Day: September 4, 2018

A Russian cryptocurrency expert may be the key to unlocking a U.S. investigation over Russia’s interference with American politics.

Three countries are fighting to extradite Russian crypto expert Alexander Vinnik from Greece: Russia, France, and the U.S.

Vladimir Putin’s government has already threatened retaliation against Greece if he doesn’t return to his homeland.

Mueller’s Russia Probe Fights to Extradite Bitcoin Expert to Access Emails, Names, Bank Accounts

Vinnik was detained in Greece last year after U.S. prosecutors accused him of leading a cryptocurrency exchange, BTC-e.

It’s alleged that the exchange facilitated the money laundering of $9 billion for criminal enterprises, including hacking unit Fancy Bear. This is an alias for the Russian military intelligence officers allegedly involved in stealing and releasing Democrats’ emails, according to the Mueller probe.

The Supreme Court of Greece is expected to rule next week to which country Vinnik will be handed over. In case it favors both France and Russia’s pleas, the final say goes to Greece’s justice minister, who will also examine a political asylum request by Vinnik.

His insights may turn to be highly valuable to the U.S. investigation of election meddling, while being threatening to Russia’s claim of innocence. However, he is not the only Russian cryptocurrency expert in that situation.

Yevgeniy Nikulin, charged with hacking LinkedIn and Dropbox in 2012, and Peter Levashov, were both extradited to the United States from the Czech Republic and Spain, respectively. Vinnik denied the accusations and accused the United States of kidnapping in an interview.

“The U.S. is kidnapping Russian citizens through third countries. France is just another way, another link for my extradition to the U.S […] I insist that I did not cause any damage to these countries or to the nationals of these countries. I had no knowledge of illegal transactions.”

The Mueller probe concluded that Russian military intelligence officers layered transactions through cryptocurrency exchanges, including Vinnik’s BTC-e. This was to maintain anonymity when they bought time on servers they used to launch attacks.

Cryptocurrency money laundering specialist Elliptic identified the origin of the funds through the blockchain to conclude that BTC-e is linked to Fancy Bear, according to Tom Robinson, Elliptic’s chief data officer.

“There was a strong link between much of the funds allegedly used by the Fancy Bear group and BTC-e. What I can’t say for certain is whether Fancy Bear obtained them directly from BTC-e, or whether there was an intermediary.”

Vinnik’s lawyer argues that the cryptocurrency expert was not running the exchange and that his work didn’t include know-your-customer or anti-money laundering roles.

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post Jailed Bitcoin Expert May Provide Insight Over Russia Election Meddling appeared first on NewsBTC.

Some prominent CEOs have been speaking out on where they see the cryptocurrency market heading as it moves beyond 2018 into the future and the synopsis is upbeat.

With co-founder of BTCC Bobby Lee predicting that when Bitcoin passes the USD 60,000 price level in the coming years, it’ll reach a total circulation value of USD 1 trillion, what then is the short-term synopsis for the digital currency?

With 3,650 Bitcoin ATMs in the world and approximately four new Bitcoin ATMs being installed each day, some in the most unexpected of places, the market for Bitcoin certainly isn’t going away anytime soon, and popularity on the street is clearly on the up, with experts expecting the ATM market will achieve a USD 145 million value by 2023.

Herman Finnbjornsson, founder of Svandis, is certain that Bitcoin is going nowhere if not onwards to success, suggesting that “[There’s] Less than a 1% chance in my mind that Bitcoin won’t succeed. I think that there are a lot of reasons to be bullish on Bitcoin. Banks are getting into Bitcoin.”

Banks around the world are becoming involved in Bitcoin with particular interest on Wall Street as ETFs are expected to gain approval by the SEC next year, along with industry expectations these will lift the market and attract institutional investors.

Russell Korus, the CEO of EZ Exchange, sees Bitcoin succeeding for a number of reasons, suggesting that its failproof, decentralized, and autonomous qualities simply can’t be overlooked. He suggests that Bitcoin will lead what he calls “a brand new paradigm” where value can be exchanged without the need for an intermediary creating “far-reaching and society-shifting repercussions”, within the industry as the move towards decentralization now, eventually becomes the norm.

