The cryptocurrency market is neither bearish or bullish during the European trading hours on Wednesday. The low trading activity is a break from two days of a continued selloff, especially for the major cryptocurrencies. Meanwhile, the market has lost $5 billion in the last 24 hours from $227 billion to $222 billion.

Bitcoin has been lethargic in its trading on Wednesday. From the opening price of $8,122, the price tested the hurdle at $8,150. However, the prevailing selling pressure has seen BTC adjust 0.7% lower on the day to trade at $8,066.

Looking at the 4-hour chart, Bitcoin has sustained a downtrend in a falling wedge pattern. As long as the pattern support remains intact, Bitcoin has the potential to correct higher in the coming sessions. However, as far as the MACD is concerned, bearish dominance could last longer. To completely avert declines below $8,000, Bitcoin must rise above $8,250 in the near-term.

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Cryptocurrency market update: $5 billion wiped off as Bitcoin bears take a breather - FXStreet

Criminal Justice

By Debra Cassens Weiss

November 22, 2019, 2:02 pm CST

Image from Shutterstock.com.

A former Locke Lord partner accused of leaving BigLaw to launder money in a cryptocurrency scam was convicted Thursday.

Lawyer Mark S. Scott, 51, of Coral Gables, Florida, was convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud, according to a press release from the Manhattan U.S. attorney.

Law360, the New York Law Journal, BBC News and the Cape Cod Times have coverage; Bloomberg Law covered opening statements.

Scott showed little emotion as the verdict was read but comforted a weeping family member, according to Law360.

Scott was accused of setting up fake investment funds to launder $400 million in an international pyramid scheme based on the worthless cryptocurrency OneCoin. Prosecutors said Scott earned more than $50 million in the scheme, which he used to buy luxury watches, a Ferrari, several Porsches, a yacht, and three multimillion-dollar seaside homes in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

According to federal prosecutors, OneCoin operates as a marketing network in which members receive commissions for recruiting others to buy cryptocurrency packages. The value of OneCoin is determined internally and is not based on market supply and demand, prosecutors say. They are not mined using computer resources, according to prosecutors.

OneCoin continues to operate and denies wrongdoing.

Scotts lawyer, Arlo Devlin-Brown, had argued that he didnt know that OneCoin was based on a worthless electronic currency, and his client was duped by OneCoin co-founder Ruja Ignatova, who disappeared in 2017. Ignatovas brother was a prosecution witness.

Devlin-Brown said Scott would appeal to clear his name.

Locke Lord has said it was unaware of Scotts misconduct, which happened after he left the firm.

See the original post:
Former BigLaw partner is convicted of money laundering in cryptocurrency scheme - ABA Journal

Cryptocurrency Wallets provide seamless integration with the investors' wallets

Cryptocurrency apps are effective tools for investors to monitor the market 24/7

The investors can be free from the risk of data mining with Cryptocurrency apps

Cryptocurrency and blockchain are slowly entering our lives, through the ease of doing business and ease of making payments. Cryptocurrency apps are the most convenient and secure among other assets because it can be stored in the safest place that you consider, and you become your own bank, as you have no transaction limits to can send cryptocurrency anywhere.

While there is a growing interest in Cryptocurrencies, many investors struggle to decide on how to invest in the most profitable cryptocurrencies due to lack of prior experience, complex crypto technologies, the threat of cybersecurity and the risk of investing.

This is where the relevance of advanced cryptocurrency apps rises.

Cryptocurrency apps educate potential investors with accurate information about the most common assets, depending on each investor profile. The investors can learn about the most popular coins or choose their favourite ones in a simulated environment.

Cryptocurrency apps focus on providing seamless integration with the investors wallets and simple definition of alerts, so different type of investors can invest in the crypto market. They provide wallet simulation for educational purposes, so investors can try and see how it would be to invest in different cryptocurrencies before start investing real money.

Many Cryptocurrency apps are free to download and use.

Popular cryptocurrencies have dedicated communities of investors, securing the integrity of their respective blockchains. However, the new investors struggle to understand the technicalities such as blockchain architecture, hashing, etc. as the existing solutions are mainly targeting big investors or crypto experts.

