Day: August 7, 2018

A firm that launched a blockchain-based application for food tracking last year has rolled out a similar service for diamonds.

Decentralized exchanges are the next logical step in the world of cryptocurrency trading. John McAfee is a big fan of this new business model, and he thinks Luxcore is the project that will make it happen. With its smart contract technology, SegWit support, and native coin mixing, the project is off to a good start.

Luxcore Has a Lot of Potential

Competition in the world of cryptocurrency exchanges is always a good thing. That is even more apparent when talking about decentralized exchanges, as those services will take cryptocurrency to a new level. Luxcore and its native LuxSend coin mixing feature can unlock a lot of new use cases in the future.

Various aspects of Lux deserve to be highlighted. It is one of the few networks to fully implement support for Segregated Witness, a scaling solution often associated with Bitcoin and Litecoin. It introduces separate transaction signatures to offer higher security to both senders and recipients of funds. Combined with its 4MB block size and a block time of 60 seconds, Luxcore is primarily designed to improve overall scaling in the cryptocurrency world.

Under the hood, Lux will also make use of smart contracts with a very different focus. The team wants to unify various blockchains and deploy contracts directly from the wallet. Through built-in cross-network transactions and tasks based on predefined conditions, Lux will usher in a new era of decentralized exchanges.

In an interview with John McAfee on August 6th he explained his expectations of Luxcore as follows:

Luxcoin, for example, today came out with their smart contract of functionality on the lux network. now that’s an amazing network, by the way, with parallel nodes, with privacy, the lux gate, and they are coming out with a decentralized exchange, and I think it will be one of the first distributed exchanges that actually functions using the atomic swap feature.

Launching native decentralized exchange functionality will be beneficial to LuxCoin as well. It is currently traded on Cryptopia, Yobit, TradeOgre, and CryptoBridge. Moving away from centralized exchanges will unlock unlimited trading market potential and put users in full control of their funds once again. John McAfee has joined this project as an official advisor to ensure the team’s vision can come true in the long run.

According to the current roadmap, users can look forward to mobile wallets and a PoS web wallet-as-a-service. The first dApps as part of the Lux ecosystem will come to market in Q4 of 2018, which will pave the way for forging partnerships and enterprise engagements. The project has a lot of potential, as it combines the most appealing aspects of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to further decentralize both industries moving forward.

Robinhood Crypto announced on 6 August that Ethereum Classic was now available for investment, commission-free, on its platform. The announcement was made via a Tweet on its Twitter account and an official blog post.

Ethereum Classic Defies the Decline

Ethereum Classic (ETC) rose over 9% and jumped from rank 12 to 11 as the news came out. Most other cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and XRP, however, witnessed a fall in prices. Among the top 10 on Coin Market Cap, XRP was down by over 4%, IOTA by nearly 13% and Stellar by almost 2%.

The blog post also stated that investors could invest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Dogecoin, and access the market data for 10 other cryptocurrencies. Apart from the six cryptocurrencies which the exchange offers for trading, it supports real-time market data for Bitcoin Gold (BTG), Dash (DASH), Lisk (LSK), Monero (XMR), NEO (NEO), OmiseGO (OMG), Qtum (QTUM), Ripple (XRP), Stellar (XLM), and Zcash (ZEC). At the moment, the offering is available in 19 US states only, however, the company will add support for more states soon.

Robinhood Crypto’s addition of ETC comes just a day before Coinbase offers trading support for the cryptocurrency as well.

“We intend to allow 24–48 hours of transfers through Pro/Prime before opening the markets. In accordance with our Trading Rules, all ETC books will open in post-only for a minimum of 10 mins. Once sufficient liquidity is established, trading will then be enabled on Pro and Prime,”

Coinbase announced in its blog. It also explained that since ETC will be added to Coinbase Markets, it will be added to the Coinbase Index according to the Coinbase Index Methodology. In the case of Coinbase, ETC will be available wherever Coinbase is available.

