? Do you think gold will be a good safe haven? Or do you think gold prices will follow a similar pattern with banks over-saturating the market with bullion? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Cryptocurrency and gold prices referenced in this article were recorded on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, Kitco, Goldrepublic, Wolf of Wall Street, Bloomberg Intelligence, Markets.Bitcoin.com, Goldprice.org, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, Twitter, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Analysts Question Gold’s Safe Haven Status – 2008 Data Shows Central Banks Oversaturated Bullion Markets appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A recent headline on Micky — an iconoclastic media outlet that focuses on cryptocurrency — read “Crypto Twitterstorm: ‘Creepy sexist trolling’ or just a funny meme?” The article explained, “A post making fun of Blockstream’s Samson Mow has sparked a Twitterstorm over accusations of misogyny. Was it funny or just ‘sexist garbage’?” Also read: Rumors of Bitcoin’s Death Are Greatly Exaggerated Is Crypto Sexist? The meme juxtaposed a photo of Mow embracing a Transformers toy box with an image of his romantic partner posing in gym clothes with an over-muscled male. The post was in bad taste, I believe, but it was far more anti-Mow and anti-male than sexist. The people involved in the Twitterstorm, including Mow, may or may not be sexists themselves. I don’t know. Discrimination against women is a common accusation hurled at males in crypto, however. Here is what I do know. Everyone is equal on the blockchain; women, men, children, gays, transgendered people—all are equal. No gatekeeper slams a door shut because of a user’s race or any other secondary characteristic. Bitcoin is a protocol without prejudice or bias, with the only barriers to entry being the acquisition of knowledge and the access to a computer. In the flesh, the crypto community can be prone to the social insensitivity that comes from interacting more with technology than with people, but this is not discrimination; it is awkwardness. What seems to matter most to crypto zealots are characteristics such as competence and a willingness to learn. Contrast this with traditional payment systems for which politicians, bankers, and bureaucrats make all the rules, with entry being on their terms. Nevertheless, when crypto users interact off the blockchain, they are often greeted by accusations of sexism—that is, they are accused if they are male. The main reason given is that there are fewer women than men within the community. This is especially obvious at conferences where women are conspicuously in the minority both as attendees and speakers. Since attendance is open to all, however, it is not clear why men are blamed for this imbalance rather than non-attending women. Or whether blame is appropriate at all. This is the moment at which I am supposed to pause and acknowledge the severity of the issue. I won’t. It is true: If the crypto community wants to thrive, then it should try to attract as many diverse people of goodwill as possible. But no one in crypto has a personal responsibility to mentor or encourage anyone else, and being awkward or indifferent does not make someone a sexist. A Closer Look at the Crypto Community Imbalance The first question to ask about the woman “problem” in crypto is “how real is it?” No one really knows, partly because so much anonymity still surrounds crypto. The literature suggests that the ratio between men and women is probably 5-1, with nearly 13 million women holding crypto in the United States alone. This ratio may reflect a lesser interest in technology on the part of women. According to Statista, “female employees make up between 28 percent (Microsoft) and 42 percent (Amazon) of the total workforce at America’s largest tech companies … Looking at actual tech jobs, that percentage drops much lower, as women take up fewer than 1 in 4 technical roles at each of the companies reporting such a figure”. Whether or not these figures are accurate, the number of women in crypto has clearly increased, and substantially so, which means this “problem” could self-solve. But what if men always outnumber women, and significantly so? Would this matter? One of the main reasons the alleged discrimination has become a hot button issue is because there is a power struggle in our society that is far broader than the crypto community. These are the glory days of social justice — a political ideology that calls for the forcible distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society, especially favoring women and minorities. Today, the worst insult to throw at a person or an organization is “sexist” or “racist”. The main power of social justice warriors lies in such words and in the self-righteousness with which they are spoken. The word “sexist” gives a speaker power over an accused who often falls over himself to prove his innocence. Or he is silenced. In short, the accusations are often a power play that creates a problem. Of course, many people are sincere in their accusations because they believe there is only one explanation for the asymmetry in gender numbers: discrimination against women. They are so passionately committed to this specific conclusion that merely arguing against it is viewed as discriminatory. They rush to boost the profile of females through dynamics like “all women” panels at conferences. In a sad irony, such panels often increase the focus on gender dissent and differences rather than diffuse it through integration and goodwill. Connie Gallippi of BitGive suggested a better method of promoting women. Frustrated by how few of them spoke at conferences and on panels, she compiled a list of highly qualified women and provided it to organizers. Both sides benefited. Both sides made progress without setting off fireworks. Another positive suggestion to women: stop disparaging an entire community with hateful name calling. If the true goal is to encourage respect between the sexes, then this tactic moves in the opposite direction. Start dealing with prejudiced individuals on a one-on-one basis by standing up for yourselves, firmly and without rage. This is the approach that adults take. Moving Forward in Equality Questions remain. If there is no systemic sexism within the crypto community, what explains the lack of women? And is it a problem that needs to be solved? The article “Crypto-Patriarchy: The problem of Bitcoin’s male domination” by Brett Scott offered a standard social justice explanation. “This is due to our society having a lingering, systematic male bias built upon hundreds of years in which men have had the most access to job opportunities, educational opportunities, political rights, and (perhaps most importantly) cultural encouragement to actually seek those positions.” In short, Bitcoin is said to continue a narrative of oppression against women. But Scott’s explanation does not apply to the 21st century, which is the century of crypto. In the last 50 years, the status of women has improved tremendously while that of men has declined. Western societies today are culturally biased in favor of women. Just one example: Female students far outnumber males at American universities. The Atlantic observed, “Where men once went to college in proportions far higher than women — 58 percent to 42 percent as recently as the 1970s — the ratio has now almost exactly reversed.” The “solution” is not a quota system or preferential treatment for either gender; in fact, quota systems are a large part of the problem. The solution is to let individuals choose and not to artificially block their choices. Crypto allows individuals — both men and women — to choose their own path, regardless of differences. As a purely practical matter, however, it is intriguing to wonder about the gender disparity in crypto. Many things other than discrimination could explain it. Women may be less interested than men in crypto just as they seem less interested — as a rough generalization — in technology or science. If so, this does not reflect on women’s intelligence any more than a lack of interest in becoming a librarian reflects badly on men’s. Biological differences or cultural ones could play a part but, again, this doesn’t equate to discrimination. Or, men may dominate the upper crust of crypto for no other reason than they were there first. They created and developed crypto, which means they assumed the costs of doing so in terms of time and reputation. They shouldered the risks. Who else should benefit most and longest? But, again, this may be self-correcting as more women enter the community. Women who deride the community because they are not sufficiently or correctly “welcomed” into it may also be reflecting their own sexist bias. Academia and much of society preaches that there is an omnipresent and overwhelming patriarchy — that is, a system by which white males oppress everyone else. This political conclusion has immense personal implications. It makes women afraid of men and angry toward them. Aggrieved males feel anger in return, and they will tend to avoid any association with their accusers. This is the wrong way to build community; it is the stuff of schisms and power plays. Women want respect and acknowledgement, and any person who treats others well deserves it. You get what you give, however. If Gallippi had offered fury rather than a useful solution for promoting women speakers, she might have ended up on an all-woman panel dissing the very community at whose door they were all knocking for entry. Op-ed disclaimer: This is an Op-ed article. The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the Op-ed article. