roadrunner

This is a paid press release, which contains forward looking statements, and should be treated as advertising or promotional material. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support this product/service. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the press release. Few people know about the two failed attempts made by BitTorrent, former P2P leader, to transform itself into a media company after its decline from the height of BT download. Obviously, though once a technological game-changer, BitTorrent is no longer a favorite of the Internet industry. Its rebirth backed by Tron drew a period to its past decade of adversity. Now in a new jack of the classical Internet, Tron is also turning a new page. A week before Tron’s mainnet launch, the news that Justin Sun and his blockchain startup acquired the developer of BitTorrent, a decentralized P2P protocol, for USD$140 million drifted across the Pacific. For a long time, BitTorrent has been looking for a buyer. It finally made the decision to join Tron, a star project in the rising tide of blockchain technology. Redemption of the classical Internet There are always people in this world who are fighting for a nation of their dreams—a liberal, equal, democratic, self-governed nation that no longer bows to authoritarianism or cheats the young or the old. This is also true of the world of the Internet. Here are also revolutionary geeks who never stopped decentralizing the web. In 2004, a new mode of decentralized download frenzied global Internet users. BitTorrent introduced the P2P network as a new way of sharing and storing data. Different from the server-based mode, with BitTorrent everyone can provide other terminals with downloadable data, meaning that the more people exchange and share via BT, the faster the download speed. This makes the sharing and distribution of large files (e.g. videos) much easier. BitTorrent marks a milestone in the development of classical Internet when the flow of videos began to overtake audios. BitTorrent is undoubtedly a pioneer of P2P data sharing, storage and backup under a distributed network structure. More importantly, it created a new perspective for the underlying layer that evoked new understandings and conceptions of the Internet. Justin said in his Letter to the Community, “BitTorrent is the genesis of the decentralization movement. Developers, entrepreneurs, and the decentralized Web community regard BitTorrent as the original pioneers of decentralization technology. It is the foundation of an open, transparent, shared Internet protocol.” However, BitTorrent’s open-source protocol and copyright issues with shared files soon exposed more problems. Content creators and publishers attacked P2P technology represented by BitTorrent for its security issues, hacker attacks, private information leakage, policy restrictions, profit distribution and copyright issues. In addition, with the rise of video websites, P2P transmission’s occupancy of Internet flow dropped continuously. Although BitTorrent is still home to at least 170M monthly active users and 40% of global Internet flow, the commercialization of its technologies remains a great challenge. The founder of BitTorrent believes that a company with a great tool should do something greater. In the wake of the Bitcoin boom, blockchain technology based on distributed P2P network, encryption algorithm and consensus sparked hope in the classical Internet. The asymmetrical encryption algorithm of blockchain technology enables protection of privacy while establishing direct P2P connection. Any third parties cannot engage in P2P interaction. Data decentralization is realized by placing the storage and calculation of data in users’ own hands. Meanwhile, the use of smart contract allows every contributor to share interest peacefully and fosters consensus of data on the application level, which strongly backs the legitimacy of a decentralized web. BitTorrent’s official website also shows the direction it is heading. It aims to realize higher mobility of data. It wants to allow content creators to profit from their creations and users to be able to jointly construct the ecosystem in ways they love, with consensus on contents shared. It does seem that BitTorrent will find its best ally in the blockchain industry. Intrinsic compatibility draws BitTorrent and Blockchain together. It is said that the TRON Protocol, one of the largest blockchain-based operating systems in the world, offers scalable, high-availability, and high-throughput support that serves as the foundation for all decentralized applications in the TRON ecosystem. The Protocol also uses an innovative, pluggable smart contract platform to improve compatibility with Ethereum smart contracts. TRON holds a vision of establishing a global free entertainment system and decentralizing the web. A generous USD$140 million payment not only lifted BitTorrent out of its struggles, but also signals a new attempt to the classical Internet and the blockchain industries. Mutual benefit: 1+1>2 This huge acquisition, yet another big move since TRON declared independence, caused a great stir in the blockchain industry where excitements crop up one after another. Technologically, joining hands with BitTorrent will definitely strengthen TRON’s distributed underlying network. It is learnt that BitTorrent will provide help on the storage layer of the TRON protocol to improve its overall performance and stability. In essence, the marriage of BitTorrent’s technology and TRON’s blockchain technology will apply, through the joint construction of a secure cloud computing database storage, BitTorrent’s technologies to where real commercial value can be created. This collaboration will also bring to the fore the strengths of deploying strong underlying protocols such as cloud storage, distributed download, and content distribution on TRON’s public blockchain. A highlight of the acquisition is that BitTorrent’s 100M+ users are now TRON’s. In fact, the two companies have more users than any other player in their respective fields. It is the 170M+ monthly active users that made BitTorrent one of the best performing protocols based on P2P technology. By TRON’s declaration of independence on June 25, there were already over 1.2M TRX holders worldwide, outnumbering any other token holder community. The influx of 100M+ users further consolidates the user base of TRON’s ecosystem and injects vitality into its community. For one thing, TRON’s ecosystem fulfills the long-existent needs of BitTorrent users. With TRON’s incentive plans, these users will be able to recognize its values and foster stronger consensus, which will encourage them to become TRX holders. The thus rosy outlook of TRX will expectedly result in satisfactory performance despite a sluggish market, securing its place within the top 10 and bringing it closer to the 6th place. For another, driven by vested interest and shared values, not only will BitTorrent content contributors be propelled to engage actively in community development, but also client acquisition cost and the cost of user activity can in turn be significantly lowered. In this way, more contribution can be made to the establishment of a global free entertainment system, lowering the threshold of the final commercialization. It not only excited the youthful TRON, but also demonstrated to the blockchain and the traditional Internet industries how 1+1>2. As we all know, embattled by user issues and high flow costs, dividend of the traditional Internet is no longer intact. It is desperately in need of a new incentive mechanism to restore vitality. The token economy based on blockchain technology is approaching satisfaction. Its pluralistic compound ecosystem features sustainability and recyclability, enabling global participants to engage in R&D and maintenance wherever they are. Community users play a key role in the development of the ecosystem, taking the initiative to communicate and transform. Once they share the same values, user engagement can grow at an unexpected rate. All of these could not be possible in the classical Internet. The traditional Internet needs to transform or optimize the existing business model with token economy; the blockchain startups are eager to pursue mature technology, user base and commercial genes of the traditional Internet in the exploration and development stage. desire. Therefore, instead of antagonism, the two shall maintain openness and collaboration in a coexisting world, thus building up energy for the upcoming large-scale commercialization. TRON’s acquisition of BitTorrent has provided another perspective for the combination of traditional Internet and blockchain industry, which may be recorded as a classic case of the blockchain company’s acquisition of traditional Internet corporation in blockchain history. Contact Email Address trx@tron.network Supporting Link https://tron.network/ This is a paid press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post PR: 1+1>2 – Justin Sun Acquired BitTorrent appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The BTC markets have gained approximately 30% in two weeks, with prices currently sitting at $8,300 USD after roughly 48 hours of consolidation above $8,000. After producing gains against the dollar, many other leading cryptocurrency markets have continued to produce inverse correlation when measured against BTC. Also Read: Japanese Crypto Exchanges Working on Lowering Margin Trading Limits BTC Consolidates Above $8,000 The price of Bitcoin Core (BTC) has gained roughly 30% in the last two weeks following the strongest fortnight of trading since April. Ten of the last thirteen days have produced red candles, with prices rising from approximately $6,200 to $8,200 as of this writing. The last two weeks of trading have also produced a notable spike in daily volume, with the 24th of July producing the highest trade volume for BTC/USD on Bitfinex since the 25th of April. BTC/USD – Bitfinex – 1D With the markets appearing to have established an immediate bull channel, many analysts are expecting that FOMO leading up to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s determinations regarding Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE)’s proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund may drive the BTC markets to test resistance at approximately $10,000. Should the immediate trend fail, the markets will likely drop to retest the local support areas of either $7,500 or $6,800. BTC currently has a market capitalization of $142 billion and a market dominance of nearly 47%. BCH Gains Over 25% in Two Weeks Bitcoin Cash has also enjoyed a bullish fortnight of price action, with the BCH markets gaining approximately 28% since testing support at roughly $660 on the 12th of July. Since then, the BCH/USD markets appear to have begun to form an ascending triangle formation – with current prices sitting at approximately $830 on Bitfinex. BCH/USD – Bitfinex – 1W Despite the gains against the dollar, BCH/BTC has continued to lose value against BTC, with the BCH/BTC markets continuing to follow the descending channel that has guided price action since May. Since the start of June, Bitcoin Cash has lost roughly 30% against BTC – falling from 0.15 BTC to the current levels just above 0.1 BTC. BCH/BTC – Bitfinex – 1W As of this writing, the BCH/BTC markets appear to be testing both the ascending and descending trendlines comprising a symmetrical triangle formation that has guided price action from the markets’ inception 12 months ago. BCH is the fourth largest cryptocurrency market with a total capitalization of roughly $14.6 billion and a market dominance of nearly 5%. ETH Suffers Losses Against BTC By contrast, the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, Ethereum, has gained just 10% over the last ten days, rising from approximately $435 to $475 as of this writing. So far, the long-term ascending trendline on the ETH/USD chart dating back to May last year has continued to hold up. ETH/USD – Bitfinex – 1W Between the 15th and 18th of July, Ethereum gained 15% in three days, rallying to test support above $500. The markets immediately gave back most of the gains, retracing by 10% over the next three days before consolidating. On the 24th of July, ETH rallied by 7% over the dollar. ETH/USD – Bitfinex – 1D When measuring against BTC, Ethereum has lost 18.5% in the last two weeks, falling from 0.708 BTC to roughly 0.058. The market capitalization of ETH is $48.6 billion. Ethereum has a market dominance of 16%. ETH/BTC – Bitfinex – 1W XRP and EOS Channel Sideways The price of XRP, the third-ranked cryptocurrency by market cap, has consolidated within a roughly 20% range over the last 30 days, with fiat prices fluctuating between approximately $0.43 and $0.52 since the last week of June. As of this writing, XRP is trading for $0.46. ETH/USD – Bitfinex – 1W When measuring against BTC, the XRP markets have produced an eighth consecutive red candle after falling from approximately 0.00009 BTC in the last week of April to roughly 0.0000565 as of this writing. Over the course of the last two weeks, XRP/BTC lost approximately 20% to break into new lows for 2018. The market capitalization of XRP is $18.25 billion, and the market dominance is 6%. ETH/BTC – Bitfinex – 1W The fifth largest crypto market by capitalization, EOS, has produced comparable price action to XRP in recent weeks, consolidating within a nearly 30% range over the course of the last five weeks when measuring against the dollar. As of this writing, EOS is trading for $8.6 after gaining 15% in two weeks following a bounce from the third point of contact with a major ascending trendline dating back to November 2017. EOS/USD – Bitfinex – 1W When measuring against BTC, seven of the last eight weekly candles produced by the EOS/BTC markets have been red, with EOS having lost nearly 45% in two months, falling from over 0.00185 BTC at the start of June to roughly 0.00105 BTC as of this writing. EOS has a market cap of $7.865 billion and a market dominance of 2.6%. EOS/BTC – Bitfinex – 1W Stellar Bucks Trend, Gains Over BTC Of the top ten cryptocurrency markets by market capitalization, Stellar has been the sole market that has posted consistent gains over BTC in recent weeks. Stellar has gained roughly 28% during the last two and a half weeks, rallying from approximately 0.000031 to nearly 0.0004 as of this writing. STR/BTC – Poloniex – 1W When measuring against USD, Stellar is up 45% in the last ten days rallying from $0.22 to $0.32. In the last 30 days, Stellar has gained nearly 70% from roughly $0.19 on the 25th of June. STR/USD – Poloniex – 1W Stellar is the sixth largest cryptocurrency by market cap with a capitalization of $6.3 billion and a market dominance of over 2%. Do you think that the altcoin markets will continue to shed correlation with BTC? