By: Steven Hay | Last updated: 4/24/20

Cryptocurrencies are the latest evolution of digital money. But what exactly is a cryptocurrency and what are its characteristics? This post explains it all, simply.

Cryptocurrencies are digital coins that arent controlled by a central authority but through a network of equally privileged participants that follow an agreed set of rules. The three ingredients that make a cryptocurrency are: A peer-to-peer (p2p) network, cryptography, and a consensus mechanism.

Thats the definition of a cryptocurrency in a nutshell. For a more detailed definition keep on reading, heres what Ill cover:

The term cryptocurrency is a contraction of cryptographic currency. While a cryptocurrency is a form of digital currency, there are many digital currencies today that arent cryptocurrencies.

For example PayPal, Zynga chip and even our traditional fiat currencies (USD, EUR, etc.) are mostly digital.

In March 2018, Merriam-Webster announced that they would include this term in their dictionary. Their definition is as follows:

cryptocurrency noun cryptocurrency krip-t-kr-n(t)-s , -k-rn(t)-s : any form of currency that only exists digitally, that usually has no central issuing or regulating authority but instead uses a decentralized system to record transactions and manage the issuance of new units, and that relies on cryptography to prevent counterfeiting and fraudulent transactions. First Known Use: 1990

Lets try to break this confusing sentence down to the 3 main ingredients that constitute a cryptocurrency.

Unlike traditional digital currencies, cryptocurrencies dont rely on any central authority to validate or facilitate transactions.

Instead, theres a network of equally privileged participants that validate and update transactions in a shared ledger called a blockchain.

Cryptography is the art of secure communication in a hostile environment. Cryptography is used in cryptocurrencies so peers can communicate securely without the need of a central authority to validate their messages.

Now that we have a group of equally privileged participants that can communicate securely, we need to establish rules for our cryptocurrency. These rules are known as a protocol and they also include a consensus mechanism.

The consensus mechanism is a rule regarding who gets to update our shared ledger of transactions. In Bitcoins case, the mechanism used is called Proof of Work. Different cryptocurrencies use different consensus mechanisms.

If we visit Websters definition again after understanding these core ingredients, you can see that it makes much more sense.

While all cryptocurrencies claim to be decentralized, the truth is far from it. In reality, you have completely decentralized currencies like Bitcoin and centralized cryptocurrencies like stablecoins and Ripple.

Centralized cryptocurrencies are usually issued by a for-profit company that established the cryptocurrencys protocol and also determines who can participate in the network.

A good example would be the upcoming Facebook Libra a coin to be issued by Facebook, that while all participants in the network are equal, the network itself isnt open to everyone.

Centralized cryptocurrencies can be looked upon as an upgraded version of traditional fiat currencies, as they are still prone to all of the risks of centralized management (fraud, negligence, control).

Decentralized cryptocurrencies are usually issued by a non-profit organization. With decentralized cryptocurrencies, the playing grounds are leveled for all to participate.

The classic example for this would be Bitcoin. Anyone in the world can participate in the Bitcoin network, receive funds or become a Bitcoin miner, without the need to request permission.

Truly decentralized cryptocurrencies are completely transparent, open to all and censorship resistant.

Its important to note that while some cryptocurrencies are indeed built as decentralized, they are in fact centralized since not enough people are participating in their network. This makes the decentralized platform effectively controlled by a small number of participants.

The main takeaway here is that true decentralization is a matter of both design and adoption.

One important distinction that needs to be made is the difference between cryptocurrencies and tokens.

Cryptocurrencies are coins that have all of the three ingredients Ive mentioned above, hence creating their own blockchain of transactions.

Token, on the other hand, are a representation of an asset that resides on an already existing blockchain. For example, Tether is an ERC-20 token that uses the Ethereum blockchain to operate.

So tokens can be considered as a sub coin of a certain cryptocurrency that has its own blockchain and has the ability to run code that creates tokens (also known as the ability for smart contracts).

