Green shoots are everywhere in the market. Bitcoin and all major altcoins are demonstrating strong gains from 2% to 26%. Notably, NEO and TRON are the best-performing assets out of top-20 as both coins have gained over 26% on a day-to-day basis. At the time of writing, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization is registered at $253 billion from $242 billion the day before; an average daily trading volume increased to $116 billion from $99 this time on Sunday; Bitcoin's market share decreased to 68.2%.

BTC/USD topped at $9,938 during early Asian hours before retreating to $9,600 by the time of writing. Despite the retreat, the first digital coin is still 5% high from this time on Sunday, moving within a short-term bullish trend. Notably, BTC cannot sustainably break above SMA100 (Simple Moving Average) on a daily chart (currently at $9,650). Once it happens, $10,000 will come into focus. This resistance is strengthened by the recent high and the middle line of a weekly Bollinger Band on approach.Ethereum, the second-largest digital asset with the current market capitalization of $20 billion, has gained nearly 4% in recent 24 hours. At the time of writing, ETH/USD is changing hands at $185.00, off the intraday high of $190.19. Looking technically, ETH/USD a sustainable recovery above $180.00 improves the short-term picture and signals the price may continue moving upwards with the next bullish aim at $190.00.Ripples XRP has made its way above $0.3000 during early Asian hours on Monday. At the time of writing, XRP/USD is changing hands at $0.3010. The third digital coin with the current market value of $12.9 has gained $1.75 on a day-to-day basis, though the bullish breakthrough above $0.3000 still needs to be confirmed.

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The cryptocurrency market starts the week with strong growth across the board - FXStreet

The face of global finance is being altered by the growth of digital currency. Any time theres a change in the status quo, there will be those in favor of the changes and those opposed to them, as well as those who try to buck the system in a misguided belief that they dont have to play by the rules. Ever since money was first invented, there have been individuals willing to break the law to serve their own selfish benefits and the Bitcoin ecosystem is not going to operate any differently. As the activity over the past month shows, there have been ups and downs, but everything is pointing to a better, more fine-tuned industry.

Patrick Byrne, the founder and former CEO of eCommerce giant Overstock, became enamored with cryptocurrency so much that he wanted to shift completely away from retail and focus solely on crypto. However, he may have crossed the line and committed securities fraud in the process. Just like with the many instances of securities fraud associated with fiat, hell be held accountable if found guilty.

Tether and Bitfinex are still battling the State of New York for certain alleged financial improprieties. That case will be continuing for quite some time, and the two are now going to have to respond to another suit. Investors are accusing the pair of creating the largest bubble in history by manipulating crypto market prices and there is a lot of evidence to support the claim.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which asserts that digital assets are a form of property, has provided some new guidance on what constitutes a tax obligation related to crypto. It has already weighed in on several aspects of crypto transactions, and in its latest input, revealed that any gains from hard forks arent taxed until the gains are realized. If the money is held by an exchange after the hard fork, for example, there arent any gains. Once that money is withdrawn, however, its time to give Uncle Sam his cut.

Alipay, the massive China-based payments company, says no to crypto. It doesnt want to be associated with digital currency in any way and wont even let tertiary services use the payments solution if those transactions will involve crypto or lead to crypto withdrawals or deposits. The decision probably stems from the Alibaba-owned companys desire to have its own form of peer-to-peer fiat payment solution.

A Chinese crypto mining equipment provider and solution, Canaan Creative, is going to do what no rival has been able to do so far. It has asserted that it is going to be listed on a U.S. stock exchange in November, beating out competitors like Bitmain, who hasnt been able to resolve questions about its financial health.

The idea that crypto transactions are completely untraceable is incorrect. It was created by individuals who never properly grasped the concept of Bitcoin and didnt understand how it was going to work. A recent international scandal involving a child porn ring and how over 337 people were raided after their crypto transactions were traced shows the fallacy of the misguided belief.

If you cant beat em, join em. That appears to be the motto of the Canadian government, which is reportedly starting to warm to the idea of launching a digital currency. It would replace fiat and, given the inherent and automatic reporting associated with crypto, would allow the country to constantly track all financial movements by everyone in the country.

