Rememberful Bitcoin News.
About 2673 cybercrime complaints were submitted according to IC3’s report. Losses connected to such cybercriminal activities reported to be in $1.3 bln.
About 2673 cybercrime complaints were submitted according to IC3’s report. Losses connected to such cybercriminal activities reported to be in $1.3 bln.
“7… 00… 9… 0… 183.” I type in the secret code as printed on the flyer that I found at the Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference in Saint Petersburg the day prior. But to no avail. The steel gate to the inner-city courtyard won’t open, and the buttons I’m pressing seem like some kind of doorbell system rather than a lock anyway.
As I’m about to give it a second try — against my better judgement — two more guys show up. They want to enter too and apparently actually know how to do it. Pressing the right buttons, one of them unlocks the gate and lets me in as well. “Are you going to the Crypto Friends ICO Meetup?” I ask. The guys nod.
I try some small talk as we move our way into the courtyard.
“So, what brings you guys here. Are you investing in ICOs?”
One of them answers. His Russian accent is thick, but his English is good. He says he actually works at a company that helps businesses set up ICOs. His job is to get the message out about a new ICO, as far and wide as possible via forums, chat groups, news sites, whatever it takes. PR, basically.
“The return on investment in these ICOs is insane,” he enthuses. “Put in $10,000, and you can end up a millionaire.”
The two lead me around a corner to an inconspicuous door with another lock. Here they type in the code on the flyer: 70090183. The door opens, and we step into a small, somber hallway. A doorman sort of guy is sitting in an even smaller room to the left of us. He doesn’t look up. An elevator waits on the opposite side of the hall. We get in, and one of my companions presses the button with a five on it. It takes us to the top floor.
“Have you heard of EOS?” the other guy now asks me. I have but don’t know much about it. I tell him I know that the founder is supposed to be controversial; but I don’t know the details.
“I think it could be the next big thing,” he tells me. I nod, noncommittally. I don’t usually put money in these things.
On the top floor is another hallway. I notice that the green rubber floor is covered with arrow-shaped stickers. “Crypto friends meetup,” they read. Seems like we made it to the right place indeed. The stickers bring us to the next door. One of the guys knocks, the door opens.
A bit to my surprise, we now step into a luxurious restaurant. The light-filled rooms with big windows are decorated with antique furniture, and large framed paintings hang on the walls. The restaurant itself is relatively empty, but people have gathered in a bar area in the corner.
In case you are that one person who hasn’t heard of the phenomenon yet: ICOs — short for Initial Coin Offerings — have been the crypto-rage for most of 2017. They are essentially tradable digital tokens, sold as some type of company stock, but issued on a blockchain. And without most of the legal guarantees that actual company stock provides — assuming these coins can even be considered company stock at all. Maybe they’re more like gift vouchers… or something. Often, no one really knows.
Either way, companies have been issuing these ICOs to raise funds for their venture. Lots of funds. ICOs have become somewhat notorious for selling tens of millions of dollars worth of tokens within minutes, earning startups — often with little more than a whitepaper to show for themselves — valuations more appropriate for C-series funding rounds.
The phenomenon has been catching on in Russia as much as anywhere else. Some of the most successful ICO projects are being developed by Russians — although they are often officially based abroad to avoid legal trouble. MobileGo is one of them, the mobile gaming platform that raised over $50 million. Another is Waves, itself a platform for ICO tokens, which raised over $16 million. It’s Waves, founded by Moscow-based Sasha Ivanov, that is sponsoring today’s event.
Mild electronic music fills the bar area, and small groups of people — perhaps two dozen in total — stand scattered throughout, chatting. Most have a drink in their hands: beer, wine and, in particular, cocktails.
I take a seat at one of the two tables that seems reserved for the event. One other fellow is sitting at the table. He’s wearing a hoodie and shorts, even though the Saint Petersburg summer is not all that warm. He has his laptop open, his eyes focused on the screen. He looks up after a couple of minutes, so I once again try to make some small talk. He tells me he works in fintech. “Real fintech,” he emphasizes. He develops trading apps for investing.
“What we’re seeing here is a mania,” he says when I ask him about ICOs. “There is no underlying value in any of these projects. They better resemble multi-level marketing schemes than proper investments.”
He’s clearly not a fan. So I ask him why he showed up at all.
“Maybe in five months or so, it could develop into something useful,” he says. “The concept has potential, but it needs to grow into something more serious. It could potentially be an interesting mix between crowdfunding and Initial Public Offerings. Eventually.”
Another guy joins the table but doesn’t sit down. He seems to be in his thirties, casually dressed as most people are: a landscape architect, he tells me when I ask him. “I invest but only a little. To make some money on the side,” he says. “Mostly in mobile platforms or apps.” His English is a bit shaky. As a friend of his shows up, he bids me goodbye.
