Category Archives: Cryptocurrency

The CEO of the US-based crypto exchange Kraken says he believes Bitcoin is on the cusp of a new long-term rally to $100,000.

In new a conference call hosted by Pantera, Jesse Powell says the masses dont yet understand the importance of Bitcoins scarcity and independence from banks and middlemen. He expects that to change in the decade ahead, if and when the value of the dollar dwindles.

I dont think Bitcoin is even priced into Bitcoin. Most people have heard about Bitcoin but they dont own any Bitcoin. They dont know what the future of Bitcoin is. I think if everyone knew about Bitcoin and the potential of Bitcoin and how great it was, the price would be a trillion dollars a Bitcoin. We would all just be switched over to Bitcoin and not be using anything else

I think that theres a lot thats not priced in, even though its predictable, like what the future is. Ten years down the road, the US dollar is going to continue to be printed like crazy. Its going to be totally worthless. No one is going to want it. Everyone is going to want Bitcoin. But thats not priced in because of perceived risks or perceived uncertainty about the future, about regulation, about how does the government respond in different situations as Bitcoin continues to develop, or how useful does it actually become?

Kraken is already witnessing an explosion of institutional trading. According to Powell, BTC will likely hit $100,000 in about two years.

I believe that were in a completely unprecedented time in terms of the global political and economic systems. I believe that this is going to continue to drive a pretty massive shift into digital currency. I think the next couple of years well likely see 1 BTC exceed $100,000

Just anecdotally, in the last two months, weve seen a huge surge in new accounts, from institutions. I think, again, I mentioned it earlier, something thats preventing more institutions from getting in is just the uncertainty around the regulatory situation.

I think many are in a wait and see mode, many maybe trying to have their mandates changed to allow them to invest in these asset classes. But I do think its coming. I think that more LPs are going to demand that their GPs invest in crypto. I think its going to come from the bottom up. The returns are just so hard to ignore. It seems irresponsible not to have crypto be a piece of your portfolio.

Despite his optimism, Powell says that right now, cash remains king, which is a significant factor working against Bitcoin in the current macro economic climate.

In a time like this, with so much uncertainty, I think people are looking to what they know, which is cash. Ive got to pay my rent in cash. Ive got to buy my food and my toilet paper with cash.

Theyre not looking to hold a volatile asset, however a good investment it might be in the long term. People are thinking very short-term right now. I think thats one thing working against Bitcoin.

Go here to see the original:
Kraken CEO: Bitcoin (BTC) Would Be Worth $1,000,000,000,000 If the Masses Knew the Power of Cryptocurrency - The Daily Hodl

The cryptocurrency market volatility is on the rise as the market gets ready for Bitcoins futures expiration on CME. These contracts expire every two months and often lead to the sell-off on the spot market. According to the recent data, compiled by Cointelegraph and Arcane Research, BTC/USD tends to lose 2.3% of its value ahead of the expiration. The traders will be closely watching the spot prices to be ready to react to the situation.

Currently, the total capitalization of all digital assets in circulation is registered at $264 billion, while an average daily trading volume reached $110 billion. Bitcoins market share increased to 66%.

Read also:Cryptocurrency Market News: Cardano and Bitcoin set the pace for the end of May crypto rallies

Bitcoin (BTC) hit the intraday high above $9,600 and retreated to $9,450 by press time. At the time of writing, the first digital coin is moving within the strong bearish trend amid expanding volatility. Since the start of the day, BTC/USD has lost nearly 1.5%, though it is still 3% higher from this time on Thursday. The resistance area of $9,500-$9,600 remains unconquered so far. The support is created by $9,000.

Ethereum tested the intraday high of $224.80 during early Asian hours on Friday, but retreated to $220.30 by the time of writing. The second-largest digital asset has stayed unchanged since the start of the day, though it is still nearly 7% higher from this time on Thursday. Despite the retreat from the intraday high, the price is moving within a bullish trend amid low volatility.

XRP/USD has experienced a sharp decline below $0.2000 after a failed attempt to clear a strong resistance at $0.2030. At the time of writing, XRP/USD is changing hands at $0.1980, down 1% since the beginning of the day and mostly unchanged on a day-to-day basis.

Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) are also experiencing sharp sell-offs. Both coins has lost over 1% of their respective value in les than 5 minutes. LTC/USD is changing hands at $44.54, BCH/USD - $237.45

Excerpt from:
Cryptocurrency Market Update: Bitcoin bleeding as the market gets ready for CME futures expiration - FXStreet

Cardano, the cryptocurrency was trading at $0,082729 at 11:23 (08:23 GMT) on the stock exchange Investing.com Index Sunday, changes made up of 15.35% for the day. It was the sharp one-day rally in the cryptocurrency since may 30.

This growth has pushed the market capitalization of Cardano to $2,14732 B, 0.00% of the market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies. Earlier at the peak of capitalization Cardano was $23,91700 B.

In the past 24 hours the currency Cardano was trading in the range of $0,074890 to $0,084612.

