Recent research shows that Ether (ETH) was the cryptocurrency most correlated to the rest of the crypto market in 2019.

In a report published on Jan. 22, the research arm of major cryptocurrency exchange Binance suggests that throughout 2019, ETH had an average correlation coefficient of 0.69. The paper, which compared correlation data of 20 top cryptocurrencies, reads:

Ether (ETH) is the highest correlated asset. With an average correlation coefficient of 0.69 throughout 2019, it is consistently among the most correlated assets. The coefficient started at 0.69 in Q1 and rose to 0.72 in Q4 (Q2: 0.65; Q3: 0.74).

Per the report, Ether was much less correlated in the first half of 2019 and became the most correlated in the second half. Interestingly, the paper points out that programmable blockchains such as Ethereum, NEO and EOS often showed higher correlations with each other than with non-programmable assets.

Other crypto assets that have shown a high correlation with the rest of the market include Cardano (ADA), EOS, Litecoin (LTC), XRP and Binance Coin (BNB). Furthermore, the researchers observed that correlation is typically higher among cryptocurrencies with the highest market caps.

Comparison of quarterly average correlation coefficients for the five most correlated assets. Source: Binance

The assets with the lowest correlation to the rest of the market, on the other hand, are Cosmos (ATOM), with a correlation of 0.31, followed by Chainlink (LINK) and Tezos (XTZ) with respective coefficients of 0.32, 0.4. Overall, the median correlation between large cryptocurrencies slightly decreased over the last quarter of 2019

Another interesting phenomenon pointed out by the researchers is the Binance Effect, which refers to the fact that cryptos listed on Binance displayed higher correlations than with the assets not present on the exchange. The firms research also claims that, among the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap, its own crypto asset Binance Coin is the one that has seen the highest returns.

Comparison of quarterly price changes for the ten largest assets by market cap. Source: Binance

While the correlation between crypto assets has been widely observed, the correlation between Bitcoin (BTC) and traditional assets especially gold is still subject to debate. Nonetheless, new data suggests that BTC is less correlated to gold than many believe it to be.

In the past, some also observed that Bitcoin had an inverse correlation to the stock market. As Cointelegraph explained in a market analysis piece at the end of October 2019, at the time this trend broke.

View post:
Research: Ether Was the Cryptocurrency Most Correlated to Other Coins in 2019 - Cointelegraph

The Bank of England will examine how Britain could adopt a bitcoin-style digital currency as part of a global group of central banks that have joined together to examine the possible pitfalls of relying on electronic money.

Bank officials will meet with the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank (ECB), the Sveriges Riksbank, the Bank of Canada, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to pool research and experiences of the potential for a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

The BoE deputy governor Sir Jon Cunliffe will co-chair the group with Benoit Cure, a former ECB board member and head of the BIS innovation hub.

The move comes amid the emergence of private sector digital currencies, such as bitcoin and Facebooks libra, which is due to be launched this year.

Facebooks plans for its libra coin and a digital wallet have caught the attention of regulators and central banks worldwide, with Threadneedle Street being among those vowing tough new rules.

The BoE was among several central banks to warn that libra would need to be regulated, leading many supporters to end their relationship with the digital currency.

The idea of a central bank digital currency has been increasingly mooted worldwide to help improve payment systems and cross-border transactions.

The Bank said the new working group would look at CBDC use cases; economic, functional and technical design choices, including cross-border interoperability; and the sharing of knowledge on emerging technologies.

It will also work closely with other global forums and groups, such as the Financial Stability Board and the committee on payments and market infrastructures (CPMI), which is also chaired by Cunliffe.

Just last month, Swedens central bank said it would sign a deal with the consultancy firm Accenture to create a pilot platform for a digital currency, known as the e-krona.

The Riksbank has been exploring the idea of its own digital currency for some time, especially given the rapid decline in the use of cash in Sweden.

The European Central Bank has also been investigating the possible benefits of CBDC since last year.

Fran Boait, executive director of Positive Money, said policymakers had been slow to realise how much enthusiasm there was for digital money.

They have been asleep at the wheel over the future of our money system being determined by a small number of banks, payment companies and now tech giants.

The rapid decline of cash and threat of private digital currencies like Facebooks libra have served as a much-needed wake-up call, but central bankers have a lot of catching up to do.

Central banks need to accelerate plans for a central bank digital currency, which would both ensure that people have the choice of a safe public banking option and prevent our monetary system being completely surrendered to unaccountable private interests. This new group must serve as a vehicle for doing so.