Cambodia looks to be considering the idea, as well. It wants easier ways to conduct cross-border payments while reducing associated costs, and the countrys central bank is said to be exploring digital wallets as the answer.

Poloniex is no longer under the Circle umbrella. The crypto exchange announced a week ago that it would break away from the payments company and stand on its own. At the same time, to the dismay of crypto fans in the country, it also announced that it would stop U.S. support as of November 1.

The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) clarified that crypto companies are required by law to adhere to anti-money-laundering policies. If they dont, they could be charged accordingly, and the announcement is seen as a step forward in showing that crypto can be used as a currency.

China continues to be a leading force behind blockchain innovation. This has been seen by the number of companies that have launched in the country, and there are now a lot more. The Cyberspace Administration of China just approved 309 new blockchain service providers this month, with those entities offering services from eCommerce to tourism and from healthcare to legal matters.

There have now been 452 BTC futures contracts traded on the newly-opened Bakkt futures exchange. There is still a lot to happen and the increase comes as the market weakens, but the prospects of another big bull run are attracting more investors.

Its been a good month for Bitcoin SV (BSV), known better as the original Bitcoin. According to a tweet by expert crypto developer Unwriter, BSV had, as of October 23, eclipsed BTC in organic traffic. He pointed out that it is a very significant point in Bitcoin history. This changes everything. Especially for the BSV builders since it shows that what BSV has expressed all along is true. The blockchain is capable of sustained large blocks, infinite scaling and proven operations. The idea that no blockchain could handle large blocks or massive scaling has just been completely proven false by BSVs performance.

Given how far the Bitcoin ecosystem has come in the past two years, its going to be interesting to look back a year from now and see even more changes. This is just the beginning of a lot of positive growth for crypto and history is being made that will rewrite how the world views money.

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What happened to cryptocurrency: October 2019 highs and lows - CoinGeek

On Wednesday, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebooks chief executive, testified about his companys cryptocurrency project at a hearing held by the House Financial Services Committee. In his testimony, Zuckerberg tried to reassure Congress that Facebooks Libra cryptocurrency would square the circle between financial inclusion and regulatory adherence, consumer privacy and proactive fraud detection. The one thing he didnt manage to address is whether the world really wants a crypto offering from the social media giant.

Cryptocurrency has acquired an unseemly status where any use is automatically assumed to have nefarious ends. It doesnt help that the most prominent example, Bitcoin, has been implicated in some horrific criminal conduct. At the same time, a lack of mainstream adoption gives cryptocurrency few redeeming advocates. No surprise, then, that regulators regard Facebooks proposal with suspicion.

Its not that legitimate businesses dont want crypto; its that their customers dont want to use it for payment. When buying stuff on the internet, consumers will choose the payment method that imposes the lowest transaction cost on themselves thats generally the credit card option, which allows deferred payment as well as the accrual of miles or points. An online business that refuses to accept credit cards will always lose out to a competitor that does.

But what if you dont have any competitors? Facebook enjoys quasi-monopoly status when it comes to consumer attention, controlling the reach and distribution of content across its network of users. (So far, 46 attorneys general have joined a New York-led antitrust investigation of the company and its dominance as a social media platform.)

As the driver of over one-fourth of web traffic, Facebook has a lot of influence over who sees what on the internet. And with over 2.3 billion monthly active users around the world, its not a stretch to imagine that the company could have similar influence over who pays whom, and how.

Mark Zuckerbergs Congressional testimony makes it clear that he takes inspiration from China, where WeChat serves as a one-stop portal to the greater internet. There, users conduct their banking, shopping, and bill payments without ever leaving the app. The ability to control users economic interactions comes with the privilege of deciding the medium of exchange. If it follows suit, Facebook may end up looking like another familiar monopolist our own government, which creates the national currency we use to pay our taxes.

Its no wonder regulators and central banks view the Libra project as a threat to the international monetary system. In a recent report, the G7 Working Group warns that global cryptocurrencies could undermine cross-jurisdictional efforts to combat illicit finance. All international transactions using U.S. dollars currently clear through the New York Federal Reserve, where they can be monitored and stopped if deemed unsavory. Previously, members of the Senate Banking Committee have expressed concern over Facebooks ability to handle economic sanctions on foreign regimes.