In the last 7 days Cardano showed growth within gained-pct. The volume of Cardano in the last 24 hours was $676,45782 M or 0.00% of total cryptocurrency. She was trading between $0,0511 to $0,0846 during the last seven days.

Currently, the price of a Cardano is still below 93,87% from their peak values, amounting to us $1.35, which was achieved on 4 January 2018..

The cryptocurrency Bitcoin was worth $9.563,1 on the stock exchange Investing.com Index up 0.31 percent on the day.

The Ethereum was trading at $238,85 on the stock exchange Investing.com the Index showed an increase by 2.68%.

The market capitalization of Bitcoin previously was $175,92495 B or 0.00% of total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies, while the capitalization of the Ethereum was $26,36678 B or 0.00% of the total cryptocurrency market.

Continue reading here:
Cryptocurrency Cardano increased by 15% - The Times Hub

Earlier this week, Facebook announced that it would be renaming its Calibra wallet initiative to Novi. The announcement comes not so long after Libra unveiled Libra 2.0, a newer version of the global cryptocurrency project that is believed to have been designed to have greater regulatory appeal.

Though Calibra has always been separate from both Facebook and the Libra cryptocurrency project itself, the wallet was widely considered to be an important component of Libra, which was launched last June.

The Most Diverse Audience to Date at FMLS 2020 Where Finance Meets Innovation

The digital wallet firm that was slated to provide custody options for Libra token holders formerly known as Calibra is henceforth to be known as Novi.

Why did the rebrand happen? In a Facebook post on the name change, David Marcusthe head of the Libra projectstated in a Facebook post that the primary reason for the new name was that the old name was a little too close to the name of Libra.

Therefore, weve made an update to make sure there is clear differentiation and clarity, Marcus explained. Novi, like Calibra, will be just one of the wallets that will eventually be built on the Libra network.

Why Novi? Marcus explained that the new name for the wallet was not, in fact, named after a small town in the great state of Michigan; instead, the name comes from the combination of two Latin words, novus, which means new, and via, which means way, he wrote.

Marcus said that as such, Novi will offer a new way to send, receive, and secure Libra currencies.

A spokesperson from Novi told Finance Magnates that the rebranding is just that: a rebranding; that there wont be any changes in the functionality in how the-wallet-formerly-known-as-Calibra will operate.

As a member of the Libra Association, we [Novi] remain committed to the Libra mission and are eager to begin delivering on it, the spokesperson said, adding that we are thrilled that seven new members have joined the Association in 2020 already.

Among these seven are e-commerce giant Shopify, non-profit organization Heifer International, cryptocurrency brokerage Tagomi, and payment processor Checkout.com.

Although the change to Novi has been explained as an effort to differentiate between the Libra network and the Calibra wallet, the spokesperson also explained that originally, the similarity in the names between Libra and Calibra was intentional.

When we announced Libra and Calibra last June, we wanted to demonstrate that Calibra, the digital wallet, was closely linked to Libra, the global payment system, the spokesperson explained. Both brands were born out of the same vision, to give people more access to the global economy.

However, weve found that Calibra and Libra sounded too similar, and people were getting confused, so we set out to create a distinction between the two, the spokesperson said.

However, confusion between Libra and Calibra among potential users of the system may indeed be the primary reason for the name change; some analysts believe that the name change may be an attempt to distance the wallet from Facebook.

After all, much of the heat that Libra has garnered from regulators the world over has focused around Facebooks mishandling of its users data. Facebook chief executive and founder Mark Zuckerberg himself acknowledged this in a hearing before the United States Congress late last year.

This has been a challenging few years for Facebook, Zuckerberg said. We understand we have a lot to do to live up to peoples expectations on issues like privacy and security.

Haider Rafique, the chief marketing officer of San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange OKCoin, explained to Finance Magnates that distancing the Libra projectas well as Calibrafrom Facebook may be important to the future of both the network and the wallet.

Indeed, although the fact remains that [] Novi, previously Calibra, is the Facebook-built wallet with integrations for their entities: WhatsApp & Messenger, Rafique said that it might be better to separate Libra from Facebooks direct involvement for the sake of the projects future.

ATFX Thanks NHS Frontline Workers with 1k Fruit Boxes DonationGo to article >>

Similarly, Reuben Yap, project steward for privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcoin, told Finance Magnates that some have opined that it is possible that they want to make it clear that Libra isnt just a Facebook project, but instead only a member of the Libra Association.

I do actually believe that the official reason is to prevent confusion of Libra, the digital currency or association, with Calibra, which is merely Facebooks wallet, Yap continued, especially since we have gone through this very same problem ourselves with Zerocoin (the privacy protocol) and Zcoin (the currency and project).

Notably, Ripple has also made branding efforts to create a clear distinction between itself as a company and XRP, the currency, and network that is only used in some of its products.

Therefore, we see some clear benefits of the rebrand, Yap said, adding that also, oftentimes, optics and public perception go a long way even with regulators.