Tokens can start as part of an already existing blockchain and then convert to their own cryptocurrency. For example, EOS started as an ERC-20 token and later on became an independent cryptocurrency.

Tokens can be divided into two main categories utility tokens and security tokens.

Utility tokens are tokens that promise the future use of a product or service. They arent meant to be an investment, they have a utility.

Security tokens, on the other hand, are tokens that represent tradable financial assets, a share or a bond from a company, for example. They are meant to be a form of investment.

Cryptocurrencies use blockchains in order to operate in a decentralized manner. Cryptocurrency is the coin and blockchain is the ledger of transactions that documents the coins transactions.

Another way to describe this is that blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrencies.

Having said that, a blockchain is, in fact, the cryptocurrency itself as cryptocurrencies are just a record on a ledger (theres no actual physical coin). But for the sake of distinction, people use cryptocurrency to describe the end and blockchain to describe the means to that end.

Cryptocurrencies are the next evolution in digital currencies. Money has come a long way from commodities to coins, paper and finally digital information controlled by a central authority. Today, in its next phase of evolution, money is becoming decentralized through the use of cryptocurrencies.

Its important to distinguish between centralized cryptocurrencies, decentralized cryptocurrencies, and tokens. Hopefully, this guide made the difference clearer.

What are your thoughts about cryptocurrencies? Are they indeed the future of money? Let me know in the comment section below.

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What is Cryptocurrency? A Short Beginner's Explanation ...

This article analyses the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalisation.

Beginning with the largest, the top 10 are currently Bitcoin ($BTC), Ethereum ($ETH), XRP ($XRP), Tether ($USDT), Bitcoin Cash ($BCH) , Litecoin ($LTC), EOS ($EOS), Binance Coin ($BNB), Bitcoin SV ($BSV) and Tezos ($XTZ).

There are approximately 5,392 cryptocurrencies being traded with a total market capitalisation of $201bn (as of April 22, 2020).

Our site is packed full of free guides, crypto news, jobs, news about jobs in blockchain technology, cryptocurrency analysis, and lots of features such as women in blockchain. Please take a look at our site and use the search bar at the top of this page to make use of our resources. We have a real passion for helping people understand the world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.

As a starting point, here are a few facts about the top 10 cryptocurrencies and some latest news for each one.

In August 2008, the domain name bitcoin.orgwas registered. On October 31st 2008, a paper was published called Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System. This was authored by Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of Bitcoin. To date, no one knows who this person, or people, are.

The paper outlined a method of using a peer-to-peer network for electronic transactions without relying on trust. On January 3rd 2009, the Bitcoin network came into existence. Nakamoto mined block number 0 (or the genesis block), which had a reward of 50 Bitcoins.

Ethereum was launched by Vitalik Buterin on July 30th 2015. He was a researcher and programmer working on Bitcoin Magazine, and he initially wrote a white paper in 2013 describing Ethereum. Buterin had proposed that Bitcoin needed a scripting language. He decided to develop a new platform with a more general scripting language when he couldnt get buy-in to his proposal.

The development was funded by an online crowdsale between July and August 2014. The system went live with 11.9 million coins already mined for the crowd sale (about 13% of the total supply in circulation). Following the collapse of The DAO project in 2016, Ethereum was split into two blockchains. The new version became Ethereum and the original blockchain continues as Ethereum Classic.

Ripple is a real-time gross settlement system (RTGS) developed by the Ripple company. It is also referred to as the Ripple Transaction Protocol (RTXP) or Ripple protocol. It can trace its roots to 2004 when a web developer called Ryan Fugger had the idea to create a monetary system that was decentralised and could effectively allow individuals to create their own money.

RipplePay.comwas launched in 2005 to provide a secure payment system for members of an online community via a global network. Jed McCaleb began developing a digital currency system in 2011 in which transactions were verified by consensus among members of the network, rather than by the mining process used by Bitcoin which relies on blockchain ledgers. This new version of the Ripple system was designed to eliminate Bitcoins centralised exchanges, use less electricity than Bitcoin, and perform transactions much more quickly.

