Day: October 28, 2017

The Token Sale for MyWish.io, a working platform for asset management solutions based on smart contracts, has begun on October 25th. The system is designed to integrate high technologies into the real sector benefiting from innovations in blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.

Constantly growing interest in smart contracts is due to the fact that they are able to compliment financial institutions in the digital economy and allow the management of crypto-currency assets. However, their popularization is hampered by serious conceptual problems:

1. A smart contract is useless without an external invocation.
2. Creating a smart contract is an expensive process.
3. An absence of smart contracts using Bitcoin.
4. Technical complexity of creating smart contracts.

MyWish.io was created to eliminate these challenges in the use of smart contracts in order to make them accessible and convenient for everyone as interest in the emerging blockchain economy grows.

Unlike other projects (such as BlockCAT, Etherparty), which are devoted to the creation of smart contracts, MyWish has implemented an innovative system, Joule, which guarantees the seamless invocation of contracts throughout the entire life cycle of the contract. Due to the large amount of contracts able to run on the platform, MyWish is able to abstract and lower the cost of applying smart contracts through its use. MyWish will allows users to manage assets in popular cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, Bitcoin and Litecoin. As a mobile application and user friendly website, MyWish will usher in a new era of usability where everyone can create and manage a smart contract. The product is available at contracts.mywish.io.

Currently, four off the shelf smart contracts are available for use:

LostKey – a contract that transfers funds to a reserve wallet in case of loss of private key;

Wedding – the marriage contract, allowing for unification of cryptoassets within a family;

Deferred Payment – a transfer of funds to a wallet of another owner after passing a certain period;

LastWill – a contract that transfers funds to a reserve wallet in case of death of the owner.

The platform is open to outside developers who can also add their contracts to the growing repository. MyWish takes care of all other actions, such as verification of contracts, configuration, launch and execution. The expected usage at the product’s first stage is 50,000 people.

MyWish will begin its Token Sale on October, 25. It plans to sell 63% of all issued tokens in the public sale. The sale will last 30 days, or until all the tokens are sold. During the Token Sale, the WISH token will be granted to users who contribute to the project.

MyWish will integrate the  Bancor Protocol™ in order to activate a Token Relay™ on the Bancor Network™. This will allow the WISH token to work seamlessly with all other tokens in the network and benefit from increased stability thanks to an algorithmic pricing mechanism as part of the Bancor Formula. To learn more about Bancor, please visit their site and read the Whitepaper.

This is a sponsored press release and does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views held by any employees of The Merkle. This is not investment, trading, or gambling advice. Always conduct your own independent research.

Certain parts of the world stand to gain a lot from creating their own digital currencies. That is much easier said than done, though, as no country or central bank has successfully done so to this point. Catalonia, a region in Spain fighting for independence, is looking to create its own digital currency. In this respect, the region aims to emulate Estonia’s e-residency program. It’s an interesting idea, but is it even feasible?

A Catalonia Digital Currency Makes Sense

Anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock these past two weeks will be aware of the situation in Catalonia. More specifically, there is a major conflict underway between the regional government and Spanish authorities right now. Catalonia wants to become independent of Spain, but the Spanish officials aren’t in favor of its independence whatsoever. However, the Catalonia government is putting up a valiant effort to achieve its goal moving forward.

Given the current institutional crisis in the region and the rest of Spain, it is evident something has to give sooner or later. The latest venture by the Catalonia government revolves around creating its own version of Estonia’s e-residency program. That will not be easy by any means, although the precedent is certainly in place to make it become a reality sooner or later. Attracting entrepreneurs to help create an independent economy will benefit the region and help solidify its independence as well.

Dani Marco, the director of SmartCatalonia, has traveled to Estonia on multiple occasions to see firsthand how its initiative works. Meeting with technology experts has been one of the team’s top priorities in creating a digital residency solution. In Estonia, the e-residency program has attracted over 20,000 entrepreneurs from over 140 countries already. Whether or not Catalonia can boast similar success in the end remains to be determined.

