Day: April 17, 2018

Cognizant has partnered with a group of Indian insurance firms to develop a blockchain solution for cross-company data sharing.

‘Tax Day’ in the U.S. is today, April 17, and a number of analysts are bullish on Bitcoin as the much-anticipated tax deadline should trigger the next upward momentum.

‘Tax Day’ to Spark New Bullish Momentum For Bitcoin

The cryptocurrency market has been hungover ever since Bitcoin entered the futures trading market in December 2017. The downward path in 2018 removed the majority of its market cap, from about $826 billion to $330 billion today. Bitcoin had a similar fate as its market cap plunged from $324 billion to $138 billion, and its price shed $12,000, from $20,000 to about $8,000. Today, however, is ‘Tax Day’ in the United States.

The IRS says cryptocurrencies constitute property, which is subject to capital gains tax. Institutional investors argue that ‘Tax Day’ is the trigger of the new bullish run.

“Tax-selling has been a significant factor in downward crypto prices over the past few weeks. I would expect this downward pressure to abate after tax day,”

Blockchain Capital co-founder Spencer Bogart told CNBC.

The 1,300 percent upward move seen in the Bitcoin price chart should result in $25 billion in taxes for digital currency holdings in the United States, according to Tom Lee, Head of Research at Fundstrat Global Advisors. Lee says that U.S. households captured 30% of the $590 billion capital gains from cryptocurrencies in 2017. The tax rate of 27% on a $92 billion taxable gain means that U.S. holders owe $25 billion.

On April 15, Tom Lee said that Bitcoin may be bottoming;

CRYPTO: Where was #BTC 1M prior to ~$20,000 top? $5,900. In other words, BTC this year rollbacked prices similar to what happened in 2014/15. Could be same bottom as the 2014/15 bottom. Also, selling related to capital gains taxes in US should be lifting as tax day is 4/17. pic.twitter.com/AyOgKPoR2x

— Thomas Lee (@fundstrat) April 15, 2018

Lee expects Bitcoin to reach $20,000 again by mid-year and $25,000 by the end of 2018. By early 2020, the cryptocurrency is predicted to be worth $91,000.

An investor letter published by Dan Morehead, Founder and CEO of Pantera Capital, said that bitcoin is “highly likely to have exceeded $20,000 within a year.”

Tim Draper, an early backer of Tesla, Skype, and SpaceX, announced that he predicts that Bitcoin price will reach $250,000 by 2022. Draper said he expects that, in five years, whoever tries to pay in fiat currency will be laughed at.

 Image from Shutterstock

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Blockchain technology has been around for almost a decade now. Global adoption has been growing steadily, but everyday use of the technology remains elusive. Tip Blockchain is creating solutions that will give users practical value. This is powered by discovery of information on the blockchain.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

Smart blockchain with accessible information

On the Bitcoin and Ethereum blockchains, the ability to pass along information along with transactions by sending data payloads is severely limited. Bitcoin supports low-level data insertion into transactions, but there is no easy way to do this without writing custom code or using a third-party service that does essentially that. Ethereum support for arbitrary data is slightly better, as data can be inserted through the data payload of transactions or through smart contract variables. Once data has been added to the blockchain, it is practically unusable by anyone without again having to write custom code to access this data. These restrictions limit the usability of data stored on blockchains.
Having the ability to store and access data in a convenient and standardized way is crucial, as this would open the door to a multitude of new decentralized applications that can use this data and harness the power of search and discovery, as search engines did for the internet.

Tip Blockchain is developing a solution that not only enables us to store information on-chain but do it in such a way that makes it easily accessible to any user on the network, through a standardized search interface. This works similar to the way traditional Database Management Systems (DMBS) work.

Discovery on chain

With arbitrary information indexed on-chain, you might be curious as to what this information can be used for. This data will be used by end-users indirectly. The users will be completely oblivious to this information being indexed on a blockchain. This provides users with a platform where they can search for information indexed on-chain, using apps running on their smartphones or desktop computers. Think of it as a blockchain with a search engine attached. The information shown to users is not web search results, but rather the indexed data stored on the blockchain.

This functionality will power a slew of new decentralized apps which can then create custom protocols for storing, accessing and sharing data. Since this data can be used by multiple clients, the convention to avoid data clashes on the platform and make it easy for apps to find the information they store would be to use namespacing, where each app or service uses a unique namespace, such as reverse-domain prefixes. Global information can also be stored in the global namespace which could be read by any Dapp or service.

