Day: February 20, 2018

Venezuela revealed a new website for its petro token, releasing its technical white paper and telling potential customers how to purchase the coin.

While it is widely agreed that past trends cannot predict future markets, today’s cryptocurrency market movements suggest a similar trend to what has been observed multiple times throughout 2017. Today, we see money flowing away from altcoins, back to Bitcoin, as sentiments towards the grandfather coin continue to turn bullish.

Bitcoin (BTC) has climbed close to 6% in the past 24 hours, growing from a price of roughly US$11,200 to its current price of $11,870. This growth translates to a market cap appreciation of US$10 billion. Unfortunately, these gains have not entirely translated to the global cryptocurrency market cap, which has seen an appreciation of just under $4 billion through the same time frame.

Bitcoin (BTC) 1 day chart

Excluding Bitcoin, the global altcoin market is down 2%, or about US$5 billion from the start of the day, and down almost 10 billion from the 24 hour high. Of course, this can only be explained by significant drops in BTC pairings across the board from top altcoins. Of the top 100 coins by market cap, only 8 currencies have appreciated in Bitcoin value in the past day. ReddCoin (RDD) has grown 30% in BTC to 89 sats, and a handful of other coins have seen BTC growth of 5% or less on the day. Everything else versus Bitcoin, with many top coins seeing BTC value reductions of 10% or more.

Why is this happening?

Starting in June of 2017, when cryptocurrency first began to see significant attention from the general public, a paradigm shift tookplace among a majority of traders from a focus on growing Bitcoin value of their portfolios to prioritizing USD profits. Now that dollar value carries far heavier weight in the eyes of a majority of traders than BTC pairings, many altcoin traders have no hesitation in selling their coins at a BTC loss, so long as they end up with more money in their pockets than they began with.

While this transformation in trading trends is frustrating for many of the experienced traders, who still prioritize the growth of their portfolios in Bitcoin, this paradigm shift is not inherently harmful. Of course, in situations like now, when Bitcoin enters a bull phase, the inverse relation does inhibit the growth of altcoins. However, the opposite is true, and this was experienced largely in the end of December and early January of this year. In this period, although Bitcoin’s price was primarily in a sideways motion, altcoins began to flourish. As a result, we saw total market capitulation rise to an all-time high of US$830 billion, thanks to massive pumps from large coins such as Ripple (XRP), Tron (TRX), and Stellar (XLM), as well as strong performances by other altcoins across the board.

The road ahead

It’s logical to predict that the immediate future of altcoins will largely be determined by the price movements of Bitcoin. As soon as Bitcoin begins to move sideways, or even modestly dip, altcoins will once again begin to prosper. Of course, their success in a broader scope hinges upon the length and magnitude of Bitcoin’s current trend. However, like what was seen in recent months, the higher Bitcoin is able to climb, altcoins will similarly see major growth once the king of cryptocurrency finally cools off.

Almost $5.5 billion is being laundered through cryptocurrencies annually, according to Europol #EXPERT_TAKE

Recently, Renping Liu (CTO of UCOT) and key members of his technical team came to visit Monash Universities cryptocurrency laboratory. This lab, located within the Faculty of Information and Technology, which is being operated by professor Dr. Joseph Liu is currently helping the ecosystem by developing practical Blockchain-based solutions with rigorous security that can, in addition to digital currencies, be applied in other domains.

During their visit, Dr. Liu and the UCOT team discussed the concept of Blockchain, its current applications, and privacy mechanisms that many projects are using to protect their user’s information and traceability.

It was also at this time that the two parties announced a strategic partnership, with Dr. Liu coming on the project as an official security advisor.

As a network security expert whose contributions have had a remarkable effect on the Blockchain industry, specifically his 2004 thesis on linkable ring signatures, which led to the creation of Monero (XMR), a privacy-based cryptocurrency with a market cap of over AUD 4.8bn, UCOT firmly believes that Dr. Liu will be a valuable asset to its company as it continues to strengthen the privacy of its network.

Besides his Hash focused laboratory and his work establishing Monero, Dr. Liu’s privacy-based work can be seen in many public Blockchain networks in use today.

Apart from Blockchain privacy technology, Dr. Liu has conducted extensive work in cloud security, big data security, lightweight security and applied cryptography. Additionally, as a well-read academic, Joseph has published over 80 journal papers, conference articles and other various documents regarding his work, and in 2014 he won the best paper at Esorics (the European Symposium on Research in Computer Security).

During their meeting, Joseph’s team explained the research they had been conducting in details while highlighting various security and privacy functions that could be implemented in UCOT.

