Month: March 2018

There is a fair amount of confusion on the internet over one of Kucoin’s recent decisions. The company has made it clear they will be dropping Bitcoin Cash-based trading pairs very soon. Contrary to what people may think, the exchange will not remove Bitcoin Cash itself, but rather get rid of some smaller trading markets which do not generate a sufficient amount of volume as of right now.

Kucoin’s Bitcoin Cash Decision

Kucoin will continue to support Bitcoin Cash for quite some time to come. This popular altcoin generates a lot of trading volume and is quite popular among exchange users in general. So much even that Kucoin has opened various alternative trading markets linked to BCH, including some for smaller altcoins.

Unfortunately, it appears that decision has not worked out exactly as planned. The company has now made it clear they will remove all of these BCH trading pairs in the near future, mainly because they simply don’t generate sufficient trading volume. This decision doesn’t just apply to Bitcoin Cash markets, mind you. DENT has lost quite a few trading pairs on the exchange, as have KCS, FOTA, and NEO. It seems offering dozens of markets will only go well for so long, as there can never be sufficient liquidity to keep all of these markets going. It is the way things go in the cryptocurrency industry, as there is no real need for too many trading markets.

For Bitcoin Cash supporters, very little will change in the end. Although they can no longer exchange BCH for a few small altcoins and assets, the main trading pairs will remain active for the foreseeable future. It is evident Kucoin had high hopes for these BCH trading markets, but it seems the altcoin is not popular enough – on this platform, anyway – to warrant being a “reserve currency” for other trading pairs right now.

Whether or not this will lead to any specific developments in the Bitcoin Cash industry remains to be seen. As it doesn’t affect the overall Bitcoin Cash price or value whatsoever, it remains to be seen if this decision by KuCoin was the right one. Although we commend the company for getting rid of obsolete markets, some users may not necessarily be happy with this development.

All of this raises the question as to which currency can rival Bitcoin in terms of being a reserve currency for altcoin and digital token trading. As of right now, it seems Bitcoin Cash may not fit the bill.

BTC and ETH are trading above the psychological price points of $7,000 and $400 today after a week of sinking prices #NEWS

Following its successful presale, Keyrpto, the revolutionary blockchain-based e-commerce platform, is set to kick off its Token Generation Event on April 2nd, 2018. Aimed at giving the general public a second chance with the “new eBay of the crypto industry”, the event will enable participant acquire the platform’s utility token at a discounted prices.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

The Future for Cryptocurrencies and e-Commerce

Keyrpto is an inclusive, blockchain ecosystem designed to enable small and medium-scale businesses (SMEs) set up their own store and start selling their products online using simple and intuitive tools. Standing at the intersection between blockchain technology and e-commerce, Keyrpto enables users and merchants to exchange values using their favorite cryptocurrency through smart contracts for complete transparency and security.

The platform is the first true Smart Contract between buyer & seller with every transaction recorded to the blockchain and visible to the public. Keyrpto not only eliminates the risk of scams and frauds by creating a direct medium of exchange between buyers and sellers, but also reduces commission cost by eliminating intermediaries. The platform also provides full payment protection, directly delivering product or service to parties and serving as a mediator.Osama Morad, the Founder of Keyrpto stated:

“I believe this is the blockchain era and it will be the next revolution for the online marketplace. As this revolutionary technology increases in popularity, more blockchain-based companies will be dreaming up the next big steps for a variety of industries. Keyrpto will be a leader in the e-commerce industry.”

Keyrpto Token Generation Event

Shortly between the Pre-Sale and reaching its Soft Cap target, Keyrpto temporarily paused its TGE to release the beta version of its platform to the public ahead of schedule. This provided the community with a unique opportunity to try out the platform’s feature, provide valuable feedback, and attract retailers to the platform. Retailers looking to integrate cryptocurrencies payment into their services were able to seize the opportunity and put the platform through its pace. The release has not only positioned Keyrpto for timely market release, but also immediate market impact.

Keyrpto’s native KYT token drives all transactions and underpins all settlement on the network. The tokens, which will be freely traded on crypto-exchanges, will be created during the TGE period. A limited total supply of 1,000,000,000 KYT will be minted during the event out of which 510,000,000 KYT will be offered to the public. The TGE Soft Cap has been set at 3,000,000 USD with a Hard Cap of 5,100,000 USD

Visit the Website: http://www.keyrpto.com/

The bearish trends of 2018 so far continue to reduce the price of Bitcoin, testing lows similar to that of the beginning of February. Bitcoin struggled under selling pressure in the early hours of 30 March, falling to USD 6,617.69 at its lowest point (Coindesk). Strong resistance led to a sharp ascent to USD 7,150, leading to stability around the USD 7,000 mark.

