Month: November 2017

New investment in Blockchain research has interested the Russian State Duma while its general prosecutor says Bitcoin is used to launder income.

While there are countries strongly against the use of digital currencies, others are preparing their infrastructures for a smooth adoption. An example of the latter approach is Iran, which, according to its Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Technology, is preparing for mass adoption of cryptocurrencies.

In a recent press statement, Amir Hossein Davaee noted:

The ministry of communications and information technology has already conducted a number of research studies as part of efforts to prepare the infrastructure to use Bitcoin inside the country. . . . Arrangement are being made with the related organizations to put together the infrastructure as early as possible.

He went on to state that at this time, digital currencies have two main aspects, infrastructural and economic. Moreover, digital currency infrastructure is part of a country’s soft power, and therefore its entry in the market will benefit Iran.

Currently, we are not sure what Iran’s infrastructure consists of in regards to Bitcoin and the blockchain, but some experts believe that it entails positive regulation meant to ensure a smooth adoption, protecting both business and consumer interests.

Based on everything that has been outlined here, what do you personally think about Iran’s positive attitude toward digital currencies? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

With the digital spotlight being focused on Bitcoin in recent weeks, its smaller sibling Litecoin has fallen by the wayside. Trading has been flat and it has failed to gain traction in either direction, currently sitting around $55 where it has been languishing for the past fortnight.

The world’s fifth largest cryptocurrency may be in store for a well-needed lift after a major South Korean exchange enabled direct LTC trading. Since the doors in China were unceremoniously slammed shut on crypto trading last month South Korea has taken up the lion’s share of that trade, surpassing China to become the third largest Bitcoin market.

South Korea’s second-largest exchange, Coinone, recently added Litecoin to its platform, processing $3.2 million dollars in trade during the first 24 hours. The country is big on Litecoin, with the top exchange Bithumb accounting for over a quarter of global LTC trades. In fact, Bithumb is even bigger than Bittrex in terms of 24 hour USD volume with over $580 million traded according to Crypto Coin Charts. Bithumb settles $38.5 million in LTC to KRW trades per day, a trading volume that is over twice as a large as that of GDAX, Coinbase’s flagship digital currency exchange. Bithumb is also largely responsible for the rapid growth of Bitcoin Cash and was hugely influential on the adoption of other altcoins such as Qtum.

Coinone, though not as big, offers something slightly different, an offline trading exchange that appeals to traditional investors and retail traders. A direct customer service is available from headquarters in Seoul, this would be heaven for anyone that has tried and failed to get anywhere near customer service from other exchanges such as Coinbase.

This is all good news for Litecoin though it has yet to be reflected in the price, higher trading volumes do not guarantee higher prices. The trend is the key factor here and with Litecoin being the silver to Bitcoin’s gold, processing four times faster, it should start to make gains soon. In addition to its liquidity, the integration of LTC will be a long-awaited boost in the mid to long-term future for the altcoin. The coin has integrated the Bitcoin core development team’s scaling solutions (SegWit) and is exploring further technology to improve security and increase efficiency for its users. Bitcoin maybe be the current King of coins but there is light at the end of the tunnel for Litecoin

Image Credits: Shutterstock

The post Litecoin Shows No Optimism to South Korean Exchange Announcement appeared first on NEWSBTC.

The bitcoin gold development team has announced that it is adding support for two-way replay protection ahead of the network’s expected launch.

With a total market capitalization of US$143 billion, the crypto market is expanding constantly. Despite all its problems, there doesn’t seem to be any limit to its expansion. However, today’s cryptocurrency exchanges must also function as brokers and exchangers.

As a result, despite all its growth, the cryptocurrency market is not developing as fast as one might desire. For comparison’s sake, consider the good old Forex which is regulated by law in various countries. Currently, there are 8,000 Forex brokers in the world, and the operations of the ten major brokers total US$15 billion per day. Thus, the daily turnover of just one top 10 broker exceeds the total turnover of the most popular crypto exchanges.

The broker services market can also be evaluated. At present, there are over 12,000 different brokerage firms. Of these, the vast majority offer their clients a broad range of financial instruments including currencies.

Those instruments can be used at any time. They are also regulated, have been in circulation long enough for the market to adapt, and exist within a larger ecosystem of applications. But how can we ensure that cryptocurrencies can be used as financial instruments which are accessible to all? Read on to learn more about some of the problems in this area as well as the solutions offered by the B2BX project.

Firstly, traders and investors are currently unable to work through familiar mechanisms to deposit and withdraw funds. Although it is possible to work with cryptocurrency, the exchanges mentioned above are not as a rule subject to any regulation.

The second issue relates to liquidity when selling or buying a particular asset. B2BX will solve this problem through the integration of the service with major trading platforms and liquidity aggregators, uniting brokers, exchanges, and financial institutions on a single platform. In turn, this paves the way for the formation of a deep order book for cryptocurrencies.

