Day: August 17, 2018

Russian NGO for ‘clean elections’ is reportedly trialing a blockchain-based electronic voting system

The US Senate is preparing for another blockchain hearing next week, this time to discuss its energy efficiency and implications.

The 23-member Committee on Energy and Natural Resources will hold the “Energy Efficiency of Blockchain and Similar Technologies” hearing on 21August to discuss the issues and practical implications of its widespread adoption on the energy sector.

A specific focus will be placed on the potential increase in energy consumption and subsequent electricity price rises, with the discussion based on estimating the most likely outcomes in the near future as the technology evolves.

The committee will also consider similar decentralized technologies, focusing also on the cybersecurity possibilities for energy industry applications. It will debate considering how blockchain could, in fact, be used to improve the security of computing systems that supply energy across the country.

This appears to be the first committee meeting from the Senate to explicitly discuss blockchains role and future in the energy sector.

The entirety of the hearing will be broadcast live on the committee’s website via webcam, with witness testimony also available on the site from the start of the hearing.

Renewable energy in blockchain

While Bitcoin has received criticism over the accused unsustainability of the mining process as was the case in Washington State recently, there is a significant movement in the community to develop a climate responsible solution to the problems of energy consumption.

A Lichtenstein-based startup called Solareum has developed a decentralized marketplace platform for renewables, with an aim to make solar energy more readily available and affordable to people internationally.

Another blockchain project, HashByte, allows users to rent hash-power from companies to limit wastefulness, as well opening up its own centers across Europe that utilize only renewable energy in their operations.

Unfortunately, the Senate has a poor record when it comes to staying fully up to date and informed on the most recent cases in technology as recently seen in the now notorious interview with Mark Zuckerberg, so blockchain advocates can only hope they have done their research this time.

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Bitcoin (BTC)

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, has shot up to $6,500. This past week has been an up-and-down journey for the cryptocurrency, with price swings from $6,400 all the way down to $6,090, but for the time being, bitcoin appears to be exhibiting bullish activity and expanding its horizons.

Some of bitcoin’s biggest advocates are also ones that recognize its setbacks. Ran Neu-Ner – host of CNBC’s “Crypto-Trader” – recently commented:

“We are dealing with a very young but promising technology. However, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies aren’t for anyone looking to make a quick buck and drive a Lamborghini out of the showroom… once you understand the beauty of an asset that can be transferred peer-to-peer without any friction and the ability to create smart contracts, then you have probably gone through cryptocurrency 101.”

Ethereum (ETH)

At press time, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap and the number one competitor to bitcoin is trading for $305. That’s about $15 higher than where it stood yesterday, and another positive sign that the market may be recovering.

Vitalik Buterin – Ethereum’s co-founder – recently hosted a small and private event in San Francisco. He mentioned that he got an email from Google that sounded like a potential job offer, though it later turned out to be for an internship. Buterin commented:

“I hope we all realize that this was a joke. Some random HR person from Google emailed me, most likely because some machine-learning algorithm emailed me; most likely because some machine-learning algorithm analyzed my GitHub and saw that I had some high score in the international Olympiad. Apparently, I fit the blueprints as a great candidate to hire at an intern salary.”

Ripple (XRP)

Ripple is presently trading for about 32 cents, which is about two cents higher than where it stood yesterday afternoon.

Recently, executives for the third-largest cryptocurrency stated they are seeking entry to China to expand Ripple’s cross-border payments system.

Jeremy Light – vice-president of European Union accounts at Ripple – stated, “China is definitely of interest. It is definitely a target.”

Bitcoin Cash (BCH)

Bitcoin cash is currently trading for $562.

UK-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto Facilities has added bitcoin cash futures trading to its platform due to increasing demand. Executives expect trading to be as successful as the futures trading of bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin. They also say the company has experienced its highest ratio of growth over the past year.

Litecoin (LTC)

At press time, Litecoin appears to be in the worst shape, as it is trading for roughly $59.

However, one source suggests that the currency could swing up by as much as 200 percent; that Litecoin is showing some of the technical indicators it was exhibiting at the end of 2017, when it swung from the $90 range past $300.

Charts by TradingView

Bitcoin Press Release: Cornucopia, a blockchain startup providing crypto investors with access to pre-IPO shares of their favourite startups adds tZeros Joe Cammarata to their capable executive team.

August 9th, 2018, Tortola, British Virgin Islands – Cornucopia is proud to announce that tZero’s Joe Cammarata has joined the company as Chief Market Strategist. Joe will be helping the Cornucopia team bridge the gap between traditional finance and the crypto industry.

