Day: August 14, 2018

Collaboration between the blockchain-based marketplace and a global entertainment giant benefits the whole gaming community.

DMarket Token (DMT) finished in July as one of the top performing cryptocurrencies anywhere in the world. Up nearly 300% at its peak, the DMT drew increased attention to the project it belongs to. DMarket is a global virtual items marketplace catering to the needs of the rapidly expanding video games virtual items industry. For those unfamiliar with the sector, it has raced past $15bn in annual purchases with double-digit yearly growth.

Unlike the majority of ICO projects, which are usually based purely on raw ideas, DMarket conducted its token sale with an alpha/DEMO version of its product already in place. It happened last fall, and the marketplace has come a long way since then. It is now a fully-featured, up and running platform, where gamers actively trade digital items from such popular games as CS: GO and Dota 2.

However, those games are not connected directly to DMarket blockchain. They belong to the Steam gaming ecosystem, and items from them are traded on DMarket through Steam accounts. This is not truly innovative because other platforms, such as Skins.Cash or BitSkins, provide similar functionality. The real breakthrough in digital items trading will happen when developers start to connect their games directly to DMarket blockchain.

That’s what DMarket is aiming for – a global blockchain-powered ecosystem for trading virtual assets without any borders between different games and platforms. And that’s why the most recent news from DMarket is probably more important than the token price fluctuations or current volume of Steam-dependent trade on the marketplace.

The truly ground-breaking news is DMarket’s integration with global gaming giant Unity via an SDK which is already available on the global game development giant’s asset store. The partnership between Unity and DMarket allows any Unity-based game to easily connect to DMarket blockchain and make in-game assets available for virtual trading and exchange. This enables up to 770 million gamers to create their asset inventory on DMarket and start trading items from their favorite titles securely on the blockchain.

There are many concrete implications of this tie-up which are going to benefit the whole gaming community. Game developers are highly enthusiastic about increased customer lifetime value from gamers becoming more likely to play and pay more with an opportunity to monetize in-game items using DMarket. The huge commercial success of games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive shows that building a community which awards valuable items from a game is something that builds a truly hardcore player base.

Apart from teaming up with Unity, DMarket had good news on the Human Resources front as well, following the inclusion of a world-class Senior Vice President of Engineering Nick Covella to the team. He is a technology industry veteran, widely renowned as a world-class software engineer and executive. He will be strengthening the DMarket team to accelerate the growth of its global trading ecosystem for monetizing in-game content. Nick rightly commented upon his appointment that “DMarket is doing something unique at the intersection of gaming and blockchain.”

It seems that the guys from DMarket are in the mood to celebrate (and possibly sign some new deals!), as they send not just one but two teams to Europe’s leading gaming extravaganza Gamescom 2018 in Germany this month. The conference will attract an estimated 400,000 gamers exploring the latest digital trends. DMarket’s B2B and B2C teams in attendance have certainly earned themselves a little summer-end relaxation before taking on their ambitious goals for the final months of the year.

The post DMarket Brings Blockchain Innovation to Mass Gaming Audience appeared first on NewsBTC.

Enterprise-focused blockchain startup Axoni has completed a $32 million Series B funding round led by Goldman Sachs.

Beijing-based startup Nebulas has made the decision to postpone the initial coin offering (ICO) team’s token payments. They added an additional seven years to prove their determination for the company’s success, in a rare case of altruism for the lambasted industry.

The ICO team were initially planned to be paid through reserves of the startup’s native NAS token over three years following the offering before they agreed this could take place over the forthcoming decade instead.

Nebulas’s marketing director Becky Lu said that the decision was made so that the team could focus their efforts on the ”technical vision” of the company. She said that the decision was not easy as there were still many risks surrounding the blockchain industry and the future value of NAS, saying ”I think that shows our determination”.

Further to this commitment, a blog post from the company on Medium says it will publish the addresses of the undistributed NAS tokens. These make up 55% of the total number of tokens, with 45.5 million currently in circulation.