Finnbjornsson sees this year as the springboard to his success scenario suggesting that Bitcoin could easily pass the USD 10,000 price level by the first week of November. Brian Kelly’s biggest news of the year, the much talked about platform backed by Microsoft and Starbucks, will see Bitcoins sales volume support that figure as investors rush to get in early.

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Despite this year’s bear market affecting the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency space, leading thinkers remain optimistic about the long-term outlook.

Many are looking to the launch of the Bakkt platform in November as a major catalyst for price rises before the end of the year.

Will Bitcoin’s Impact be Greater Than That of the Internet?

The price of Bitcoin and other digital assets have taken a huge hit so far in 2018.

Although there have been occasional bounces, the general trend has clearly been downwards. However, those close to the industry have not given up hope on the transformative power of blockchain-based digital currencies.

Many believe that the technology’s impact on society will be massive and that it will completely revolutionise the way humans perceive money and value.

The founder and CEO of blockchain startup Svandis is one such believer. Hermann Finnbjörnsson explained to The Street why he remains bullish on bitcoin:

“[There’s] less than a 1% chance in my mind that bitcoin won’t succeed… I think that there are a lot of reasons to be bullish on bitcoin. Banks are getting into bitcoin.”

He goes on to state that he thinks the leading digital currency will see large price moves this November.

The reasoning behind his bullishness is that the ICE, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, is hoping to launch their new platform. Finnbjörnsson claims that Bakkt will be the driving factor behind a return to Bitcoin prices above the $10,000 level.

The ICE is working with multiple high profile companies on Bakkt. These include Starbucks, Microsoft, and Boston Consulting Group.

The new platform is scheduled to go live on November 5, 2018. It is thought by many in the industry that such a trading venue launched by reputable companies will allow more people than ever to buy in and get exposure to Bitcoin.

Meanwhile, the CEO of digital asset trading platform EZ Exchange, Russell Korus, believes that the underlying properties of Bitcoin make it something unlike anything the world has seen before:

“It allows for direct, peer-to-peer transfer of value in completely trustless transactions… It is fully decentralised, autonomous, writes all of its records to a public ledger, and its record-keeping is completely immutable. These characteristics contribute to creating a brand new paradigm which represents a shift from the free exchange of information to the free exchange of value.”

Korus goes on to state that the impact of such a system on society will be far more profound than many realise at the moment.

According to him, it has the potential to shift society and disrupt just about every industry on the planet. He goes as far as to state that the impact of cryptocurrencies on our world over the next 20 years will be more pronounced than the impact the internet has had over the previous 20:

“Cryptocurrencies, and the distributed ledger technology that they are built on, will do nothing less than change the world in the most fundamental ways.”

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post Crypto Industry Experts Eye November for Bitcoin Passing $10,000 Again appeared first on NewsBTC.

Crypto exchange ShapeShift is launching a membership program for its users. While voluntary at first, it will soon become a mandatory feature.

Hybrid exchange DINNGO is changing the way we trade digital currencies with a bluetooth integration between offline (cold) wallets and mobile devices. The exchange is currently tackling a core issue within cryptocurrency trading – their tactic utilising Bluetooth and blockchain technology will ensure that this issue is solved.

Changing the industry from the ground up, DINNGO is tackling a core issue in crypto trading. Safety and security are the most prominent factors concerning the trading of digital currencies. DINNGO will ensure safety for their users who need no longer fear the stories of hacked centralized exchanges and other inefficiencies of decentralized alternatives.

Many users are wasting valuable time connecting their offline wallets to slow and inefficient decentralized exchanges, just to ensure their money is safe. However, now there is now a hassle-free solution. DINNGO is offering seamless Bluetooth integration between offline (cold) wallets and mobile devices, and the new hybrid exchange is the first to do so. Users are now able to trade cryptocurrency on their exchange securely and quickly with just the click of a button – no matter where they are.