Story continues

Ripple was launched in 2012 to facilitate secure, instant global transactions supporting tokens representing fiat currency, cryptocurrency or any unit of value.

The EOS.IO platform was developed by private company block.oneand released as open-source software on June 2nd 2018. One billion tokens were distributed on the Ethereum blockchain by block.one. EOS is based on a white paper published in 2017.

Litecoin was released in October 2011 by Charlie Lee, a former Google employee. It was a fork of Bitcoin with the main difference being a smaller block generation time, increased maximum number of coins and a different script-based algorithm.

Bitcoin Cash was born out of the idea of making Bitcoin more practical for small, day-to-day payments. In May 2017, Bitcoin payments took about four days unless a fee was paid, which was proportionately too large for small transactions. A change to the code was implemented and Bitcoin Cash was born on 1st August 2017.

Tether was issued on the Bitcoin blockchain. In their own words Tether converts cash into digital currency, to anchor or tether the value of the coin to the price of national currencies. So, the value is meant to mirror that of the US dollar and each unit of Tether is backed by $1 held in reserve.

One of the main uses of Tether is to facilitate trading between cryptocurrencies with a rate fixed to the US$ allowing traders to take advantage of trading opportunities.

Stellar was founded in 2014 by Jed McCaleb and Joyce Kim. At launch it was based on the Ripple protocol but the network eventually forked. Stellar is an open source protocol for exchanging money where servers use the internet to connect to and communicate with other Stellar servers, forming a global value exchange network.

The TRON Protocol is pitched as one of the largest blockchain-based operating systems in the world, offering scalable, high availability and high throughput support that underlies all the decentralised applications in the TRON ecosystem.

An ICO campaign took place in September 2017 and raised US$70 million. The coin is called the TRONix (TRX).

To kick the month off weve had an extra $19B enter the market allowing Bitcoin to break past the previous resistance weve seen in 2019 and see all new highs. Bitcoin now is trying to break through major resistance of $6,000 which held for many months during 2018. Weve also seen a large premium on the exchange Bitfinex due to the news around Tether and reserve funds.

To kick the month off weve had an extra $16B enter the market allowing Bitcoin to break past the previous resistance weve seen in 2019. Tron ($TRX) has left the top ten leaderboard and has been replaced with Cardano ($ADA). Tether has dropped a few places this month as the sentiment is generally more bullish and people are taking cash out of Tether to buy back into the market.

This month we see a new entry in the top 10 as Binance Coin enters for the first time ever. Bitcoin SV drops out into the number 11 spot. The remaining top 10 are the same with some changes Ripple and Ethereum have traded positions once again and TRON has dropped two places.

The value of cryptocurrencies has grown this month with the value of the top 10 pushing back over $100bn following last months drop to $97bn.

The top 10 remains unchanged from last month in terms of the cryptocurrencies present, but there has been extensive jockeying for positions. Apart from the ever-present Bitcoin in the number-one spot, all the other cryptos have moved. TRON improved by two positions in the rankings, Stellar Lumens moved down three, and the remaining coins have seen a slight move up or down.

There has been a prolonged bear market in crypto, and the story this month is that from a market cap of $187bn on November 7th, the top 10 cryptocurrencies now have a combined market cap of $97bn. That is a remarkable drop in value over three months.

TRON reenters the top 10 at the expense of Cardano. This months big story is Ethereum regaining the number two spot from Ripple. It was a big story when Ripple became the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation during November:

Ethereums rally is due to the anticipation of a series of upcoming hard forks. Ethereum Classic Vision will be airdropped to Ethereum holders at a ratio of 3:1 on January 11th. The Ethereum Nowa fork, meanwhile, is planned on January 12th:

There has been some minor movement up and down for the remaining top 10.