I watch the two of them walk away, and it’s only now that I realize that in the back of the bar area, hidden behind curtains next to the bar itself, is another doorway.
Probably at least a hundred people sit around on sofas throughout this next large, round room, filled with the fruity smoke odor of water pipes. The glass ceiling is covered with cloth to keep some of the light out, and Russian finger food is laid out on coffee tables. The walls around us are covered with paintings, books and even some handcrafted art.
Apparently the bar was just for drinks. This is where the actual meetup is. I take a seat on one of the sofas.
There’s no stage. Instead, a guy with a neat, buttoned-up shirt is standing in the middle of the room with a microphone. He’s giving what seems to be an elevator pitch. Within five minutes, the next speaker is up. And the next one some ten minutes after that.
The unofficial MC of the night has a spot on a comfortable chair in the middle of the room. Three others are sitting close him: a sort of literal inner circle. They lead the charge in asking questions after each talk. I don’t understand any of it; it’s all in Russian, of course.
During the smoke break — we’re back in the courtyard — I walk up to the MC, and ask him if he’s the organizer. He quickly turns me over to Daria, a dark-haired girl in her twenties. I had noticed her pacing around the meetup area during the talks. I learn that she has put together today’s event.
“The speakers today cover just about anything there is to know about ICOs,” she explains, when I ask her what the purpose of the meetup is. “The potential, the risks, the legal aspect of it.”
“So why are people here?” I try. “What do you think, if you’re being honest? Is it just to make a quick buck?”
“It differs,” she says. “The crowd is diverse. We’ve got programmers, professional investors, hobbyists and more.”
Though, she clearly agrees that at least some people are here just to make some easy money.
“Sure, some projects are more valid than others. And yes, there’s lots of hype. But it’s a bit like the early days of Kickstarter. Over time the hype will calm down, and this method of fundraising will prove valuable.”
As the smoke break ends, Daria and the others head back to the big round room. I decide to stick to the bar area this time. At least in there I can chat a bit.
Having bought a beer for some $7— surprisingly expensive by Russian standards — I’m killing some time on my phone when a blond man joins me at the bar. His name is Anton. He has a British accent, picked up from his studies in the U.K., he says.
“I see this as Russia’s chance to take on a leadership role in the technology sector. We’ve been trailing the U.S. and Europe too much,” he tells me, after I ask him my by-now standard question: Why are you here?
Anton is very clearly speaking from a place of passion. He stands close to me, speaking a bit too loudly. He believes in what he says.
“But we’re not just here to make money, man,” he emphasizes after I tell him I work for Bitcoin Magazine. “I don’t want you to see it like that. Blockchains are about much more than that. We’re here to transform society. And that’s important to remember.”
Anton tells me about the potential of blockchains. The typical buzzwords. Transparent. Immutable. Censorship resistant.
I feel almost nostalgic, listening to the way Anton explains himself. I remember a similar vibe from back in 2013, when I visited my first Bitcoin meetups. The air was filled with excitement. Andreas Antonopoulos’ talks were going viral for the first time. Bitcoin was gonna change the world in every imaginable way.
“Blockchain technology has the potential to make an end to corruption,” Anton says. “It can make votes impossible to forge, for example.” He says he believes the Russian political system has been rigged for decades. “Now, we can have provably fair elections.”
But it also makes me slightly uneasy to watch Anton’s enthusiasm, with the ICO bubble that I’ve witnessed being built up.
And it is a bubble. The valuation of many of these projects is far beyond reason, and the evidence that many of the investors have no idea what they’re putting money into is abundant. And that’s without even getting into some of the outright fraudulent claims.
In addition to that, the legal status of this whole concept is unclear. There are good arguments to be made that ICOs are really just unlicensed securities, specifically designed to skirt existing regulation. As such, regulators are bound to step in at some point — else they may as well close shop and find new careers. And when they do step in, it could mean that the ICO party is over very quickly.
At the same time, some of the genuine enthusiasm I encounter in Saint Petersburg makes me wonder if I’ve just grown cynical over the past couple of years. The cryptocurrency and blockchain space has been exhausted by scams, failures and toxicity. It’s had a bit of a disheartening effect on many, including myself.
But perhaps there’s more to this phenomenon than just scams. Who knows? Maybe the ICO strategy can break down barriers, allowing the common man to access investment markets more easily. Perhaps projects can better raise funds without caring about international borders, restrictions and regulations.
Indeed, perhaps ICOs could at one point be a fruitful “mixture between Kickstarter and IPOs.” If nothing else, the phenomenal valuations suggest that there may be untapped liquidity markets.
