Day: November 1, 2017

Finding an easy-to-use and reliable exchange is essential when incorporating cryptocurrency into everyday life.  There are many options available for novices and experts alike, leading you to believe that finding the right one for you might be tricky.  However, Decentrex is here to take the guesswork out of it for you.

The decentralized exchange platform aims to make trading with cryptocurrencies as easy as possible. There is no registration process, which means that there is no need to provide any of your private or sensitive information.  In addition, it is an open-source platform, allowing users the opportunity to even improve it somewhat.

Also, because of it being open source and the lack of registration process, the platform will not be in a position to ban users’ accounts as in the case of Bittrex.  This means that users will be able to use Decentrex in confidence without the lurking fear of their crypto funds being in danger, or being inaccessible at any time.

In addition, unlike other exchanges, there is no trading limit, which is great if you’re planning on trading substantial amounts. The platform also offers low, and in some cases no, fees.

By using a blockchain-based Ethereum smart contract, users will be able to trade efficiently, and transactions will always be recorded and available to view at any time on the blockchain. The platform is so user-friendly, you won’t even need to install any extensions on your regular browser as it works on any device and operating system.

The platform allows users to not only trade in ETH but also in any one of the ERC20 tokens issued through the Ethereum blockchain. Currently, there are 450 such tokens being supported and available to trade through Decentrex.  This could even increase the popularity and usability of some lesser-known tokens.  With this pool growing all the time, Decentrex will by default also be growing their offerings at the same time.

Even though the website is great, you don’t necessarily need it to trade.  All you need is a Decentrex smart contract and you’ll be ready to go.  This makes it is even easier to trade with the wide variety of ERC20 tokens out there.

If you’re new to the crypto-industry, or would just like to chat about anything industry related, Decentrex can help with that too.  They’ve recently installed a Kiwi IRC-powered chat channel to discuss topics in an uncensored environment.

The post Decentrex Seems to Be Pioneering a New Age of Exchange appeared first on NEWSBTC.

Bitcoin enthusiasts of Great Britain will have today been pleased to witness the most popular cryptocurrency speed past the exciting but largely trivial milestone of £5,000 – albeit briefly. Coinmarketcap, one of the industry’s favoured price referencing websites, recorded an all-time high for BTC of $6,645.40 earlier on Wednesday. According to currency conversion website XE.com, this equates to approximately £5,014. The high point came at around 16:35 London time but at several points since around 11am, the price crossed the £5,000 ($6,622) threshold. It has since pulled back slightly and at the time of writing, a single Bitcoin will set buyers back around £4,961.

British news juggernaut, the BBC, reported the “historic moment of sorts”, providing yet more mainstream attention for the cryptocurrency space in the nation’s press. They detailed the meteoric rise of the virtual currency, highlighting its previous bull-runs in August, September, and the enormous upwards pressure seen in general since the beginning of 2017. Garrick Hileman, a research fellow at the prestigious University of Cambridge told the publication:

It’s been a very innovative year – there have been a lot of new technology platforms for cryptocurrencies, which have lifted Bitcoin… It wouldn’t surprise me if the price were to go even higher.

He’s hardly alone in his outlook, although few who share the professor’s background have the same optimism. Notable and respected state-side economics lecturers see the current enthusiasm as misplaced. However, there are no shortage of bulls’ voices coming to support Hileman’s opinion from the US side of the pond. Most notable perhaps are John McAfee with his audacious bet in which he’ll consume his private parts on live TV if Bitcoin doesn’t reach half a million dollars by 2020 and Max Keiser, the famous RT News analyst who makes regular optimistic reports about his price predictions for the digital currency without offering quite the same bold stakes.

Bitcoin has shrugged off many challenges since January of this year to reach the all-time highs recorded today. Of these, there’s been hostility from several nations, including once-vital China, competition from the likes of Ethereum, and even the blockchain itself splitting numerous times. Each time the fear and uncertainty of one such event strikes, the price of Bitcoin struggles momentarily before assuming its upwards trajectory. This pattern seemingly proves the old Nietzsche adage: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

The post Bitcoin Tops British Milestone appeared first on NEWSBTC.

Celebrities who endorse initial coin offerings may be in violation of the law, the SEC said today.

Allegations of the Trump Administration colluding with Russia to influence the 2016 election have flared up again. While that’s intriguing in its own right, it’s far more interesting to take a look at how some social media and other online businesses are behaving in the wake of this news. Facebook, for example, seems to be on the defensive.

Being an online media outlet can be rough

Facebook and other online outlets have become very defensive in the wake of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the 2016 election. The company has good reason to do so, since it’s been suggested Facebook may have acted as a vehicle for Russian propaganda influencing the votes of its users. Whether or not such allegations are substantiated remains up to investigative and judicial bodies, but they are certainly worth taking seriously.

However, it is not only the Russia story that can put online platforms like Facebook into awkward situations. Literally any misinformation campaign on the part of an institutional or local actor can lead to a scandal for these sorts of websites. Are sites then responsible for misinformation campaigns on their platforms?