About DINNGO

A mobile digital currency exchange that enable simple two-step verification with mobile devices and cold wallets. DINNGO will provide a customized interface, no middle-men, regular compliance, cost efficiency and responsive customer support.

“DINNGO is revolutionizing the way we trade digital currencies. Our cold wallet integrates seamlessly with the DINNGO exchange, providing the secure, fast and convenient asset trading service the market needs.” – DINNGO

The platform implements an in-depth integration (using Bluetooth) with their cold wallet service – this secures digital currencies and strengthens the efficiency of the exchange all round.

The Solution

The exchange consists of a team filled with trusted and experienced industry professionals. The team is run by CEO Hsuan-Ting Chu (a serial entrepreneur who has built numerous VC funded businesses), who is driving his experienced team through building an exchange which will change the way cryptocurrency is traded.

‘We see an obvious gap in the market with what is currently on offer to crypto investors and traders. 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’ – Hsuan-Ting Chu, DINNGO CEO.

Other members of the team include: COO Blake Ho, and Chief Blockchain Officer, Ben Huang. Blake (COO), is backed with years of experience in operations and marketing at CitiBank, and Ben (Chief Blockchain Officer), was previously the core developer of Gcoin and DiQi.

The team aim to launch a beta version of the exchange in Q4 2018. This is prior to the official launch, set for early 2019.

Private and Public Sale – Tokens

DINNGO must raise a sufficient amount of funds to ensure effective marketing and deployment of the platform. The exchange will be conducting a token sale for the DGO Token (split over two rounds) – a utility token which supports the DINNGO ecosystem.

The private pre-sale is close to its end, reaching nearly 70% in sales. Furthermore, big names are coming on board. YK Chu is one who has invested in the project – a managing director of WI Harper (Venture Capitalists), alongside various other partners.

WI Harper have invested in over 330 companies, amongst seeing over 100 successful liquidity events. They have backed visionary entrepreneurs in the US and Greater China regions for nearly 30 years.

The token sale for the exchange will commence on the 16th of September to the public, and the whitelist is currently open. The DGO token has a total circulation of 200 million (fixed amount). In addition, holders will receive bonuses –  a 50% discount on transaction fees, premium trading functions on the decentralized exchange, and access to a number of Airdrop campaigns.

DINNGO’s white paper details:

“There is a bonus for the DGO early adopters, that is the quarterly airdrop starting from the one year issuance anniversary of DGO. Every three months, we will do a snapshot to record the DGO units among every holder. Then we buy back the DGO token with 10% of the quarterly income from transaction fees. Moreover, do airdrop to the DGO holders recorded in the snapshot per rata.”

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Arkansas-headquartered retail giant Walmart, among one of the largest retail chains in the United States and the world, has started selling Bitcoins on their retail shelves. However, these Bitcoins are made of chocolate and coated in a gold foil wrapper.

Bitcoin Candy

Keen-eyed Redditor u/TheKayleMain snapped a photo of a local Walmart stocking its shelves with chocolate candy Bitcoins.

The candy Bitcoins are much like the gold foil-covered chocolate coins commonly found around St. Patrick’s Day. Peeling back the gold foil reveals a delicious treat inside and not the decentralized cryptocurrency.

While actual Bitcoin is currently trading around $7,350 at the time of this writing, Walmart is selling these Bitcoins for the “everyday low price” of $1. Also unlike actual Bitcoin, these candies likely aren’t held to a fixed supply, the price doesn’t fluctuate, and you don’t need to pass an extensive know-your-customer identify verification process to buy some.

Walmart featuring a candy version of the leading cryptocurrency by market cap is great exposure for Bitcoin. Collectively, Walmart is visited by 270 million customers each week across more than 11,700 stores under 65 banners in 28 countries.

The image shared on Reddit shows the chocolate Bitcoins residing on an “end cap,” known as highly sought after retail space that has added visibility for passersby.

