Day: November 10, 2017

Bitcoin Core only has 6 months left as ‘Bitcoin’ at the most, says Bitcoin Classic as it shuts down.

With so much progress being made in the world of science and technology, it is not surprising that we would see some very strange developments from time to time. Power suits capable of flight are not all that uncommon these days. A new Guinness World Record for the fastest speed attained in such a suit was recently recorded by English inventor Richard Browning – or as most people know him, the real-life Iron Man.

Human Flight is Coming a lot Closer

One of the things our species has never been able to successfully achieve on our own is flight. More specifically, we can’t fly by ourselves without relying on helicopters, airplanes, kites, and whatnot for even brief amounts of time. Flying on demand whenever and wherever we want is not something most consumers will get to enjoy anytime soon. Then again, Richard Browning recently showed it can be done, even though there are certain risks involved.

More specifically, Browning made a lot of media headlines for developing his very own Iron Man suit. Although this may sound like an overstatement – he doesn’t look as technologically advanced as Tony Stark in this regard – all of the functionality seems to be there. Browning’s power suit is capable of flight over pretty decent distances and at a shockingly high speed. In fact, his suit recently set a new speed record which was promptly recorded in the Guinness World Record book.

The record was set at Lagoona Park, Reading, where Browning achieved a top speed of 32.02 miles per hour while flying in his power suit. It took three runs to do so successfully, as this power suit isn’t without its flaws whatsoever. The first and second attempts failed due to a mistimed run and even a drop into a lake. This just highlights how difficult it is to not only create a working power suit but also control it effectively. Achieving such a high speed with nothing to break one’s fall if things go awry is pretty scary, to say the very least.

As of this week, Browning is the proud holder of the Guinness World Records title for “fastest speed in a body-controlled jet engine power suit”. As this is a brand new title, it’s not entirely surprising that few people will have heard of it before. It will be interesting to see whether or not anyone will try and take the crown from Browning in the future. There will be plenty of people who will look at this feat and think they can improve upon his power suit in general.

Rest assured Browning will not sit idly by. His goal is to ensure his power suit achieves a speed of several hundred miles per hour. This is a speed which is achieved by wearing a metal suit, which will not entirely protect one’s body from crashing into things. Daedalus, as the suit is known, should be capable of flying at thousands of feet as well. It sounds incredibly dangerous, which would explain why there are only a handful of people planning to work on similar technology.

Daedalus’s further development will be funded through parent company Gravity. The firm has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep working on the suit’s design and improve its functionality. The plan is still to create a commercially viable suit in the near future, which will effectively give birth to flying humans. An interesting future lies ahead in this regard, assuming things ever get to that level.

Highly regarded investors and financial analysts including billionaire investor Mike Novogratz and RT’s Max Keiser firmly believe that the bitcoin price could achieve the $10,000 mark in the short-term.

As Novogratz told CNBC:

“I’m pretty confident to say it’s going higher…It would not surprise me if in the next 6-10 months we are over $10,000.”

SegWit2x Out of Sight, Institutional Investors Rushing In

The basis of the $10,000 interim price target of leading analysts and investors like Keiser and Novogratz are based on the entrance of large-scale institutional and retail traders into the bitcoin market.

Analysts predict that the launch of bitcoin futures exchanges by CME Group and CBOE, two of the largest options exchange in the world by trading volume, would drastically increase liquidity for institutional and retail traders, potentially leading to tens of billions of dollars being invested in bitcoin in the short to mid-term.

It is important to acknowledge that the liquidity of bitcoin has increased significantly over the past few months, with only a handful of multi-billion dollar institutional investors and hedge funds in the bitcoin market. The daily trading volume of bitcoin is on par with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), the most liquid stock on earth, at around $3.4 billion.

The SegWit2x hard fork, which was supposed to occur on November 16, was canceled by its supporters and leading businesses including Blockchain, Xapo, ShapeShift, and BitGo. SegWit2x presented uncertainty to investors and traders within the bitcoin market, given that a sell-off from B2X dividend-expecting investors was a certainty. Several analysts expected a drop of around 10 percent.

Upon the cancellation of SegWit2x, the price of bitcoin surged to a new all-time high at $7,900, prior to plunging to $7,200. But, the major correction that occurred on November 9 should be seen as a positive indicator for the short-term growth of bitcoin, given that the major correction or sell-off from B2X-expecting investors had already occurred and it barely impact the price trend of bitcoin.

Bitcoin Futures and Mainstream Adoption of Bitcoin in Japan Will Push Price to $10,000

A price target of $10,000 by the end of 2017 is a possibility that cannot be ruled out, considering that the US market, the second largest bitcoin market with over 25 percent market share, is extremely optimistic in regards to the futures exchange launch of CME and the impact it will have on the bitcoin market in the long run.

