Day: September 2, 2018

Cryptocurrency users are under constant threat from hackers and scammers looking to steal their digital wealth. Even though some incidents are difficult to avoid, it would appear the major security risks still remain in place after many years. The following examples are ranked in terms of reverse popularity among criminals.

#4 The 51% Attack

Even though it would appear most cryptocurrency networks are safe from a 51% attack these days, that is not necessarily the case for some of the altcoins. During the years 2017 and 2018, numerous 51% attacks were attempted or successfully executed against various cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin Gold suffered a major attack in this regard. Rumors also circulated Verge underwent the same issue, although that was never officially confirmed by the developers. This will always remain a lingering threat, as it is not necessarily expensive to pull off such attacks.

#3 Cryptographic Flaws

Ever since the DAO lost a lot of money due to a smart contract coding issue, criminals have been looking for other weaknesses to exploit. Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology are still relatively new, and there is no foolproof solution in place as of right now. Bitcoin holds the best cards so far, but other currencies do not fare so well. The DAO was only one example, as a fair few projects using smart contracts ran into issues during the early stages.

These problems are not native to smart contracts either. Any new cryptocurrency or digital token is created in a way which may prove to be vulnerable. A lot of developers use existing code or templates to create their own iteration of value, which also means they tend to copy any existing flaws in that code.

#2 Deceiving Users

One of the “easiest” methods of attack comes in the form of attacking cryptocurrency users directly. Whether it is through malware, phishing sites, or malicious applications and wallets the number of potential threats should never be underestimated. In this day and age, cryptocurrency users need to be far more alert than ever before. Unfortunately, it would appear there is still a lot of work to be done in this department.  

#1 Exchange Hacks

As has become apparent over the past 18 months, cryptocurrency exchanges – or at least, the centralized ones – remain a fatal flaw in the ecosystem. Due to their centralized infrastructure and control over users’ funds, exchanges are an attractive honeypot for hackers and other criminals to exploit. In a lot of cases, such attempts are very successful, which is a worrisome trend.

Even in 2018, exchanges remain prone to hacks. This fatal weakness has hindered cryptocurrency for many years now, as the first hacks began in 2011. Seven years later, the number of hacked platforms is decreasing, but the amount of money looted from an exploited platform is rising significantly. Tens of millions worth of cryptocurrency tend to get stolen in this day and age, which further highlights the need for decentralized trading solutions.

Bitcoin short positions have been ranging near their all-time highs during the past month, signaling that traders are giving up hope that Bitcoin will maintain its current price of over $7,200. On September 1st, a notable 10,000 BTC short position was opened, bringing Bitcoin short positions back near their all-time high as Bitcoin shows relative stability in the low $7,000s.

Bitcoin Shorts Reaching All-Time Highs Could Act as Bitcoin Contrarian Indicator

Bitcoin shorts first reached their highest year-to-date position on April 9th, while Bitcoin was trading at approximately $7,000. At this point, short positions reached a year-to-date high of just over 38,000 open positions, which had slowly been growing from early February. In the month following short positions reaching this new high, BTC price climbed from $7,100 on April 9th, to just under $10,000 on May 5th.

Although this example of correlation between a large quantity of open short positions and a preceding price climb in Bitcoin is inconclusive, the same price reaction occurred in early August, when short positions climbed from 17,000 open positions on August 2nd to just under 40,000 open positions on August 21st. The over 2x increase in open BTC shorts corresponded with BTC falling from over $8,000 in late July, to just over $6,000 on August 13th, which drove many alt-coins to their year-to-date lows, crushing market sentiment.

Just after open short positions peaked at nearly 40,000, they crashed to approximately 22,000, which coincided with Bitcoin’s price rise from $6,000 to over $7,000 which occurred during a similar time range.

Many traders speculate that overly confident short positions act as “rocket-fuel” for market rallies, due to what is commonly referred to as a “short squeeze.”

Investopedia offers a simple, yet informative, explanation of what a short squeeze is:

“A short squeeze is a situation in which a heavily shorted stock or commodity moves sharply higher, forcing more short sellers to close out their short positions and adding to the upward pressure on the stock. It…is generally triggered by a positive development that suggests the stock may be embarking on a turnaround. Although the turnaround in the stock’s fortunes may only prove to be temporary, few short sellers can afford to risk runaway losses on their short positions and may prefer to close them out even if it means taking a substantial loss.”