Blockchains are often compared to traditional databases. One of the advantages traditional database systems have over blockchain is they allow the data stored to be indexed and queried in a relatively easy manner. Tip is building a blockchain that bridges the gap between a traditional database management system and blockchain.

To learn more about us, check out our website and whitepaper.

Also, do not forget to follow us on Twitter and join our massive Telegram community to keep up with updates on the project. There will be lots of exciting news coming up.

Like elsewhere in crypto taxation, the rules for funds are far from straightforward, and discrepancies may lead to non-intuitive outcomes.

The cryptocurrency ecosystem has found an unexpected backer in the International Monetary Fund. The organization is asking the world’s central banks to be open-minded about digital money as they should “distinguish between real threats and needless fears”.

IMF Wants to Help Develop Cryptocurrency Regulation

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, took many in the financial system by surprise with a recent blog post where she seems to be on the side of cryptocurrencies when it comes to the recent overreaction by some central banks, including India and Pakistan. The IMF wants to offer its 189 members advice and serve as a forum for discussion and collaboration in the development of a consistent regulatory approach;

“Policymakers should keep an open mind and work toward an even-handed regulatory framework that minimizes risks while allowing the creative process to bear fruit”

With over 1,500 different digital coins and tokens in circulation, financial regulators feel pressured to allow the blockchain technology to develop while being threatened by cryptocurrency trading without the oversight of a central monetary authority. The IMF’s annual spring meeting in Washington is this week included the hot topic for this year – the cryptocurrency market.

According to Coinmarketcap, the total market cap among the 1568 cryptocurrencies spread in 10327 markets is over $300 billion, which is about 4.8 percent of the world’s foreign exchange reserves.

Last week, IMF’s Lagarde told Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post that the industry is something which is developing fast, is highly volatile, with benefits and downsides.

“Firstly, the illicit use of digital currency plus abuse of consumers’ financial illiteracy must be guarded against. Secondly, innovations from the use of digital mechanisms need to be explored and encouraged. So it’s a combination of having a framework that protects, and not stifling innovation, that can lead to cost efficiency.”

A preliminary assessment made by the IMF concluded that while assets tied to cryptocurrencies don’t pose an immediate danger to the global financial system because their footprint is still small, they have the potential to magnify the risks and increase the transmission of economic shocks. On the other hand, they can “enable fast and inexpensive financial transactions” and the distributed ledger technology could improve efficiencies.

“We need to remain alert and vigilant. We must act quickly to close the knowledge gaps that inhibit the effective monitoring of crypto-assets. There should be systemic risk assessment and timely policy responses, as well as measures to protect consumers, investors, and market integrity”, Lagarde added.

This week, the IMF Innovation Lab is holding sessions on distributed ledger technology, successful applications of the blockchain, and the risks and opportunities of cryptocurrencies.

Image from Shutterstock

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A lot of people are actively wondering how the cryptocurrency markets will evolve in the days and weeks to come. As of right now, it remains unclear which direction we will head in over the next few days. One thing is for certain: the Litecoin price is going up in value pretty quickly. That is a remarkable trend, although one that is not entirely surprising either.

Litecoin Price Rise is More Than Welcome

Similar to most other cryptocurrencies, the past seven days have been pretty interesting for Litecoin. Anyone keeping an eye on the Litecoin price will have noticed things are slowly heading in the right direction once again. With the value rising from $113 all the way to $138.39 in a few days, the uptrend seems to be solidified.

At the same time, things never remain positive in the world of cryptocurrency for a long period. More specifically, every uptrend is usually followed by a correction of some sorts. It is doubtful the Litecoin price trend we see right now will be an exception to that unwritten rule, albeit stranger things have happened. For now, the momentum remains firmly in place, which is good to see.

Over the past 24 hours, the Litecoin price has gained a solid 8.64% in value. This is partially thanks to a positive LTC/BTC trend, which has shifted by 8.21% in favor of Litecoin. Considering how the Bitcoin price is remaining somewhat stable as of right now, it is only normal altcoins will need to show some positive momentum of their own before the uptrend can be solidified.

Thanks to a solid $441.484m in 24-hour trading volume, the demand for Litecoin is certainly present  THis means people are willing to both buy and sell Litecoin at the current price, which will lead to some interesting trading action in the coming hours. Over the past hour, the LTC price has jumped by over 2% whereas other markets are incredibly flat.

With Litecoin getting listed on the Korbit exchange as of tomorrow, it will be interesting to see how much volume that platform can generate. Until that happens, OKEx remains the biggest platform for LTC trading with both USDT and BTC markets. GDAX is the only fiat currency pair in the top three, but it seems that is sufficient to keep the Litecoin price rise intact for some time to come.