Zuckerberg has promised that Calibra, Facebooks payment app, will include robust compliance systems to fulfill regulatory obligations. However, the greater risk is that Calibra will go above and beyond its regulatory duty. Facebook already employs a more restrictive speech code than legally required the platform blocks various forms of hate speech, harassment, misinformation and inauthentic behavior. Publishers must accept Facebooks opaque Terms of Service or risk not being seen at all. Its one thing to deny politically incorrect figures the ability to share inflammatory content; its another thing to leave them economically isolated.

In a competitive market, those who disagree with Facebooks terms could simply take their business elsewhere. The Libra Association currently includes twenty-one member companies, after some early members dropped out. If Facebook mimics WeChat in establishing itself as a go-to payment portal, those former members may have no choice but to return to the cartel.

Global regulators are so worried about preserving their own monopoly status that theyve forgotten that monopolies have victims. Just look at what Facebook did to publishers. When Facebook emerged as the arbiter of eyeballs, publishers lost control of their audiences and ad revenue, and consumers ended up with a barrage of clickbait. If Facebook disintermediates the banking system, it could take control of the economic relationship between businesses and their customers, with greater restrictions on financial transactions than ever before. Its almost enough to make you wish for a decentralized currency.

Elaine Ou is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. She is a blockchain engineer at Global Financial Access in San Francisco. Previously she was a lecturer in the electrical and information engineering department at the University of Sydney.

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Cryptocurrency: Facebook could do to banks what it did to newspapers - Grand Island Independent

Even Republicans, who have been generally more open to the cryptocurrency plan since it was announced in June, have expressed concern about how it has been organized.

Representative Lance Gooden, a Republican from Texas, criticized the decision by the Libra Association, the Facebook-led coalition behind the cryptocurrency, to base itself in Geneva.

There is an impression that perhaps Facebook wants a clean start somewhere else because they havent enjoyed criticism to their social media platform, but Democrats and Republicans agree that criticism of the social network is entirely justified, Mr. Gooden, a member of the Financial Services Committee, said in a phone interview last week.

One evening last week, Mr. Marcus swirled a glass of bourbon in a downtown, nouveau-Southern restaurant in Washington. Despite a flurry of bad news about his project, Mr. Marcus said he was unfazed.

Look, change of this magnitude was going to be hard all along, he said.

When Facebook announced the project, it had only a rough draft of what Libra would look like. The plan was for the final designs to be done by all the partners as part of the Libra Association, in which Facebook would have only one vote. But that lack of detail has made it hard to explain how Libra would deal with problems like money laundering and cybersecurity.

The basic description that Facebook did put forward was enough to bring out the knives from politicians and regulators all over the world. In the United States, President Trump and his Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, harshly criticized Libra, as did politicians from both parties.

Mr. Marcus, over a dinner of fried green tomato arugula salad and spicy fried chicken, said he had no regrets about how Facebook had introduced the project. He brushed aside criticism that Facebook should have done more to get regulators on board ahead of time.

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Facebook Lays On the Charm for Its Libra Cryptocurrency Plan - The New York Times

Cryptocurrency has its admirers and its detractors. But there is no denying that it looks to be here to stay.

It is important, therefore, that those in business know how it works, the benefits it can bring and the pitfalls.

There is little doubt that it offers new and exciting business opportunities. The Financial Conduct Authoritys (FCA) definition of cryptocurrency as a publicly available electronic medium of exchange that features a distributed ledger and a decentralised system for exchanging value, may sound like a bit of a mouthful but it is an accurate description. Cryptocurrencies can be accessed via the internet and used for cross-border payments and to fund transfers, all of which can make them useful in business. And being a relatively new concept, cryptocurrency offers investment opportunities.

But while these positives can be welcomed by the business world, it would be foolish and possibly costly to ignore the negatives.

There are plenty of informed observers who believe that cryptocurrency is as much an asset for those looking to commit fraud or launder money as it is for those looking to do legitimate business. Cryptocurrency was allowed to develop with very little regulation although the FCA has now issued its guidance on it - and the anonymity it offers can certainly appeal to those who are looking for a vehicle to commit financial crime. Which is why it needs to be approached with caution.