Joe began his career at Datek where he pioneered NASDAQ market orders. While at Datek he developed an internal cross that would eventually become the Island ECN. He was instrumental in orchestrating the growth of Datek Online – which was sold to Ameritrade for just under $1.4 billion. Joe then co-founded Sonic Trading and led the company as CEO to a successful acquisition in 2004 by the Bank of New York. Until recently Joe was the CEO of SpeedRoute, and president of tZERO.

Cornucopia founder Carsten Klein says:

“Joe and I have worked together for several years, and he was heavily involved in building the PTN platform with me. I am excited to have him as part of the team on the Cornucopia project”.

Ignite co-founder Christopher Cousins says:

“Having known Joe and Carsten for some time, I know this is the dream team to take Cornucopia to market. For us at Ignite, we look forward to Cornucopia using our tech to offer pre-IPO opportunities to the crypto market”.

Accessing the IPO Market with Cornucopia

Cornucopia will be built on the Ignite Ratings’ platform which is already well into its Beta phase. During the crowdsale, Cornucopia’s token holders will buy “Horn” tokens that will give them access to their platform. Users will have to hold Horn tokens in order to participate in giving ratings and opinions on a variety of pre-IPO assets. When a high rating is achieved for a particular asset, the Cornucopia linked Index will make an investment. Those Horn token holders who have actively participated by rating that asset will be rewarded with a % of any trading gain made.

As information regarding pre-IPO opportunities is extremely limited, Cornucopia is also providing a much-needed resource to the investment community.

Although ICO dates have yet to be announced, Cornucopia has hinted that the pre-sale could commence as early as the start of September. For more information please follow the links below.

Website: https://cornucopia.io
Email: [email protected]
Official Telegram: https://t.me/CornucopiaICO

Media Contact Details
Contact Name: Carsten Klein
Contact Email: [email protected]

Cornucopia is the source of this content. Virtual currency is not legal tender, is not backed by the government, and accounts and value balances are not subject to consumer protections. Cryptocurrencies and tokens are extremely volatile. There is no guarantee of a stable value, or of any value at all. Token sales are only suitable for individuals with a high risk tolerance. Only participate in a token event with what you can afford to lose.

This press release is for informational purposes only. The information does not constitute investment advice or an offer to invest. The Cornucopia token sale is closed to US participants and participants of all countries in which ICOs are illegal.

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This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Bitcoin has got everyone going back and forth. At press time, the largest cryptocurrency in the world is again trading for $6,500. The past few days have been an up-and-down journey for the asset, with prices swinging from $6,400, to $6,300, and then falling back down to $6,200 later in the week. The currency has now added a few hundred to its price, causing many to wonder if this momentum can last, or if the coin will slink back into the darkness as it has done before.

Jeremy Gardner – managing partner of the investment firm Ausum Ventures – says these price swings are nothing new; that they’ve been occurring since bitcoin’s original conception and will likely last until the day it dies off.

“I’ve seen bitcoin drop from $20 to $2 and $1,200 to $250,” he explains. “Hyper-growth followed by a heavy correction isn’t new.”

Nick Colas – co-founder of the market analysis firm DataTrek Research – is in complete agreement. He says that the recent price changes should come as no surprise to die-hard bitcoin enthusiasts and suggests that bitcoin’s price “flows” depending on how people generally feel towards it.

“The issue with bitcoin is the price is driven 100 percent by market psychology,” he states. “It is still a new technology, and in the early days of adoption, so there isn’t a lot aside from public confidence to underpin its value.”

He further states that the swings in bitcoin’s price have also been fueled by regulatory speculation, particularly regarding what the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) plans to do about incoming bitcoin ETFs.

“The rhythm of this security is rumors speculate, there are new financial tools coming to trade it, and then there isn’t. Then it goes down,” he comments. “Last year, the futures exchange in Chicago made bitcoin contracts, and when no one wanted to trade, air came out of the bubble.”

Despite everything, some individuals remain extremely loyal to bitcoin, and believe it is a revolutionary tool in the future of finance. Gardner asserts, “Bitcoin and crypto-assets matter because they provide a sovereign digital assets class in a growingly Orwellian world.”

Others believe bitcoin has a prominent future but needs time to overcome the numerous technical issues it’s facing. Ran Neu-Ner – host of CNBC’s “Crypto-trader” – recently mentioned:

“We are dealing with a very young but promising technology. However, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies aren’t for anyone looking to make a quick buck and drive a Lamborghini out of the showroom… Once you understand the beauty of an asset that can be transferred peer-to-peer without any friction and the ability to create smart contracts, then you have probably gone through cryptocurrency 101.”