Additionally, as NewsBTC reported earlier today, Japan has been experiencing a rapid mainstream adoption of bitcoin and the cryptocurrency market, triggered by the Japanese government’s practical regulatory frameworks and the implementation of bitcoin as a payment method by leading conglomerates.

If the Japanese and US markets continue to perform at the current pace in the upcoming months, $10,000 is a likely short-term target. The adoption of SegWit by major bitcoin businesses like BitGo could also act as a minor factor in shaping the upward momentum of bitcoin price in the upcoming weeks.

The post How Bitcoin Price Could Reach $10,000 by the End of 2017 appeared first on NEWSBTC.

Bobby Lee, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange BTCC, spoke about buying bitcoin and China’s regulatory crackdown in a speech last weekend.

A lot of people are keeping a close eye on the Bitcoin price right now. Unfortunately, things are not heading in the direction most enthusiasts would like to see. With the SegWit2x frustration still pretty visible in the community, the Bitcoin price is taking a serious beating as of late. Over the past 24 hours, the price has dropped below $7,000 once again It is unclear how things will evolve from here on out, but more bearish momentum is not out of the question.

Bitcoin Price Leaves the $7,000 Range

The year 2017 has been incredibly bullish for the Bitcoin price and this trend is still pretty much intact. Right now, things look a lot different for most people who fail to see the bigger picture. With the Bitcoin price falling below $7,000 for the first time in over a week, things are looking a bit worrisome. It is possible the Bitcoin price will recover pretty quickly, though, but no one knows for sure how things will play out in the coming days and weeks.

Over the past 24 hours, the Bitcoin price has taken a rather big nosedive out of the blue. Ever since the SegWit2x cancellation plans have been made public, people assumed there would be some form of Bitcoin price correction. Even though the fork will still happen on the 15th as originally planned, it will seemingly have a much smaller impact compared to what people would expect.

The displeasure of not getting free coins will annoy a lot of people, which is only to be expected. That being said, the Bitcoin Gold fork will go live tomorrow, although the snapshot of the blockchain required to claim free coins has been taken a few weeks ago. There is no real reason to keep inflating the Bitcoin price now due to expectations of free airdrops. An interesting situation, although an annoying one as well.

With $3.735bn in 24-hour trading volume, the demand to buy and sell Bitcoin is still there right now. Unfortunately, it seems most of the volume is made up of sales rather than actual buys. As we have seen in the past with Bitcoin, such a situation can change pretty quickly without any major problems. Whether or not the Bitcoin price will start moving up again over the weekend, remains the big unknown factor for the time being. After all, weekends are notorious for unusual trading activity in every possible way.

Surprisingly, Bithumb is not the leading exchange for Bitcoin trading volume right now. They pretty much dominate all major altcoin markets right now, although they are still in second place for the Bitcoin trading volume. Bitfinex is clearly in the lead, although their $58m lead over Bithumb could melt like snow in the sun a lot quicker than people expect. An interesting situation to keep an eye on over the coming hours, that much is certain.

In the end, the aspect most people care about is whether or not the Bitcoin price will go up or down even further. Right now, either option is very likely, although it seems plausible to assume there will be some more negative market pressure on the market for several hours, if not days. People who like to speculate on the Bitcoin price will be happy with this lower price point to buy back in the near future. What that price point will be, remains to be seen.

The net worth of Mark Karpeles could run into the hundreds of millions of dollars thanks to a 200,000 stash of bitcoins the disgraced CEO is still sitting on. Those coins are the subject of ongoing legal proceedings in Japan which could see claimants receive less than $500 per coin for their losses. With over $1.4 billion worth of bitcoins on the line, the beleaguered Mt Gox boss has been the subject of fresh vitriol.

Also read: Mark Karpeles Open Letter to Coinlab Looks to Settle Lawsuit for $5M

Mark of the Devil

Mt Gox: two words that many early bitcoin adopters still shudder to hear. One of bitcoin’s most notorious bête noires, Mark Karpeles has been persona non grata ever since the exchange collapsed in 2014. Since then, customers who lost their holdings in what was the world’s largest bitcoin exchange have been pursuing Karpeles and his failed company through the courts. Mt Gox famously shut down after conceding that 850,000 bitcoins had been stolen, but later ‘discovered’ 200k of them in the manner that one might discover some spare change down the back of the sofa.

The ownership of these bitcoins is hotly disputed, with former customers of the exchange adamant that this stash belongs to them and insisting that they should be recompensed to the fullest extent possible. At present however those coins are under the control of a company overseen by none other than Mark Karpeles. With bitcoin having risen approximately 17 times in value since the Mt Gox days, Karpeles theoretically has enough funds to pay back every customer who lost out – but only to the original dollar value of their lost bitcoins.