It would be surprising if anyone with an ounce of business sense committed themselves to a deal or investment opportunity without first making all possible checks into the products involved and the people who are looking to trade. And that approach must also now be taken with cryptocurrency. While to many, cryptocurrency may seem a newly-arrived but relatively unknown quantity, it should be subjected to at least the same level of good, old-fashioned scrutiny that those in business apply to more traditional aspects of their work.

The FCA has emphasised the risks associated with cryptocurrency and the value of managing these risks by having proper procedures in place. But despite any advice that the FCA or other bodies put out regarding cryptocurrency, it remains the responsibility of those in business to make sure they have done all they can to counter the risks.

Cryptocurrency platforms rely on complex infrastructures spread across a variety of countries. Client details will be held by different entities in various countries and jurisdictions. This not only makes it hard for law enforcement agencies and regulators to obtain details they may need it also creates the potential for money laundering and fraud. The result of this, unfortunately, is that it is essentially up to individuals in business and companies to make sure that they and their staff are fully aware of both the risks and the potential warning signs of wrongdoing. The only way to do this properly is by being aware of cryptocurrency developments and carrying out due diligence on any possible trading partners who want to do business involving cryptocurrency.

This may seem a daunting task for those in business who feel they are too busy to find the time and accumulate the expertise to take on such a role. If that is the case they need to seek help and advice from those who have such awareness. What they cannot do is go into any cryptocurrency-related activity not knowing the possible implications. It would be improper to suggest that all aspects of cryptocurrency are a breeding ground for criminality and that everyone who promotes or uses it has illegal gains on their mind. But it certainly offers scope for wrongdoing.

It is important, therefore, that those looking to become involved with it leave nothing to chance. To leap into the world of cryptocurrency without a full knowledge of it or without the necessary precautions in place is to invite problems. Most people in business do their homework and exercise caution in all aspects of their work. They would never think of taking up an opportunity without taking the time to make sure it is as genuine as they have been told. Cryptocurrency is the new kid on the business block. But it still has to be treated with the caution that is exercised in more established aspects of business activity.

Aziz Rahman is founder of Rahman Ravelli; a top-ranked business crime law firm in national and international legal guides.

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Cryptocurrency: the importance of assessing the risks - BQ Live

In June, the Rotman School of Managements seed-stage incubator announced a partnership with Facebooks new venture into cryptocurrency: Libra. As the companys only academic founding partner, U of Ts Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) will participate as part of the Libra Association in its efforts to create a cryptocurrency infrastructure.

While CDL touts the partnership as an exciting opportunity for innovation, recent criticisms leveraged against the tech giant have some wondering if Libra is contributing to Facebooks woes.

Facebooks crypto experiment

On June 18, amid a tense period for the company, Facebook released a statement announcing Calibra, a new subsidiary of Facebook that aims to connect people to financial services through the Libra network.

Calibra intends to create a digital wallet system where people can buy, spend, and save Libra cryptocurrency. Users will be able to use Libras wallet on Facebook-owned services like WhatsApp, Messenger, and as a standalone app.

The Libra network will use a blockchain system that will record every transaction that takes place. As a permissioned network, Libras blockchain can only function on specific servers.

Libras network will be overseen by the Libra Association, which is composed of companies, non-profit organizations, and academic institutions. The association intends to manage the network, provide servers to run the network, and manage the cryptocurrencys reserve. The association also removes Libras control from the hands of Facebook into those of industry, academia, and non-profit sectors.

When it was announced, the Libra Association had 27 members, including Spotify, Lyft, and Uber. Facebook hopes to have at least 100 partners in the association by Libras expected 2020 launch.

CDL joins The Libra Association

While the CDL was established at the University of Toronto in 2012, the lab now operates with locations across the country and in the United Kingdom. As a seed-stage program, CDL supports startups in the science and technology field.

CDLs partnership with Libra is intended to build on the labs incubation role by providing additional opportunities for the startup community. According to Rotman School of Management Professor and CDLs Chief Economist, Joshua Gans, the partnership intends to provide more opportunities for CDL startups in the blockchain stream. In the long-term, Gans said Libra presents an opportunity for the entire startup community. In creating better startup ecosystems, we will be fulfilling our mission, he said.