Read more:
Bank of England to consider adopting cryptocurrency - The Guardian

Another week, another round ofCrypto Tidbits. The past seven days have been quite, quite exciting for Bitcoin and its ilk.

Per data from Coin360, BTC has gained 11% in the past week, rallying as high as $9,000 as buyers have stepped in en-masse. While already impressive in and of itself, what has been especially interesting is the performance of altcoins, which have largely outpaced Bitcoin for the first time in a while.

Ethereum gained 22%, surging to multi-month highs on the back of positive news and an influx of buying pressure; Bitcoin Satoshis Vision (BSV) has surged by 75%, rallying higher on developments in a court case between Craig S. Wright and his former business partner; and a majority of other altcoins saw weekly gains between 10% and 20%.

Like the market, the underlying industry saw its fair share of positive developments over the past week, which is as follows.

Go here to see the original:
Crypto Tidbits: Bitcoin Hits $9,000, Institutional Cryptocurrency Investment Spikes, NBA Team Uses Ethereum - newsBTC

iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Inc. (CVE:IMIN) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 14% in the last week. But will that heal all the wounds inflicted over 5 years of declines? Unlikely. Indeed, the share price is down a whopping 82% in that time. So we don't gain too much confidence from the recent recovery. The fundamental business performance will ultimately determine if the turnaround can be sustained.

We really hope anyone holding through that price crash has a diversified portfolio. Even when you lose money, you don't have to lose the lesson.

View our latest analysis for iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency

With just CA$56,043 worth of revenue in twelve months, we don't think the market considers iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency to have proven its business plan. We can't help wondering why it's publicly listed so early in its journey. Are venture capitalists not interested? So it seems that the investors focused more on what could be, than paying attention to the current revenues (or lack thereof). Investors will be hoping that iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency can make progress and gain better traction for the business, before it runs low on cash.

As a general rule, if a company doesn't have much revenue, and it loses money, then it is a high risk investment. There is almost always a chance they will need to raise more capital, and their progress - and share price - will dictate how dilutive that is to current holders. While some companies like this go on to deliver on their plan, making good money for shareholders, many end in painful losses and eventual de-listing. It certainly is a dangerous place to invest, as iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency investors might realise.

Our data indicates that iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency had CA$61k more in total liabilities than it had cash, when it last reported in August 2019. That puts it in the highest risk category, according to our analysis. But since the share price has dived -29% per year, over 5 years , it looks like some investors think it's time to abandon ship, so to speak. You can click on the image below to see (in greater detail) how iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency's cash levels have changed over time. You can see in the image below, how iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency's cash levels have changed over time (click to see the values).

TSXV:IMIN Historical Debt, January 22nd 2020

In reality it's hard to have much certainty when valuing a business that has neither revenue or profit. What if insiders are ditching the stock hand over fist? It would bother me, that's for sure. It costs nothing but a moment of your time to see if we are picking up on any insider selling.

Investors in iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency had a tough year, with a total loss of 33%, against a market gain of about 14%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 29% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 5 warning signs with iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (at least 3 which are concerning) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

Story continues

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on CA exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.

See more here:
Imagine Owning iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (CVE:IMIN) And Trying To Stomach The 82% Share Price Drop - Yahoo Finance

New cryptocurrencies pop up on an almost daily basis nowadays, and there are already thousands of them out there. However you may have noticed that the vast majority of those cryptocurrencies dont really go very far, and many stagnate or even depreciate after a couple of years.

Predicting how a new cryptocurrency will pan out is not easy, and is almost impossible. However there are ways that you can evaluate its potential and determine whether or not it has a good shot at making an impact:

For any cryptocurrency to make its mark, it needs to have some form of utility that is preferably unique in some way. In other words it actually needs to be able to solve a problem or improve on the way things are currently done.

If a cryptocurrency does not have any utility, there wont be any reason for people to want to invest in it. It wont stand out in any way, so why would anyone choose it as opposed to more established cryptocurrencies that have less risk?

Every cryptocurrency is only as strong as the team behind it especially when it is starting out. If you want to know its potential, you need to research the team and find out who they are, what theyve worked on in the past, and how successful their projects have been.

Keep in mind that there are many fake cryptocurrencies that may list prominent individuals and well-known experts in a bid to lure people in. To ensure you dont fall victim, your research must be thorough.

The scarcity of cryptocurrency varies depending on its code and how it is set up. In some cases it may become more difficult to produce the coin as time goes by too.