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Trading View Did you know Bitcoin.com has an awesome podcast network? Check out the ‘This Week in Bitcoin’ series and ‘Humans of Bitcoin’ by listening to our very own podcast. The post Markets Update: BTC Gains 30% in Two Weeks, Alts Lose Correlation appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The crypto exchange platform subsidiary of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange is now open to the public with six cryptocurrencies. Users can fund their accounts in USD. Meanwhile, its token sale platform, GBX Grid, has already completed its first token sale with three new projects planned. Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space GBX Digital Asset Exchange Launched The GBX Digital Asset Exchange has launched to the public, the exchange announced this week. The GBX is a subsidiary of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange which is regulated by GFSC and operates as an EU-regulated market, recognized by European regulator ESMA and UK regulator HMRC. Users have to register with the platform and complete the KYC requirements. Their accounts can then be funded in USD, the exchange detailed, elaborating: We are launching the platform with 6 cryptocurrencies available on the exchange. These include: bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), rock token (RKT), litecoin (LTC), bitcoin cash (BCH) and ethereum classic (ETC). “We are making the following trading pairs available to all our users: RKT/USD, ETH/USD and BTC/USD,” the exchange noted. In addition, “Everybody who has already signed up and any new users who sign up before 17th August will benefit from zero-fee trading from today until 14th September 2018.” GBX CEO Nick Cowan revealed, “we are already looking forward to making significant additions to this offering in the future,” adding that “the launch comes at a time when the cryptocurrency and token markets are reaching a new stage of maturity.” He further conveyed that the exchange also plans to launch its official mobile application in the near future. This public launch follows the soft launch in June for about 300 participants. The exchange used the feedback from the soft launch to develop and design its user interface in preparation for the public launch. The GBX described: It is widely recognised that one of the biggest hurdles for people looking to enter the crypto-space is knowing how to get started, where to source ETH or how to buy BTC from a trusted platform. With fiat onboarding now in place, that’s no longer an issue. GBX Grid Token Sale Platform The GBX also operates a token sale platform called GBX Grid, which has already completed its first token sale. It has since revealed that three new crypto projects are coming to the platform. “The Grid is reserved for projects that have completed our rigorous application process and have been vetted thoroughly by one of the 15 sponsor firms in our network,” the GBX described. Citing that it “aims to be a world-leading institutional-grade token sale platform and digital asset exchange,” the exchange wrote: For both participants and issuers, this now means that the GBX offers a complete token and digital asset experience via an institutional-grade platform, focused on good governance and industry best practices. What do you think of the GBX exchange? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and GBX. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Gibraltar Stock Exchange’s Crypto Platform Opens to Public With 6 Cryptocurrencies appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In today’s edition of Bitcoin in Brief we cover stories about Skrill launching crypto buying and selling, luxury marketplace The White Company reaching $100 million in transactions, Bitmex setting a trading record, and weak mining-related sales hurting AMD. Also Read: Bitmain Reveals the Total Hashrate of Its Mining Hardware Skrill Launches Crypto Trading Skrill, the online payments service formerly known as Moneybookers, is now enabling its wallet users to instantly buy and sell cryptocurrencies, including BTC, BCH, ETH and LTC, using more than 40 supported fiat options. The company said it purchases and holds the cryptocurrency via “a recognised cryptocurrency exchange.” Skrill’s new cryptocurrency capability is available at launch in over 30 countries including: Australia, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, and the UK. The company plans to roll it out to additional markets and extend the service to its mobile app and Paysafe’s Neteller digital wallet in the next few months. Lorenzo Pellegrino, CEO of Skrill, commented: “The world of cryptocurrency trading is exciting and dynamic, and our digital wallet service very much lends itself to this environment. I’m confident that the ability to trade in cryptocurrencies quickly and easily through Skrill will appeal to consumers both now and in the future. We know many people want to experiment with cryptocurrency trading but don’t know where to start and we’ve made the entire process very straightforward.” The White Company Reaches $100M Screenshot The White Company, a cryptocurrency concierge and luxury marketplace, has announced it surpassed $100 million in cryptocurrency sales and transactions since launching in 2017. Over 25,000 deals have taken place for goods including Lamborghinis, pieces of rare art, global excursions and conversions to fiat. The platform also plans to launch a commercial processing solution by the end of Q3 2018. “Usability of crypto is paramount for its mainstream adoption,” said CEO Elizabeth White. “A new asset class has been created through this digital currency boom, but holders have been largely unable to spend their new wealth. We’ve made it our mission to help consumers use crypto to purchase goods, experiences or simply cash out into fiat, and our recent stablecoin and wallet platform furthers that goal. This milestone is a testament to the demand for widespread usability, and we’re excited to continue serving the market and working with merchants in the near future.” Recently, the company has decided to accept Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and says there has been a high demand by BCH holders. Gold Krugerrands and Beyonce/Jay-Z tour tickets being the most popular items. As a result, The White Company has begun offering exclusive items available for purchase only with BCH, starting with jewelry from Cartier. Bitmex Sees Over 1 Million BTC Trades in 24 Hours Bitmex, an exchange offering cryptocurrency trading with very high leverage, has reported more than 1 million BTC traded on the platform in the 24-hours period closing July 24. The 1,041,748 BTC traded shattered its previous record of 800,000 traded within 24 hours. CEO and Co-founder Arthur Hayes said: “The astronomical surge in trading volume, coupled with the steadily rising price of bitcoin, is reflective of the market’s increasingly sophisticated understanding of the potential of bitcoin to redefine global markets. The achievement was also largely thanks to ongoing capacity increases accomplished by scaling our engine architecture. The record that BitMEX has set marks a major milestone in the cryptocurrency industry’s overall path to maturation. I am delighted that BitMEX’s easy-to-use and highly secure trading application has helped to onboard yet another tidal wave of people from all around the world to the crypto market and given them the confidence to participate on the largest scale ever seen.” Weak Mining-Related Sales Hurt AMD in Q2 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), whose mining-related sales accounted for 10% of its overall revenue in Q1, has reported its Q2 financial results. Despite a quarterly increase in overall revenue of 7%, the Computing and Graphics segment revenue was down 3%. The company explains that this decline “was primarily related to lower revenue from GPU products in the blockchain market.” For the third quarter of 2018, AMD expects revenue to be driven by the sales growth of Ryzen and EPYC products, “partially offset by lower sales of GPU products in the blockchain market.” AMD CFO Devinder Kumar commented in an earnings call with analysts that: “Graphics revenue was down primarily driven by lower blockchain sales partially offset by stronger data center sales. We believe blockchain-related revenue declined from approximately 10% of our revenue in the first quarter to approximately 6% of our overall revenue in the second quarter.” 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 The Daily: Skrill Launches Crypto Trade, Luxury Market Reaches $100M Transactions appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Japanese cryptocurrency exchanges may soon set a strict limit on the leverage they offer for margin trading in order to better protect investors. The association comprised of 16 government-approved crypto exchanges is reportedly imposing a leverage limit as part of its self-regulatory rules. There will be a grace period and exceptions. Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space Leverage Limit on Margin Trading The Japan Virtual Currency Exchange Association (JVCEA) is reportedly planning to impose a leverage limit for crypto margin trading in order to protect investors, local media reported Wednesday. The association’s members are all of Japan’s 16 government-approved crypto exchanges. It was set up in response to the hack of Coincheck in January in order to rebuild public trust in the crypto space. The JVCEA has been working on self-regulatory measures. Nikkei reported Wednesday that the proposed rules include “an across-the-board cap on the extent to which traders can use borrowed funds to magnify gains and losses,” adding: The self-regulatory body for Japan’s cryptocurrency exchanges is firming up plans to set a 4-to-1 leverage limit on margin trading, aiming to reduce the risk of massive losses given the volatility of these assets. “The measure would take effect after a one-year grace period. The organization is considering allowing exceptions if exchanges meet certain conditions, such as implementing automatic stop-loss mechanisms,” the publication detailed. With the volatility of crypto trading, “some highly leveraged cryptocurrency investors in Japan have suffered heavy losses, spurring criticism from consumer protection groups.” While the association itself has not confirmed its plans, the news outlet wrote that the “draft rules also include bans on insider trading and dealing in cryptocurrencies suspected to be used in money laundering.” Last month, six of the association’s members received business improvement orders from Japan’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA). Subsequently, Yuzo Kano and Hiroyuki Noriyuki, representative directors of Bitflyer and Bitbank Corporation, who were serving as vice presidents of the association, resigned to focus on their exchange businesses. Exchanges Set Their Own Limits Each cryptocurrency exchange in Japan sets its own limit for margin trading. DMM Bitcoin, the crypto exchange of Japanese e-commerce and entertainment giant DMM Group, for example, offers 5 times leverage. Zaif, operated by Tech Bureau, offers up to 7.77 times leverage. “You can choose leverage from 1x to 7.77x, according to your trading style,” the exchange wrote on its website. GMO Coin, the exchange subsidiary of Japanese internet giant GMO, offers 5 times and 10 times leverage for BTC/JPY. However, only 5 times leverage is offered for the margin trading of ETH, BCH, LTC, and XRP against the JPY. Bitpoint offers leverage of 2x, 5x, 10x, and 25x for BTC/JPY, BTC/USD, BTC/EUR, and BTC/HKD. Bitflyer’s Lightning platform allows leverage of up to 15 times. Nikkei further elaborated: Japan currently lacks limits on cryptocurrency margin trading…Some exchanges permit leverage of up to 25 times the deposit, citing regulations, setting that as the ceiling for foreign exchange trading. Do you think Japanese exchanges should have a lower leverage limit? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the FSA. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Japanese Crypto Exchanges Working on Lowering Margin Trading Limits appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