Moreover, there is growing talk of introducing a national digital currency in Catalonia as well. Considering that this part of Spain aims to become independent, that isn’t surprising in the slightest. It seems there are quite a few entrepreneurs working on virtual currencies throughout Spain already. In a way, it’s the perfect ecosystem in which to develop a national digital currency for a region attempting to become completely autonomous.

So far, it appears people close to the matter have already reached out to Vitalik Buterin in regards to the creation of a blockchain-based system to support this new currency. It is very likely we will see an ICO of some sort, although most of the details remain shrouded in mystery for the time being. There are quite a few benefits to this project, assuming it’s actually feasible in the first place.

As of right now, there is no official timeline or roadmap associated with this venture. It is not even a full-fledged plan of action either, although the option is seriously being considered as we speak. Only time will tell whether or not Catalonia gets its own digital currency in the future. If there ever was a reason to pursue such an option, Catalonia’s independence would certainly fit the bill.

There are a number of reasons that more and more investors are being attracted to the possibilities of investing in the growing cryptocurrency market. What is driving growth in the sector is an emerging recognition by a greater number of people of the potential for Blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies to fundamentally impact the financial services industry, as well as many other sectors from healthcare to insurance.

Cryptocurrencies, also referred to as digital currencies or money, altcoins, or digital assets, represent a global market that is still in the early stages of being recognized by investors. It is still very early in the growth curve as Wall Street is only now starting to acknowledge cryptocurrencies as a new asset class. Demand will continue to be boosted as acceptance expands by both retail and institutional investors. Of course, there are those prominent on Wall Street who disagree with this assessment, but the evidence seems to show otherwise. There are now over 70 funds focused on the market with new funds announced every week.

DIGITAL CURRENCIES

For the purposes of this article we are mostly referring to the biggest and most active cryptocurrencies, which include Bitcoin (BTC), the largest by market capitalization at over $81 billion, and then others that are not as well known to the general public. In order of market capitalization the next five largest after bitcoin are ethereum (ETH), ripple (XRP), bitcoin cash (BCH), litecoin (LTC), and dash (DASH). When combining all six together we’re looking at a market capitalization that exceeds $129 billion. Then, if we include the hundreds of other digital currencies the market value goes to roughly $200 billion, approximately equivalent to the market value of Citigroup alone. In other words, the market is still very small when compared to the stock market or most any financial market for that matter.

INVESTORS FOCUS ON THE BENEFITS

First, let’s mention some of the benefits of participating in this market and then we’ll look at risks.

• Can provide diversification for an investment portfolio
• High volatility with the potential for above average returns
• Separate asset class with distinct influencers
• Not correlated to traditional asset classes
• Growing worldwide demand and acceptance
• Expanding market size.

Exposure to cryptocurrencies can help with diversification of a portfolio as they’re not impacted by the same developments that impact other asset classes such as stocks, commodities or currencies. As recognition grows, demand for these digital assets will surely grow with it. The activity of investing and trading in cryptocurrencies operates in its own world mostly separate from the traditional financial services infrastructure. This makes it a little more complicated to get involved but certainly accessible to the average investor.

Volatility risk can equal greater opportunity

The highly volatile nature of digital currencies is seen as a major draw by investors. Just in the past 30 or so days bitcoin has gained more than 90%. That’s after dropping 40% in 14 days prior from a record high of $4,979.90 reached at the beginning of September. Meanwhile, ethereum is up over 3,900% year-to-date and had recent swing of over 65% down in four weeks, followed by an advance of 190% in only seven weeks. These types of swings may be dangerous but they also create opportunity.

RISK

Investing in cryptocurrency is a highly speculative market and is not considered to be a safe investment. It is about as high risk as one can find. But, that risk can be compensated for by the higher return potential, and the speed in which a return might be recognized. Therefore, there are a number of things an investor can do to help diminish the impact of higher risk, including:

• Have a clear investment plan prior to engaging the market. What are you trying to accomplish?
• Use lower position size than what seems necessary
• Only put capital at risk that you can afford to lose
• Have a clear risk management strategy. Know when to get out if you are wrong
• Once you make back your principal take it out and then invest only with your profits
• Scale out of profitable positions. Take profits off the table.
• If your portfolio size justifies it you can also use multiple exchange venues to compensate for the risk of trouble at the exchange level.

