Day: March 8, 2018

Bill that would allow cryptocurrencies for tax payments passes first committee in Arizona House of Representatives. #NEWS

A subcommittee of the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee is set to hold a hearing next week on cryptocurrencies and ICOs.

Blockchain-based Medicalchain platform to partner with UK medical group for pilot program. #NEWS

Misused office equipment gets IT staff in trouble.

Ripple has made a lot of positive waves in the financial sector as of late. The company has embarked on an interesting mission to streamline cross-border payments and revamp the entire banking industry. With a new Ripple-powered mobile app to launch in Japan, things are headed in an intriguing direction.

The Ripple Mobile App in Japan

Most people who keep a close eye on Ripple know the company is making inroads in Asia as of right now. Its technology is of great interest to a lot of banks and financial service providers in the region, especially in Japan. A fair few banks are experimenting with this technology right now, although no real-world use cases have been made public so far.

That situation will come to change very soon, thanks to a new Japanese mobile app. Known as MoneyTap, this application is powered by Ripple’s blockchain technology. Customers of any institution that is part of the Japan Bank Consortium will be able to settle transactions instantly, 24/7. It is a big step forward for the banking industry as a whole.

It is also the first mobile application of this magnitude in Japan. Getting different banks to use the same mobile application for this purpose has not been done before. Even though all of these institutions have seen merit in Ripple’s technology, creating a unified banking ecosystem has never been easy, nor will it be for the foreseeable future.

As one would expect, not all of these five dozen banks will go live with this mobile application from the beginning. Instead, only three will take the plunge, with others to follow. SBI Net Sumishin Bank, Resona Bank, and Suruga Bank will be the “guinea pigs” to trial this new Ripple-powered app in the real world. It is expected this will occur at some point during the autumn of 2018, although no specific date has been announced yet.

Assuming this application proves to be successful, banking in Japan will look a lot different in a few months from now. Considering that the Japan Bank Consortium controls over 80% of all banking assets in Japan, this new application will be a complete game-changer for all parties involved. Instant transaction settlement around the clock will be something a lot of customers of these banks will thoroughly appreciate.

It also appears this will be one of the first real-world use cases for the XRP asset in the banking world. Although it is unclear in what capacity the native asset will be used, it seems that XRP is of great importance in instantly settling cross-bank transfers. For the time being, we will have to wait and see how this application performs and evolves. It is a big step in the right direction for Ripple as a company, and it will bring positive attention to what it is doing exactly.

A motivational Youtuber from Mexico has been arrested over the alleged kidnapping of Thania Denisse, a 33-year-old lawyer. Germán Loera is thought to have led a gang of five to kidnap the woman. The group are also reported to have demanded the ransom be paid in Bitcoin.

Kidnapper has Scant History of Bitcoin Involvement

Loera has been an active Youtuber creating various motivational and self-help videos. These were relatively unknown until the 23-year-old was reported to be connected with the kidnapping. Naturally, his hits have increased rapidly since then. Local news source El Pais report the Chihuahua public prosecutor assigned to the case as stating:

“According to the investigation, the leader of the gang is Germán Abraham L. A., who has several videos on the internet as a Youtuber.”

The young internet personality is currently being held in custody and awaiting trial. Whilst he has no prior convictions, local media have hinted at a potential motive. Following the arrest, outlets reported that Loera’s father was recently murdered by a group of organised criminals. This has later been confirmed by the public prosecutor although there has been no explicit link made between the kidnapping and the murder yet.

There are also no real previous connections between Loera and Bitcoin. The only clue might lie in a Tweet to Bitso, one of the first Mexican cryptocurrency exchanges. The Tweet read:

 “I’d like to speak to you. We are the heads of marketing for the biggest bitcoin casinos in the world.”

The message did not receive a public reply, however. It seems likely therefore that the decision to accept Bitcoin as a ransom was done because of its pseudonymous qualities and the general misconception that Bitcoin transactions cannot be traced, rather than something deeper.

Since the story broke, comments on social media have been particularly scathing to the accused kidnapper. Some of called him a “delinquent” or a “liar” because of the hypocrisy of his self-help videos. Meanwhile, others have called for him to be executed by the state – despite the fact that the death penalty does not exist in Mexico.

The case of Loera is not the first time a kidnap ransom has been demanded in Bitcoin. Late last year we reported on a crypto-analyst at UK cryptocurrency exchange EXMO being kidnapped in Ukraine. The exchange ended up paying over $1 million for Pavel Lerner’s release.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin is continuing to be used by cybercriminals as a tool in ransomware attacks. These “digital kidnappings” involve the locking of data on infected machines. Hackers then demand a payment is made in Bitcoin for the information’s release. Last year, the WannaCry attack is thought to have infected over 200,000 computers in 150 countries.