As an up-and-coming IoT (Internet of Things) Blockchain project, UCOT will focus on effectively integrating with smart IoT and supply chain management systems, thus, effectively being able to store large amounts of misappropriation-proof information. Such information (e.g., inventory levels, location data, temperature data, etc.) ensures that users requiring this information (such as businesses, their stakeholders, governments or customers) will be able to monitor and review a true account of this information without the potential of third parties or corrupt persons tampering with it.

System Framework

To fulfill its IoT and supply chain management goal, UCOT will provide its users with integrated services and features which will allow them the ability to review different goods and services information based on their needs. For example, a pharmaceutical company may wish to track the delivery of their drugs from warehouse to the pharmacy to ensure that their drugs aren’t being stolen or tampered with, or to see if their drugs are being stored in the right temperature. With UCOT’s technology, these users will be able to see exactly where their product is, what temperature it’s being stored at and where it’s being stolen or tampered with, thus allowing that company to find and eliminate these inefficiencies.

UCOT has created partnerships with many well-known brands and smart applications among various industries

Along with a Blockchain network, UCOT will implement an off-chain database, which will use big data to create easy-to-digest statistics for its users. UCOT will collect information from the Blockchain and will use that information to update its off-chain database to ensure consistency between the two. This database is essentially an auxiliary of the blockchain, as information stored in the database must be the same as that in the blockchain. This makes the retrieval of ciphertext from the database difficult.

Additionally, its transactions will not only contain IoT and supply chain management information but will also contain the number of blocks, thus allowing users to easily check the authenticity of the provided information.

As per the nature of a Blockchain, information stored on this network is transparent and can be viewed by all participants. Thus privacy protection is an issue that needs to be considered. To combat this, UCOT will encrypt all information on its network. This will not only provide its users with total privacy but will also allow for hierarchical access of control.

Coinciding with the security needs of UCOT, Dr. Liu’s team is currently focusing on technology that aims to strengthen security within databases through the creation of a ‘searchable encryption’ function that will prevent internal and external attacks. In addition to this, Dr. Liu’s team is working with the Swinburne University of Technology, with Swinburne’s team focusing on how to integrate this feature into Blockchain networks, which as an auxiliary benefit, will address many of UCOT’s security concerns.

Overall, through cooperation with Monash University, Swinburne University of Technology, and Dr. Joseph Liu and his team, UCOT firmly believes that it will be able to provide an improved and effective way for companies to monitor, review and improve their business through access to reliable and accurate information, thus allowing them to remove inefficiencies and better understand their systems. As a secondary benefit, UCOT also believes that this information will be useful to governments, regulators, business stakeholders and customers – as information provided through this system will be able to be shown to these parties as being wholly true.

The post UCOT Establishes the Partnership With the Creator of Monero’s RingCT Signature Scheme, Dr. Joseph Liu. appeared first on NewsBTC.

Trading bots are rather popular in the world of cryptocurrency. Even though a lot of people would like to trade cryptocurrencies, they don’t have the slightest idea how to do so. For those users interested in trading Ethereum back and forth, there are a few trading bots worth checking out. Your mileage may vary when using any of these tools, though, as no trading bot is perfect.

4. BTC Robot

Even though the name might not suggest it, BTC Robot is not just dedicated to trading Bitcoin. It has some interesting features, including 24/7 monitoring of cryptocurrency exchange rates, as well as the ability to look at charts to determine recurring patterns. 

By taking advantage of those patterns, Ethereum enthusiasts can make some good money, depending on how the bot performs. There is a 60-day guarantee and trial period during which one can evaluate whether this is the right Ethereum trading bot for their needs. From a convenience point of view, BTC Robot offers some good functionality, although advanced traders may be looking for something more.

3. Cryptotrader

When it comes to cryptocurrency trading, most people have come across the Cryptotrader name at some point. This platform is quite popular among Bitcoin and altcoin enthusiasts these days. Its cloud-based approach also lets users create personalized trading strategies, which is quite similar to a trading bot. With no need to install additional software, CryptoTrader may be one of the more intriguing Ethereum bots on the market right now.

2. HaasOnline

For most people, HaasOnline is the go-to trading bot for most cryptocurrency activity. Its software uses a core trading algorithm which integrates user suggestions over time. New exchanges and indicators are added on a regular basis as well. With its flexible license, there are many ways to make good money by using HaasOnline as an Ethereum trading bot. It seemingly caters to both novice and advanced traders, which is always a good thing.