This month has seen a dramatic fall in values, and there has been a lot of movement in the top 10. Bitcoin SV appears as a new currency and is a new entrant following the Bitcoin Cash fork. Ripple makes it into the number two slot at the expense of Ethereum as the flippening happens. The price crash of the last month has led to changes in the rest of the top 10 with various currencies moving position.

These last two weeks have seen the biggest change in the Top 10 this year. Bitcoin Cash drops out following the Bitcoin Cash fork. Ripple makes it into the number two slot at the expense of Ethereum as the flippening happens. Prices have crashed over the last two weeks. This has led to dramatic changes in the rest of the Top 10 with Tether gaining the most places. TRON makes it back into the Top 10. It has been in the Top 10 this year and is always close but the removal of BCH makes room for it to take the last spot in the Top 10. There is frequent movement in the top 10 as values fluctuate, so expect older currencies to drop out and re-enter the list regularly.

This month sees all the cryptocurrencies remaining fairly stable in terms of market capitalisation. The only currency that has changed significantly is Tether which sees its market cap fall by $1.04bn. This has dropped it from eight to ten in the rankings allowing Cardano and Monero to move up one place each.

This month sees all the cryptocurrencies remaining in the same position in the Top 10. Whilst there is no change in rankings to report, its interesting to note that Ripple actually gained approximately $10bn during the month. Every other currency (except Tether) lost value.

The total value of the top 10 cryptocurrencies (as of 3rd September 2018) is $200.79bn. This is a drop of $27bn compared to the previous month (August). This is a dramatic fall of $80bn since June where the total value stood at the $281bn mark.

This month sees Monero as a new entrant to the Top 10. Tether moves up to number eight whilst IOTA drops out of the Top 10 altogether. All the other cryptocurrencies are in the same spot as last month.

The Top 10 remained the same as Julys. Litecoin dropped from the number six spot to number seven; Stellar Lumens rose from the number eight spot to number six and Cardano dropped one place to number eight.

Themarket capitalisation of the Top 10 cryptocurrencies grew by$4.34bn in a month (August 2018 vs July 2018).

There were 2,041 cryptocurrencies with a total market capitalisation of $253bn.

TRON dropped out of the top 10 into the number 11 spot. It was replaced by Tether.

The market capitalisation of the Top 10 cryptocurrencies fell by $57 billion in a month (July 2018 analysis compared to the June 2018 analysis).

There were 1,894 cryptocurrencies with a total market capitalisation of US$275 bn.

Bitcoin SV came into existence following the Bitcoin Cash chain split on November the 15th 2018. The chain split was caused at two competing software implementation for the Bitcoin Cash blockchain (BitcoinABC and Bitcoin SV) broke away from consensus, and was subsequentlysupported by two different groups of miners. After the time of the fork, users could claim tokens on each side of the fork if they had previouslyheld tokens on the old Bitcoin Cash chain.

Bitcoin Cash ABC is now being recognised by most exchanges as Bitcoin Cash (the name of the original pre fork currency) with a separate listing for Bitcoin Cash SV.

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Top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalisation

Using a trust to transfer cryptocurrencies keeps information about your coins private and out of probate.

When you have cryptocurrency, you need to consider how to include this asset in your estate plan. If you dont, your beneficiaries may not be able to access your crypto-investments after you die. One way to ensure your loved ones will inherit your cryptocurrency is to leave it through a will. Another way to pass along cryptocurrency is to leave it through a trust.

There are several advantages to using a trust. For example, a trust:

A trust is a flexible estate planning tool that can be created while youre alive or after you pass away through your will. A living trust is made by transferring some of your property to the trust during your lifetime.

Living trusts are popular because they can be revoked or changed during the trust makers lifetime. During life, trust makers usually act as trustees of their own trusts, managing trust assets just as they did before they transferred their property into the trust. When a trust maker dies, the successor trustee (named in the trust) takes over. What happens to the trust property depends on the terms of the trust. Some trusts will direct the successor trustee to distribute trust property to beneficiaries, ending the trust. Other trusts will instruct the successor trustee to continue to manage trust property for the benefit of the beneficiaries.

