roadrunner

Cryptocurrency exchange Globitex has launched a new service called the Euro Wallet which allows users to make and receive euro payments in their personal IBAN accounts like any other European bank account. The company claims that this service is a solution to banks closing accounts of crypto businesses. Also read: Indian Supreme Court Moves Crypto Hearing, Community Calls for Positive Regulations Globitex’s Banking Solutions European cryptocurrency exchange Globitex announced on Wednesday the launch of its new service called the Euro Wallet. The company is co-founded by early bitcoin adopter and former executive director of the Bitcoin Foundation Jon Matonis. The announcement reads: The Euro Wallet allows users to make and receive EUR payments on a personal IBAN account like any other EUR bank account. The account can be accessed on the cryptocurrency exchange platform providing the user with seamless transactions and EUR under their full control in mere seconds, after withdrawing from their Globitex trading account. The service is designed to assist crypto users, traders, miners, and businesses in the EU. Globitex CEO Uldis Teraudkalns explained that this new product offers “access to a fully functional IBAN account via the Globitex cryptocurrency exchange as well as instant deposits / withdrawals on Globitex trading account.” According to its website, the exchange currently supports the trading of BTC, BCH, ETH, GBX, and EURS. In addition to various fees for using the service, there is a monthly outbound transaction limit of 30,000 euros (~$33,832) for individuals or 200,000 euros for corporate entities. The Benefits Globitex explained that among the benefits the new service offers are personal IBAN accounts, SEPA transfers, instant EUR deposits and withdrawals from trading accounts, and the ability to make third-party payments. Meanwhile, actual euro “funds are kept at a European central bank,” the company noted. Teraudkalns reiterated that the new service provides users with their personal EUR account on the same platform as their trading account, thus allowing for instant transfers which save them “time and money when moving funds.” He elaborated that all EUR exchanges let customers access their money “only with an extra step of transferring the EUR funds to another bank account” in their name which “depending on the bank the exchange uses can take 1-2 days.” Furthermore, he emphasized that his company “will never say no to a client because their business is related to cryptocurrency,” unlike many banks in Europe that close customer accounts dealing in cryptocurrencies with no explanation or charge them “ridiculous fees for banking services.” E-money License The Euro Wallet is powered by Globitex’s parent company, Nexpay UAB. Nexpay was granted an e-money license (EMI) in October 2017 by the Bank of Lithuania to carry out payment services and e-money issuance in the EU. Matonis is listed as the CEO of the company on the central bank’s website. This license allows the company to “provide clients with payment services and e-money issuance across all 28 countries,” Globitex proclaimed. “Acquisition of the EMI licence brings with it the possibility of integrating with the SEPA euro payments system directly through the Central Bank of Lithuania,” the exchange described. “This will enable Nexpay to clear euro payments directly, without the involvement of commercial banks, and to issue IBAN accounts to Globitex clients just like banks issue accounts to clients.” What do you think of Globitex’s new service? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Crypto Exchange Globitex Launches Banking Solution With Instant Transfers appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In this edition of The Daily we cover the latest international expansion by SMS bitcoin cash wallet Cointext, the new Keycard hardware wallet and the withdrawal of a cryptocurrency ETF proposal. Also, a gang of cyber criminals allegedly used the popular battle royale game PUBG to coordinate stealing millions in cryptocurrency. Also Read: In the Daily: Quadrigacx Losses, Bithumb UAE, Coinbase Cloud Backup, Chainalysis Funding Cointext Expands to Two More Markets Cointext, a platform that enables users to transfer cryptocurrency offline using simple text messages, has launched its service in two new European markets. The SMS bitcoin cash (BCH) wallet has now been made available in Denmark and the island of Jersey. This brings the total number of regions around the world supported by the network up to 42. New users in these markets can get a Cointext wallet by texting START to the access number 4592452565 in Denmark or 447937900030 in Jersey. Saint Aubin, Jersey, Channel Islands, UK The Cointext wallet allows anyone with even a basic mobile device that supports text messages to send electronic cash to other phone numbers or BCH addresses. What’s more, to receive the money, the recipients don’t even need to download a wallet, install an application, set up an account or even have access to the internet. Status Hardwallet Relaunched as Keycard Status has announced on Wednesday that it is reintroducing Hardwallet as Keycard – a hardware wallet with an open API that is meant to enable developers from the community to integrate it with other wallets or hardware and even build their own smartcards. The new hardware resembles the form of a credit card and it relies on NFC technology instead of a connected USB port to unlock private keys and enable contactless payments. The company says that when the card is available for purchase, it will cost around $29 and will ship anywhere in the world. It is also said to support several digital assets including BCH, BTC, LTC, XRP, ETH and ERC20 tokens. The company revealed that a couple of teams are already developing applications based on the Keycard API and hardware. “The Keycard API is an excellent open-source reference implementation for applying standards across the crypto industry to JavaCard development. If you’re developing a JavaCard applet that utilizes crypto, this is the place to start,” said Mark D’Agostino, the CEO of Grid+. The first batch of Keycards are said to be in production and expected to be available for developers to beta test in March. The company hasn’t set a hard date yet as to when Keycard will be available for purchase by the general public. SEC Forces Reality Shares ETF Withdrawal This Monday, Reality Shares ETF Trust filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for an ETF that will invest in bitcoin futures as part of its investment strategies. However, by Tuesday the SEC already forced the withdrawal of the crypto ETF proposal. The Reality Shares Blockforce Global Currency Strategy ETF was meant to be an actively managed fund listed on the NYSE Arca exchange. Its portfolio was supposed to include bitcoin futures traded on the Cboe Futures Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange as well as sovereign debts and money market mutual funds. The withdrawal request reads: “Reality Shares ETF Trust hereby respectfully requests the withdrawal of…the Trust’s Registration Statement…as it applies to the registration of the Reality Shares Blockforce Global Currency Strategy ETF…The Registrant is requesting the withdrawal…at the request of the Staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. No securities have been sold in connection with the offering of the Fund.” Turkish Hackers Used PUBG to Communicate Sadly, hackers targeting crypto ventures is nothing new or out of the ordinary these days. However, from time to time a case involves an aspect which is hard to ignore, such as using a video game as a tool for cyber crime. According to reports from Turkey, police forces have arrested two dozen people in raids across the country suspected of involvement with the theft of millions in cryptocurrency. This relatively large group of people was coordinating its operations by communicating via the popular online multiplayer battle royale video game Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), Turkish cyber police investigators reportedly claim. The PUBG gang allegedly stole 13 million Turkish liras (almost $2.5 million USD) by hacking a cryptocurrency company in Istanbul and diverting funds from two of its accounts. During the police raids, a reported 54,000 Turkish liras in fiat cash and 1.3 million lira’s worth of cryptocurrency was seized from the suspects. What do you think about today’s news tidbits? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Status. 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 Satoshi’s Pulse, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post In the Daily: Cointext Expansion, Keycard Wallet, ETF Withdrawal, PUBG Hackers appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The peer-to-peer (P2P) markets saw a surge in trade activity this past week, with the Localbitcoins markets of five countries posting record volume. The largest spikes were concentrated in the Latin American and Asian regions, however, the United States also posted its strongest monthly P2P volume since April 2018. Also Read: Nasdaq Stock Exchange to Start Offering BTC and ETH Indices Indonesian P2P Volume Increases by More Than 10x in One Week Localbitcoins trade between the Indonesian rupiah (IDR) and BTC saw a dramatic spike in activity this past week, with volume increasing from 10 BTC during the week of Feb. 2 to 102 BTC during the week of Feb. 9. When measured in fiat currency, this past week saw more than 4.5 billion IDR (approximately $364,600) worth of BTC changing hands. The week of Feb. 9 comprised the strongest week of Indonesian Localbitcoins trade on record when measured in both fiat and cryptocurrency. South Korean P2P Trade Activity up 125% Localbitcoins trade between the South Korean won (KRW) and BTC posted a new all-time high for trade volume this past week, with 132.33 million KRW worth of cryptocurrency (nearly 3.16 million) changing hands. When measured in cryptocurrency, South Korean Localbitcoins more than doubled this past week, up from 15 BTC during the week of Feb. 2 to 34 BTC. The week of Feb. 9 comprised the fourth strongest on record when measured in BTC. Latin American Localbitcoins Markets Break Volume Records The P2P markets of Latin America saw a dramatic spike in volume this past week, with several countries posting all-time high trade activity. Localbitcoins trade between Peruvian sol (PEN) and BTC posted record volume when measured in both fiat and cryptocurrency, with 303 BTC or 3.56 million PEN (approximately 1.06 million) worth of trade taking place. When measured in cryptocurrency, the week of Feb. 9 saw record trade between Colombian pesos (COP) and BTC on Localbitcoins, with 760 BTC changing hands. When measured in fiat currency, the week comprised the fifth strongest on record, with 7.63 billion COP (approximately $2.43 million). Venezuela posted record volume when measured in both fiat and cryptocurrency for the second consecutive week, with 2,485 or 24.34 billion Venezuelan bolivares (approximately $8.90 million) worth of trade taking place. Localbitcoins trade between Argentine pesos (ARS) and BTC posted its second strongest seven days of trade when measured in fiat currency this past week, with 8.43 million ARS (approximately $220,780) or 62 BTC worth of trade. Do you think that the spike in P2P volume is a sign of improving or deteriorating market sentiment? