August 14, 2018 – Page 3

Mad Money Host Jim Cramer Argues That the Tide is Turning Against Bitcoin

Jim Cramer, host of CNBC’s Mad Money, argued that Bitcoin may have reached its peak. His comments come as the cryptocurrency market dropped below $200 billion in value, with Bitcoin struggling with the $6,000 mark. In June 2018, the former hedge fund manager said the leading virtual currency could eventually be worth $1 million one…

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In June 2018, the former hedge fund manager said the leading virtual currency could eventually be worth $1 million one day.

Jim Cramer Expects Price of Bitcoin to Stabilize At $800-$1,000

The cryptocurrency market is signaling a risk-off sentiment as market capitalization breaks below $200 billion and reverses gains obtained in late 2017. Adding to the negative sentiment is Bitcoin’s dominance, climbing above 50%, as traders hesitate to invest in altcoins.

With Bitcoin’s market capitalization heading down to $100 billion, Cramer took the opportunity to, indirectly, retract his bullish outlook on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street“.

“I think the tide has turned against it […] I’m not saying its time has passed but there is a notion that the sun seems to be setting.”

Days earlier, Cramer had CyberArk CEO Udi Mokady on his show “Mad Money” where they talked about the use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for criminal purposes. Mokady told Cramer that ransomware has been a driver of demand for Bitcoin.

“That’s the requirement of most of these hackers. Many companies choose to buy bitcoin in some state or fashion and pay them off.”

On another episode of “Squawk on the Street” which was recorded in June 2018, Cramer used the ransomware argument to agree with Business Insider CEO Henry Blodget’s prediction that bitcoin could go to $1 million.

“I think it could because the European banks are frantically trying to buy them so they can pay off ransomware. It’s a short-term way to be able to deal with cybersecurity. It is the way to pay off the bad guys.”

As he argued that the price of Bitcoin is unlikely to return to the highs seen in December 2017, when it reached its all-time highs at the $20,000 area, Cramer hinted that he expects the price of the virtual currency to continue its downward trajectory and stabilize between $800 and $1,000.

Cryptocurrency analyst Willy Woo does not share the bearish long-term outlook for Bitcoin as he said there is a lot of buying going on behind the fear and capitulation in the market.

The price of cryptocurrency has been under pressure in recent days as it broke key supports, namely a contracting triangle that was breached with support at $6,350 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair. Above $6,050 and $6,100, the next major resistance is near the $6,200-6,280 zone. Bitcoin is trading at $6,130 at the moment of writing.

Featured image from Shutterstock.

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How to develop the ultimate ICO pitch

It’s no longer the case that blockchain startups can run a successful ICO with just an idea and a token. In this article, you will learn how to assemble the fundamental components of a successful ICO pitch deck.

China Releases Blockchain Guidebook for Bureaucrats

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has published a blockchain guidebook that observes the technology’s key features scientifically, the origins and future applications, as well as approaching challenges. An official’s guidebook The publication was announced on 13 Augus in a press release on the CPC website. The book, ‘Blockchain – A guide for Officials’, covers many …

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An official’s guidebook

The publication was announced on 13 Augus in a press release on the CPC website. The book, ‘Blockchain – A guide for Officials’, covers many facets of the nascent technology which will offer counsel to government officials.

In an excerpt from the book in the chapter ‘From Internet Thinking to Blockchain Thinking’, Ye Hao, president of People’s Network writes:

“We call on the industry peers to continue to look at the blockchain technology with a development perspective. Looking at the blockchain label from a scientific perspective, look at the blockchain industry with a strategic eye, look at the blockchain business opportunities with a calm eye, promote the sustainable and healthy development of the blockchain industry.”

The introduction of the book allows for the CPC to assist other government authorities on how to better understand blockchain, establish a common ground from which they can work together and drive adoption of the distributed ledger technology on a national scale.