Putting your cryptocurrency in a trust makes it less likely that your cryptocurrency will go undiscovered after your deathbecause the existence of your cryptocurrency will be documented in the trust. This is important because, unlike other property, cryptocurrency is not an easily discoverable asset. It has little to no paper trail, so its difficult for your loved ones to discover it after you die. If they dont already know you have cryptocurrency and how to access it, this asset might be lost to them forever.

However, when your cryptocurrency is in a trust, its documented and youve made a plan for what should happen to it when youre dead. Your trust tells your successor trustee that your cryptocurrency exists, where to look for it, and what to do with it. This greatly reduces the possibility that your cryptocurrency will be lost after you die.

While your trust alerts your successor trustee to the existence of your cryptocurrency (and names who should get it), you dont have to leave all of the details of your cryptocurrency in your trust document. Instead, its wise to create a separate document that describes in detail how to find and access your cryptocurrency. You can leave this access plan for your successor trustee or whoever will need to access your coins after you die.

When you die, the law requires (most of) your property to go through a legal process called probate. During this process, your estate is submitted to the court, and your property is distributed to your loved ones either according to the terms of your will or by intestacy laws. This process can still take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months and can be quite expensive, especially if the estate must pay a lawyer or an executor, or both.

If you leave your cryptocurrency through your will (or you make no plan at all), your cryptocurrency will go through probate and your beneficiaries wont have access to your cryptocurrency until the probate process is completeweeks or months after your death. With the volatile nature of the cryptocurrency markets, your coins could lose tremendous value before your beneficiaries ever get access to your digital wallet while they wait for your estate to be probated.

Any property included in your trust wont go through the probate process when you die. Instead, your successor trustee will immediately have the right to access and distribute your cryptocurrency following the terms of your trust. Keeping your cryptocurrency out of probate will likely save your beneficiaries time and money because they will get access to your coins faster and with fewer court costs.

Another benefit of using a trust is that you can maintain more privacy for you and your beneficiaries. During the probate process, a will is filed with the court and can become part of the public record. So if you leave your cryptocurrency through your will, information about your cryptocurrency may not remain private.

This prospect is unappealing for people with large cryptocurrency assets. Any public information about your cryptocurrency will make it easier for hackers and scammers to target your loved ones.

In contrast, trust documents arent part of the public record and only your successor trustee will need to know about your cryptocurrency. This added layer of privacy will help maintain the security of your cryptocurrency for you and your beneficiaries.

Creating a trust for your cryptocurrency is a good idea if your beneficiaries are very young, aren't tech savvy, or are unable to manage their own finances because a trust provides a system of management for the cryptocurrency you leave behind.

If your beneficiaries receive your cryptocurrency through a will, legally, they will have direct access to your coins. In some cases, this may not be a good ideaparticularly if your beneficiaries dont understand what cryptocurrency is or how it works. It may be overwhelming for those beneficiaries to learn about digital wallets, figure out cryptocurrency exchanges, and maintain all the security practices needed to secure the cryptocurrency they inherit.

Under a trust, your cryptocurrency will be managed by your successor trustee after you die. Your successor trustee will be responsible for accessing, maintaining, securing, and distributing your cryptocurrency according to the terms of your trust. So you can lay out exactly what should happen to your cryptocurrency and give the responsibility of managing it to a person who can be trusted to know or learn how the system works. In this way, using a trust could be a great relief to your beneficiaries, especially in the wake of your death.

One of the greatest benefits of creating a cryptocurrency trust is maintaining some control of your investment even after you die. You can use your trust to dictate how an asset is used and for what purpose. This is different from leaving cryptocurrency through a will, which gives your loved ones complete control over your cryptocurrency after they inherit it.

