Day: April 21, 2018

Blockchain-based betting ecosystem PROOF OF TOSS has launched its referral program and is getting ready to demonstrate the beta-version of the platform. Users will have a chance to test the MVP during the token sale which is planned to begin on 24th April 2018. Right here, in this article, you can see the samples of platform interface.

Two solutions

PROOF OF TOSS is a betting ecosystem, that is aimed to disrupt the traditional betting industry and improve the user experience.

The protocol consists of two solutions:

• A peer-to-peer platform, where end-users will be able to create wagers, bet, and judge
• A white-label open source solution for operating companies to supply events on any scale.

Everything on the platform is embedded in the logic of smart contracts, powered by the promising RSK blockchain, which has recently released its main net. By utilising RSK, PROOF OF TOSS will provide:

• transparency
• immutability
• protection from fraudulent activities
• great market coverage
• possibility to bet on anything

Minimum viable product and interface examples

The peer-to-peer solution is a fully functional decentralized platform, where users can create wagers, place bets and act as judges in the distributed crowd judging mechanism. In both solutions, there is a system of deposits, which protects users from fraud.

The MVP will be ready for testing after the start of the token sale. All token buyers will have a chance to try betting with TOSS tokens, and compete against each other.

“We want users to get to know the system during our token sale. Wagers will be very small as this is just a demonstration for users, an opportunity to test the real product as soon as possible.” — Eugene Pavlenko, the PROOF OF TOSS CTO.

Here are some examples of the platform’s user interface

Personal Cabinet

Creating an Event

Before Judging

Judging

The team is currently developing a PROOF OF TOSS crypto wallet based on RSK. The wallet that is built into the system provides users with full control over their funds. Funds move from wallet to smart contract to wallet and thus cannot be hijacked, delayed or stolen by a third party.

This is how the PROOF OF TOSS crypto wallet will look like.

TOSS token

TOSS is a utility token of the ecosystem,  used to create wagers, place bets, vote, make deposits and provide collateral, and most importantly receive prizes and rewards. Tokenization, in general, provides betting with many advantages, such as faster transactions and guarantee of fair results. Also, tokens help scale the system and reduce the risk of server crashes and other technical failures.

In PROOF OF TOSS, a minimum of 1 billion TOSS tokens will be released if the hard cap is reached. This is the necessary amount to cover the average weekly turnover.

Unsold tokens are often burned after the token sale, which allows the owners to control the supply of their tokens. But in PROOF OF TOSS, there will not be such thing as “unsold tokens.” All tokens will be minted according to each individual purchase including bonuses, during the token sale.

Tokens will be distributed as follows

 

TOSS token holder benefits

All TOSS token holders will get the following benefits:

• Access to the smart betting ecosystem from all over the world
• High speed of transactions
• Instant payouts
• Secure betting environment
• Several roles within the PROOF OF TOSS ecosystem
• Full control over their TOSS tokens with the PROOF OF TOSS wallet

How to purchase TOSS tokens

Currently, the PROOF OF TOSS ecosystem is under development, and the team is getting ready for the public token sale which is planned to start on the 24th of April.

Now the project is going through its private sale stage. The minimum purchase amount during the private sale is 142 ETH with bonuses starting from 40%. To get more information about participating in the private sale talk to the team in Telegram https://t.me/proofoftoss.

There is also a WhiteList, which is limited to 10000 subscribers and is filling fast. However, there is still a chance to jump in and receive your bonuses. The first 10000 people that join the whitelist and purchase TOSS tokens during the open token sale will receive a 1000 TOSS token, early bird bonus. The subscription box for it is located on the front page of the website.

PROOF OF TOSS referral program

There is one more way to receive bonus TOSS tokens: everyone can bring a friend and get 8% per referral. For this affiliate program PROOF OF TOSS has allocated 5% of all TOSS tokens.

For participating in the referral program, all you have to do is register on https://sale.toss.pro/ and get the referral link. Invite friends to the token sale by sharing your unique referral link with them.

The referral program has two levels:

• For every purchase made through a direct referral link, users will receive 8% of TOSS tokens from the purchased amount.
• For every purchase made through a second tier referral link (a link that was generated by a user that was referred), users receive 2% of TOSS tokens from the purchased amount.

The first referral link is saved for the duration of the token sale, and even if they don’t buy immediately and go back to www.toss.pro in a week or two, the referrer will still receive a bonus from their purchase.

PROOF OF TOSS in the Internet

Learn more about PROOF OF TOSS at www.toss.pro and join the Whitelist.
Participate in the referral program: https://sale.toss.pro
Talk to the team in our Telegram https://t.me/proofoftoss
Join the project’s page on Facebook https://fb.me/ProofOfToss
Stay tuned and follow the project on Twitter https://twitter.com/proof_of_toss

The post Buyers of TOSS Tokens Will Have a Chance to Test the Ecosystem during Token Sale appeared first on NewsBTC.