Looking ahead

The publication arrives at a time when huge levels of funding directed at blockchain are pouring in across multiple mega-city projects in China: USD 80 million for blockchain startups in Shenzhen, USD 1.6 billion in Hangzhou and USD 1.48 billion for Nanjing City.

Furthermore, the “number one urban project” in China, Xiong’an, is now set to become a “dream city“; this is thanks to a recent partnership between the latest mega-city and blockchain development firm ConsenSys.

International language of learning

Comprehensive studies that call for the widespread understanding and adoption of blockchain are emerging from every corner of the world. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information (MIIT) in collaboration with Tencent Holdings released a report detailing the numerous economical enhancements that distributed ledger technology (DLT) offers.

In Scotland, a paper was recently released, bullishly calling for the Scottish government and industries to rally around this tech and innovate alongside the rest of the world with it. Similarly, the United States Chamber of Digital Commerce also published a guidebook in a bid to generate discussion and understanding of virtual tokens, urging that regulatory policies need to develop sooner rather than later.

A top senior economist from the Bank of Canada also released an extraordinarily-detailed research paper describing the potential benefits of a central bank digital currency (CBDC). A US-based, world-leading IT industry trade association released another guidebook that gives focus to blockchain applications in the public sector.

Educational literature, backed by the world’s largest governments and industry representatives, is a boost to the credibility of blockchain. Perhaps they will also serve as a means for a global blockchain consensus at some point in the future.

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High Times Will Not Accept Bitcoin in Its Initial Public Offering – Cointelegraph

CointelegraphHigh Times Will Not Accept Bitcoin in Its Initial Public OfferingCointelegraphMarijuana culture media group High Times Holding Corp. has decided not to accept Bitcoin (BTC) in its initial public offering (IPO), according to an August 13 fi…

Cointelegraph

High Times Will Not Accept Bitcoin in Its Initial Public Offering
Cointelegraph
Marijuana culture media group High Times Holding Corp. has decided not to accept Bitcoin (BTC) in its initial public offering (IPO), according to an August 13 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The decision runs counter to ...

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High Times Will Not Accept Bitcoin in Its Initial Public Offering

Counter to its initial announcement, marijuana culture media group High Times will not to accept Bitcoin in its IPO

Fantasy Football Club Crown League to Use Blockchain to Operate eSports Platform

Fantasy sports club the Crown League announced today the launch of the first blockchain-based professional fantasy football league that will run in tandem with the upcoming National Football League (NFL) season. Players will be able to own part of their fantasy franchises, as well as the league, through the blockchain, which will grant them rights…

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Players will be able to own part of their fantasy franchises, as well as the league, through the blockchain, which will grant them rights to revenue sharing and governance.

Fantasy Sports on the Blockchain

The new league will hold live drafts, feature high-profile experts, produce broadcast content for a new over-the-top content (OTT) platform and cable syndication, seek sponsorships, and sell merchandise.

CEO Dan Nissanoff said the Crown League — the “Crown” in the name is derived from the words “crypto ownership” — is raising $100 million in a crowd funding method to create the venture, as outlined by CNN Money.

Nissanoff aspires to have the league’s economics mirror the revenue model of a traditional sports league, but have fans own the enterprise as an investment vehicle. Today marks the initial public sale of league tokens, and franchise tokens will be made available later this year.

“That’s the beauty of this business and how it’s really going to evolve into a brand-new paradigm that’s never existed before,” Nissanoff said, “and we’re just seeing it emerge in eSports right now.”

Co-founders Nissanoff, Derek Siskin, and Mat Sposta bring expertise from previous careers in technology, marketing, and finance, respectively, as well as being avid fantasy sports players themselves.

In fact, Siskin and Sposta have played in the same fantasy league for 20 years. But under the current system, players only have an incentive to look out for themselves. Siskin said of his friend:

“He doesn’t care about my team. Nobody cares about anybody else’s team. You can’t enjoy it with everybody else. The ability to leverage the community experience is one of the strongest aspects of this business.”

Sposta added: “We are the consumer. We are the fantasy player. We saw the model was broken.”