“In Russia we have the developers, we have good ideas, and we have the talent,” as one of the meetup attendees tried to explain. “It’s money, funding that’s hard to come by. ICOs are a chance to realize that part of the puzzle.”
Note: Some names have been changed to protect privacy and anonymity.
The post Meeting the Russians Who Hope to Strike It Rich on ICOs appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.
“7… 00… 9… 0… 183.” I type in the secret code as printed on the flyer that I found at the Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference in Saint Petersburg the day prior. But to no avail. The steel gate to the inner-city courtyard won’t open, and the buttons I’m pressing seem like some kind of doorbell system rather than a lock anyway.
As I’m about to give it a second try — against my better judgement — two more guys show up. They want to enter too and apparently actually know how to do it. Pressing the right buttons, one of them unlocks the gate and lets me in as well. “Are you going to the Crypto Friends ICO Meetup?” I ask. The guys nod.
I try some small talk as we move our way into the courtyard.
“So, what brings you guys here. Are you investing in ICOs?”
One of them answers. His Russian accent is thick, but his English is good. He says he actually works at a company that helps businesses set up ICOs. His job is to get the message out about a new ICO, as far and wide as possible via forums, chat groups, news sites, whatever it takes. PR, basically.
“The return on investment in these ICOs is insane,” he enthuses. “Put in $10,000, and you can end up a millionaire.”
The two lead me around a corner to an inconspicuous door with another lock. Here they type in the code on the flyer: 70090183. The door opens, and we step into a small, somber hallway. A doorman sort of guy is sitting in an even smaller room to the left of us. He doesn’t look up. An elevator waits on the opposite side of the hall. We get in, and one of my companions presses the button with a five on it. It takes us to the top floor.
“Have you heard of EOS?” the other guy now asks me. I have but don’t know much about it. I tell him I know that the founder is supposed to be controversial; but I don’t know the details.
“I think it could be the next big thing,” he tells me. I nod, noncommittally. I don’t usually put money in these things.
On the top floor is another hallway. I notice that the green rubber floor is covered with arrow-shaped stickers. “Crypto friends meetup,” they read. Seems like we made it to the right place indeed. The stickers bring us to the next door. One of the guys knocks, the door opens.
A bit to my surprise, we now step into a luxurious restaurant. The light-filled rooms with big windows are decorated with antique furniture, and large framed paintings hang on the walls. The restaurant itself is relatively empty, but people have gathered in a bar area in the corner.
In case you are that one person who hasn’t heard of the phenomenon yet: ICOs — short for Initial Coin Offerings — have been the crypto-rage for most of 2017. They are essentially tradable digital tokens, sold as some type of company stock, but issued on a blockchain. And without most of the legal guarantees that actual company stock provides — assuming these coins can even be considered company stock at all. Maybe they’re more like gift vouchers… or something. Often, no one really knows.
Either way, companies have been issuing these ICOs to raise funds for their venture. Lots of funds. ICOs have become somewhat notorious for selling tens of millions of dollars worth of tokens within minutes, earning startups — often with little more than a whitepaper to show for themselves — valuations more appropriate for C-series funding rounds.
The phenomenon has been catching on in Russia as much as anywhere else. Some of the most successful ICO projects are being developed by Russians — although they are often officially based abroad to avoid legal trouble. MobileGo is one of them, the mobile gaming platform that raised over $50 million. Another is Waves, itself a platform for ICO tokens, which raised over $16 million. It’s Waves, founded by Moscow-based Sasha Ivanov, that is sponsoring today’s event.
Mild electronic music fills the bar area, and small groups of people — perhaps two dozen in total — stand scattered throughout, chatting. Most have a drink in their hands: beer, wine and, in particular, cocktails.
I take a seat at one of the two tables that seems reserved for the event. One other fellow is sitting at the table. He’s wearing a hoodie and shorts, even though the Saint Petersburg summer is not all that warm. He has his laptop open, his eyes focused on the screen. He looks up after a couple of minutes, so I once again try to make some small talk. He tells me he works in fintech. “Real fintech,” he emphasizes. He develops trading apps for investing.
“What we’re seeing here is a mania,” he says when I ask him about ICOs. “There is no underlying value in any of these projects. They better resemble multi-level marketing schemes than proper investments.”
He’s clearly not a fan. So I ask him why he showed up at all.
“Maybe in five months or so, it could develop into something useful,” he says. “The concept has potential, but it needs to grow into something more serious. It could potentially be an interesting mix between crowdfunding and Initial Public Offerings. Eventually.”