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Blockchain-based platform designed to bring algorithm creators and investors together on an auction-based marketplace launches ICO. The platform will be one of the first projects to implement Waves’ smart contracts. Its TNG token baked on Waves will be available a wide range of users, both inside and outside the Waves community.

Today many large funds, institutional investors, and experienced traders use algorithmic trading: they invest using automated trading strategies that buy and sell using signals they receive from trading algorithms. This form of trading has a number of significant advantages over trading manually and provides high returns which are not presently accessible to the public trading on both cryptocurrency markets and traditional markets.

Tradingene is a blockchain-based auction platform that makes possible the creation and use of algorithms for trade cryptocurrency and the most popular financial instruments. Tradingene addresses the aforementioned problems through an accessible and advanced web platform for creating algorithms, online courses for algorithm creators, a competitive auction for algorithms and finally a blockchain-based system to increase transparency. Some trading algorithms already beat buy & hold strategy even on cryptocurrency markets.

“Tradingene will become an Uber on the algorithmic trading market,” says Daniel Wolfe, CEO. “There are a large number of inefficiencies in the algorithmic trading market. Current players have fee structures that do not motivate creators. Many platforms have a large number of ‘garbage’ and curve-fitted trading algorithms. In addition, they do not provide transparent pricing nor do they offer the opportunity to create algorithms for a wide range of markets. Tradingene solves all of these problems with a number of innovations and an entirely new ideology: the trading algorithm as investment product!”

According to the whitepaper, the project’s goals are to provide quality opportunities to retail investors who wish to invest using trading algorithms; to provide algorithm creators with opportunities to develop and test trading algorithms and attract capital; to create the conditions for maximally efficient, transparent and profitable investment in trading algorithms.

Tradingene platform investor’s personal cabinet prototype: trading robot choice

Even today Tradingene is a ready-to-use product for algorithm creators. The platform has more than 300 creators who have created over 2000 tested algorithms. Tradingene currently works with a select number of private investors.

Tradingene is one of the few companies that have an international, highly qualified team with more than 10 years trading experience and some famous financial managers, entrepreneurs and even world record holders. Its advisors are highly respected people in areas like Machine Learning (such as Tomoya Suzuki – John Brooks Award winner), Investments (such as Tim Seymour – hedge-fund manager and CNBC presenter) and Trading Algorithms (such as Dan Valcu– who holds the professional designation of a Certified Financial Technician, served on the Board of the International Federation of Technical Analysis, IFTA).

The post First Marketplace of Trading Algorithms Tradingene Supported by Waves to Launch ICO 16th of May appeared first on NewsBTC.

It has been a slow dawning but it would appear Paypal is fading further into redundancy with an announcement that it will be raising its transaction and credit/debit card fees. 

Studies have shown that over 15.4 million individuals in the United States alone faced issues related to identity fraud and theft in 2016. Not only that, in the same year it was reported that 1.1 billion digital identities of internet users across the globe were stolen by hackers.

Civic is an all-new blockchain-based identity verification (IDV) platform that provides users with on-demand, secure and low-cost access to digital privacy services. Through its unique system, Civic is able to eliminate the need for recurring background and personal information verification checks that are undertaken every time a new institution requires such a protocol to be initiated.

In terms of its functionality, Civic’s decentralized ecosystem requires users to employ native tokens to facilitate all transactions pertaining to IDV services.

The platform’s customers will be able to use their digital devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.) for streamlined identity verification checks. These devices will contain individuals’ personal information, such as their names or passport numbers, so that they can easily identify themselves at:

• Airport check-in counters
• Security checkpoints
• Hotels

Overview of Civic

• Features an interface that is easy to use and operate
• Makes use of biometric information associated with an individual, making the authentication process more secure and safe
• Provides customers with identity-theft insurance in excess of one million dollars
• Uses native CVC tokens to facilitate internal transactions (340,100,000 currently in circulation)

Key Features

To start things off, Civic offers users a Secure Identity Platform (SIP) which uses blockchain technology to make user identities verifiable, decentralized, and secure. Additionally, Civic’s SIP module uses verified identities for multi-factor authentication without the need for specifics such as usernames or passwords.

Overview of the Civic ecosystem

Unlike many other blockchain-based identity platforms, Civic offers a fully functional IDV service that is already being implemented within diverse domains such as:

• Finance
• E-commerce and cryptocurrency
• Medicine and healthcare
• Social identity verification

Another key facet of this platform is that customers can use Civic’s Secure Private Login (SPL) to create new accounts without the need for a username or password. However, it should be noted that unlike Facebook’s native login service, Civic ensures that each new user undergoes a series of identity checks before they can sign up for the platform.

Other important features worth noting include:

(i) Identity Theft Insurance — a highly underrated aspect of Civic is that it provides users with protection from identity theft by monitoring external threats in real time. It does so by issuing pertinent alerts as well as by offering customers up to $1 million in theft insurance.