The post Mexican Youtuber Arrested Over Bitcoin Ransom Kidnap appeared first on NewsBTC.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Several brands already help users to monetise and control their raw personal data thanks to blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. However, only Biotron turns personal data into high-value analytics products that deliver more value for customers, better returns for users, and drive innovation.

Personal data is a commodity and data exchange products offer a valuable service. Data exchanges allow individuals to unlock the financial value of their own personal data. They give control back to the people who generate personal data, allowing them to decide what information they want to trade and who with.

RAW PERSONAL DATA HAS LOW VALUE

Every data exchange brand currently on the market (eg. Datum and Datawallet) trades in raw data. The business model is based on simply redistributing an individual’s personal data with no real processing (except for some anonymisation) or addition of value of any kind. While there is a market for such data, it will always have an inherently low value. To be of any actual immediate benefit to an organisation, it requires further processing for business intelligence and strategic decision making.

BIOTRON DELIVERS ANALYTICS FROM PERSONAL DATA

Improved access to personal data is driving expectations as to what this information can achieve. Biotron gives all data purpose. It contextualises it and turns it into analytics that can be actioned by organisations. When compared to other simple raw data exchanges, Biotron gives customers access to the comprehensive analytics usually provided by data scientists and engineers. This process adds significant value for the data customer while reducing their costs. This increase in value is then shared with the data producer.

Biotron is capable of delivering four kinds of products:

• Prescriptive. An analysis that reveals what actions should be taken. This is the most valuable kind of analysis and usually results in rules and recommendations for the next steps.
• Predictive. An analysis of likely scenarios of what might happen. The deliverables are usually a strong forecasting tool.
• Diagnostic. A look at past performance to determine what happened and why. The result of the analysis is often an analytic dashboard.
• Descriptive. What is happening now based on incoming data in real time. To mine the analytics, you use a real-time dashboard and reporting.

BIOTRON ANALYTICS DON’T SUFFER FROM PRIVACY IMPLICATIONS LIKE RAW DATA DOES

Most data exchange products protect their users’ privacy with some form of anonymisation or pseudonymisation. With the incoming EU General Data Protection Regulation, data producers must give explicit consent on what data is being collected and how it is used. Biotron creates a direct relationship with data producers and their consent is managed quickly and simply, and can be revoked or altered whenever they wish. Biotron analytics will be anonymised or pseudonymised (unless data producers provide other consent), which makes it impossible to attribute a dataset to a specific person. Raw data does not have the same benefit. The intricate nature of our lives can in some instances make it possible to identify individuals by activity markers.

SILOING STIFLES INNOVATION

Large technology companies such as Facebook, Alphabet (Google), and Apple, horde personal data in centralised silos. They only release their datasets through their own products for their own benefit. In the case of Google, their siloed data is used for aggregated ad targeting mechanisms. While this is understandable, it stifles innovation. If this data was shared and combined with multiple other sources it could be used to drive functional changes with broad benefit.

BIOTRON INNOVATION

Biotron’s decentralised approach to personal data drives innovation as organisations have access to analytics using hundreds of thousands of personal datasets. Datasets that flow directly from the producer. Their blockchain secured marketplace will cover analytics across:

• Location Intelligence & Marketing
• Traffic Analytics & Smart Cities
• Finance & Insurance
• Health
• AI Training

With respect to location intelligence, for example, Biotron is “Google Analytics” for stores and brands. In smart cities and transport optimization Biotron will provide origin-destination matrices for smart cities to optimise their public transport models. Or they can request speed profiles of roads for a specific region through an API. These are the types of problems we will be helping to solve.

Biotron rewards users directly with its proprietary crypto token (BTRN) and indirectly through the innovation that true data sharing brings.

To request an interview with Biotron’s CEO, Pavol Magic, please contact Renata Smolkova at [email protected]. Pavol can discuss all topics in this release and is an expert in the monetisation of data products.

The post Monetising Personal Data Is Easy, Turning It Into High-Value Analytics Is Biotron appeared first on NewsBTC.

Litecoin and bitcoin cash are logical candidates for inclusion this year, Tyler Winklevoss said.

Exposing more people to the cryptocurrency ecosystem is an ongoing challenge for all companies. So far, the general public has seemingly cooled off on cryptocurrencies ever since their prices started to dip earlier this year. Grayscale Investments will try to make a positive impact in this regard. The company announced four new investment trusts meant to bring cryptocurrency to the masses.