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the content. 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 information in this Op-ed article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The Local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here. The post How Many Women Users Before Crypto Is Not Sexist? appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Splinterlands is one of the most popular collectible trading card games in the cryptocurrency scene and a successful decentralized app. To help the game attract more players, and introduce them to bitcoin cash at the same time, Bitcoin.com Exchange will be sponsoring a number of upcoming Splinterlands tournaments. Also Read: Pirate Chain Coin Now Available for Trading on Bitcoin.com Exchange Bitcoin.com Exchange to Sponsor Splinterlands Tournaments The team behind the collectible card game Splinterlands (formerly known as Steem Monsters) has announced on Monday that Bitcoin.com Exchange will be sponsoring the rewards for its next two ranked play seasons. The cryptocurrency trading platform will be sponsoring a total of eight tournaments over the course of the next month with a total of $1,000 in prizes. The tournaments will start on Saturday, March 21, 2020 and two will be taking place each weekend for four weekends. The tournament prizes will be paid out in bitcoin cash (BCH), and all entrants will be required to link a BCH wallet address to their in-game account before they can enter these Bitcoin.com Exchange sponsored events. “Splinterlands is extremely excited to have Bitcoin.com Exchange – one of the most well known and trusted brands in the cryptocurrency space – on board as a sponsor,” the team stated. “We expect this partnership to greatly benefit the users of both platforms and we’re looking forward to more opportunities to work together in the future.” Splinterlands.com Bitcoin.com Exchange was launched in early September 2019 as an easy-to-use platform with world-class security and a powerful trading engine. The platform employs institutional-grade encryption, two-factor authentication (2FA) and IP whitelisting to keep user accounts secure at all times. Available digital assets include ADA, ATOM, BCH, BTC, EOS, ETC, ETH, LTC, ONT, TRX, USDT, WAVES, XLM and XRP. Games Are Great Applications for Crypto Digital collectible card games such as Blizzard’s Hearthstone are wildly popular all around the world and bringing in billions in revenue each year according to gaming industry analysts. Many also think that the field is a perfect match for cryptocurrency-based collectible game items. Splinterlands provides an example of why this is, leveraging the technology to stand out from the established options. Utilizing the transparency of the blockchain it’s possible to see how many of each different card exist in the entire game, so players can know exactly how rare and valuable their cards actually are. And cards can only be transferred with owners’ private keys, which means that the operators of the game cannot take them away from players and they are free to buy, sell, or trade them as they see fit, just like physical trading cards. Additionally, all of the battle results, and the cards contained in packs, are generated by a published algorithm based on unpredictable data from the blockchain itself. The developers explain that this means that no one, not even themselves, can tamper with battle results, or give certain players better cards in packs. Playing a match of Splinterlands Every match of Splinterlands consists of an ever-changing set of combat rules, a timed team building session and the actual fight. On average a fight won’t last longer than two minutes, guaranteeing an exciting experience and the ability to play on the go. By changing the combat rules with every fight, the game achieves unique fights and challenges players to really get to know their cards. Unlike other card games, where it’s simply the player with the overall stronger team that wins, players in Splinterlands are challenged to adjust their team for every fight to best comply with the rules and achieve victory. Currently, there are over 200 different cards with balanced statistical mechanics and 46 abilities. Splinterlands has also introduced another unique feature to add value to their cards by addressing the problem of duplicates in a completely different way from most games. Duplicate cards can be combined to create a stronger card. Not only will the player have leveled up but by combining the two cards, the player is also automatically reducing supply. The use of blockchain technology and crypto assets in video games has begun to attract attention from the mainstream gaming industry recently. For example, in January it was reported that French video games giant Ubisoft is looking to support new startups in the field as the next season of its incubator program will focus on blockchain technology. “Blockchain technology is entering every single industry, including the Entertainment industry,” explained the Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab. “We can see a nascent ecosystem flourishing in many different directions exploring new possibilities to envision the relationships with the gamers, and between them, virtual assets ownership and exchanges, transaction security, and all what a crypto currency can allow. We have already worked with Blockchain startups now for more than 3 seasons and we want to keep on progressing on that mysterious but promising topic.” What do you think about Bitcoin.com Exchange sponsoring the decentralized card game Splinterlands? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Splinterlands. Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post Bitcoin.com Exchange to Sponsor Decentralized Collectible Card Game Splinterlands appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Four days ago, digital currency markets lost billions and prices sank to levels not seen since last March. The market bloodbath has affected bitcoin miners as they are making fewer profits than they were a week prior. By Monday, March 16, BTC’s hashrate slid below the 100 exahash (EH/s) territory and the BCH hashrate fell below 4 EH/s. Moreover, BCH has 22 days left until the block reward gets cut in half and there are 56 days until the BTC halving. Also Read: Traders Flock to Tether, USDC, PAX – Stablecoins See Great Demand After Crypto Market Havoc F2pool: ‘There’s Always a Lag in Hashrate Drops’ Cryptocurrency markets have lost a bunch of money during the last two weeks as more than $90 billion was erased from the market cap since the first week of March. At press time, BTC is hovering just below the $5K zone, while BCH is trading for $163 per coin. These prices have put intense pressure on miners hashing away at these two networks, and currently both networks have lost a good chunk of hashrate. Since the market dive on March 12, 2020, BTC’s hashrate slid roughly 20%. BCH hashrate is down to 3.5 to 3.8 EH/s after touching a 2020 high of 5 EH/s on February 20, 2020. For instance, according to Coin.dance, the Bitcoin Cash network’s hashrate came awfully close to touching 5 EH/s during the third week of February, but on March 16 it’s between 3.5 to 3.8 EH/s. Similarly, up until March 11, BTC’s hashrate was around 120 EH/s but after the market rout on Thursday and the drop on Sunday, BTC’s hashrate is only around 97 EH/s. Both digital assets’ weekly price percentages are down between 33% (BCH) and 34% (BTC). The current prices might be too low for certain mining operations, which caused a small exodus of miners to leave the network. BTC’s hashrate slid 20% from 120 exahash per second (EH/s) to 97 EH/s by Monday, March 16, 2020. The mining operation F2Pool commented on a recent article that noted BTC’s hashrate “barely flinched” when prices dropped to $3,600 on March 12. “However, we saw over the weekend the estimated difficulty change is trending downward,” F2Pool tweeted. “This means some miners are now switching off their machines. As always in mining, it’s the survival of the fittest: New Machines. Cheap Electricity. Low Rent.” F2Pool further stated: The network hashrate has dropped from a peak of ~124 EH/s to ~102 EH/s, while the bitcoin price has dropped from $9,000 to $4,800. There is always a time lag for hashrate to decrease due to hosting contracts, and the time required for operators to turn off a large number of machines. Did you know you can earn BTC and BCH through bitcoin mining? If you already own hardware, connect it to our powerful bitcoin mining pool. If not, you can easily get started through one of our flexible bitcoin cloud mining contracts. While Hashrate and Prices Dip, the Countdown to the Reward Halving Continues BTC prices on March 16 are making it difficult for bitcoin miners to garner a profit depending on what they pay for electricity rates. For instance, miners paying $0.07 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) with today’s top machines that have 40-100 terahash per second (TH/s) are still profiting. 