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Coin.dance At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, have you seen our Tools page? You can even lookup the exchange rate for a transaction in the past. Or calculate the value of your current holdings. Or create a paper wallet. And much more. The post Localbitcoins Trade Surges in Latin America and East Asia appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The Nasdaq stock exchange will start offering real-time information on two new indices tied to the cryptocurrency market – bitcoin core and ethereum. Both indices will be included on the exchange’s existing platform of indexes starting Feb. 25. Also read: Indonesia’s Futures Regulator Issues New Rules For Crypto Assets BLX and ELX Indices Capture Data From Multiple Exchanges The Bitcoin Liquid Index (BLX) and the Ethereum Liquid Index (ELX) will “provide a real-time spot or reference rate for the price of 1 BTC and 1 ETH respectively, quoted in USD, and based on the most liquid ends of their markets,” said Nasdaq in an online statement published Feb. 11. According to the statement, both the “BLX and ELX work by capturing data from multiple exchanges to provide a single price point for BTC and ETH, which helps traders, get in and out of a given position.” Nasdaq claims the methodology has been verified by independent auditors. “The BLX is one of the most widely-referenced BTC indices among crypto traders and has been calculated back to 2010. Likewise, the ELX has been calculated back to 2014,” said the exchange. Driving Mainstream Crypto Adoption The two indices were created by Brave New Coin. Nasdaq’s latest move is seen as key to introducing cryptocurrency to traditional stock market investors on Wall Street and elsewhere, thereby driving mainstream adoption. The stock exchange has swam against the tìde in being drawn to crypto assets, starting with publishing analytical reports on Bitcoin and partnering with Vaneck to launch BTC futures trading in a falling market last year. The two new indices join several dozen of Nasdaq’s indices including the Nasdaq Composite, its main index, and the Nasdaq 100, through its Global Index Data Service. The data service is a real-time feed that consolidates all Nasdaq indexes and ETF valuation data, including third-party partner data. Nasdaq is the world’s second largest stock market by capitalization, behind only the New York Stock Exchange. More than 3,400 companies are listed on the bourse, which boasts a total market value of $10 trillion. Cryptocurrency is expected to benefit from the exchange’s expansive reach. Acceptance by institutional investors which dominate trade on Nasdaq is regarded by some as a major step towards mainstreaming virtual currencies as well as increasing adoption. What do you think about the inclusion of BTC and ETH indices on the Nasdaq stock exchange? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Express yourself freely at Bitcoin.com’s user forums. We don’t censor on political grounds. Check forum.Bitcoin.com The post Nasdaq Stock Exchange to Start Offering BTC and ETH Indices appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Over the last two months, the hashrate between the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Bitcoin Core (BTC) networks has increased significantly since hitting a low on December 15, 2018. Numerous reports detail that many Chinese miners who control a large portion of SHA-256 hashrate have been recently setting up shop in Sichuan. During the wet season here, miners can get an astounding 0.08 yuan per kWh or $0.01 per kWh. Also Read: Self-Proclaimed ‘Satoshi’ Responds to Billion-Dollar Bitcoin Lawsuit Chinese Mining Operations Return to Sichuan in Order to Snatch Cheap Hydro Power Several reports detail that during the last three weeks, Chinese miners have been flocking back to the Sichuan region in order to obtain cheap hydroelectric energy. The migration follows the significant hashrate decline in December when the SHA-256 hashrate between BTC and BCH declined by about 30 percent from its all-time high. During the dry season in Sichuan, Chinese miners positioned themselves in other locations throughout China and other countries when the fiat value of cryptocurrencies, in general, was much higher. Back in 2015-2016, it was estimated that more than 70 percent of the SHA-256 hashrate stemmed from China and 70 percent of the hashpower from these Chinese facilities derived from Sichuan. But when the price of BTC and many other coins skyrocketed, large Chinese mining operations trekked to other areas and sought out electric subsidies from local governments. Sichuan, China, situated at more than 3,000m elevation is famous for its rivers and colorful pools formed by calcite deposits. Many of the rivers and waterways supply hydroelectricity plants with energy and bitcoin mining facilities have operated in the mountainous region for years. For instance, Chinese journalist Eva Xiao reported in August 2017 how large bitcoin mines were partnering with local Chinese governments for cheaper electricity from the State Grid. The reason for the strategic move was because unlike the dry and wet seasons in Sichuan, government partnerships provide static electrical rates that remain fairly steady. Bitmain did this with the company’s mine in Ordos in Inner Mongolia when it acquired electricity from the State Grid for $0.04 per kWh. Xiao details that in exchange, Bitmain allowed the Ordos mine to be taxed. However, regional reports published on Jan. 21, 2019 state that an influx of Chinese miners has been returning to Sichuan for the wet season. The China-based publication recently explained that during the dry season in Sichuan, hydroelectric costs are three times higher than the wet season. “This tragedy will seemingly come to an end as soon as the rainy season is expected to come in April,” local reporter Lylian noted. “The 1,419 rivers in the region will soon wake up to propel the roar of 3,267 hydro plants — Numerous bitcoin mines will revive as they will have cheaper and sufficient power supplies.” The report continued: In the period of high water, the cost of electricity in Sichuan can be as low as 0.08 yuan ($0.01), while the electricity cost of thermal power in the dry season is 0.28 yuan ($0.04). Reports also detail that second-hand Antminer S9s are selling for $119 per unit. Bitcoin Prices Still Have to Appreciate Before the Halving Mining operations are also enticed by the cheap hardware costs these days, as lots of mining rig prices have been slashed. Local columnist Chloe Jiang reveals that a second-hand Antminer S9 will set someone back about 800 yuan ($119) per unit. According to the top mining rig manufacturer websites like Bitmain, Ebang, and Canaan, older units are very inexpensive right now. Jiang remarks that cheap mining rigs and $0.01 per kWh electric prices in Sichuan may help miners survive the ‘crypto winter.’ However, unconfirmed reports detail that Sichuan police are trying to shut down future cryptocurrency mining operations per order of the Sichuan provinces’ local government. Although one local called the report “rubbish” and says there are so many of these rumors “that it has no effect on bitcoin.” Bitcoin Core (BTC) hashrate increase since Dec. 15, 2018. The overall hashrate between both of the most dominant SHA-256 networks shows miners seem to be returning in greater number with many of them joining unknown pools. Analysts believe that at current electric prices worldwide and the upcoming reward halving for both networks, the price of BTC and BCH needs to rise to at least double current spot prices in order to maintain profitability. What do you think about miners returning to Sichuan for cheap electricity? Let us know what you think about this story in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock, Blockchain.com, and Pixabay. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Chinese Miners Flock to Sichuan for Cheap Electricity During the Wet Season appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Brazilian cryptocurrency exchange Bitcoin Max has won in court the right to keep its checking account with Banco Santander. According to the presiding judge, the bank has not met its obligation to notify the crypto company of the closure in advance. Also read: Hacked NZ Exchange Cryptopia Allowed to Reopen Closing of Account Deemed Unlawful The decision was handed down by Judge Geilza Fátima Cavalcanti Diniz from 3rd Civil Court of Brasilia, the capital. It confirmed an injunction granted to the digital asset trading platform in September 2018 by Judge Ana Catarino of the 8th Federal District Court, Portal do Bitcoin reported. Bitcoin Max filed a lawsuit against Santander in August after its account was closed without any formal notice. Judge Cavalcanti Diniz stated in a previous ruling last summer that the closing of the account is in the powers of the financial institution according to the norms established in article 10 of Resolution 2,025/93 of the Central Bank of Brazil (Bacen). Now, she has deemed unlawful the rescission of the contract by the defendant, Santander, because there was no proof that the plaintiff, Bitcoin Max, was notified about the closure of its account. According to the same resolution of Bacen, banks can terminate accounts only after sending a written notice of intention to the account holder. The cryptocurrency exchange had its claim for compensation for moral damages dismissed as unfounded. The judge said the closure of its account is not by itself a violation of personal rights. She also noted that the case should not be treated according to consumer law as the bank account was used to facilitate business activities. Santander Accused of Abusing Rights Bitcoin Max’s lawyer Leonardo Ranna explained the judge’s decision as follows: “At first, she thought the bank can terminate the agreement and close the account. But what happened was that in the course of the proceedings we argued that the bank would not have complied with the Central Bank’s resolution that requires it to provide prior notification and present a plausible reason for the termination of the account agreement.” The judge understood, Ranna added, that Santander abused its rights as it did not pay attention to what is prescribed in the Bacen resolution. But he also emphasized that the ruling did not mention the fact that Brazilian banks orchestrated an operation to close the accounts of all companies operating with cryptocurrencies. He insisted this should have been taken into account since there’s evidence that’s what happened. The latest decision comes after a court in Rio de Janeiro recently ruled in favor of another Brazilian crypto exchange, Mercado Bitcoin, in a case over the closure of one of its checking accounts. It turned down an appeal filed by Banco Sicoob against the decision of a district court to allow the trading platform to keep its account open. In that case, the judge insisted there should be a justified reason to close an account, which the bank did not provide. What is your opinion about these court decisions in Brazil? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Make sure you do not miss any important Bitcoin-related news! Follow our news feed any which way you prefer; via Twitter, Facebook, Telegram, RSS or email (scroll down to the bottom of this page to subscribe). We’ve got daily, weekly and quarterly summaries in newsletter form. Bitcoin never sleeps. Neither do we. The post Court Rules Brazil’s Bitcoin Max Exchange Can Keep Bank Account appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The man who claims to have invented Bitcoin, Craig Wright, is being sued in Florida for roughly $10 billion or 1.1 million BTC. Last December Florida district Judge Beth Bloom denied Wright’s motion to dismiss the billion-dollar lawsuit against him. Now Wright has responded to the complaints and most of his responses assert that he lacks knowledge or information sufficient to answer the allegations. Also Read: Core Developer’s 300kb Block Proposal Bolstered in Bid to Push Lightning Adoption Wright Denies Complaints and Lacks Sufficient Knowledge to Respond Ira Kleiman, the brother of David Kleiman, who some believe may have been Satoshi Nakamoto, is suing Craig Wright because he believes his brother was manipulated and defrauded. In late 2018, Wright’s motion to dismiss the billion-dollar lawsuit against him was denied on most counts. Judge Beth Bloom from Florida granted Wright’s motion to dismiss complaints III and IV. But the self-proclaimed inventor of Bitcoin was forced to answer complaints I, II, and V-IX. Moreover, Judge Bloom explained that the lawsuit involves Florida residents, companies, and assets and the court has a strong interest in adjudicating a case that involves fraud. Following the denied dismissal, Wright had to respond and on Jan. 28, 2019 Wright’s lawyers answered the second amended complaint. Craig Wright is being sued by Ira Kleiman, the brother of David Kleiman, for roughly 1.1 million BTC. With exception to what is expressly admitted in the document, Wright denied each and every allegation in the second amended complaint. Further, by answering the complaint, Wright’s attorneys from Rivero Mestre LLP say that the defendant “does not admit the accuracy, validity, admissibility, or appropriateness of any of the exhibits to the second amended complaint.” Wright also reserved all rights and objections with respect to the exhibits, and throughout many of his answers he lacked sufficient knowledge to respond. The majority of responses to the complaints’ numbered paragraphs state: Dr. Wright lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations. Barred