Bitcoin Charts by TradingView

Hong Kong universities are set to receive a USD 20 million grant through government funding for research and development projects in blockchain and fintech.

In an effort to drive blockchain into administrative and financial sectors, Hong Kong is asking its universities to delve deep and come up with answers. The major beneficiaries of this round of specific funding are Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), along with the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), and the City University of Hong Kong (CityU).

Through the project, along with research and development tasks, the universities are also required to report on Hong Kong’s current progress in becoming a fintech regional hub. Professor Tan Jiayin, known for his previous research work entitled ‘Strengthening Hong Kong’s Strategic Position as a Regional and International Business Center’, is to head up the multi-university research project.

Hong Kong’s blockchain push is an attempt to catch up with some of the more fintech proactive countries in the region such as Singapore and Japan. Updating aspects of the financial sector have recently become a focus for private companies and government bodies, who are beginning to regard blockchain technology as a way of modernizing record keeping and speeding up payments, in what is often described as an overly paper-driven industry, particularly given the technologies available today.

Work such as professor Jiayin’s which has already explored blockchain technology, network security, and artificial intelligence learning, as it relates to the current economic climate, will be a boost to the shared university partnership. Jiayin has asked Hong Kong’s banking community to participate in the research as part of the grant relates to the creation of digital currencies, although these have been looked on unfavourably by HK banks in the past, discounting the idea of a CBDC. In an announcement on 30 May, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) decided against the idea.

However, the HKMA announced the launch of a blockchain trade finance solution in partnership with 21 regional banks last month. Also, seven banks including Hong Kong’s banking regulator are to launch a trade finance platform this September using blockchain, including HSBC and Standard Chartered. Notably, HSBC’s Monex digital currency concept in 1998 was reportedly the professor’s brainchild.

The push towards integrating blockchain into Hong Kong’s administrative and financial sectors is not the first after a government plan was released in 2017 to produce a blockchain-based trade financing system to increase settlement efficiency and reduce fraud. This after a heightened level of concern around the cryptocurrency space due to high levels of fraud.

Research recently revealed that the percentage of financial crime involving cryptocurrencies was in fact comparatively low, when compared to other methods of, largely organized, crime in the city.

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Ai Weiwei and Kevin Abosch is looking to blockchain to start a conversation on the value of human life.

Top analysts from major money management firm Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. believe that revenue from crypto trading fees will double in 2018, despite declining interest and prices in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether.

Bernstein Suggests Crypto Trading is the Next Big Thing

New York-based global asset management firm Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. has released a new report titled “Crypto Trading — the Next Big Thing is Here?” In the report, analysts claim that fees generated from the buying and selling of crypto assets was responsible for as much as 8 percent of what established, traditional exchanges generate in fees, despite the emerging cryptocurrency market being in its infancy.

The total fees amassed at the largest exchanges alone top $1.8 billion in revenue, so it’s no surprise that Wall Street is showing some signs of interest in getting their slice of the pie. Bernstein’s estimates are based on trading fees only and was calculated using daily volume data from CoinMarketCap, CBOE, and other sources.

Lead analyst for Bernstein, Christian Bolu, believes as the crypto asset class matures, additional opportunities including custody and asset management services will be too profitable for traditional firms to ignore.

Big Players Touting Substantial Growth While Loss Leaders Play Catch-Up

As part of Bernstein’s report, the firm estimates that San Francisco-based Coinbase dominates the market with 50% of all transaction revenue. Bolu claims that unless Wall Street soon dips their toes into the space, Coinbase could reach an ““unassailable competitive position.” Coinbase overshot its revenue expectations by over $600 million in 2017 due to bitcoin’s mainstream attention, generating a record $1 billion in revenue for the year.

Another competitor and newcomer to the space is a perfect example of just how profitable cryptocurrency trading can be. Binance, which enjoys some of the highest trading volume among all exchanges, saw an increase quarter over quarter from $7.5 million to $200 million in 2017, and is projecting $1 billion in revenue for 2018.

Other competitors, Robinhood and Square’s Cash app, generate little revenue from their crypto trading products currently, but the decision to keep commissions low is to grow in market share against behemoths like Coinbase and Binance. Square recently expanded its Bitcoin offering to all 50 states across the US, while Robinhood continues to expand and list new assets to remain competitive. 