86 TH/s can make around $1.54 per day while 44 TH/s can make around $0.27 per day. SHA256 miners with an electrical cost of roughly $0.07 per kWh. However, if one was to up the electric cost to $0.12 per kWh, then a machine with over 100TH/s could still lose $0.17 per day at today’s exchange rates. Further, both networks are facing block subsidy halvings, as each protocol halves every 210,000 blocks. BTC and BCH miners’ coinbase rewards will decrease from 12.5 to 6.25 coins in less than two months. The BTC halving is set to happen on or around May 12, or 56 days from now. BCH will halve earlier than that on or around April 8, or in 22 days. SHA256 miners with an electrical cost of roughly $0.12 per kWh. Bitcoiners are still positive about the halving and a number of BTC supporters believe it will make the price rise. “Bitcoin usually recovers very quickly,” one individual tweeted on Monday. “It could be $1,000-2,000 next week and still easily be $6,000 by halving.” Other speculators are more negative and understand that if BTC prices don’t rise there could be severe consequences. “Bitcoin simply can’t be worth what it is now or lower and survive the halving,” @Cryptomessiah noted. “$1000 bitcoin? Might as well bet on $0 bitcoin.” Another person tweeted: The worst part about bitcoin right now is that crypto folks have already been through a nasty bear market from late 2017 and when we were just about to pull out of it we entered another as the traditional markets bleed out — The halving is my only hope right now. While both BCH and BTC hashrates saw a decline, users can visualize miners capitulating by monitoring individual pools as well. For instance, Btc.com’s hashrate dipped by 10% and Poolin’s hash slipped by 15%. F2pool suffered a hashrate loss of 12% and Huobi’s mining pool saw the pool’s hash decline by 22% during the market downturn. The overall SHA256 hashrate drop on Monday shows that miners need better prices in order to profit, but they will need even more value after the reward halving. For example, during the first week of February 2020, the research and analysis firm Tradeblock published a report that estimates the post-halving mining cost. The researchers noted that post-halving estimates need to be around $12,500 per BTC or more. What do you think about the recent hashrate drop and the upcoming halvings? Do you think that the cryptoconomy needs to increase in value by the time the halvings approach? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Cryptocurrency prices referenced in this article were recorded on Monday, March 16, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, Fork.lol, bitcoinblockhalf.com, bitcoincashblockhalf.com, blockchain.com, asicminervalue.com, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post BTC Hashrate Follows Price Drop – 20% Lower Before Bitcoin Halving appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The world needs a good cause to cheer right now in these tense times. Luckily, St. Patrick’s Day is coming up this Tuesday, March 17. To celebrate the holiday and give players an extra reason to smile, Bitcoin Games is offering a new free spins promotion. The platform is a provably fair online casino where you can play popular games using BTC and BCH. Its Free Spins feature allows users to place free bets on a slot machine that awards real crypto winnings. Also Read: Video Games Giant Ubisoft Is Looking for Blockchain Startups to Support Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day With Bitcoin Games As the world prepares to mark the Feast of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, Bitcoin Games invites players to take part in the cultural celebration without the need to go out to crowded events or even leave the house. The online platform is offering a special holiday promotion based on Lucky Lady’s Clover, a slot game inspired by Irish folklore. “From pots of gold and rainbows to clover leaves and Lady Luck herself – this slot has everything to put players in the Irish spirit,” the developers explain. “Lucky Lady’s Clover carries a sprinkle of Irish luck and a reverie of the mythologies rooted deep in the culture of the Emerald Isle that will put you just in the right mood for St. Patrick’s Day.” The promotion starts on March 16, 2020 at 00:00 GMT and ends on March 19 at 23:59 GMT. To be eligible for the promotion, players need to make a minimum qualifying deposit of 0.002 BTC within the promotion period and wager a total of 0.015 BTC or more on Lucky Lady’s Clover. Those who fulfill the requirements will be credited with 20 free spins. Participate in the promotion to try a bit of Irish luck and bring yourself some cheer. For more information please visit the promotion’s terms and conditions page on the website. Bitcoin Games is a provably fair online casino where you can play popular games using BTC and BCH. It offers a multitude of online casino games with the added security and transparency of blockchain. What do you think about Bitcoin Games celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a free spins promotion? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post Bitcoin Games Celebrates St. Patrick’s Day With Free Spins Promotion appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

On Sunday, the U.S. Federal Reserve slashed the benchmark short-term rate by 100 basis points bringing it to zero. In addition to the rate cut, the Fed promised $700 billion in bond purchases and eliminated all reserve requirements for smaller financial institutions. However, the Fed’s rate cut didn’t help financial markets as stock markets and futures products worldwide have continued to tumble. Also Read: Traders Flock to Tether, USDC, PAX – Stablecoins See Great Demand After Crypto Market Havoc The Federal Reserve Slashed the Benchmark Rate to Zero – $700 Billion Will Stimulate Bond Markets The coronavirus outbreak has caused an economic meltdown of wide proportions and it has invoked central banks worldwide to leverage aggressive monetary policy. On March 15, the U.S. Federal Reserve announced that it was cutting the benchmark short-term rate by 100 bps and plans to inject $700 billion into bond markets. Moreover, the Fed removed reserve requirement buffers on Sunday, which allows them to create loans without being required to keep an insured deposits threshold. The 0% rate is a record low and the emergency action brings the benchmark to levels not seen since 2008. That year, after Lehman Brothers Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the U.S. central bank brought the rate to zero. The rate remained at that level for seven years and in 2015 the benchmark was lifted. Sunday’s interest rate cut will be maintained until the Fed feels comfortable with lifting it again. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell explained that the zero percent interest rate will remain until the economic uncertainty is gone. “The [Fed] expects to maintain this target range until it is confident that the economy has weathered recent events,” the central bank wrote on March 15. The big announcement which included stimulating private banks with $700 billion in bond purchases followed the Fed’s stimulus move on March 12. While stock markets and commodities like oil had one of the worst days in history last Thursday, the Fed revealed it would inject about $1.5 trillion into the debt markets. The reason they did this was because the Fed wants to bolster short-term lending to private institutions in order to prevent a Treasury market collapse. During the last seven days, the Fed has fired more monetary policy cannons than it has ever before in such a short period of time. The Federal Reserve’s rate cut to zero percent did not help traditional stock and commodity markets. Gold Bugs and Crypto Proponents React to the Fed’s Monetary Policy Moves Of course, gold bugs and cryptocurrency supporters made fun of the central bank’s moves and both assets saw a slight lift after the initial announcement. However, digital currencies and gold dropped in value again 6-8 hours later after the Fed’s rate cut. Morgan Creek Digital cofounder Anthony ‘Pomp’ Pompliano tweeted: “Someone needs to say it: The Federal Reserve just panicked and made a major miscalculation.” In a morning note to investors, Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst for Asia Pacific at Oanda, said that central banks have deployed monetary “bazookas everywhere.” There was a massive coordinated response