Unregulated and unvetted content

One particular area in which misinformation campaigns thrive is advertising. This is probably the most mediated and vetted category of content on social media sites, but it is worth noting that sometimes keeping up with all inbound advertising proposals can be difficult. Things can slip through, and sneaky content can influence.

Another important source is user-generated content. Pages, posts, comments, and so forth can all be incredibly influential. Even small voices can find each other and become loud, chaotic juggernauts of influence. It does not matter if they are correct or factual, as once they’ve started they can be nearly impossible to stop. Social websites are not legally responsible for checking the validity of the claims they publish, but should they?

The problem that we may just have to deal with

I am a big advocate of doing your own research and having your own discussions. If you see something, talk about it, and think it through. Taking something at face value just because someone else said it can be dangerous.

Popular websites currently have the dilemma of whether or not they are responsible for user-generated content. I think that they should focus more attention on vetting their advertisement data and verifying sources of that data, but I do not like a world where all user-generated data needs to be approved. That too quickly lends itself to websites only publishing the ideas they agree with, regardless of fact.

I would rather live in a world where online speech freedoms are not impeded upon, but in one where we all do a better job of being a critical judge of the content we consume.

Back taxes on Bitcoins? IRS is ramping up search, enforcement measures for tax cheats who use digital currency.

New Zealand’s chief financial regulator has published new guidelines for local initial coin offerings (ICOs).

Another boost for Bitcoin came this week when the world’s largest derivatives exchange operator CME Group Inc. announced that they plan to launch a futures contract based on Bitcoin by the end of the year. This marks a major step towards legitimizing cryptocurrencies which helped push Bitcoin to another new record price level.

Traders use futures to bet on whether the price of a commodity such as oil or gold will rise or fall. They allow “long” investors, who think the price of a commodity will rise, to match their bets against “shorts,” who expect a price drop. The introduction of a US-based futures contract for Bitcoin will enable Wall Street trading firms and banks to protect themselves against volatile price swings with the digital currency. It would also facilitate easier trading for retail investors.

The new cash contract will be based on the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRR), a daily updated price rate of Bitcoin to USD. Rival exchange group CBOE Holdings Inc. are also competing to be the first official marketplace to offer to trade in the cryptocurrency.

Industry analysts have supported the move stating that it is going to help tremendously with institutional support and may help manage the volatility that some institutions see that as a hiccup. The massive rally Bitcoin has seen this year has caused a huge divide among Wall Street heavyweights.

It is no surprise that Bankers such as JP Morgan Chase Chief Executive James Dimon has publically denounced Bitcoin, calling it a fraud. It was later reported that not to miss an opportunity, the firm then proceeded to invest in it after causing a price dip with these comments – market manipulation at the highest level.

Prices marched upwards again on the back of the CME news and Bitcoin broke another barrier trading above $6,400 and continuing to show bullish momentum. In September CME President Bryan Durkin told Bloomberg that they would not be moving forward with futures contracts in Bitcoin. However the change of tack has been a result of a surge in demand; “Given increasing client interest in the evolving crypto-currency markets, we have decided to introduce a Bitcoin futures contract,” stated company CEO, Terry Duffy.

The move will ultimately enable more people to feel comfortable holding Bitcoin and open up blockchain technology to the masses. This can only drive prices even further up for the King of Coins and hopefully, its smaller siblings will follow.

The post CME Group Announcement Pushes Bitcoin Price to All Time High appeared first on NEWSBTC.

In a break from tradition, one of the planet’s leading tech-manufacturers are attempting to show that there’s life remaining in their products, even after most users have deemed them obsolete. At their recent developer’s conference, Samsung debuted a range of ways consumers could re-purpose their older devices. Known as the C-Lab, the team of visionaries showed off a facial recognition unit created using an old mobile phone, and a Galaxy S3 which had been “upcycled” into a fishtank control unit/photography suite.

Most interestingly of all perhaps was the cryptocurrency mining rig created from 40 Samsung Galaxy S5s. According to an information sheet provided at the conference, the creative division of the electronics giant estimate that it takes just eight S5s to mine at a greater efficiency than a desktop computer. Based on the specifications on display, the rig that the team showed off sounds like it would struggle to compete with the vast ASIC farms used to mine Bitcoin. However, it seems it would perform just fine mining any other proof-of-work coin and there are no shortage of options for users to choose from.

According to Kyle Wiens of iFixit, the problem with old electronics is often not with the hardware itself but with the software. This makes it incredibly wasteful to just let them gather dust in a drawer waiting for three days use when you accidentally leave your main-piece down the side of your mate’s couch at the weekend. The components comprising modern devices are still powerful. However, various insecurities within the operating systems don’t allow support for the most up to date applications. Wiens posited the question to Motherboard:

If you have this perfectly functional piece of hardware that doesn’t have good software anymore and you want to keep it running for ten years, how do you do that?