New 10,000 Bitcoin Short Position Leading to Intense Speculation

Bitcoin traders and investors are now contemplating what the results of the new 10,000 BTC short position opened on September 1st will be, with debate on whether it will result in a short squeeze or in a price drop due to manipulation and profit taking.

Chris Burniske, a partner at Placeholder VC, examined the situation on a Twitter thread, explaining what the potential results of this massive short position could be.

Burniske explains:

“The interesting thing with outstanding short positions as an indicator is it can simultaneously be interpreted in opposite ways. From a momentum perspective, lots of short positions can be interpreted as a good time to pile on, as shorts collectively work to break an asset’s back. From a contrarian perspective, lots of short positions can be seen as ‘rocket fuel’ to the upside if the shorts are wrong and get squeezed…”

It is clear that although short positions reaching their all-time highs are usually preceded by short term rallies, the price could go either way based on whether or not bulls or bears are the ones providing the pressure.

Burniske ends his thread with advice for traders and speculators, saying “I’ll let you choose your interpretation re: $BTC right now, but important to hold both opposing ‘short thoughts’ in your mind at the same time.”

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The post Bitcoin Shorts Reach All-Time Highs During Low Market Cycle, What’s Next? appeared first on NewsBTC.

Cryptocurrency mining manufacturers are vying for the top spot in the industry. Even though Bitmain remains the market leader, a fair few other companies are making inroads. The following companies, ranked in reverse order of market traction, are currently active in the world of commercialized Bitcoin ASIC mining. One can only hope more firms will tackle this industry over time.

#4 Ebang Communication

Until a few years ago, it appeared there would be no real competitors to Bitcoin in the Bitcoin mining industry. With the help of Ebang Communicaitons, that situation is slowly coming to change. The firm, based in Asia, offers a few different mining units capable of pushing a hash rate of anywhere from 12 TH/s to 16 TH/s. Prices are relatively modest, although one has to keep in mind not all units come with a PSU. Even so, it is good to see this Chinese firm offer some much-needed competition in the world of Bitcoin ASICs.

#3 Halong Mining

Best-known for their DragonMint miners, Halong Mining appears to be slightly ahead of Ebang in terms of popularity. That situation will undoubtedly change back-and-forth a bit over the years as the competitors continue to one-up one another. Halong Mining currently only offers the DragonMint T1 miner for sale, which is capable of offering 16TH/s with Asicboost technology. Unfortunately, the unit is not available at the time of writing, although a waiting list has been opened for interested customers.

#2 Canaan

For the time being, Canaan remains the unrivaled number two in terms of commercial Bitcoin ASIC mining units. Even though their units are somewhat different from what one would necessarily expect, the company’s focus on bulk purchases shows they mean serious business. They also offer all of their products with the necessary power supplies and controllers, making it relatively easy to set up a proper Bitcoin mining operation.

Among their units are the AvalonMiner 831, 841, and 851. All of these units are priced a lot lower compared to products provided by competitors. These units can provide between 12.5 TH/s and 14.5Th/s. Not all units are available for purchase at this time due to stock issues, but their offerings still remain competitive regardless. Especially when considering how customers get all of the necessary hardware to start mining right away.

#1 Bitmain

It will be very difficult to rival Bitmain in terms of Bitcoin mining market dominance. Not only do they ship the most products, they also successfully operate one of the larger mining pools. Over the past year, the firm also diversified its approach, both in terms of hardware and mining. Various ASIC miners for altcoins have been released. On the mining front, Bitmain is a firm proponent of Bitcoin Cash.

The Bitcoin ASIC mining units sold by Antminer are quite numerous. It all depends on whether users want maximum power, efficiency, or even mine at home with a lightweight unit. All of its mining hardware is capable of packing quite the punch, albeit users will still need a fair few devices to be even remotely competitive with the rest of the network. Do keep in mind not all units may come with a PSU, but that is not uncommon among mining units purchased from manufacturers directly.