Another guy joins the table but doesn’t sit down. He seems to be in his thirties, casually dressed as most people are: a landscape architect, he tells me when I ask him. “I invest but only a little. To make some money on the side,” he says. “Mostly in mobile platforms or apps.” His English is a bit shaky. As a friend of his shows up, he bids me goodbye.
I watch the two of them walk away, and it’s only now that I realize that in the back of the bar area, hidden behind curtains next to the bar itself, is another doorway.
Probably at least a hundred people sit around on sofas throughout this next large, round room, filled with the fruity smoke odor of water pipes. The glass ceiling is covered with cloth to keep some of the light out, and Russian finger food is laid out on coffee tables. The walls around us are covered with paintings, books and even some handcrafted art.
Apparently the bar was just for drinks. This is where the actual meetup is. I take a seat on one of the sofas.
There’s no stage. Instead, a guy with a neat, buttoned-up shirt is standing in the middle of the room with a microphone. He’s giving what seems to be an elevator pitch. Within five minutes, the next speaker is up. And the next one some ten minutes after that.
The unofficial MC of the night has a spot on a comfortable chair in the middle of the room. Three others are sitting close him: a sort of literal inner circle. They lead the charge in asking questions after each talk. I don’t understand any of it; it’s all in Russian, of course.
During the smoke break — we’re back in the courtyard — I walk up to the MC, and ask him if he’s the organizer. He quickly turns me over to Daria, a dark-haired girl in her twenties. I had noticed her pacing around the meetup area during the talks. I learn that she has put together today’s event.
“The speakers today cover just about anything there is to know about ICOs,” she explains, when I ask her what the purpose of the meetup is. “The potential, the risks, the legal aspect of it.”
“So why are people here?” I try. “What do you think, if you’re being honest? Is it just to make a quick buck?”
“It differs,” she says. “The crowd is diverse. We’ve got programmers, professional investors, hobbyists and more.”
Though, she clearly agrees that at least some people are here just to make some easy money.
“Sure, some projects are more valid than others. And yes, there’s lots of hype. But it’s a bit like the early days of Kickstarter. Over time the hype will calm down, and this method of fundraising will prove valuable.”
As the smoke break ends, Daria and the others head back to the big round room. I decide to stick to the bar area this time. At least in there I can chat a bit.
Having bought a beer for some $7— surprisingly expensive by Russian standards — I’m killing some time on my phone when a blond man joins me at the bar. His name is Anton. He has a British accent, picked up from his studies in the U.K., he says.
“I see this as Russia’s chance to take on a leadership role in the technology sector. We’ve been trailing the U.S. and Europe too much,” he tells me, after I ask him my by-now standard question: Why are you here?
Anton is very clearly speaking from a place of passion. He stands close to me, speaking a bit too loudly. He believes in what he says.
“But we’re not just here to make money, man,” he emphasizes after I tell him I work for Bitcoin Magazine. “I don’t want you to see it like that. Blockchains are about much more than that. We’re here to transform society. And that’s important to remember.”
Anton tells me about the potential of blockchains. The typical buzzwords. Transparent. Immutable. Censorship resistant.
I feel almost nostalgic, listening to the way Anton explains himself. I remember a similar vibe from back in 2013, when I visited my first Bitcoin meetups. The air was filled with excitement. Andreas Antonopoulos’ talks were going viral for the first time. Bitcoin was gonna change the world in every imaginable way.
“Blockchain technology has the potential to make an end to corruption,” Anton says. “It can make votes impossible to forge, for example.” He says he believes the Russian political system has been rigged for decades. “Now, we can have provably fair elections.”
But it also makes me slightly uneasy to watch Anton’s enthusiasm, with the ICO bubble that I’ve witnessed being built up.
And it is a bubble. The valuation of many of these projects is far beyond reason, and the evidence that many of the investors have no idea what they’re putting money into is abundant. And that’s without even getting into some of the outright fraudulent claims.
In addition to that, the legal status of this whole concept is unclear. There are good arguments to be made that ICOs are really just unlicensed securities, specifically designed to skirt existing regulation. As such, regulators are bound to step in at some point — else they may as well close shop and find new careers. And when they do step in, it could mean that the ICO party is over very quickly.
At the same time, some of the genuine enthusiasm I encounter in Saint Petersburg makes me wonder if I’ve just grown cynical over the past couple of years. The cryptocurrency and blockchain space has been exhausted by scams, failures and toxicity. It’s had a bit of a disheartening effect on many, including myself.
But perhaps there’s more to this phenomenon than just scams. Who knows? Maybe the ICO strategy can break down barriers, allowing the common man to access investment markets more easily. Perhaps projects can better raise funds without caring about international borders, restrictions and regulations.
Indeed, perhaps ICOs could at one point be a fruitful “mixture between Kickstarter and IPOs.” If nothing else, the phenomenal valuations suggest that there may be untapped liquidity markets.