This is a paid press release, which contains forward looking statements, and should be treated as advertising or promotional material. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support this product/service. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the press release. PALO ALTO, California — Propy, the global real estate store with a decentralized title registry, announced the successful execution of a historic real estate deal on the Blockchain in the State of California. With Propy’s Transaction Platform, every step of the deal was executed via Ethereum smart contracts, making this the first comprehensive blockchain-recorded property deal in the state of California and only the second in the world. The cross-border transaction happened remotely using cryptocurrency (BTC) as the means of payment, thus eliminating the need for banks and eradicating geographical limitations usually tied to traditional deals. Kate Fomina, a California licensed realtor, represented both Luke Carriere (the buyer) and Diana Dominguez (the seller). When the transaction began, Fomina was located in Hong Kong, Carriere was in New York, Dominguez was in Northern California, and the escrow agent was in the San Francisco Bay Area. Propy has taken an important step in automating real estate purchases in the global real estate market. The use of smart contracts guarantees that the flow of transactions is executed in full compliance with regional regulations. The transaction is recorded and verifiable on the public Ethereum Blockchain, giving complete security to the deal. “We believe that blockchain technology can truly revolutionize the real estate purchasing process and the management of public records,” said Natalia Karayaneva, CEO of Propy. “Propy streamlines a complicated process into a simple online transaction and we’ve seen significant traction in the industry already — buyers and sellers are increasingly turning to blockchains and cryptocurrencies. We’re excited to facilitate more property transactions and reach more milestones in our goal to automate the real estate industry.” Transactions executed on the Propy Transaction Platform are legally binding, provide additional proof of ownership, and the transfer of ownership happens with traditional legal safeguards in place. The Propy Blockchain Title Registry is available for deed recording by any customer, broker, or title agent wishing to store the encrypted information on the globally distributed Ethereum network. In California, Propy recorded the first deeds on the Blockchain in May and June; the San Francisco Recording office also holds a deed containing the blockchain information. The company works in partnership with private organizations and governments worldwide to promote distributed ledger technology as a standard for storing public data. About Propy Propy is the world’s first international real estate platform aimed at solving the problems of purchasing property remotely. Propy facilitates connections between everyone involved in a property deal to enable the seamless purchase of real estate online. The Silicon Valley-based company is advised by Alain Pinel (Intero Real Estate), Michael Arrington (founder of TechCrunch), Vinny Lingham (CEO of Civic), David Cowan (Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners), Daniel Kottke (first Apple employee), and Bruce Cahan (Consulting Professor at Stanford University). Press Contact Email Address hello@marketwaves.co Supporting Link https://propy.com/ This is a paid press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post PR: Propy – This California Property Was Sold On The Blockchain Without Using Banks appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

A few days ago news.Bitcoin.com reported on the debate between Bitcoin Cash (BCH) developers and community members concerning an idea called ‘pre-consensus.’ Some developers believe pre-consensus could help with bock time speeds, zero-confirmation transactions, and consensus in general. Since then there’s been a lot of discussion about this topic, and some members of the BCH community with mining power, like Viabtc’s Haipo Yang, seemed to favor the idea of faster block times. While other miners, like Coingeek’s Calvin Ayre, have issues with the recent ideas that involve what they call “risky protocol changes.” Also Read: Bitcoin Cash Developers Debate an Idea Called Pre-Consensus Bitcoin Cash and the Pre-Consensus Idea Not long ago Bitcoin ABC client’s lead developer, Amaury Séchet, proposed the idea of pre-consensus to the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) community. The idea Séchet and other developers believe could make block times faster, help produce a more sound zero-confirmation system, and help with other consensus protocol changes. Right away Nchain’s chief scientist Craig Wright explained that he thinks pre-consensus is a horrible idea and “no hash goes to this crap.” Wright was not the only person who disagreed with the idea, and there have been many others who have written posts and comments about the concept in a negative light. However, this week Viabtc’s founder Haipo Yang had some positive statements to say about faster block times. On Twitter the Viabtc founder states: I believe Bitcoin Cash should decrease the block time from 10 minutes to 1 minute. As a pool operator, I don’t see any technical problem and this will improve user experience very much. Although again Nchain’s Wright immediately spoke out against it on Haipo Yang’s Twitter feed and said, “It will kill Bitcoin — It is a Poisson system. That makes the median time too low and the system stops scaling. It adds NOTHING — It makes the entire system fail and stop scaling — It is then not Bitcoin.” Wright continues: No gain. No benefit. No value and a cap on growth, a change just for change sake without thinking and considering the long term. And, it is NO longer Bitcoin. Not BCH. It alters the reward, it alters the schedule. You make this change, you kill your pool. And for what — 1 min helps NOTHING when it comes to retail. Makes 0-conf no better. Increases the orphan rate 20-30x and kills it as cash. Coingeek Refuses to Cooperate With “Risky Protocol Changes” Another figure within the BCH community with mining power, Calvin Ayre has explained his pool will refuse to go along with a “risky protocol change.” Ayre’s Coingeek mining pool (17.8% of the network/ last 7 days) has become a behemoth among the top BCH miners and has close to as much, and sometimes more than, the hashrate as Viabtc today (17.4%). Coingeek has announced it is “taking a stand and urging the community not to proceed with risky protocol changes,” and the firm believes the move is short-term thinking. Coingeek’s stance is very much aligned with Nchain’s Wright, and Calvin Ayre has also made statements against the discussed protocol change. “Coingeek believes in Bitcoin BCH and further believes it should fully restore the original Bitcoin protocol — It was unnecessary changes to BTC’s base protocol that forced the fork to Bitcoin Cash BCH, the only true Bitcoin,” Ayre states on July 23. “Now that we have Bitcoin Cash BCH, we should be focused on fully restoring it to be the original Bitcoin protocol, rather than making additions or more changes that take BCH away from the original protocol.” Everything that needs to be done can be layered on top and retain the decade of proven security. I can assure the BCH community that our miners will never support anything that changes the battle-tested underlying original Bitcoin protocol — not with so many ways to do everything needed on top of this proven secure protocol. Many friends of mine in the Bitcoin BCH mining community are telling me they also support our position. Other BCH Proponents Bolster Séchet’s Pre-Consensus Idea Although, there are a lot of people who support Séchet’s idea of bringing pre-consensus to the upgrade table, and have bolstered the concept. News.Bitcoin.com previously mentioned that Bitcoin Unlimited’s chief scientist, Peter Rizun, likes pre-consensus but there are a bunch of others. Cornell professor ‏Emin Gün Sirer explains to his Twitter followers, “Reasonable voices are rightfully pointing out that Deadalnix’s (Amaury Séchet) pre-consensus idea is entirely optional, completely non-threatening to existing interests, and a sensible thing to do — One would have to be a divisive idiot to oppose it.” Stash Wallet engineer Justus Ranvier says, “I don’t care how bad of an idea what Deadalnix is proposing may or not be. The relevant fact is that Craig Wright immediately jumped to, ‘I will use my patents to attack anyone who tries to implement this.’ That is unconditionally the wrong response.” The BCH community has been discussing the whole debate fervently lately and its likely these discussions will continue. However many BCH proponents, whether they agree or disagree, believe that at least there is no censorship of ideas, and everyone is free to speak their mind about the pre-consensus subject and the many other topics discussed daily. What do you think about the pre-consensus topic? What side do you agree with and why? Let us know your thoughts on this subject in the comment section below. Images via Shutterstock, and Pixabay. 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 Bitcoin Cash Pre-Consensus Debate Continues appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Binance is preparing to expand into South Korea, having already hired Koreans for some local positions. CEO Changpeng Zhao has stressed the importance of the Korean market, noting that some Koreans are already using Binance, especially to trade newer coins. However, the exchange is reportedly waiting for the country’s crypto regulatory framework to be fine-tuned before actually launching. Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space Binance Eyes South Korean Market Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, is eying the South Korean market for expansion, Business Korea reported Tuesday. Quoting CEO Changpeng Zhao during his keynote speech at the Blockchain Partners Summit in Seoul on July 21 and 22, the publication elaborated: He stressed the importance of the South Korean market, saying that his company would enrich its community in the market. The company has “hired Koreans as a local marketing director and a Binance Lab director, which is a social impact fund,” the publication added. Binance added the Korean language to its website in August last year. “Now, our customers from Korea can use our website in their native language,” the company wrote at the time. The timing proved fortuitous as the following month the Chinese government shut down exchanges in China, forcing local traders to move to exchanges elsewhere including South Korea. Binance also moved its operations out of China at that time. Competing with Korean Crypto Exchanges According to reports, South Korea has about 100 crypto exchanges, 31 of which are members of the Korean Blockchain Industry Association. However, only four exchanges hold the majority of the market share of crypto trading in the country. Bithumb and the Kakao-backed Upbit are the largest crypto exchanges in the country, although Upbit is an affiliate of the U.S. exchange Bittrex. At the time of this writing, Coinmarketcap shows Upbit has a 24-hour trading volume of $780,019,012 while Bithumb has $601,046,530. The other two large Korean exchanges are Coinone and Korbit. A few other Chinese crypto exchanges have tried to open in South Korea such as Huobi and Okcoin. Changpeng Zhao. “The number of South Korean Binance users is not that large yet. Still, it is one of the most favorite foreign cryptocurrency exchanges for South Korean traders,” Business Korea detailed. The Investor earlier this year wrote, “contrary to widespread speculation that Korean users account for a significant part of the Binance user-base, Zhao told reporters that they make up only about 1 percent and are the 10th largest group in terms of nationality.” In an interview with Soso Lab this month, Zhao said the main reason Binance had gained popularity in South Korea was due to Korean exchanges listing only a limited number of coins. “If you want to trade newer coins then Binance is a good choice. We got lucky in that sense,” Zhao revealed. According to Coinmarketcap, Binance currently lists 376 coins while Upbit has 268 and Bithumb has 37. Zhao told the media outlet: We do have a lot of users, what we call Binancians, in Korea…I think Korea is a hot market. Korean Regulation Undergoing Changes South Korea introduced crypto regulation at the end of last year. In January, the government implemented the real-name system for cryptocurrency trading. Bithumb, Upbit, Coinone, and Korbit have access to real-name accounts but the rest of the exchanges currently do not. This creates problems for the regulators who believe that without the real-name accounts, exchanges have to continue using corporate accounts to trade cryptocurrencies and these accounts are prone to money laundering. Recently, the country’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), announced its plan to undergo a major restructuring including setting up a dedicated bureau for crypto policies. The government has also indicated that it will ease crypto regulation. With the changing crypto regulatory environment in South Korea, the Investor reported Zhao saying earlier this year that Binance had postponed its plan to launch in Korea “until Seoul fine-tunes the regulatory framework.” What do you think of Binance launching in South Korea? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Changpeng Zhao, and Binance. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Binance Prepares to Enter the South Korean Market appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