Therefore, [] By having Facebooks official Libra wallet name not linked directly to the Libra brand, it may give an impression that Libra isnt a Facebook initiative,' Yap added.

One of the worries that regulators have is that Facebook is creating its own digital currency that challenges the sovereignty of traditional currencies, Yap continued. By showing that Libra is instead a consortium with many other members and that Facebook is merely a member among other equal members would assuage fears that Facebook will wield too much power.

OKCoins Haider Rafique also explained that indeed, by distancing themselves from it they make it seem more community-focusedthis likely is another effort to decentralize the Libra stablecoin in the eyes of regulators.

And indeed, the Libra Association involves many community members, Rafique explained. The new name may allow Calibra to fit in more casually with these other members of the Libra Association, as well as any potential other wallets that may be built to hold Libra tokens.

Novis spokesperson did say to Finance Magnates that the name change was an attempt to lessen the association between Libra and Calibra (now Novi) so that potential users would be more aware of the possibilities to use other wallets for their future Libra tokens.

With our new name, itll also be easier to address the misperceptions that were the only wallet for the Libra blockchain, the spokesperson said, adding that we hope that Novi will be one of many wallets.

By creating some critical distance between Novi (formerly Calibra) and Libra (and then perhaps also between Novi and Facebook), its also possible that Libra and Novi could be setting the stage to try and separate their respective regulatory futures.

The wallet and stablecoin could face very different regulatory paths, OKCoins Haider Rafique said. Libra will likely face years of regulatory battles to try and gain US approval of its stablecoin/currency, but its wallet (now Novi) could take a more narrow path and not need the same kind of regulatory approval.

And indeed, it is possible that years could pass before Libra is live in the world: the most important thing about Libra is that it still doesnt exist, remarked David Gerard, author of Attack of the 50-Foot Blockchain, to Finance Magnates.

Theres nothing to talk about yet, he said. Lets see what they come up with that doesnt absolutely horrify the regulators.

So far, Libra has indeed attempted to come up with at least one other iteration of itself meant to be less jarring for regulators.

Earlier this year, Libra 2.0 was unveiled: a new version of the project that stripped away the single-token model of the original Libra, and plans to [enhance] the safety of the Libra payment system with a robust compliance framework and [build] strong protections into the design of the Libra Reserve.

While Libra 2.0 doesnt seem to have made a particularly strong impression on regulators one way or the other, Reuben Yap said that the new plan of action could change the regulatory course of the project: with its recent redesign, regulators are being re-engaged, he said.

And while the projects original launch date has been delayed, the project still has an ambitious plan for the future: the recent recruitment of pro-regulatory and compliance people to their ranks such as Stuart Levy as CEO and Robert Werner as general counsel also shows that they are serious in getting this off the ground.

I believe Libra is aiming to launch by the end of the year, while also continuing to recruit additional Libra Association members, Yap said.

However, David Gerard pointed out that in spite of the redesign and the Calibra rebrand, regulators are still drawing a hard line. Libra say they could launch before the end of 2020, but first they need to get buy-in from regulatorsat the very least the Swiss, US and EU regulators, he said.

The thing is, working with regulation was always 100% of the issue. The back-end technology being a blockchain, never mattered. The big issue was always going to be how to integrate this huge payment processor with existing real-world systems of regulation when youre a large enough player to have systemic effects.

Therefore, it seems that 2020 isnt in the cards for Libra or for Novi: I would be surprised if they do launch at the end of the year as planned, Zcoins Reuben Yap said. Perhaps sometime in 2021 is a possibility if they manage to assuage regulator concerns.

Follow this link:
Calibras Rebrand to Novi: An Effort to Create Distance from Facebook? - Finance Magnates

Paying with crypto has long been at the center of the discussions of why cryptocurrencies exist and why they are useful.

But despite promising growth and excitement during cryptos bullish phases, payments with crypto still remain a fringe niche at best. Cointelegraph interviewed both merchants and industry leaders to find out why.

As a general rule, crypto payments are used where they make sense. This remains the case for darknet markets, which according to a January 2020 Chainalysis report continue posting new volume highs.

Source: chainalysis.com

Despite their tiny share of the overall crypto activity, marketplaces selling primarily illegal goods simply cannot use traditional payment mechanisms. Nevertheless, these markets pale in comparison to the traditional cash-based drug trade, whose volume is estimated at approximately $400 billion yearly.

In legal settings, Crypto.coms CEO Kris Marszalek told Cointelegraph what kinds of products see meaningful usage of crypto:

Its still mostly crypto stuff. So we've got Travala, which is the travel merchant that accepts crypto. Ledger.com [...] when we launched on day one we were doing similar volume to Mastercard.

Marszalek cited figures from leading crypto payment providers BitPay and Coinbase Commerce, which report yearly volumes of $1 billion and $200 million, respectively.

The numbers are very small, Marszalek said bluntly.

Indeed, compared to Visas figure of $2 trillion for a single quarter in 2018, crypto payments have a long way to go.