For example, if you want your beneficiaries to stay invested in cryptocurrency for a specific period of time, the trust can hold your coins until then. This can prevent a premature sale of your coins if you believe your cryptocurrency will get more valuable as time goes on. A trust can also allow your loved ones extra time to understand cryptocurrency before they get control of it, or you can choose to have the trust manage this asset for them indefinitely. You can tailor your trust to fit the specific needs of your loved ones.

There are some challenges unique to cryptocurrency trusts, but you can cover your bases by consulting an estate planning attorney or doing the necessary research. Creating a trust isnt necessary, but it will ensure that your coins wont get lost after you pass away and help maintain a level of privacy. A trust also provides a trusted manager for your coins and relieves your loved ones from the burden of trying to figure out cryptocurrency after you die.

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Leaving Cryptocurrency in a Trust | Nolo

Would you accept cryptocurrency as a reward for watching ads? How about if you had to prove you had watched said ads by having your brain waves analyzed? It might sound a bit crazy, but its an idea Microsoft lays out in a new patent application titled Cryptocurrency System Using Body Activity Data.

Filed in September 2018, but only recently published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and highlighted by PC Magazine, the application describes a method of how brain wave or body heat emitted from the user when the user performs the task provided by an information service provider, such as viewing an advertisement or using certain internet services, can be used in the mining process.

As is described by the patent application, instead of the massive computation work that is required by conventional cryptocurrency systems, Microsofts hypothesis is that data generated based on the body activity of users can help solve the computationally difficult problem unconsciously. Other than brain waves and body heat, the system could also potentially monitor body fluid flow and organ activity and movement.

All of this would, of course, require biometric reading of users, potentially via attached sensors. As a reward for wearing these, however, the system would then pay out cryptocurrency for completing certain tasks. As the application notes: The cryptocurrency system communicatively coupled to the device of the user may verify if the body activity data satisfies one or more conditions set by the cryptocurrency system, and award cryptocurrency to the user whose body activity data is verified.

In addition to watching ads for a set amount of time, the patent application also notes how it could track tasks such as social media, using search engines, sending and receiving email, visiting websites, or using chatbots.

Overall, it leaves a whole lot more questions open than it poses answers. Which cryptocurrency? Would the mining of these currencies be the main benefit for Microsoft or would it be the ability to prompt users to use certain services? And, most crucially of all, will this ever transition from a proof-of-concept to a fully fledged product? As with many patents, theres a good chance that this is a defensive patent that will never actually be turned into a user-facing product. Nonetheless, its another reminder that tech giants are always looking for new ways to keep eyes (and brain waves, organ activity, etc.) on their products.

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Mining Cryptocurrency By Reading Users' Brain Waves ...

The Indian cryptocurrency industry has been growing rapidly despite the nationwide lockdown and the coronavirus crisis. Two new cryptocurrency trading platforms are launching in India while existing crypto businesses seek clarification from the central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The crypto sector in India is showing significant growth with several crypto exchanges reporting a 10X increase in trading volumes and a substantial increase in new users. Despite the global coronavirus pandemic and the nationwide lockdown, new cryptocurrency trading platforms are launching in India.

Global cryptocurrency exchange aggregator Coinswitch is launching a crypto trading app for Indian users on June 1. Announcing pre-registration for Coinswitch Kuber, Coinswitch explained on Wednesday:

Coinswitch Kuber will ensure the best rates by aggregating liquidity across all Indian exchanges and will support over 100 currencies for Indian users to buy and sell easily using Indian rupees (INR).

Coinswitch aggregates the liquidity of a number of crypto exchanges in India to provide its users with the best rates for cryptocurrencies. The exchanges include Binance, Huobi, Kucoin, and Hitbtc. To access this pooled liquidity, users simply enter the INR amount and the cryptocurrency they want to buy, and the service will provide a list of offers at various exchanges that auto-refreshes every 30 seconds.