1. PHPTrader

Even though a lot of people have probably never heard of this project, Christian Hascheck put together a rather powerful Ethereum trading bot a while ago. What initially began as a Bitcoin trading bot can now be used for Ethereum trading as well. Perhaps the most intriguing feature is that it can be used on any model Raspberry Pi, which makes for a rather convenient solution. Although the Ethereum trading bot is very simple in its design, it does offer all of the functionality one would expect.

It does require a Coinbase account, as that is the only exchange it supports right now. However, since this bot is written in PHP, there is no reason to think this solution can’t be expanded upon in the future. The code is available on GitHub, and users are more than welcome to make their own exchange additions accordingly. From a convenience point of view, this bot has everything most novice traders want, even though it will not perform analysis or predict price trends. It’s not necessarily meant for big investments, which makes it a perfect starting solution for novice traders.

Today, Coinbase — cryptocurrency exchange, brokerage, wallet, and operator of GDAX — and Hong Kong-based exchange Bitfinex have announced the implementation of P2SH Segregated Witness (SegWit). As per the companies’ tweets, users will experience improved transaction processing times and lower fees across the Bitcoin network.

Our engineering team has finished testing of SegWit for Bitcoin on Coinbase.

We will be starting a phased launch to customers over the next few days and are targeting a 100% launch to all customers by mid next week.

— Coinbase (@coinbase) February 20, 2018

We are proud to announce support for SegWit.https://t.co/FTCmRrRo2K pic.twitter.com/Kk2cA71wNN

— Bitfinex (@bitfinex) February 20, 2018

For Coinbase, this process began in December, when vice president and general manager Dan Romero indicated to investors and users that the exchange would adopt the SegWit protocol in early 2018

The protocol, an oft-debated measure introduced as a means of scaling Bitcoin to meet increased demand, is expected to decrease congestion in the cryptocurrency’s network, resulting in faster transaction times and lower fees.

Fees have been a huge problem for Bitcoin users — although they have fallen to recent lows at an average of $0.79 on Sunday. In December, amidst an upsurge in use and value of the cryptocurrency, prices reached peaks of up to $34.00.

What is SegWit?

SegWit is a Bitcoin protocol improvement that facilitates scaling. The SegWit implementation will provide Coinbase and Bitfinex users with lower transaction fees and improved processing times on transactions across the Bitcoin network. This happens by increasing block size limits by separating signature data from transaction data.

In addition to increasing capacity, SegWit will also effectively fix transaction malleability, a potential attack based on the modification of transaction IDs prior to network confirmation. Further, SegWit also lays the foundation for future Bitcoin development efforts like the implementation of Lightning Network, which will permit the network to process millions to billions of transactions per second.

Looking ahead

Moving forward, the question is what will happen as the Bitcoin network continues to grow. A hard-coded limit on the size of blocks limits how many transactions the network can process per second.

Some in the bitcoin community wanted to simply raise the block size — see Bitcoin cash. Instead of increasing the maximum block size, SegWit separates cryptographic signatures from the rest of the blockchain data, so these signatures aren’t counted against that one-megabyte block-size limit — consider it a de facto block-size increase.

That said, SegWit is not the be all end all: If 100% of transactions use the new protocol, it will roughly double the network’s capacity — but that’s it. Further increases will require more radical changes.

Coinbase

Romero said the exchange has carefully considered the implications of adopting SegWit:

“In terms of our engineering priorities, securely storing customer funds remains our top priority. Our next priority is to ensure that our platform remains performant during periods of peak volume,” Romero said.

The adoption of SegWit is a huge undertaking for the Coinbase because its platform is much larger than most other digital currency exchanges. The exchange has millions of users active each month, and it accounts for a significant portion of all Bitcoin trading. This means the impact of its decision to adopt SegWit could have repercussions on the entire cryptocurrency space.

The post SegWit Finally Embraced by Coinbase and Bitfinex, Bright Future Ahead appeared first on NewsBTC.

Paypal executive speaks positively of the “high likelihood” for BTC to be a popular payment option #NEWS

NAGA has officially started the pre-registration for its fully-functioning, crypto-friendly NAGA Debit Card. There are 10,000 pre-registration slots available for the chip-based MasterCard. Further information on how to secure your personal pre-registration slot can be found on the NAGA Coin website.

Usability

The NAGA Debit Card will fill a huge hole in the current crypto sphere. By becoming the first fully-functioning debit card to allow funding by cryptocurrencies, the NAGA Debit Card will blur the lines between the words of crypto and fiat. This push to bring cryptocurrencies into everyday transactions sets the NAGA Debit Card apart from the many people who claimed to bring this development to the market, but who have all failed so far. NAGA will deliver, and at six months ahead of schedule.