Possibility of a bullish break?

Bitcoin has a unpredictable year ahead, although it has been known to bounce back from bearish trends in the past. There is still a distance for Bitcoin to fall to reach prices of a year ago when it was trading at around USD 1,000. Recent scrutiny from the public and the banning of ads by giants such as Facebook, Google and Twitter may have led to a present loss of faith from the public.

Not alone with its bearish trends

Ethereum (ETH) tested lows of  USD 368, which hadn’t visited since November 2017. At the beginning of the year, ETH at its height was above USD 1,026 (Coindesk). In terms of range, that’s a  64% depreciation since the beginning of the year. Bitcoin Cash is hitting new lows for the year at USD 684 compared with its highs in early January of USD 2,518, also the lowest in four months, relating to a 73% decrease. Litecoin has revisited lows of USD 110 that were reached only recently in February. Litecoin is faring slightly better with only a 57% decrease from its January high of USD 253. Ripple (XRP) is struggling the most under bearish pressure dropping to USD 0.48 from the January heights of USD 3.18, an 87% drop.

The post Bitcoin Faces Renewed Pressure appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

Malaysian budget airlines Air Asia has announced that it is about to launch a cryptocurrency-based frequent-flyer rewards program.

Frequent flyer

The Nikkei Asia Review revealed last week that Air Asia plans to update its current digital services to include a cashless system. The system is part of a major upgrade of its digital program which will include seat purchasing, in-flight meals, seat upgrades and other services. The airlines will offer passengers an alternative to fiat currencies through the launch of its own digital currency in next six months, although it is still unclear whether the airline has plans to utilize an existing platform in the future.

Air Asia is not the only airlines to examine if blockchain tech is suitable as a possible rewards program. Singapore Airlines also announced last month its intentions to launch a frequent flyer program of its own in this way, although the company hasn’t commented on plans to develop its own cryptocurrency.

Ticketing

Taiwan Airline, Far Eastern Air, has also announced that it will accept crypto payments for its ticketing, becoming the first Taiwanese airline to offer its passengers cryptocurrency fares. The airline promises to accept cryptocurrency payments and all relevant services and sees itself as a ‘pioneer’ in the industry as a result. The airline’s president, Zhang Gangwei, suggests that “…the widespread use of cryptocurrency in various scenarios will usher in a new future for the airline business…”.

Accommodation

Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea, now well known for their adoption of cryptocurrency as a means of payment for services, are proactive within the travel industry, always seeking ways to improve customer satisfaction. A South Korean travel website with over 50,000 hotels is now offering its guests cryptocurrency paid bookings.

Air Asia head Tony Fernandes claims that cryptocurrencies will play “an important role in the South East Asian economy” as the region is home to millions of overseas workers who send billions of dollars across borders.

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IBM is breaking from enterprise blockchain norms by publicly working with cryptocurrencies in a wide range of projects.

It has so far been a tough day for Bitcoin markets. Trading volumes are up but at the same time, USD prices are down by almost 7%. Traders are now finally taking the hit that the bearish market was signalling for a while now. With Bitcoin prices continuing to dip down even further, the potential for a recovery appears more distant.

The day’s signals

1. Markets are breaching floors with prices touching a low of USD 6,600 levels.
2. Selling pressure appears to be the most prevalent element influencing price movements.
3. Upward price movements are quickly met with resistance, highlighting the more negative change in the market’s mood.

GDAX BTC/USD charts are quite indicative of how the current outbreak of negativity. There were a few hours of back-to-back sell orders pushing prices further below USD 7,000 price points. Following that, markets entered the course of a recovery, reaching up to USD 7,200 but prices quickly went on a downward spiral again. It’s worth pointing out that BTC/USD markets went below USD 8,000 price points just a couple of days ago. Based on that, it’d be safe to say that the market’s downward course is not only continuing but also taking a turn for the worse.

Of course, breaking away from the bearishness keeps being an increasingly harder task as support just keeps being struck down. And yet, volatility continues to be a major factor affecting price movements throughout the course of today’s trading session. The fact that the prices continued to take a downward path with support being unable to prevent another major breach goes to show that there’s not much that could have prevented this. While the latest breach originated from another sizable selloff, the market’s response wasn’t able to counter the selling pressure that emerged.

Under such a market setting, markets are naturally surrounded by a state of further uncertainty and volatility. Thankfully though, the more recent hours have had BTC USD prices looming above USD 6,800 levels. That same setting of volatility had prices reach a low of USD 6,600 in the recent hours but a further price fall has been averted for now. Further uncertainty is to be expected and that’s not to say that the chances for a more positive outlook don’t appear to be that great.