and Estopped After denying much of the allegations, Wright’s defense says Ira Kleiman’s claims are basically barred by applicable statutes of limitations. In the fifth affirmative defense, Wright’s lawyers say the Kleimans accepted shares in a corporation from Wright which in turn released his obligations to the rights of David Kleiman. The eight affirmative defense responses explain that the plaintiffs are estopped from asserting their claims of fraud against Wright. Essentially this means the Kleimans were allegedly aware of the Australian Taxation Office investigation and the Estoppel shows they are asserting something contrary to what is implied. Additionally, Wright’s attorney says the alleged oral partnership agreement is barred by the statute of frauds as well. “There was no written partnership agreement between Dr. Wright and David Kleiman and/or W&K Info Defense Research, LLC,” the 36-page court document states. Some people believe David Kleiman may be one of the lost members of the Satoshi Nakamoto group. Wright’s Recent Memoir: ‘I Was Satoshi’ The news follows a random blog post written by Wright in which he reminisces about the old days when he allegedly created Bitcoin. Throughout the memoirs, the Nchain representative basically claims to be Satoshi. Wright further explains how he hated the Silk Road and disliked Wikileaks before going on to explain how he can sign messages with early public keys associated with Satoshi, but refuses to do so because it is akin to asking to see his bank statement. Moreover, if he did sign, no one would believe him any way, he asserts, and many would just say he stole the keys. “Gavin knows I have the early keys — What does it matter?” Wright concedes. The post also states: I am not going to list the people who helped me here, but Bitcoin started because of my ideas. It was my design, and it is my creation. And, making certain that it cannot be subverted by criminals is and remains my duty — I was Satoshi. Following the post where Wright claims to be the inventor of Bitcoin, the community again dismissed his statements. Many think the fact that he won’t sign early keys is an excuse and they will not believe him until he signs with keys belonging to Nakamoto. Wikileaks did not appreciate Wright’s statements either and referred to him as a “proven serial forger of documents,” which is ironically one of the complaints against Wright in Florida case number 9:18-cv-80176. What do you think about the Kleiman case against Craig Wright for 1.1 million BTC? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, and Wiki Commons. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Self-Proclaimed ‘Satoshi’ Responds to Billion-Dollar Bitcoin Lawsuit appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The cryptocurrency markets are trading at significant long-term price areas, with BTC currently channeling between key levels from the 2017 bull run. In other market action, BCH and ETH have continued to consolidate above the $100 area. Also Read: ETF Filed With SEC to Invest in Bitcoin Futures, Bonds, and Mutual Funds BTC Trades Between Major Long-Term Price Zones For the last two months, BTC has established a price range corresponding to areas of long-term significance. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 1D As of this writing, bulls are attempting to establish support at roughly $3,600 after bouncing off what may comprise a higher low at the $3,400 area. During 2019 so far, BTC is yet to re-test last year’s low of roughly $3,100, nor has price action broken above resistance at $4,400. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 4HR When looking back to mid-2017, the price levels correspond to key areas from BTC’s first run up to $5,000, in addition to the subsequent retrace and rally to five digits. During the initial run to $5,000, BTC stair-stepped its way from $3,200 to $3,400 before jumping to establish a then-record high at roughly $4,400. BTC then established local support at $3,600 and then rallied to set a new record at $5,000. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 1D After tagging $5,000, the $4,400 area comprised the shoulder line of the lopsided head and shoulders pattern that preceded the violent retracement down to $3,000. BTC currently has a market cap of $63.55 billion and a dominance of 52.9%. BCH Consolidates Above 2018 Low Bitcoin Cash is consolidating at a possible higher-low, with BCH currently trading for $119 after bouncing off support at $100. Despite the sideways price action, BCH has broken outside of multiple major descending trendlines in recent weeks. BCH/USD – Kraken – 1D When measured against BTC, BCH is also consolidating above 2018’s low, with bitcoin cash currently trading for 0.0335 BTC. Bitcoin cash is currently the sixth largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of $2.14 billion and a dominance of 1.78%. BCH/BTC – Bittrex – 1D Ethereum Reclaims Second Largest Market Cap Ethereum has also spent recent months trading between key price levels from ETH’s first break into triple figures during mid-2017. ETH/USD – Poloniex – 1D (Calculated by Tradingview) After reaching a low of $80 in December, ETH rallied to test resistance at approximately $175 at the start of 2019, with the markets having since retraced to establish local support at $100. When measured against BTC, ETH has again oscillated between significant long-term price zones, with ETH currently attempting to establish support at the 0.0333 BTC area, the market’s former record high that was established during March 2016 before being broken one year later. ETH/BTC – Poloniex – 1D ETH currently comprises the second largest crypto asset with a market cap of nearly $12.73 billion and a dominance of 10.50%. What do you make of current market structure? Are predicting 2019 to be bull or bear? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Tradingview Disclaimer: Price articles and markets updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not to 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.” The post Markets Update: Cryptocurrencies Test Key Levels From 2017 Bull Trend appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A commissioner at the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said that the official regulation of cryptocurrencies could actually stunt the technology’s development. Hester Peirce’s comments come at a time when the SEC has been accused of acting contrarily and gives hope to those wanting governments to take a step back to prevent over-regulation Also read: Analysis: Understanding the SEC’s Stance on Crypto Allowing the Technology to Come Into Its Own U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissioner Hester Peirce was speaking at the University of Missouri School of Law on Feb. 8 when she hinted that government regulation could actually cause the crypto industry difficulties. The lawyer, who has been nicknamed the “Crypto Mom” for her generally positive comments towards cryptocurrencies, said that it may be a better idea for regulators to step back and allow blockchain projects to mature, and that hastily drawn up regulations could harm the industry: We might be able to draw clearer lines once we see more blockchain projects mature. Delay in drawing clear lines may actually allow more freedom for the technology to come into its own. Peirce said that she would keep an eye on ensuring no laws harm crypto projects, citing stablecoin Basis, which is shutting down and returning its $133 million in capital to investors due to the difficulty of complying with securities regulations. “I am not going to comment on what I think about the merits of any particular project or how the securities laws apply to it, but my antennae will go up when apparently legitimate projects cannot proceed because our securities laws make them unworkable,” she said. Peirce further added that the SEC could at times be overly negative towards cryptocurrencies, and that this is something that needs to change: “We rightfully fault investors for jumping blindly at anything labeled crypto, but at times we seem to be equally impulsive in running away from anything labeled crypto. We owe it to investors to be careful, but we also owe it to them not to define their investment universe with our preferences.” Diverse Perspectives Needed Peirce’s comments come at a time when the SEC’s views on cryptocurrencies haven’t been wholly clear. Last year the SEC rightly took enforcement action against initial coin offerings and other crypto companies perpetrating fraud. But, as Peirce noted, this doesn’t mean regulators and government agencies should be automatically skeptical about everything to emanate from the cryptocurrency sector. As Angela Walch, a professor of law at St. Mary’s University School of Law and a research fellow at the Centre for Blockchain Technologies at University College London previously said, it is important for regulators to have a “diverse perspective,” as all too often they can be overly focused on protecting the financial system and indifferent to innovation and the benefits cryptocurrencies could bring. What do you think about Hester Peirce’s comments and the SEC’s stance on crypto? Let us know in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock. Express yourself freely at Bitcoin.com’s user forums. We don’t censor on political grounds. Check forum.Bitcoin.com The post SEC Commissioner Suggests Excessive Crypto Regulation Hurts Growth appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A registration statement for a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) that will invest in bitcoin futures among other traditional investments has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund’s portfolio will include bitcoin futures traded on the Cboe Futures Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange as well as sovereign debts and money market mutual funds. Also read: Indian Supreme Court Moves Crypto Hearing, Community Calls for Positive Regulations New ETF Filing Reality Shares ETF Trust filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday for an ETF that will invest in bitcoin futures as part of its investment strategies. The Reality Shares Blockforce Global Currency Strategy ETF will be an actively managed fund listed on the NYSE Arca exchange. The fund is “designed to provide investment exposure to global currencies, both fiat and virtual currencies,” its filing reads. The new proposed ETF will invest in a portfolio comprised of “high-quality, short-term (no greater than 18-month maturity), sovereign debt instruments” listed for trading on U.S. exchanges in U.S. dollars, euros, British pounds, Japanese yen, and Swiss francs. According to the filing, it will also invest in “bitcoin futures contracts of various maturities listed for trading on U.S. exchanges that provide exposure to the price movements of bitcoin” as well as “money market mutual funds and/or other cash equivalents.” Investing in Bitcoin Futures The registration statement for the Reality Shares Blockforce Global Currency Strategy ETF details: The fund plans to invest in the bitcoin futures traded on the Cboe Futures Exchange Llc … and/or the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) but may invest in bitcoin futures traded on other exchanges in the future. In addition, the fund expects to obtain exposure to bitcoin futures by investing up to 25 percent of its total assets in a wholly owned and controlled Cayman Islands subsidiary. The filing explains that the investment adviser to the fund “will seek to limit the subsidiary’s investment in bitcoin futures so the fund’s aggregate notional exposure to bitcoin futures is limited to 15% of the fund’s net assets at the time of investment.” Existing Blockchain ETFs Reality Shares already offers two blockchain ETFs created in partnership with Nasdaq: The Reality Shares Nasdaq Nexgen Economy ETF (BLCN) and the Reality Shares Nasdaq Blockchain China Index (BCNA). The former was incepted on Jan. 17 last year and seeks long-term growth by tracking the investment returns of the Reality Shares Nasdaq Blockchain Economy Index. The latter was incepted on June 20 last year and seeks long-term growth by tracking the investment returns of the Reality Shares Nasdaq Blockchain China Index comprised of blockchain-related companies located in Hong Kong and mainland China. What do you think of this new ETF filing? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post ETF Filed With SEC to Invest in Bitcoin Futures, Bonds, and Mutual Funds appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