With the number of ICOs failing to provide the business that they have promised at a shamefully high level, Nebulas’s commitment stands out and sets a high standard for quality.

Its ICO raised USD 60 million in December last year through sales of NAS. The current NAS market cap stands at approximately USD 54.9 million.

The Nebulas project

The Nebulas white paper describes the project as a “value-based blockchain operating system and search engine” with an objective of finding solutions to three key blockchain issues. These include measuring the value of blockchain applications, creating a prosperous and long-term ecosystem, and continuing the development of an existing blockchain.

It harnesses a measurement system titled the Nebulas Rank, developed to find real values using “liquidity, speed, width, and depth of capital”.

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Bitcoin’s problems are nothing compared to the altcoin market threat, says Xapo’s Ted Rogers, with major alts losing 15 to 20 percent on the day

MECA Casino, a blockchain-based 3D social casino game project, aims to change the paradigm of online casino games by tackling three factors – trust, ownership, and entertainment.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

One of the pain points of online casino games is credibility. There is no easy way to assure players that online gaming is fair and transparent. MECA Casino solves this issue by generating random numbers from a triple-layer system and using blockchain-based transactions. All the game results are verifiable and the possibility of any type of intervention is eliminated. Also, users can be assured that winnings will be distributed accurately.

What distinguishes MECA Casino from other online casino games is decentralization of rake ownership. MECA Casino allows players to own and operate their own casinos. This decentralized ownership not only elevates the level of transparency of the game, but also gives the players opportunity to make extra earnings and influence the game the way they see best.

Moreover, unlike existing online casino games that overlook entertainment factors, MECA Casino is essentially fun to play. Thanks to its unparalleled level of game graphics and social features, MECA Casino successfully reproduces the atmosphere of offline casinos and offers the highest gaming experience.

A Casino Game Run By Players

Further, on MECA Casino, players can purchase casino assets and thus gain ‘Master’ status. Masters can customize their casinos by choosing interior games and décor to attract more players. Profit of the casino is shared with the master in ratio of 6:4 (Master:MECA Casino). Also, masters can trade casinos through smart contracts via a secure trading system.

This Virtual Casino Ownership System (VCOS) makes MECA Coin a truly decentralized platform for curators of virtual gaming establishments. In a written interview, the company added: “We will never operate any casinos ourselves as decentralization is among our main principles. The number of Casinos and Masters is limited, but will grow over time. More will be offered for purchase as the number of players on the platform increases. This will ensure an appropriate earnings balance for casino masters.”

Entertainment beyond the simple draw of gambling

MECA Casino combines social elements and visually stimulating graphics to achieve the highest level of entertainment.

Designed as an open and explorable environment, MECA Casino enables users to move freely between casino halls and cities and enjoy casino games with other players or friends

Moreover, with MECA Casino, players enjoy an immersive and intuitive 3D casino experience made possible by a level of game graphics quality not yet seen in this market.

MECA Casino currently offers seven 3-D based complete games, including table games like blackjack and baccarat, and five traditional slot machine-based games. The games are built with HTML5 and are compatible with a variety of web and mobile devices. In 2019, the team will release a social sports betting feature and other new offerings.

ME2ON is a leading game developer and publisher based in Seoul that specializes in online social casino games. ME2ON is the key development partner of MECA Casino, and currently operates a diverse array of social casino games with over 90 million users worldwide with MAU of more than 10 million. MECA Casino is expected to have technical and business advantages by implementing ME2ON’s talent, development engine, and its substantial global user base.  ME2ON is a publicly-listed company in South Korea.

CRYPTOMECA, a company based in the Isle of Man and developer of MECA Casino, will open services in the growing list of countries that allow online gambling. MECA Casino is highly differentiated by its high-quality contents and its unique blockchain system with true decentralization, making it truly distinctive from other blockchain casino/gamble projects.