Crown League’s Perception of the Future of Fantasy Sports

Nissanoff called fantasy football “an American pastime,” which isn’t a stretch considering that 60 million participants play each year and the industry has a $7 billion valuation.

Yet, like his colleagues, he decried fantasy football’s binary nature, saying that despite the fact that there are millions of teams in thousands of leagues, a fantasy sport championship is “the loneliest celebration on the planet.”

“In traditional fantasy sports, there is no accretive value created,” Nissanoff said. “It’s basically a zero-sum game where people throw money into a pot, and the money is redistributed to a few select winners.”

The Crown League, instead, will serve as an ETF (exchange-traded fund) such as those that track the Dow Jones Index. There will be 12 franchises — each calling a major U.S. city home — that will be legal entities whose equity will grow over time, only with digital tokens instead of stocks.

The league’s net profit will be distributed as an annual dividend to teams via league tokens based on milestones such as team performance. Franchise value will fluctuate based on the free market with securities traded on multiple exchanges, Nissanoff said. Fans can only hold a stake of one team at a time, but can buy or sell those franchise tokens whenever — even in the middle of a game.

Featured image from Shutterstock.

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Ether Price Analysis: Historic Support Breaks, Leads to Signs of Capitulation

BTC ETH Price Analysis

In two short weeks, ETHUSD has devalued by 50% of its market value. With little to no relief for the underwater bulls, ether seems to be accelerating downward as buyer confidence is lacking and showing signs of capitulation. The entire crypto market, as a whole, is showing signs of capitulation as many alts have seen similar devaluations in shorter periods of time than ETHUSD. Similar to many other coins, ether is penetrating long-held support with very little ease:

ethfig

Figure 1: ETH-USD, 1-Day Candles, Macro Trend

As a general idea of just how extended the market is, take a look at the 50 EMA (the blue curve) in the image above. The 50 EMA acts as a fast-acting equilibrium curve that shows the price relative to its price history. Currently, the market is highly separated from its equilibrium. Often, when this happens, the market goes through a capitulation phase that has a very strong reaction causing both short profit taking and bottom-callers to shove the price strongly back in the direction it came from.

The 127% Fib extension of the most recent bullish rally on ETHUSD reveals a likely target for this capitulation. Historically, this price level (the $230 area) has also served as a key area for buyer interest to step in:

ethfig2 Figure 2: ETH-USD, Daily Candles, 127% Fib Extension

Our current trend is showing an expansion of volume and price spread — very similar to the two v-bottom reversals shown above. Right now, it’s nearly impossible to tell where the true bottom will be, but I would find it highly unlikely to not see a snapback from this strong round of selling across the crypto market.

Something else that’s noteworthy about this move is the recent bear flag ether broke out of:
ethfig3 Figure 3: ETH-USD, Daily Candles, Bear Flag Target

Currently, we are sitting at the very price target of the bear flag shown above. While that is not entirely a bullish signal, it doesn’t give a bit of hope toward the argument of a potential V-bottom reversal. If we continue to drop without any relief for the bulls, it is only a matter of time before the market overextends and rebounds from the so-called “weak hands” capitulating.

Summary:

ETHUSD devalued by 50% in two weeks.
It is currently seeing expanding volume and expanding price spread as it continues to accelerate its descent.
The price target of the bear flag it broke south of has already been realized and there was little demand stepping in as it cruised straight through historically strong support.
A likely bottom, should the market continue to capitulate, lies on the 127% fib extension — the $230 area.