“In Russia we have the developers, we have good ideas, and we have the talent,” as one of the meetup attendees tried to explain. “It’s money, funding that’s hard to come by. ICOs are a chance to realize that part of the puzzle.”
Note: Some names have been changed to protect privacy and anonymity.
The post Meeting the Russians Who Hope to Strike It Rich on ICOs appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.
Governments around the world lean toward censoring the amount of information found on the internet. It now appears the US government has plans to remove scientific data from the World Wide Web, which is a troublesome development. The Trump administration is on an aggressive campaign to get rid of environmental data. Thankfully, at least one group is fighting back. Removing Scientific Data is Never the Answer Virtually everyone in the world knows Donald Trump is not a believer of global warming or environmental data proving climate change is real. As a result, it now appears members of his administration are
Governments around the world lean toward censoring the amount of information found on the internet. It now appears the US government has plans to remove scientific data from the World Wide Web, which is a troublesome development. The Trump administration is on an aggressive campaign to get rid of environmental data. Thankfully, at least one group is fighting back.
Virtually everyone in the world knows Donald Trump is not a believer of global warming or environmental data proving climate change is real. As a result, it now appears members of his administration are tasked with removing scientific research from the Internet. This effort has been going on for quite some time now. It is a bit unclear what the Trump administration hopes to achieve by this.
This unsolicited behavior has not gone by unnoticed. In November of 2016, scientists and academics formed the Environmental Data Governance Initiative. Their main objective is to ensure environmental data remains accessible to everyone. The group is collaborating with The Internet Archive, as they create digital records of all information on the brink of being deleted.
Very few people realize the US government can legally take specific information offline whenever they wish. Despite records laws preventing the government from purging information, taking it offline does not make it inaccessible. This “loophole” is readily being exploited by the Trump administration. Taking data offline is not the only troublesome trend by the current administration. President Trump also announced he wants to cut the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency moving forward.
The US government is trying to censor scientific research from being shared with the public. Online censorship is never a viable solution, as it will only create precedents to take other information offline as well. The general public deserves access to these digital treasure troves and hold firms accountable if they do not adhere to environmental standards.
Unfortunately, we see these overreaching methods by governments all too often these days. Taking specific data offline is a successful way of ensuring no one can see these records without permission. The US government is playing a very dangerous game by going after environmental data. It is uncanny how people still can believe global climate change does not exist in 2017.
Thanks to projects such as the Environmental Data Governance Initiative, all of the necessary information will remain accessible, for now. They are fighting an uphill battle against the US government and will need all of the help they can get. Public outcry regarding the actions of the Trump administration needs to be made vocal. The government has no right to keep these reports hidden from the public. After all, if there is damaging evidence regarding corporations or government officials, the public should be the first to know about it.
If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.
On July 3rd, the Monster Byte ICO presale sold out in under 5 minutes. Due to the strong demand in just several minutes, the presale was slightly oversubscribed. Investors purchased $207,449.28 worth of Monster Byte tokens with bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin, and waves. Monster Byte also reported that they received unprecedented interest and the payment provider … Continue reading Monster Byte ICO presale sells out in minutes
The post Monster Byte ICO presale sells out in minutes appeared first on NEWSBTC.
On July 3rd, the Monster Byte ICO presale sold out in under 5 minutes. Due to the strong demand in just several minutes, the presale was slightly oversubscribed. Investors purchased $207,449.28 worth of Monster Byte tokens with bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin, and waves. Monster Byte also reported that they received unprecedented interest and the payment provider … Continue reading Monster Byte ICO presale sells out in minutes
The post Monster Byte ICO presale sells out in minutes appeared first on NEWSBTC.
CoinTelegraph |
Bitcoin Mining Boss Bhardwaj Carries On Despite Arrest Petition
CoinTelegraph GBMiners creator Amit Bhardwaj has released a book on cryptocurrency for beginners despite allegations he is running a Ponzi scheme. As Indian news resource Factor Daily reports quoting research from CoinJournal and The Caravan, Bhardwaj is currently … Self-Proclaimed Cryptocurrency Guru Amit Bhardwaj Accused Of Running A Ponzi SchemeInc42 Media Amit Bhardwaj is accused of running a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, but that doesn’t stop him from buying up front …FactorDaily |
CoinTelegraph | Bitcoin Mining Boss Bhardwaj Carries On Despite Arrest Petition CoinTelegraph GBMiners creator Amit Bhardwaj has released a book on cryptocurrency for beginners despite allegations he is running a Ponzi scheme. As Indian news resource Factor Daily reports quoting research from CoinJournal and The Caravan, Bhardwaj is currently ... Self-Proclaimed Cryptocurrency Guru Amit Bhardwaj Accused Of Running A Ponzi Scheme Amit Bhardwaj is accused of running a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, but that doesn't stop him from buying up front ... |
Criticism of GBMiners creator Amit Bhardwaj has not stopped him from launching further commercial projects.