In an email to The Varsity, Gans discussed how the partnership will benefit the U of T community, saying, for the university, it represents a bold and innovative move with a set of challenges that is not normally in the universitys wheelhouse but is something that its leadership can build on and signal a vision that goes beyond the ordinary day-to-day of academic life.

I think it is particularly gratifying that the university, at its highest levels, has been able to back our role in Libra thus far and I hope that will continue as things evolve, Gans added.

In an interview with The Varsity, Associate Professor of Finance at the Rotman School of Management and at UTMs Department of Management, Andreas Park, said academic institutions should have a role to play in regulating Libra.

I think its really important that an academic institution is part of [the governance process], Park said, adding that academic partners could have a positive influence when outlining Libras objectives, goals, and governance structure.

Libras promise and pitfalls

When announcing the project, Facebook evoked current concerns around financial systems as justification for the product. Specifically, the company noted that financial infrastructures are inaccessible in developing countries especially for women.

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg reflected on this promise in leaked memos, saying he hopes that Libra will create a system of digital money that can work globally and can effectively be implemented by big companies.

For Park, a global cryptocurrency system has significant potential, especially for countries without a stable currency. An effective cryptocurrency system could have a sweeping positive impact by creating a financial structure that transcends borders.

Most people in the world would benefit greatly if they had stable money, Park said. And if you think of Facebook as two billion users, most of them are not from the developed world. So, the developing world can benefit enormously [by] this initiative almost by accident.

I could not envision a world in which the public sector would actually be able to build this, Park added.

However, while Facebook maintains that Libra will protect users private information apart from sharing data to keep people safe and comply with the law some researchers, lawmakers, and advocates have raised concerns with Facebooks track record on privacy.

Amid these mounting concerns, Libra has come under sharp scrutiny. For some companies, the costs of participating in Libra outweighed the benefits. Earlier this month, reports surfaced that seven major partners had left the association: Paypal, Visa, Mastercard, eBay, Stripe, Mercado Pago, and Booking.

Megan Boler, Associate Chair of the Department of Social Justice Education in the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, raised concerns about Facebooks size and power in an email to The Varsity. Nothing could be more disturbingly symbolic of Facebooks meteoric rise to ruling the globe than Libra, Boler said in an email to The Varsity. Given Facebooks track record with profit over public good, one must cultivate deep suspicion about this corporations ongoing amalgamation of economic, political, legal and increasingly moral power.

Park also discussed possible concerns with Facebooks ownership of a global financial system. Unlike banks, which have limited personal data about customers, Facebook has a plethora of information on every user.

If you have the complete picture, youre extremely powerful, Park explained.

Disclaimer: Kaitlyn Simpson previously served as Volume 138 Features Editor and Volume 139 Managing Online Editor of The Varsity, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Varsity Publications Inc.

Tags: currency, Facebook, Libra, money, Social Media, Technology

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Creative Destruction Lab partners with Facebook on new cryptocurrency - Varsity

Bitcoins price was quoted in five digits across cryptocurrency exchanges earlier today, but the breakout into $10,000 was short-lived.

The number one cryptocurrency by market value jumped to $10,350 at 01:45 UTC the highest level since Sept. 24 according to Bitstamp data. Meanwhile, the global average price, as calculated by CoinDesks Bitcoin Price Index, clocked a high of $10,332.

Just 24 hours ago, the cryptocurrency was reeling under bearish pressures below $7,500 and prominent chart analysts were calling a deeper drop, courtesy of the so-called death cross a bearish cross of long-term moving averages.

BTC, however, picked up a bid around $7,500 in the early U.S. trading hours on Friday and rose to $8,800 at 17:20 UTC. Prices then consolidated in the narrow range of $8,500 to $8,700 for a few hours, before printing highs above $10,000 earlier today. Essentially, the death cross trapped sellers on the wrong side for the fourth time since 2014.

Bitcoin closed (UTC) at $8,662 on Friday, representing a 16.51 percent gain on the day, as per Bitstamp data. That is the biggest single-day rise since April 2. Back then, BTC had rallied 18.45 percent from $4,133 to $5,080.

Further, the rise from lows below $7,400 to highs above $10,300 is reportedly the third-largest 24-hour price gain in bitcoins history, as pointed out by crypto-asset analyst Yassine Elmandjra.