Marszalek identified a series of issues that are preventing crypto payments adoption, with lack of trust one of them:

For the vast majority of the merchants out there, just like for the vast majority of retail banking users out there, crypto is still something unknown, something they still didnt learn to trust.

Peko Wan, the chief ecosystem officer of crypto point of sale provider Pundi X, told Cointelegraph a similar story:

For the mainstream, the general perception toward crypto are complicated to use or risky to own cryptos.

This attitude is reflected by a U.K.-based business owner operating a recreational plane simulator, whom Cointelegraph interviewed. Despite adding the crypto payment option, they said that no one has ever paid using crypto. They further said to be wary of all cryptos as there are so many scams out there.

Even among crypto enthusiasts, payments are a low priority use case. This is best exemplified by the issuance of WBTC for Ethereum decentralized finance, which is now more than double the size of the entire Lightning Network.

Marszalek believes that part of it is the chicken and egg problem, which limits the amount of merchants accepting crypto:

Because if you only have 50 million people in crypto globally, merchants have very little incentive to deploy this, unless they are in a business that is covering a similar demographic as crypto.

One of the biggest problems of crypto payments is the volatility of even the most established assets. Marszalek believes that most people only know about cryptos price swings, which is not really conducive to merchant adoption, he added.

Furthermore, the premise of many crypto payment providers is that merchants can completely avoid exposure to cryptos volatility.

Marszalek believes that stablecoins are super powerful for e-commerce transactions, citing their speed and cost, and sees Crypto.com eventually creating its own stablecoin as part of its vision of a complete ecosystem.

Claudio Barros, the Portugal-based owner of DBR Electronica and one of merchants using Pundi Xs solutions, believes that stablecoins would be a great addition to the ecosystem:

Any improvement in stability of coins will be a benefit, we need a range from pegged coins to super volatile coins to cater for different needs.

Crypto is competing both with established e-money systems like WeChat in China, and novel technologies like Calibra. Marszalek believes that it is better than either of those, both due to better performance and better privacy.

Marszalek, who is based in Hong Kong, personally witnessed how the cashless transition in China left him unable to pay in a Beijing restaurant, as Hong Kong WeChat does not work in mainland China. Either way, WeChats extreme level of surveillance makes him feel uncomfortable.

Wan also pointed to developing countries, noting:

For the past two years, we also observed that in the countries where the local currency has decreased over time [people] are more aware of crypto or interested in having cryptos.

For Crypto.com, payments are just at the beginning of the beginning, Marszalek said. But he strongly believes that it is the companys most important product, which will take our overall platform to a hundred million users in five years.

For crypto in general, the same statements could likely be made as well.

More here:
Why Have Cryptocurrency Payments Failed to Take Off So Far? - Cointelegraph

Photo: Jeff Neumann/SHOWTIME

If youre a fan of the Showtime drama Billions but having a tough time following the current seasons cryptocurrency story lines, youre not alone. Not only do the actors have trouble keeping up with the series twists and turns, even those who work in the financial sector dont necessarily understand crypto mining, a subject that pops up several times in season five. Half the people in finance couldnt explain what mining is to you, says New York Times best-selling author Ben Mezrich, who joined the Billions writers room this season as a consulting producer. A large percentage of them have no idea, because its complex.

As the writer of Bitcoin Billionaires and The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook: A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal the latter of which was adapted into the movie The Social Network Mezrich is a natural fit for the Billions team. His expert knowledge of cryptocurrency has provided the series with an opportunity to further explore this once-dark, underground area of finance. He also wrote this seasons third episode, which has Gordie Axelrod (Jack Gore), son of billionaire Bobby Axe Axelrod (Damian Lewis), running his own crypto-mining operation.

From the safety of his home in Quechee, Vermont, where hes riding out the COVID-19 pandemic, Mezrich was kind enough to guide Vulture through the intricacies of these esoteric plotlines. The result is this useful explainer for those of us who love Billions, but are still lost when characters like Axe and Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) start talking Bitcoin and blockchain.

Its a form of electronic money that sparked interest in recent years due to its skyrocketing prices. Its money that goes instantly from one person to the other, and theres no middleman, says Mezrich. A can be sent from person-to-person via their phone, just like a text.

The most well-known example of cryptocurrency is Bitcoin, which was created in 2009. But theres almost an infinite amount of cryptos at this point, says Mezrich.

This is the process of how the money is transferred from person-to-person. Because cryptocurrency doesnt use banks, miners are the ones who verify each transaction. Say I send you a Bitcoin, says Mezrich. The way that transaction is verified is, miners are working on computers attached to the network, which are doing these mathematical equations. And these equations, when theyre solved, they verify our transaction, and as a reward, the miner gets a certain amount of Bitcoin.