(ii) Rewards — using CVC tokens as incentives, Civic provides identity validators as well as provers with handsome rewards for sharing information with one another.

How it works

Firstly, Civic users need to download the company’s smartphone app on their mobile device of choice. Customers are then asked to prove their identities as part of the account creation process. This might take some time, as certain documents need to be provided in order to gain access to Civic’s Secure Identity Platform (SIP).

Visual representation of how the platform works

Once users have gained access to the core operational module, Civic’s native ID protocol or a trusted third-party Identity Partner (such as a government entity, bank, or utility company) receives the user’s encrypted Personal Identifying Information (PII).

Through the blockchain, Civic then sends an attestation to prove that all internal data being transmitted within the system is verifiable and secure. After enough validators have approved a given request, the Identity Requester is duly sent a notification in regard to the matter.

Lastly, a final check is performed by Civic using a broad range of public records, such as a person’s:

• Social media accounts
• Contact information
• Credit checks

Civic also makes use of a host of advanced fraud detection algorithms that help in manually auditing network requests while rejecting fraudulent ones at a high success rate.

About the project

Civic is backed by Vinny Lingham, a South African entrepreneur who has been a part of many successful business ventures in the past including the online retail company Gyft.  

The CTO of this project is Jonathan Smith. According to his LinkedIn profile, Jonathan has been in the banking and tech sectors for more than a decade and has previously been associated with many successful blockchain-based startups.  

The company also has on its roster around 50 full-time employees, based in various locations across the globe.

Token Performance Data

CVC token lifetime performance data (courtesy of CoinMarketCap)

While initially priced at just $0.18 per token, CVC quickly gained traction within the global crypto market and reached a peak value of around $1.32 in January of this year.

However, since its meteoric rise, the price of the currency has gone down, and as of April 21, the value of a single CVC token stands at $0.378.

Final Thoughts

With Civic providing its customer base with a fully developed decentralized identity platform that is not only secure but cost-effective, it will be interesting to see how CVC tokens are received by the global crypto community at large by the end of this year.

Since Civic is a highly potent alternative to many of the mainstream identity verification systems in the market today, it would not be surprising to see this technology fare well in the coming months.

If you would like to start investing in Civic, CVC trading pairs are currently available on websites such as Huboi, Upbit, Bittrex, and OKEX.

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ElaadNL has unveiled the world’s first electric charging station in which charging and paying can be done through IOTA’s Tangle technology. ElaadNL announced the charging station in a blog post, indicating that it’s part of its new test site located in the Arnhems Buiten business park in the Netherlands.

IOTA Was a Perfect Fit

In announcing the new station, ElaadNL described IOTA’s Tangle as being a perfect fit for the sector, stating that it could have a great impact on other sectors as well.

This technology might be a perfect fit in the future connected and fully digitalized world. The exploration of this technology in the e-mobility domain could also provide insight for other (connected) sectors like the energy sector.

IOTA’s Tangle is a distributed ledger protocol that is designed to cater to the very rapidly growing Internet of Things (IoT) sector. It is open source and facilitates machine-to-machine interactions including feeless payments in real time and the secure transfer of data.

The post further detailed IOTA’s effectiveness, noting that it eliminates the need for an intermediary and makes the entire process autonomous.

No back office and no communication protocol is required to operate the charging station: the transactions are exchanged directly without the use of a charge card or subscription. The IOTA charging station operates completely autonomously and takes care of communication and payment with the end ‘user’. The meter values are stored every 15 minutes in the Tangle, which ensures reliable and irrefutable administration.

The charger sets up a TCP/IP connection with the car through pre-installed hardware, and the connection facilitates machine-to-machine payment and data exchange. The charger is available to the public, and those cars that lack the necessary hardware or software for the autonomous machine-to-machine transactions will be given the option to send IOTA tokens using the normal IOTA wallet.

The Backbone Of The Machine Economy

Speaking about the partnership, IOTA’s Head of Mobility, Alisa Maas, described the solution as showcasing IOTA’s potential to become the backbone of the machine economy.

This solution demystifies IOTA’s potential to become the backbone for the Machine Economy. Thanks to ElaadNL’s cutting edge innovation, seamless e-mobility is taking one big leap forward and we look forward to sharing this achievement with the rest of our growing ecosystem, at the crossroads of mobility, energy and smart cities sectors.

ElaadNL is a joint initiative of Dutch grid operators that researches the charging of electric cars in ways that are reliable and sustainable. Its managing director, Onoph Caron, expressed optimism that distributed ledger technology would become widespread in the future.

This charger shows the ability of using real machine to machine communications and micropayments, with the use of IOTA as a secure layer for these payments and data. ElaadNL researches all kinds of innovative and smart technologies with regard to charging electric cars. DLT-technology might become a widespread thing in the near future.