Experts have associated the latest double-digit surge with Chinese President Xi Jinpings comments that the worlds second-largest economy should accelerate its adoption of the blockchain technology. After all, China was one of the biggest sources of demand for cryptocurrencies during the 2017 bull run.

Prominent observers like Anthony Pompliano are of the opinion that the Chinese presidents public support of the blockchain technology will force the U.S. and other major nations to embrace the technology, perhaps boosting bitcoin.

The investor community, therefore, is expecting the rally to continue. Some observers, however, are worried that the market optimism is premature, as China is developing a digital version of its own currency and is unlikely to lift its ban on bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

It remains to be seen whether Xis comments power further gains in BTC. The cryptocurrency is losing altitude at press time.

As of writing, BTC is changing hands at $9,320 on Bitstamp, representing a $1,000-plus drop from the Asian session high of $10,350. Technical charts indicate a bullish breakout would be confirmed if prices find acceptance above $9,750.

The daily chart shows early signs of a bullish reversal. For instance, bitcoins convincing move above $8,352 (Oct. 21 high) has invalidated the bearish lower highs setup. The cryptocurrency has also violated resistance at $8,820 (horizontal line).

However, the cryptocurrency is yet to exit the falling channel, represented by trendlines connecting June 26 and Aug. 6 highs and July 17 and Sept. 26 lows.

A UTC close above the upper edge of the bearish channel, currently at $9,750, would imply a resumption of the rally from lows near $4,100 seen on April 2 and put the cryptocurrency on the path to re-test of the high of $13,880 hit in June.

Put simply, a channel breakout is needed to confirm a bearish-to-bullish trend change.

Disclosure:The author holds no cryptocurrency assetsat the time of writing.

Hot air balloons image viaShutterstock;charts byTrading View

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Bitcoin Price Hits Five-Week High Above $10000 - Coindesk

(Dado Ruvic/Reuters)It would be a travesty if China, which has entered the fray, became the worlds leader in this global economic development.

The old adage about giving a dog a bad name certainly applies to Facebook these days. Politicians and pundits of every ideological stripe feel free to lash out at Mark Zuckerberg whenever he comes to Washington, even when his visit has nothing to do with Facebook.

This week, the Facebook-bashing bled into Zuckerbergs testimony on Capitol Hill regarding his newest venture, Project Libra. This is the most ambitious venture yet by an American company into the cryptocurrency market, one that could raise the status and reputation of this revolution in financial transactions and maybe prevent the future of that revolution from being dominated and controlled by China.

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which is essentially digital cash exchanged on the Internet, gets lots of harsh criticism, some of it richly deserved. Theyve been accused of being simply a vehicle for money-laundering; as a way of securing the network, they rely on a widely dispersed ledger to keep track of transactions, instead of a single centralized source, and some cryptocurrencies have been vulnerable to spectacular acts of hacking. Bitcoin in particular is subject to major market fluctuations that give some investors, and regulators, periodic heartburn.

Above all, cryptocurrencies are a direct challenge to one of governments longest-standing and most important monopolies, that of a national currency. Its not surprising that their advent since 2009 has triggered considerable pushback from the financial establishment as well as from governments, including ours.

Pushback is also what Facebook gets from both ends of the political spectrum plus the middle. The social-media company has been hammered for everything from inadequate privacy and permitting foreign election interference that supposedly got Donald Trump elected president in 2016 to muzzling conservatives and propagating fake news. Most of the steps Zuckerberg has taken to correct these issues are either ignored or dismissed as inadequate as when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez slammed Zuckerberg on Wednesday for daring to include The Daily Caller in the companys new list of organizations it consults for fact-checking.

But what critics on the House Financial Services Committee of the caliber of AOC and chairwoman Maxine Waters fail to understand is that Project Libra actually goes a long way toward solveing what ought to be their real concern, the security and future of global financial transactions.

For example, contrary to myth, the Libra currency wont be owned by Facebook. It will be run by a consortium of companies and organizations, the Libra Association Council. It will avoid wild market swings by connecting its value to a basket of historically stable currencies such as the dollar, the euro, and the Japanese yen. Libra is also not digital cash but a currency of account for transactions, so its not possible to stockpile the digital assets for money-laundering or other nefarious purposes one of the counts against Bitcoin. Then for safetys sake, Libra has come up with a virtual wallet, called Calibra, which can prevent fraud by verifying every users transaction a method similar to that used by PayPal. (In fact, former PayPal employees will be overseeing Calibra.)