The process is very much like a contest, because all these different miners are competing to solve the equation, with the winner getting the Bitcoin. Mezrich likens mining to the race for the golden ticket in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: You open all these wrappers and one of them is gonna have a piece of gold in it. But you dont know which one, and so youre incentivized to get all the [chocolate bars] you can. This is what these miners are doing: Theyre just continually trying to solve these equations. Because whoever solves it first, gets the golden ticket the Bitcoin.

You probably remember this term being bandied about by Chuck last season regarding mobile voting. A blockchain is a digital database containing information that can be simultaneously used and shared within a large, decentralized, publicly accessible network, according to Merriam-Webster.

Because its where all crypto transactions are logged. If I send you one Bitcoin, says Mezrich, that transaction is logged onto the blockchain. And the way it becomes verified is by these miners. Theyre the ones who essentially put these equations onto the blockchain.

Those guys are miners, and they were dealing with the aforementioned mathematical equations, which are not only very complicated, but require enormous amounts of computing power, says Mezrich. If you walk into a crypto mine, its computer after computer after computernot unlike what was inside the sketchy warehouse that served as the miners base in the episode.

The miners were drawing power from a town in upstate New York, which is where the legal issue comes into play. The problem is, if youre mining Bitcoin and you need to draw tons and tons of power, eventually, that cost can be more than what youre earning, explains Mezrich. So miners are always trying to find cheaper electricity. Enter the small town in question: The town gave the miners priority over their electrical power. By doing that, the miners are saving a lot of money, and they make a kickback deal with the town to get cheap electricity, but the way they get the cheap electricity is its being routed to them rather than the rest of the town, causing brownouts.

Axe is involved because hes the leader of a consortium that combined its resources to fund this operation. In the general scheme of things, its not a bring-down-Axe crime, but its certainly a way in [for Chuck], says Mezrich. So for now, there isnt enough evidence connecting him to this venture for Chuck to take legal action yet.

Instead of just mining Bitcoin, Gordie was mining a lot of different cryptos at once out of his prep-school basement. The way Axe describes his sons scheme to Wags (David Costabile) Its the smart way to do the stupid thing he was doing isnt much different from how Mezrich explains it. With multi-mining, you have a better chance of making money and you have less of a chance of getting caught, because youre hacking electricity on a smaller scale.

He was trying to pull down enough electricity to power a whole bank of crypto mines a bunch of computers to run all these calculations, says Mezrich. In so doing, he ended up short-circuiting and causing a massive power-grid failure.

Mezrich admits that Billions took a bit of dramatic license here.

He absolutely committed a crime by tapping into his schools (and the towns) power grid. If he had had his own power source, if he was just working at home with that, it wouldnt be illegal, says Mezrich. As for the actual crypto mining, Mezrich used Gordies tradition-bound prep-school headmaster as a stand-in for those who still see Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as the dirty part of the finance world. The mainstream has still not accepted it, he says. The headmaster would be one of the types who sees [Gordies behavior] as an affront to the men of honor that these kids are supposed to become.

View original post here:
What to Know About Billions' Cryptocurrency Drama If You Know Nothing About Cryptocurrency - Vulture

Aren't we all searching for a safe haven? Whether we mean literal shelter four walls and a roof over our heads or something more sophisticated, the craving for a dependable defense against random chaos has always been our instinct.

With the COVID-19 pandemic rearranging society at every level, the allure of a safe haven reigns supreme for our battered psyches. In the realm of financial instruments, the search for the safest of safe havens, also known as a store of value, has taken on a new urgency. Is Bitcoin (BTC) a safe haven? Will cryptocurrency prove to be a store of value above all?

Many Bitcoin believers have been confident in crypto's ability to securely serve as a safe haven. But even the most devout blockchain boosters would admit that the coronavirus is betraying their store of value expectations, at least in the short term, as Bitcoins price has not remained resolute since COVID-19 became a global concern. It has exhibited big swings from around $10,000 to a low of near $4,100 in the first quarter of 2020 and now sits at approximately $9,500 at the time of this writing.

While Bitcoin has the potential to shelter value for many more of us than other safe-haven options, we will need a well-coordinated effort among the crypto community and regulators to get us there.

Safe havens have long played a key role in economics and investing. Traditionally, a safe haven has been an investment in an instrument expected to increase its value during market uncertainty. Safe havens add diversification to portfolios and are crucial investment strategy components for retail players and institutional investors alike.

With their deep history in serving humanitys sense of well-being, there is not surprisingly a long list of safe havens that predate Bitcoin. These include commodities, United States Treasurys and select fiat currencies, equity strategies and hedge funds, as well as more tangible assets such as precious metals (gold and silver), real estate and even art.

Now, cryptocurrencies have been added to that list. Although Bitcoins origins are firmly rooted in a peer-to-peer electronic cash system, a funny thing happened on the way to fulfilling those utilitarian aims. Satoshi Nakamotos blockchain-based creation morphed into something much more akin to a security, as long settlement and transaction times make it a less attractive method of payment. Meanwhile, its rise in value over the last decade has far exceeded anyone's expectations: Bitcoin has outperformed every other asset class including real estate, gold and the S&P 500.