Currently, BitMEX, Binance, LiveCoin, Bitfinex, Poloniex and Kraken support ETC/BTC trading. However, Robinhood offers zero-commission transactions, a feature which works in the favour of investors. Robinhood’s business model is based on making profits from interest on cash and securities held in customers’ accounts, and through offering them premium account memberships such as Robinhood Gold. Apart from crypto, Robinhood also offers traditional investment options such as stock, options and ETFs. As of May 2018, the number of users on Robinhood’s trading app had surpassed 4 million.

ETC’s blockchain, is a continuation of the original Ethereum blockchain with untampered history. The original Ethereum blockchain had undergone a hard fork which due to the DAO hack in 2016. ETC recently topped $2.2 Billion in circulation. The news of Robinhood and Coinbase adding the cryptocurrency acted as a catalyst for helped ETC scale significant resistance at $19.

Image from Shutterstock

The post Ethereum Classic (ETC) Rises Higher on Robinhood Listing appeared first on NewsBTC.

Cryptocurrency assets received from services rendered and crypto mining will now be accepted by Maerki Baumann

Coinatmradar.com reports a milestone of the 3,500 threshold being crossed for bitcoin ATMs (BATM) installed across the globe. One of the goals behind bitcoin automated teller machines is ease of onboarding to the world of crypto. A bear market – a protracted Crypto Winter – appeared to slow BATMs’ placement. And for sure it just might have, but numbers remain relatively strong considering, with the greater worry among BATM operators being US federal regulations preventing innovation.

Also read: Queensland, Australia Invests Portion of its $6.1Mil Ignite Ideas Fund in Crypto Startup

3,500 Bitcoin ATMs Installed Around the World

Coinatmradar.com announced this week a psychological milestone for the ecosystem had been reached: more than 3,500 bitcoin ATM machines are now installed all over the world. Not so long ago, BATMs were thought to a perfect onboarding tool, and especially in the United States.

Americans are already trained on the basic tech, having had decades of automated ways to snag cash. That such machines could be placed where consumers are, rather than the customer having to seek it out, meant BATMs would be put in liquor stores, fast food restaurants, shopping malls, movie theatres, etc. It was just a matter of time until such convenience caught on.  

That was before prices soured and the US federal government began cracking down on BATM operators. “No doubt, US regulations play a huge role in our business,” head of marketing at Blockchain BTM, Tim Curry stressed. “We would be able to provide many more services, and for much cheaper, were it not for a myriad of regulations we must comply with,” Mr. Curry explained to News.Bitcoin.com at this year’s Comic Con in San Diego, where his company was an exhibitor.

9 Per Day

Still, the fact so many BATMs are up and running, with a heavy concentration of those in the United States, and all this during a bear market, is testimony to BATMs’ potential power. “It’s a bank in a box,” Mr. Curry noted. “We can onboard someone faster than Coinbase, and in about two to three minutes from start to finish. No having to wait up to a week. No linking your personal bank account.” Blockchain BTM is largely focused on the California market at the moment, from the border with Mexico to about as far north as Bakersfield.

Just shy of a year and a half ago, the ecosystem celebrated BATMs reaching four digits, 1,000, around the world. Of the approximate 3,500 installed across the globe, over 1,800 support alternative coins such as litecoin and ether. North America retains the greatest concentration of machines, with close to 2,600 installed between the United States and Canada.

At present, something on the order of 9 BATMs are being installed per day. Genesis Coin and General Bytes make up over half of all installations. Most machines are set to offramp from fiat, government paper, and onto crypto. However, markets seem to be seeking two-way alternative machines, allowing users to jump in and out of fiat and crypto, as those BATMs are growing in total market share. 

Have you noticed more Bitcoin ATMs around? Let us know in the comments section below. 

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Images via Pixabay. 

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The post Bitcoin ATMs Now In The Thousands Around the World appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Founders same talent behind Huntercoin

Malta-based Xaya, previously known as Chimaera, is a gaming blockchain platform that looks to massively disrupt the $100 billion market on a global scale.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

With many suggesting that the combination of blockchain technology and video games will bring forth the next generation of gaming, Xaya looks to pivot itself as a leading solution provider.