Still, safety, privacy, and security protections are probably the biggest legitimate issues surrounding Libra. Facebook can easily address them, however, by using quantum technology, or blockchain, to protect the underlying architecture of its distributed ledger.

As I explained in my review for National Review of George Gilders book Life after Google:

Essentially, information in a blockchain exists as a shared and continually reconciled database. The blockchain database isnt stored in any single location; no centralized version of the information exists (as it does in Googles Dalles data center) for a hacker to penetrate. Instead, its hosted by millions of computers simultaneously, like a spreadsheet duplicated across an entire network whose data are constantly updated and accessible to anyone on the network.

With some minor modifications, this is true for Libra as well. The problem is, future quantum computers will be able to decrypt the complex algorithms that asymmetric encryption systems, including blockchain, use to secure almost all electronic data. Instead of being the answer to all our cybersecurity vulnerabilities, including those of cryptocurrencies, blockchains could become just as vulnerable as web browsers or the cloud.

If Facebook uses the occasion of Project Libra to build a quantum-safe cryptocurrency (using, for example, quantum-resistant algorithms to support encryption) thats invulnerable to quantum hacking or to any other kind of hacking it will not only be a major contribution to the future of cryptocurrencies, but it will show America how to make all our data and networks quantum safe and secure.

Unfortunately, the attacks on Facebook have caused several co-sponsors, including PayPal, to drop out of Project Libra. Zuckerberg admitted during his testimony that he may have to abandon the entire venture if federal regulators dont relent. That could be disastrous, because theres another player eager to get into the cryptocurrency fray: China.

Soon after Facebook broke the news about Project Libra, China announced that it was going to launch its own cryptocurrency with the help of its biggest companies. It would be a historical and economic travesty if China became the worlds leader in the future of digital currencies, while the American company best able to reshape the future of this market was forced by its own government to bow out.

And wed have no one to blame but ourselves and our misguided antipathy toward Facebook.

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Why Facebook Is the Best Hope for Cryptocurrencys Future - National Review

Will cryptocurrencies ever be considered mainstream? Millions of people around the world are invested in Bitcoin and its rivals, of course, but from the point of view of governments, regulators and financial institutions, virtual coins and tokens are still viewed with a considerable degree of suspicion.

Witness the stormy weather that is currently being encountered by Facebook as it presses ahead with plans for its Libra project. Earlier this month, Visa, Mastercard and eBay announced their intention to walk away from the association of companies and institutions that originally agreed to develop and support the new virtual currency. A few days later, ING chief executive, Ralph Hamers told the Financial Times that an ongoing commitment to Libra might prompt banks to cut ties with the social media giant unless it addressed the money laundering concerns expressed by regulators.

And as Dr. Tom Robinson sees it, financial institutions remain extremely wary of exposing themselves - and by extension their clients - to the risks they perceive in the cryptocurrency market. Indeed, hes witnessed that wariness at first hand. Having read about Bitcoin in 2012, he and university friends, Dr. James Smith and Dr. Adam Joyce quit their jobs to set up a company - Elliptic - providing cryptocurrency security solutions. We tried to get institutions interested, he recalls. But they were very concerned about the associations between virtual currency and criminal activity.

Creating A Safe Space

But the worries expressed by financial institutions also pointed to an entrepreneurial opportunity. Banks and fund managers were seeing the emergence of a new investment class that promised rich rewards for those with strong nerves. To be more precise, they were seeing their clients buying into Bitcoin and other currencies. Having initially started out by providing secure custody services for investors, Elliptic developed a solution that would enable institutions to provide cryptocurrency-related services to their customers while steering clear of any association with trading activities that might tarnish their reputations or see them falling foul of regulators and law enforcement.

The demand use case for cryptocurrencies is speculation," explains Dr. Robinson. Thats especially true after the 2017 Bitcoin bubble - even taxi drivers were talking about that. Banks wanted to give their clients access to crypto-assets.

Against that backdrop, Elliptics team developed a system to analyze blockchain trades and identify non-legitimate trading.