The result is complicated features that either requires high technical knowledge or deep involvement in the investment as ICOs. Cryptocurrency apps offer a user-friendly solution to learn and invest in cryptocurrencies, removing the barriers to entry and simplifying the complexity of handling digital assets.

Cryptocurrency price is fluctuating all the time. Cryptocurrency apps provide tools to summarise the current status of investors assets and to dive into the history of every single transaction they have done.

Cryptocurrency apps are effective tools for investors to monitor the market 24/7 and alert them with alarms once their favourite cryptocurrencies reach their optimum value to operate with. They Aggregate or segment the data to understand the evolution of the investments, which the investor can manage with a single click.

The investors can be free from the risk of data mining with Cryptocurrency apps like iCrypts. They dont store any critical or financial information from the user to integrate with third parties where their wallets are stored.

They allow the investor to store all private keys needed for operation. Additionally, the cryptocurrency apps encrypt the communications between the app and the server. They monitor and curate all the crypto market to filter potential coin scams using third-party partners specialize in it.

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency are indeed manifestations of the peoples choice to invest in alternatives. Effective tools like cryptocurrency apps are indeed democratising the investments for everyone.

More here:
How Cryptocurrency Apps Can Democratize The Investments - Inc42 Media

IntoTheBlock has documented what percent of each cryptocurrency is held in the richest addresses. What they found shouldnt surprise anyone.

Its difficult to assess the extent of inequality within cryptocurrency ecosystems. After all, they could be exchanges or custodial groupsbut, in some cases, a few whales really do own a large portion of the circulating supply of some cryptocurrencies.

IntoTheBlock (@intotheblock) decided to do some digging and find the actual numbers. Heres what they found.

Concentrations of ownership over cryptocurrencies are not surprising. In a decentralized system, some will get advantages and hold more. However, there are limits to how sustainable extreme concentrations of wealth are in a decentralized system. These are the numbers for some of the top altcoins and how concentrated they are.

The standouts in IntoTheBlocks findings are Litecoin and Tether. Both seem to have higher concentrations of wealth than the rest of the cryptocurrency industry. How this will impact the trajectory of these projects remains open to debate.

Some people may scoff at the insinuation that high concentrations of cryptocurrency assets in just a few addresses is even a problem. After all, if you are using a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin Cash, it may not even matter. This is because Bitcoin Cash and other proof-of-work currencies do not have a governance model.

Ethereum and Cardano, on the other hand,do.So, concentrations of wealth could very well end up impacting the ecosystem at largeand may even lead to decisions against the majority of Ethereum users.

So, the impact of high concentrations of assets depends on the respective cryptocurrencys ecosystem. Governance can seldom work if there is oligarchic-like control of a large portion of a decentralized system. Its an issue that developers will have to keep in mind as theyre building these governance models. We cant let cryptocurrencies fall into the same issues that currently plague traditional fiat marketplacesthese concentrations of wealth should definitely be up for discussion.

Images are courtesy of Twitter, Shutterstock.

Did you know you can trade sign-up to trade Bitcoin and many leading altcoins with a multiplier of up to 100x on a safe and secure exchange with the lowest fees with only an email address? Well, now you do!Click here to get started on StormGain!

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Heres How Much of Each Major Altcoin Is Owned by Whales - BeInCrypto

Digital asset platform Bitfinex and on-demand education and employment marketplace ODEM SA have collaborated to produce a new model of education on the role of digital token in the blockchain-enabled economy.