INVESTMENT STRATEGY

One of the first things to do to get involved is determine how much money and time you have to invest, what is your current skill and knowledge level and what needs to improve in that regard, plus, what approach you are going to take when investing. Are you going to get in and out as the market swings up and down, keeping in mind that Bitcoin for example can see swings in either direction of greater than 30% in weeks? Or, are you going to take a long-term buy and hold approach, and not worry about significant drops that may occur?

In the first direct participation approach one must have a strategy to identify when to get in on dips and out on rallies. Usually, this is going to come from the use of technical analysis and charts, which are tools to help with the timing of entries and exits. With the second strategy one must be willing and able to sit possible large and long-term losses or drawdown, while waiting for strength to return to the market. A drawdown is the percentage decline from the peak of your portfolio value.

An alternative to a direct participation approach is to invest in a coin traded fund (CTF) that matches your strategy, like The Token Fund for example. A CTF has a prebuilt portfolio of cryptocurrencies that matches your strategy. This can provide some degree of diversification among the many cryptocurrencies out there and give you wider exposure than you would likely get on your own. CTFs offer a painless entry into the crypto world that comes with the benefits of a diversified portfolio and they don’t require your constant attention and maneuvering on exchanges.

This is a sponsored press release and does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views held by any employees of The Merkle. This is not investment, trading, or gambling advice. Always conduct your own independent research.

A new wave of investing apps is opening up to bitcoin, aiming to attract an elusive millennial market jaded by the financial crisis.

The post To B2X or Not to B2X: How Exchanges Will List the SegWit2x Coin appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

There is no such thing as a boring day in the world of cryptocurrency. Kraken, one of the largest exchanges in Europe and the US, is phasing out BitGo integration. This is a rather worrisome development, considering BitGo is the leading industry provider of multisignature wallet solutions. Kraken claims to be moving to a completely different system altogether, although it remains to be seen if the company will be successful in doing so.

No More BitGo for Kraken

The top priority for any cryptocurrency exchange is to ensure customer funds are safe at all times. In most cases, these platforms opt for a multisignature cold storage solution, which is often provided by the BitGo company. This particular business has been at the forefront of securing cryptocurrency and digital asset holdings for quite some time now. However, it seems there is some sort of an impasse between this company and Kraken right now.

More specifically, Kraken sent out an email to customers last night explaining that everyone would need to generate a new Bitcoin deposit address moving forward. At first, a lot of people assumed this had been a phishing email sent out by scammers. After all, it hadn’t been mandatory to change one’s Bitcoin deposit address on Kraken for as long as most people could remember. However, it turns out this decision was legitimate.

To be more specific, Kraken is officially phasing out its relationship with BitGo. This is a somewhat troublesome turn of events, to say the very least. A lot of Kraken customers will not be all that happy with this decision, as they see BitGo as the industry leader for secure wallet solutions. Switching over to an alternative solution during a critical moment in Bitcoin history isn’t necessarily something most people will appreciate whatsoever.

According to the email, the company is moving Bitcoin and Tether funds to a different service offering similar benefits with multi-party signing. It is unclear which company or service that is exactly, though. It is important to note this decision has nothing to do with Kraken users losing funds or anything like that. Instead, this decision is seemingly part of a bigger move orchestrated by the exchange provider. It seems this decision has been in the making for quite some time now.

There is a chance all of this is the direct result of the ongoing political debate involving the SegWit2x hard fork. BitGo has been an outspoken supporter of this particular hard fork, even though the rest of the Bitcoin community hasn’t taken too kindly to the initiative so far. Do keep in mind this latter point has not been officially confirmed by either company, although it is a very distinct possibility given the current shenanigans taking place.

It will be interesting to see if other exchanges decide to drop BitGo as well moving forward. If Kraken’s choice was due to a difference in opinion regarding SegWit2x, it is not an unlikely scenario. Then again, nothing has been set in stone just yet and there are still plenty of things which could change in the future. Kraken is sending a very strong signal to the rest of the Bitcoin community, though; that much is evident.