On Sunday, Feb. 10, the creators of the charitable organization Eatbch, a nonprofit food drive powered by bitcoin cash, celebrated its one-year anniversary. Eatbch has come along way since its inception feeding Venezuelans thousands of meals alongside branching out to other less fortunate regions like South Sudan. Also read: BCH Avalanche Transactions Show Finality Speeds 10x Faster Than Ethereum Eatbch Celebrates One Year of Helping People in Need This week the nonprofit Eatbch is celebrating its one-year anniversary after two individuals started the charity with just a $5 donation. With this small fraction of bitcoin cash, the organization managed to give 40 arepas (a type of food made of ground maize dough or cooked flour) in just one location and the group realized the potential of this type of charity. “After a few months, we were giving thousands of meals each week in 23 locations in 6 states of the country,” explained José the cofounder of Eatbch Venezuela. Even though the funds have helped Venezuelans a great deal, José detailed that the economic situation in the country has not improved. “A few days ago, the Venezuelan-Colombian crossing was blocked to avoid tons of aid from entering to the country — And the Venezuelan people highly need this. Inflation has skyrocketed to unseen levels, as high as 2,500,000 percent,” José emphasized while discussing the one-year anniversary. The Eatbch cofounder added: According to many economists worldwide, it will reach 10,000,000 percent at the end of the year and the level of uncertainty and fear we feel right now is unimaginable — For most of the people who receive hot meals each week, we are their only guaranteed meal that they can count on. Crypto’s Utility Phase Emerging In addition to helping people in Venezuela, the operation also branched off into South Sudan back in the summer of 2018. The region also has one of the highest inflation rates in the world and the citizens of South Sudan have been dealing with economic turmoil and a lack of daily nourishment. “[Eatbch South Sudan] has been doing an amazing job providing meals for thousands for people who have been escaping the ongoing war,” José remarked. Last year, the group also caught the attention of the CEO of Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, who believes cryptocurrencies can give people in need economic freedom. “In terms of crypto helping people (the utility phase emerging) this is pretty awesome,” Armstrong stated at the time. José further detailed how the cofounders first started the nonprofit and debated on how Eatbch would operate. Many people asked the group to accept several different cryptocurrencies but the charity decided to accept just one. “Bitcoin Cash was and still is, the best cryptocurrency for us — It has the lowest fees, ensuring that we won’t lose your donations because of transaction costs,” José’s anniversary blog post emphasized. The cofounder noted: [Bitcoin cash] has widespread exchange support and it’s also easy to use, so we could convince merchants to accept BCH. After finishing a year of good deeds, the Eatbch team said they are very thankful for the BCH community and all the volunteers who have helped them. Because of this growth and excitement, José said the nonprofit has gained attention from the mainstream press. The cofounder concluded that this attention is of no surprise to him because the community has impacted the lives of thousands of Venezuelans. “I thank you all deeply from the bottom of my heart for all your help and support,” the charity’s creator finished. What do you think about the nonprofit Eatbch and its one-year anniversary? Do you think cryptocurrencies can empower global citizens suffering from economic turmoil? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Image credits: Eatbch, Shutterstock, and Pixabay. Have you seen our widget service? It allows anyone to embed informative Bitcoin.com widgets on their website. They’re pretty cool, and you can customize by size and color. The widgets include price-only, price and graph, price and news, and forum threads. There’s also a widget dedicated to our mining pool, displaying our hash power. The post Venezuelan Nonprofit Eatbch Celebrates First Anniversary Amidst Hyperinflation appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In 2019 the sovereign state of Liberland continues to gather headway by getting recognized by key leaders in the European Union and members of parliament. On Jan. 31, the micronation claiming the parcel of land between Croatia and Serbia was validated by Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission. Also read: These Video Sharing Sites Pay Content Creators in Bitcoin Cash Liberland Continues to Strive for Recognition Key members of the European Commission have recently been discussing the micronation known as the Free Republic of Liberland. The seven square kilometer territory on the banks of the Danube was claimed in 2015 by a group of individuals who believe in libertarian ideologies. The President of Liberland, Vít Jedlička, and citizens of the small country profess that no nation claims the land as its own. Since then the group has been fighting to get acknowledged by the rest of the world’s leaders by following the protocol of terra nullius. Seven months ago, Liberland presented its case to members of the EU Parliament in order to get recognized as a sovereign nation state. So far the region has garnered over 550,000 applicants who want to be citizens of Liberland. The Free Republic of Liberland is a seven square kilometer territory on the banks of the Danube river between Croatia and Serbia and was claimed in April 2015. Now the micronation has been acknowledged in a recent parliamentary question asked on Jan. 31 about the parcel of land between Croatia and Serbia. Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission (EC), stated that Liberland, also known as Gornja Siga, “requires further clarification.” President Juncker’s comments were in response to a question from a member of the European Parliament from the West Midlands region, Bill Etheridge. The question asked about whether the Liberland territory is part of the European Union. Etheridge is also well known for his staunch libertarian beliefs. In the eyes of Liberland citizens, Juncker’s statement seemed to accredit the negotiation between Croatia and Serbia. The micronation believes the EC president’s remark is a step in the right direction towards “global recognition” of a voluntary based government. “This is an extremely important development and represent real progress for us,” Vit Jedlička, President of the Free Republic of Liberland explained after the EC president’s commentary. Jedlička continued: We are a step closer to knowing that it may not be EU territory and that it can become an independent sovereign state. The Liberland Embassy (left) and Miss. Liberland, Kristýna Dolníčková. (right). Cryptocurrency, DAOs and an Open Source Linear TV Liberland is also still very much involved with spreading decentralized and innovative new technologies like cryptocurrencies. The Free Republic of Liberland’s official website states that in a world filled with over-taxation and over-regulation, the citizens of the land believe in bolstering forward-looking technologies such as cryptocurrencies and DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) incorporated systems. Liberland’s “Bitcoin Freedom” boat. The region has also been accepting digital currencies for funding for years and the mini-state utilizes currencies like bitcoin cash (BCH), ethereum (ETH), and bitcoin core (BTC). On Feb. 10, Bitcoin entrepreneur Roger Ver explained on social media that Liberland “has been funded with bitcoin cash more than any other cryptocurrency.” Lead Bitcoin ABC developer Amaury Séchet responded: “They also accepted it from day one — Vít is a great guy.” Moreover, the region is currently in the midst of setting up the first Liberland private linear broadcasting service (online TV) called “Liber TV.” The platform was created by one of the founders of Liberland, Jiří Kreibich, and the application is open source and running in its early phases. Overall, the world’s third smallest nation state continues to make strides towards being acknowledged by global leaders. What do you think about what’s happening with Liberland? Do you think that the micronation will finally get recognized by the larger nation states? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock, Bitcoin.com, Pixabay, Liberland, and Creative Commons. Express yourself freely at Bitcoin.com’s user forums. We don’t censor on political grounds. Check forum.Bitcoin.com The post Bitcoin Friendly Micronation Acknowledged by European Commission President appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

There’s good news and bad news for traders monitoring onchain data for signs of a market revival. The number of daily transactions has been rising for months, suggesting that BTC is being used for more than merely speculative purposes. Daily trade volume remains sluggish, however, suggesting another bull cycle is still some way off. Also read: Rio Carnival to Feature Bitcoin This Year BTC Passes 350K Transactions per Day The average number of daily transactions on the Bitcoin Core blockchain has been rising steadily since mid-2018 and recently surpassed 350,000. Save for a wild day in late 2017, when BTC notched a record 490K transactions, and the opening weeks of 2018, which saw major spikes, Bitcoin is seeing more sustained usage than ever. With Lightning Network taking a small but growing number of transactions offchain, along with Liquid, Blockstream’s inter-exchange settlement layer, the actual number of onchain transactions would otherwise be higher still. Daily BTC transactions Network usage does not necessarily correlate with price, and it is common for a blockchain to see sustained transaction growth while price remains stagnant. For all the usage that the BTC chain is witnessing, it remains trapped in $3,400-$3,700 territory. A look at trading volume shows that there has been no discernible uptick in months. 2019 has begun in muted fashion, with an average of 50,000 BTC being exchanged per day – a far cry from late 2017, when several hundred thousand bitcoins were being traded on a daily basis. Daily BTC volume BTC Fees Remain Low for Now BTC fees haven’t been a talking point for months because there hasn’t been much to talk about. A BTC transaction can currently be made for around $0.25. While almost 50x higher than the average BCH fee, it’s still low enough to keep the majority of network users content. BTC users shouldn’t count on fees remaining permanently low however. As 2017-18 data from Coinmetrics shows, average BTC transaction fees tend to lag behind average transaction count. In other words, it is possible that BTC’s rising number of daily transactions could lead to fees also rising in due course. 2017-18 data for BTC transactions and fees Regardless of which direction BTC’s fee market takes, continued usage of the protocol for its original purpose – sending electronic cash P2P – bodes well for future adoption and pricing. Combined with the ongoing development work being done behind the scenes, which makes it easier for users to send and receive bitcoin with confidence, means the next phase of growth may be driven by more sustainable fundamentals than speculative mania alone. Do you think increased network usage has a correlation with market prices? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Blockchain.com, Coinmetrics, and Bitcoinity.org Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post BTC Transactions Hit 1-Year High But Volume Remains Sluggish appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Coinify, the Copenhagen-based cryptocurrency exchange and payments provider, has announced the introduction of three new virtual currencies to its buy and sell platform. Users can now purchase bitcoin cash (BCH) plus altcoins XLM and BSV directly with bank transfer or credit card. Also read: Heavy Borrowers and Near-Failed States Likely To Drive Hyperbitcoinization Coinify Users Can Now Use Credit Cards to Buy BCH In a statement released to news.Bitcoin.com on Feb. 11, Coinify co-founder and chief executive officer Mark Højgaard said the newly added coins, which start trading tomorrow, were part of plans to support a total of 15 digital assets on the exchange by the end of this year. Ethereum was added to the platform late last year. The development, which means that users can buy BCH, XLM, or BSV without having to first purchase BTC, also dovetails with Coinify’s ambitions towards improving crypto-based payments. The exchange has a keen interest on assets that demonstrate tangible viability as a payment method as well as those “with a strong community to support the coin’s use.” Bitcoin cash provides for one of the most efficient, fastest and cheapest payment options in the financial world, with average fees of half a cent for any amount transferred. Højgaard added that the three newly listed cryptocurrencies were aligned to the company’s internal compliance standards as well as to international regulation, stating: We are continually developing our services to support access to virtual currencies while taking an agnostic stance on the ecosystem. The real differentiator of Coinify is that we are not only offering low-cost bank transfers for buying these currencies, but users also have the option of instant purchases using all major payment cards. There just aren’t that many platforms out there that offer users direct card purchases of other virtual currencies, apart from [BTC]. Exchange Rebrands Buy and Sell Platform to Mycoinify Meanwhile, the company has rebranded its individual trading platform to “Mycoinify” from “Buy and Sell” previously. The rebranding comes as part of Coinify’s extension of its payment offerings, which seek to distinguish between its payments product suite for businesses, and Mycoinify, which is a B2C service for private individuals. Mycoinify will continue to focus on end users by providing them with a “simple and compliant platform” to buy multiple virtual currencies, said Pia Skafte Johansen, head of payment solutions at Coinify. The service also lowers barriers to entry into the virtual currency space by being “wallet agnostic and users can, therefore, store their virtual currencies in the wallet of their choice,” noted Johansen. Coinify, which is backed by Nordic Eye Venture Capital, Seed Capital Denmark, and SEB Venture, offers two-way virtual currency conversion services for businesses and individuals. What do you think about Coinify’s expanded virtual currency offering? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Express yourself freely at Bitcoin.com’s user forums. We don’t censor on political grounds. Check forum.Bitcoin.com The post Coinify Adds BCH and Rebrands Its Trading Platform appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Imperatriz Leopoldinense, a prominent Brazilian samba school, has chosen money as the theme of its performance during the 2019 Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro, which will be held in the week of March 2 – 9. Its dancers will tell the history of money, from the first metal coins and paper bills to modern day cryptocurrencies. Also read: Localbitcoins to Introduce New User Verification Rules Samba School Chooses Money as the Theme of Its Show The samba school is betting on Bitcoin to impress the spectators at Marquês de Sapucaí Sambódromo, the venue that hosts the famous carnival in Rio de Janeiro, hoping to win the competition this year. Imperatriz Leopoldinense was created in 1956 and has been proclaimed champion of the festival many times. But that hasn’t happened since 2001 and the stakes are high. According to its website, the school’s performance this year has been named “Give Me Some Money,” the Brazilian crypto news outlet Portal do Bitcoin reported. It will be dedicated to the relationship between money and humanity, from the invention of the first currencies in ancient times to the present when they appear in digital form. “Our story is about money and its relationship with humans from their invention to the present time. It is, without a doubt, one of the most important instruments in the economic life of nations and people,” the samba school explains. “Imagine what life would be without money. How could we buy and sell, receive and pay, stock up and save for the future, if it did not exist?” From the First Coins to Digital Coins The narrative covers various periods of human history and important developments such as the minting of the first coins in the ancient kingdom of Lydia, in the 7th century BC, and the issuance of the first paper money in China during the 10th century. Then it portrays the first exchange relations between South America’s native population, the Indians, and the European discoverers, as well as the first Brazilian mint that produced coins used in the slave trade. The choreographers will draw attention to the saving and investing of money through bank deposits, financial instruments and other means. They will also highlight with humorous critique many of the socio-economic challenges of societies such as social divisions and income inequality that countries such as Brazil continue to face. The lack of quality healthcare, high unemployment, increased violence, and government corruption are among its most pressing problems. Imperatriz’s dancers will conclude their performance at the Rio Carnival with the topic of Bitcoin. “We’ll end the parade talking about a future already present through cryptocurrencies – a digital resource system designed to function as a medium of exchange,” the samba school says in the announcement, noting that a growing number of companies on a global scale have begun to use Bitcoin in the years since the creation of the cryptocurrency. Carnival Hit by Financial Crisis The samba school’s decision to choose money as the main theme of its show this year has been criticized by some participants. According to 82-year old Mário Monteiro, who performs along with his sister Cacá Monteiro, 64, it’s a great irony to talk about money when the carnival goes through its longest period of financial difficulties, Brazilian online edition IG reported. “It’s a challenging job. We are using old materials and optimizing all we can in order to save,” he said, noting that the narrative exploring the relationship between money and humans is a precedent for the annual parade in Rio. However, he believes the lack of money will not stop his dance group, insisting: “It’s time to put the sadness in the drawer and take the joy out of the closet, because it’s Carnival!” What do you think of the theme chosen by the Imperatriz Leopoldinense samba school for its performance at the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro? Tell us in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Imperatriz Leopoldinense. Make sure you do not miss any important Bitcoin-related news! Follow our news feed any which way you prefer; via Twitter, Facebook, Telegram, RSS or email (scroll down to the bottom of this page to subscribe). We’ve got daily, weekly and quarterly summaries in newsletter form. Bitcoin never sleeps. Neither do we. The post Rio Carnival to Feature Bitcoin This Year appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In this edition of The Daily we feature the first yearly anniversary of Bitcoin Cash (BCH) charity Eatbch, a move by American lighting wholesaler H&M Distributors to accept cryptocurrency payments, and an update about vanity URLs from Atomicpay. Also Read: In the Daily: Regulatory Developments in Italy, Mauritius, Malta Eatbch Charity Marks First Anniversary The bitcoin cash-powered nonprofit organization Eatbch has now marked its first anniversary. The young charity group already has operations in both Venezuela and South Sudan, where it is utilizing BCH donations to feed people in need. José from Eatbch shared on Honest.Cash, “Exactly one year ago, my brother Gabriel and I created this initiative/project to help Venezuelans in dire need and it has been quite a ride! We started with just a 5$ donation thanks to silver-blood and we used that first donation to give 40 arepas in just one location. After a few months, we were giving thousands of meals each week in 23 locations in 6 states of the country! I know it’s cliché to say it, but I really wasn’t expecting this project to grow as it did. Not only because the amazing support we have received from the BCH community, but because the situation in the country; a situation that has been overwhelming for all of us.” Empty supermarket shelves in Caracas. Due to the economic crisis and hyperinflation in Venezuela there is a large shortage of food and medicine The charity’s founder also added that “Sadly, the price crash has affected our funds and we only have enough to help for a couple weeks. It is in this special occasion, that I ask you to please consider donating to help all who have been suffering from bad economic policies and to show that cryptocurrencies are a superior form of money.” H&M Distributors to Accept Cryptocurrency Payments H&M Distributors, Inc., a U.S.-based wholesaler of lighting supplies, announced that it has decided to accept payments from its business clients using cryptocurrency. This will be done through a new partnership with crypto e-commerce platform Chimpion, which supports payments with bitcoin cash (BCH), bitcoin diamond (BCD), bitcoin core (BTC), dash (DASH), ethereum (ETH), litecoin (LTC), zcoin (XZC), and more. The move is meant to allow retailers from around the world to purchase products from the American wholesaler with faster transactions, reduced transaction fees and no currency conversion fees compared to traditional fiat payment methods. “After more than 20 years in the business, we consider ourselves experts in specialty lighting,” said H&M Distributors CEO Herb Needham. “Accepting cryptocurrency payments allows us to share that expertise with even more clients by removing many of the barriers that made it difficult to sell internationally before. What sold us was the settlement system, which allows us to convert crypto payments to a USD equivalent right away.” New Vanity URL Service by Atomicpay Atomicpay, a Thai-registered payments startup, has announced that its Pay URL vanity URL service will be changed from atomicpay.io/u/username to the shorter and more memorable format of atomicpay.me/username. The vanity URL service is meant to allow end users to quickly find how to pay with cryptocurrencies and allows merchants to request payments via text message, messaging app, social media, email and even printed business cards. As we previously detailed, Atomicpay is a platform based on QR code payments built for merchants that want to get paid directly from clients without the involvement of any third-party processor. The company reported in January that more than 1,700 merchants from different parts of the world including Thailand, Venezuela, Turkey and Colombia have been onboarded to the non-custodial platform. The system supports BCH, BTC, LTC and other popular cryptocurrencies as well as 156 fiat currencies. What do you think about today’s news tidbits? 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 Satoshi’s Pulse, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post In the Daily: BCH Charity Anniversary, Lighting Wholesaler Takes Crypto, Atomicpay Vanity URLs appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Research carried out by Tradeblock has found the combined trade volume across the futures contracts offered by Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) plummet relative to spot market volume during the second half of 2018. Also Read: Mt. Gox Creditors Neither Need nor Deserve This Kind of ‘Hero’ BTC Futures Volume Rivals Combined Trade Activity Across Leading Spot Exchanges During Q3 2018 Despite the hype surrounding the launch of CME and CBOE’s BTC futures contracts at the end of 2017, said markets comprised a small fraction of combined trade activity taking place on Coinbase, Itbit, Kraken, Bitstamp, and Gemini. With the burst of the 2018 bubble, however, spot volume fell by more than 70 percent when comparing January’s trade activity with average monthly volume posted during the second half of 2018. Mixed with a more than doubling in CME futures trade activity, trade volume for CBOE and CME’s BTC futures came to rival that of Coinbase, Itbit, Kraken, BItstamp, and Gemini’s combined spot volume during the third quarter of 2018 – with CME’s volume dwarfing that of each individual exchange. Futures See Volume Drop-Off During Final Quarter of 2018 While the volume of both the BTC spot and futures markets saw decline during September and October, November saw the combined spot markets post their strongest monthly volume since May, while the futures markets posted their second weakest month of the year. While December saw the spot market post a healthy retracement, trade activity in the futures markets fell by more than half to post its worst performing month since launch, suggesting a shift away from the cryptocurrency derivatives offered by CME and CBOE in favor of the traditional cryptocurrency markets. On Feb. 1, CME published a report stating that the average daily trade volume for its BTC contracts was $80 million during the previous 283 days, which, combined with CBOE’s approximately $10.65 million in daily trade, shows that the futures markets are currently falling roughly 4.5 percent short of rivaling the 24-hour trade volume between BTC and USDT on Binance. Do you think that we will continue to see a decline in trade activity across the futures markets this year? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Tradeblock At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, have you seen our Tools page? You can even lookup the exchange rate for a transaction in the past. Or calculate the value of your current holdings. Or create a paper wallet. And much more. The post BTC Futures Volume Plummets Heading Into 2019 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In this edition of The Daily, we cover two announcements regarding fiat-to-crypto trading services. The U.S. subsidiary of Huobi has introduced pairs between three cryptocurrencies and the U.S. dollar and peer-to-peer platform Airswap has enabled users to exchange fiat currency for ethereum. There’s also a new development in the Quadrigacx saga – a judge has granted the troubled exchange temporary protection from creditors. Also read: 13% of Shoppers Would Buy Amazon Crypto, Wirex Adds Stablecoin Huobi Introduces Fiat Trading in the US The U.S. subsidiary of Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has launched trading pairs with USD, the platform announced on its website. Currently, verified users are able to purchase and sell bitcoin core (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and the dollar-backed stablecoin tether (USDT) with U.S. dollars, the post details. To take advantage of the new fiat services, traders need to register for an Hbus account on the Huobi Marketplace, pass level one and two verifications via the ‘Account & Security’ tab and accept the terms under ‘Open a USD wallet.’ The option is available via the ‘Balances’ section. The USD support has been provided through a partnership between Huobi.com and custody and escrow services provider Prime Trust. Users are also required to open a Prime Trust account and link it to their Hbus account. Hbus is the San Francisco-based partner of Huobi Global that runs the U.S. trading platform. Huobi plans to reward the first 500 customers who open a USD wallet with 20 USDT. However, only traders residing in the U.S. are eligible to receive the rewards. Airswap and Wyre Offer Support for Fiat Currencies Thanks to a new partnership with Wyre, peer-to-peer trading network Airswap allows users to exchange fiat currency for cryptocurrency. The platform supports USD, GBP, EUR, and AUD. According to a post on Medium, traders will be able to purchase ETH with these currencies within their noncustodial wallet using the Airswap trading interface. Wyre is a registered money service business licensed to operate in over 40 U.S. states. The integration between the two platforms allows investors to purchase cryptocurrency via ACH/wire bank transfers, without the need to deposit funds onto a centralized exchange. Commenting on the partnership, Wyre CEO Michael Dunworth stated: Peer-to-Peer/OTC style trading is always a strong starting point for building meaningful liquidity. Airswap really gets this. Working with them to mitigate counter-party risk, without compromising on meaningful liquidity is so exciting to be part of. Airswap noted in a statement that by enabling a fiat on-ramp to the network, it will “empower users to always maintain control of their private keys in an environment dedicated to supporting peer-to-peer trade.” Judge Grants Quadrigacx Reprieve From Lawsuits Crypto exchange Quadrigacx, which lost access to cryptocurrency worth millions of dollars after its founder’s alleged death, has been granted temporary protection from creditor lawsuits. Judge Michael Wood ordered a 30-day stay that precludes filing of claims against the digital asset trading platform, one of the largest in Canada. Thousands of investors have been left without their funds after 30-year-old CEO Gerald Cotten reportedly died in December of complications from Crohn’s disease while in India, and some of them have threatened lawsuits. Cotten is believed to be the only person who had the passwords for the cold wallets containing around 190 million Canadian dollars (~$143 million) in cryptocurrencies. “Despite repeated and diligent searches, I have not been able to find [the passwords] written down anywhere,” his widow Jennifer Robertson said in an affidavit, quoted by RTE. According to a court document, Quadrigacx owes 115,000 users a total equivalent to 250 million Canadian dollars (~$188 million). Quadrigacx’s lawyer Maurice Chiasson told the court the company needs time to find the money it owes. The exchange is currently considering selling its platforms to cover the debts. A third-party monitor, Ernst & Young, has been appointed to help Quadrigacx manage its finances. What are your thoughts on today’s news tidbits? Tell us in the comments section. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Make sure you do not miss any important Bitcoin-related news! Follow our news feed any which way you prefer; via Twitter, Facebook, Telegram, RSS or email (scroll down to the bottom of this page to subscribe). We’ve got daily, weekly and quarterly summaries in newsletter form. Bitcoin never sleeps. Neither do we. The post The Daily: Huobi Adds USD Trading Pairs, Airswap Launches Fiat-to-Crypto Exchange appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A social media campaign for positive cryptocurrency regulation in India has passed 100 days with growing support from the community. Despite the ongoing banking restriction imposed by the country’s central bank, local crypto exchanges are reporting increased volumes and optimism about the upcoming regulation. Also read: Indian Supreme Court Moves Crypto Hearing, Community Calls for Positive Regulations Campaign for Positive Crypto Regulation Friday marks the 100th day of a Twitter campaign for positive cryptocurrency regulation for India. The CEO of local crypto exchange Wazirx, Nischal Shetty, began his campaign on Oct. 31 last year, coinciding with the 10th anniversary of Satoshi’s whitepaper. Each day he tweets to lawmakers urging them to introduce positive regulation for India using hashtags “Indiawantscrypto” and “Isupportcrypto.” On Thursday, Shetty told news.Bitcoin.com: Every day there are 100s of retweets and likes and thousands of views. The CEO proceeded to share his campaign stats. According to him, the 99 daily tweets up to Thursday have generated 1.48 million impressions, resulting in 57,374 user interactions such as retweets, replies, and likes. The Message Shetty explained that “With the bank ban in India it was important to surface the importance of India adopting crypto,” elaborating, “To do that, educating the government and the masses is a first step. This campaign’s objective is to spread awareness so that our government takes the right step towards crypto.” His series of tweets began with the message: “Please bring positive regulations in crypto and over 5 million crypto Indians will be thankful to you. Youth of India have found a new way to make wealth & this is especially important when there are not enough jobs for everyone.” Among the Twitter accounts he regularly tags are those for the country’s Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Arun Jaitley, and Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India. Exchange Trading Volumes Growing Wazirx published its January performance report on Wednesday, claiming that it has consistently reached 50 BTC in daily trading volume. This announcement follows another on Jan. 23 which states that “Within 6 months of P2P launch, we’ve crossed Rs. 100 crores [~$14 million] worth of P2P trades.” Another local crypto exchange, Instashift, is also seeing positive growth. Marketing officer Jacob Mani revealed to news.Bitcoin.com that his exchange’s Indian trading volume “is increasing day by day slowly with a lot of buyer and seller activity.” He added: “In the past two weeks, there were two days when [the number of] sellers were quite more than buyers. So, there is promising market activity in India.” Instashift operates in 45 countries including India. In order to drum up more volume, some exchanges are offering customers bonuses for fiat deposits. Pocketbits, a crypto exchange launched on Feb. 8, 2017, for example, recently announced that it is giving a 0.25 percent bonus to customers for fiat deposits. Positive Vibes There is a growing vibe in the community that the Indian government will eventually introduce positive regulation. In January, the Indian Ministry of Finance invited reputed law firm Nishith Desai Associates to present their suggestions for crypto regulations. Citing that the law firm “got some good space to present the case,” Mani believes: There is a feeling that something positive might come out soon from the supreme court. Since the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a circular banning regulated financial institutions from providing services to customers dealing with cryptocurrencies, many exchanges have launched exchange-escrowed P2P services which, according to them, have gained much popularity. The country’s supreme court is set to hear the petitions against the ban at the end of this month. The committee headed by Subhash Chandra Garg, Secretary of Department of Economic Affairs under the Ministry of Finance, is reportedly in the final stage of drafting crypto regulation. What do you think of this campaign for positive regulation in India? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post ‘India Wants Crypto’ Campaign Passes 100 Days With Growing Support appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

BTC price action has broken above a major long-term trendline stemming back to December 2017’s all-time highs. When looking at the 2014 – 2015 bear market, a similar move precipitated the final sell-off of the trend before price action moved into an accumulation pattern. BCH also appears to have broken above two major descending trendlines stemming back to the market’s all-time high in recent weeks. Also Read: Public Transportation Across Argentina Can Now Be Paid With BTC BTC Breaks Major Descending Trendline Amid the anxiety and FUD surrounding BTC’s seemingly inevitable retest of support at 2018’s price low just above $3,000, price action has firmly broken above a major descending trendline stemming back to the all-time high of nearly $20,000. BTC/USD – Bitstamp – 1D The break appears to have taken place across multiple time-frames, however, only the current weekly candle appears entirely outside of the trendline’s range, and is yet to close. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 1W When looking at the 2014 – 2015 bear trend, a comparable trendline was broken following 15 months of bearish fallout after the then-all-time high of nearly $1,200 was posted during the end of November 2013. While BTC would not produce a higher high until 10 months later, the break of the trendline comprised a catalyst for both a retest of the support area of the downtrend’s low and the upper side of the descending line, after which the markets channeled sideways to produce a multi-month accumulation pattern. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 1W – Aug. 2013 to May 2017 As of this writing, Bitcoin Core has a market capitalization of $59.64 billion and a dominance of 53.4%. BTC is currently trading for approximately $3,400. BCH Breaks Multiple ATH Trendlines BCH/USD appears to have broken two major trendlines stemming back to the market’s all-time high, in the process breaking out of a range that has guided price since November. BCH/USD – Kraken – 1W The first ATH descending trendline was broken at the end of October, with BCH gaining more than 50% during the following two weeks as price action rallied from roughly $410 to $640. The failure for prices to break above $650 created a secondary ATH trendline and led to approximately six weeks of selling pressure, during which the upper side of the broken trendline guided price action. After a dramatic rally during mid-December, BCH produced sideways consolidation, recently resulting in a break of the secondary all-time high trendline. When measured against BTC, BCH has spent most of 2019 channeling sideways in a tight range between approximately 0.033 BTC and 0.036 BTC. BCH/USD – Bittrex – 1W BCH currently is the fifth-largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of $2.04 billion and dominance of 1.83%. XRP Retains Second Largest Cryptocurrency Market Cap While the scale and speed of the parabola that drove XRP’s all-time high 14 months ago makes it hard to draw trendlines from the ATH area, XRP appears to have broken above its major descending trendline stemming from February 2018 during mid-December. As of this writing, XRP is trading for nearly $0.30 following several weeks of tight consolidation. XRP/USD – Poloniex – 1W When measured against BTC, XRP has spent approximately 12 weeks consolidating between 0.000085 BTC and 0.00010 BTC. XRP/USD – Poloniex – 1W (Calculated by Tradingview) XRP has continued to rank as the second largest crypto asset by capitalization, posting a market cap of over $12 billion and a dominance of 10.75% as of this writing. ETH Holds Above $100 ETH price action has continued to hold above double digits following several weeks of tight consolidation, with ETH currently trading for roughly $105. ETH/USD – Bitfinex – 1W When measured against BTC, ETH has continued to test support at the 0.03 BTC area following nearly five months of sideways consolidation. ETH/BTC – Bitfinex – 1W Ethereum is currently the third largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of nearly $11 billion and a dominance of 9.85%. Do you think that the markets are preparing to shift gears, or will we see further downtrend throughout 2019? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Disclaimer: Price articles and markets updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not to 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, Tradingview At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, have you seen our Tools page? You can even lookup the exchange rate for a transaction in the past. Or calculate the value of your current holdings. Or create a paper wallet. And much more. The post Markets Update: Leading Markets Break ATH Descending Trendlines appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The national contactless smart card that is used to pay for public transportation throughout Argentina can now be loaded with BTC. These cards are valid for rides on buses, trains, subways, and motorboats in 37 cities, including the capital city of Buenos Aires, according to the Argentine government’s website. Also read: Indian Supreme Court Moves Crypto Hearing, Community Calls for Positive Regulations Top Up Sube Cards With BTC Users of rechargeable contactless smart card Sube (Sistema Único de Boleto Electrónico) can start funding it with BTC for use in 37 cities in Argentina starting on Thursday, according to local news outlet cripto247. These cards are promoted by the Argentine Secretary of Transportation and used to pay for public transportation services throughout Argentina. They are valid on “buses, trains, subways and motorboats,” the government website details. “To travel by bus or subte (underground metro) in Buenos Aires, you’ll need to get a rechargeable Sube travel card,” the Buenos Aires tourism website notes. BTC top up of these cards is possible due to the integration of online card funding platform Alto Viaje and fintech startup Bitex. Alto Viaje is listed on the official government’s Sube website as one of the vendors that cardholders can use to fund their accounts. Alto Viaje explains on its website: Sube is the only card that allows you to pay for public transport throughout Argentina. Alto Viaje and Bitex Alto Viaje now offers two funding methods for Sube cards: Paypal and BTC. Soon, the platform will also add funding through Rapipago, according to its website. “Alto Viaje decided to use Bitex’s infrastructure for the technology and liquidity it has, a necessary condition to face a project of this magnitude.” Bitex CMO Manuel Beaudroit was quoted by the news outlet as saying, “We believe that this type of project is of great importance since it brings technology as disruptive as bitcoin to the common people, demonstrating the true value and the applications it has in everyday life.” He added that the minimum funding amount in BTC is 50 Argentine pesos (~$1.32), the publication conveyed. Citing that his company wants to “offer safe and innovative services,” Luciano Verardo, Director of Alto Viaje, said that “the alliance with Bitex allows us to integrate the payment with bitcoins and new possibilities of financial inclusion for people and companies.” In addition to the metropolitan area of the capital city of Buenos Aires, Sube cards can be used in the cities of Bahía Blanca, Catamarca, Cipolletti, Comodoro Rivadavia, Corrientes, Formosa, General Pico, General Pueyrredón, Gualeguaychú, Jujuy, Necochea, Neuquén, Olavarría, Palpalá, Paraná, Partido de la Costa, Pergamino, Pinamar, Rafaela, Rawson, Resistencia, Río Gallegos, Río Grande, Roque Sáenz Peña, San Carlos de Bariloche, San Juan, San Luis, San Martín de los Andes, San Nicolás de los Arroyos, Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz, Santa Rosa, Trelew, Ushuaia, Venado Tuerto, Viedma and Villa Allende. Do you think many people will load their Sube cards with BTC? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Sube. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Public Transportation Across Argentina Can Now Be Paid With BTC appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Platforms providing traders with the opportunity to exchange cryptocurrencies have increasingly started to apply registration requirements. In many cases, these are justified on the basis of newly introduced KYC and AML regulations. Thankfully, there are still exchanges that allow users to swap digital coins without requiring a verified account. Also read: Coinsquare Lays off 40 Employees in a Troublesome Month for Crypto Exchanges Losing the Balance, Again The question regarding the balance between privacy and transparency predates the birth of Bitcoin. Decentralized digital currencies came into existence partly as a response to the trend of economies and societies moving in a cashless direction, which threatened privacy. In a way, they reintroduced the concept of cash, with its relative anonymity, into the digital space, and not at the full expense of transparency per se. This new balance has been challenged. Crypto exchanges nowadays find themselves caught in the crossfire between what many of their customers want in terms of privacy, and what regulators require them to do to limit it. Identity verification makes some sense in the case of crypto-to-fiat transactions, for tax purposes or to prevent illicit activities. But crypto-to-crypto transactions have also become a target and it’s not clear why – many countries, like Poland for example, exempt them from taxation. Leading crypto exchanges operating in the U.S., Europe and globally are now collecting personal information from traders. This is sometimes done through loyalty programs that come with certain benefits and is often justified with the need to comply with new KYC and AML rules. These requests are usually accompanied with promises to protect the collected data. Critics have warned, however, that the risk of your sensitive info ending up with other vendors, being lost to hackers, or shared with some government, not necessarily your own, remains high. Some crypto trading platforms have recognized the concerns of cryptocurrency users and offer services that are filling the gap left by established exchanges such as Shapeshift. We reported about some of the available alternatives last fall. New ones have since started to gain popularity among crypto enthusiasts including the following selection. Platforms That Respect Your Privacy One such exchange is Godex. It offers fast cryptocurrency swaps between over 200 digital coins with no exchange limits other than the minimum amounts required to cover the fees. After choosing a pair, a fixed rate is displayed which is what the trader receives if the exchange receives the amount within 30 minutes. According to a Bitcointalk thread, the platform does not have a central office, and its team is based in Ukraine, the U.S., Italy and Russia. Users are not asked to share any personal data, set up an account or pass mandatory registration. Providing an email address is optional for confirmations and communication with support. “As we stand for absolute privacy, we erase all transaction data from our servers within a week,” the exchange states on its website. It keeps a minimum amount of information needed to process refunds, for example. That includes the email, transaction hash and the sender’s address. Changer.com is another crypto-to-crypto exchange that does not require an account, although it offers discounts for those who create one. If you don’t wish to do so, you can still exchange around 15 coins by providing an email. The trading platform offers its main page in a number of languages and controls two other domains – exchanger.com and the Russian obmen.com. There are mixed comments on crypto forums about its services, with most complaints related to support not answering emails on time. Fairshift is an exchange that does not collect additional user data, except the information needed to process transactions related to a coin swap. No account is required to use the platform and “no personal info that can be stolen in the event of a hack or other compromise” is collected. Basic data about completed transactions, including refunds, can be seen in the “Past Transactions” section of Fairshift’s website. Other sites offer limited privacy and conditional anonymity. Simpleswap, for example, says in its FAQ section “Yes, our service is anonymous.” Yet the online exchanger notes that there are exceptions. “Simpleswap collaborates with many partners. Our partners, according to their risk assessment and European AML directives, can apply for a photo of your ID valid in your country and information about the origin of your coins,” the platform explains without specifying the names of its partners. Then there’s Coinswitch, an exchange aggregator that supports trades between more than 300 cryptocurrencies through integration with many leading exchanges such as Bittrex, Kucoin, Idex, Hitbtc, Shapeshift and others. Before placing a trade, however, users are required to register an account and provide name, date of birth, and country of residence, phone number and a valid email address. Only the last two entries have to be verified however. Which privacy-oriented crypto exchange do you recommend? Tell us in the comments section below. Share your thoughts on the subject. Images courtesy of Shutterstock. Disclaimer: Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support these products/services. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the mentioned companies or any of their affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article. The post These Exchanges Allow You to Trade Cryptocurrencies Without Knowing You appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