The first 25,000 users during pre-launch pay no INR trading, deposit, or withdrawal fees. Users can earn Coinswitch points, or Kuber points, as a part of the new platforms reward program, which can be redeemed from the reward section once the platform is live.

Besides Coinswitch, another cryptocurrency exchange has launched in India. The Bangalore-based Bitpolo announced on Thursday that it is now live. The exchange offers instant INR deposits and claims that withdrawals are within seconds. Chief business officer Suresh Choudhary said:

We were building through the bear market and thought the timing of our launch cannot be more apt than when the world is slowly inching back towards normalcy post a pandemic & recessionary environment.

As we foresee fragilities of traditional asset classes, crypto markets seem to offer the bigger upside and we intend to bring simplicity and solid technology to the screens of Indian traders and hodlers, Bitpolo added.

Ever since the Supreme Court of India quashed the RBI ban, the Indian crypto community has been waiting for more instruction from the central bank. The RBI has not sent any notices to banks regarding the supreme courts ruling, which has led some banks to continue denying service to crypto businesses. According to reports, the central bank is not obligated to issue any updates.

A number of crypto businesses have reportedly approached the RBI seeking clarity on the status of the banking ban and the taxation of cryptocurrency. The cryptocurrency exchanges also want clarity as to whether they are being categorized as commodity, currency, goods or service as this is set to impact the way they get taxed under goods and services tax (GST) framework, the Economic Times reported Monday.

If the digital assets are not exempted from GST, the digital currency exchanges in India are going to have a standoff with the tax authority, Praveenkumar Vijayakumar, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Belfrics Global, was quoted by the news outlet as saying. He elaborated:

In the wake of the recent supreme court ruling, we have also approached the RBI for clarity on this, as if we pay GST on the whole transaction, then most platforms would not be able to survive.

Several Indian tax authorities have been examining how to tax bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The indirect tax department has been investigating whether cryptocurrency could be brought under GST and how much to tax crypto exchanges. The sales tax department and VAT authorities are also looking into cryptocurrency taxation.

What do you think about how fast the Indian crypto sector is growing? Let us know in the comments section below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Coinswitch, Bitpolo

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

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New Cryptocurrency Exchanges Launch in India as Businesses ...

$ 19.02

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Coinranking: Cryptocurrency Prices Live - Rates List Today ...

Diginex has launched a cryptocurrency exchange in Singapore, where it currently operates under a "temporary exemption" from licensing. The move comes ahead of its planned listing on Nasdaq, expected to take place this quarter.

Its Singapore exchange, EQUOS.io, would specialise in crypto derivatives trading and initially offer spot trading, with dated futures, options, and other derivative products to follow. The blockchain technology company added in a statement Thursday that the exchange was operating under an exemption in Singapore's Payment Services Act, and would be a "fair and transparent platform" for users.

It also would introduce an "easy to use" interface for retail investors as well as managed account features designed to improve collateralisation processes, amongst others.

Diginex CEO Richard Byworth said: "Our industry analysis has allowed us to understand the friction points for institutions to trade digital assets and address many of those with new and improved solutions around portfolio management."

The launch comes ahead of the company's planned merger with 8i Enterprises Acquisition, which is expected to be finalised in the third quarter and will see Diginex's listing on Nasdaq.

In its statement, the blockchain tech company added that it had applied for a Major Payment Institution licence in Singapore, where it currently operates under the temporary exemption.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) earlier this year published a list of entities that had been exempted from holding a licence under the Payment Services Act, for specific payment services, and a period of either six or 12 months. This exemption would end after the specified period or if the entity applied for a licence.

While based in Hong Kong, Diginex chose to launch its cryptocurrency exchange in Singapore because of the latter's regulatory regime, Byworth said in a Reuters report. He described Singapore as "more flexible" in its views about cryptocurrency.