When a broker connects to the B2BX aggregator, he or she will receive the necessary funds and hedge a limited volume. This is possible because the aggregator draws liquidity from top crypto exchanges. The more institutional clients there are in the ecosystem, the greater the amount of liquidity that can be obtained within the aggregator.

The third major problem concerns technical complications related to the integration of cryptocurrencies with conventional financial instruments. Despite the availability of a large number of technical specialists with sufficient experience, many companies simply lack the time to adapt or write software for the cryptocurrency sector. Although more than a few such tools exist already, they are not unified and many have security problems. Moreover, some programs simply cannot handle the necessary workload. What’s more, clients who wish to work on cryptocurrency platforms must register first. Often, the user verification procedure is quite complex. If a major client wishes to open accounts on three to five exchanges, they’ll have to spend a few months on each.

The remedy proposed by B2BX is unification of all protocols into a single standard. B2BX will be aggregating and processing protocols from different exchanges and providers while offering brokers a single standard FIX API protocol.

As a basic solution, B2BX uses an aggregator from SoftFX integrated with the five largest crypto exchanges. The aggregator utilizes a FIX API protocol to facilitate the further distribution of liquidity to other systems and aggregators. This isn’t just speculation; it’s reality.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored article.

Switzerland’s latest crypto offering, Blockchain-based investment platform TEND, is looking to cement regulatory compliance.

Following thorough research into what blockchains are capable of, financial institutions throughout the world have started offering blockchain-based services to the public. Recent reports indicate that the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (Cysec) is planning to introduce distributed ledger technology to its electronic payment system.

Cysec partners with BARAC

At this time, Cysec is actively exploring the benefits of blockchain technology. As a member of the European Securities and Markets Authority, it’s also participating in various international research projects. To develop and launch its blockchain technology mechanism, the regulator has partnered up with the Blockchain Technology for Algorithmic Regulation and Compliance Association, also known as BARAC.

A recent BARAC press statement noted: 

Blockchain Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLT) are of great interest to the financial industry because they have the potential to improve efficiency, augment security, eliminate duplications, simplify compliance and increase settlement speed, transparency and verifiability while preserving privacy and anonymity.

Thanks to the introduction of blockchain technology for Cysec electronic payments, users will benefit from quicker transaction speeds, lower fees, and more transparent payments.

Apart from preparing to launch its blockchain service to the public to facilitate electronic payments both inside the country and across borders, Cysec also has a positive attitude towards initial coin offerings (ICOs). The regulator’s director, Demetra Kalogirou, stated:

We think it’s a product, a way to raise small funds to finance start-ups. . . . 2018 is the time to put crowdfunding in place. We have given it priority.

If things proceed this way, chances are that Cyprus will become an attractive location for fintech companies throughout the world and an ICO hub as well.

Based on everything outlined above, what do you think about the blockchain system Cyprus is developing? How about its potential to become an ICO hub? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Content creators, moderators and commentators will get cryptocurrency rewards for quality content.

Moscow – Oct. 25, 2017 – MDK, one of the largest Russian entertainment communities of over 20 million social media users, today announced the plans to create a new mobile app and to launch a new blockchain project decentralizing social media value and allowing participants to earn cryptocurrency rewards for active content creation, moderation and amplification.

The company is creating the MDK application – a platform for digital communications and commerce that delivers value to the creators, users, moderators, and businesses, and coordinates their actions. MDK app includes an internal reward system to motivate members for useful actions.

In order to launch the app, MDK token pre-sale aimed to raise $1M will start on November 7th. MDK token will serve as an internal currency of the application. Community members can earn tokens for creating quality content, active participation in moderation and commenting.

Market and Motivation

Social media content is created mainly by users. More relevant and engaging content generates more traffic and increases the revenues of social media giants. Facebook has gained $26.9B and VK – $155M in advertising revenue in 2016. Ad spend worldwide has been increasing steadily and is expected to reach almost $550BN USD in 2017.

MDK has developed the platform concept, where contributors can monetize their efforts and gain rewards for what they deliver. The project’s idea is to decentralize economic value and governance in social media and share them among the users. The key target is to establish the new global digital mass market. Therefore, the project’s key audience is not limited with the existing players of cryptocurrency market, but aims to comprise broader audience of internet users.

«Every day we receive thousands of news and memes from creators who wish to share the content with millions of users. Many are talented, but gain little attention or compensation in the existing social media. We envision a platform where everyone can share their content – and it will be up to users to decide its value. Although we don’t want to become yet another posting platform. We are empowering users to create memes, stories, videos, to grow the community, and to share its economic value”, says CEO and co-owner of MDK Roberto Panchvidze.

MDK Token

A total of 1 billion MDK tokens based on Ethereum will be issued. They will serve as an internal currency of the MDK application. Tokens will be accumulated on the platform and distributed between the active contributors through internal reward system. Thus, the MDK community members will be motivated to create quality content. It will attract more users, advertisers and business support, driving the token value on a daily basis.

