Day: December 26, 2017

This past year has seen massive gains for many cryptocurrencies. We know of the big names, Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and IOTA. One cryptocurrency which has also had a huge rise this past year that many do not consider is Dogecoin. At the time of writing, one Dogecoin is worth one penny (and is also worth one Dogecoin).

Dogecoin hits a penny

Considering that earlier this year, a penny could buy you between 3-5 doge, this is huge. It has been an early Christmas gift to the Dogecoin community, and it has catapulted the currency back into the top 35 cryptos on CoinMarketCap. Previously, Dogecoin was hovering somewhere around #40-50 in the rankings.

The old joke coin still has some bite to it, and the coin’s tenacity is upheld and strengthened by its great community. Even at its current price, Dogecoin is still cheap and forgiving enough as an entry point to cryptocurrencies, I believe. Perhaps that, along with some other market conditions (both known and unknown) are responsible for the price going up, since there are many new people coming into crypto and Dogecoin is an excellent model/example of how many blockchains work.

The downside to the penny

While this development is very positive and will help give more exposure to the community, Dogecoin’s set fee of one doge per transaction is getting costlier and costlier. Transaction fees rise and fall parallel to the price of Dogecoin. While the fee is still only a penny, this is about four times as much as it was earlier this year. I’m not really complaining, but it is something to keep in mind.

Ultimately, price shouldn’t matter

One of the reasons I think Dogecoin has performed as well and lived as long as it has is because the price doesn’t really matter for many in the community. Go to its subreddit and just see how many comments on hype posts are “1 doge = 1 doge.” And this is a very good point. Community is what gives value to money. Money without communities isn’t worth anything.

It would be interesting if other crypto communities viewed their coins in the same way, as a standalone – something that was a non-correlated asset. Instead of bemoaning paying 10,000 BTC for two pizzas because of what that would be worth in USD now, people would just say, “Yeah, those pizzas cost 10k BTC.” It would bring crypto closer to being a community of users, rather than a community of speculators. At least, that’s my two doge. 

Following the legalization of cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs) in Belarus, a major Belarusian technical university is now offering a diploma course covering cryptocurrencies, their derivatives, and ICOs. Immediately, inquiries flooded in from people wanting to learn about this new industry.

Also read: Belarus Legalizes Cryptocurrencies and ICOs – Tax-Free for Five Years

Diploma Course at BNTU

Belarus’ president Alexander Lukashenko has legalized cryptocurrencies, ICOs, and smart contracts. As news.Bitcoin.com reported last week, he signed the decree “On the Development of the Digital Economy” which also exempts crypto-related income from taxation for the next five years.

Following Lukashenko’s announcement, the Belarusian National Technical University (BNTU) announced a diploma course in the field of cryptocurrencies. Established in 1920, BNTU is a major technical university in Belarus. Its alumni include two former Belarusian prime ministers, Vyacheslav Kebich and Gennady Novitsky.

According to the university’s website, the course covers “operations with cryptocurrencies,” “operations with cryptocurrency futures,” “the use of blockchain technology,” and “ICO as an alternative to IPO.”

This 1-year and 8-month long program, beginning on March 12 of next year, is available to “persons with higher education as well as senior students of higher education institutions.”

Lots of Interest in Crypto Courses

On its Facebook page, over 100 comments were posted in response to the university’s announcement. Users also inquired about shorter courses for quick knowledge on the subject. One user wrote, “taking into account the speed of applying cryptocurrencies and changes in the world…in 1 year and 8 months, it will really be too late…is it really impossible to fit the program in a month or two?”

The institute explained that the course consists of not only cryptocurrencies but also various stock market instruments such as stocks and bonds, as well as methods of attracting investments. In addition, successful graduates will receive a state diploma “on retraining at the level of higher education” which will be impossible to issue if the course is shortened.

Nonetheless, many users on Facebook insist that they prefer quick knowledge to obtaining a diploma. A BNTU alumni who is now a project manager at Mobipay Belarus commented, “Please note – no one needs diplomas for a long time, knowledge is more important. What then should I do with this diploma and to whom should I show it [to]?”

Other users were interested in finding out about the cost of the course, who the teachers are, the interview process, and application requirements. Regarding the price, the university wrote:

The cost of training is 966 US dollars at the rate of the NBRB [National Bank of the Republic of Belarus].

However, one BNTU alumni commented, “it seems to me that $1,000 for a year is very, very, very high.” In addition, there are a number of free online courses in English for those interested in obtaining knowledge of cryptocurrencies such as on Coursera, Udemy, and the Khan Academy. The University of Nicosia also offers a free introductory course on cryptocurrencies, which lists Andreas Antonopoulos as one of the two teachers.

What do you think of BNTU’s diploma course? Do you think they should offer a shorter course? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Lukashenko’s press service.

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The post Major University in Belarus Debuts Crypto Diploma Course Following Legalization appeared first on Bitcoin News.

When most people think about high-tech innovation, the former Soviet bloc is probably one of the last places on Earth that springs to mind. However, Belarus is making efforts to change that. Thanks to a progressive piece of legislation that was signed into law last Thursday, President Alexander Lukashenko is hoping that the brightest minds and most innovative companies from the fintech and blockchain space will choose to call his nation home.

The law legalises cryptocurrency transactions amongst other provisions. It’s hoped that these will drive private sector growth in a State that has been burdened with an overbearing bureaucracy that was left behind after the fall of the communist regime in the early 1990s. By liberalising the economy, it’s thought that the nation will be able to attract greater levels of foreign investment. In somewhat poetic language, Lukashenko spoke of his plans to create an environment suitable for technological innovation earlier this month:

“All smart and intelligent people know what stability and order are… They’re all trying to reach that shore. We’re prepared to arrange a dock and even a harbour.”