Trading and investing in digital assets like bitcoin and ether is highly speculative and comes with many risks. This analysis is for informational purposes and should not be considered investment advice. Statements and financial information on Bitcoin Magazine and BTC Media related sites do not necessarily reflect the opinion of BTC Media and should not be construed as an endorsement or recommendation to buy, sell or hold. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Wyre Adds MakerDAO Stablecoin Pairing for Global Money Transfers

Blockchain money transfer company Wyre has announced a partnership with MakerDAO, creator of the Dai stablecoin, to offer Dai as part of a fiat-crypto trading pair in more than 30 countries across the world inclu…

MakerDao

Under the new framework, Wyre’s regulated money transfer infrastructure will be used to facilitate the instantaneous movement of “fiat currency directly into and out of Dai,” thereby removing the unpredictability of “speculative cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Bitcoin” and benefiting from the speed and security of the blockchain, a press release for the announcement states. The arrangement is designed to give customers a quick and secure money transfer protocol that offers full regulatory compliance.

“Pairing Dai to Wyre’s trading engine and global fiat on-ramps and off-ramps will enable nearly-instant movement of funds across borders. By decreasing the amount of time it takes to clear payments, businesses can increase the number of payment cycles, therefore increasing revenue. Remittance platforms or crypto services can also settle instantly in Dai rather than using international wires which can take up to 48 hours,” the release continues.

Through the partnership, Wyre now offers prospective users an Access Point Interface (API) to connect their bank accounts to the blockchain through Dai, while taking care of KYC/AML compliance and onboarding concerns. Using the API, users can now trade Dai against many of the world’s major fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies including USD, GBP, EUR and more.

Speaking with Bitcoin Magazine, Rune Christensen, CEO of MakerDAO, said the alliance would be beneficial to API developers who can leverage Wyre’s experience as a regulated money service business and focus on creating access from local currency to Dai to fulfill global transactions.

“Through this partnership, we are now helping API developers leverage Wyre’s experience in banking and compliance so they can take advantage of the stability of Dai stablecoin to build and engage their communities, cutting through the red tape, and leaving the off-chain complications to a regulated money services business,” he stated.

“As it relates to the supply chain, organizations that may have been hesitant to engage in crypto transactions can now go directly from fiat currency into Dai stablecoin without having to take the middle step of converting fiat to ETH and then to Dai.”

For his part, Wyre CEO Michael Dunworth indicated that the partnership offers users around the world a cost-effective means of breaking through bureaucratic red-tape in a compliant manner. In his own interview with Bitcoin Magazine, he said, “We’re committed to developing partnerships with leaders like MakerDAO to enable the blockchain ecosystem to evolve at a faster pace.”

Since its launch in 2017, Dai has maintained its advertised USD valuation, which has earned it the respect and esteem of the crypto community. Unlike other popular stablecoins like Tether and TrueUSD, which are backed by fiat, Dai is crypto-collateralized, backed by coins like ether and bitcoin.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Chinese State-Owned Aerospace Firm Turns to Blockchain to Manage Billions of Invoices

Chinese state-owned Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation Ltd. is using blockchain to transform its system for managing billions of electronic invoices nationwide

Trouble on the Horizon? What Last Weekend’s Ruckus Means for Bitmain’s IPO

Over the weekend, information surfaced that could suggest that mining giant Bitmain may be facing an uphill battle as it looks to launch an IPO on the Hong Kong stock exchange.Newly leaked public information reve…

Bitmain

Over the weekend, information surfaced that could suggest that mining giant Bitmain may be facing an uphill battle as it looks to launch an IPO on the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Newly leaked public information reveals that, in its pre-IPO presentation to investors, Bitmain provided insight into its cryptocurrency holdings, which shows that Bitmain unloaded most of its bitcoin (BTC) to accumulate bitcoin cash (BCH) in its stead. In a snapshot of a slide from the original presentation, the leftmost column titled “Digital quantity of money” shows Bitmain’s bitcoin supply decreased from 71,560 BTC to 22,082 from December 2016 to Q1 2018. Over the same period, its BCH holding increased to over 1 million coins.

Bitmain

Samson Mow, CSO of Blockstream, pointed out that Bitmain has incurred half a billion dollars in losses through its BCH holdings over the last three months alone. Scrutinizing the company further, Mow pointed out that Bitmain chose not to disclose financial data for its Q2 inventory in 2018. The tweet by Mow brings to light that Bitmain reported $1.24 billion in inventory for Q1 2018, while it has not mentioned any numbers for Q2 despite already being well into Q3, raising speculation that Q2 was omitted because the company may have realized a loss between $600-700 million.