Stash and Crash

The bumbling CEO of Mt Gox repeatedly lost thousands of bitcoins due to hacks, incompetence and deception during his tenure. Remarkably though, Karpeles seems to have had no trouble in clinging on to the remaining 200,000 bitcoins for the last three years. With bitcoin now north of $7,000, Karpeles is in no hurry to relinquish his remaining stash if he can help it. In court, the Frenchman stated that it is common practice for bankrupt companies to sell off their assets at a large discount.

This raises the possibility of large tranches of the coins being dumped onto the market by liquidators. The prospect of this impacting market prices, however, seems unlikely. Such concerns were raised after the FBI seized 144,000 bitcoins from Silk Road boss Ross Ulbricht in 2013, at a time when the bitcoin markets had much less liquidity. The feds eventually auctioned off the coins, including one batch of 44,000 bitcoins, which made their way back into circulation without incident.

Living the Good Life

During his tenure at Mt Gox, Mark Karpeles grew accustomed to living the good life, splashing the cash on personal indulgences and vanity projects. Prosecutors assert that as much as $3 million of customer funds was lavished on servicing the lifestyle of the man once known as Magical Tux.

When the dust has settled after the long-running trial and creditors have been (partially) paid back, the remaining assets will likely go to the shareholders of Mt Gox. Its largest shareholder? Mark Karpeles. If the fallen CEO were to walk away with hundreds of millions of dollars, it would stick in the craw of Mt Gox’s customers, as if they needed another to hate the former Bitcoin Foundation member. Whatever the outcome of the Mt Gox trial, it appears the only real winner will be Mark Karpeles.

Do you think Mark Karpeles should be entitled to keep any of Mt Gox’ assets? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Mt Gox.

Need to know the price of bitcoin? Check this chart.

The post The Only Winner in the Mt Gox Trial is Mark Karpeles appeared first on Bitcoin News.

It’s not uncommon to meet a victim of the innovation world. Someone with a great idea, but unable to find the necessary investors or the appropriate platform or help. Eventually the idea either dies, or is picked up by a large conglomerate, and the initial entrepreneur is left behind.

This isn’t an uncommon problem because the existing tools in the crowdfunding and innovation marketplace are woefully inadequate. Entrepreneurs have difficulty at almost every turn – finding investors, marketing their products, and finally getting sales – its all difficult. In fact, 29% of startups fail simply for lack of investment.

Decentralized partnerships

However, a new Blockchain based platform has appeared on the horizon, promising to solve the issues that innovators face in the current marketplace. Crowdholding, a two year old startup, is creating a new decentralized platform where entrepreneurs, investors, and consumers can work together to create the next major innovations.

The platform is a peer-to-peer validation and investment system designed to allow supporters from anywhere in the world to access and support innovative thinking. Supporters can offer feedback, give criticism, and voice their opinions. The power of the crowd – to validate, test, and invest in products – can be put to work to help build new and innovative value propositions.

Best of all, companies not only receive from the public through responsive interaction (the ‘crowd’), but are also able to give back to the public through an incentivized platform. By offering incentives, companies are able to create simple and direct pathways for consumers to participate intellectually and financially, and receive rewards for their participation.

The dynamics 

The dynamics of the system are unique. Within the Crowdholding ecosystem, companies are free to release their products for public consideration. With the release, companies can offer some percentage of earnings as a reward for participants. The ‘crowd’ analyzes the product, provides feedback, and offers ideas. In return, the company offers the contributors the pledged percentage, and the ‘crowd’ earns, even as it evaluates.

For the crowd, the platform offers some excellent benefits. Participants can have an amazing portfolio of products they have directly influenced. Further, rather than simply free testing and evaluation, participants can receive monetized rewards through YUPIE tokens, the cryptocurrency from the platform. Finally, crowd participants have first access to new products before the market is able to grab ahold.

For businesses, there’s much to be gained as well. First, products undergo rigorous testing in a simple format. Ideas about the product, market feedback, and new enhancements can be added in order to dramatically improve the salability of the concept. Further, the platform offers business owners a means of nearly free advertising, as real consumers are made aware of the product in a direct and meaningful way.

The way forward

For many entrepreneurs struggling through the muck of the startup world, hope is hard to come by. But the power of Crowdholding promises to bring consumers and innovators together in a whole new way. By providing a vehicle for helpful and incentivized interaction, Crowdholding promises to be the seedbed for the best up and coming products.

The post Rethinking Innovation: How Crowdfunding And Innovators Come Together appeared first on NEWSBTC.

After setting a new record high of $7,879 Wednesday, bitcoin’s price has dropped below $6,800 today.

The U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, has said his department is looking into the illegal uses of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin.