Day: June 4, 2018

Researchers at the Russian Quantum Center published a paper in May 2017 describing successful experimentation with a quantum-safe blockchain via integrating quantum key distribution technology.

According to the MIT Technology Review, any information encrypted with conventional cryptography will become unsecure as soon as the first powerful enough quantum computer is turned on. This event appears inevitable to some as researchers around the world are working feverishly to develop quantum computers.

The researchers at the Russian Quantum Center theorize that those with access to quantum computers will be able to generate mining rewards at an unfair rate, making conventional mining equipment like application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) obsolete. They believe that eventually, quantum computers will be able to obtain private keys from public keys using Shor’s algorithm, compromising modern-day cryptocurrencies, possibly as soon as 2027.

Following this theory, the researchers are experimenting with a solution in the form of a quantum-secured blockchain. Quantum key distribution is utilized to verify the identities of users on the network, similar to how private keys are used to sign transactions on the Bitcoin network.

Quantum key distribution sends information using quantum particles such as a photon, and this information cannot be observed or copied by a hacker without destroying the information due to its physical nature, according to the Observer Effect.

This quantum signature is attached to every transaction on the blockchain, making the blockchain impossible to tamper with no matter how powerful an attacking computer is. The researchers have successfully built a network in which each pair of nodes is connected by a quantum key distribution link. They have tested it with a network of four users, where one of the users was trying to perform a double spend attack, and the blockchain only allowed legitimate transactions into its blocks.

The laws of physics guarantee that a quantum key cannot be compromised, and this is exactly the technology the cryptocurrency world would need to move into the quantum era. The Russian scientists who published this study think that quantum-secured blockchains will be scalable for commercial and government applications.

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New Ripple initiative donates $50 mln to universities to focus on blockchain, crypto research and education

The co-founder of Apple strongly believes in Bitcoin as being distinct from the rest of the altcoin space. According to Steve Wozniak, of the 1,500 cryptocurrencies in existence, only Bitcoin can be considered ‘pure.’

Wozniak Hopes for Bitcoin to Become a Single Global Currency

In an interview with CNBC on Monday, Wozniak stated that he hopes Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s belief in Bitcoin will come true. The Apple co-founder made the following comments at the Money 2020 conference being held this week in Amsterdam:

“I buy into what Jack Dorsey says, not that I necessarily believe it’s going to happen, but because I want it to be that way, that is so pure thinking.”

Wozniak was referring to Dorsey’s comments back in March of this year. The founder and CEO of both Twitter and Square stated that he felt that a single currency would emerge for the internet and the world. He went on to state that this currency would be Bitcoin.

According to the article in CNBC today, Wozniak had bought Bitcoin when each was around $700. He’d since sold all but one. However, even someone as technically capable as the co-founder of Apple was a still able to fall victim to a scam. He was defrauded out of a quantity of the digital currency when exchanging them back to dollars. In addition to his single Bitcoin, he also holds two Ether coins – the native currency on the Ethereum network.

In the interview today, Wozniak sang the praises of Bitcoin more astutely than many commentators are capable of. He spoke fondly of its qualities of decentralisation and limited supply, likening it to a natural phenomenon that doesn’t require human intervention to work:

“Bitcoin is mathematically defined, there is a certain quantity of bitcoin, there’s a way it’s distributed… and it’s pure and there’s no human running, there’s no company running and it’s just… growing and growing… and surviving, that to me says something that is natural and nature is more important than all our human conventions.”

Finally, Wozniak addressed the altcoin space . He claimed none could ultimately compete with Bitcoin since each must serve the company that created it. Again, the topic of decentralisation was raised in his assessment:

“Only bitcoin is pure digital gold… and I totally buy into that. All the others tend to give up some of the aspects of bitcoin. For example, being totally decentralized and having no central control. That’s the first one they have to give up to try to have a business model.”

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post Steve Wozniak: ‘Only Bitcoin is Pure Digital Gold’ appeared first on NewsBTC.

Broadcasters on Steamlabs, a streaming app that accounts for 15 percent of Twitch streams, can now get BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH as tips

One of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s leading officials on the cryptocurrency and token sale front just got a promotion.

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said he believes “only Bitcoin is pure digital gold” and “buys into” the idea of it becoming the single international currency

The largest shopping area in Slovenia, coincidentally named BTC, has plans to extend its cryptocurrency profile through a fintech startup in an effort to make it become a ‘Bitcoin City’.

The complex, which stretches over a huge 475,000 square-meter space, filled with 500 stores, was visited by Prime Minister of Slovenia Miro Cesar, who recently experienced the shopping center’s existing strategy hands on. He was greeted by a cup of coffee purchased for him by state secretary Tadel Slapnik, using the Elipay cryptocurrency transaction system.

The complex, located in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, now has a point of sale system created by fintech startup Eligma, which now facilitates crypto payments in a number of BTC stores. The company described the project as “a business and shopping ecosystem based on the latest technological solutions including blockchain, AI, and cryptocurrencies”.

The BTC company was founded in 1954 expanding from 1990 into a commercial enterprise opening the shopping area, housing an hotel, a sports complex, a casino, a multiplex cinema, a water park, and the tallest building in Slovenia, the Crystal Palace Office Park. It now describes itself as being “famous for being the largest and most popular European business, shopping, recreational/leisure and cultural center” in Slovenia.

According to Bitcoin.com, the company claims that the complex will become the first of its kind in the world to provide its visitors, consumers and business partners with an ecosystem that will develop and integrate advanced technologies based on state-of-the-art approaches and the world of cryptocurrencies.