Because of the principle of supply and demand, scarcity is important to the future potential of any cryptocurrency. The more limited the supply, the more confident you can be that its value will increase if there is sufficient demand.

Just because a new cryptocurrency has good utility, it doesnt necessarily mean that people will flock to it automatically. Instead, the team behind it needs to have a strong adoption strategy that will market the cryptocurrency.

Most new projects are open about their adoption strategy and include it as part of their road map. It is up to you to look into the strategy and decide whether or not it is a viable plan that can live up to expectations.

Although perceived value may seem ephemeral, it can actually be a tangible factor in the potential of a cryptocurrency. The more positive indicators are present, the greater the perceived value of the cryptocurrency will be and the more demand there will be for it.

To determine the overall perceived value of a cryptocurrency, you will need to look at any and all factors associated with its development. That includes any milestones it has already achieved, key collaborations or partnerships, media coverage, and so on.

Evaluating the potential of new cryptocurrencies is essential if you dont just want to trade bitcoin but would like to explore other ICOs and opportunities. It will require quite a bit of time and effort on your part however, and you need to carefully go over the information that is available.

Always remember that there are no guarantees that a cryptocurrency will ultimately live up to its potential. That being said, if you do carefully evaluate the potential it has you will be able to make far better decisions on the whole.

Go here to read the rest:
How to Evaluate the Potential of a New Cryptocurrency - Live Bitcoin News

The lending of cryptocurrencies has been an interesting sector to observe over the past year as new products have proliferated in the market. Volatility has always been an active contributor to lending rates, and with the recent spike in volatility, lending rates on crypto exchanges have reached as high as 149% p/a on some cryptoassets (e.g. NEO), with rates even as high as 38% p/a earnable on USD. These developments create the opportune moment to explore margin lending products.

Margin lending has been a popular service offered by traditional stockbrokers for decades. It is a process whereby brokers lend either securities or cash to their clients for trading purposes. Lending rates offered by traditional brokers (e.g Charles Schwarb) typically vary between 5.5% to 11% depending on the broker and the loan value.

For brokers, lending is a wonderfully profitable business. Given that Charles Schwarb only pays a paltry 0.18% on their high yield savings product, it is no wonder that 57% of their revenue comes from net interest income (i.e. lending interest earnings after deducting interest paid to account holders) according to their 2018 10-K SEC filing. Despite the fact that they are a broker and not a bank, only 40% of their revenue comes from asset management and trading fees.

Blockchain technology has become synonymous with the democratization of financial opportunity; this is also true in the margin lending space as anyone is able to lend out their cryptoassets and earn the rates that brokers and institutions have been enjoying for years. Platforms such as Celsius, Nexo and Invictus Capital have enabled interest revenues to be passed directly on to the retail audience at interest rates that are, in some instances, 10x what is available in the traditional market.

Sources: Earncryptointerest.com; Loanscan.io, Fidelity.com

The development of cryptocurrency lending platforms can largely be attributed to the maturation of cryptocurrency market post 2017. The latest report by Credmark, a cryptocurrency credit bureau, highlights that the lending market has expanded to over $6.4bn in loans originated by Q3 2019. This is up from a mere few hundred million just a few years before. Additionally, the lending market is experiencing quarter on quarter growth of 497 in new loans originated.

In the cryptocurrency sector, the lending market mainly functions with a few significant participants, namely miners, traders, high net worth individuals, and institutions. The most significant driver of demand for loans (especially loans provided via margin lending), is from traders.

Most of the large cryptocurrency exchanges facilitate some form of margin trading on their platforms. Some exchanges such as Bitfinex and Poloniex, however, enable peer to peer lending using a matching engine to bring liquidity providers and traders together. Exchange lending volumes are growing as traders seeking quick, affordable liquidity options and lenders look for attractive returns.

Cryptocurrency volatility is the key driver of margin lending volume growth since higher volatility motivates more trading activity.

Spikes in lending rates often correlate to bitcoin price swings as traders look to increase their market exposure. As an example, the 30% surge in the bitcoin price on the 25th of October 2019 caused a corresponding surge in the USD lending rates, with annualized rates escalating as high as 20% pa during the month.

While the USD lending rates track the volatility of the crypto market, USD margin lending does not expose trading capital to price fluctuations of the underlying crypto market. In addition to no capital drawdown risks, margin lending returns provide diversification benefits.