Criticism of GBMiners creator Amit Bhardwaj has not stopped him from launching further commercial projects.
In the world of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, choosing the right wallet that suits your needs will make a significant difference. There are some aspects of different wallets one always needs to keep in mind. Bitgo is quite an appealing solution, as it can be accessed via the browser and through mobile applications. The bigger question is whether or not it is worth your time. An Overview of the Bitgo Wallet Everyone has heard of Bitgo at least once before. The company specializes in providing secure wallet solutions to corporations and businesses including several cryptocurrency exchanges. Bitgo also focuses on multisignature wallet solutions,
In the world of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, choosing the right wallet that suits your needs will make a significant difference. There are some aspects of different wallets one always needs to keep in mind. Bitgo is quite an appealing solution, as it can be accessed via the browser and through mobile applications. The bigger question is whether or not it is worth your time.
Everyone has heard of Bitgo at least once before. The company specializes in providing secure wallet solutions to corporations and businesses including several cryptocurrency exchanges. Bitgo also focuses on multisignature wallet solutions, which is one of the best security innovations Bitcoin users have seen to date. Knowing the company also provides a consumer-grade solution makes them stand out from their competitors.
Bitgo initially started out as an online wallet service for Bitcoin. That is not necessarily a good thing, as a centralized wallet means users are not the only ones with access to private keys. The company expanded their wallet to support Android and iOS as well. The secure app ensures users can store their wallet’s private key on the device itself. The online version lets users export their private key to a different wallet solution as well.
Unfortunately Bitgo is not an open source solution and it is doubtful that will ever change. To some people, this is a major drawback, whereas others are not too bothered about it. On the upside, Bitgo provides multisignature solutions to all users. Additionally, there is an option to add even more security to the web wallet in the form of two-factor authentication. Bitgo clearly values its users’ privacy.
In short, Bitgo offers a very secure wallet solution which remains approachable by the average consumer on the street. Convenience and security often do not mix that well, but Bitgo shows it can be done. However it does not provide users with much anonymity, but that is not something most people are looking for these days. There are also no extra features to take advantage of, but that is not a deal breaker either.
For any Ethereum users here, there is an Ethereum-based wallet which uses the same Bitgo technology. In fact, it is built by most of the engineers who are working on the Bitcoin wallet. This project is known as Ether.li, and features all of the same aspects one can find in the Bitgo Bitcoin wallet. It provides multisignature solutions for Ethereum users, which will be appreciated by some users. Bringing this functionality to different cryptocurrencies is a smart strategy by Bitgo.
In the end, it is hard to find any flaws in the Bitgo wallet. Using the web version means private keys are not generated in a secure manner, even though users can protect them with a password. The mobile apps work as one would expect, without any unnecessary bells and whistles. Advanced users not looking for multisignature support may find Bitgo a bit boring, but for novice users, it is a very powerful solution. There is no reason not to give Bitgo wallet a try.
If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.
Ethereum price continues to roll back to the long-term upward trend. What is the most likely turn of events?
Ethereum price continues to roll back to the long-term upward trend. What is the most likely turn of events?
Motherboard |
No Regulations, No Problem. Colombia Wants to Tax Bitcoin Users
CryptoCoinsNews As previously reported by CCN, the Superintendencia de Sociedades, an organization associated with the Colombian Ministry of Commerce, has in the past announced that digital currencies aren’t allowed in Colombia, including bitcoin. The only valid … Kidnappers Around the World Want Their Ransoms Paid in BitcoinMotherboard |
Motherboard | No Regulations, No Problem. Colombia Wants to Tax Bitcoin Users CryptoCoinsNews As previously reported by CCN, the Superintendencia de Sociedades, an organization associated with the Colombian Ministry of Commerce, has in the past announced that digital currencies aren't allowed in Colombia, including bitcoin. The only valid ... Kidnappers Around the World Want Their Ransoms Paid in Bitcoin |
Legislators of the state of Illinois, have officially advanced a bill to establish a government task force to regulate the Blockchain industry and sector.
Legislators of the state of Illinois, have officially advanced a bill to establish a government task force to regulate the Blockchain industry and sector.