Bitcoins financial status has evolved yet another step and is seen in many circles as a safe-haven instrument. Complete decentralization is at its core, keeping Bitcoin away from the whims of central banking and governments appetites for quantitative easing. In a brilliant stroke, digital scarcity is hardwired into its DNA: The supply of tokens is firmly capped at 21 million, a key characteristic that should continue to drive its price higher over time and has led to the widespread perception that Bitcoin equals digital gold.

And as a bonus, Bitcoin trumps all other safe havens as a tool for global trade. While that aforementioned transaction time currently standing at a tick over nine minutes is unacceptable for buying your proverbial cup of coffee, it sure beats trying to transact with gold bullion over the internet.

To be sure, Bitcoin has flaws preventing it from becoming a rock-solid store of value. Global regulation of cryptocurrency is still maturing. With few universal rules on how trades can be executed, there is room for market manipulation, which can lead to questions regarding how authentic some crypto price movements are. And while Bitcoin currently trades at gains that are positively astronomical compared with when it first came online, cryptocurrency remains a very volatile asset class.

That shouldnt stop Bitcoin from succeeding in a big part of its core promise: helping the worlds population to be better prepared for unforeseen global economic crises such as the current market crash that was brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

In perhaps an ironic twist to Bitcoins borderless ethos, this progress starts at the government level. With solid regulation of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, everyday people can be more in control of their wealth. Peer-to-peer lending, instead of loans and mortgage rates from banks, would make loans easier to access for everyone globally, leading to more accessible and affordable credit.

While increased oversight introduces more processes, more regulation also enables the market to progress. A lack of regulation means a lack of trust, which means a lack of adoption and when theres a lack of adoption, theres a lack of markets. Institutional investors stand to see great gains with solid regulation, which will open doors to the mass adoption of products. Investor confidence and trust will naturally follow, as will fresh innovation opportunities, with the overall market capitalization increasing commensurately.

And for a planet under quarantine, crypto only becomes more important. For the 1.7 billion people who are currently unbanked, living under physical mobility restrictions makes sending or receiving money that much harder. Whether they need to transact internationally or with a neighbor, people who are sheltering in place can use layer-two protocols to send crypto payments anywhere and settle within seconds, 24/7. The cost of doing business can also be drastically reduced with crypto, thanks to relatively low fees. In 2019, for example, a $1 billion BTC transaction cost a frugal whale a mere $690 in transaction fees such a low fee would be impossible to achieve in the foreign exchange markets with interbanking rates applied.

Better regulation is just half the battle. As has often been the case with all things blockchain, the bottleneck to wider cryptocurrency adoption therefore making it a safe haven for billions more people is a lack of reliable information.

Were more than 10 years into the blockchain revolution, yet only a very small percentage of the global population understands what it is and even fewer understand its connection to cryptocurrency. When the average person has a firm grasp of the blockchain/crypto ecosystem, adoption will face less friction.

As popular as crypto seems to those of us in the industry, we must exit the echo chamber and accept that it is not in the mainstream. The general public mostly hears about Bitcoins large price fluctuations or negative stories about how it could be used in a money-laundering operation. Very few journalists outside of our vertical know what to make of it.

A lot of people use fiat currency without understanding central banks and monetary policy, but they do know how to spend it and access it. Cryptocurrency faces an extra hurdle in that regard: Not only do people not understand it, they also dont know how to spend or gain access to it.

No wonder, then, that theres insufficient engagement in cryptocurrencies. We suddenly have thousands of currencies on blockchains, but most people cant comprehend how a currency can work, or be worth something, without a bank or a government backing it.

Engagement will require more people to grasp what a blockchain does and what the various cryptocurrencies can accomplish in their jurisdictions. Every person in the industry is responsible as a pioneer to educate as many people as possible on the benefits of crypto and how it can become one of our everyday means of payment and value storage. We also need to take some time out of our busy schedules to pass the message on to regulators as to how they can best manage the role of cryptocurrency in the global economy.

When Bitcoin and cryptocurrency make sense to everyone, well truly see it as a digital safe haven one that diminishes our fear of the economic impact of pandemics and other disasters. The more we can put our time into education and disseminating clear information, not just perfecting our investing, the sooner we can build a bigger boat with blockchain.

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

Arthur Wiseberg is the head of institutional sales in Europe at Apifiny, a digital asset marketplace that facilitates institutional access to regulated, global financial markets. He began his career in investment banking, focusing on regulation, portfolio structuring and sales across various traditional asset classes for firms such as BlackRock, Barclays Capital and Societe Generale. Prior to Apifiny, Arthur worked with various digital assets as the head of CIS institutional business for Huobi Global.

Continue reading here:
Cryptocurrency and COVID-19: Bitcoins Path to a Safe Haven - Cointelegraph

Bitcoin prices retreated Wednesday afternoon amid speculation that a long-dormant block of coins, with links to the presumptive creator of the virtual asset, just changed hands.