Introducing the Invictus Margin Lending Fund

Invictus Capital has a distinguished track history within the cryptoasset space with the launch of index funds CRYPTO20, Crypto10 Hedged and Hyperion, (a blockchain VC fund). Invictus has further developed an innovative margin lending fund to allow investors to earn passive, high-yield dollar-based returns. The Invictus Margin Lending Fund (IML) offers investors a unique opportunity to take advantage of a nascent market that has to date provided consistent returns well above traditional money market yields.

With the current best US short term savings rate at 2% APY, the IML fund provides a unique opportunity to earn yields in excess of 10%.

Along with returns, the fund also has compelling structural benefits, including 24/7 liquidity through automated smart contract subscriptions and redemptions. Investors are able to redeem their tokens for TUSD (the operational currency of the fund) as and when they wish to realize returns.

With the continued growth of the lending market, and increasing buy-side demand it is expected that USD lending returns, and thus the returns of the IML fund will continue to remain impressive. https://invictuscapital.com/imlFund

This is a submitted sponsored story. CCN urges readers to conduct their own research with due diligence into the company, product or service mentioned in the content above.

Last modified: January 23, 2020 7:20 AM UTC

Originally posted here:
Margin Lending: Earn the Best Interest Rates in the Cryptocurrency Lending Market - CCN.com

In the latest episode of the Joe Rogan Experience, the popular podcaster riffs on the surveillance state and why crypto and Bitcoin make him nervous.

Speaking with ex-CIA cover operations officer Mike Baker, president of Diligence, a global intelligence and security firm, Rogan calls out the big data grab by the National Security Agency (NSA) collecting everybodys personal information, from phone calls to text messages.

Baker calls Amazon, Google and your Samsung TV bigger surveillance threats than the NSA, given the ability of ubiquitous consumer devices to watch people in the comfort of their living rooms through embedded cameras or to listen to voice commands and other communications through microphones.

Its the commercial side thats collecting information not necessarily for nefarious purposes. Theyre collecting it for marketing purposes to make more money, which is what theyre in business to do. Theyre the ones hoovering up data that then leaks out because somebody hacks, grabs all that information, and then they use it for something nefarious.

Rogan pinpoints the type of new digital trends he finds worrisome.

Well, I get nervous when I hear about companies like Facebook that are thinking about starting their own cryptocurrency. Im like whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Are you going to have your own money now?

Im not a not-believer [in Bitcoin] but Im not invested in it. I had a guy on several times, Andreas Antonopoulos, whos a big Bitcoin expert very, very bright and interesting guy and I really enjoyed talking to him about it. But hes all in. He does all his banking with Bitcoin, pays his rent with Bitcoin, gets paid with Bitcoin, everything is Bitcoin with him. And hes loved by the Bitcoin community and all this different stuff.

But, at the end of the day, I just dont totally understand how you can have so many of them. Like how many cryptocurrencies are there, and if you dont have so many of them, well whos to say when you can stop making them?

Baker is similarly puzzled by the concept of decentralization and how the system can operate without some authority that is in control or without traditional forms of backing by a government or a commodity. Essentially, the computer science and math behind it is illusory. He says he falls under the category of not understanding Bitcoin because he hasnt taken the time to dig deep. Rogan counters,

You cant. You dont have enough time to think about everything. So Im letting that one play out on its own. Im just going to sit back, and when its 100% and everybody is like Look, Bitcoin is just like money ok, but until then.

They kind of predicted it was going to be just like money a few years, and it never really did hit that. But you can buy some things with Bitcoin. Theres some companies that let you buy computers with Bitcoin.

Baker says he buys gold. He also cops to wearing a blingy chain back in the day though not too chunky. Adds Rogan,

Gold is real. Theyve been killing people for gold forever. Its legit shit.

Despite gold being the real deal, Rogan questions why people are still so attached to it considering the tsunami of stuff on the planet.

I dont even like it as jewelry. I think its kinda tacky.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/igorstevanovic

More here:
Heres Why Joe Rogan Is Not Convinced on Cryptocurrency and Bitcoin (BTC) - The Daily Hodl

Bitcoin is looking to repeat a technical pattern that crashed its price to $3,120 in late 2018.

The leading cryptocurrency by valuation made a rebound from levels near $13,920 during June 2019. It plunged by more than 53 percent in the later sessions, falling to establish a local bottom towards $6,410. Entering January 2020, an upside recovery pushed bitcoins rate to a swing top of $9,190.