during the weekend from the Bank of Canada, Bank of Japan, European Central Bank, the Federal Reserve, Swiss National Bank, and the Bank of England. Despite the coordinated effort by a number of central banks, Halley underlined that critical industries are “at the edge of the cliff.” Despite Peter Schiff’s opinion, gold has been hurting since the market decline on March 12, 2020. At press time, spot gold is trading for $1,473 per fine ounce on March 16, 2020. Silver bullion is just $12 per ounce on Monday morning. Gold bug and economist Peter Schiff tweeted that the monetary easing worked the first time because “everybody believed it was going to be temporary.” “The financial crisis of 2008 was a cakewalk compared to this,” Schiff added. “All that happened in ‘08 was real estate prices fell, borrowers defaulted, and lenders lost money. Today global commerce is grading to a halt. Production is shutting down. This crisis is economic, not merely financial.” While Schiff predicts that gold will reap the benefits of this storm, a slew of bitcoiners believe that cryptocurrencies will triumph. “With the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates to 0% and also effectively allowing banks to hold 0$ reserves – let’s remember how this whole system is a complete scam,” the account Bitcoin Meme Hub tweeted. “Here is how the money printing machine works. The biggest scam in the history of mankind. Opt-out and buy bitcoin,” he added. While Sunday’s 100 bps cut was the largest single move in rate cuts by the Federal Reserve since the Greenspan era, the Twitter account Whale Panda said “ never seriously thought that we could see hyperinflation in the US and Europe.” “After these last 2 weeks I’ve changed my mind on this,” he continued. “What’s interesting is when you saw this happen in countries like Venezuela they fled to USD. Where will people with USD flee to?” Ethereum proponent Ryan Sean Adams stressed that everything people in crypto have been saying over the last decade is coming to fruition. Adams remarked: [The] Fed just cut interest rates to 0% — Full QE is on, $700b today — Next is fiscal stimulus, trillions [and] then negative interest, [where you] lose money in your savings account. Then super QE, Fed buying stocks — Everything the crypto people have been saying is coming true — Things are moving faster now. In a note to investors on Monday morning, Coinshares Group’s head of research Chris Bendikesen noted that the “correlation between gold, bitcoin and equity markets has drastically increased.” “There is an old adage in the asset management industry which points out, that in a crisis, all correlations tend towards 1,” Bendikesen highlighted. “In a liquidity squeeze, a margin call cascade or a general flight to cash, everything is for sale, and everything liquid tends to get sold.” Bendikesen added: While many in the bitcoin industry have been hailing bitcoin as a new safe-haven asset, at this point it seems clear that proponents of this status have probably gotten a bit ahead of themselves. To be clear, this does not mean that bitcoin is somehow forever barred from attaining such status, but it seems clear that this status has yet to be established. Cryptoconomy Loses $21B Overnight, BTC Drops Below $5K Despite the rate cut, cryptocurrencies haven’t seen a massive flight to safety toward censorship-resistant money and people are flocking straight to stablecoins and cash. After the rate cut was announced on Sunday, BTC prices jumped over 8%, touching $5,772 per coin at around 6 p.m. EST. However, BTC dropped sharply a few hours later below the $5K region and market prices are down over 12% today. While ‘Black Thursday’s’ market rout shaved more than $90 billion from the crypto market cap, during Sunday’s overnight into Monday it lost $21 billion. BTC prices dipped to a low of $4,450 early Monday morning on March 16, but at 10:40 EST, BTC bulls have managed to push the price above the $5K region. At the moment most crypto supporters have no idea what the price of BTC or other digital assets will be in the near future. While some believe a crypto market rebound is coming soon, other cryptocurrency speculators are predicting much lower prices. BTC bulls have been pressing toward the $5K region during Monday morning’s trading sessions. If market panic ensures….it may even go below $3k. I dont know. Its all about liquidity… I never changed target of $1K on my profile and medium. https://t.co/foF0nglcjq — Gold, Silver, Geopolitics & Bitcoin (@Super_Crypto) March 16, 2020 Meanwhile, after the opening bell of the U.S. stock market on Monday rang, the top three indexes are down considerably. Nasdaq Composite is down 738, NYSE is down 1,092, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 2,275 points at the time of publication. The zero percent rate cut and the massive stimulus plans don’t seem to be enough to satisfy the markets. What do you think about the Federal Reserve slashing the rate by 100 bps on Sunday to 0% and pumping $700 billion into the bond market? Do you think crypto markets will rebound in the near future? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Cryptocurrency prices referenced in this article were recorded on Monday, March 16, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, Goldprice.org, Markets.Bitcoin.com, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Bitcoin Reacts to Fed’s 0% Rate Drop, Reserve Requirements Removed, $700B in Stimulus appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Why do certain altcoins moon? It’s a question that all crypto holders have pondered at some stage while enviously eyeing the ascent of a token that wasn’t even on their radar, let alone their portfolio. If the performance of obscure tokens in a bull market is discombobulating, how to explain such breakouts in a deep bear market? Over the last seven days, a minority of digital assets have inexplicably posted impressive gains. Also read: Sending Cash to Friends and Family Through Bitcoin ATMs Is Safer Than Crowding Bank Offices During Pandemic Market Goes Down, Random Coins Go Up Over the past week, while the crypto market was shedding half its value, a handful of coins picked the worst time to perform their best. These obscure low cap and low volume cryptos witnessed the sort of gains that haven’t been seen since the halcyon days of 2017. In hindsight, these coins would have provided a rare chance to profit in this most turbulent of weeks. However, the devil is in the details, as they say, and on closer inspection, not all of these gainers were as profitable as their percentage increase would suggest. This Week’s Best Performing Altcoins You’ve probably never heard of Finexbox, a Hong Kong-based P2P exchange, any more than you’ll have heard of The Stone Coin (TSC). If the data is to be believed, however, TSC is up 17,700% for the last seven days, thanks to $45M of trade on Finexbox. Your skepticism is warranted. Uranus (URAC) is another coin that’s inextricably enjoyed a good week. The token which puts the ‘ass’ in digital asset is up 580% for the week, thanks to steady trading on Bittrex and Hotbit. Gifto (GTO) has performed well over the past month compared to other crypto assets. The trade volume for most of the altcoins in the green this week is pitifully low, as is to be expected. As a result, many of the percentage gains can be discounted as they were achieved in illiquid markets where a single buy order can be enough to make the price jump. This includes monero classic (XMC), up 195% and tradable on Hitbtc and Gate.io, and Universe (UNI), up 46% with volume of $362,000. The most legit looking asset that’s positive for this week is polkadot (DOT), which is swapping for $118 a token and is up 27%. Other “legitimate” cryptos that have outperformed the market include gifto (GTO), up 20%, after which the remaining coins in profit are almost exclusively stablecoins, whose minor deviation above their dollar peg attests to their demand. A record $100 billion of stablecoins was traded on March 14 according to stablecoinindex.com, with USDT leading the way, followed by USDC and TUSD. Stablecoin trading volume for the past seven days. For traders seeking winners from the graveyard of dead and dying altcoins, there is a subset of remaining candidates that stands out. This niche group of tokens has performed very well over the past week. XRPBEAR is the FTX-issued token for shorting XRP with 3x leverage. It’s up 17% for the week. Its counterpart BNBBEAR is up 27%, ETHBEAR is up 40%, and BEAR – for shorting BTC 3x – is up 10%. You know you’re in a bear market when the best performing tokens are those that were designed to thrive in a sea of red. Do you think the worst of the market downturn is over, or are we just getting started? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Always remember that only those in possession of the private keys are in control of the “money.” Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Did you know you can verify any unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction with our Bitcoin Block Explorer tool? Simply complete a Bitcoin address search to view it on the blockchain. Plus, visit our Bitcoin Charts to see what’s happening in the industry. The post While the Crypto Market Was Hemorrhaging Value, These Tokens Mooned appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Transferring money over traditional channels may involve a lot of queuing in lines these days. Authorities around the world are trying to prevent large groups of people gathering in confined spaces to reduce the risk of transmitting the coronavirus infection. Remittances are a lifeline for people in many countries and cryptocurrency ATMs provide a way to send cash to loved ones without visiting a crowded bank office. Also read: These Online Stores Will Sell You Masks, Gloves, Emergency Items for Cryptocurrency Crypto ATM Transfers Safer Than Bank Wires in More Than One Way The COVID-19 epidemic has already closed many public spaces across the globe. Those that remain open are subject to restrictions regarding the number of people allowed to gather at one time. Banks and money transfer institutions are likely to remain open even when many other businesses are closed. Visiting any office during the coronavirus outbreak, however, is considered a high risk by health officials. Not to mention cash withdrawal limits that can be imposed at any moment during crises like this one. Cash is becoming an emergency item in the current coronavirus epidemic. Cryptocurrencies have proved to be a useful instrument for frictionless cross-border payments, facilitating fast transactions with low fees. They can always be used to transfer value on a peer- to-peer basis when two parties want to fully benefit from their advantages over traditional money. And Bitcoin ATMs – teller machines that support purchases and sales of various coins – can be employed for transactions between two fiat currencies using crypto as a medium. In this case, a sender can buy the cryptocurrency equivalent of a fiat amount they want to send from an ATM near their location. In many countries that shouldn’t be a problem as over 7,000 teller devices are now operational worldwide. The digital coins can be sent with a crypto transaction to a recipient who can then convert them back into fiat; a local currency for example. Using Bitcoin ATMs to send money abroad is a safe option, not only because of the high level of security for the transferred funds but also in terms of lower health risks as you can avoid visiting crowded bank branches or standing in lines in front of them. It is a convenient way to transfer financial assets quickly and at low cost although it does require the sender and the receiver to be familiar with bitcoin and comply with national regulations and restrictions in some cases. How to Send Cash Using Bitcoin to Someone Who Doesn’t Know a Lot About Cryptocurrencies There is a workaround that allows a crypto savvy person to send remittances to someone who might not know a lot about Bitcoin and doesn’t even have a cryptocurrency wallet. Moreover, it is possible to use only one ATM and still successfully complete a money transfer onchain. Money can be sent using only one crypto ATM and one wallet. The recipient can initiate a transaction through a two-way device, take a picture of the generated QR code and share it with the person who is supposed to send the money, the Coinatmradar tracker explains in a tip for BATM users. Then the sender can scan the QR code and transfer the crypto to that address. Later on, the recipient can withdraw the cash in local fiat directly from the teller machine. Digital remittances have experienced steady growth over the past few years, with the total value of transactions reaching almost $96 billion in 2020, an annual increase of more than 21%, as news.Bitcoin.com reported in February. According to data compiled by Statista, the number of users in the segment has grown similarly, by over 20%, creating an opportunity for cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin ATMs provide a safe and easy way to send crypto to people in need of cash, which is becoming an emergency item during the coronavirus pandemic. Have you used a Bitcoin ATM to send cash to someone? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Do you need a reliable bitcoin mobile wallet to send, receive, and store your coins? Download one for free from us and then head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can quickly buy bitcoin with a credit card. The post Sending Cash to Friends and Family Through Bitcoin ATMs Is Safer Than Crowding Bank Offices During Pandemic appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Stablecoins have seen massive volume and growth this month especially after the market carnage on March 12. Per usual, tether has been the king of stablecoins following the market downturn, but the 4.6 billion USDT wasn’t enough for all the liquidity needed to shield the storm. Other tokens pegged to the U.S. dollar like USDC, TUSD, and PAX have reaped the benefits as well and a few of them have joined the top trading pairs with BTC. Also Read: Bitcoin Cash IFP Debate: ABC Kicks Off Fundraiser, 3 Mining Pools Signal BCHN Support Stablecoins See Increased Demand and Growth After Crypto Market Wrath It’s a well known fact that lots of traders like stablecoins and they become useful hedges for people when crypto market prices suddenly dive. Despite a number of people not liking them and the controversies surrounding stablecoins, they have continued to grow very popular during the last few years. Tether (USDT) is the most used stablecoin and the token’s market capitalization is the largest to-date. In fact, USDT is usually the top trading pair with BTC and during the last week, the token captured between 60-75% of BTC trades. At the time of writing, USDT has a market valuation of around $4.63 billion. Coinmarketcap.com (CMC) data shows reported traded volume for tether is $40.6 billion but messari.io’s “real volume” statistics claim its only $1 billion. Either way, statistical aggregation sites like CMC, markets.Bitcoin.com (6.4B), and messari.io both show that USDT has the most trade volume on March 15 out of 5,000+ coins. Even though tethers have and still are capturing 60-75% of BTC trades during the last few days, other stablecoins have seen growth from the crypto price downturn as well. Cryptocompare.com stats show that stablecoins like USDC and PAX have been top five trading pairs with BTC. USDC is capturing 4.1% of BTC trades and PAX has around 3% according to cryptocompare.com data. Usually, these stablecoins are not even close to making it into the top pair trading positions with BTC. On March 14, Circle cofounder Jeremy Allaire explained how USDC saw growth over the last couple of days. “USDC surging in market demand over the past days, reaching new ATH at $568M in circulation,” Allaire tweeted. “Fascinating to see ‘flight to safety’ within the crypto macro market, but also demand for high-quality USD liquidity for markets.” Allaire continued: While not as exciting to see markets so crushed, it’s still rewarding to see that this entirely new, entirely digital, blockchain-based monetary infrastructure is working. Stablecoin Arbitrage and Liquidity While Allaire discussed the situation after the wrath on March 12, Paxos Global’s official Twitter account also tweeted about the various stablecoins they offer custody for and noted that the combined projects had a market capitalization of “more than $395 million as of March 12, 2020.” The stablecoin TUSD has also seen an uptick in volume and the approximate total value of TUSD’s market cap at press time is $132 million. Paxos is a Trust company, meaning we are a qualified custodian for USD-backed #stablecoins. We power $PAX @PaxosStandard, $HUSD @Stablecoin_HUSD and $BUSD @binance Dollar, with a total market cap of more than $395 million as of March 12, 2020. https://t.co/ZWpJ2LUNkw — Paxos (@PaxosGlobal) March 12, 2020 News.Bitcoin.com recently reported on the incident that took place with the Makerdao defi project after ETH prices dropped more than 40% on Thursday. At that time $4-4.5 million worth of Makerdao’s stablecoin DAI were undercollateralized. However, since then single collateral DAI tokens have been doing much better and on March 15 they are priced at $1.06 per token. Even though most of the stablecoins are supposed to remain valued at one U.S. dollar after March 12, liquidity demand made prices fluctuate for all of the stablecoins in existence. At times prices have been a touch higher and sometimes stablecoin prices have been a hair lower than the USD peg. Crypto traders have found ways to leverage the current stablecoin arbitrage, which allows them to sell the tokens for higher profits using different markets. Traders have been using stablecoins for arbitrage for years and there are various blog posts and guides on the subject. It’s likely that traders will continue to use stablecoins and ‘tether off’ in order to hedge the current storm. On Sunday, March 15, cryptocurrency markets have been lackluster and there haven’t been any huge moves. If coins like BCH, ETH, BTC, and many others see improved prices and gains soon then it’s likely traders will gradually exit their stablecoin hedge. However, if markets fall lower in the near future the ‘flight to safety’ within the cryptoconomy might be put to the test with significant stress. If crypto prices drop further liquidity issues could make dollarized tokens worth a lot more than the 5-10 cents higher we’re seeing today. What do you think about the current market demand for stablecoins? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Price articles and market updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Cryptocurrency prices referenced in this article were recorded on Sunday, March 15, 2020. Image credits: Shutterstock, Markets.Bitcoin.com, Twitter, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Traders Flock to Tether, USDC, PAX – Stablecoins See Great Demand After Crypto Market Havoc appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