The announcement comes at a time when the cryptocurrency market is bouncing back from a long slump, and will add to IOTA’s momentum as it seeks to reclaim its record price.

 

• Over 50 speakers and 70 exhibitors attended the first C3 Crypto Conference at STATION Berlin on two days of Conference and Expo
• International speakers, panels & workshops provided “Out of the Box” moments
• Highlight: Winners of the Live-ICOs receives investment from Paranoid Internet

Berlin, April 21, 2018 – The first C3 Crypto Conference at STATION Berlin started a few weeks ago with the goal of creating a conference and expo where both Blockchain beginners and professionals generate added value for themselves. The wide ranging Blockchain ecosystem was presented by over 2,500 visitors, more than 50 speakers and 70 exhibiting companies over two days in Berlin.

Captivating topics

Topics regarding the future and the framework conditions of the Blockchain were particularly highly discussed. For example, Dr Ulrich Keunecke’s panel from KPMG, which took a closer look at the legal framework for ICOs, was very well received. The topic of cryptocurrencies also played a major role in the keynotes and panels of the conference.

As a result, the room was fully packed when Alena Vranova (consultant for Bitcoin, Blockchain and Fintech), Jeff Gallas (Fulmo), Matthew Schutte (Holo.Host) and Dušan Stojanović (True Global Ventures) discussed the future of cryptocurrencies. But also the keynotes of Matthew Schutte (Tackling Complexity: How to create an ecosystem, and not just a network) and Miko Matsumura (Evercoin), who explained the revolutionary meaning of bitcoin, fascinated the visitors. Miriam Neubauer and Fabian Spielberger from Catena Capital showed the audience “Use Cases of Blockchain Technology”. Christian Junger (MADANA), Sascha Grumbach (Argopreneurs), Fabian Spielberger (Catena Capital ) and Dennis Weidner (organizer of the C3 Crypto Conference) emphasized the importance of Berlin as a location during the subsequent “Blockchain Entrepreneurship in Berlin” panel. “It is the first time in history that Europe can compete with the USA in fundraising,” said Spielberger.

Live ICOs as a highlight of the conference

On day two of the conference, live pitches were held in two stages on the Expo stage in the exhibition area. In a dynamic competition, selected participants pitched their ICO ideas. The winners of places one to three received a first marketing investment from Paranoid Internet, a full-service crypto and marketing agency, to present their approaches to the masses. First place was honoured with 25,000 €, second place with 10,000 € and third place with 5,000 € as starting capital. The winners are:

 

1. TV-TWO (a decentralized TV ecosystem)
2. concertVR (location-independent concert experiences with Virtual Reality)
3. BehaviourExchange (identify and analyze web users in real time)

Important platform for the Blockchain ecosystem

“We have joined forces as a team to set an example for diversity, innovation and technological development in Germany with this lighthouse event. We are very pleased with the feedback from the first C3 Crypto Conference,” says Dennis Weidner, organizer of the conference. “The response of the participants to the conference and the fair shows us how important such a platform for exchange is for the Blockchain ecosystem. Events like these are important to highlight the innovative power and socio-political significance of Blockchain and cryptocurrencies for the future”.

About Paranoid Internet

Paranoid Internet is one of the leading full-service crypto and marketing agencies in Germany, with a wealth of project-related experience from the ICOs of Envion and Savedroid. The C³ Crypto Conference in Berlin was started as a lighthouse event with the aim of further promoting the ecosystem around the Blockchain technology and giving the community a platform for “Out of the Box” thinking and exchange.

Press contact:

Miles Lindsay.

PIABO PR Ltd.

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: +49 (0) 30 257620528

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.

Financial assets are the lifeblood of the global economy – and through the markets, everything from currencies to commodities can move freely.

The current methods used to perform trades have been in force for many years. Arguably, the last major development in the industry was electronic trading, and that was back in the 1980s.

Some believe this old-fashioned approach to trading has many downsides – delays and a lack of transparency among them.

However, there is excited chatter about technology which could eliminate many of these issues and transform the way trades are executed. This decentralized solution, known as Blockchain, allows for records of transactions and ownership to be stored on a shared database whose cryptography-based structure and consensus mechanisms make it impossible to tamper with or corrupt.

On Blockchain, tokens can be used to make purchases, often through a cryptocurrency. They can also provide access to services available on a platform. The tokenization of securities would mean assets such as bonds, equities, stocks, and futures could be represented by a digital token.

Here, we are going to explore just some of the ways this tokenization process could impact market behavior – and how trades are executed.

1. Faster transactions

Although it’s difficult to find an exchange where trades are completed on paper these days, existing procedures for executing deals are arduous and slow. As well as a trade having to go through several intermediaries before it is completed, funds need to be settled – and this can take several days.