The idea is to provide an innovative token transaction simulation model, designed and operated by ODEM, using Bitfinex as its premier liquidity platform.Bitfinex and ODEM will launch a series of programmes and courses aimed at increasing the level of education of both novice and advanced Bitfinex users who are interested in obtaining more knowledge about the technical features of digital tokens. In conjunction with these educational programmes, ODEM will launch a full simulation of its education marketplace. Bitfinex will provide the liquidity for ODEM transactions, reflected through ODEMs smart contracts. This way, Bitfinex users purchasing educational programmes on the ODEM Marketplace using the same credentials as on Bitfinex will be able to view their ODEM Token transactions on Bitfinexs order book.Were excited to be the first to market with completely mirrored fiat-to-crypto trades in our education and employment marketplace, says Richard Maaghul, CEO at ODEM. Mirroring blockchain transactions allows users to view their payment activity reflected through our smart contracts in real-time and viewable through Etherscan.io. Transactions conducted by ODEMs Token simulation are fuelled by liquidity provided by Bitfinex. With their support of the overall decentralised ecosystem and focus on community-driven social impact, Bitfinex was a clear driver for us.Bitfinex users will be able to obtain access to all educational programs on the ODEM Marketplace directly from the platforms website. Bitfinex can leverage these programs to obtain a holistic view of cryptocurrency markets and trends, while also further enhancing users understanding of how the platform operates.Our collaboration with ODEM is a natural extension of our role as the premier trading platform worldwide, says Paolo Ardoino, CTO at Bitfinex. By educating more individuals on the uses and value of cryptocurrency and the vital role it plays in powering the blockchain economy, we are encouraging greater understanding and adoption of digital currencies. Were confident that through continued, dynamic and relevant education provided by expert educators on ODEMs platform, Bitfinex users will receive an advanced service offering.

See more here:
Bitfinex partners with ODEM to expand cryptocurrency and blockchain education - HedgeWeek

Danish computer scientist Bjarne Stroustrup invented the language C++ in 1985. Even now, 34 years on, it remains the one of the most commonly used codes woven into systems throughout the world.However, Stroustrup now says his one overwhelming regret over the last four decades is that his work went on to become the code upon which bitcoin is based. When you build a tool, you do not know how it is going to be used, he lamented.

Im very happy and proud of some of the things C++ is being used for and there are some other things I wish people wouldnt do.

Bitcoin mining is my favourite example it uses as much energy as Switzerland and mostly serves criminals.

The 68-year-old a managing director at Morgan Stanley in New York has spoken before about his dislike of cryptocurrency, but this is the first time hes expressed remorse over his code being used in the creation of BTC.

Speaking on the highly popular Lex Fridman podcast, the University of Cambridge graduate enthused over the great achievements made with computer science, but he turned his ire upon bitcoin when he discussed regrets, highlighting concern over environmental issues and criminality.

Almost half of all bitcoin transactions have, according to some studies, connections to criminal activities. It has also been suggested that almost a quarter of BTC users are also involved in illegal activity to the tune of $72 billion a year.

Bitcoin also attracts criticism for its negative environmental impact, using up a mind-boggling seven gigawatts of electricity a year and accounting for 0.21 percent of the worlds supplies.

Read the original here:
BITCOIN: Cryptocurrency is for criminals, says inventor of worlds leading computer code - Express

Crypto has had a big week, a number of big names in the finance space have weighed in on the viability of cryptocurrency and there have been a number of big regulatory shifts surrounding ICOs, while Europe is positioning itself to become the global cryptocurrency leader.

If youre in a rush the Born2Invest business news mobile app helps readers digest the crypto news summaries in small digestible chunks, helping them be up to date with the newest information in this field. Our team of experts puts the most important cryptocurrencies news at your fingertips.

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said that President Xi Jinpings approval of blockchain would have a positive impact on the global cryptographic industry. According to Tom Lee of Fundstrat, Bitcoin will go through the same stages of development as technology companies from Silicon Valley and the Creator of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, believes that the shift from transaction fees, once block fees stop being issued, will create a number of significant security and verification problems for blockchains that utilize Proof-of-Work (PoW).

Joseph Lubin, founder of the Consensys startup, expressed his hope that the Chinese digital currency will interact with many blockchains, including the ethereum. While Mark Yusko, CEO of the Morgan Creek Foundation, believes that it is time to resume buying Bitcoins now. He stressed that investors should give up Amazon shares and increase capital investments in the first cryptocurrency.

John Macafee made a statement that cryptocurrency companies are not obliged to supervise everything that happens in the cryptographic industry. According to him, the fight against criminals should not fall within the remit of cryptocurrency companies.

The creator of the C++ programming language, Bjrn Straustrup, complained that his brainchild plays a key role in the functioning of Bitcoin. Speaking in Lex Freedmans podcast, Straustrup said that mining uses too much energy and that Bitcoin serves criminals. This opinion appears to be shared by the former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, it makes no sense for central banks to issue their own digital currency.

