Day: December 27, 2017

As Estonia rolls out the public-private program to launch its cryptocurrency and fund its ambitious blockchain program via a TGE, Chronobank joins as a partner and an advisor, helping the Baltic state to tokenize its labor relations.

Helmed by Sergey Sergienko, Chronobank has two key roles in Estonia’s new crypto-economy. First, Sergienko, Chronobank’s CEO, is now a part of board of directors of TokenEST OU’s, the commercial and operations arm of the newly created Estonian government agency that will run all the country’s crypto-initiatives.

Second, Chronobank’s business unit Labor X, a platform where employers can list jobs and job seekers can find employment using Chronobank’s TIME token, is now an official partner of Estonia, paving the way for collaboration between TIME holders and Estonian national cryptocurrency.

“All of us at Chronobank are jazzed to be a part of a new wave of labor laws, regulations and relations, “ said Sergienko. “Our mission is to empower the laborers to take control of their earnings and to be able to sell their work hours in the most efficient manner. We are thrilled that the government of Estonia shares the same philosophy when it comes to monetizing labor relations by using blockchain.”

Besides Sergienko, other members of TokenEST UO board include other prominent Estonian politicians, blockchain visionaries and business leaders such as Aaron Levi Yahalom, Denis Tsyro, Hanon Barabaner and Mihhail Korb.

About Chronobank

ChronoBank.io guarantees that laborers control their employment and receive fair wages via their token. An Australian fintech platform, Chronobank enables employers and workers find the most optimum working arrangements while keeping the relationship transparent via blockchain.

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 Chinese-based cloud company, headed by a high-profile media mogul, has moved to purchase a Delaware blockchain-based stock exchange. 

Almost all strong cap alt coins look over-valued and are due for correction. From the look of things and following last week’s spike, NEM bears might temporarily drive prices lower towards $0.51.

Other BTC alternatives are also inching higher but December 22 highs remain definitive.

TEMPORARY NEM BEARS MIGHT DRIVE PRICES TOWARDS $0.51

Undoubtedly, NEM buyers are in charge but with the current set up, I really think the pressure is fizzling out.

Technically, there is a little bit of an over-extension considering last week’s close above the upper BB.

These lower lows we are experiencing is necessary to bring equilibrium as it is needed in any trade-able assets.

In line with this, since we are waiting for a buy signal to form, NEM sellers can scalp this set up temporarily and aim for immediate supports at $0.69 and $0.51 which as we have seen are Fibonacci retracement levels.

Of course sell pressure will be amplified especially if there is a close below the middle BB today.

DECEMBER 22 HIGHS IS DEFINITIVE FOR DASH

Guys, every time DASH inches higher, our sell zone becomes nearer. As stated yesterday, we shall be looking for sell opportunities only following last week’s price over-valuation after a close above the upper BB.

Now, in our entry chart, there’s a stochastic buy signal and after a period of zero movement relative to previous hot prices, buyers have pushed prices above the middle BB.

I’m not recommending buys unless of course there is an obliteration of last week’s highs.

For now, let’s see what happens at December 22 highs. Before then, let’s just chill.

BORING IOTA—PRICES ARE FLAT!!

If you just got in following the hype then you got in late. IOTA prices are just straight boring. No action no nothing, in fact, if you are tracking this, you can as well as sleep and wake up after the holidays.

Now, despite the weakness, there is a chance of buyers pumping IOTA towards our smashing point, our potential sell zone. Why? Well, notice how the middle BB is acting as a reliable support over the past 36 hours or so.

In my opinion, we remain sellers because this pair is grossly over-valued-I don’t know if I’m now part of the narrative-the sell brigade like when BTC was $100-but I stand to be corrected.

Any correction towards $3 is a perfect opportunity to buy.

MONERO SELLERS MIGHT JUMP IN AROUND AT AROUND $400 AND $440

According to yesterday’s Monero’s projection, we still hold on to our sell forecast.

From the chart, nothing has changed other than Monero higher highs above the middle BB and of course the accompanying stochastic buy signal.