There are also some one-way cryptocurrency ATMs on the premises, as well as a blockchain think tank and the biggest crypto mining rig in Slovenia.

BTC commented that the project, as part of its “openness-oriented strategy”, will provide its customers and businesses with the freedom and choice to purchase using new forms of payment.

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With the launches of major crypto products by big exchanges this week, crypto adoption is clearly growing worldwide – is there a rally in store?

The Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency (Bappebti) has said that cryptocurrencies are a commodity that can be subject to futures trading. This comes despite a central bank ban on fintech companies using digital currencies and government warnings to investors.

Futures Trading Expands to Indonesia

As reported by kontan.co.id, cryptocurrencies will now be subject to trading on futures exchanges. This trading allows investors to bet for or against crypto prices by lending coins with agreed contracts to buy them back at specific prices.

Currently, the Head of Bappebti has signed a decision to make cryptocurrency as a commodity worthy of trading on the exchange, said Market Supervision Chief Dharma Yoga.

Bappebti ran a study over the past four months, investigating the idea of futures trading for cryptocurrencies, which concluded that there is positive value to it being deemed a commodity. To put this in place, Bappebti is set to make more regulation regarding exchanges, crypto wallets and mining companies in order to establish cryptocurrencies as commodities. According to Yoga, this will require cooperation between the Bank Indonesia (BI) and the Financial Services Authority (OJK).

The issues of taxation were not fully addressed, but will be looked at by the Directorate General of Taxes. It was proposed that the trading will be subject to a final tax as well as taxes applied on the exchange. Bappebti also requested that exchanges put forward proposals for how the trading will work.

The regulation is aimed at preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The Indonesian Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) and the Indonesian National Police (POLRI) will provide support on this issue. This is likely to involve Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) protocols.

Indonesia Torn Over Crypto

Having banned fintech companies from using cryptocurrencies and having investigated the notion of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), Indonesia is unsure whether they want to back this technology. From January 1 2018, their central bank banned fintech companies from using digital currencies although this did not include trading them.

At the time, Iwan Junanto Herdiawan, head of the fintech office at Bank Indonesia, said:

“Virtual currency is very volatile, according to our observation and nobody can guarantee its movement because there is no basis for it. Nobody can monitor and be responsible for it either. So the risks are high and can be widespread.”

The main concerns raised were over the volatility of digital assets. While this is certainly true, as Bitcoin fell from almost $20,000 to around $7,000 in a few months, volatility is likely to decrease as adoption grows and people start using it to purchase goods. Officials were also worried about losing control over monetary policy, such as the ability to print money to stimulate the economy, known as quantitative easing. Indonesian police have also cracked down on the use of Bitcoin in Bali, a popular tourist hotspot.

However, in January, it was reported that Indonesia was considering implementing a national digital currency, or a digital rupiah. Bank Indonesia executive director for payment systems, Susiato Dewi, said that they will trial a digital rupiah this year to see if it would make payments more efficient. Central bank digital currencies are being considered by countries across the world, but both Hong Kong and Estonia have recently cancelled efforts to push forward with the concept.

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post Cryptocurrencies Are Now Commodities Subjected to Futures Trading in Indonesia appeared first on NewsBTC.

The $7,400 – $7,600 range is proving difficult for the king of crypto to handle. Bitcoin is struggling to maintain its ground in the mid $7,000s, and has again fallen $200 below where it was trading during yesterday’s afternoon hours. This position had previous been held for roughly two days, and it was widely wondered whether bitcoin would be able to strike $8,000 once again.

That doesn’t appear to be the case as bitcoin has ultimately lost support, and is once again struggling to push itself beyond $7,600. One source suggests the currency is likely to find support where it is (between $7,400 and $7,500), and that a respective bull run could push the currency to as high as $7,900. However, if the bears have their way, bitcoin could again fall back to an even $7,000 in the coming weeks.

Strangely, however, bitcoin is now getting support from an unlikely candidate: computer mogul Steve Wozniak. While the Apple co-founder has been vocally positive towards Ethereum in the past, Wozniak has been relatively silent on bitcoin. That all changed when in an interview with CNBC, he expressed his hope that bitcoin would become a single, global currency within the next ten years.

Comparing it to the internet bubble of the mid-1990s, Wozniak says he is confident the price and value of bitcoin could surge again. He also referenced Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, and his previous statement that bitcoin could do just as Wozniak now claims – become the single currency for all countries in the next ten years.

“I buy into what Jack Dorsey says,” Wozniak explains. “Not that I necessarily believe it’s going to happen, but because I want it to be that way. Bitcoin, because it’s regulated in its quantity, you get down to supply and demand, and there’s more and more people who want it and demand it, and there was a hype going on for a period and it went up to $20,000, then down. I don’t know where it is because I never track it.”

It is interesting to hear Wozniak’s words for several reasons, the main one being that he doesn’t seem to follow the news or trends surrounding bitcoin. It’s clear, by his own statements, that Wozniak isn’t even particularly interested in bitcoin, nor is he really convinced by the power or dominance it holds. He just sees how much it’s brought people in the past, and he’s hoping for that unification once again.

“If the demand increases and it becomes more and more popular for more things, and people start using it, there is no extra supply. It’s limited,” he continued. “In terms of dollars, bitcoin will go up over time, but it won’t happen fast. It may be sloppy at first, and things that change so much in life take a very long time to change. They tend to go slowly. Blockchain in all forms, however, is so popular and being studied by so many people and in demand by so many companies to examine changing their businesses in the future, that it may be long term.”