Whether or not this means the Litecoin price will effectively continue to rise, is a different matter altogether. Right now, the momentum is firmly in place, but things tend to turn around pretty quickly in the world of cryptocurrency. If this trend remains intact for a few more days, we may even see the Litecoin price rise well above $150. For now, the small gains have to be taken in stride first and foremost.

U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has announced it is shutting its doors for investors in Japan, citing operational costs.

Moody’s report: less expensive cross-border transactions powered by Blockchain tech have the potential to hurt the Swiss banking industry #NEWS

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has stated that it had no plans to issue to issue a central-bank digital currency (CBDC).

At a recent conference between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Japan’s Financial Services Agency on Monday the BoJ’s deputy governor Masayoshi Amamiya suggested that a CBDC could undermine the bank’s two-tier system and destabilize it.

Amamiya suggested, “…the issuance of central bank digital currencies for general use would be analogous to directly allowing households and firms to have accounts in the central bank.”

The current system at the BoJ only allows access to private banks and other limited financial bodies.

Recent comments by the bank have been cool towards cryptocurrencies, despite the popularity in the country. Cryptocurrency crime has dampened JoC enthusiasm, so much so that the bank has recently surveyed its customers to get their point of view on digital currencies.

The one-page survey entitled ‘Let’s think about cryptocurrencies!‘ has appeared on a financial education site run by the bank. It asks such questions as “should cryptocurrencies be considered as money?” and whether you could profit from them and if is it likely they would be stolen. The survey gives the public a basic overview of digital currency but points out that there is no central bank to back them up.

The bank, despite its “wait and see” stance, has started to consider the viability of cryptocurrency’s underlying blockchain technology for business applications. The bank’s Project Stella initiative has conducted research on how distributed ledger technology can create new securities settlement systems.

Outside of the banking system, cryptocurrency continues to flourish in Japan. China and India’s attempts to outlaw the new technology have not been duplicated in Japan. Firm public and business support have made Japan a cryptocurrency haven, with a rise in domestic firms adopting cryptocurrency or blockchain technology within the country.

Figures released recently showed that 3.5 million Japanese are now trading in cryptocurrency as the government continues to work towards full legalization and regulation of ICOs.

The post Bank of Japan Has No Plans for Central Bank Crypto appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

Tokenized securities startup Harbor has secured $28 million in funding from major Silicon Valley venture capital firms.

Japan is a very important country to cryptocurrency companies. With its open-minded regulation and positive approach to cryptocurrencies, there are a lot of benefits to this region. Surprisingly, the Kraken trading platform is ceasing its service in Japan very soon. This sudden decision is the direct result of rising costs associated with offering services to local customers.

Kraken is Exiting Japan

This decision by Kraken comes as a big surprise to most cryptocurrency enthusiasts. The company is one of the few Western service providers offering services in Japan as of right now. That situation will soon change, allegedly due to rising costs of doing business in Japan. This decision is not necessarily permanent, as the company may come back in the future.

Considering how the company has been active in Japan since October 2014, Kraken had plenty of time to evaluate its position in the market. Suspending the services in Japan will let the company provide “better focus on other geographical areas”. Which countries those will include, remains to be determined. Kraken also confirms this temporary suspension only affects residents of Japan.

It also appears Kraken isn’t the most popular trading platform in Japan. Its BTC/JPY pair accounted for 0.07% of the company’s overall trading volume in the past 24 hours. The company also provides an ETH/JPY pair, which is even less popular. There are dozens of exchanges active in Japan who also provide access to both Bitcoin and Ethereum in exchange for the Japanese Yen.

No Impact on the Mt. Gox Process

Unlike most other exchanges, Kraken is allowed to operate in Japan without a license. As such, the company is a bit of an odd creature in the country. It is this lack of oversight which may hurt the platform’s popularity as of right now. The exchange will remove its services from the country by the end of June 2018.

As is always the case, speculation runs wild when news like this is made public. Considering Kraken’s position in the ongoing Mt. Gox investigation, it makes even less sense for them to suspend services in Japan. Halting the trading services in this region should not necessarily impact that ongoing process. For now, it remains to be seen how all of this will play out.

Despite the loss of this exchange, Japan remains one of the most crypto-friendly countries on the planet. The local government remains supportive of all different currencies and is even leaning toward legalizing ICOs. That latter development will certainly shake things up in Asia. Other countries, including China and South Korea, have made initial coin offerings illegal and a crackdown on them is imminent in Thailand.

Image from Shutterstock

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