Tokenized assets on Blockchain could be traded through smart contracts which are drawn up at an instant based on the impartial and independent information. Middlemen would not be needed to process the deal, and settlement could be achieved within a matter of seconds. All of these records would also be stored in a ledger, meaning they are easy to track and incorruptible.

2. Freedom to invest around the world

Tokenizing assets also has appeal because it can lead to the democratization of trading – allowing anyone who has an interest in investing to get involved. Better still, it could mean that geographical boundaries which can curtail a trader’s options fall by the wayside.

Through Blockchain, an investor in Europe would be able to invest in Asian equities, options, and bonds – regulation permitting. In terms of market behavior, this broader exposure could have an interesting effect on asset valuations.

3. Lower fees

With middlemen come fees – and in the case of markets, these charges can be eye-wateringly high. Many Blockchain platforms across a plethora of industries, both existing and upcoming, pride themselves on offering dramatically lower commission fees. Some companies also redistribute the revenue generated from these fees back to users in the ecosystem on a daily basis, retaining a small amount of income which can be reinvested into the continued development of their networks.

4. Transparency

There have also been allegations that some companies exert undue influence on asset prices and how trades are performed. Eliminating these participants from the trading process altogether, allowing individuals to trade tokenized securities with one another at will, could see levels of manipulation tumble considerably – however, it is worth bearing in mind that the roles and responsibilities held by these middlemen can end up shifting to buyers and sellers in a Blockchain environment.

5. Micro shares

Tokenization also makes it easier to subdivide assets, in turn meaning it can be more affordable for investors with lower budgets to participate.

A single share in some companies on the stock exchange can cost hundreds of dollars, but trading on Blockchain could allow investors to purchase a chunk of this equity. As well as the financial flexibility this brings, it could encourage greater diversity across an investment portfolio.

Making it happen

One company is hoping to introduce many of these benefits through a new Blockchain trading network.

TradeConnect is going to be powered by a new trading token called ThinkCoin, which has been described as “simple, secure and user-friendly.”

The initial coin offering for ThinkCoin is scheduled to take place from May 10 to 25. The pre-ICO is live now, with a 45 percent bonus available until April 23 at the standard price of $0.30. The TradeConnect platform is initially going to offer functionality for forex and contracts for difference trades. In time, the company hopes to expand and enable users around the world to trade any financial asset.

A beta version of this network is being launched in August.

The post The Tokenization of Securities: How Could It Impact Market Behavior? appeared first on NewsBTC.

MyEtherWallet (MEW) exploded in popularity among ERC20 investors looking for a solid wallet, and also as a useful tool for ICOs. Two months ago, when MEW seemed to have rebranded to MyCrypto out of nowhere, the community was confused and outraged due to the limited and conflicting information that was released. For the first time since that event, Kosala Hemachandra, the founder of MEW, spoke with the Merkle about the company’s exciting next stages of growth.

The Early Days of MEW and Ethereum

In the early stages, Ethereum ran on a testnet where people could try out all of its features to see how they worked. When it went to the mainnet, developers were the first to heavily invest in it. Kosala explains, “One of the biggest problems at the time was figuring out how to securely store Ethereum. Forums and Reddit were filled with questions about how wallet storage worked. In response to this growing need for a wallet storage solution, I came up with the idea for MEW as a side project to help people seamlessly create a wallet without having to run lines of code or check in to see if they did it right.”

Despite the fact that Ethereum was barely being used at the time, Kosala’s work produced the simplest secure wallet to use, helping to increase its overall popularity. “As Ethereum grew, MEW grew and adapted with it, adding functionality to take advantage of new features as they appeared,” he told us. When Ethereum created ERC20 tokens, ICOs flocked to MEW as their wallet of choice to collect funding.

MEW and the ICO Boom

MEW was already popular at the time, but the surge of ICOs creating tutorials for how to buy their tokens using MEW elevated it even further. MEW’s ERC-20 compatibility made it an easy choice for these emerging blockchain startups. The most notable one was Golem’s record 20-minute sale, pushing MEW to its limits with a server overload that resulted in a temporary loss of service. The incident served as a teachable moment for MEW, leading Kosala to develop a more robust infrastructure and add a feature which let users utilize their own nodes.

While Kosala was developing the back-end open-source code for MEW, he needed help getting MEW’s message out. His best friend and web developer, Taylor Monahan, seemed like a natural fit. Taylor helped people connect to MEW and took over the social media, becoming the face of MEW in the community. It was a perfect pairing when Taylor joined MEW in August 2015, but last summer, the two founding partners who’d started this as a hobby together started splitting apart with different visions for the direction of MEW.

A Contentious Fork – To Put It Mildly

This eventually led to a controversial fork of epic proportions when the MEW Twitter handle with more than 78,000 followers suddenly became “MyCrypto”. Community members felt concerned over the security of their wallet funds, confused about whether MEW was rebranding, and outraged at the lack of transparency.