The answer is exactly what C-Lab is working towards. They plan on releasing designs for various upcycling projects as well as all the necessary software to wipe the old Android operating system off units, and replace it with programming that allows for its re-purposing. Wiens explained that the company had setup a placeholder github page with videos showing the potential uses for products which have been rendered obsolete. He continued to state that the project was completely open and would allow users to make and upload their projects and share their ideas with the community. This would allow all those “redundant” 2 to 3-year-old handsets and tablets to retain some value. Something that Wiens deems important given the pace of innovation in the technology industry and the cost of new devices:

The best thing for the planet is for your old devices to be worth as much as possible. There’s a direct correlation between secondary market value and environmental longevity. [Samsung] wants to maintain the value of their devices long term. If they know they’re going to justify a new price of a thousand dollars for a new Note, it’s easier to get people to spend that thousand dollars if they can resell it for five hundred.

Image: ShutterStock

The post Samsung Create Mining Rig From “Upcycled” Handsets appeared first on NEWSBTC.

Without any prior warning, it appears the State Bank of Vietnam has recently submitted a legislative proposal to the country’s government meant to ban a wide range of digital currency-related activities.

Expensive Fines to be given

Recent reports indicate that starting January 1, the supply, issuance, and use of Bitcoin and other digital currencies as a method of payment will be subject to fines ranging from 150 million to 200 million dong, which is approximately equivalent to US$6,600-$8,800. Additionally, it seems the bank is advocating for legislative amendments to the penal code which would make certain activities relating to digital currency a crime.

It is important to point out the fact that holding digital currencies within the country will not be punishable under the new law. However, the legislative framework meant to amend decrees 80/2016 and 96/2014 will likely lead to a decrease in digital currency use in Vietnam.

According to Vietnam’s central bank, Bitcoin is difficult to control and can lead to illegal financing, money laundering, tax evasion and more. If bitcoin were to be accepted as a currency within the country, it is believed Vietnam’s monetary policy would be impacted by the difficulty of controlling the world’s leading cryptocurrency.

While there were other factors behind this decision, many believe that the bank’s decision came as a result of FPT University’s decision to accept bitcoin as a means of payment for tuition.

This can be considered a departure from the prevailing trend in Asia, where a few countries have begun adopting permissive regulations for digital currency use, thus turning certain parts of the region into hubs for bitcoin use and fintech projects.

Based on everything outlined here, what are your thoughts on the State Bank’s decision to ban the use of cryptocurrencies in Vietnam? Do let us know in the comments.

Journalist Sid Kalla claims that the Winklevoss twins are already Bitcoin billionaires.

Miami, Florida – November 1st, 2017: – Centra Tech, Inc., the developers behind one of the world’s first multi-blockchain digital asset/cryptocurrency Prepaid Cards, is excited to introduce the new and improved digital assets wallet: Centra Wallet 2.0.

Centra Wallet 2.0 Enhancements:  

●    New and improved User Interface
●    Improved cryptocurrency processing
●    Enhanced security
●    Ability to dynamically add cryptocurrencies at anytime
●    Many more minor improvements

The upgrade to the Centra Wallet App includes core improvements to user experience, security, and overall functionality. International customers will soon be able to use their access codes to enable a fully functioning digital asset wallet with the capability to store and transact with major cryptocurrencies. The currently supported cryptocurrencies include: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, Monero, Zcash, Ripple, and Centra.

Centra Wallet 2.0 is available for download on iOS and Android.

Future Centra Wallet Features:

The Centra Tech team will continue to roll out incremental updates that improve the world’s most dynamic digital assets wallet. The upcoming updates will introduce the following new features:

• US customers using their access codes to enable a fully functioning digital asset wallet
• Centra Virtual Cards, which will allow customers to utilize Centra Pay to use NFC at accepted retailers/points-of-sale to pay for goods directly from their Centra Wallet.
• Adding an additional 4 digital assets by the end of the year.
• Ability to instantly buy and sell supported digital assets within the Centra Wallet using a linked bank account (no more wait times).

Other Centra Releases:

November kicks off a long list of future planned releases by Centra Tech, such as starting to ship the Centra international Prepaid Cards, the live alpha of Centra’s very own trading platform (Centra Network), the beta launch of Centra Market, and Centra Tokens being added to additional digital currency exchanges.

About Centra Tech

Founded in 2016, Centra is a cryptocurrency payment and commerce platform allowing users to buy, exchange and spend cryptocurrencies in real-time. Customers can use Centra Cards virtually with the Centra Wallet® or a physical Centra Card anywhere MasterCard® is accepted. The Centra ecosystem also features Centra Market, a cryptocurrency commerce platform and Centra Network, a centralized and decentralized cryptocurrency exchange. Centra raised over US$40 million in a successful Token Sale. Centra Tech is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

Website: https://www.centra.tech/

Android Wallet: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.CentraTech.CentraWallet

iOS Wallet: https://itunes.apple.com/app/centra-wallet/id1289078825?mt=8

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.