The latest move uphill improved the cryptocurrencys interim bullish bias. Analysts predicted further gains, expecting that investors would consider bitcoin as a haven against gloomy macroeconomic sentiments, including the Federal Reserves injection of $500 billion into the repo market that could raise demand for hedging assets.

Nevertheless, a dreaded technical indicator is giving an alarming view of the bitcoin market. It shows that the cryptocurrencys recent gains are a part of a more prominent drop that may come later and crash the price to as low as $2,300.

So it appears, the bitcoins latest price cycle is strikingly similar to the one it formed upon establishing circa $20,000 as its all-time high.

Cycle 1 in the chart below shows the price corrected wildly upon the top formation. It made lower highs on each move upward while maintaining the long-term selling outlook. As it did, bitcoin also formed a Death Cross when its long-term moving average (blacked) closed below its near-term moving average (blued).

Bitcoin mirroring its bearish moves of 2018 in 2020 | Source: TradingView.com, BitMEX

The cryptocurrency later struggled to move above the blued wave. And the more the price stayed below it, the higher the selling sentiment grew. Nine months after the formation of the Death Cross, the bitcoin-to-dollar exchange rate had totaled it plunge by 83.78 percent.

Cycle 2 appears like a dwarfed version of Cycle 1. Bitcoin is forming lower highs after forming a local top. Its move downward has remade the Death Cross. And, at last, the price is struggling to break above the blued wave the long-term moving average as is visible in bulls latest efforts.

The two widely distanced yet identical cycles serves a warning sign: Bitcoins downtrend is far from over and its price could at least plunged by 83 percent. That would bring the bears downside target close to circa $2,300.

Observing bitcoin on a larger timeframe, such as a weekly one, improves the cryptocurrencys bullish scenario. As covered by NewsBTC earlier, the price has jumped above its 50-weekly MA (blacked), a bias-defining technical support/resistance.

Bitcoin closed above 200-weekly SMA to confirm a long-term bullish bias | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

Meanwhile, on the daily chart, defending the same 50-period support could reduce the possibility of a breakdown towards $2,300.

See the rest here:
Bitcoin Indicator that Crashed Price to $3.1K Returns: The Dreaded Death Cross - newsBTC

Bitcoin entered a negative slope on Thursday as traders took profits from its latest price rally. But the cryptocurrency remained above a strong technical support level.

Spot BTC/USD exchange rate was down 3.84 percent at $8,360.87 ahead of the New York morning session open. At the same time, bitcoin futures listed on CME fell by more than 6 percent. to $8,385.

The downside move followed bitcoins massive price rally at the beginning of this year. As of January 13, the cryptocurrency had jumped by 43 percent from its local bottom of $6,430, established in December last year. Part of those gains came after an escalation in US-Iran tensions raised investors appetite for haven assets.

Bitcoin climbed to its near-two-month peak of $9,194.99 on January 13 but failed to move any further as the said geopolitical tensions cooled off. Investors preferred to book profits, which resulted in the bearish correction that is currently in play.

Bitcoins dip also came at the time when investors were awaiting the outcome of the European Central Banks (ECB) monetary policy. The bank left its policy unchanged, putting a hold on rate cuts after noticing stabilization in growth in Eurozone, as well as overseas after the phase one deal agreement between the US and China.

That left the global stock market in flat range, which was yesterday in red owing to a Coronavirus epidemic in China. Traders remained anxious over a potential health crisis, which led Chinese stocks to register their biggest decline in the last eight months. Futures on Wall Street lowered, with the S&P 500 declining by 0.1 percent.

The cautious sentiment helped Gold in limiting its decline as investors remained half-dipped in safe-haven assets. Bitcoin, whose correlation to Gold increased since the beginning of the US-Iran crisis, also observed technical supports to safeguard its bullish bias.

The BTC/USD exchange rate now looks biased to retest support at circa $8,200-$8,300, a range it observed as resistance during the May-June trade session last year. Nevertheless, the absence of interim fundamentals supports an extensive fall towards $7,800, which coincides with bitcoins 200-weekly moving average wave (blacked).

Bitcoin risks fall but hold above $8.2K support | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

A further break below brings bitcoin inside the Descending Channel pattern, which risks a plunge towards $6,420 the local bottom as of now.

Meanwhile, apullback from the 200-MA or before could have bitcoin close in on $10,000 as a primary upside target. The level has served as solid support for the cryptocurrency.

The rest is here:
Bitcoin Plunges on Profit-taking, Losses Limited by Coronavirus Outbreak - newsBTC