MINOR RESISTANCE TREND LINE NEUTRALIZING LTC HIGHS

LTC continues to oscillate within a $20 range. As it is, it looks likely to remain so unless maybe there is a close above the minor resistance trend line.

However, we expect the middle BB and the resistance trend line to hold and this should encourage sellers to get in.

Therefore, until a stochastic buy signal prints or prices blast through the minor resistance trend line, sellers are in charge.

All charts courtesy of Trading View

The post TEMPORARY NEM BEARS MIGHT DRIVE PRICES TOWARDS $0.51 appeared first on NEWSBTC.

Israeli officials are debating whether or not to create their own cryptocurrency, joining a growing list of governments that have proposed their own state-sponsored digital currencies in 2017.

Israel Debates the Merits of Crypto

The Israeli government may create its own “digital shekel,” according to sources close to Israel’s Finance Ministry.  

The discussions are part of an effort to curb the black market activity that comprises 22% of Israel’s GDP. Officials hope the digital shekel would reduce the use of cash in the economy, a payment option to which Israel’s underground has taken a liking in order to avoid taxes. Such evasion causes Israel to lose around ILS 50 billion in revenue annually. Ironically, cryptocurrencies are often utilized to pay for services on the dark web and black market, but Israeli lawmakers believe that a state-sponsored crypto could prevent the use of cash in such transactions.

Included in a sweeping bill, the digital shekel is one of numerous solutions proposed to combat tax evasion, including a ban on the use of cash to pay employee salaries. The state-issued cryptocurrency would fall under the watch of Israel’s National Bank.

“For the past few weeks the Bank of Israel has been looking at this matter, which has various aspects to it, including monetary and legal. There are many central banks studying the subject. There is no operative plan at the moment and perhaps there may never be, but it is something the Bank of Israel is studying,” an anonymous source said.

Governments Flock to Crypto

Israel joins the ranks of governments looking to crypto as a viable currency option.

Venezuela was the first nation in the world to announce plans for its own state-sponsored currency, following in the footsteps of Dubai, which became the first city to launch an official, government-backed crypto.

Russia recently jumped on this bandwagon as well, and has since moved forward with legislation to create a digital ruble. Back in September, Sweden’s central bank, the Sveriges Riksbank, revealed that it was looking into creating the e-krona, a digital counterpart to Sweden’s fiat currency.

State adoption of cryptocurrency may make some investors and enthusiasts uneasy, as it seems to spit in the face of Satoshi Nakamoto’s intention for Bitcoin to function as a decentralized method of financial exchange. While these currencies are still in the early stages of development, it’s becoming more probable that we will see national cryptocurrencies come to life in the coming year, and it’s likely that more countries will consider cryptocurrency solutions to solve their domestic financial problems for the foreseeable future.

Despite the government ramping up regulatory measures for bitcoin traders and exchanges, Indian entrepreneurs are rushing to set up companies with bitcoin or cryptocurrency-related words in their names.

Also read: South Korea Clarifies Position After Reports of Possible Ban on All Crypto Transactions

Capitalizing on Crypto

Indian entrepreneurs have been rushing to register businesses with the word “bitcoin”, “crypto”, or “coin” in their names, Tech Observer reported on Tuesday. The publication elaborated:

[A] large number of Indian entrepreneurs from Ghaziabad to Kanpur, to Darjeeling, to Jaipur, to Delhi, to Ahmedabad, [and] to Mumbai are rushing to set up companies to cash in on bitcoin.

According to the news outlet, there are at least a dozen companies that have already been registered across the country with the word “bitcoin” as part of their business names, and a large number of applications are still pending at the Indian Registrars of Companies.

There are even more businesses registered with the word “crypto” in their names, and several others are adding prefixes to the word “coin,” such as Indicoin, Bharatcoin, and Swachhcoin, the news outlet also detailed.

The filings for these new companies show a wide range of business activities such as the retail trade of personal household goods, financial intermediation, and investigative journalism. Some are also planning initial coin offerings (ICOs), the publication noted, adding that:

Several officials from the auditing and accountancy fields also said many listed companies are looking into changes in their names and ‘articles of association’ to include ‘bitcoin’ or other cryptocurrencies to join the bandwagon.