In contrast Bobby Li, co-founder of the Chinese cryptocurrency exchange BTCC believes Bitcoin will be able to grow in price up to $1 million, and the market capitalization of the first cryptocurrency will reach $8 trillion.

Almost half of the financial experts believe that Bitcoin will become the most efficient asset next year. This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the analytical company Chainalysis.

Willy Wu, a well-known analyst, has prepared a chart that clearly shows which assets have the largest volume today. According to his estimation, more than 99% of all cryptographic assets on CoinMarketCap are illiquid.

The Weiss rating agency has published a series of posts on Twitter, where it tried to explain why the Cardano network is better than EOS.

Binance plans to add 180 new fiat currencies to its platform. Binance and HTC intend to release a cryptocurrency smartphone with Binance Chain blockchain support. The Exodus 1 Binance Edition smartphone will allow access to the decentralized Binance DEX exchange through a trusted execution environment called Zion Vault. Also, the Binance page in the Chinese social network Weibo has been blocked due to violation of the law.

Bittrex decided to return the frozen cryptocurrency funds to customers in jurisdictions where its services were banned. Bithumb Global has announced the release of a native token for the Bithumb Chain blockchain exchange. Bitfinex plans to expand its product range with options on cryptocurrency and digital staple coin secured with gold.

Several ICO-projects, which raised together about $40 million in 2017, failed to fulfill their obligations under the agreement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The companies agreed to return the money to investors or provide greater transparency in exchange for lower fines, but failed to comply with these requirements within the specified time frame.

The French central bank is looking for a blockchain analyst and engineer to deal with digital currencies and the application of blockchain to banking services.

The European Union will become a leader in the crypto sphere if it will develop a unified approach to regulating relations in the industry, as it is stated in the study of the Association of Financial Markets of Europe. The authors of the report emphasize that European countries need to speed up the work on creating a single legal framework, as the U.S. and China also want to become leaders in this area.

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(Featured image byAndr Franois McKenzieviaUnsplash)

DISCLAIMER: This article was written by a third party contributor and does not reflect the opinion of Born2Invest, its management, staff or its associates. Please review our disclaimer for more information.

This article may include forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words believe, project, estimate, become, plan, will, and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks as well as uncertainties, including those discussed in the following cautionary statements and elsewhere in this article and on this site. Although the Company may believe that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, the actual results that the Company may achieve may differ materially from any forward-looking statements, which reflect the opinions of the management of the Company only as of the date hereof. Additionally, please make sure to read these important disclosures.

First published in coinspot, a third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

Although we made reasonable efforts to provide accurate translations, some parts may be incorrect. Born2Invest assumes no responsibility for errors, omissions or ambiguities in the translations provided on this website. Any person or entity relying on translated content does so at their own risk. Born2Invest is not responsible for losses caused by such reliance on the accuracy or reliability of translated information. If you wish to report an error or inaccuracy in the translation, we encourage you to contact us.

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This week in Cryptocurrency - Born2Invest

Industry experts are expecting a much less fragmented cryptocurrency boom in China, compared to other parts of the world, with President Xi Jinping's government recently backing digital currency initiatives.

"I hope that we will have an enlightened infrastructure here," said Paul Brody, EY global blockchain leader, at CNBC's East Tech West conference in the Nansha district of Guangzhou, China.

"And I hope that we will avoid some of the mistakes that happened in the rest of the world."

With Xi's backing, China is developing a Digital Currency Electronic Payment, or DCEP, to be issued by the People's Bank of China. The national currency may be launched within months.

China will look to avoid replicating the turmoil in the United States caused by a rush to the cryptocurrency market during bitcoin's rapid growth, Brody said. In 2017, some investors flocked to initial coin offerings, many of which proved to be pure speculation where the involved companies never produced a product.

Paul Brody, Global Blockchain Innovation Leader of EY, Edith Yeung, Managing Partner of Proof of Capital and Rae Deng, Founding Partner of Du Capital speak with Arjun Kharpal, Technology Correspondent of CNBC on Day 2 of CNBC East Tech West at LN Garden Hotel Nansha Guangzhou on November 19, 2019 in Nansha, Guangzhou, China.