OKCoin BTC/USD futures remained paused for the largest part of the day and went through a rollback on 30 March after staff intervention to compensate for an alleged attempt at manipulation. For that reason, today’s analysis has not taken into account the usual OKCoin BTC/USD weekly futures.

The post Bitcoin Price Analysis, 30th March 2018: Bitcoin Price Goes Below $7000 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

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The Chinese government has just scrapped its blockchain funding center, insisting on regulations before going forward with anything blockchain.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has called for domestic regulation as part of an effort to foster the development of the technology. The CCP’s official media made clear that the government’s stance is to integrate blockchain technology, while also warning of illicit activities that come with it.

A recent report stated the entity as saying that “Blockchain technology is still very immature. We must be cautious about speculation on this concept and separate technology-based innovations from those with a fund-raising purpose. To better promote and utilize the blockchain technology, the government should implement strengthened policies and regulations.”.

China aims to solidify plans in the future for the opening of the center; the full report gives a solid argument for explanations on blockchain technology applications in various industries and financial services.

This marks another restrictive move from China after the banning of initial coin offerings in 2017. It was, however, suggested that regulations would be a proactive step in the right direction, with China hoping to initiate frameworks that help the public and business sectors.

Meanwhile, China’s central bank has claimed that cryptocurrencies will be at the top of its agenda in 2018.

The Peoples Bank of China (PBoC) has called for a conference on the financial development of blockchain. Fan Yifei, vice governor of the PBoC, has a detrimental stance on the currency, praising its progress so far, but wanting to highlight the fact the integrity of the Chinese Yuan stays intact.

Fan also stated that the agency would reinforce its regulatory measures both internally and externally.

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Japanese IT giant Fujitsu has recently announced the opening of its first Blockchain Innovation Center, located in Brussels, Belgium, with the aim of supporting research, developmen and innovation. Fujitsu has selected Brussels as the venue of choice because of its diverse political, technical advantages.

Witnessing the adoption of blockchain technology and distributed ledger technology (DTL), big tech giants such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon are just a few companies who are looking to integrate this technology into their companies framework, thus providing them with a transparent and more secure network.

Fujitsu sees blockchain technology as a step in the right direction for the IT sector, enabling a new model for businesses to buy, sell and distribute. Fujitsu aims to use the technology in some different business sectors such as supply chains and logistics, storing public records, and identity documents.

Fujitsu focused on becoming a worldwide leading contender for smart cities, Frederik De Breuck, Presales and Business Assurance Director of Fujitsu Benelux stated: “We believe blockchain technology plays a significant role in the development of smart cities. Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas, and by 2050 this number is expected to increase to 66%. Cities need to adapt to these developments and become smart cities that connect ITC’s technologies with infrastructure and architectures to solve social, economic and environmental challenges”.

While new adaptions of blockchain will lean to a smarter future, changes will drive economic growth and forgo social and environmental problems.

Additionally, in the current economic adoption stage, companies such as IBM and Walmart are launching a blockchain food safety alliance in China by collaborating with China’s largest retailer JD.com, a member of the NASDAQ-100 and Fortune Global 500.

The post Tech Giant Fujitsu Announces Blockchain Center In Europe appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

There’s a lot of information to process, but ignoring it can be hazardous. The IRS is going to come after investors who are not reporting their gains.

If Bitcoin is dead or not, that’s subject to interpretation. Of course, it also depends on if you are a supporter or not. In my opinion, if BTC depreciation continues, other (most) altcoins might follow suit.

Besides Tron which is charting new heights and aiming for a spot in the top 10-its down 20% in the last 24 Hrs, others like LTC continue to face the sword. From our altcoins technical analysis, we might expect to see some slight recovery and thereafter, prices might continue dropping to new lows.

Let’s have a look at these charts:

XLM/USD (Stellar Lumens)

XLMUSD 4HR Chart from Bittrex for March 31, 2018

After periods, weeks of Stellar Lumens depreciation, there’s a mild recovery.

On our previous preview, we expected Stellar Lumens prices to recover now that we could see a stochastic buy signal in place and most importantly, a bullish divergence pattern. Notice how prices were trickling down as buy pressure picked up.

At the moment, I expect higher highs. This is us fading the general bear move but our earlier plan was to short whenever a stochastic sell signal forms.

We can either wait for that to happen or buy short-term with stops below yesterday’s lows at $0.17. Only buy when prices are above $0.21 or the 4HR chart middle BB.