A Twitter account set to issue tweet alerts when coins tied to certain addresses trade, indicated a trade of a batch of virtual currency that is possibly tied to Satoshi Nakamoto, the person or persons who wrote the software code for the digital currency back in 2009. The identity of Nakamoto has long been speculated on but the originator of bitcoin has never been verified.

Read:Elon Musk says hes not bitcoins mystery man Satoshi Nakamoto

Check out: Legendary sci-fi author says suggestion he invented bitcoin flattering but untrue

About 11 years ago, he created, or mined, the original batch of bitcoins that are widely known as the genesis block.

The tweet suggests that the batch of some 40 or 50 bitcoins that changed hands on Wednesday were mined within the first month of the creation of bitcoin.

See:Craig Wright Claims He Is Bitcoin Inventor Satoshi Nakamoto

To be sure, the anonymous nature of the bitcoin makes it impossible to know the owner of the coins but the technology that underpins bitcoin makes tracking addresses of the certain blocks of coins possible.

Sleuthing for coins tied to the progenitor of the digital asset has become a regular pastime in the crypto community. Tracking big blocks of bitcoin also helps to understand the habits of those who hold substantial influence on bitcoin prices by dint of their holdings.

Bitcoin futures, representing a single bitcoin, were off 1.3% in Wednesday afternoon, with the most-actively traded May BTCK20, -2.72% BTC.1, -2.72% at $9,550, while bitcoin spot prices BTCUSD, -0.25% were off 1.8% at $9,525, according to data from CoinDesk.

Bitcoin futures are up more than 32% so far in 2020, and they had been trading at an intrasession peak at $9,895 on Wednesday before settling lower.

A number of industry participants have pointed out that the fact that the bitcoins are 2009 vintage doesnt necessarily mean that they are related to Nakamoto.

However, that didnt stop interest in bitcoin surging on Twitter, with the term satoshi becoming a viral term on the social-media platform Twitter Wednesday afternoon.

Bitcoin was created as an alternative payment system 11 years ago, one that operated anonymously and peer-to-peer, eliminating the so-called trusted third party.

The cryptocurrency was born amid worries that modern currency is manufactured by central banks printing fiat money to boost economic growtha view that has gained increasing traction amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Proponents of bitcoin argue that because the digital asset is decentralized from central banks or governments, individuals can conduct transactions without an intermediary. That is part of the appeal of bitcoin.

However, the nascent asset hasnt made significant headway in price since hitting a December 2017 peak near $20,000.

Critics also point to the cryptocurrencys association with money laundering as one of its biggest drawbacks. So far, bitcoin hasnt achieved sufficient scalability to make it a legitimate currency much less a store of value, other opponents say.

That said, bitcoin has managed to hold its own compared with gold thus far this year, with gold futures GC00, -0.14% up 15% in the year to date. By comparison, the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.23% is down 8.1% so far this year and the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.03% are off nearly 14% after a coronavirus-induced downturn virtually brought the equity markets to their knees in March.

Read:What is the bitcoin halving and which day does it happen?

Originally posted here:
Bitcoin prices slip amid speculation that a block of the cryptocurrency possibly linked to creator Satoshi Nakamoto just changed hands - MarketWatch

Mining reward halvings are a hot topic in the crypto markets, as they alter a cryptocurrencys supply and often have a significant impact on prices.

Bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency by market value, underwent its third halving on May 11, which reduced the reward per block mined to 6.25 bitcoin from 12.5. Bitcoin offshoots bitcoin cash and bitcoin SV also witnessed halvings in April.

Next in line is zcash (ZEC), a privacy-focused cryptocurrency first created in 2016 that uses a proof-of-work (or mining) algorithm and encrypts user information within shielded transactions.Currently, it is the 26th largest cryptocurrency by market value, as per data source CoinMarketCap.

Rewards per block mined on the zcash blockchain launched and supported by the Electric Coin Company are scheduled to be cut by 50% from the current 12.5 ZEC to 6.25 ZEC at block 1,046,400 this year. Zcashs first ever halving, the block subsidy reduction is expected to happen sometime in November.

High-inflation crypto

While ZECs supply is capped at 21 million like bitcoin, its inflation rate is significantly higher than other major cryptocurrencies.

At press time, ZECs annualized inflation rate is 28.19% the highest among major cryptocurrencies, according to data source ViewBase. Meanwhile, bitcoins inflation rate is 1.44.

Zcashs high inflation rate has long been a cause of concern among the investors and the analyst community. If ZEC were a country, itd have the 8th highest inflation rate worldwide at 32%, popular analyst Josh Olszewick tweeted in December 2019.

The cryptocurrency was one of the worst-performers in the first nine months of 2019, largely due to its disproportionate supply hitting the market, tweeted economist and trader Alex Krger in September 2019. ZEC ended 2019 with an 88% decline, while bitcoin achieved gains of over 90%.

These concerns, however, may ease following Novembers supply cut.