Yesterday’s “BCH Stress Test Day” saw over 2.1 million BCH transactions, with the number of transactions reportedly reaching up to 25,783 per block

It would appear the momentum is slowly turning against the cryptocurrency markets as of right now. After multiple days of solid gains, that is not entirely surprising either. Most of the top currencies have already dipped in the red. Further down the list, it seems the TRON Price will continue to struggle for any sort of momentum as of right now.

TRON Price Can’t Catch a Break

Over the past week, all top cryptocurrencies noted gains. Some fared much better than others, but one always has to put things in their proper perspective. One somewhat disappointing tend pertains to the TRON price. Despite noting a gain of 11% over the past seven days, the current downtrend is getting quite worrisome in quick succession.

Over the past 24 hours, the TRON price has noted a 4.68% decrease. In this volatile world of market fluctuations, that is not something to overly concerned about right away. Even so, it shows the hype surrounding TROM is finally calming down a bit. This is despite major announcements regarding the acquisition of BitTorrent Inc and the subsequent departure of some key staffers.

In the Bitcoin department, TRON is not noting any positive momentum either. There is a 5.1% decline in the TRX/BTC ratio, and it seems things will not necessarily improve anytime soon. Similar to most other altcoins, TRON is losing ground to Bitcoin, even though there is no real reason for facing such setbacks. How this will evolve in the days to come, is rather difficult to predict.

Despite the relatively high overall cryptocurrency trading volume, it seems obvious interest in TRX is not what it was a few weeks ago. One would expect very different figures after a relatively solid week of gains, but the opposite has come true for TRON. Its trading volume of $109.356m is not that impressive, albeit it is not disastrous either by any means.

Without Binance, the TRON trading volume would potentially look even worse. Thankfully, the company’s USDT and BTC pairs generate nearly 25% of all trades, separated by Rfinex’s ETH pair. Huobi and OKEx offer two additional USDT markets for TRON, further confirming there is no real fiat currency support to speak of as of right now. That may hinder the TRON price recovery plans, assuming there is such a thing.

It is evident the momentum on this Sunday afternoon and evening may not remain as bullish as it was earlier in the week. A small correction can do wonders for the market, as a lot of gains have been noted across all cryptocurrencies. That trend was bound to hit a snag at some point, and it is perhaps good this correction is taking place right now. For the TRON price, the coming hours will be crucial.

Japan’s financial regulator has changed the risk screening process for crypto exchanges, now requiring a submission of minutes of board meetings

Leading crypto exchange Bittrex has invested a 10 percent stake in Malta-based blockchain firm Palladium, reportedly the “first” regulated ICCO issuer worldwide

The initial coin offering industry is undergoing some big changes in quick succession. There is a strong focus on differentiating between utility tokens and security tokens. Despite the concerns surrounding this latter option, there are many benefits to security tokens for both investors and token issuers. Below are some examples ranked by overall appeal.

#6 More Legitimacy

Albeit ICOs do not suffer from issues in terms of raising money, the industry remains shrouded in illegitimacy. A lot of mainstream consumers fear ICOs are unlawful and regulators seem to lean toward the same train of thoughts. Thankfully, initiatives such as the SEC crackdown offer more legitimacy to companies. By directly offering security tokens and registering with the required agencies, all “legitimacy” concerns will be addressed automatically.

#5 Profit Becomes a non-issue

Most of the current ICO tokens on the market are sold as a promise for future gains on one’s holdings. Although there is nothing wrong with that approach, it will cause problems for projects which are not officially offering security tokens. Any project or company creating tokens which are expected to appreciate in value should go the security token route right away, as expecting profits from such an investment is not a problem.

#4 Cheaper and More Efficient

For the token issuers, going the security token route will offer two critical benefits. It allows for cheaper issuance of tokens, and it is far more efficient compared to going the traditional route. In theory, security tokens can be bought and sold on any platform one can think of, whereas ICOs are sold through websites and crypto exchanges. The more mainstream route will attract more interest and potential investors.

#3 Reducing Legal Risk

Initial coin offerings are being scrutinized as of right now due to potential legal concerns. Not all utility tokens are exactly that, as a fair few of them can easily fall into the security token range as well. These regulatory concerns can cause big problems for both token issuers and investors. More and more government agencies want to ensure utility tokens and security tokens do not mix, which will undoubtedly lead to further regulatory crackdowns.