In recent news pertaining to altcoins, Bitgo has announced the addition of Zcash to the roster of cryptocurrencies supported by the cryptocurrency custody firm; Wirex has enabled XRP support for its cryptocurrency debit card; and Tezos has commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to audit the Tezos foundation’s finances and operations. Also Read: Bitmain Reveals the Total Hashrate of Its Cryptocurrency Mining Hardware Bitgo Offers Zcash Custody Bitgo, a company providing “institutional-grade cryptocurrency security” services, has announced that it has enabled support for Zcash. The announcement follows the addition of 57 ERC tokens last week. Bitgo’s chief technology officer, Ben Chan, stated: “As one of the world’s most valuable and technologically demanding digital currencies, Zcash is an important new asset for our institutional investors.” Zcash engineer, Brad Miller, stated that “The Zcash Company ecosystem team and Bitgo worked collaboratively to ensure Zcash is well integrated and supported […] With Bitgo’s exceptional standards, institutional grade, multi-signature security and custody services, investors are able to seamlessly send and receive Zcash in a safe and secure way.” Wirex Enables XRP Support for Crypto Debit Card Wirex, a provider of cryptocurrency wallets linked to Visa debit cards, has launched support for XRP. According to a press release issued by the company, Wirex customers are now able to “buy, sell, exchange and deposit Ripple (XRP) using the Wirex App.” Wirex customers are now able to trade XRP for 50 alternative cryptocurrencies, in addition to USD, GBP, EUR, BTC, and LTC. PwC Switzerland to Audit Tezos’ “Finances and Operations” Tezos has announced that PricewaterhouseCoopers Switzerland will audit the “finances and operations” of the Tezos foundation. The Tezos foundation has described the enlisting as comprising the first instance in which a “large-scale blockchain organization [has been] accepted as an audit client.” Tezos describing PricewaterhouseCoopers as “among the most respected accounting firms in the world, with extensive experience auditing complex operations in a wide variety of environments globally.” A week ago, it was revealed that PwC, alongside Deloitte, EY, and KPMG, will participate in a trial in partnership with Taiwan’s Financial Information Service Co. and twenty Taiwanese banks. The trial will see the four firms conduct external confirmation auditing using distributed ledger technology. Do you use cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin to make purchases? Share your experiences in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock Want to create your own secure cold storage paper wallet? Check our tools section. The post Altcoins Round-Up: Bitgo Adds ZEC, Wirex Supports XRP, PwC to Audit Tezos appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

As far as cryptocurrency markets are concerned the last six months of 2018 has been the exact opposite of the 2017 bull run last year. A great majority of digital assets have lost between 60-90 percent of their values since the beginning of the year. Today we’re going to look at which crypto-markets performed the best and then delve into the currencies that had the worst losses over the past six months. Also Read: EU Study: International Nature of Cryptocurrency Markets Is a Challenge for Regulators A Look at the Best and Worst Cryptocurrency Market Performances Between January 7 through July 24, 2018 A lot has happened this year as far as cryptocurrency markets are concerned, as most digital assets plummeted in value from their all-time highs during the last month of 2017. There has been a lot of losses in value and position shifts within the top cryptocurrency market capitalizations as well. We’re going to take a look at the first half of 2018 to see the kind of price performances these crypto-markets had this year by reflecting just on objective numbers and historical price data. The time frame used to calculate this year’s gains and losses was recorded between January 7 to July 25, 2018, or just under seven months. Out of the top ten cryptocurrency valuations alone, BTC was the best performer this year. The Top Ten Coins During the First Week of January Didn’t Perform so Well On January 7, 2018, digital asset prices were very high as most coins who touched all-time highs in December were worth slightly less a month later. The top ten cryptocurrency market valuations at the time consisted of bitcoin core (BTC $17,131), ripple (XRP $3.19), ethereum (ETH $1,097), bitcoin cash (BCH $2,881), cardano (ADA $1.01), litecoin (LTC $300), NEM (XEM $1.67), stellar (XLM $0.70), tron (TRX $0.17), and IOTA (MIOTA $4.00). More than a half a year later each coin’s value is much less now, and the top ten capitalizations are slightly different. Let’s take a look at the coins from the January 7, 2018 top ten and see how they fared so far. Bitcoin core (BTC): Price on July 25, 2018, is $8,244 which indicates a loss of -51.87 percent this year. Ethereum (ETH) lost of -57.06 percent in 2018. Ripple (XRP) lost -85.89 percent. Bitcoin cash (BCH) lost -71.22 percent. Cardano (ADA) lost -84.15 percent. Litecoin (LTC) lost -71.33 percent. Stellar (XLM) lost -57.14 percent. IOTA (MIOTA) lost -75.75 percent. Both Tron (TRX) and NEM (XEM) have been bumped out of the top ten and replaced by EOS, and tether (USDT). Now as you can see the top ten cryptocurrency markets have not performed well. The best performances in the top ten slots were BTC, followed by ETH, and XLM. The worst performers of 2018’s top ten were XRP, ADA, and IOTA, minus the coins that were bumped out of the list. So which coins performed the best in 2018? The answer leads to a bunch of new cryptocurrencies and it’s likely that you have never heard of some of these coins. The top ten cryptocurrencies today. The Best Cryptocurrency Investments in 2018 The best cryptocurrency performer for the first half of 2018 belongs to Paccoin ($PAC) that calls itself a “third generation cryptocurrency.” Paccoin has increased by +1,481.33 percent this year at its current price which is less than a half of a US penny. Paccoin was the best performing cryptocurrency in 2018. Another big pumper this year was Hexx (HXX) which saw a +1,268.96 percent increase this year. These two coins are followed by Mithril (MITH +922.52%), Casinocoin (CSC +139.63%), and Ontology (ONT +109.14%). Coins like Ontology were launched months after January 7, 2018. The Worst Cryptocurrency Investments This Year The worst cryptocurrency market performances this year lost nearly all of their value since the beginning of the year. The infamous Bitconnect lost -99.88 percent of its value and the digital asset Rise didn’t live up to its name as Rise markets are down -97.01 percent. These two losers are followed by OP Coin (-98.23) and Mybit Token (-99.59) which are now close to worthless. Let’s not forget about the bitcoin gold (BTG) fork as BTG market values have mostly vanished into thin air losing -89.38 percent of value since the first week of January. The pre-mined bitcoin gold (BTG) lost a lot of value this year. All Eyes Will Likely Stay Focused On the Top Ten Positions Most digital currency markets have seen lots of losses in 2018 and the big gainers mentioned above are true rarities among all 1,600+ cryptocurrencies in existence. However, a little over three weeks ago cryptocurrency prices were far more dreary and most of them have rebounded slowly over the past few weeks. Top ten crypto-cap traders are hoping the current movements are signaling a trend change and the bearish months of 2018 will soon be over. Even though a few coins that are not well known made significant gains this year, for the most part, all eyes will be on the top cryptocurrencies markets for the latter half of 2018. What’s your opinion of the best and worst cryptocurrency investments in 2018? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments below. Images via Shutterstock, and Satoshi Pulse. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post The Best and Worst Cryptocurrency Investments for the First Half of 2018 appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Vietnam’s securities watchdog has required local businesses not to engage in transactions with cryptocurrencies. The announcement follows a directive issued by the country’s prime minister earlier this year aimed at tightening what Vietnamese regulators call the management of crypto activities. Also read: China Releases Ranking of 31 Crypto Projects Securities Watchdog Asks Companies to Obey AML Rules The State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) has required relevant companies and funds not to engage in any issuance, transaction or brokerage activities related to cryptocurrencies. The measure, referred to by local media as a ban, affects public companies, securities companies, fund management firms and securities investment funds. They have also been asked to obey anti-money laundering (AML) regulations. According to the SSC, the announcement is based on Directive No 10/CT-TTg signed on April 11 by Vietnam’s Prime Minister, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Viet Nam News reported. The document puts an emphasis on strengthening the management of activities related to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The outlet also notes that the use of digital currencies is prohibited in Vietnam. Not the First Anti-Crypto Measure This is not the first administrative measure aimed at curbing crypto activities in the country. In April, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) banned commercial banks, payment services providers and intermediaries from making transactions involving cryptocurrencies. The central bank also issued a warning stating that such activities may increase the risks of money laundering, terrorism financing, trade fraud and tax evasion. Last October, the SBV declared that cryptos do not represent a “lawful means of payment” in the Asian country. Its proposals in that respect, which were submitted to the government in Hanoi, included a ban on the issuance, distribution, and use of cryptocurrencies as well as criminal prosecution and fines for their users. Recently, citing the familiar argument – the need to improve the management of cryptocurrencies in Vietnam – the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the SBV reached an agreement to suspend the import of crypto mining equipment. The proposal came from the Finance Ministry in June, as news.Bitcoin.com reported. Fraud and Scam in Vietnam In the past couple of years, the Vietnamese mining sector has been growing rapidly leading to a significant increase in the number of imported mining rigs. Digital coin minting, however, has caused concern in Hanoi. In May, close to 150 Vietnamese government agencies, financial institutions and businesses took part in a large cyber-security drill aimed at preventing the spread of mining malware. Crypto-related fraud has played a role in shaping the current attitude of Vietnamese authorities and regulators towards the crypto space. The country recently had to deal with one of the largest scams in crypto history in which more than 30,000 people were defrauded into investing in the Ifan and Pincoin currencies. What are your expectations for the future of cryptocurrencies in Vietnam? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the SSC. 