After the halving, the inflation rate will effectively get cut in half from its current level, so any concerns about the inflation rate should be alleviated or be considered a non-issue, said Connor Abendschein, a crypto research analyst at Digital Assets Data.

Pre-halving price boost?

In recent months, the cryptocurrency has been languishing not far above all-time lows against both the U.S. dollar and bitcoin. After Novembers halving, though, investors may give up on punishing ZEC for its high inflation rate and cheer the emission cut.

The upcoming halving could give Zcash the boost it needs to stay relevant in the high-cap ecosystem, said Abendschein.

Further, cryptocurrencies, in general, tend to rise ahead of halvings, which are widely considered to be price-bullish events.

For instance, litecoin, which underwent its last reward halving on Aug. 5, 2019, doubled in the first quarter of last year despite lackluster price action in bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency by market value and price anchor for the broader crypto market. Litecoin, the seventh-largest cryptocurrency, rose another 100% in the second quarter.

Many observers argue that halvings create supply deficits and thus put upward pressure on prices. The belief mainly stems from the bitcoin market, which witnessed stellar bull markets in the months following its first two halvings in November 2012 and July 2016.

The narrative has further strengthened due to bitcoins rise from $3,867 to $10,000 witnessed in the two months running up to its third halving earlier this month.

Bitcoin halving a guide?

Miner selling encompassed a significant percentage of total volumes in bitcoin ahead of its first halving in late 2012.After the event, a large drop in selling pressure from miners led to a price rally.

As seen in the chart above, potential miner selling pressure as a percent of total volume fell from 135% to 67% at the 2012 halving.

Bitcoins price extended its pre-halving bull run by 6% from $12.75 to $13.50 in the two weeks after halving and went on to hit a record high of $260 in April 2013.

Some investors are looking at Zcash similarly and its first halving could bring about the largest drop in potential mining sell pressure (as a percent of total volume) compared to future halvings, Wilson Withiam, research analyst at data provider Messari, told CoinDesk in a Telegram chat.

Goodbye Founders Reward

Alongside the halving, zcashs so-called (and not universally popular) Founders Reward expires in November to be replaced by a new development fund.

Zcash was launched in 2016 with a Founders Reward to be allocated over four years. Of all Zcash mining rewards, 80% was allocated to miners, about 15% was allocated to a group of people that included investors and founders, and about 5% was available to Electric Coin Co. to fund core support functions, according to the official blog of the Electric Coin Company.

The new fund, which was approved by the zcash community, will distribute 20% of the networks mining rewards to infrastructure and marketing development, of which 8% would go into a third party grant program, 7% to the Electric Coin Company and 5% to the Zcash Foundation. The other 80% will go to miners.

So, November looks set to be a major month for zcash and the discussion about the halvings potential impact on price and non-price metrics is likely to pick up the pace as we move closer to the final quarter of 2019.

So far this year, the cryptocurrency has moved pretty much in line with bitcoin and broader markets. Prices fell from $70 to $20 in the four weeks to mid-March as bitcoin as nosedived amid the coronavirus-led crash in the equity markets. The subsequent 150% price rise in bitcoin pulled up ZEC. The privacy coin recently clocked a high of $50 and was last seen changing hands at $45.

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Excerpt from:
Zcash's First Halving May Solve Its Inflation Problem - CoinDesk - CoinDesk

Global Cryptocurrency Mining Hardware Market 2020-2024 The analyst has been monitoring the cryptocurrency mining hardware market and it is poised to grow by $ 2. 80 bn during 2020-2024 progressing at a CAGR of 7% during the forecast period.

New York, May 25, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Global Cryptocurrency Mining Hardware Market 2020-2024" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05772590/?utm_source=GNW Our reports on cryptocurrency mining hardware market provides a holistic analysis, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis covering around 25 vendors. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. The market is driven by the rising popularity of mining pools, increasing number of product launches, and growing demand for cryptocurrency-specific hardware. In addition, rising popularity of mining pools is anticipated to boost the growth of the market as well. The cryptocurrency mining hardware market analysis include product segment and geographic landscapes

The cryptocurrency mining hardware market is segmented as below: By Product ASIC GPU

By Geographic Landscapes APAC North America Europe South America MEA

This study identifies the increasing popularity of ICOs as one of the prime reasons driving the cryptocurrency mining hardware market growth during the next few years. Also, use of clean energy to mine cryptocurrency, and market capitalization will lead to sizable demand in the market. "The analyst presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters. Our cryptocurrency mining hardware market covers the following areas: Cryptocurrency mining hardware market sizing Cryptocurrency mining hardware market forecast Cryptocurrency mining hardware market industry analysis"

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05772590/?utm_source=GNW

About ReportlinkerReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

__________________________

Clare: clare@reportlinker.comUS: (339)-368-6001Intl: +1 339-368-6001

Here is the original post:
The Global Cryptocurrency Mining Hardware Market is expected to grow by $ 2.80 bn during 2020-2024 progressing at a CAGR of 7% during the forecast...