During the first week of March, there were prominent discussions concerning the recently announced infrastructure funding proposal (IFP). However, a number of crypto participants are focused on the market carnage and the possibility of a global recession. After the new full node project published plans for the upcoming upgrade, Btc.top founder Jiang Zhuoer revealed his hashrate would vote against the proposal. Two days later, the full node project Bitcoin ABC announced intentions to raise funds in order to sustain operations for one year. Currently, the Bitcoin Cash Node project has 41 public nodes and three public mining pools have been signaling support for the new full node. Also Read: Bitcoin Cash Node Reveals Upgrade Plans for May and Difficulty Algorithm Research Jiang Zhuoer Pledges to Use Personal Hashrate to Vote Against IFP and Bitcoin ABC Launches 2020 Business Plan Fundraising Recently, IFP discussions have taken a back seat due to the coronavirus outbreak and the possibility of an economic recession. During our last report, news.Bitcoin.com covered the Bitcoin Cash Node (BCHN) project publishing its intentions for the upcoming upgrade and future goals. Crypto reporter Cindy Wang explained that Btc.top founder Jiang Zhuoer said he would “use his personal hashrate to vote no in case somebody wants to activate IFP.” Following the update from BCHN developers, Btc.top founder Jiang Zhuoer talked about the IFP with the BCH community in China during an ask-me-anything (AMA) event. Crypto reporter Cindy Wang explained that Zhuoer said he would “use his personal hashrate to vote no in case somebody wants to activate IFP.” Following Zhuoer’s commentary, Bitcoin ABC published a blog post two days later. The announcement detailed the team’s plans to raise funds for a year of operation. “Bitcoin ABC is proud to announce we’re kicking off our 2020 Business Plan Fundraising Drive this month,” the post published on the read.cash blog notes. “We are raising funds to sustain our operations for one year at a level that permits us to make important progress on the Bitcoin Cash roadmap.” If you want to read the plans for the Bitcoin ABC 2020 Business Plan Fundraising Drive you can read the announcement in its entirety here. “Currently, 90% of Bitcoin ABC developer time is absorbed with keeping Bitcoin Cash secure, running and updated,” explained George Donnelly, Bitcoin ABC’s business development manager. “We must dedicate most of our minimal resources to “running in place” as we ensure the Bitcoin Cash network transcends scaling bottlenecks and remains up to date with the fast-moving Internet.” Three Mining Pools Signal Support for BCHN Soon after the ABC fundraising drive announcement, Bitcoin.com’s mining pool mined the first block showing support for BCHN. So far, three mining pools have shown support for the BCHN which implies disagreement with activating the IFP. The three mining pools are pool.Bitcoin.com, Asicseer, and SBI Crypto. Coin.dance statistics on March 15 show that there are 41 public nodes running BCHN today. Bitcoin ABC is still the dominant node with 723 public nodes running and Bitcoin Unlimited (BU) has 684 nodes. It’s also worth noting that BCHD has around 23 nodes on March 15. Coin.dance also displays a bar graph that shows a proposal activation spotlight. “1,344 blocks (67%) in the current 2016-block signaling period are required for the infrastructure funding plan lock in,” the Coin.dance website notes. There are 421 blocks left for the signaling period, and 0% of the BCH hashrate has shown support for IFP to date according to Coin.dance. BCH supporters can also watch blocks in real-time on the website bitcoincash.network. BCHN Publishes Maintainer Report, While BCH Supporters Debate the IFP Topic on Reddit On March 14, the BCHN team published a “lead maintainer report” which details what the developers have been working on lately. The BCHN developers said that block signaling has shown increased support for BCHN. The maintainer report also disclosed that the programmers have seen 141 BCH sent to their donation address. No funds have been spent yet “except for an initial expenditure shortly after setting it up.” Since the BCHN project started, engineers have raised 51 issues, closed 18, raised 100 merge requests and merged 86 of them. BCHN programmers have also been in contact with other client team developers such as Bitcoin Unlimited in regard to certain feature implementations. The BCHN node’s lead maintainer Freetrader also noted during the end of the report that he had entered a pull request on Github to revert the IFP merger on the bitcoincash.org Github repo. According to the developer, “the discussion was subsequently locked and closed by the maintainer(s).” “Additionally, I found out via automated email notification that my Github account (ftrader) had been removed from the Bitcoin Cash organization on March 3, again by parties unknown and unwilling to acknowledge their responsibility,” Freetrader said. Freetrader underscored that the treatment of the BCHN project and other concerns will encourage himself and others to disregard the IFP and “not consider it as part of the May 2020 upgrade.” On Sunday, BCH supporters have been discussing the IFP again on the Reddit forum r/btc. One post in particular talks about Bitcoin ABC not removing the IFP code from the upcoming 0.21.2 release on Github. “You can verify for yourselves – they are not removing the IFP ‘feature’ which no-one wants,” disclosed the Reddit user ‘lovelyday.’ “I actually think it is better leaving the code in instead of having a false sense of security while the code can still be run out there,” one person replied. The post is filled with debate and people’s opinions of the situation if IFP remains within the 0.21.2 codebase. As the upgrade approaches, the IFP conversation will likely intensify. The Bitcoin Cash network upgrades every six months and the next consensus change is scheduled to activate on May 15, 2020. While the IFP discussions continue to unfold, our newsdesk will be there every step of the way to keep our readers informed. What do you think about the recent discussions revolving around the IFP subject? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below. Feel like you missed something with this story? Check out the prior articles about the Bitcoin Cash Infrastructure Funding Proposal (IFP) debate below. Bitcoin Cash Node Reveals Upgrade Plans for May and Difficulty Algorithm Research Bitcoin Cash Miners Plan $6M Development Fund by Leveraging Block Rewards BCH Community Leaders Bitcoin.com and Jonald Fyookball Clarify Positions on Funding Proposal Heated Debate Continues Over Bitcoin Cash Infrastructure Funding Plan Jiang Zhuoer Restructures Development Funding Proposal for Bitcoin Cash 5% of Block Rewards – Bitcoin ABC Will Add Infrastructure Funding Plan in Next Release BCH Funding Debate: Btc.top Founder Suggests 2/3 Hash Vote and 6-Month Evaluation Voluntary Financing: Bitcoin Cash Devs Reveal Noncustodial Funding App Flipstarter Flipstarter Reveals Eatbch and BCH Development Funding Goals – Blog Post Receives $2k in Tips BCH Funding Debate: Developers Plan to Launch IFP-Free Version of Bitcoin ABC BCH Funding Debate: Amaury Séchet Responds to IFP Questions, Noting Contention in the West ‘A Drop-in Replacement for ABC’ – BCH Devs Release Bitcoin Cash Node Software Image credits: Shutterstock, Coin.dance, Btc.top, bitcoincash.network, read.cash, Fair Use, and Pixabay. Do you want to maximize your Bitcoin Mining potential? Plug your own hardware into the world’s most profitable Bitcoin mining pool or get started without having to own hardware through one of our competitive Bitcoin cloud mining contracts. The post Bitcoin Cash IFP Debate: ABC Kicks Off Fundraiser, 3 Mining Pools Signal BCHN Support appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Due to the spread of the COVID-19 virus, BCH meetup groups in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan, have announced they will be offering a virtual option for those wishing to avoid crowded places