Traders Profit From Volatility, While Exchanges Profit From Traders

The revenue generated from cryptocurrency trading is largely thanks to the wild volatility and price swings seen in Bitcoin and other crypto asset markets. Bitcoin reached an all-time high of nearly $20,000 in late December 2017, only to fall to a 2018 low of $5800. Investors, having witnessed their substantial gains from 2017 wither away, have been lured to exchanges to try and trade to recoup losses. Meanwhile, exchanges continue to profit from traders regardless of the price a crypto asset is at, and according to Bernstein’s report, show no signs of slowing down.

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Belize Based PR Agency Bitcoin PR Buzz has announced that interested blockchain companies are able to receive one complimentary hour of PR and marketing consultation.

Disclosure: This is a Sponsored Article

Consultation Details

This is entirely free, with no hidden fees or strings attached. Consultation is done with an expert account manager over Skype, with deep knowledge within the industry.

During the one-hour consultation, the company’s platform, whitepaper, and social media presence are analyzed, and critiques for improving them are researched before the meeting, and suggestions are made during the meeting.

Additionally, analyzing rival organization strategies is done, to help companies stand out from the rest of their competitors.

Lastly, PR methods are looked at, in order to meet each individual businesses requirements and budget, while delivering the most amount of impact possible.

All types of companies, from bootstrapped startups to established enterprises with are able to take advantage of effective marketing. Whether it’s driving more traffic to your platform, establishing a presence online, or just simply a review of existing marketing strategies, all companies will be able to benefit from this consultation.

If the company receiving consultation decides to go ahead with paying for PR marketing through Bitcoin PR Buzz, the transition will be seamless, with various existing packages being offered. And due to increasing demand, a new package will be offered as well: the Platinum Executive package.

Package Details

This package features guaranteed articles and PR publication on the biggest crypto news platforms and includes everything the previously top-tier Ultimate Executive package offered.

On top of that, 11 original featured articles will also be published to top-tier Bitcoin media. These articles will be published on CCN, BitcoinNews, NullITX (formerly TheMerkle), CoinCodex, globalcoinreport, ambcrypto, Blokt, CoinIdol, Bitsonline, Coinspeaker, and CoinIdol.

On top of that publication of each client’s, PR will be sent out to other major crypto sites like CCN, COinspeaker, Criptonoticias, Criptomoedas Facil, ZYCrypto, and many others.

More mainstream news outlets such as Reuters, FOX, NBC, and 500 others will publish the PR as well.

Furthermore, PR will be sent to the newsdesks of over 500 outlets including the New York Times, Forbes, CNN, and Bloomberg.

In terms of social media, a viral media campaign will be conducted to ensure your news spreads quickly through word of mouth.

The Platinum Executive package ensures that your tweet will be tweeted out to a minimum of 500,000 targeted followers, with a live twitter tracking URL provided so clients can view statistics in real time.

Once the campaign is over a handcrafted PDF report discussing how the entire PR campaign went, which is delivered within 7-10 business days.

Packages start at $1600 and go up to $5000 for the Ultimate Executive package. There is no word on how much the Platinum Executive will go for as of now, and payments are payable in crypto.

Bitcoin PR Buzz is a veteran in Bitcoin PR, working in the industry for over 5 years, and has served over 800 satisfied clients.

For more information about Bitcoin PR Buzz, check out their website.

LINE Corporation has announced the addition of Tron’s TRX to its BITBOX cryptocurrency exchange. BITBOX was announced by the company in June and opened its doors in July to global clientele, with the exception of those in the US and Japan. TRX becomes the first crypto to be approved for listing by the BITBOX open-listing committee. To celebrate the listing, BITBOX and Tron will conduct an airdrop of 9 million TRX coins in a promotional event that will run until August 22, LINE announced in a press release on August 15. The company also announced that its subsidiary Unblock Corporation had launched a $10 million fund for investing in blockchain startups.

Backing the Blockchain

LINE Corp has made rapid strides in its efforts to become a leader in the crypto and blockchain world. In June, the Tokyo-based company announced that together with its wholly-owned subsidiary LVC Corporation, it would launch the BITBOX crypto exchange. Two weeks later, the exchange opened its doors, promising investors support for up to 30 cryptos. And now, BITBOX users can trade the twelfth most valuable crypto.

BITBOX praised TRON’s progress since its successful testnet launch in March of this year. Describing it as a project that’s dedicated to “building the infrastructure for a truly decentralized internet,” BITBOX recognized some of the major milestones that Tron has achieved over the past year including May’s mainnet launch and the acquisition of BitTorrent. Integrating Tron into the platform will give BITBOX the opportunity to connect to the fastest-growing blockchain project, the CEO of LINE Tech Plus stated. LINE Tech Plus is the subsidiary of LINE Corp that operates BITBOX. It’s based in Singapore.