“It is well documented that Taylor and I were in the midst of a legal dispute prior to the fork,” Kosala tells us, adding, “This made the whole situation difficult to handle both emotionally and professionally.” The two had been in negotiations since at least August 2017. Kosala filed a legal complaint after Taylor refused to share MEW’s financial documents with him. The excerpt below contains part of an email from his lawyer which is included in the full legal complaint that’s been shared around on Reddit. The email shows that Kosala was offering Taylor a one million dollar buyout of her stake in MEW.

Neither of them addressed the court proceedings in their statements following the Twitter renaming. While Taylor explained her side in a lengthy Medium post, Kosala made a short Reddit statement followed by a brief but hopeful response prior to this interview. During all this, Kosala retained control of the MEW GitHub repository, domain, and AWS accounts, but suddenly MEW had no Twitter account of its own. “I was given a new account under the @myetherwallet handle, but it was not the original account which had 78K loyal @myetherwallet followers at the time,” Kosala recounts.

Eventually, the two came to an agreement to restore the original Twitter handle back to MEW. Taylor’s post conveyed a legitimate frustration that Kosala wasn’t playing an active role in MEW or contributing much code, leading to her interest in forming a new company. Kosala states, “It is my belief that it was the combined efforts of Taylor and I that made MEW a success; while we may have had different visions of the future, I will never regret our partnership.”

This rebrand hoax, as well as the substantial amount of phishing scams associated with MEW, are part of what led to Kosala’s new vision for MEW and its future after all this fallout.

MEW’s New Direction

The MEW wallet contains more warnings and explanations than almost any other wallet, and that can make it seem daunting to the crypto beginner. Many also complain that MEW is a little harder to set up than other wallets. These barriers are some of the issues hindering mass adoption of cryptocurrency as a payment method. Even with the major changes to Bitcoin and Ethereum over the years, cryptocurrency is still in the early days. Today it largely remains a store of value or venture capitalist investment vehicle, as throughput, volatility, and access stand in the way of crypto becoming a widely-used medium of exchange.

As a community, Kosala explains, “we haven’t really even taken the first step in mass adoption.” There’s a great deal of work to be done to make cryptocurrency readily adopted, from scalability and integration with banks and industries, to approachable interfaces that allow just about anyone to use crypto as they would cash or savings. “MEW is working on a big departure,” Kosala tells us, and it sounds like that familiar educational series of warning screens might be changing along with much more.

Says Kosala, “At the time, these explanations were important because most people are used to a centralized sign-up process with an email and password you can easily recover if you forget or lose it. It’s not that UI friendly; MEW was made for technical people when we first started. We want to inform people about making their wallet safe, [backing up] and printing it because there’s not a sign-in process if a wallet is locked. We hear them every day; we’re in the process of designing a complete UI that addresses this.”

After the fork, many members of the original MEW team went with Taylor. While the MyCrypto and MEW websites look relatively similar for now, both teams have plans for new developments. MEW has assembled a diverse new team with backgrounds in legal, finance, and engineering. This team includes a new group of full stack developers and a strong support team that’s able to respond to almost all user support tickets. MEW’s new COO, Brian Norton, brings operations management experience in fields like robotics and edutech.

Fighting Phishing

MEW is working on redoing its UI and backend to be more user-friendly and modular. MEW isn’t limited to running on the Ethereum Network either. “It also supports use on private blockchains, other networks, testnets, and Ethereum clones,” says Kosala. Those “Ethereum clones” include other networks built on top of the Ethereum codebase like UBIQ, Expanse, and POA.network. Because of MEW’s large role in providing wallet services, it needs a better response to the massive number of phishing attacks launched against it.

MEW has been one of the biggest targets of phishing scams because it’s easy to copy any open-source interface. Open source allows a community of developers to collaborate, but it also makes it easy for phishing sites to copy and create a domain similar to MEW, such as one that stole a reported 1,500 Ether.

A BIG Launch for MEW

In response to that, Kosala tells us, MEW plans to launch “a mobile application where your private key stays securely inside your phone’s storage. This allows MEW to form a P2P connection with your phone, so you can verify transactions here as a secondary measure of approval compared with the old site interface without this step.”

This new addition to MEW will bring two distinct benefits. First, phishing sites will no longer be able to steal your private key since it will no longer be exposed to the browser. Secondly, it will let you verify all transactions without much hassle. This will ultimately enable users to access their cryptocurrencies with a greater degree of security.

Conclusion

From MEW’s critical role in the early Ethereum economy to its tumultuous fork episode, it’s held strong as one of the most popular ERC20 wallets out there. As both MEW and MyCrypto move in their separate directions, it remains to be seen if they will even remain in the same league. With a new interface that addresses past security issues and makes MEW easier to use, it stands to gain an even larger fan base.