In a recent Medium blog post, a pseudonymous blogger by the name of Crypto Herpes Cat points out that these losses, and the lack of transparency surrounding its reporting, could have an impact on Bitmain’s forthcoming IPO.

Why This Matters

All this could spell concern for Bitmain’s current and potential investors, although some investors have still expressed continued support for the company despite the recent debacle.

A recent twitter thread by Vijay Boyapati, a software engineer at Peach Inc. and a prominent crypto blogger, argues that “Bitmain entered one of the worst trades of 2017” when it chose to support bitcoin cash over bitcoin, going on to state that the mining giant is sitting on a such a large supply of the cryptocurrency that “they have no ability to exit its billion dollar position in BCash without a complete collapse in its price.”

As the evidence from the pre-IPO presentation suggests, Bitmain could be holding 5 percent of the total supply of bitcoin cash at a time when the altcoin is falling below its all-time lows. With market conditions like these, price stability is fragile, making it difficult for a large holder of any cryptocurrency to offload a large number of coins without severely affecting the price. Given its stash of bitcoin cash, Bitmain could risk tanking the price even further, something that would obviously be against its own interests.

Another part of Bitmain’s business is also struggling thanks to increased competition from competitors like GMO, Avalon and Ebang, who have started producing more efficient chips than the 16nm ones that Bitmain’s S9 miner uses, according to Crypto Herpes Cat.

Market saturation and an overall decrease in demand for miners during the prolonged bear market has caused Bitmain, the largest Bitcoin mining hardware company, to incur what may be a substantial loss on its balance sheet. For instance, the antminer s9, Bitmain’s latest and most sophisticated ASIC, once sold for $3,500; now, it’s selling for $700 — a decline of over 80 percent.

The majority of Bitmain’s value, however, is derived from its treasure trove of crypto assets like bitcoin cash, as well as future cash flows from selling mining equipment. During the bull market that saw bitcoin rise to almost $20,000, the same speculative demand that drove prices and mining interest fueled the majority of Bitmain’s business. But since bitcoin’s price has retreated some 70 percent from its all-time highs, the demand for ASIC miners has decreased as well.

Through multiple funding rounds in 2017 and 2018, Bitmain witnessed its valuation balloon to $12 billion, and its IPO valuation has it figured upward of $40 billion.

Now, there is some speculation as to the motives behind Bitmain’s IPO, including suggestions that they may be providing a way for Bitmain to right the ship by offloading onto retail investors. Since Bitmain’s value was derived from its speculative business strategies, its IPO may be a way to sell part of its company at the high valuation they earned during the bull market, Crypto Herpes Cat suggests.

How Did Bitmain Get Here?

Bitmain’s support for Bitcoin Cash has lined up with its narrative since the original hard fork in August 2017. Jihan Wu, CEO and co-founder of Bitmain, has sat alongside proponents like Roger Ver in defending it as the future of Bitcoin and money.

More than this, as an unofficial continuation of Bitmain’s “BIP148 contingency plan,” Bitcoin Cash was effectively initiated by Bitmain, while Bitmain-affiliated mining pool ViaBTC realized the coin by mining its first blocks. Between ViaBTC and its other proxy mining pools, Bitmain supported and mined bitcoin cash from its inception, accumulating a large number on top of what it had already received during the fork.

Through its mining pools, Bitmain supported and mined bitcoin cash, accumulating a large amount on top of what it had already received as a result of the fork. Bitmain has also made substantial investments into projects supporting bitcoin cash, investing $3 million into a bitcoin cash-powered, digital advertising platform.