TRON has a solid tech platform, especially now that it has joined forces with BitTorrent. We look forward to building a strategic partnership with TRON and offering our users the best experience available in the cryptocurrency space.

Tron’s founder, Justin Sun, was just as excited about the listing. Sun stated that Tron would use its industry expertise to help LINE develop a fast and secure crypto exchange. He also stated that Tron aims to use the partnership to broaden its audience and to target the mobile market. With Tron’s platforms such as BitTorrent and Peiwo having a combined user base in excess of 100 million users, the partnership will be mutually beneficial to the two companies, he added.

BITBOX believes that every crypto deserves an equal opportunity to be listed on the exchange, the press release stated. It also called on any crypto project that wants to join the exchange to apply, but only if they are prepared to undergo a thorough evaluation.

LINE also announced that its subsidiary, Unblock Corporation, had launched a $10 million corporate token venture fund. Based in Korea, Unblock will make investments in the crypto market and will seek to expand its scope according to the future growth of the blockchain market. The new initiative is aimed at ultimately boosting the adoption of cryptos, the company stated.

BITBOX doesn’t offer its services in the US or its home nation of Japan, nor does it offer the option to trade cryptos for US dollars. That decision is believed to have stemmed from the heightened regulatory requirements in these nations, with the FSA in Japan having become stringent on regulations since Coincheck was hacked and lost $500 million worth of cryptos in January. In the US, the SEC has also talked tough on cryptos that it considers securities, insisting that they be registered and regulated like other securities. Only Ether and Bitcoin have been cleared by the regulator.

Bitcoin Press Release: OneHash, the fastest-growing mutual betting platform has released its new gaming products – Moon and Goals, which allow players to engage and win bitcoins in ways that the industry has yet to see.

9th August, 2018. Willemstad, Curacao. New products were built and released with the purpose to create a new quality of games by giving players more engaging and competitive ways to enjoy additional activities between betting on their favourite events.

OneHash Reinvents Online Entertainment with Release of New Gaming Products

Moon is an innovative and highly engaging game where players can win up to x1000!

The mission is to fly as high as you can without being destroyed. Moon is based on the chicken model, also known as the hawk–dove game which has its origins in a game in which two drivers drive towards each other on a collision course and first of them that turns will be called a “chicken”.

In Moon, players can see other people playing at the same time and the bonuses gathered by them. If one of them decides to stop, others see it and still can fly higher and earn more money. The point is to earn as much as you can and to find a perfect balance between being “chicken” and getting crushed!

Goals is the newest, highly interactive game, which objective is to shoot as many goals in a row as one can, without catching the ball by the goalkeeper. Players can play on 3 levels and win even up to x43544! Released with the Football World Championship in mind, Goals immediately became a nr 1 choice for many of the players.

Newly developed products complement and enhance the current OneHash gaming offer, consisted of classic gambling games – Dice and Slots. Also, OneHash representatives told that the company didn’t say the last words and the customers can expect more brand new games in upcoming months.

Eric Baker, the Brand Manager at OneHash, said:

“We constantly observe and analyse online casino games offered by our competitors and our main conclusion is that most of them are based on the same mechanisms known from years and aren’t really appealing or visually attractive. Our main goal was to create very engaging, highly interactive games that will really differentiate. The release of Moon and Goals is the first step towards this objective.”

Eric went on to comment:

“Both games represent completely new quality in online gambling environment. The initial feedback from players is absolutely amazing. People love these games! Of course this is not the last word in this area. Our team is working hard on the new initiatives that will disrupt online gambling activities.”

About OneHash

Founded in 2014, OneHash is a leading and fastest-growing bitcoin mutual betting sportsbook and casino platform.

OneHash provides the secure & trustworthy betting service that allows to bet on all the biggest sports and eSports events, as well as the curated special events from the cultural and political areas such as Oscars, Grammys, all the major elections and many more.

OneHash is the only sportsbook that offers its users mutual betting service – a system in which all bets are placed together in a pool and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winning bets.

Visit the Website: https://onehash.com
Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onehashcom/
Follow on Twitter: @OneHash_com
Medium: https://blog.onehash.com/

Media Contact:
Name: Eric Baker
Email: [email protected]

OneHash is the source of this content. Virtual currency is not legal tender, is not backed by the government, and accounts and value balances are not subject to consumer protections. Cryptocurrencies and tokens are extremely volatile. There is no guarantee of a stable value, or of any value at all. Token sales are only suitable for individuals with a high risk tolerance. Only participate in a token event with what you can afford to lose.

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