The robots are coming for your jobs! This is the message we hear daily from every angle. Though I dislike agreeing with sensationalized media stories, it is true. The likelihood of you losing your job to a machine or a robot is pretty high. However, where I do disagree with these eschatological cries is that I do not necessarily see it as a bad thing. I do not mean to be insensitive to the hardships of joblessness, but I do think we will benefit from robots doing our menial labor as a species. This is Not the First Time This
The robots are coming for your jobs! This is the message we hear daily from every angle. Though I dislike agreeing with sensationalized media stories, it is true. The likelihood of you losing your job to a machine or a robot is pretty high. However, where I do disagree with these eschatological cries is that I do not necessarily see it as a bad thing. I do not mean to be insensitive to the hardships of joblessness, but I do think we will benefit from robots doing our menial labor as a species.
One of the most important things to remember when thinking about our next labor revolution is that there have been many before this one. The two most famous are the agricultural revolution and the industrial revolution.
About 10,000 years ago the majority of humans shifted their subsistence strategy -the way in which we acquire the needed materials to survive- drastically. The agricultural revolution completely changed the game for humans, and valued skill sets changed accordingly.
Without having to constantly be on the move to forage, hunt, and gather our foods meant cities could be erected. It is no coincidence that the oldest cities we know about began to spring up in 1) good farmland and 2) around the time humans adopted this new subsistence strategy. Farming allowed for a more sedentary lifestyle and freed up immense amounts of time for humans to pursue other goals.
The other readily obvious example is the industrial revolution which took place about 150 years ago. This increased the productivity of making goods, which brought down prices and enabled more uniform production of those goods. Labor became more specialized, meaning jobs changed. Work and jobs are not constants, they are malleable and flexible.
Putting this robotics and digital revolution in context makes it way less scary. Like the agricultural revolution and the industrial revolution, the one we are at the cusp of will change how we think of work not decimate us.
Pursuing Humanity: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Robot
There are many good reasons to have machines do many jobs in place of humans from accuracy concerns, to workplace safety, to the bottom line of a company. Less defects, fewer human injuries in dangerous workplaces, and cheaper production for companies are all good things. But maybe the best outcome here is that without having to worry about many menial tasks, we can pursue greater collective human goals.
The golden age of philosophy as we know it was enabled by the fact that cities could exist due to agriculture and everyone did not need to spend time gathering food around them. Fast correspondence and travel would not be possible without trains, cars, and planes made possible by the industrial revolution. Even you reading this article is the result of a long line of revolutions (printing, mechanical, digital). Having computers and robots do the boring stuff in our lives means we can put more cognitive effort to other goals which robots perform poorly.
We can work on improving quality of life for poor individuals and make elderly care better. We can write more, create more art, and spend more time with people we love. We can start putting even more effort into interplanetary travel. We are social animals, this robotics revolution could help us be even better at being social.
I am not saying that revolutions like this are without their folly, but if we cannot see any positives in it or have a sober look at previous revolutions then we are willfully pessimistic.
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NYC-based startup Suretly, which raised $350K during preICO round this May, launched an Initial Chocolate Offering. The event took place in Copenhagen, Denmark during Money2020 conference. All guests, who has visited Suretly’s booth, were gifted with a chocolate souvenirs shaped in SUR-token. Each token was packed in the individual memorable wrapping with the future Suretly … Continue reading Suretly launched an Initial Chocolate Offering.
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NYC-based startup Suretly, which raised $350K during preICO round this May, launched an Initial Chocolate Offering. The event took place in Copenhagen, Denmark during Money2020 conference. All guests, who has visited Suretly’s booth, were gifted with a chocolate souvenirs shaped in SUR-token. Each token was packed in the individual memorable wrapping with the future Suretly … Continue reading Suretly launched an Initial Chocolate Offering.
The post Suretly launched an Initial Chocolate Offering. appeared first on NEWSBTC.
How Blockchain can keep passwords safe.
How Blockchain can keep passwords safe.
This week Bitcoin.com chatted with Derrick Broze, an agorist activist, writer, host of the Conscious Resistance Network and organizer of the Decentralize Your Life 2017 tour. Broze tells our readers about the philosophy of agorism, his travels across the U.S. promoting decentralized living and emerging technologies like bitcoin. Broze has a long-term goal of planting
The post The Decentralize Your Life Tour: An Interview With Derrick Broze appeared first on Bitcoin News.
This week Bitcoin.com chatted with Derrick Broze, an agorist activist, writer, host of the Conscious Resistance Network and organizer of the Decentralize Your Life 2017 tour. Broze tells our readers about the philosophy of agorism, his travels across the U.S. promoting decentralized living and emerging technologies like bitcoin. Broze has a long-term goal of planting seeds that create a stateless society “free of coercion” – and cryptocurrencies are just one of the tools that will forward this movement.
Also read: Revised Tax In Japan, Giving Residents ‘Access to Global Markets’
Bitcoin.com (BC): Can you tell our readers at Bitcoin.com about the tour you embarked on?