Based on the Registrars’ data, “the registered entities include Bitcoin Bazaar, Bitcoin Exchange, Bitcoin Finconsultants, Bitcoin India Software Services, Bitcoin Services India, Bitcoiners India, Bitcoins India and Bit Coin Infotech,” the Millennium Post reported. Other names include “Crypto Advisors, Crypto Futuristic Trades, Crypto Infotech, Crypto IT Services, Crypto Labs, Crypto Mining, Crypto Yo Coin India, Cryptocoin Solutions and Cryptomudra Digital Services.”

Crypto Craze Grows Despite Regulators’ Warnings

India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley has repeatedly said that the government does not recognize bitcoin as legal tender. Similarly, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has so far issued three notices related to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, warning investors and citizens of the risks involved with using them.

Earlier this month, news.Bitcoin.com reported on the Indian government sending notices to wealthy bitcoin traders, informing them that they will have to pay capital gains tax. The notices followed on-site searches by the Indian tax department at nine of the country’s top bitcoin exchanges.

Meanwhile, as bitcoin’s price has risen worldwide recently, Indian bitcoin exchanges have reported a flood of requests and new user registrations, news.Bitcoin.com also reported. “Every three months our bitcoin trade volumes have been doubling, and that trend is continuing — The price movements have helped in the volume increase,” Saurabh Agrawal of Zebpay revealed. Tech Observer wrote:

The mad rush of entrepreneurs and investors seem to be continuing despite repeated regulatory warnings about bitcoin and its various alternatives.

Do you think that all this activity will spur the Indian government to regulate bitcoin even sooner? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the Hindu.

Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section.

The post Indian Entrepreneurs Rush to Launch Crypto Companies Following Bitcoin Boom appeared first on Bitcoin News.

MoxyOne is the only ICO company that offers not only a wallet / debit card / virtual card to its own users but is also giving other companies an opportunity to do the same. MoxyOne’s cryptocurrency, SPEND, will be a major component for its infrastructure as each transaction will incur a negligible platform fee that is required to run the system. Development of the system looks very promising with a prototype wallet set to be released as early as the first quarter of 2018.

MoxyOne has a solid development team with a combined experience of back-end and front-end development specialists leading the helm. The company roadmap is very exciting and the infrastructure will begin to take shape within the next 24 months and this all begins with the release of the aforementioned wallet prototype. Following this, the ever important Raiden Network integration will take place to establish an advanced payment channel. Partners will then be able to utilize the system and access their management dashboards to customise and monitor their assets.

Google Pay and Apple Pay will be integrated soon after with plans of introducing a decentralised wallet and cryptocurrency storage vault for improved security. All throughout the development, important security features will be implemented such as (temporary card freeze for misplaced cards), two factor authentication, multi-sig technology and DDoS protection.

In addition to the above, they have also secured a major exchange partnership with Cryptopia. This means that they will list MoxyOne (SPEND) at the end of the token sale, almost immediately. Other exchanges that will come shortly after the finalisation of the token sale include IDEX, EtherDelta and Decentrex, with plans to partner with more exchanges as soon as possible. Only a select few ICOs are listed on exchanges as early as the end of their token sale and this is a promising outlook for investors and token holders.

The MoxyOne developers are working on a prototype for its wallet system which is aimed to be released by early 2018. The pre-sale will begin on 8th February, 2018 at 01:00 GMT and ends on 10th March 2018 at 01:00 GMT. The main token sale event will run from 14th March, 2018 at 01:00 GMT to 14th April, 2018 at 01:00 GMT.

Token Sale Information:

Website: https://moxy.one

Token Sale Details: https://moxy.one/token-sale

Whitepaper: https://moxy.one/whitepaper.pdf

Telegram: https://t.me/moxyone

Email: [email protected]

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.