There are always intriguing and worrisome developments in the world of cryptocurrency. WikiLeaks is running into some problems as we speak. Despite accepting cryptocurrency as a donation option, Coinbase is refusing to process these transactions. Direct Bitcoin deposits still work fine at this time.

Coinbase Makes an Odd Decision

Any payment processor associated with cryptocurrencies adheres to strict guidelines. San Francisco-based cryptocurrency Coinbase is a regulated MSB under FinCEN. This is a positive development, but it can also have negative repercussions. As such, the company decided to cut off WikiLeaks completely.

According to the company, WikiLeaks poses a major violation of Coinbase’s Terms of Service. For a site selling merchandise and spreading information from whistleblowers, there appears no real ‘risk’ involved. The block by Coinbase against WikiLeaks is not a positive development whatsoever.

ANNOUNCE: Coinbase has blocked the official @WikiLeaks shop from its platform without notice or explanation. You can continue to donate #Bitcoin to WikiLeaks at https://t.co/lvhoyhlqUa. #Coinbase #DefendWL #Cryptocurrency #Ethereum #BitcoinCash #ReconnectJulian pic.twitter.com/4BSS023OOk

— WikiLeaks Shop (@WikiLeaksShop) April 21, 2018

Whether or not the WikiLeaks shop will opt for a different payment processor, remains unclear. Coinbase is not making any friends by taking this strange course of action. They will also close the platform’s account completely as funds need to be transferred out as soon as possible. WikiLeaks will continue to accept Bitcoin donations through its website.

What Comes Next for WikiLeaks?

It is not the first time the whistleblower platform deals with payment adversity. Several years ago, PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard made it impossible for people to donate to WikiLeaks directly. At that time, the project switched to Bitcoin, as it made a lot more sense to all parties involved.

With that option no longer on the table, WikiLeaks could turn its back on cryptocurrency completely. For now, that is not the case, but it shows centralized companies in this industry can still cause a fair bit of controversy. Andreas Antonopoulos is not too amused by the Coinbase decision either.

We have come full circle. Many people's interest in bitcoin started when Wikileaks was out under an extra judicial embargo by VISA, MC, PayPal and banks. Now Coinbase has repeated history. Oops. https://t.co/b8HQkoOwyQ

— Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) April 21, 2018

How this will affect the cryptocurrency industry, remains unknown. Coinbase is seemingly intent on shunning any platform, company, or service which may be considered even remotely controversial. This could indicate other entities will lose access to this service as well. History has certainly repeated itself, albeit in the worst way possible.

Image from Shutterstock.

The post Largest Bitcoin Brokerage Coinbase Blocks WikiLeaks Purchases appeared first on NewsBTC.

Just recently a developer launched a new bitcoin-centric web application called Jukebox.cash, an online Jukebox that features a global playlist shared in real time. Users from all around the world can choose music video selections from Youtube for a fraction of bitcoin cash (BCH), and the video will be played on the Jukebox.cash platform.

Also read: Bitcoin Cash Gains Advance 4% Above BTC

Jukebox.cash an Online Jukebox That Plays a Global Playlist in Real-Time for Small Fractions of BCH

A jukebox is a classic machine that allows individuals to play songs from the device after depositing coins into the machine. Traditionally a jukebox will play a list of chosen songs in succession and everyone near the device will hear other people’s songs in the playlist. Jukebox.cash is an online jukebox that anyone can use by simply paying a small amount of BCH. The cool thing about the platform is you can see the songs other people have chosen in real-time and skip them if you don’t favor the particular track. Moreover when paying for a song to be added to the global playlist, some of the funds are donated to the Venezuelan nonprofit ‘eatBCH.’

The developer of Jukebox.cash explains last week that he made the platform to show the community how simple it is to create cool bitcoin cash infused protocols onto web applications.

“I made this — Please have a look and give it a try,” explains the developer and Reddit user /u/knj77.

I wanted to let people know that it is very easy to incorporate BCH into web services, so I created this.

Another Platform Joins the Growing Infrastructure of Bitcoin Cash ‘Killer Apps’  

Jukebox.cash has a selection section with a ‘plus and music symbol,’ where users can choose videos from their favorite music artists. The center switch has a skip button if you don’t favor the particular track that is playing at the time.

To the left, there is a volume button, and on the right sidebar is the current playlist queue of songs. While listening to Jukebox.cash for well over an hour it seems most users choose quite a bit of hip-hop and R&B tracks, but there is a variety of other types of music as well.

To add a track to the global playlist, simply press the ‘plus and music symbol,’ and a search bar will appear where you can choose specific songs and artists. After selecting a song you want to play a BCH address and QR code will appear, and after the payment is processed the song will be added to the global music playlist. Jukebox.cash uses the Insticce platform for the payment system tied to the online music playing software.