On Wednesday, Feb. 6, the Honest Cash publishing platform powered by bitcoin cash partnered with the cryptocurrency focused Patreon alternative Bitbacker.io. The new partnership aims to bolster the Honest Cash and Bitbacker user base by providing individuals with the means to crowdfund projects while at the same time being incentivized with BCH for sharing unique content. Also Read: Many Self-Proclaimed Bitcoin Inventors and Satoshi Clues Were Debunked in 2018 Honest Cash and Bitbacker Team Up In November, news.Bitcoin.com reported on the launch of a new BCH powered publishing platform called Honest Cash. The platform arrived soon after the Nov. 15 BCH blockchain split and the popular blogging platform moved on to support the altcoin BSV. A month later our newsdesk spoke with the creator of the cryptocurrency-fueled Patreon alternative Bitbacker.io and explained how users can crowdfund projects with BCH and BTC. Adrian Barwicki, CEO of Honest Cash, and Jonathan Silverblood, founder of Bitbacker, explained during the partnership announcement that the ultimate goal is to create a larger audience. “The relationship provides users of both Honest Cash and Bitbacker a larger audience reach — Both users will now have the potential to earn pledges and secure backing within both platforms,” explained the team’s announcement. Adrian Barwicki, CEO of Honest Cash, and Jonathan Silverblood, founder of Bitbacker, just announced they will be releasing a series of blog posts to inform users about the partnership integrations in the near future. Crypto Powered Applications See Improvement and Growth Both platforms have been adding a lot of improvements over the last few weeks. For instance, Honest Cash has seen significant growth as the BCH application has encouraged any kind of content including video, images, art, and prose. Some Honest Cash users have made upwards of $1,000 per content piece in bitcoin cash tips. Moreover, the platform recently added a native BCH wallet providing Honest Cash users with the ability to generate a new wallet and import existing BCH keys with custom HD derivation path support. The Honest Cash publishing platform allows people to post all kinds of content like video, blogs, scripts, art, and photos. Bitbacker.io has seen a lot of growth as well, as many cryptocurrency advocates have switched from Patreon to the alternative application. The platform supports BCH, LTC, Smart, and BTC while providing a variety of the same features the centralized website Patreon supplies. LTC integration was also recently applied to the crowdfunding platform. Jonathan Silverblood spoke with news.Bitcoin.com back in December, when he explained that Bitbacker is able to charge close to 1 percent, while in contrast fiat-based platforms like Patreon and Youtube charge 10-30 percent. Bitbacker.io is a crypto based alternative to Patreon. The platform supports BCH, Smart, LTC, and BTC. Both Barwicki and Silverblood say they will soon be releasing a series of blog posts to inform users of both platforms detailing exactly what and when integrations will be made. The team says that the partnership is proof that when two innovative communities and developers support each other “incredible things happen.” What do you think about the partnership between Bitbacker.io and Honest Cash? Let us know what you think about this project in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock, Bitbacker.io, Pixabay, and Honest Cash. 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 Satoshi’s Pulse, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post BCH Publishing App Honest Cash Partners With Patreon Alternative Bitbacker.io appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Choosing the best country to set up a business is vital in this digital age, and especially so for crypto companies. As governments around the world continue to learn more about cryptocurrencies and elect to either crack down on them or allow them to flourish, some jurisdictions emerge as being better than others for launching a crypto startup. Also read: Markets Update: Traders Patiently Wait for Crypto’s Longest Bear Run to End Take Time Choosing Where to Base Your Business Many governments are still deciding what to do with cryptocurrency. While some are friendly towards it and see the benefit of crypto companies basing themselves in their jurisdiction, a number are openly hostile. If you’re planning to launch a crypto-related business, it makes sense to study the regulatory framework and government policy in a number of jurisdictions before reaching a decision. Do you want to set up a business in a country that has historically had low taxation? If the country you are considering is receptive to crypto, and there are no signs of impending tighter regulation, will you still be able to attract investors? Does it have a vibrant ecosystem of fintech companies that will support your business? These are all matters that should be considered before setting up shop. The following crypto-friendly countries all have their attributes and are worthy of consideration before you settle on your HQ. USA: Booming Bet Right Now This U.S. is unsurprisingly a hotbed of crypto companies. Many high-profile cryptocurrency exchanges, custody providers, wallet developers, and miners operate from the U.S. and the government is working to enact a clearer legal framework for crypto-related businesses. Policy varies state to state, and while taxation guidelines in the U.S. have generally been unclear, in December lawmakers filed a bill to create tax exemptions for certain cryptocurrency transactions. The cryptocurrency community in the U.S. is thriving and the technology is slowly entering the mainstream. For example, Ohio last year allowed companies in the state to pay a variety of taxes, from tobacco sales tax to employee withholding tax, with bitcoin. Switzerland: Established and Secure Switzerland has long been a crypto-friendly nation. Its government has been open to the idea of cryptocurrency, encouraging crypto startups to set up shop there, and in December announcing a new legislative approach to blockchain. Switzerland’s tax rate is also attractive. In general, the country boasts a low-tax environment for businesses and many bitcoin service startups are already based in Switzerland. The country’s tax regulator considers cryptocurrencies to be assets, subject to wealth taxes that must be declared in annual returns. A 2018 report declared the top 50 cryptocurrency and blockchain-related companies in Switzerland’s “Crypto Valley” alone to be worth $44 billion. Bitcoin ATM manufacturer Lamassu moved to Switzerland due to problems with maintaining a bank account elsewhere and has been able to thrive in the progressive landlocked nation. And with some of the best universities in Europe, including the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne, which hosts an innovation park, there’s plenty of talent to choose from. Japan: Ahead of the Game With the number of crypto companies in Japan growing – December saw 190 companies express the intention of market entry – the tech-savvy country is an ideal jurisdiction to set up a cryptocurrency business. The island nation has a booming bitcoin and cryptocurrency industry and was one of the first and only countries to recognize cryptocurrency within its legal system. Adoption is growing in the country too, with many businesses, restaurants and cafes accepting crypto for payments compared to other countries and jurisdictions on this list. Last year the country’s Financial Services Agency published its draft report of new cryptocurrency regulations. The country also allowed 16 of the country’s largest crypto exchanges to build a self-regulatory body. This step shows how Japan is ahead of the game in terms of regulation and allowing crypto companies to flourish. As a result, more and more startups are moving to Japan to take advantage of the friendly regulatory environment. Singapore: Low Tax, Lots of Talent The business-friendly, low-tax and tech-friendly Singapore is another jurisdiction worth considering. Although the previous regulatory framework for crypto wasn’t entirely clear, and some businesses were unable to expand due to troubles with bank accounts, the country’s financial regulator said in October that it was very open to crypto companies working with banks to reach an agreement to allow these businesses to grow. Last year, the central bank of Singapore finalized the country’s new regulatory framework for payment services, which now includes cryptocurrency. Singapore isn’t quite on a par with Japan, but it’s moving in the right direction. Its large big tech and business community would also be ideal for attracting investors and talent for a crypto-focused startup. Luxembourg: Most Economically Developed A tiny country of little under 600,000, Luxembourg boasts one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Bitstamp. Tokyo-based Bitflyer also has offices in the European country after being granted a Payment Institution license to operate in the European Union. Luxembourg has long been a financial hub and business-friendly nation and the country clearly sees the potential of cryptocurrencies. Crypto exchanges in Luxembourg are governed by the CSSF and must follow the same rules as other financial institutions. Regarding taxes, cryptocurrencies are treated as intangible assets, and are not subject to income tax until they are disposed of, while cryptocurrency transactions are exempt from VAT. The country is also a good place to draw talent for a crypto company, with the innovative University of Luxembourg which is currently working to enhance the security of crypto assets. What do you think about these countries and the way they deal with crypto companies? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Image credits: 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 Satoshi’s Pulse, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post 5 Crypto-Friendly Countries to Base Your Business appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Coinbase has announced support for bitcoin core (BTC) in the company’s noncustodial wallet. The wallet was originally originally dedicated to ethereum (ETH), ethereum classic (ETC), ERC721 and ERC20 tokens. The San Francisco based company plans to add more currencies to the wallet in the near future. Also Read: The Daily: F1 Team Gets Crypto Sponsor, Dubai Royal Partners Digital Assets Fund Noncustodial Coinbase Wallet Now Supports BTC After building a slew of custodial services, Coinbase released a noncustodial wallet for storing, sending, and receiving ETH, ETC, and a wide array of ERC-based tokens. Coinbase Wallet is a rebrand of the ‘Toshi’ client the company introduced back in April of 2017. The wallet also connects to a dapp browser that showcases certain ETH-fueled platforms. A few weeks ago Coinbase announced the development team was in the midst of adding BTC support to the wallet, and on Feb. 5, Coinbase representative Siddharth Coelho-Prabhu revealed that developers have fully integrated support for BTC. “Our goal with Coinbase Wallet is to create the world’s leading user custodied crypto wallet,” ran the announcement. “Bitcoin support is activated by default — all you need to do is tap ‘Receive’ on the main wallet tab and select Bitcoin to send BTC to your Coinbase Wallet,” Coelho-Prabhu detailed. “Coinbase Wallet supports both newer segwit addresses with lower transaction fees, as well as legacy addresses for backward compatibility in all applications.” Setting up a new Coinbase Wallet with username and passcode. Just like the previous version of the wallet, the light client’s private keys are encrypted on your mobile phone or tablet using secure enclave technology. “This specialized hardware is considered the most secure way to safeguard private data on mobile devices,” Coelho-Prabhu explained. The Coinbase light client also supports the BTC and ETH testnets so programmers can work with testnet coins to deploy cryptocurrency integrated applications. At the moment most applications in the browser, like Peepeth, Instadapp, Totle, Cent, Smartdrops, Compound, Paradex, Oasis Direct, and Airswap are all Ethereum-based protocols. You can also click the “Discover Dapps” button to find more applications within the wallet’s browser. Backing up the Coinbase Wallet’s private keys and the BTC wallet interface. Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Other Coins Will Be Supported Soon Coinbase also details the company will be adding bitcoin cash (BCH), litecoin (LTC) and other popular digital assets soon. When BCH gets added to the wallet lineup there’s a wide variety of dapps that could be added to the Coinbase browser like Memo.cash, Craft.cash, Wormhole, the Simple Ledger Protocol (SLP) and Bookchain. The Coinbase Wallet’s dapp browser, testnet section, and active wallets. Not only has Coinbase announced BTC integration, but the company recommends Coinbase.com users should check out the wallet as it gives them control over their keys. The San Francisco company also emphasized the difference between the newly revamped wallet and the firm’s traditional brokerage operations. “With Coinbase.com, you can buy crypto and Coinbase stores it (along with your private keys) for you; with Coinbase Wallet, you store your own crypto that’s safeguarded by a private key that only you know,” Coelho-Prabhu’s post concludes. What do you think about the newly revamped Coinbase Wallet with added BTC support? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Image credits: Shutterstock, Jamie Redman, and the Coinbase Wallet. 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 Satoshi’s Pulse, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com. The post Coinbase Noncustodial Wallet Adds BTC Support and Plans to Add More Assets appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article