Bitmain has not responded to Bitcoin Magazine’s request for comment at this time.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

US Regulator Fines and Halts Activities of Fraudulent Tomahawkcoin Issuer

The creator of a fraudulent, oil-related ICO has accepted multiple bans and a $30,000 fine from the U.S. SEC

Erik Finman is a Bitcoin millionaire: Now what? – TNW

TNWErik Finman is a Bitcoin millionaire: Now what?TNWI became intrigued, because before he said that, I thought he was just a rich kid who got lucky. Finman made his first million in Bitcoin BTC thanks to a $1,000 gift from his grandma. He ended up dro…

TNW

Erik Finman is a Bitcoin millionaire: Now what?
TNW
I became intrigued, because before he said that, I thought he was just a rich kid who got lucky. Finman made his first million in Bitcoin BTC thanks to a $1,000 gift from his grandma. He ended up dropping out of high school, working the cryptocurrency ...

Bitcoin Is Better Than Gold

With the increasingly frequent comparisons of Bitcoin to gold, both as a store of value and a means of transferring value as a form of payment, traditional investors are now weighing in on the advantages of the world’s most popular cryptocurrency. Is Bitcoin superior to gold for use as a currency? The standard Gold is …

The post Bitcoin Is Better Than Gold appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

Is Bitcoin superior to gold for use as a currency?

The standard

Gold is perhaps the first decentralized currency, defined as a thing that has value but not under the centralized control of any governing body. It has been a sign of wealth and one of the most popular currencies for thousands of years. Physical gold holds its value since it can only be slowly mined over time, rather than printed rapidly like fiat.

Scarcity

Both assets are similar in that they are mined. However, Bitcoin has a limit on how much it can be mined – there will only be a maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoins. While gold has been determined to be finite, its total supply is unknown and only estimated. Should new, large deposits be suddenly discovered one day, its price would be significantly affected. Even a large unknown deposit on Earth can cause a big price crash.

Ease of transfer and security

Although physical gold is globally recognized as a currency, it is arduous to use for international commerce and finance. The metal is highly valued by the ounce, currently USD 1,200, but when dealing with large amounts of money, it can be very heavy. To send USD 1 billion to another country would require 52,000 pounds (approximately 0.25 tons) of gold. This would require a tremendous amount of effort and costs for customs, shipping and security. Additionally, it would take many days for gold to cross international borders, with multiple points of risk at en route.

Compare this to Bitcoin, where USD 1 billion can be digitally transferred anywhere in the world instantaneously, at a fee of only a few cents, with no additional costs. This digital transaction isn’t exposed to compliance with any jurisdiction’s regulations wither and cannot be intercepted nor hijacked once broadcast to the network.

Additionally, Bitcoin is cryptographically secure and has yet to be hacked despite years of attempts. Gold can be physically secured, but at great cost. Bitcoin’s cryptographic security can’t be compromised by even the most powerful supercomputer. Bitcoin transactions can be done instantly and leave no trace besides a note in the blockchain ledger that they occurred, while a gold transaction is very visible since it has to be moved physically, and a tremendous amount of traceable activity occurs when being moved.

Liquidity

Finally, gold has a huge paper market on COMEX, where its paper issuances can supposedly be redeemed for physical equivalents in a vault. However, COMEX’s vault contains less than 1% of the amount needed for all the paper gold issued. More is being printed too, saturating the market and keeping the price of the precious metal far lower than it should be. There is no equivalent situation for Bitcoin, since Bitcoins are highly liquid and there is no need for paper Bitcoin. The only reason paper gold exists is because its physical counterpart is difficult to transact.

Bitcoin can also be easily converted to local currency via peer-to-peer exchanges. Localbitcoins, for example, lists traders willing to buy or sell Bitcoin online at any one time in over 248 countries. It would be significantly more difficult to liquidate gold as it is likelier to find a buyer for Bitcoin than it is for the precious metal.

Ultimately, if fiat currency collapses it is clear that Bitcoin is in a much better position to become the top global currency, due to Bitcoin’s advantageous characteristics. This makes Bitcoin much more ideal for international commerce and finance than gold.

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