and to participate digitally, while still supporting merchants. In Tokyo, physical venues will still be booked for those opting to meet face-to-face, allowing bitcoiners to choose their own experience. News.Bitcoin.com asked organizers some questions about the announcement, how it will work, and difficulties in coming to consensus on how to best navigate this challenge. Also read: These Online Stores Will Sell You Masks, Gloves, Emergency Items for Cryptocurrency Japan BCH Meetups Go Virtual Finding a local Bitcoin Cash meetup group near you isn’t hard to do. As BCH enthusiasts are all around the world, a simple scan of Bitcoin.com’s Events page map can have you meeting up with your fellow crypto heads, chewing the fat, and supporting local BCH merchants in no time. Bitcoin Cash meetups around the world. Source: http://events.bitcoin.com In light of the current coronavirus health concerns, two of these meetups — until now canceled for the month of March — have announced they will be heading to the virtual realm to help protect their health and that of others, while still getting together to support Bitcoin Cash. In an announcement shared today by Tokyo Bitcoin Cash Meetup organizer Akane Yokoo, members were notified that both Osaka and Tokyo bitcoin cashers can now get together as one group online: Our virtual meetups will start this coming Wednesday March 18th from 7:30pm and we plan to host every Wednesday at the same time when our physical meetups happen. To join, please RSVP on Meetup.com and we will send you instructions and links to join the meetup. We will also update details for each meetup on Meetup.com including the venues. Organizers Weigh in on the Decision, Discuss Details of Virtual Meetups Tokyo organizers Aaron Gutman and Akane Yoko, along with Osaka organizers Yumeno and Cheaplightning, answered some questions for news.Bitcoin.com, weighing in on the organization process. “Most of us are already engaged in some form of remote work and are accustomed to using online collaboration tools, and some of us are pretty big on VR,” said Gutman. Yumeno of the Osaka group noted: It will also give the somewhat small Osaka community a better opportunity to mix with the larger Tokyo community. I am looking forward to hearing the Osaka meetup community members perspective. In her own read.cash post on the matter, Yokoo noted some of the potential difficulties and also possible opportunities of the virtual meetups, which will continue indefinitely until the virus situation normalizes. “One of the things we were concerned that we won’t be able to do with online meetups is it is hard to create an environment where people can talk to whoever they like, with the language they choose if the tool only allows certain people to talk at a time such as a zoom call.” She continued: VR (Virtual Reality) should be able to solve these issues all together but it will be expensive to make this happen soon. We do hope to eventually offer the VR options, while allowing people without it to be able to join too. When asked about struggles in addressing the challenging COVID-19 situation, she responded: “It had been frustrating because we wanted to keep hosting meetups because many of our members wished to continue the meetups but at the same time we did not want to encourage opportunities for people to get sick and spread it.” Cheaplightning also expressed frustration with the difficult situation: At our last meetup I had to really think about if it is rude to be wearing a mask and offer alcohol tissues to people. There is this weird stigma and sort of damned if you do damned if you don’t aspect to it. An unofficial Tokyo bitcoin cash meetup took place March 12 at BCH-friendly bar Bashi, seeing health-conscious bitcoiners, some of whom came with masks and hand sanitizer, gather. The virtual option now allows two ways for Tokyo Bitcoin Cash Meetup members to meet and talk about bitcoin cash, while supporting merchants. In fact, though official meetups had been canceled for March, some resolute bitcoin cashers in Tokyo nonetheless ventured out and participated in their own meetups at bitcoin cash-friendly merchants for the first two weeks of the month. Yokoo clarified: Even though we do not want to encourage members to go out and get sick, members should be free to do whatever they choose to do. If they choose to get together physically, the merchants are open for business as usual (look at our Meetup.com group to find which venues are scheduled for each meetup). Cheaplightning of the Osaka meetup elaborates: “Of course people are free to still meet however they like, but we will not be organizing anything here ourselves for a while. I think of our community as friends. So it is certainly possible that we may meet a few of them.” Gutman, for his part, stresses the virtual meetups should be preferred, saying, “I feel strongly that, regardless of whatever we do on our own accord, as a group we should always make positive social choices and demonstrate leadership. I urge those who have chosen to attend physical meetups to choose the virtual meetup.” One of the main concerns of meetup members is how to effectively support BCH merchants. The virtual meetups will feature a tipping system to enable support, and in Tokyo physical locations will still be open for those choosing to meet at brick and mortar establishments. Supporting Merchants a Big Concern One of the main concerns of members was how to continue supporting merchants, while some members choose to meet virtually. “We came up with a good solution for that,” says Yokoo, “For each meetup, we pick one venue and we provide a BCH address of that merchant to the virtual meetup participants. Members can feel free to donate BCH, as if they are buying drinks at actual meetups. I feel like this is a good solution for people who want to help the merchants but don’t want to go out, and the same way for the merchants.” Yumeno notes: “I also feel bad for our regular BCH accepting merchants. Even at our last meetup the owner said that their customer numbers were low. I want to support them. Our members might come even with the danger as they are passionate. But it is putting more people at risk.” While it may be debatable how big a risk factor people already out and about meeting up and taking the proper precautions is, supporting merchants is a critical concern that unifies the organizers. Really enjoyed the #BitcoinCash meetup today. First time at this new place!😋 Even got some of the customers to download a wallet. I look forward to onboarding more #BCH merchants to come this year.🎉 pic.twitter.com/vOSkAPqiwa — Bitcoin Cast (@BitcoinCast) March 15, 2020 Meetups Around the World Going Strong In spite of COVID-19 fears, bitcoin cash meetups worldwide are resilient, with new meetups emerging regularly. From newly announced groups in the Philippines, to upcoming events in Ghana which will help spur support for BCH House Ghana — an educational hub for crypto — permissionless, peer-to-peer cash is steaming forward. User Bitcoin Cast, tweeting about meeting at a new spot in Pasadena, California this week, said: “Really enjoyed the #BitcoinCash meetup today. First time at this new place! Even got some of the customers to download a wallet. I look forward to onboarding more #BCH merchants to come this year.” In Venice, Italy, where the effects of the virus are being felt extremely heavily and the entire state is under quarantine, bitcoiners of the BTC variety are holding virtual meetups. So whether meeting on the virtual plane as Tokyo and Osaka will now be able to, or in a local shop, bitcoin cashers can nevertheless see the indomitable power of peer-to-peer cash continue, even in these uncertain times, until meetups in these cities can resume as normal. What do you think of the idea of virtual meetups in light of the COVID-19 situation? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Graham Smith, fair use. Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The Local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here. The post Bitcoin Cash Meetups Go Virtual in Japan to Combat Virus, Allowing Members to Choose appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The U.S. state of Illinois has advanced a bill to consider unclaimed cryptocurrencies at custodians abandoned after five years. The coins will then be liquidated and the proceeds remitted to the State Treasurer. The cryptocurrency owners will have no recourse against the custodians or the state. Also read: US Lawmaker Introduces Crypto-Currency Act of 2020 While Under Coronavirus Quarantine Crypto Considered Abandoned if Unclaimed for 5 Years Illinois House Bill 4573, which amends the state’s Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act, was assigned to the state’s Revenue and Finance Committee on Thursday. As if to demonstrate the oft-cited bitcoin maxim “not your keys, not your coins,” the bill introduced by Rep. Michael J. Zalewski states: [The bill] Provides that virtual currency is presumed abandoned if it is unclaimed by the apparent owner 5 years after the last indication of interest in the property. Rep. Michael J. Zalewski introduced a house bill in the U.S. state of Illinois that will allow the state to liquidate unclaimed cryptocurrencies left inactive at exchanges. The term “virtual currency” is defined in the bill as “any type of digital unit, including cryptocurrency.” A holder “means a person obligated to hold for the account of, or to deliver or pay to, the owner, property subject to this Act” and the term “Apparent owner” means “a person whose name appears on the records of a holder as the owner of property held, issued, or owing by the holder.” Forced Liquidation The bill additionally “Provides for the delivery of reportable virtual currency to the State Treasurer,” according to its text. Referring to the State Treasurer as the administrator, the bill proposes: If property reported to the administrator is virtual currency, the holder shall liquidate the virtual currency and remit the proceeds to the administrator. The liquidation shall occur anytime within 30 days prior to the filing of the report under Section 15-401. “The owner shall not have recourse against the holder or the administrator to recover any gain in value that occurs after the liquidation of the virtual currency under this subsection,” the bill continues. Cryptocurrencies left untouched and unclaimed at custodians for five years will be liquidated and the proceeds remitted to the State Treasurer. The crypto owners will not have any recourse against the custodians or the state. Illinois Money Transmitter Licenses for Crypto Companies Cryptocurrency exchange service providers operating in the state of Illinois may need to obtain a money transmitter license under the Illinois Transmitters of Money Act (TOMA). Early this month, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Financial Institutions, clarified its position in non-binding statements regarding money transmitter licenses for crypto firms. Its letter to San Diego-based The Crypto Lawyers regarding whether a crypto firm called Cryptoflip was required to obtain a TOMA license explains that “Cryptoflip is not selling or issuing payment instruments because payment instruments must be ‘for the transmission or payment of money,'” adding: Bitcoin is not money under TOMA. Some crypto businesses will be required to obtain a license under the Illinois Transmitters of Money Act (TOMA). However, in the case of Cryptoflip, the Illinois Division of Financial Institutions revealed in non-binding statements that it does not need the license. Cryptoflip claims that it will sell bitcoin from its own supply, will not post orders on third party exchanges, or receive funds for transmission. Since the company is not acting as a third-party exchange or an “escrow-like intermediary,” it is therefore not in the business of receiving money for transmission or transmitting money. Furthermore, Cryptoflip is not engaged in the business of exchanging fiat currency for fiat currency and will only work with TOMA-licensed companies that are also registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) as Money Services Businesses. Based on the information presented, the Department concluded that Cryptoflip would not require a TOMA license, elaborating: Each exchange is an exchange of digital currency for money between Cryptoflip and a consumer … Cryptoflip is not engaged in money transmission when it sells its own cryptocurrency for fiat currency. On the federal level, Rep. Paul Gosar introduced the Crypto-Currency Act of 2020 last week while under self-quarantine. The aim of this bill is to “clarify which federal agencies regulate digital assets, to require those agencies to notify the public of any federal licenses, certifications, or registrations required to create or trade in such assets, and for other purposes.” Do you think the state of Illinois should be allowed to confiscate people’s cryptocurrencies left inactive at custodians? Let us know in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here. The post US State Wants to Legally Seize Unclaimed Cryptocurrencies Left at Custodians appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Events like the global coronavirus outbreak provide good justification for some prepping. Crises like this often result in shortages and skyrocketing prices of important emergency items, proving that everyone should keep a box of face masks and even a decent survival kit, should things go really bad. The pandemic scare affected crypto holders this week leading to a massive sell-off. But even in these circumstances, there are more rational ways to part with your coins instead of a panic sell. Also read: Crypto Community Gets Prepping as Coronavirus Spreads How to Buy Anti-Virus Masks With Bitcoin Avoiding crowded stores is a good idea right now. Luckily, there are many web-based merchants that will sell you just about everything you could need in a doomsday scenario or a survival situation. You can still procure online most of what the Red Cross thinks you should have in your survival kit in the event of an emergency or disaster, such as a flashlight with extra batteries, a hand-crank radio, a multi-purpose tool, and a first aid box. Greenbelt Outdoors sells reusable masks for several cryptocurrencies through Bitpay. In the midst of a viral epidemic, however, priorities are changing. Since COVID-19 started spreading around the world, items essential for preventing infection such as surgical masks have become harder to find and expensive to buy. Reusable masks are even pricier but they provide an alternative solution. Greenbelt Outdoors is an online marketplace for adventure and outdoor equipment that has set out to help its customers in that regard. Its website states: Our current focus is sourcing N95 masks and respirators where we can for potential protection against the coronavirus (COVID-19). We are working with suppliers for preparation for ‘SHTF’ potential scenarios. The company behind Greenbelt Outdoors, a veteran-owned business based in Austin, Texas, accepts BTC, BCH, ETH, and XRP through Bitpay, and supports many fiat options including credit cards and Paypal. They currently ship several makes of non-disposable masks with activated carbon filters and washable masks that provide respiratory protection. They are offered at discounted prices. That’s on top of a selection of survival gear you might want to check out, just in case. “The way we see it, it’s more important to be prepared then not at all,” the store notes. Getting Ready for a SHTF Scenario You can also get prepared for a worst-case scenario using the services of other platforms that accept cryptocurrency payments. Survival Camping Store is one such example as its website is a rich source not only for camping and backpacking equipment but also a wide range of items for emergency situations. These include survival tools, shelter, bedding and cooking products as well as some self-defense means and hunting weapons — and even medical and hygiene supplies. Survival Camping Store supports multiple traditional payment methods, including major credit cards and Paypal, but you can also pay with cryptocurrency and the store offers a 5% discount for direct crypto payments. Besides outdoor gear, Survival Camping Store ships medical and hygiene products. Another option is to check platforms such as Spendabit which functions as a search engine for products that can be purchased with bitcoin. You can use filters to specify the region and the merchants you are interested in or enter keywords. Searching for survival kit and medical gloves returns dozens of offerings coming from stores that supposedly accept cryptocurrency. A nice feature allows you to shortlist those that currently offer discounts of 10% or more. You can also search for merchants processing crypto payments using platforms like Spendbitcoins and Acceptbitcoin.cash. The Bitcoin.com Store can help you to obtain similar products – if you go to the Gift Cards page you’ll find a wide choice of gift cards for major retailers and service providers that you can buy with either bitcoin core (BTC) or bitcoin cash (BCH). They are sorted in multiple categories like Sports & Outdoors where you can order a card for the popular outdoor gear store Cabela’s. And in the Health category, you’ll be able to purchase a gift card for the CVS pharmacy chain. Do you know of other online merchants that sell emergency items and medical supplies for cryptocurrency? Tell us in the comments section below. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is 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 this article. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Greenbelt Outdoors, Survival Camping Store. Do you need a reliable bitcoin mobile wallet to send, receive, and store your coins? Download one for free from us and then head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can quickly buy bitcoin with a credit card. The post These Online Stores Will Sell You Masks, Gloves, Emergency Items for Cryptocurrency appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article