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Cryptocurrency price predictions have become as plentiful as trees in a forest, but many never come to fruition. Nonetheless, with the crypto market’s move lower, some have begun to believe that Arthur Hayes’ $5k prediction could be in store for Bitcoin.

From $5k To $50k — Arthur Hayes’ Extreme Bitcoin Prediction

Arthur Hayes, the CEO of BitMEX and a passionate cryptocurrency proponent, has not been one to back down from a tough question. When queried about his prediction for the price of Bitcoin come the end of 2018, Hayes stated, albeit somewhat jokingly, that Bitcoin will reach $50,000. As reported by NewsBTC, he doubled down on this sentiment in late June, drawing attention to the potential for a positive regulatory decision that could bring the price of the foremost digital asset past $50,000. Hayes stated:

“Absolutely [I stand by $50,000 prediction by 2018]. I think something [bitcoin] that goes up to $20,000 in one year can have a correction down to $6,000. I think we can find a bottom in the $3,000 to $5,000 range, but we are one positive regulatory decision away, maybe an ETF approved by the SEC, to climbing through $20,000 and even to $50,000 by the end of 2018.”

As per a tweet from Frank Chaparro, a fintech-focused Business Insider reporter, Arthur Hayes’ prediction could still be in store for the cryptocurrency market.

BitMEX head Arthur Hayes predicted #bitcoin would retest 5k before hitting $50,000 by year end https://t.co/gjXTc0uQjf

— Frank Chaparro (@fintechfrank) August 14, 2018

As Bitcoin neared $8,000 in late July, Hayes made an appearance on CNBC to triple down on his ambitious prediction, this time drawing attention to the fact that if Bitcoin falls and holds $5,000, that the $50,000 rally could be possible. He later added that he expects for Q3 and Q4 to be “when the party is going to start again,” as summer months are when cryptocurrency traders “take a little bit of chill time.”

Could His Prediction Come To Fruition?

Following the SEC’s delay verdict for the VanECK and SolidX Bitcoin ETF, the market began to tumble, falling from a monthly high at $8,500 to today’s low at $6,000. While Hayes has yet to bring up his prediction once again, some investors have become increasingly aware that the first part of his prediction could come to pass as Bitcoin nears $5,000. First, Bitcoin will need to test the $5,800 level, which has become an essential line of support in previous downtrends.

However, if Bitcoin drops below $5,800, some users fear that this will be the point of no return, with some calling a move under this level “game over” for this early-stage asset class.  Jeff DeGraaf, a technical analyst at Renaissance Macro Research, recently revealed that Bitcoin could be “permanently impaired” or put into a “game over” phase if it moves under $5,800.

So for Hayes’ prediction to be successful, the market will have to go against all the odds to fall under $5,800, to only surpass this level only weeks, if not days later.

Additionally, even if Bitcoin was to pull off this feat, many fear that there is a limited upside. In Hayes’ second mention of $50,000, the CEO pointed out that the catalyst for such a move would be a positive regulatory decision. But now that the positive regulatory environment around this space has deflated, some fear that the market’s luck has run out, or at least for 2018 anyway.

It remains to be seen whether the predictions of yesteryear will come to pass, but many are hoping for the best, finding smidges of solace in a bear market.

Featured Image from Shutterstock

The post Arthur Hayes’ $5,000 Prediction Draws Ever Closer As Market Drops appeared first on NewsBTC.

The Japanese cryptocurrency Spindle, known for being promoted by the Japanese popular singer, actor and talent Gakuto Oshiro (45), aka GACKT, has announced it’s withdrawing from Tokyo to relocate its headquarters in London, amidst rumors that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police is investigating unregistered sales of cryptocurrencies made by the company.

Also read: J-Pop Star GACKT Caught Between Crypto Company Spindle and Minister’s Gaffe

Japan Unsuitable for Crypto Business

GACKT told news.Bitcoin.com in an interview online that there is a considerable disparity in Japan compared to overseas in regard to crypto, explaining, “Black Star&Co. decided to move to London, where it originally started, because [in Japan] it takes a tremendous amount of time for various procedures to take place. [They decided] it would not be suitable for a cryptocurrency business, which essentially needs to be speedy, to remain in such an environment.”