The same inventors behind Xaya are also the ones behind arguably the first gamified blockchain, Huntercoin back in 2013.

Xaya is a custom blockchain, specifically designed for gaming through its real-time, costless, and infinitely scalable gameplay capabilities. Thanks to its decentralized nature, gamers have complete ownership of any virtual characters and assets that they may earn.

Xaya’s first game, Treat Fighter, will launch soon on their Mainnet. The game was developed by TrickyFast studios and is a strategy game in which players must battle other players with their candy armies that they grow by carrying out expeditions, collecting resources, and crafting treats.

Soccer Manager Crypto, Xaya’s second release, is scheduled to launch on the Xaya blockchain by the end of this year. With over 50 million downloads, SMC will become the most popular blockchain game instantly.

Token Sale Details

Also scheduled for later this year is Xaya’s main token sale. The private and public presales have already concluded before the launch of Xaya’s mainnet, so this will be the last opportunity for early adopters to acquire Xaya’s tokens at low prices.

The sale is scheduled to begin August 29th, where it will last for 6 weeks. The sale will be hosted off-site, on Qryptos exchange platform.

Another thing to know is that any previous CHI purchases will not be available until this coin sale has come to an end.

However, pre-sale participants will receive a placeholder amount of 50 CHI in which to start playing and registering names. Users can also sign up on the forums to receive free CHI to play with.

This ensures that gameplay and other activities that occur on the network remain equitable for all.

Xaya asking for developers to start building

While Xaya already has two games that are expected to be hits on the way, the platform is open to all and is asking for outside developers to begin building projects on their platform.

Knowledge of Solidity or another blockchain programming language is not required, which makes Xaya the simplest platform for developing blockchain games. In fact, Xaya games can be coded in any language of the developers choosing, allowing budding programmers and experienced veterans alike to contribute games to the platform.

For more information about the public sale, or to learn about the platform, check out Xaya’s website. To meet the team behind the project, check out their LinkedIn page. To talk with the community and team members, make sure to hop into their Telegram channel. For social media updates, make sure to follow their Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Media attention sees Barclays appear to cover up crypto involvement, as two employees delete information from LinkedIn about a digital assets project at the bank

Nexus is one of several blockchain startups trying to revive mutual insurance. Its first product will cover the risks of ethereum smart contracts.

STEEM, and the Steemit content platform emerged with a novel use case for the blockchain in 2017. By creating a robust monetary reward system for the key cogs in any social content ecosystem—the user community—it has gained traction and a sizable user base since its launch. However, as 2018 has progressed STEEM has witnessed both dwindling user activity and an 84% price decline.

The local government in the Indian state of Hyderabad has partnered with multinational IT services provider Tech Mahindra to create a blockchain district to aid startups.

The two parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together to bring the district to the Telangana state’s capital city, Hyderabad, pushing India’s agenda of advancing technological innovation in the country.

On the early agenda for the project is the construction of buildings for startups and blockchain incubators, with the local government primarily responsible for overseeing the necessary infrastructure. Policies and regulations for the new district will also be delegated to the state’s authorities.

The Telangana IT minister K T Rama Rao expressed positive sentiments about the venture, saying, “We envision to set a benchmark in providing blockchain technology solutions and platforms across industries.”

The blockchain district was described as a ”global talent hub” that hopes to democratize data and solve large-scale problems through blockchain innovations. It is an effort to practically reskill the workforce for the future while pushing for India to become the international blockchain capital.

India-headquartered IT giant Tech Mahindra will be charged with providing technical assistance while helping expand the blockchain ecosystem. In a press release on Friday, Mahindra detailed a project dubbed the Eleven01 protocol, a blockchain platform targetting the individual development of startups which may be utilized by several million individuals.

The protocol aims to eliminate the need for Indian blockchain developers to require foreign technologies while creating the most efficient decentralized applications, creating a localized ecosystem for the industry. The press release cited the blockchain market as being capped at a trillion dollars in the coming years.

Telangana has meanwhile already begun exploring blockchain solutions to digitally rework their land registries in an effort to boost transparency and reduce the number of document forgeries.

 

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