The presidential decree will make it legal for citizens to participate in initial coin offerings, as well as for companies planning them to run their operations from Belarus. It will also legalise all cryptocurrency transactions, as well as giving those making them a tax break for the next five years.

In addition, provision is being made to allow companies relief from the often-confusing Belarusian legal system. Instead, they will partially be governed by English law. Denis Aleinikov, a partner at a Minsk-based law firm and main author of the law, spoke to Reuters about the hurdles foreign companies encountered, prior to the change in legislation:

“We regularly faced legal problems. When a Western company buys a Belarusian company they try to structure the deal outside Belarus… Investors don’t want to deal with Belarusian legislation.”

It’s hoped that the decree will provide a haven for fintech companies who are often trying to innovate in unsure legal climates around the world. The security provided by a friendly legislative will surely prompt greater innovation. This will be mutually beneficial to the companies, their employees, the industry at large, and the government of Belarus. Anton Myakishev of Microsoft Belarus elaborated:

“It gives the industry the possibility to make a leap forward in its development and allows foreign capital the possibility to come to Belarus and work in comfortable conditions.”

The post Belarus Legalises Cryptocurrencies to Lure Foreign Investment appeared first on NEWSBTC.

The latest story (again) on mainstream media meant to scare away uninformed people from using bitcoin is about the possibility of China taking over the cryptocurrency. This particular FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) meme was also publicized widely in 2015 and 2016.

Also Read: The Psychology of the Cryptocurrency FOMO-FUD Cycle Has Been Weaponized

Scare Tactics

After a flood of articles about how bitcoin mining is about to consume all power sources on the face of the Earth in just a few years, leading to an unstoppable environmental catastrophe, a new attempt to gin up paranoia against the cryptocurrency resurfaces. The issue we should all be scared of now is the Chinese government taking control of bitcoin.

The article “Bitcoin at risk of Chinese sabotage” first appeared on the UK’s Sunday Telegraph and has already been republished by a number of English language newspapers as far away as Australian and New Zealand. As these type of stories get propagated, it should soon be translated into many more languages by local media partners and republished in many more regions of the world in the coming days.

Hashing Super Power

The source for the scary claim behind the headlines is a report from bitcoin “security researchers.” Two minutes of googling by the newspaper writers would have found that the couple of university students that they rely on are peddling their own security ICOs at the moment, and that the concentration of hashing power in China is a well known issue, and that the information cited is widely available without their help.

Other than saying that the Chinese government can use its power over the miners to sabotage the Bitcoin network, the article fails to add anything new to the discussion. They even don’t mention how China tried to ban or kill bitcoin many times before, and always fail, or how the cryptocurrency is inherently designed to go around government attempts to control it. They do acknowledge that technical solutions against this eventuality exist, while others are still being developed, but say that a mere attempted attack by China can cause an irreparable loss of faith in bitcoin.

The real take away from this story is that, if you want to promote yourself as an expert on bitcoin or cyber security at the moment, all you need to do is throw the media some red meat.

Should we fear the government of China taking over bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Do you like to research and read about Bitcoin technology? Check out Bitcoin.com’s Wiki page for an in-depth look at Bitcoin’s innovative technology and interesting history.

The post Classic Mainstream Media Clickbait Scare Resurfaces: ”Chinese Government Can Take Over Bitcoin” appeared first on Bitcoin News.

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South Korean authorities are divided whether bitcoins from criminal proceeds should be confiscated. In a criminal case involving 216 bitcoins, the court previously ruled that the digital currency cannot be confiscated. However, the prosecutor is now appealing to the court to overturn that decision and allow the forfeiture of the bitcoins, now worth billions of won.

Also read: Belarus Legalizes Cryptocurrencies and ICOs – Tax-Free for Five Years

Prosecutor Seeks to Confiscate Bitcoins

Following the ruling in September by South Korea’s Suwon District Court that found the confiscation of bitcoins in a criminal case to be inappropriate, the case prosecutor has appealed to the court to overturn that decision, SBS reported this week. The prosecutor believes that all criminal proceeds should be forfeited.

The case began when a web developer was indicted in April for allegedly distributing 235,000 instances of illegal pornographic material on adult websites over three years, as news.Bitcoin.com previously reported.

Ahn, 33, operated adult websites with 1.2 million customers. The prosecutor seized his cash in the amount of 1.46 billion won as well as 216 bitcoins held in a wallet at an exchange. Since Ahn’s arrest, the 500 million won worth of bitcoins have appreciated to 4.25 billion won (about $4 million).

Court Previously Ruled – Inappropriate to Confiscate Bitcoins

During the trial held in September, the prosecutor filed a lawsuit against Ahn and his family for 1.46 billion won in cash and the forfeiture of his 216 bitcoins.

The Suwon District Court sentenced Ahn to one year and six months in prison. However, the judge decided to only collect 340 million won out of the 1.46 billion cash and threw out the confiscated bitcoins. He believes that 340 million won is the extent of the direct profits generated from Ahn’s pornography operation. As for the digital currency, the publication conveyed the judge’s decision:

Not only is it difficult to do this, but it is [also] not appropriate to confiscate bitcoins because they are in the form of electronic files without physical entities, unlike cash.

The news outlet explained that the ruling which states that bitcoin is “not appropriate for confiscation” was based on Article 10 of the Concealed Revenue Regulation Act.

If the prosecutor is successful at keeping Ahn’s bitcoins, they will be transferred to the state treasury and will be auctioned, the publication detailed, adding that “the second sentencing [for this case is] scheduled for January 8th.”

Do you think the court will decide that bitcoins can be confiscated? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

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The post South Korean Prosecutor Fights to Confiscate Bitcoins from Criminal Proceeds appeared first on Bitcoin News.