Black Star&Co, the developer company behind Spindle, said it will withdraw from Tokyo to take up an office in London from August 15th, where it shall be known as Black Star Capital Ltd (UK). The company was earlier involved in a scandal that shook the Japanese Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications, Seiko Noda, accused by Japanese media of exercising pressure on a government investigation into a crypto exchange company.

In January 2018, Noda’s secretary and aide allegedly invited an agent of the Financial Service Agency (FSA) and a representative of the cryptocurrency exchange operator to her parliamentary office to ask general questions. As a cabinet minister, Noda was accused of exerting pressure on an official government investigation.

On July 19th, it was reported that the company tied to Spindle and GACKT was suspected by the FSA of violating the fund settlement law and that it had been slapped with a warning in mid-January 2018. The company, which began dealing its own cryptocurrency, Spindle, aka GACKT Coins in October 2017, received administrative guidance from the FSA in February 2018 to discontinue selling cryptocurrencies.

However, the spindle (SPD) altcoin, which was listed on five foreign crypto exchanges in May, was pre-sold with one coin priced at 30 yen ($0.27 US), but the value later lowered to less than 0.4 yen ($0.0036 US). Investors who believed in GACKT, the promoter of Spindle, and purchased the coins made a significant loss. Moreover, GACKT and his allies sold immediately after the coin was listed, and made a lot money from doing so, news.livedoor.com reported. It was also reported that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit has been extremely attentive to such opaque transactions.

Spindle Investors Will Be Upset

In a press release, the company announced that it is moving its head office from Tokyo to London because it has more partners familiar with the technology and design in Europe and in the U.S. “We wish to keep in close contact with them,” the company said in the press release. “Given Japan’s current stance on [crypto] regulation and financial investments, it is difficult to expand further our business [here],” the company said in a statement. An individual involved in IT business told the Japanese press that Spindle had hired GACKT as a ‘publicity man’ in order to target Japanese people in general, including his fans. “If [GACKT] plans to move away from Japan now, many people will be really upset. Many will take this as he’s running away just before the authorities approach them,” the man told news.livedoor.com. The company also stated its intention to change its personnel related to project advisory.

“Japanese people are extremely dependent on statutory currencies issued by the country and the nation’s administration also has a low understanding of cryptocurrency itself,” GACKT told news.Bitcoin.com, “it is actually safer for investors to put Spindle in an infrastructure management where it can expand, grow and thrive,” he concluded.

What do you think of Spindle moving out of Japan as the police is reportedly investigating its earlier sales of spindle coins? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Paragon-style.com.

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Even though the Bitcoin ETF was shot down last week, we are still moving closer to getting a real ETF in the coming months. While we’re waiting for that to happen, many are now starting to feel like there is no recovery in sight for cryptocurrency markets. Which is also to say the technology behind them will go down with the ship.

Once again, we call on smart investors to step back and take a good look at the activity and the continued advancements in the space. Opponents to Bitcoin are nothing more than sensationalistic hacks that like to sell fear and indecision. Those prone to such negative speculations will get out of the market at a loss, and will probably never get back in again. Losing out on the opportunity to be part of the magic that is the blockchain at its earliest stages will be something to regret.

That’s too bad for those disbelievers, but for those of you who are smart investors whose assets are invested in the future, the news is nothing but good. One piece of news that is currently in the air is that Wall Street is investing in cryptocurrency in a big way by putting money into a new company that will build the digital/financial framework for future digital assets.

Joining them will be companies like Microsoft and Starbucks who will help to build this integrated framework that will allow you to trade, store, and spend your digital assets, and in the grand scheme of things, this is an important step because this framework will be necessary in order for crypto to become a true world currency. The fact that Wall Street will help legitimize these types of assets should tell the smart investor it really doesn’t matter how low the market may go during any specific bearish period, because in the background there are those making plans for a new world where the blockchain will reign supreme.