ChonoMint is the interface for ChronoBank, which is an ecosystem of tools surrounding the company’s TIME token and upcoming LaborX platform. ChronoBank intends to create an ecosystem with its wide-ranging blockchain project, aimed at disrupting the HR recruitment and finance industries. They are targeting not only e-commerce but also warehousing, industrial and logistics markets.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

The system is based on an established model called ‘time banking’, in which workers trade hours of labor for goods and services. However, ChronoBank updates time banking by removing its inflexibilities and limitations. While time banking requires that one hour of labor be equal to any other, without regard to the industry in question or performance of the individual, ChronoBank can leverage the blockchain to engender a truly free market approach to the idea. This makes it sustainable for the needs of the 21st-century global economy.

As the interface for this smart contract management system, ChronoMint has a variety of features. Firstly among these is the ability to manage ETH, BTC and any ERC20 token, not just the company’s own TIME. This will also include support for secure multi-signature features when using hardware keys, such as the Trezor and Ledger Nano S. In addition to the Ethereum ecosystem, the platform will also support LTC, BCH, upcoming BitCoin GOld and a number of other popular cryptocurrencies. The platform will also allow users to create their own ERC20 token, allowing for currency exchange with trade in pairs. By supporting hardware wallets, the company is ensuring that users will feel secure transacting on the platform. This is particularly important in light of the fact that this platform will be directed at transmitting wages.

The application is multi-platform, with desktop clients release coming up soon for both Mac OS and Windows. Mobile clients available Android platforms (with iOS release coming up soon). The mobile client is particularly impressive and highlights the efforts that the company has taken to comply with the most up-to-date rules in the Apple Store. The company has still been able to support 100% of the functionality of the desktop app, and the roadmap includes plans to integrate a full Ethereum lite note.

The team is sincere in their efforts to overhaul the current system for labor and payment. According to Sergei Sergienko, the Australia based CEO of ChronoBank, “We are all living in a world that is changing faster than ever before. Traditional ways of doing things are fast becoming obsolete, including the way we work and earn a living. I and our stellar team at ChronoBank have risen to the challenge of creating a fairer, more sustainable and better system for anyone to work, get paid and trade their only valuable resource, their Time. We believe that people should have better choices in their work/life balance, be paid according to their skills, receive pensions and pay taxes effortlessly.“
With partners including Waves, NEM and ICOpromo, the company is well poised to carve out a piece of the rapidly evolving blockchain labor force, and could well succeed in their efforts to upend the current order.

It is difficult to know for sure where the ICO ride will stop, but Initial Coin Offerings are an important development on the global start-up and fundraising landscape. Ignore the ICO trend at your peril. But participate with caution. Not all of these rollercoasters have been built with the same standards or safety checks, or within the bounds of relevant regulations. But amid the wild ride, regulators have shown tolerance and an interest in encouraging innovation.

No one can deny the 0x protocol has made an impressive impact in the cryptocurrency world already. A lot of projects have been built on top of this concept already. With the ecosystem growing and more Dapps getting built, interaction with 0x relayers becomes all the more important. Until now, there was no particularly convenient solution in this regard. The 0x Standard Relayer API may potentially change all that moving forward.

Interacting with 0x Relayers Through an API

In the world of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, APIs have quickly become the go-to solution for providing services and access to specific features. Virtually every major cryptocurrency platform available today has some form of API that users and developers can tap into. The 0x protocol is no different in this regard, as it now has its very own Standard Relayer API. This new tool serves many different purposes, including providing a more convenient interaction with relayers themselves.

Given the nature of the 0x protocol, such an API will be incredibly powerful moving forward. While the API is still in the early stages of development, there are some promising signs on the horizon already. The application program interface introduces a new set of defined methods of communication between the relayer and a program. It is mostly comprised of HTTP and WebSocket endpoints, according to this Medium post. For relayers, there will be a way to opt in to implementing this API, although there is no real incentive or requirement to do so under the current framework.