In January, the country's Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said in parliament that the government believed crypto derivative products were not suitable for most retail investors because they did not have intrinsic value and were subject to volatile pricing due to speculation. He said this prompted MAS to regulate crypto derivative products that were listed and traded only on approved exchanges, which were subject to regulatory requirements and oversight.

Tharman noted: "But we do not extend the regulation of crypto derivative products beyond approved exchanges. This would confer misplaced confidence in these highly volatile products and lead to a wider offering of such products to retail investors. Our approach has worked so far as trading in crypto products in Singapore remains limited and only a small number of retail investors are involved."

He said MAS had instructed all financial institutions to comply with additional measures if they offered crypto products to retail investors, such as restrictions on advertisement. The minister had stressed that such measures did not apply to entities not regulated by MAS.

Singapore last November said it was exploring plans to allow payment token derivatives, such as Bitcoin and Ether, to be traded on local exchanges and for such activities to be regulated. The move aimed to address international investor interest in cryptocurrencies.

MAS in 2018warned eight cryptocurrency exchangesagainst engaging in unauthorised trading, specifically, those involving securities or futures contracts. It also had repeatedlycautioned the publicabout the risks of cryptocurrencies and to understand the environment before investing in digital tokens, stressing that these were not recognised as legal tender and functioned in an unregulated environment.

Japan's messaging platform Line in July 2018 launched its cryptocurrency exchange, Bitbox, in Singapore, offering 30 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.

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Diginex launches Singapore cryptocurrency exchange | ZDNet

A bipartisan quartet of US congressmen wants the IRS taxation policy not to dissuade taxpayers from participating in blockchain token staking.

These politicians believe Americas ingenuity can help drive this promising staking technology.

The four congressmen are Bill Foster (D) of Illinois, Darren Soto (D) of Florida, Tom Emmer (R) of Minnesota, and David Schweikert (R) of Arizona.

In their letter addressed to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, the quartet expressed concern that the taxation of staking rewards as income may overstate taxpayers actual gains from participating in this new technology.

They add this could result in a reporting and compliance nightmare, for taxpayers and the Service alike.

The letter, in which the U.S. politicians explain their understanding of proof-of-stake (POS), also gives reasons why they favor POS ahead of bitcoins proof-of-work consensus.

The politicians say in addition to needing massive amounts of energy, the Bitcoin network is secured by a relatively small number of miners. On the other hand, in POS, all tokenholders can contribute to network security.

By staking tokens, participating third-party tokenholders can also receive newly created tokens as rewards for helping to maintain the network.

The quartet says it agrees with the principle that taxpayers true gains from these tokens should indeed be taxed.

However, the politicians suggest a different solution:

Similar to all other forms of taxpayer-created (taxpayer-discovered) property such as crops, minerals, livestock, artwork, and even widgets off the assembly line these tokens could be taxed when they are sold.

Eager to keep the U.S. abreast with this technology, the congressmen end their letter by urging the IRS to continue pursuing its mandate but also (to) ensure innovation wont be driven elsewhere.

This letter by the four members of Congress is the latest signal that the U.S. is moving to embrace blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.

In July, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) clarified that national banks and federal savings associations can provide cryptocurrency custody services for customers.

Also in the same month, a U.S. federal court ruled that bitcoin is a form of money.

Meanwhile, reacting to the letter by the U.S. congressmen, Tim Ismilyaev, CEO and founder at Mana Security, says the growth of POS has finally forced some people in the U.S. government to see the importance of embracing cryptocurrencies.

The US government recognizes the immense growth of assets locked in POS and defi [decentralized finance] markets (over $15B is already locked in such products) although these markets did not exist a few years ago. The value of locked assets is likely to surpass $100B mark in upcoming years, and this will happen with or without US approval. So this move by Congress toward crypto is rational.

The bipartisan letter was written on July 29.

What do you think of this letter? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

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US Congressmen Want IRS to Balance Taxation and Innovation in the Cryptocurrency Space | Taxes - Bitcoin News