Another positive note is the fact that large corporations are putting their time and efforts into facilitating cryptoassets. This is evidenced by Volkswagen getting into the mix by introducing new apps that will allow customers to fill their tank or unlock their car using the blockchain. It seems the company has some comprehensive plans for adopting crypto, and that is good news for the smart investor who knows how to read the signs.

So, if you are an investor in cryptocurrency who is chomping at the bit with your finger hovering over the “enter” key and about to sell off your crypto assets because you are afraid to wait to see if the market will recover, then ask yourself this one important question: Where can it go from here long-term? If you take the time to research all the activity happening in the space, you will see that the future of blockchain and cryptocurrency is bright, and if you hang on for the ride, you will probably be happy that you did.

A blockchain startup wants to raise nearly $100 million dollars to create a new form of fantasy football aimed to bring fans together.

The cryptocurrency market has been largely bearish this year, with Bitcoin having fallen below $6,000 in June. However, cryptocurrency experts who have been observing the market and considering factors other than just speculation, they feel that is a healthy correction of the market, and that the future of the market, driven by adoption, is bright.

Willy Woo Still Bullish on Bitcoin

Willy Woo, the renowned cryptocurrency analyst, recently tweeted that the cryptocurrency market this year is stronger than it was at the same time in 2014. According to his tweet, there is a lot of buying going on behind the fear and capitulation in the market. His tweet was accompanied by a chart with OBV indicators comparing the price of Bitcoin between December 2017 to August 2018, and December 2013 to January 2015.

The market capitalization of Bitcoin, from being $8 billion at around the same time in 2014, stands at over $108 billion now. Bitcoin, after having seen frenzied buying and touching a price point of nearly $20,000 in December 2017, saw its market capitalization growing to over $661 billion.

The indicator for 2018 clearly shows that there is a lot less volatility in the price of the Bitcoin at this point of time. The relative stability of Bitcoin price in the market can be attributed to impending news which investors are eagerly awaiting. The US SEC, after its recent rejection of the Bitcoin ETF from Winklevoss brothers, is to announce its decision on nine ETFs in September.

Besides that, many countries across the world are working on their own regulatory framework around cryptocurrencies and blockchain businesses. While countries such as Gibraltar, Malta, Estonia and Switzerland have already been attracting cryptocurrency and blockchain businesses. Others such as Thailand and Philippines have recently declared their blockchain-friendly status, and are inviting ICOs to operate in a regulated environment.

India, which has put a banking ban on cryptocurrencies, is also going to declare its decision on the legal status of cryptocurrencies in the coming months. The uncertainty around the future of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies might be preventing investors from putting all their eggs in one basket, that of cryptocurrencies. However, players are also not exiting the market and are holding on to their bitcoin investments.

Another factor to consider in this situation is that many new entrants in the market have caught the attention of investors, big and small. Coinbase recently announced that it is considering adding other cryptocurrencies for storage as a part of its custodial services, which reveals that institutional investors are eyeing cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin. Ledger, the hardware wallet manufacturer also announced support for 8 new third-party applications as a part of its First Tuesday Crypto Initiative recently.

While Bitcoin’s price movements might not look very encouraging to new investors at the moment, but there is a strong undercurrent of cryptocurrency adoption in the market right now, which is driving the development of the industry, as opposed to just speculation and trading.

Image from Shutterstock

The post Crypto Experts Say Bitcoin Will be Much Stronger This Time Around appeared first on NewsBTC.

The decentralized exchange is adding messaging and ID verification features to address the worries that have kept institutional investors at bay.

This publication aims to provide guidance on the accounting under IFRS by the general holders of crypto-assets, but does not address the accounting for crypto-assets held by the original issuer. Moreover, the specific issues related to miners, crypto-exchanges and those resulting from initial coin offerings (ICOs) are not addressed here.