#2 Accredited Investors

Although some people would argue a security tokens ale should be open to everyone, only allowing accredited investors to participate is the best way to go when it comes to raising capital. Accredited investors are a big demographic for initial coin offerings, even though it may force them to rethink their marketing plan altogether. For those companies who effectively mean business, this should not be a problem.

#1 Eroding Scams

Even though initial coin offerings are appealing, there are a number of scams users need to contend with. Once security tokens become the new meta, a lot of scams will be weeded out automatically. Tricking investors and government officials will become a lot more difficult, albeit it is impossible to create a foolproof system altogether.

There is a reason why the first advice any cryptocurrency trader gets is to never keep their assets on exchanges. The industry is awash with horror stories about hacks and security breaches that has resulted in the loss of funds. This year alone, hackers have literally walked out the front door of exchanges with cryptocurrencies worth over $700 million.

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In the wake of this, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) are on the rise as a highly sought-after alternative to centralized exchanges (CEXs). This is due to the ability DEXs give traders to retain control of their wallets and funds outside of an exchange’s ecosystem. However, while these DEXs offers unparalleled security, they have come at the cost of speed and efficiency that often sends users back to CEXs and all their attendant risks.

Hybrid cryptocurrency exchange platform DINNGO is eliminating this hassle with the development of the world’s first mobile and cold wallet exchange, keeping users in control of their private keys and funds without any speed or efficiency trade-offs. The Singapore-based exchange is also the first to offer seamless Bluetooth integration that connects offline (cold) wallets to mobile devices, enabling users to trade and exchange cryptocurrencies securely at the click of a button from anywhere.

The DINNGO Solution

Another major drawback of DEXs is their limited offerings due to the inability to trade other blockchains coins and tokens. Ethereum-based DEXs can only trade ERC20 tokens, excluding traders from tapping into the potential of other exciting cryptocurrencies.

DINNGO’s hybrid exchange will integrate the CEXs ability to trade tokens and coins across different protocols and chains on its DEX through its proprietary smart matching engine for a fair, transparent, efficient, secure, and instantaneous exchange of values.

Under the visionary gaze of CEO Hsuan-Ting Chu, a serial entrepreneur with multiple venture capital-funded businesses to his name, and a team of experienced developers, DINNGO is being developed with accessibility and ease-of-use as a core focus of its design.

“We see an obvious gap in the market with what is currently on offer to crypto investors and traders” says Hsuang-Ting Chu. “We want to provide a secure, efficient and reliable exchange that can deliver all the peace of mind that comes with a decentralized exchange and the user experience of a centralized exchange. The way our mobile app integrates with our cold wallet is unique, and we think it can change the way people trade crypto.”

Joining Hsuan-Ting on this groundbreaking development for the industry is COO Blake Ho and Chief Blockchain Officer Ben Huang. Having worked in operations and marketing for Citibank, Ho brings a wealth of experience to the development of the product, while Huang’s previous role as a core developer of Gcoin and DiQi bring hands-on, technical expertise to the table.

DINNGO will be launching its BETA version in Q4 2018 before its main unveiling in early 2019.

DINNGO Private and Public Sale

To further the development of its platform and the effective marketing of the platform, DINNGO has announced a Token Generation Event for its DGO utility token. The token is not only the vehicle for financial exchange and settlement on the platform, but also affords holders a 50% discount on transaction fees, access to premium trading functions on the exchange, and numerous Airdrop campaigns.

DINNGO TGE will be split into two rounds: a private pre-sale that is already 70 percent sold out and a public sales event. The pre-sale has received the backing and support of several industry heavyweights including YK Chu, managing director of WI Harper, a leading venture capital firm with over 350 companies backed in the United States and Asia and 100 successful liquidity events.

DINNGO token sale opens to the public on 16th September 2018, while its whitelist is currently ongoing.

Check out the DINNGO Website — http://bit.ly/DINNGO_Official

Chat on Telegram — http://bit.ly/DINNGO_TEL

Read the Whitepaper — http://bit.ly/DINNGO_WP