All purchases in the ecosystem will be made by tokens. MDK users will be able to spend MDK Tokens on internal purchases, premium content, customizing and developing their profiles, promoting their content, and buying products, services, and other valuable assets offered by merchants and other members.

The key innovation is that common users are not required to purchase MDK Tokens. Instead, they can earn them by providing value to other members of the MDK community through content creation, curation and amplification in the MDK application.

“I think that MDK will implement this brave idea with blockchain. It will give the possibility to earn money for users not just for websites owners. MDK has all necessary for success: users, resources, competent managers and, which is the most important – has a will to change the Internet for the better”, comments this project Nariman Namazov, admin of famous imageboard 2ch.hk.

MDK ApplicationMDK app for iOS and Android – a worldwide entertainment community for the next generation – allows users to create, promote, and curate any content as well as to create local communities based on interests or location.

Content creation. Each user can create content and post it to their local community. After the content is published, it is evaluated by users. The more interesting the content is, the faster its rating grows, and the higher share of the rewards it gets. Content localisation system enables even the novice creators to become stars and gain tokens. Localisation also ensures that users get only relevant and up-to-date content.

Content moderation. Each user has a limited number of votes to spend to evaluate content posted by others. Using a Tinder-like model, the user acts as a moderator to upvote the content, skip it, or complain if they feel that the content is unacceptable. The most active moderators are rewarded with tokens.

Content commenting. Each post can be commented on, and comments that carry additional value can be voted for by users. A part of the reward for the post is be distributed between the best comments.

Gamification. The users rating reflects the number of tokens earned by them. The more tokens they get, the further they progress through the levels of application (getting to next level inquires more and more tokens). Each new level provides the user with new advanced features.  Gamification options are aimed to further engage users in the entertainment ecosystem and eventually build a self-regulated community.

Internal reward system. All purchases within the application will be recorded in the internal register. Then, after deducting the commission of the application required to cover the operating expenses and to promote the application, tokens will be transferred to the users’ reward fund.

Business opportunities. For brands, an internal advertising exchange and content promotion options will be available. Those include sponsorship of thematic channels, content competitions, polls and surveys, brand missions, stickers and in-app customization, a marketplace for goods and services.

The launch of app is scheduled for Q3 2018.

“I believe MDK to be an extremely nice and promising project, it’s a very rare case of a huge existing customer base, largest one in Europe in fact and a very promising blockchain based business idea. And it looks nice as well. I love it”, says Pavel Vrublevsky, founder of RNP.com and ChronoPay.

MDK Team and Advisors

The project will be launched by the MDK executive team. MDK is one of the largest entertainment communities in Europe with over 5 million unique visitors per month, over 20 million subscribers, and monthly coverage of over 30 million unique users. The team including Roberto Panchvidze (CEO and co-owner of MDK) and Dmitry Aladyshev (co-founder of MDK), among others, have more than 7 years of experience in in creating and distributing entertainment content as well as community management.

Roberto Panchvidze has worked at MDK for over 4 years. Now he is head of Operational Management in the MDK group, and an expert in the field of creative projects.

Dmitry Aladyshev has established himself as a successful serial businessman. He is an expert in the field of creating popular media.

The project is advised by a legendary Russian internet entrepreneur Pavel Vrublevsky, founder of RNP.com and international payment system Chronopay.com and Nariman Namazov, admin of famous imageboard 2ch.hk.

About MDK

MDK is the one of the most popular entertainment communities in Eastern Europe with more than 20+ millions of participants and 7+ years’ experience in the creative industry. Today it is a group of companies that unites its own creative agency (whose clients are Burger King, KFC, Unilever, Reckitt Benckiser, Mail.ru, Gazprom Media, Alibaba Group, etc.) and a group of communities in social networks (VK, Telegram, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube) with more than 60 employees.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MDK_(community)

mdk.is

Press contacts:

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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.

Bitcoin has once again smashed expectations with a continued climb to new price records, and the technical analysis suggests it isn’t done yet.

As Sweden was the first European country to use cash for payments back in 1661 it’s unsurprising that it’s the first European country that wants to be cashless. This is why, for several years, I’ve been watching the regular speeches by Lars Nyberg, Deputy Governor of the Sweden’s central bank, the Riksbank, talking about eradicating the use of cash in Sweden.February 2003Cash is still the king. Given the rapid increase in the use of cards in Sweden, particularly in the late 1990’s, cash should have been expected to fall in importance. This, however, does not seem to have happened. The use of cash, measured as the ratio of the value of currency in circulation (M0) and GDP, fell during the first half of the decade, but have been fairly constant since then, lately even increasing somewhat.

A nerve-wracking decision to jettison its asset contract has seen Monaco’s token lose almost half its value.