IOT/USD (IOTA)

IOTUSD 4HR Chart from BitFinex for March 31, 2018

According to data, IOTA is down 2.22% but unfortunately, bears are yet to cash their profits at $1.

As it is, the 20 period MA is our immediate resistance line and we can see how sellers have been jumping in whenever buyers test this level.

Our trade plan remains the same and unless there are strong supportive fundamentals, IOTA sellers should hold on tight and aim for $1.

On the flip side, if buyers pick up and push prices above $1.2, then sellers should exit their shorts and aggressive buyers can with immediate targets at $1.5. In that case, stops should be at $1.

EOS/USD (EOS)

EOSUSD 4HR Chart from BitFinex for March 31, 2018

From the chart, it’s obvious that we cannot see major gains. That has been the case in the last 48HRs or so and even though buyers look the part, our bearish skew remains steadfast.

That’s unless of course there are strong reasons to load this token which has no working product and a large fan base.

I’m a seller and as such, EOS traders can wait for sell opportunities whenever a stochastic sell prints at or around $7.5. Alternatively, waiting for a drop below $5.5 means EOS would be trading below a 48HR support line and presents another selling opportunity.

LTC/USD (Litecoin)

LTCUSD 4HR Chart from CoinBase for March 31, 2018

The depreciation has been devastating for LTC holders and unfortunately, the projection looks bad. Despite Abra’s integration, there is a gloom LTC projection more so when we take a top down approach.

To begin with, this week’s bearish engulfing pattern and a follow through of a bearish break out, is indicative of potential release of sellers. It’s even worse in the monthly chart where it looks like the party just begun.

From price action and patterns, we shall place our upper limit at $135 and that’s where sellers should get in say there is a pump before a drop towards $100 in the coming session.

NEO/USD (NEO)

NEOUSD 4HR Chart from Bittrex for March 31, 2018

The depreciation continues and it seems like NEO bears are driving prices down in a straight line anyways, at least that what we can glean from the chart.

Anyway, $50 remains important. Notwithstanding, if there’s a convincing breach, then NEO sellers can quickly print $40-at the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement and $25, a strong support line in 2017 in the coming weeks.

All charts courtesy of Trading View

The post NEO, EOS, LTC, IOTA and Lumens: Altcoins Technical Analysis March 31, 2018 appeared first on NewsBTC.

Huobi has officially launched in South Korea. The platform facilitates the trading of 100 cryptocurrencies and 208 markets. The exchange is also creating an investor protection fund and program to immediately compensate for any losses that are not investor error.

Also read: Japan’s DMM Bitcoin Exchange Opens for Business With 7 Cryptocurrencies

Huobi Korea Launched

Huobi Korea, a subsidiary of the Beijing-based crypto trading service provider Huobi, announced that it has officially launched on March 30.

“Huobi Korea will list 100 coins and 208 markets (33 USDT markets, 98 BTC markets, 77 ETH markets),” Zdnet detailed. The exchange stated that it stores 98% of its customer assets in cold wallets. Furthermore, the exchange’s internal access procedure has been strengthened, according to the publication. “In order to open the repository, we have added security to complex procedures that require multiple people to authenticate together,” the news outlet conveyed, and quoted an official of the exchange explaining:

We are also creating an investor protection fund and run an investor protection program to immediately compensate for losses that are not investor error.

100 Cryptos

Huobi confirmed on Thursday that “In Huobi Korea, 100 coins can be traded,” noting that the exchange “will try to support more and more coins trading.”

The supported cryptocurrencies, according to Huobi, include DAT, DBC, DGD, DTA, EDU, ABT, ACT, ADX, AIDOC, APPC, AST, BAT, BCD, BCH, BCX, BIFI, BLZ, BTC, BTG, BTM, CHAT, CMT, CTXC, CVC, LINK, LSK, LTC, LUN, MANA, MCO, MDS, ICC, IOST, ITC, ICC, IOST, ITO, EKO, ELA, ELF, ENG, EOS, ETC, ETH, EVX, GAS, GNT, GNX, MTP, MTL, MTN, MTX, NAS, NEO, OCN, OMG, ONT, OST, PAY, POWR, PROPY, QASH, QSP, QTUM, QUN, RCN, RDN, REQ, RPX, RUFF, SALT, SBTC, SMT, SNC, SNT, SOC, SRN, STK, STORJ, SWFTC, THETA, TNB, TNT, TOPC, TRX, USDT, UTK, VEN, WAX, WICC, WPR, XEM, XRP, YEE, ZEC, ZIL, ZLA, and ZRX.