The NAGA Ecosystem

The NAGA Debit Card will become the focal point of the whole NAGA Universe. Whilst entirely functional as a stand-alone top-up debit card, the NAGA Debit Card will also be directly connected to the ever-growing number of platforms in the NAGA Ecosystem. Social traders on NAGA TRADER (formerly SwipeStox) will be able to make profits on the stock exchange and send their winnings over to their debit card for when they head out to celebrate. While users of the soon-to-be-released gaming platform, Switex, will be able to sell their in-game items and then convert that capital into real world cash that can be spent both online and offline, all over the world.

The NAGA Coin

The fact that the NAGA Debit Card can be funded by all of the major cryptocurrencies is a game-changer, but one of the most exciting features of the NAGA Debit Card will be the incorporation of NAGA’s utility token, the NAGA Coin (NGC). As 2018 progresses, NGC will become the main unit of account on all NAGA platforms. Users of the NAGA Coin on NAGA TRADER and Switex will get reduced commissions and other benefits on both platforms and the transferring of NGC across the NAGA platforms to the NAGA Debit Card will be seamless.

Ahead of the Game

The NAGA Debit Card will be ahead of the game and continues the disruptive tone set by other NAGA products and services. After completing one of 2017’s most successful Token Sales, 2018 promises to be yet another year of growth, innovation, and progress for NAGA. Don’t miss out on your chance to be one of the first lucky 10,000 people to secure your NAGA Debit Card pre-registration slot.

The post NAGA Starts Pre-Registration for NAGA Debit Card appeared first on NewsBTC.

There are rumors on the internet that Bitmain is working on yet another cryptocurrency mining hardware unit. While that in itself is not spectacular by any means – especially because it is the company’s business model – this latest venture would focus on Ethereum ASIC mining. Although it remains to be seen if there is any truth to these rumors, the prospect of an Ethereum ASIC mining unit is quite interesting, for obvious reasons.

An ASIC Miner for Ethereum Makes no Sense

While some people have speculated that Bitmain is working on a new ASIC mining device for Ethereum, there’s no real evidence to back up these claims. Supposedly, this project is code-named Antminer F3 and will consist of three mainboards. With 6 ASIC processors per board, the rumored unit has 72 GB of DRAM memory and is capable of achieving speeds of up to 220 MH/s. It sounds like a dream come true for a lot of Ethereum miners, even though it’s highly unlikely such a system will ever be created.

It would take a lot of money and research to develop a new ASIC mining unit for Ethereum. Even though the altcoin’s algorithm is not ASIC-resistant by any means, there is no reason for companies such as Bitmain to explore ASIC ventures in the Ethereum ecosystem. That’s because there is a very real chance that Ethereum will switch to proof-of-stake in the near future, which would render any real mining efforts completely obsolete. When the switch to PoS will occur exactly has yet to be determined, though.

Especially with GPU mining becoming so popular, an ASIC miner is not necessarily a good thing for Ethereum. If an ASIC device were to be released for Ethereum, it would shake up the entire mining ecosystem in many ways. Getting your hands on one of those units would be quite challenging as well, since these machines would be in pretty high demand from day one. Until Bitmain officially announces this project, there’s no reason to think it will ever become a real thing.

As for the current efficient mining rigs which users can put together with GPUs, the Antminer F3 would blow them out of the water. With nearly double the ROI and a lower rate of electricity consumption, it is evident such tools could be of great value to Ethereum miners. Additionally, it also would alleviate some concerns in the gaming industry, as a lot of GPUs are currently being bought up by cryptocurrency miners.

Even though it is not impossible that Bitmain will be developing an ASIC miner for Ethereum, the company also knows about developments taking place in the cryptocurrency world. They are aware that Ethereum will switch to proof-of-stake at some point, and the longevity of an F3 may not be all that appealing to any of the parties involved. Their other miners for Bitcoin and Litecoin have been well-received by the community, but neither of those currencies plans to change their algorithm anytime soon.

With so many changes coming to Ethereum in the future, it is expected that interest in this altcoin will only continue to increase. Whether or not that means there is a future for ASIC mining hardware focused on Ethereum is a different matter altogether. Bitmain has not officially confirmed this product will come to market, and common sense says they will never do so. Then again, Ethereum’s switch to proof-of-stake may still be years away, for all we know. An Ethereum ASIC miner is an interesting idea, but for now, it’s nothing more than an illusion.

An Australian university has launched the country’s first Blockchain course online #NEWS