Derrick Broze (DB): The Decentralize Your Life Tour is an effort to spread a message of freedom, decentralization, and self-empowerment. We do this by informing people about tools, both philosophical and physical, which can lead them to independence and abundance. The tour started on June 1st in Houston, Texas with the Gulf Coast portion. We leave on July 10th for the West Coast and Midwest portions. We head to the east coast in October. Full dates and details on the tour can be found here.
BC: What got you into the promotion of Agorism?
DB: I first heard about Agorism via a friend and activist named John Bush. He gave a speech in Houston at an End the Fed rally in 2011 regarding the strategy as the most effective way to opt out or vacate the state and economic slavery by simply competing directly and creating the institutions we wish to see in the world.
BC: When did you first hear about bitcoin?
DB: I think I first heard about bitcoin because of the deep web and Silk Road. Once Ross Ulbricht was arrested I covered the trial and learned a lot more about BTC. I have also been paid in BTC as a journalist for a few years now.
BC: How do decentralized currencies like bitcoin help promote what you are trying to achieve?
DB: In order to achieve a world of decentralization where individuals are free to do business, exchange ideas, and live as they please, we need tools that are not dependent on centralized systems or monopolies.
Cryptocurrencies (and local currencies, barter networks, time banks, etc.) offer an alternative to centralized money. This is also a part of the Agorist strategy of counter-economics, which simply means working outside of the state-controlled “white market” by shifting economic resources towards the gray and black markets.
BC: Can you tell us about the ‘Houston Freedom Thinkers?’
DB: The Houston Free Thinkers is an activist community I co-founded in 2010. We have been active in the city for seven years, hosting protests, marches, documentary screenings, benefit shows, garden days, skillshares, and much more. Our goal has always been to move beyond the mainstream left/right political paradigm and focus on local solutions to the problems we see. We have successfully raised thousands of dollars for local groups, confronted politicians, built a community, and helped Houston become the only city in the U.S. to successfully remove the TSA from the buses. We also have The Free Thinker House, our community space for all our events. I currently live there with the two other free thinkers.
BC: What are ‘Freedom Cells?’
DB: Decentralized peer to peer groups aimed at providing knowledge, skills, and independence to group members. The goal is to build local power by connecting small groups (8-10) of like-minded people focused on achieving mutual goals, sharing skills, and eventually defense for local communities. It is the “how” when it comes to Agorist philosophy. The Freedom Cell Network is also a website where people can search to find like-minded people based on skills and interests. For more information check out Freedomcells.org.
BC: Can you tell our readers about your book?
DB: My most recent book is called Manifesto of the Free Humans. It is the final part of The Conscious Resistance trilogy authored by me and John Vibes. The book series as a whole is aimed at exploring the intersection between spirituality and anarchism, as well as expounding on Agorist theory. The Manifesto is the most practical in terms of being a straightforward guide on how to exit the state. So far the books have been very well received.
We are now taking the message on the road to help build freedom cells and agorist minded communities.
BC: What is the tour’s overall mission?
DB: Short Term: Educate people about agorism, counter-economics, freedom cells, and anarchism.
Long Term: Create a stateless society free of coercion.
It’s going to take a lot of work, and it is a generational change. I want to help build people up (both spiritually and philosophically), so they have the tools to lead a joyful, independent, compassionate, fulfilling life and can help others do the same. Yeah, it’s ambitious. However, nothing else feels important at this time in my life.
What do you think about the Decentralize Your Life tour? Let us know in the comments below.
Disclaimer: Bitcoin.com is the lead sponsor of the Decentralize Your Life tour.
Images via Conscious Resistance Network, Derrick Broze, Bitcoin.com, and Pixabay.
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Blockonomics, an Indian cryptocurrency startup has announced a new product that allows users to send and receive Bitcoin securely over email. The company announced the product, BTCMail in its recent blog post. According to Blockonomics, BTCMail makes it easier for users to gift or send Bitcoin payments instead of other most frequently used alternatives like … Continue reading Indian Startup Blockonomics Introduces BTCMail, Offers Secure Way to Gift Bitcoin
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Blockonomics, an Indian cryptocurrency startup has announced a new product that allows users to send and receive Bitcoin securely over email. The company announced the product, BTCMail in its recent blog post. According to Blockonomics, BTCMail makes it easier for users to gift or send Bitcoin payments instead of other most frequently used alternatives like … Continue reading Indian Startup Blockonomics Introduces BTCMail, Offers Secure Way to Gift Bitcoin
The post Indian Startup Blockonomics Introduces BTCMail, Offers Secure Way to Gift Bitcoin appeared first on NEWSBTC.