Zhong Zhi/Getty Images for CNBC International

China's policy shift may look from the outside like an abrupt move to capitalize on a trend, but it fits squarely in Xi's long-term plan for "industrialization of the digital economy," added Rae Deng, partner at DU Capital, who was on the same panel discussion at the East Tech West conference.

China's entry into digital currency could effectively tip the scales in favor of new currencies worldwide, spurring some traditional investors to give blockchain a second look, she added.

"I think the magnitude and appetite of the traditional money would definitely change the status quo of the crypto community," Deng told CNBC's Arjun Kharpal.

Blockchain is the underlying technology for digital currencies and acts as a global database of transactions. It has been touted as being able to revolutionize the payments industry but it has many other uses.

China has signaled that it doesn't want to over-regulate its digital currency, instead letting companies "experiment" with it, said Edith Yeung, managing partner at Proof of Capital.

She added that the country is looking at this as a long-term investment. Driving the adoption of digital currency might be a way to ensure their currency doesn't lose value.

"And I really think that the U.S. needs to hurry up," she added, "otherwise, I think what China is doing is leading the way to drive more dominance for the renminbi for the world."

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China's crypto boom is expected to be less 'fragmented' as government backs blockchain efforts - CNBC

A Canadian cryptocurrency exchange that was shut down earlier this month for allegedly misappropriating CAD$16 million ($12.1 million) in user funds only has $45,000 in hard assets, reports Global News.

As previously reported by Hard Fork, the B.C. Securities Commission (BCSC) shut down Einstein Exchange after looking into several complaints from customers unable to access their cash and cryptocurrency assets.

Grant Thornton Limited was appointed to seize the exchanges assets and return the allegedly missing funds to users. These included cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, the BCSC case documents said.

But, a British Columbia Supreme Court filing published yesterday reportedly says Grant Thorton has discovered that the business only has approximately $15,000 in cryptocurrency and $30,000 in cash.

The cryptocurrency exchange was incorporated by director Michael Ongun Gokturk in December 2017, during Bitcoins famous bull run.

In May this year, the BCSC launched an investigation into customer complaints.

Grant Thornton has reportedly issued notices to several banks across Canada and the US, whereGokturk and the exchange may have held investments or deposits, and seized shares in private companies.

Gokturk did not respond to Global News request for comment, nor has he replied to the allegations made in the BCSC case filings.

But, the Einstein Group has reportedly told Grant Thornton that it believes it owes clientsbetween US$8 and $10 million.

This deficit, the company says, stems from credit card and bank draft frauds. The majority of this loss is made up of cryptocurrency assets, it adds.

Einstein Exchange is believed to have served 200,000 users from all over the globe.Grant Thornton has so far heard from 200-300 people said to be affected by the exchanges collapse.

Published November 19, 2019 11:00 UTC

Read the rest here:
Cryptocurrency exchange that went dark with $16M in user funds only has $45k, report - The Next Web

A Swedish citizen has been extradited from Thailand to the US. The Swede is facing charges of securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering based on a heinous cryptocurrency investment con hes run since 2006.

According to a US Department of Justice release, Roger Nils-Jonas Karlsson was extradited yesterday after being arrested in Thailand in June this year.

As Hard Fork has previously reported, Karlsson and his company, Eastern Metal Securities (EMS), were charged earlier this year following a complaint that claimed he had been running a gold-based investment scam.

Karlsson reportedly used a website to invite potential investors to buy shares in exchange for an eventual payout of in gold. However, the funds were never used to buy gold. Rather, they are tied up in real estate in Thailand, and not returned in any way to the investors.

The accused reportedly offered investments in shares of gold for $98 per share. Karlsson said each share would lead to a payout of 1.15 kilograms of gold. Thats insane, when you consider that the same weight in gold would cost you over $47,000 in the US at the time of writing.

The scammy website used by Karlsson directed investors to make investments in cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin.

According to the DoJ statement, Karlsson allegedly defrauded more than 3,750 victims of over $11 million.

It should also be noted that this indictment and extradition is to have Karlsson present in court to defend these allegations. He is yet to be found guilty of the above.

Published November 19, 2019 09:36 UTC

Continue reading here:
Swedish gold-for-cryptocurrency scammer finally extradited to US - The Next Web