At the same time, it is of the utmost importance to give applications access to multiple liquidity sources right away. Without proper liquidity, there is no benefit to using 0x over centralized solutions right now. The API will connect multiple sources of liquidity with one another at the same time. This will be of great benefit to app developers making use of the 0x protocol for different purposes.

According to the team, this new API provides many advantages to relayers and others to improve the appeal of their individual trading platforms or cryptocurrency-related services. New relayers entering the market will also be able to interact with traders without any mandatory software or tool upgrades. That’s an interesting development, as simultaneous backward and forward compatibility is not something most people would expect to see in the world of cryptocurrency.

It is evident the cryptocurrency ecosystem as a whole stands to gain a lot from protocols such as 0x. Although there is still a lot of work to be done, the future is looking bright. That doesn’t mean the 0x protocol and its new API will be an unprecedented success, mind you. This new API certainly moves things along in the right direction, but the 0x protocol will not necessarily replace traditional exchanges overnight either. More competition is needed to create a decentralized trading ecosystem in the future.

It will be interesting to see what other developments arise in the world of cryptocurrency. APIs have proven to be incredibly successful features as of late, although they are not necessarily decentralized either. Over the years, we have seen multiple important APIs go down due to issues of some sort. Embedding such solutions into decentralized projects should help alleviate these concerns. Only time will tell if that happens, though.

DALLAS, TX – In February 2018, more than fifty of the world’s most respected blockchain developers, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists are coming together to show regular, private investors how they can get in on the blockchain revolution while it is on the ground floor and rake in handsome returns. Attendees who register before October 31st at midnight will lock in a $200 discount on their tickets.

The Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Blockchain Super Conference is organized by Richard Jacobs, publisher of the Future Tech Podcast and former manager of the official Bitcoin.com podcast. Headline speakers include: Tim Draper, the Billionaire venture capitalist, Erik Voorhees, one of the world’s most pre-eminent Bitcoin entrepreneurs, Charlie Shrem, founder of the Bitcoin Foundation, and more than fifty other thought leaders and respected players in the blockchain industry.

“The blockchain revolution is happening, and all signs point to 2018 being the year that cryptocurrency explodes into the mainstream”, said Mr. Jacobs. He adds: “This Super Conference is about bringing together the people who are actually leading this revolution, so they can show our attendees where the most exciting opportunities – and how they can get rich cryptocurrency gets too big.”

The Super Conference covers three days and includes an optional “beginners track” – a special orientation course those who are new to the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry and want to get up to speed quickly on how this industry works.

The main conference will feature more than 45 headline speakers, whose talks will all converge around the following theme: how can regular, Average-Joe investors get in on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and reap outlandish profits when blockchain technology enters the mainstream soon?

As well as the main conference and the beginners track, there will also be a complimentary hackathon for kids, teens, and young adults, providing them with the perfect opportunity to get their hands dirty with blockchain technology while gaining valuable experience in entrepreneurship.

Registration for the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Blockchain Super Conference is now open. Attendees who reserve their spot before the end of October will benefit from a discounted “Early Adopter” discount, a complimentary Super Conference t-shirt, and the chance to win cryptocurrency prizes. On top of that, just for the Merkle readers, we’re offering a 10% discount on conference tickets until Oct 31st. Use the code “superconinsider7” to avail the discount.

Ready to reserve your spot? Purchase your tickets over here:

https://www.bitcoinsuperconference.com/attendee-registration-page/?utm_source=Merkle-PR6

Use Discount Code “superconinsider7” to get 10% off your tickets.

Want to learn more about the conference? Join the free notification list over here:

https://www.bitcoinsuperconference.com/notification-list/?utm_source=Merkle-PR6

Press contact:

Richard Jacobs

[email protected]

(888) 984-0070

About the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Blockchain Super Conference:

This three-day conference will be held at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport from Friday February 16th to Sunday February 18th, 2018. We are expecting more than 800 attendees, at least 45 headline speakers, and upward of 50 exhibitors – with talks from founders, developers, and early-stage investors of blockchain startups, including many that are planning ICOs throughout 2018.

This is a sponsored press release and does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views held by any employees of The Merkle. This is not investment, trading, or gambling advice. Always conduct your own independent research.