Essentially, Elliptics technology tracks the activity on the blockchain and - to put it simply - strips away the anonymity that has been a traditional feature of virtual currency transactions. We link transactions to known entities, says Dr. Robinson. And once these entities are visible, it is possible to assess the risk of a transaction being linked to, say, money laundering, illegal arms trading or the payment of ransomware.

Bypassing Banks

This, in turn, opens the way for financial institutions to engage more confidently with virtual currencies, says Dr. Robinson. And enhanced security, he argues, will be a key factor in opening up a new era of financial services provisions. For the first time, we have an open financial system, he says. Nowadays, you dont have to go to a bank to carry out a transaction. And if you want, you can create your own bank.

But as the high-profile withdrawals from Facebooks Libra project demonstrate, there is still a long way to go before everyone is convinced that the virtual currency marketplace is a safe environment for institutions.

To date, the company has assessed risk on around $1 trillion of transactions. However, it has had more success in providing its security solutions to organizations within the blockchain sector than to mainstream institutions. We have more than 100 customers now, says Dr. Robinson. Most are exchanges and wallet providers but we are also seeing banks, hedge funds and asset managers coming on board. The financial institutions represent a minority, but it is a growing minority.In addition the company has worked with U.S. law enforcement agencies. To

And Dr. Robinson believes more widespread uptake of virtual currencies is on the way. Even if Libra doesnt succeed, I think something similar will emerge. There is real scope to provide services around international remittances and e-commerce. And blockchain analysis will become standard.

Potentially good news for Elliptic, which just raised $23 million in Series B funding to finance its expansion into Asia and the US. The longer-term question revolves around who will dominate the blockchain security market. Entrepreneurial companies such as Elliptic or the bigger players in the digital security space.

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Startup Targets Cryptocurrency Crime - But Will The Big Banks Come On Board? - Forbes

Welcome to Hard Fork Basics, a collection of tips, tricks, guides, and advice to keep you up to date in the cryptocurrency and blockchain world.

The world of cryptocurrency can be confusing at the best of times, but if you throw in the terms whale, bear, and bull, youre probably left wondering what these animals have to do with digital currencies such as Bitcoin.

Luckily for you, Hard Fork has produced a quick overview to define each term and explain why theyre important for the cryptocurrency space.

By definition, a cryptocurrency whale is a term used to refer to individuals, or entities, that hold large amounts of digital currencies. Both feared and marvelled upon in equal measure, much like the marine mammals with whom they share a namesake, Bitcoin whales move around the cryptocurrency space causing wavesat every turn.

Many Bitcoin whales are anonymous traders, exchanges, and hedge funds, identifiable only by their public addresses. Well-known whales include Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoins mysterious creator(s) who is thought to have at least one million Bitcoin. The Winklevoss twins, Tyler and Cameron, were at one given time estimated to own 1 percent of all Bitcoins in existence.

But, why is this an issue? Well, if you bear in mind that Bitcoins blockchain is decentralized, you can start to understand why several individuals holding large amounts of coins could be problematic for the market.

With their digital wealth, and the fact that the cryptocurrency market remains largely unregulated,whales could have sufficient influence to move the market in their preferred direction. Its therefore not uncommon for traders to pay close attention to whales, observing how, when, and where they trade.

When we talk about a cryptocurrency bear market, we are referringto a market situation defined by caution and pessimism during which traders are much more likely to sell than buy.

During a bear market, you can expect to gain lower highs and lower lows. A good example of this is Bitcoins downturn at the start of 2018.

Its important not to confuse a bear market with a price correction.

A bear market is a sustained period of time characterized by noticeable downward movements. A price correction takes place when the price of an overvalued currency, or commodity, corrects itself.

A cryptocurrency bull market is the opposite of a bear market.

So, if the market trend is up, then were witnessing a bull market. In this sense, bull markets are generally characterized by optimism, and investor confidence.

For example, Bitcoin reaching $20,000 apiece in December 2017 is a clear example of a cryptocurrency bull market.

So, there you go: bears, bulls, and whales go hand in hand in the cryptocurrency arena and you should hopefully now have a better understanding of what they are and how they operate.

Published October 24, 2019 16:23 UTC

Link:
A quick overview of cryptocurrency whales, bears, and bulls - The Next Web