BTC sees strong recovery following market dip and several days of volatility #NEWS

Over this Christmas season, your family may have dedicated a portion of dinnertime talk to “that Bitcoin thing” your uncle brought up. “What’s this cryptocurrency business?” your cousin chimed in over a plateful of cranberry salad and honey-roasted ham. You and your immediate family may have even swapped a few crypto-related gifts. If not, you may be asking yourself: what’s the best way to give crypto as a gift?

An Alternative to Gift Cards and Cash

Christmas may be over, but there will be plenty of opportunities yet to give the gift of crypto to your friends and loved ones. Maybe your best buddy’s birthday is coming up and he’s been talking about wanting to invest, or maybe come Valentine’s Day, you want to tack on a few bucks’ worth of crypto to the smorgasbord of chocolate and flowers you’re getting your girlfriend. Whether you’re looking for a gift for the crypto-enthusiast in your life or looking to share your obsession with the world, crypto could be a present worth buying (and if you play your cards right, worth even more in the future).

So if you’re looking at how to go about gifting crypto, here are a few ideas:

Paper Wallets

Paper wallets are a simple, easy way to give cryptocurrency in physical form, and if the recipient is planning on “hodling” for the long term, cold storage is generally a safer option than hot storage.

With a paper wallet, your wallet address and private keys are printed onto a physical slip of paper, NFC tag, or both. Paper wallets can also be stored as PDFs, but hard copies are recommended for enhanced security.

To create a paper wallet, you have a number of options. For Bitcoin, you can use bitaddress.org. For Ethereum, MyEtherWallet has a paper wallet function for Ethereum and all ERC20 tokens. Electrum wallets also have a built-in option to print a paper wallet with your stored funds.

When making a paper wallet, it’s best to disable WiFi on your PC, because hackers could see your private keys if your PC has been compromised. Another friendly tip: make sure you create a backup of the wallet address and private key (either on a USB drive or a piece of paper), and be sure to tell the recipient to store it in a safe place.

Physical Coins

Physical coins are similar to paper wallets, but with more flair, and with a greater price tag, too.

A man with the pseudonym Casascius began minting physical Bitcoins back in 2013, and since he ceased operations, other enthusiasts have taken up the minting mantle.  

Typically, physical coins bear the logo of the virtual token they hold, and a hologram protects the digital asset’s private key. Once the hologram is destroyed, the key is revealed and the holder can cash in on his or her crypto.

Physical coins are great, especially for enthusiasts, because they double as a currency and a collector’s item. After you’ve accessed the code, you still have the physical coin to hold on to. That’s pretty neat, so if you’ve got the funds to buy one, it makes for an awesome gift.

Just make sure it still has its private key intact!

Hardware Wallets

This is another expensive present option, but perhaps the safest we can think of.  

If you’re willing to cough up the money for a Ledger Nano S or a Trezor, you can rest assured that your gift is in good hands. Both of these wallets store your private keys offline, and they can sync up to browser wallets, web wallets, and exchanges (e.g. EtherDelta for the Nano S) to allow you to manage your funds.

These wallets are fabulous choices for long-term investments, and if you’re loading them up with substantial sums of college funds, retirement funds, etc., they’re a great bet for offline security and management. Just make sure you write down the wallet’s seed phrase in case it gets lost or damaged, and make sure that you teach the gift’s recipient how to use it if they plan on investing or trading further.

Get Creative

There are no ends to the avenues you can take to present cryptocurrency in a physical form.

As CryptoArt has shown us, you can incorporate paper wallets and private keys into literal works of art. This is one of the more ornate options for gifting crypto, but if you’re already dropping fat stacks for someone, it might be worth the extra mile. Hey, if they’re an art lover and a crypto nerd, it’s a double whammy.

Still, you can opt for a homemade approach, too, if you’re not looking to drop hundreds or thousands of dollars. So long as you’re handy, you can paint your own masterpiece, crochet or stitch your way to a physical crypto gift, or carve a wooden coin for someone. All you need to do is include the crypto’s private key and wallet address.  

But make sure you keep the private key hidden from others, because if they get their hands on it, your gift could end up only being worth the medium it’s shared on.