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 Vietnamese Regulator Tells Firms and Funds to Stay Away From Crypto appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Galaxy Digital, a merchant bank founded by famed bitcoin investor and president of the Fortress Investment Group, Michael Novogratz, has led a $52.5 million investment round for cryptocurrency-backed USD lending platform, Blockfi. Also Read: Coinbase Now Offers Crypto currency Gift Cards in Europe and Australia Novogratz’ Galaxy Digital Leads $52.5 Mn Fundraiser for Crypto-Backed Lending Platform In the company’s first institutional investment into “cryptoasset backed loans,” Galaxy Digital Venutres LLC, has been announced as the leader in a $52.5 million fundraising round for crypto-backed lending platform, Blockfi. Mike Novogratz, the bank’s founder, stated: “We’re excited to partner with BlockFi and jointly lead the way for financial institutions to participate in crypto investing strategies,” adding “A robust lending market is the keystone for financial systems and BlockFi’s institutional approach and deep lending expertise were key drivers in our decision to partner with them.” As part of the deal, Galaxy Digital Ventures’ head of principal investments, Chris Ferraro, has joined Blockfi’s board of directors. “BlockFi has differentiated itself in the lending business with capital cost and scale, which will help them raise incremental institutional capital as demand grows. We believe BlockFi’s risk management lens, regulatory approach, and marketing capabilities position the firm to be the market leader,” said Mr. Ferraro. Blockfi to Comprise Galaxy Digital’s “Exclusive Consumer Lending Partner” The chief executive officer and co-founder of Blockfi, Zac Prince, described “Galaxy’s investment and decision to make us their exclusive consumer lending partner” as comprising “a strategic step towards BlockFi delivering large-scale credit across the crypto ecosystem.” “The support we’ve seen from existing clients and investors highlights the strong demand for leveraging Bitcoin and Ether for low-cost USD loans. We look forward to expanding our services to support more cryptocurrencies and geographic markets in the near future,” Mr. Prince added. In June, Galaxy Digital invested $15 million into Alphapoint Corp. – a company seeking to provide asset tokenization services to institutions. “We are in the early stages of a fundamental transformation in financial markets due to the digitization of assets. We are excited to partner with AlphaPoint as we continue to help drive this revolutionary change in digital markets,” Mr. Novogratz said. What is your response to Galaxy Digital’s investment into Blockfi? Join the discussion in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Galaxy Digital 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 Novogratz’ Galaxy Digital Leads $52.5 Million Blockfi Fundraiser appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

An inquiry by leading United States-based cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, has found that no improper trading took place last December surrounding the launch of its Bitcoin Cash pairings. Also Read: SEC Postpones Deliberations on NYSE Arca Bitcoin ETFs Coinbase Inquiry Finds No Insider Trading on BCH Markets A Coinbase spokesperson has confirmed that the investigations into potential insider trading conducted by “two well-known national law firms” have come to a close, asserting that no improper trading took place. “We can report that the voluntary, independent internal investigation has come to a close, and we have determined to take no disciplinary action,” the spokesperson said. “We would not hesitate to terminate an employee or contractor and/or take appropriate legal action if evidence showed our policies were violated.” According to an anonymous source, the findings of the inquiry were discussed with Coinbase employees during a company-wide meeting in recent days. Suspicions Emerge Following BCH Price Spike After initially scheduling the launch of BCH pairings by the 1st of January, 2018, Coinbase’s Bitcoin Cash markets abruptly went live during mid-December, 2017. The altered date for the introduction of Coinbase’s Bitcoin Cash pairings aroused suspicions that employees of the exchange who were privy to the launch date may have been responsible for the significant BCH price rise during the hours preceding to the announcement of the Coinbase’s mid-December launch. In a blog post published on the 20th of December, 2017, Coinbase co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Brian Armstrong, revealed that the exchange would be launching a legal inquiry into the matter, stating: ”Given the price increase in the hours leading up the announcement, we will be conducting an investigation into this matter. If we find evidence of any employee or contractor violating our policies — directly or indirectly — I will not hesitate to terminate the employee immediately and take appropriate legal action.” The post also emphasized that “All Coinbase employees and contractors were explicitly prohibited from trading Bitcoin Cash and from disclosing our launch plans.” A class-action lawsuit pertaining to improper BCH trading that was filed against Coinbase is still ongoing. What is your response to the inquiry’s findings? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock Want a comprehensive list of the top 500 cryptocurrencies and see their prices and overall market valuation? Check out Satoshi Pulse for all that hot market action! The post Coinbase Inquiry Finds No Improper BCH Trading Took Place Prior to Launch appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Voyager, a startup backed by Uber co-founder, Oscar Salazar, has announced that it will launch a commission-free cryptocurrency trading platform. It is intended to function as an aggregation engine for cryptocurrency prices across more than a dozen trading venues. Also Read: J-Pop Star GACKT Caught Between Crypto Company Spindle and Minister’s Gaffe Startup Founded by Uber Alumni to Host Fee-Free Crypto Trading Voyager has revealed that it intends to offer fee-free trading for pairings of at least fifteen different cryptocurrencies on the new platform, including BTC and ETH. The platform has been described as intending to “function as a sort of aggregation engine for cryptocurrency prices across more than a dozen trading venues, allowing customers to buy and sell Bitcoin and other digital assets at the best value available among them.” Voyager Aims to Compete with Robinhood Voyager seeks to compete directly with Robinhood – a popular stock trading app that hosts commission-free trading for BCH, BTC, ETH, LTC, and DOGE pairings. Voyager will simultaneously offer the prices available on ten virtual currency exchanges and three additional market makers, with the company hoping to entice liquidity by offering better prices to traders than any sole exchange. Stephen Ehrlich, the CEO and co-founder of Voyager and the former CEO and founder of Lightspeed Financial, stated: “We saw an opportunity to build a dynamic smart order router that can take advantage of the marketplace and also offer customers no commissions.” According to Mr. Ehrlich, Voyager will generate revenue “by beating the average price of the coins at the point in time we execute the trade.” Mr. Ehrlich added that the company has already raised “significant capital” from the friends and family of the company’s co-founders. Oscar Salazar, the founding architect and chief technology officer of Uber, is also a co-founder of Voyager, alongside, early Uber investor, Philip Eytan. Voyager Licensed in Several U.S. States Voyager is presently entering beta testing, with the company anticipating that it will release a mobile trading app before November of this year. Currently, the platform is licensed in California, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, and Montana, with the company hoping to eventually service at least forty U.S. states. The company has also indicated that it intends to offer exclusive services for institutional investors. Mr. Ehrlich concluded that he “do[es]n’t think crypto has been adopted yet by the masses in the United States,” adding “ I believe the market space itself is extremely large…We think the opportunity for both retail and institutional is vast, and we want to be part of that, and help the industry grow, and be good citizens to the industry, and help people get more knowledgeable in crypto assets.” Do you think that commission-free and decentralized exchanges will undermine the dominance of conventional virtual currency exchanges? Join the discussion in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock Want a comprehensive list of the top 500 cryptocurrencies and see their prices and overall market valuation? Check out Satoshi Pulse for all that hot market action! The post Start-Up Backed by Uber Co-Founder to Launch Fee-Free Crypto Trading appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Chinese bitcoin mining giant Bitmain has revealed the total hashrate of all its cryptocurrency mining hardware. This was done as part of a larger push towards greater business transparency by the company ahead of its rumored massive IPO. Also Read: The Daily: Exchange Operator Pleads Guilty, Scammer Fined Over $1.9 Million Bitmain Transparency Policy Bitmain Technologies Ltd., the Beijing-headquartered bitcoin mining machines (ASIC chips) producer expected to seek a $12 billion IPO in the Hong Kong stock market, has enacted policies meant to increase transparency. The team stated: “To put it plainly, we believe that communities served by Bitmain and its products should be supported and served as transparently as possible. Recent measures have included restricting order quantities, ensuring a first-paid-first-ship order of fulfillment, blocking IPs that we suspect to be hoarding, and publishing detailed shipping updates openly. Based on the encouraging results from these early efforts, as well as our continued dialogue with the broader cryptocurrency community, Bitmain is redoubling its commitment to business transparency.” The first of these new efforts is a disclosure policy on self-mining. The company will publish monthly data on which algorithms it is mining for itself and the total hashrate of Bitmain-owned hardware. Screenshot No to ‘Secret Mining’ and ‘Empty Blocks’ Bitmain also proclaimed it will maintain its “long-held zero-tolerance policy” against ‘secret mining’. This is when a manufacturer would mine for itself with newly developed equipment prior to selling or distributing it to customers. Additionally, the company promises to never seek to mine ‘empty blocks’. The team explained that: “While often described as the result of sinister intent, empty blocks often occur because of issues in block propagation at the protocol level rather than active decision-making by mining pool operators. We are actively working towards mitigating these issues. However, should there occur any unusual or excessive rate of empty block mining by a mining pool owned by Bitmain, we will seek out the cause and disclose the reasons why.” Lastly, Bitmain will publish the shipping and volume information for the first model of all new miners, tweeting the quantity and payment timestamps via the official Antminer Twitter account. This will be done for all rounds of shipments within the first batches of those models. Which other companies should adopt a more forthcoming transparency policies? 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 Bitmain Reveals the Total Hashrate of Its Cryptocurrency Mining Hardware appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed deliberations on five bitcoin exchange traded funds (ETFs) that were filed with the SEC by NYSE Arca, Inc. Also Read: PR Specialists in the Russian Crypto Space Paid 10x the Average Salary SEC Consideration of NYSE Arca Bitcoin ETFs Postponed The SEC has announced that will delay determinations pertaining to five bitcoin ETFs filed for by NYSE Arca until the 21st of September, 2018. A document made available from the Federal Register states that the commission will designate “a longer period for commission action on proceedings to determine whether to approve or disapprove a proposed rule change relating to listing and trading of the Direxion Daily Bitcoin Bear 1X Shares, Direxion Daily Bitcoin 1.25X Bull Shares, Direxion Daily Bitcoin 1.5X Bull Shares, Direxion Daily Bitcoin 2X Bull Shares and Direxion Daily Bitcoin 2X Bear Shares under NYSE Arca Rule 8.200-E.” The document states that the delay is required in order to provide “sufficient time to consider this proposed rule change.” Interest in Bitcoin ETFs Peaks Public interest in bitcoin ETFs has grown significantly in recent weeks following Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE)’s filing for an ETF that will be backed by BTC. In recent days, media have quoted an anonymous source purportedly from the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission who reportedly estimated that it is “90%” likely that CBOE’s ETF will be approved. An additional source, purportedly from the SEC, is quoted as stating: “I would expect a positive outcome in September – or if it gets strung out a little further it is simply a few ‘dotted i’s and crossed t’s’ are being finalized on larger regulatory language in the crypto space.” NYSE Arca filed for its proposed ETFs on January 4th, 2018, and was made available for public comment on the 24th. The SEC also previously extended the period for determination regarding its proposed ETFs on March 1st. The SEC only received two comments pertaining to NYSE Arca’s ETF applications. Do you think that NYSE Arca’s proposed bitcoin ETFs will be approved? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Images courtesy of Shutterstock Want a comprehensive list of the top 500 cryptocurrencies and see their prices and overall market valuation? Check out Satoshi Pulse for all that hot market action! The post SEC Postpones Deliberations on NYSE Arca Bitcoin ETFs appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

This is a paid press release, which contains forward looking statements, and should be treated as advertising or promotional material. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support this product/service. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the press release. New York, NY Internet of People (IoP) is a digital cooperative using blockchain and revolutionary peer-to-peer technology to help everyone connect and do business free from censorship or obstruction and without compromising their digital privacy. The modern Internet has transformed all our lives, but rapid advancement has come with huge costs. “Move fast and break things” has been the driving motto of online tech development over the past decade. Well, now things are broken. We’re on the brink of a data crisis. Companies harvest far more data than they need, store it insecurely, and then regularly sell and misuse it. Over-reaching governments force companies to hand over users’ private information. Data breaches are a daily occurrence. And once your data and identity are out in the wild, there’s no way to reclaim them. Today’s centralized model runs contrary to the original idea behind the Internet. It pretends to connect us but actually locks users away behind numerous barriers. The only way through is to pay, either with money or with data. And when things go wrong, it’s the users who suffer while companies keep the profits. Crypto was supposed to be the answer: eliminate the greedy middlemen and restore power to the users. But if anything the problem is worse: the lure of the ICO funding model has trumped the values which crypto was built on. Now projects pay lip service to decentralization while hiring old-world PR agencies, lawyers and “advisors” who do nothing but look good to whale investors only interested in making a quick profit. But IoP is doing decentralization right: freedom, privacy and commitment to decentralization inform every part of our project, from the software we create to the way our organization is structured. We want to bring crypto to everyone, so we’re building technology people actually need and providing educational resources to help them understand crypto and its benefits. We’re collaborating with major universities to streamline their processes and add blockchain and crypto to the curriculum (and not just computing – crypto will be relevant to almost every modern discipline). We’re just putting the finishing touches to our alpha version of Mercury, a communications protocol and dApps platform that punches through all the modern corporate and government barriers to connect users in true peer-to-peer fashion. dApps on Mercury can provide all the services modern centralized companies provide, but users retain complete control over their data. Companies only get the data they need to provide their services, private data is encrypted while public data is signed and stored across a decentralized network maintained by peers, and wherever possible data never even leaves your device. Our cryptocurrency, IOP, powers our own blockchain, which has been running stably for years. We currently run a slightly modified proof-of-work consensus which uses whitelisted addresses to avoid the ASIC trap and ensure all our global members get a chance to mine. This year we’re presenting a brand-new consensus mechanism based on directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), byzantine fault tolerance and virtual voting to make things even more fair and efficient. We’ve never needed an ICO, so IOP is only held by people who actively support our project’s values. We’re still growing, but every step brings us closer to creating a properly decentralized economy. People are paid in IOP, trade in IOP and Mercury dApps will be powered by IOP. IoP is a digital cooperative, a decentralized global organizational structure designed to keep the efficient parts of corporate structure without the centralization. We have members from almost 40 countries and we’re always looking for more. Why not join us and help make the crypto dream a reality? Press Contact Email Addres info@iop.global Supporting Link https://iop.global This is a paid press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post PR: The Internet of People (IoP) Is Creating a New Internet for Decentralization and Censorship appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Spindle, Japan’s largest ICO officially promoted by a J-Pop star, Gakuto Oshiro, (45) better known by his stage name GACKT, was the unnamed crypto company allegedly slammed by the FSA earlier this year, a weekly Japanese magazine revealed. The company, which began dealing its own cryptocurrency, “Spindles,” aka “GACKT Coins,” in October 2017, received administrative guidance from the FSA in February 2018 not to continue selling cryptocurrencies. Also read: Japanese Minister Denies Ties to Unregistered Crypto Exchange Under Investigation GACKT Says He Started Getting Involved With Crypto Early Last Year Weekly Flash revealed a photo of the Japanese androgynous artist GACKT (45), and Seiko Noda, the current Japanese Minister of Internal Affairs, taken in March 2013 together with Sanae Takaichi, the then Minister of Public Affairs and Communications. Seiko Noda served as the Chairman of General Affairs and Takaichi as Chairman of their political party at the time. The two had their offices at the 6th floor of Japan’s LDP (Liberal Democratic Party) headquarters building. Noda and GACKT’s friendship was also already well known among the Nagatacho political circle, according to an LDP lawmaker who spoke to Weekly Flash. GACKT, famous for his anime-like facial features, is also known for a music album he released in 2007 in reference to Gundam, a 2005 film trilogy. GACKT started to be interested in cryptocurrencies and their implication around 2016, and he said he began getting involved in the business early last year. When asked why he got involved in the crypto space, GACKT told news.Bitcoin.com that he believes cryptocurrencies are the future. “[Crypto] has a lot of potentials. […] The world is governed by countries which have power due to the money they print. They supplied wars throughout history. I believe this centralized world will soon end, and a decentralized one will start.” GACKT told news.Bitcoin.com in an interview. “The world manages to preserve the balance but it’ll lose it if it remains the way it is. We had to find a long term solution and [I believe] cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain technology are the solution. This is why I got involved in crypto,” he said. GACKT, with two LDP politicians including Seiko Noda on his left (2013) Back in May, Spindle announced that its development company Black Star&Co. was working on an advanced platform offering services to cryptocurrency exchanges, crypto hedge funds and investors. Minister Unfamiliar With Crypto Ichiro Yamamoto, a blogger and writer close to the matter, was quoted telling Weekly Flash that Noda was simply unfamiliar with topics related to cryptocurrencies and her assistant meeting an FSA official was a mistake. “All that can be said about Noda letting her aide attend a meeting with a representative of Spindle [and an official of the FSA] at her office without having a solid understanding about the issues, is a gaffe on her part.” Yamamoto told the magazine. Seiko Noda, on July 24 2018 The weekly also reported that Noda’s husband was allegedly involved in actively developing Spindle’s business. However, Noda denied any implication of her spouse in the cryptocurrency business and also denied having ever talked about business related to cryptocurrencies with GACKT, the Japanese celebrity who officially supports Spindle. GACKT, on his side, reportedly wasn’t implicated in the meeting held with Noda’s aide and the FSA agent at the Minister’s office in January, nor did he had any intention to do so, his talent agency said. When asked about Noda’s husband, GACKT’s talent agency replied that Noda’s husband was one of many acquaintances [of someone at the agency.] Last week, Seiko Noda admitted in front of reporters that her assistant and aide had met with an official of the FSA back in January 2018 at her parliamentary office together with a representative of the crypto exchange operator which was under FSA scrutiny at the time. Noda said she wasn’t present at the meeting and confirmed that her office had no intention to put pressure on a government investigation. As a Cabinet Minister, Noda was exposed being accused of exerting pressure on an official government investigation. On July 19th, it was reported that the company, Spindle, tied to GACKT was suspected by the FSA of violating the fund settlement law. What do you think of GACKT ‘s statement about cryptocurrencies? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comment section below. Images via Weekly Flash, Spindle, officiallyjd.com and Asahi Newspaper. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post J-Pop Star GACKT Caught Between Crypto Company Spindle and Minister’s Gaffe appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

This is a paid press release, which contains forward looking statements, and should be treated as advertising or promotional material. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support this product/service. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the press release. AT trading began on July 25, 2018 and the ABCC team is continuing efforts to support the community. ABCC, being one of the world’s emerging cryptocurrency exchanges, begins trading its native token as the ABCC team had promised. It is no news that the Trade-to-Mine (ToM) exchange created a boon in the Blockchain community and since its issuance has performed as excellently as expected. The mining performance since AT issuance on 9th July 2018 was outstandingly successful, trade volume spiked to global rank no. 5 once and now trading volume is growing steadily. “We were astonished to see an overwhelming jump in trading volume, coupled with stable growth, since the issuance of ABCC Token (AT) on July 9. I am certain that AT’s value will reflect its sustainable mining model and the confidence of ABCC users. The philosophy of blockchain that we embrace – open, frictionless and participatory – inspires us to provide users with an unparalleled trading experience.” Calvin Cheng, CEO of ABCC Exchange said. The ABCC Token (AT) is set to soar after an estimated $0.4 starting value as it makes its highly anticipated trading debut on the Blockchain network. ABCC’s ambition is more than rewarding miners with AT. As a key component of ABCC ecosystem blueprint, AT is the enabler of consensus among various stakeholders in creating shared value, bringing AT investors, AT Super Miners, API users, blockchain project teams and other partners together. Based on a shared faith in the value of AT, different participants will cooperate and exchange resources and value with each other to collectively build up a strong and long-lasting consensus. AT investors, i.e. members who hold AT, play a crucial role in the AT ecosystem. They will have access to a wide range of benefits, including rewards, airdrops, private sale, listing vote, enhanced mining power via ToM. 80 percent of daily trading fees going to AT holders that support the network, incentivizing the storage and circulation of token is a good example of current rewards. Although the crypto market performance has seen fluctuations over the past few weeks, the trade volume spike that skyrocketed ABCC Token (AT) makes it one of the most promising platform tokens in the crypto marketplace. This increase in trading volume and the introduction of AT into ecosystem are remarkable and also implies the fast-paced growth of the company which aims to provide an open, transparent, and seamless trading experience. ABCC utilizes the Bitcoin mining model, as such miners were able to take advantage of the model and benefit significantly from the system. The Trade-On-Mine (ToM) mechanism and Bitcoin-like issuance and distribution make the system a win-win situation for all. ABCC Token (AT) represents a new Platform Token 3.0 model that AT will be embedded and integrated into various scenarios with multi-dimensional value propositions, as well as a medium through which different parties can share values in a more open approach. This move was set to boost liquidity and prices over the long term, making AT one of the few platform tokens whose rewards can be predicted and whose value can be estimated based on a P/E ratio. It also makes it currently the only trading and mining platform token that minimizes inflation in the long term. In this way, we can ensure that value flows seamlessly and more value will be created in the process. Given increasing client interest in the evolving cryptocurrency markets, ABCC guarantees a more transparent and trustworthy operation for it users. While other platform tokens experience a sharp drop in prices: increase in short-term but drop in long-term, by incorporating the Platform Token 3.0 model the ABCC Token (AT) value goes up in the long term and AT stakeholders will enjoy its multi-dimensional values. While the popularity of cryptocurrencies has grown tremendously over the years, getting a token that really stands out of the crowd has always been a problem. Now everyone has the opportunity to take part in one of such, being the only one of its kind. For more information on the ABCC Token and to get started, please visit https://abcc.com/about_at Press Contact Email Address xini@abcc-inc.com Supporting Link https://abcc.com/?utm_source=f40 This is a paid press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. The post PR: ABCC Announces the Trading Date for Its New Token (AT) appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