The app is just another cool idea added to the bitcoin cash ecosystem as a slew of other platforms like Joystream, Tipme BCH, Cointext, Tippr Bot, Memo, and more join the innovative environment. It’s also interesting sharing a global music playlist with participants from all around the world to get an idea of the genres of music they are listening to these days.

What do you think about the Jukebox.cash application? Let us know your thoughts on this project in the comments below.

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Images via Shutterstock, bitcoin cash, Jukebox.cash, and Youtube.

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The post Play Music on Jukebox.cash – a Bitcoin Cash Infused Global Playlist appeared first on Bitcoin News.

There is no shortage of ambition in the world of cryptocurrency. A lot of alternative cryptocurrencies aim to become the next Bitcoin, even though they will face a major uphill battle. For fans of the Verge altcoin, a new petition has gone live in order to see XVG added to Adyen.

Another Potentially Useless Altcoin Petition

When it comes to ensuring altcoins gain traction, there are various ways to go about things, though most efforts will prove to be unsuccessful in the long run. We have seen numerous petitions created on Change.org, even though they have all fallen short of making a meaningful impact.

Perhaps the most notable petition was the one to get Litecoin listed as a payment option on Amazon. While the world’s largest e-commerce platform is of great interest to cryptocurrency users, the company has zero plans to add this payment method. That does not just apply to Litecoin, as Amazon has no interest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or any of the other cryptocurrencies either. The petition did get a lot of signatures, but ultimately made no difference whatsoever.

The latest cryptocurrency-related campaign on Change.org will not make much of an impact either. While it is commendable to see Verge community members make an effort to get Adyen to accept XVG as a currency, there is no good reason for the company to do so as of right now. Verge is still in the early stages of development, and it remains to be seen if this altcoin has any future to speak of.

On paper, a Verge-Adyen partnership is not exactly impossible, as Adyen has shown a keen interest in cryptocurrency payments. Even so, they mainly focus on Bitcoin as of right now, as it is the only cryptocurrency with a proven track record in the payments space. That doesn’t mean BTC is the perfect choice by any means, though, as it will still need to evolve in the years to come.

While the Change.org petition had nearly reached the required 500 signatures at the time of writing, the opinion of these individuals will not matter all that much. Verge is a cryptocurrency associated with a lot of hype and speculation, even more so than other currencies. At the same time, its partnership with PornHub is considered to be a major deal. It’s highly doubtful that people will buy a relatively unknown altcoin to pay for porn memberships.

As for Adyen, it would be worthwhile to keep an eye on the cryptocurrency ecosystem and look beyond Bitcoin. Doing so will require taking an innovative approach, although that doesn’t necessarily mean the company will adopt any altcoins. In particular, currencies outside of the top five ranked by market cap will not necessarily be of great interest right now. Even so, things could change as cryptocurrencies continue to grow and evolve.

WikiLeaks has reported on Twitter that its merchandising subsidiary, WikiLeaks Shop, has had its account blocked with Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.

The Tweet shows an alleged email from Coinbase stating that WikiLeaks Shop had violated the cryptocurrency exchange’s terms of service, although as yet the exchange has made no further comment on their action.

The online shop, originally opened in 2011 and run by the German merchandising company Spreadshirt AG, sends proceeds from sales to WikiLeaks operations. Customers can pay for merchandise in a number of cryptocurrencies.

As a result of the block, whistleblower organization WikiLeaks is calling for a global blockade on Coinbase urging its customers to boycott the company.

WikiLeaks will call for a global blockade of Coinbase next week as an unfit member of the crypto community. Coinbase, a large Californian Bitcoin processor, responding to a concealed influence, has blocked the entirely harmless @WikiLeaksShop in a decision approved by management. https://t.co/PAldF8b12P

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 21, 2018

Last year, after the US banking embargo against WikiLeaks, its leader, Julian Assange, publicly thanked the US government for forcing his organization into relying on Bitcoin donations, reportedly giving WikiLeaks a 50,000% return:

“My deepest thanks to the US government, Senator McCain, and Senator Lieberman for pushing Visa, MasterCard, Paypal, AmEx, Moneybookers, et al, into erecting an illegal banking blockade against WikiLeaks starting in 2010. It caused us to invest in Bitcoin with > 50,000% returns.”

WikiLeaks embargoes have proved not be uncommon. Berlin-based freedom of information campaigners Wau Holland collected almost USD 1.4 million for the organization until it was blocked by PayPal in 2010. On this occasion, reasons were given with PayPal citing “activities that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity” as the reason.

Andreas M Antonopoulos, the Greek-British Bitcoin advocate, commented that the Coinbase move demonstrates that “we have come full circle”. He suggests that one of the key factors of early interest in cryptocurrency was sparked by the 2010 WikiLeaks embargo.

Antonopoulos suggests that unlike the first embargo, this one is “purely symbolic” as there are now a plethora of crypto exchanges operating apart from Coinbase.

 

The post WikiLeaks Shop Sees Coinbase Account Suspended appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.