Grayscale Investments Unveils Bold Plans

No one will deny that Grayscale Investments is attempting to become a household name in the world of cryptocurrency investing. It was one of the first big firms to launch a Bitcoin investment trust, which exposes investors around the world to the Bitcoin price through a traditional investment vehicle. Later, the company launched an Ethereum Classic investment trust as well. That choice has always been considered to be rather controversial, yet it seems to have worked out quite well for the company.

Over time, it has become evident that a lot of investors would appreciate having exposure to different cryptocurrencies as well. This industry is about so much more than just Bitcoin, and Ethereum Classic is not exactly the most popular altcoin out there. In fact, it is taking a backseat to a lot of other coins right now. Grayscale Investments has taken note of this, which is why the company announced a few new investment products this week.

More specifically, the company will launch a total of four new investment trusts in the near future. The new products will focus on Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and XRP. All of these currencies are in very high demand as of right now, although it remains to be seen how the general investor base will respond to these vehicles in the coming weeks and months.

Expanding the list of crypto-related vehicles offered by Grayscale Investments is a big deal for the cryptocurrency industry as a whole, although it remains to be seen how this will affect all of the markets. Investors have been demanding more exposure to various cryptocurrencies, although the current market sentiment appears to be rather bearish.

It is important to note that these investment trusts do not guarantee that the value of the individual currencies will rise. As we have seen with the company’s previous offerings, market volatility tends to shake things up quite a bit, although one could also argue these vehicles have indeed spurred more global interest in cryptocurrency as a whole. This news comes at a time when companies are contemplating issuing altcoin-related futures contracts, although nothing has been finalized as of yet.

For the time being, we will have to wait and see how this plays out for Grayscale Investments and the associated cryptocurrencies. All of these altcoins are quite popular, and they all have room for a lot of future profits. No one can guarantee that any of these currencies will rise in value in the short term, but from a long-term perspective, they all appear to be relatively safe bets. 

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Venezuela’s freshly-created cryptocurrency is still in the hot seat. With the country’s parliament declaring this currency illegal yet again, the future of the Petro is in question. Even so, it seems the Petro will be auctioned off to private companies through the Dicom foreign exchange platform over the next few weeks. A batch of conflicting reports only makes this all the more difficult to understand.

What Comes Next for the Petro?

Most people already know that Venezuela’s Petro cryptocurrency is a very controversial creature in many different ways. After all, it is a new form of money which was created pretty much out of thin air, even though it is allegedly backed by the country’s vast oil reserves. On paper, it also allows the country to bypass any sanctions imposed upon the nation by the United States or any other country.

That is one of the main problems people have with the Petro cryptocurrency. It is an unsanctioned form of money which would allow investors to get a stake in the country’s economy, even though they are not allowed to do so under the current embargoes imposed upon Venezuela. Bypassing these measures – for whatever reason – could lead to major legal repercussions, although it remains to be seen if that will change.

The future looks pretty interesting for the Petro as of right now. According to Venezuela’s vice president, Tareck El Aissami, a new sale of the Petro will commence very soon. More specifically, a fair amount will be auctioned off to private companies through the Dicom foreign exchange platform. This sale is expected to materialize in the coming weeks, although no specific date has been announced just yet.

This development is considered highly controversial for many reasons. For one thing, half of the Venezuelan government has declared the Petro to be an illegal form of money on multiple occasions. The most recent warning was issued just this week, as the government has called the Petro an “illegal debt issue”. The US Treasury Department is not too happy about this new currency either, and it issued a stark warning on the matter not long ago.

When the Petro auctions begin, it will be interesting to see how much interest there is in this particular form of money. Considering how controversial it is already, few international investors may be all that interested in dabbling in this market. Since no one knows how the Petro will function as an actual form of money – let alone a foreign currency – there is no reason to invest in it. Even Venezuelan businesses are not too certain about how the Petro will affect their international transactions.

As long as Venezuela’s new cryptocurrency remains shrouded in controversy and potential legal issues, there will be no global acceptance of this form of money. It is unclear who is buying this currency, or what they hope to achieve by doing so. For now, the Dicom auctions are mainly targeting Venezuelan banks, which can buy the Petro at a big discount. 

How does RippleNet work? What’s the difference between Ripple and XRP? What could be the future of global payment? Cointelegraph spoke with Marjan Delatinne, global head of banking at Ripple, about current projects, challenges and the Internet of value. #INTERVIEW