“For the first time ever,” Fortune magazine announced, it “has assembled a supplementary honor roll of the most impressive, young superstars who are transforming business at the leading edge of finance and technology.” They’ve selected forty representatives from all over fintech, and each is under forty years old. Among them are many cryptosphere leaders finally getting their due. Also read: Coinbase Flexes Muscle, Creates Political Action Committee Bitcoin Dominates Fortune’s New Ledger 40 Under 40 List Traditionally, Fortune’s lists comprise go-getters from all sectors of commerce, be they are CEOs or Academy Award winners. Indeed, the magazine just came out with their annual 40 Under 40 list, and for sure cryptocurrency luminaries such as Vitalik Buterin and Brian Armstrong were among them. However, for the first time, this year Fortune supplemented their usual list with a special emphasis on financial technology leaders. Jihan Wu, 32, made the list. The magazine describes him as “the undisputed king of cryptocurrency mining hardware and crypto mining pools.” Beijing, China-based Bitmain recently reached a double digit valuation in the billions. He, of course, “has been known as a big proponent of Bitcoin Cash, a controversial fork of Bitcoin. Earlier this year, his company led a $110 million financing round for Circle, the crypto startup with the highest valuation in the U.S. Wu told Fortune earlier this year that he’s interested in ‘stablecoins,’ virtual coins that have a fixed price, and that he plans to diversify Bitmain by developing AI chips.” Amber Baldet, 35, is that rare, new breed of CEO who can comfortably, seamlessly make her way between Wall Street and more radical elements of the ecosystem. She cut her teeth professionally at “JPMorgan Chase,” the magazine notes. She would eventually leave “America’s biggest bank this year to found a blockchain startup, Clovyr. While on Wall Street, she brought the hoodies (hacker-coders) and the suits (bankers) together, and she led the team that built Quorum, an Ethereum-adapted blockchain built for business. Earlier this month, Baldet, who is an alum of the flagship Fortune 40 Under 40 list, was appointed to the board of the Zcash Foundation, a non-profit group that governs the privacy-centric cryptocurrency Zcash.” Arthur Hayes actually asked his age not be documented. He’s known for thinking a bit different than his peers. The online magazine insists before Chicago Merc and Cboe entered the futures market, Mr Hayes’ “Bitmex, a crypto derivatives marketplace that allows for leveraged bets of up to 100 times the principal on digital assets from Bitcoin to Cardano,” mapped out a space for itself. It wished to be “the most liquid crypto futures exchange,” and by the end of last year, it “handled an average $2.1 billion in trades,” the magazine insists. That’s “far more than the $50 million that changed hands with the Cboe on its first day of launch.” Curiously, Mr. Hayes routinely offers he does not own any bitcoin. Of note as well is our own Bitcoin.com CEO Roger Ver, 39. As is the case with fellow Lister, Mr. Wu, Mr Ver is “an outspoken evangelist for Bitcoin Cash. The controversial fork,” the magazine details, “of the Bitcoin network represents the ‘big-block’ version of the original Bitcoin blockchain, meaning [it’s] designed to handle greater transaction throughput. Fluent in Japanese, Ver runs Bitcoin.com from Tokyo and remains the epicenter of a large cryptocurrency community there.” Read the rest of the Ledger 40 Under 40 List here. What do you think about these lists? Let us know in the comments section below. Images via Pixabay, Fortune. Be sure to check out the podcast, Blockchain 2025; latest episode here. Want to create your own secure cold storage paper wallet? Check our tools section. The post Bitcoin Dominates Fortune’s Most Impressive, Young Superstars List appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

China’s Center for Information Industry Development has released its third ranking of crypto projects. Out of 31 projects, EOS remains at the top of the list while both Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash have improved slightly from the previous month. Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space Third Ranking The Center for Information Industry Development (CCID), under China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, officially released its third crypto project ranking last week. The new list consists of 31 crypto projects. The center began ranking 28 crypto projects in May. The following month it added 2 more projects: EOS and Nebulas. This month, one more is added, making a total of 31 crypto projects on the list. Gxchain is the latest addition. For the latest ranking, EOS remains at the top of the list, followed by Ethereum, just like the previous month. Similarly, NEM stays at the bottom of the list. Bitcoin has moved up from the 17th place to the 16th place while Bitcoin Cash from the 28th place to the 25th place. Debuting in fourth place, Gxchain, is a “blockchain-based decentralized data exchange” built on a stable, Yuan-linked cryptocurrency, its whitepaper describes. It is designed as a “bridge between data sources released on different platforms,” according to its website. CCID’s ranking of 31 crypto projects. Ranking Methodology CCID’s ranking is based on a “comprehensive investigation and evaluation of the public chain from three aspects: basic technology, application and innovation,” according to China Electronics News Agency (Cena), the media agency headed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. “The basic technology [aspect] mainly assesses the technical level of the current public chain, including evaluation of functions, performance, security and decentralization,” the media agency detailed. “In terms of basic technical sub-indicators, EOS scored the highest.” “The application [aspect] mainly examines the comprehensive ability of the public chain to support practical applications, including node deployment, wallet application, development support and application implementation,” Cena described. Ethereum was the CCID’s pick for this aspect. “The innovation assessment focuses on continuous innovation in public chain open source code, including the number of contributors, code updates, and code impact,” the publication wrote, adding: Bitcoin ranked first in terms of its global influence and high innovation activity. What do you think of this CCID ranking? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and CCID. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post China Releases Ranking of 31 Crypto Projects appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Blockstream is working with former national spies. The question is, why on earth would a cryptocurrency company have the need to employ former spies? On October 23, 2014, Blockstream goes public and announces funding and the formation of their company. Shortly after Blockstream was incorporated, they received $50 million in venture capital from AXA, Khosla Ventures, Horizon Ventures, etc., some of the most powerful venture firms in the world. The Blockstream board of directors are all bankers. Also read: Tie a Message to Any Location Using the BCH-Powered Member Client Take a Journey Back in Time if You Would Bill Scannell wearing a Dragons Den hat, source @scannell on Twitter Then in the Summer of 2015, all of the primary Bitcoin communities such as /r/Bitcoin, mailing lists, Bitcoin Talk, wikis, etc., began massive censorship campaigns against any and all topics that had to do with scaling Bitcoin beyond the 1MB limit which, by the way, was temporarily added by Satoshi Nakamoto back in 2010 as a stop-gap measure to prevent spam in the early days. In December 2015, it quickly became apparent to everyone that Bitcoin was being hot-wired for a settlement system. As They Say, the Rest is History So here we are today. Most of what has transpired since the launch of Blockstream remains uncontested to everyone outside of Bitcoin Core (which is why they are perceived as a cult). However, it’s a little known fact that they are working with former spies. Clearly they didn’t want anyone to know this. Enter in Bill Scannell Bill is a former self-admitted national spy for the United States, focused on signal and human intelligence (SIGINT/HUMINT). Bill entered the world of cryptocurrency and Bitcoin sometime around 2015 (below is a tweet about Bitcoin while at Def Con). Woah. Ryan Castellucci of @WhiteOps demos #bitcoin #Brainflayer #brainwallet cracker at #Defcon pic.twitter.com/pFc4vYu9cv — Bill Scannell (@scannell) August 7, 2015 He has given talks about his former spy days. For example, one of his more infamous talks is on the story of a secret NSA listening post in Berlin back in the 80’s, where he worked on SIGINT/HUMINT (make sure to watch the Q&A at the end where he gets roasted by the audience). As you can see from some of his recent social media postings, he is still very much in love with SIGINT. For those unaware, SIGINT and HUMINT still play a critical roles for spy agencies across the world as a means to gather and analyze intelligence. In France’s 2012 presidential election, it was discovered through WikiLeaks that all major French political parties were targeted for infiltration by the CIA’s HUMINT and electronic SIGINT spies in the seven months leading up to the election. In this short clip from Scannell’s Berlin talk, he is talking about being selective in his targeting and “smart spying” techniques. In another lecture, Scannell talks about using spying intelligence to control. By the way, did you notice the symbol he used as his background for his talk? It’s a very subtle but important image to the Bitcoin Core community (Lightning Network). What Does This Have to Do With Blockstream? Well, what Bill Scannell and Blockstream don’t want the general public to know is that Bill works intimately with Blockstream on their own intelligence. You see, Blockstream is running it’s own program in order to push their agenda so that they can control Bitcoin and profit from it. October 2014: Blockstream announces funding and incorporation of company. March 2015 (just six months later): Blockstream begins work on Lightning Network. pic.twitter.com/McGXEmzvJ4 — David Shares (@DavidShares) June 18, 2018 Because they have so much investment capital and need to protect it at all cost in their quest to control Bitcoin, they have employed Scannell as their consultant (agent) to run intelligence and counterintelligence operations on the Bitcoin community. According to Scannell’s own Linked In profile, he runs a private consulting firm where he is focused on being a “strategist.” Ironically, he also has past work experience listed as an “Evil PR Genius.” In one Linked In recommendation for Scannell, the person wrote that he is a “Story-teller, fixer, maker.” Scannell has setup his own company, called Special Circumstances LLC for his private consulting. The Anchorage Daily News wrote a piece about Scannell’s wife in 2016, regarding a local election in Alaska. In the article, they described Bill Scannell as “a ‘media strategist’ who has been known for pedaling some outrageous stories and pulling some outrageous stunts to get media attention.” One of the advertisements run by Scannell’s wife, Michelle, during the election, was a video of her opponent, Mia Costello, calling her a chicken. As it turns out, back in 2008 Scannell had his own controversy, where it came to light that he was attacking opposing groups in another local election. AlaskaReport.com wrote, “Bill Scannell, the man outed Thursday morning by Jake Metcalfe’s former campaign manager Dana Krawchuk as the person behind some nasty websites attacking Ethan Berkowitz, has resigned. Krawchuk had overheard Scannell talking about building websites specifically to attack Berkowitz.” When Samson Mow started working for Blockstream in 2017 as the “Chief Strategy Officer“, Bill Scannell and Samson Mow began working more closely together, along side Adam Back and others. In April 2017, Scannell and Back both attended the The 21st International Conference on Financial Cryptography and Data Security in Malta, where Scannell helped moderate a panel that Back was speaking on. Blockstream was the sponsor at the event, where others spoke as well, such as Peter Todd. On Reddit, Bitcoin.com CEO and entrepreneur, Roger Ver, had this to say about Scannell, “This guy was with Samson when I had the debate with him in Seoul. He was clearly Samson’s handler at the event.” Here the two (far left and far right) are buddied up at a Deconomy 2018. Here is Bill Scannell and Blockstream CEO Adam Back attending The ICE House for a podcast on crypto markets. Where Does This Leave Us? Unfortunately, as it’s been said time and time again, Bitcoin Core (BTC) has been co-opted. Many don’t believe this because they are being heavily manipulated in online forums that Blockstream controls. However, these revelations help to at least shine a light on what may be happening in the ecosphere. And as time moves forward, we are becoming more aware of how deceptive and underhanded Blockstream really is. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light [the truth] can do that.” OP-ed disclaimer: This is an Op-ed article. The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support views, opinions or conclusions drawn in this post. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the Op-ed article. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the content. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any information in this Op-ed article. What do you think of Blockstream hiring former spies? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comment section below. Images via Twitter. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Why Is Blockstream Working With National Spies (SIGINT/HUMINT)? appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Bitwise Asset Management has announced its plan to launch “the first publicly-offered cryptocurrency index exchange-traded fund (ETF).” A registration statement has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund will track the returns of the company’s Hold 10 Index which aims to capture 80% of the total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency market. Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space Bitwise to Launch Crypto Index ETF Bitwise Asset Management announced Tuesday that it has filed a registration statement for “the first publicly-offered cryptocurrency index exchange-traded fund (ETF).” The San Francisco-based company already manages “the world’s first privately-offered cryptocurrency index fund, the Bitwise Hold 10 Private Index Fund,” it described. The open-ended private placement fund was launched on November 22 last year and is only open to accredited investors, the company noted: The new ETF will be called the Bitwise Hold 10 Cryptocurrency Index Fund. It aims to track the returns of Bitwise’s Hold 10 Index, a market-cap-weighted index of the 10 largest cryptocurrencies, rebalanced monthly. The top five components of the Hold 10 Index as of the end of June is 55% BTC, 20% ETH, 9.4% XRP, 6.4% BCH, 2.6% LTC. “The Hold 10 Index captures approximately 80% of the total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency market,” the crypto asset manager further elaborated. The index “uses a 5-year-diluted market cap and other eligibility criteria meant to address challenges of the crypto space such as continuously changing supply, liquidity, trade volume concentration, and custody limitations.” Founded in 2017, Bitwise is backed by institutional and individual investors, including Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst, Blockchain Capital, Naval Ravikant, Alison Davis, David Sacks, Elad Gil, Adam Nash, Adam Ludwin, Suna Said, and Avichal Garg. Index-Tracking Basket of Multiple Cryptocurrencies In its Tuesday announcement, the company revealed that “A registration statement relating to the shares of the Bitwise Hold 10 Cryptocurrency Index Fund ETF has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) but has not yet been declared effective.” Bitwise’s Global Head of Research Matt Hougan commented: Our research shows that an index-tracking basket of multiple cryptocurrencies behaves differently than a single coin. As such, we think both sorts of exposure need to be looked at by investors when considering the growing cryptocurrency space. Our view is that this new area has many similarities to the introduction 10 to 15 years ago of commodity ETFs. He noted that “at that time, we saw the launch of single-commodity ETFs tracking gold, silver, crude oil, and other commodities, as well as ETFs tracking diversified commodity index baskets. We see a lot of similarities here.” What do you think of Bitwise’s proposed crypto index ETF? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Bitwise. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Index ETF Tracking 10 Cryptocurrencies Filed With SEC appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Robert K. Hur, United States Attorney from the Maryland district, filed a motion on July 20, 2018 to dismiss a 2013 three-count indictment against Ross Ulbricht which included murder-for-hire allegations. Mr. Ulbricht, 34, was prosecuted under a separate indictment out of the New York district as Dread Pirate Roberts, principal operator of underground online marketplace Silk Road. Many legal analysts concluded that the looming Maryland indictment prejudiced law enforcement in at least advocating aggressive sentencing in Mr. Ulbricht’s case. He is serving multiple life sentences without the possibility of parole. Also read: Coinbase Flexes Muscle, Creates Political Action Committee US Attorney Hur Files Motion to Dismiss 2013 Murder-for-Hire Indictment Against Ross Ulbricht “Pursuant to Rule 48(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure,” a recently released court document titled, Motion to Dismiss Indictment and Superseding Indictment, explained, “and by leave of Court endorsed hereon the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland hereby moves to dismiss with prejudice the Indictment and Superseding Indictment pending against the defendant in the above-captioned case.” In a statement to News.Bitcoin.com, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur explained his reasoning, “Mr. Ulbricht’s conviction and life sentence in the case handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York have been affirmed BY the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the Supreme Court has declined to hear the case. We have dismissed the federal charges based on the same conduct pending against Mr. Ulbricht in Maryland, which allows us to direct our resources to other cases where justice has not yet been served.” Phone calls to the Maryland US Attorney’s office were answered by Public Affairs Specialist Marcia Murphy, a nearly two decades veteran, working in one form or another in a US Attorney’s office. Though familiar with Mr. Ulbricht’s high profile prosecution in the Southern District of New York, she mentioned being unaware US Attorney Hur had filed a motion to dismiss the 2013 indictment. Asked flatly if the motion meant anything relevant to Mr. Ulbricht’s ultimate guilt or innocence, she preferred not to comment. Specialist Murphy did, however, stipulate Mr. Ulbricht’s having already been convicted, and how there was “nothing to be found” by keeping open the 2013, twelve-page indictment brought against him by then-US Attorney Rod Rosenstein (now United States Deputy Attorney General, appointed by President Trump in 2017). She used phrasing such as “district overlap,” almost making the motion to dismiss more of a formality rather than exoneration. Asked also if the motion could be typical administrivia, an effort to clear legal calendars rather than a legally significant filing, Specialist Murphy told news.Bitcoin.com, “You wouldn’t be wrong.” Change.org Still, Mr. Ulbricht seemed most obviously relieved, tweeting, “Just found out the govt moved to drop the case against me in Maryland. What a huge weight off my shoulders that will be.” He is currently in a Colorado federal prison, serving a life sentence without parole. His Twitter account is maintained by family and supporters. Though the Maryland indictment was sealed previously and separate from the indictment for which Mr. Ulbricht was found guilty, media stories with headlines touting murder-for-hire were considered prejudicial at the very least. Mr. Ulbricht was convicted on a range of charges, from various cyber crimes to drug trafficking and money laundering. His conviction and sentencing were appealed, ending at a recent Supreme Court decision to uphold lower courts’ findings, all of which were unfavorable to Mr. Ulbricht. Of particular concern was the life sentence, and his legal team argued it was the Maryland indictment, never formally acted upon, that caused the judge to hand down such a heavy punishment. More recently, supporters at FreeRoss.org mounted a Presidential Pardon petition on Change.org. At time of publication, the petition had close to 35,000 signatures. Will the President pardon Ross? Let us know in the comments section below. Images via Pixabay, Twitter. Be sure to check out the podcast Blockchain 2025, latest episode here. Want to create your own secure cold storage paper wallet? Check our tools section. The post Ross Ulbricht Murder-for-Hire Indictment to Be Dismissed appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article

Hunting crypto scammers and shillers is now a sport. Armchair sleuths have taken it upon themselves to chase down perceived bad actors, and to publicly out them for their crimes. Crypto influencers who conceal promoted tweets and conflicts of interest are liable to be outed and shamed. Also read: ICOs Have Become a Parody of Themselves Shillexed is the New Bitfinexed In the originality stakes, @Shillexed isn’t going to win any awards. The account is basically a clone of @Bitfinexed, whose chief preoccupation is bemoaning Tether’s lack of transparency. Shillexed has even recycled the Bitfinexed logo, only it’s operating under a different mission: to uncover crypto influencers who fail to disclose payment for the projects they tout. The phrase “crypto influencer”, while much derided, is the best term there is to describe Twitter traders with over 20,000 followers and the ability to move illiquid markets. The guys behind these accounts (for they are invariably male) don’t get paid for the charting, TA, and memes they supply their followers. Few people would begrudge them the occasional promoted tweet, but it’s the failure to disclose this fact that’s controversial. There’s a big difference between someone shilling a project because they think it has strong fundamentals and doing so because they’re getting paid. Krypto Leaks is on a Mission While Shillexed is chasing down conflicted Twitter influencers, a new Telegram group, Krypto Leaks, is hellbent on exposing “scammers, abusive VCs and pool founders”. So far it claims to have exposed dubious advisors, impropriety among ICO pools, and the usual scammers PM’ing Telegram users purporting to be channel admins. Crypto scams are constantly evolving, although you wouldn’t think so to look at the replies to a typical crypto tweet, where the ETH bots are sure to be out in force. On Telegram the scams tend to be a modicum more sophisticated. One reverse scam that was witnessed this week involves someone messaging a bona fide crypto influencer, claiming to have screenshots of someone using their name to defraud victims. If the genuine influencer clicks on the screenshot which purports to show evidence of the fraud, they will unwittingly download malware designed to steal their private keys. In a space where it is safe to trust no one and wise to assume that everyone has a hidden agenda, accounts such as Shillexed and Krypto Leaks have an uphill battle. Given the worry that crypto vigilante groups could themselves be elaborate scams (remember Blockbroker, an ICO set up to unearth exit scams that exit scammed?), it’s wise to be cautious of all cryptocurrency accounts, whatever flag they choose to drape themselves in. If nothing else, Shillexed has got crypto influencers treading carefully and being mindful of what they promise ICOs in their DMs. One exposé is all it takes to ruin a reputation that took years to build. Do you think crypto vigilantes are a force for good, or are they just being sanctimonious? Let us know in the comments section below. Images courtesy of Shutterstock, and Twitter. Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section. The post Vigilantes Are Outing Crypto Shillers and Scammers appeared first on Bitcoin News. View the full article