Korean Won Support Coming Soon

As for the Korean won trading, Huobi Korea wrote, “the KRW market is in the process of being prepared and will be available soon.”

The lack of won trading is likely due to the South Korean regulation which enforced the real-name system at the end of January. Since its implementation, Korean banks have only been issuing virtual accounts to the country’s largest four exchanges – Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit. However, Money Today reported on Thursday that a major bank in Korea, Shinhan Bank, is in talks to start issuing virtual accounts to a smaller crypto exchange, Coinplug.

The official from Huobi Korea was quoted by Zdnet saying:

We are concentrating our ability to prepare for the rapid opening of the Korean won market…All employees will work hard to provide safer and more stable trading services.

Huobi’s Global Expansion

Huobi is currently the third largest crypto exchange globally with a 24-hour trading volume of $1.32 billion at the time of this writing. South Korea’s largest exchange is the Kakao-backed Upbit with a trading volume of $745 million during the same time period.

Before China closed down cryptocurrency exchanges, Huobi was among the largest in the country. Today, the company has a presence in six countries – Korea, Singapore, USA, Japan, Hong Kong and China.

Last week, Huobi registered with the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network in preparation for its U.S. launch. Meanwhile, Japan’s SBI Group has stopped the capital and business tie-up with Huobi Group.

What do you think of Huobi’s launch in South Korea? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Huobi Korea.

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

The post Huobi Officially Launches in South Korea with 100 Cryptocurrencies appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Subutai is the world’s first intelligent Peer-to-Peer (P2P) cloud computing and Internet of Things platform. The company has set itself apart in the blockchain ecosystem through the development of various blueprints that have changed the process of application development and deployment.

Developed by Open Source trailblazers, Subutai disrupts and democratizes the Cloud, allowing users to easily participate in the crypto economy through energy-efficient cryptocurrency mining and frictionless commoditization of idle computing resources. Businesses using Subutai can instantly raise and operate a sharing economy for countless applications using KHAN, its Ethereum blockchain reserve currency token.

Software blueprints act as templates to reduce development time and help simplify the process of application deployment. Subutai blueprints specify general instructions to automate P2P distributed application management tasks like installing, updating, and maintaining applications.

Blockchain-in-a-Box

In a press release on 13th March 2018, Subutai announced its new kid on the block, Blockchain-in-a-Box, which promises to take you from a concept to executing Ethereum Smart Contracts in minutes. Blockchain-in-a-Box comes with an all-inclusive environment for writing Smart Contracts, as well as testing them on a private Ethereum network. This platform will offer a free and instant environment for writing Smart Contracts.

“One of the most attractive Subutai application blueprints is our just-released Blockchain-in-a-Box, which enables developers to write Smart Contracts in minutes without having to deal with obtaining testnet Ether (the cryptocurrency fuelling the Ethereum network),” said Alex Karasulu, CTO and Founder of OptDyn.

“Subutai goes beyond the promise of Blockchain as a Service (BaaS) by setting up the private network along with an entire desktop system in the same cloud environment with a full Solidity development stack to author and test Smart Contracts,” Explains the CTO in the press release.

Reduction of deployment time

Blockchain-in-a-Box removes the need to deal with infrastructure administration, version compatibility, and all the other tedious aspects of configuring a blockchain network, thereby reducing the time to develop and deploy Ethereum Dapps. The blueprint may use one of the Ethereum test networks (allows Ethereum Solidity developers to experiment with new code and solutions) or an entirely private dedicated blockchain. All that is required to use the environment is a basic knowledge of JavaScript and Solidity: Blockchain-in-a-Box creates a self-contained cloud development environment with a remote desktop and a private blockchain network to allow users to build and deploy smart contracts, transact, and more.

In addition to Blockchain-in-a-Box, Subutai offers blueprints for popular applications such as WordPress (a content management and blogging platform) and Mattermost (a private cloud messaging), as well as development frameworks such as Apache Usergrid (used for mobile development). Subutai blueprints make it easy for users to quickly get up and running.

Become a cloud conqueror

Getting started with Blockchain-in-a-Box is easy. The documentation, which includes tutorials on writing contracts, are available at Subutai’s website. Subutai Blockchain-in-a-Box is available in the Subutai Bazaar. As is the case with other Subutai blueprints, Blockchain-in-a-Box is an Open Source software. With easy steps needed to access the blueprint, you can easily write a Smart Contract in minutes.

More information about the Subutai platform is available at https://subutai.io/

The post “Blockchain-In-A-Box” Becomes the Latest Kid in Subutai’s Family of Blueprints appeared first on NewsBTC.