Walmart’s Real Ambitions Around Blockchain

Chocolate Bitcoins being featured at Walmart is great exposure and good fun, but Walmart does have some more serious ambitions around blockchain, the technology underlying cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

The United States retailer has filed a number of blockchain-related patents in recent months, with the most recent patent filing featuring a system for “autonomous electronic devices,” or robots, that can conduct package deliveries.

“[i]n exemplary embodiments, two autonomous electronic devices, such as delivery drones or household autonomous robots, can authenticate each other using embodiments of security procedures described herein.”

Most of Walmart’s blockchain patents revolve around the supply chain, which is an industry that could potentially be revolutionized thanks to blockchain’s immutable ledger technology.

Walmart also recently patented a system for the scheduling of deliveries or products purchased through their website. The patent envisions using blockchain-based delivery hubs that use the public ledger to track available and reserved units, then deploy them for shipment based on a schedule. The technology could be coupled with another Walmart blockchain patent on temperature-regulated “smart packages” for perishable goods.

The retailer also filed a blockchain-related patent for a retail reseller platform. In this system, a customer registers an item at the time of purchase. The customer then assigns a resale price to the purchased item and lists the item in a blockchain-based marketplace.

Walmart will offer it to a seller who sets their price point similarly to the customer reselling the product they just purchased from Walmart, keeping the resale transaction and customers bound to Walmart’s own ecosystem.

Featured image from Shutterstock.

The post Walmart Begins Selling Bitcoin Candy Coins appeared first on NewsBTC.

Google’s BigQuery software now contains data from the Ethereum blockchain

British maritime classification society Lloyd’s Register is “first” to demonstrate a model of a blockchain-powered class register of ships, press release says

Binance, often the top crypto exchange in the world with daily trading volume regularly exceeding USD 1 billion per day, says it is fully committed to Africa and will be investing heavily in crypto infrastructure across a continent struggling with an inflation crisis.

This declaration comes in a post from Benjamin Rameau, the Director of Binance Labs. He gives ten reasons why investing in African crypto infrastructure is a good idea, one of which is out of control fiat inflation across Africa. Out of the 20 countries with the highest fiat inflation according to the CIA World Factbook, 13 of them are in Africa. South Sudan has the worst inflation rate in Africa, over 100% per year, with Congo, Libya, Angola, Sudan, and Suriname having yearly fiat inflation in excess of 20%. Burundi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Egypt, Malawi, Liberia, and Ghana, have yearly fiat inflation rates in excess of 10%.

This means a large swath of Africa is dealing with crippling inflation that is decimating life savings and damaging the economy. This makes the continent ripe to adopt crypto since Bitcoin’s supply is fixed, unlike fiat currencies which are printed at will by central banks. This means Bitcoin will hold its value long term, and it will allow Africans to have savings.

Additionally, a large fraction of Africans don’t have banks or access to the financial system. For example, in Sub-Saharan Africa, only 43% of those 15 or older have banks, versus 69% in the rest of the world. Cryptocurrency can provide the financial infrastructure that Africans desperately need but don’t have access to.

Further, cryptocurrencies are decentralized and easy to use across borders, unlike the current situation in Africa where there are 55 different countries, making cross-border financial transactions slow and confusing. Bitcoin and cryptocurrency can drastically increase the liquidity and speed of African finance.

In general, there is also a tremendous amount of governance problems in Africa, with many countries hostile towards each other. Blockchain can provide the framework for a streamlined African-wide government.

Binance affirms that they want to deploy their capital across Africa to invest in crypto and blockchain projects, and Benjamin Rameau thinks it will be an incredibly profitable investment since the lack of financial infrastructure has been holding back Africa’s economy and job growth. He thinks once Africa has a crypto backbone it will undergo an economic upswing equivalent to an industrial revolution, and Binance will be right in the middle of it.

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The Philippines SEC is planning to release new trading rules for cryptocurrency exchanges in the coming days.

Sparkdex, a next-generation trading platform, plans to open shop in Hong Kong on the 30th of August, 2018 as the first of its kind as a decentralized exchange in that jurisdiction. It touts itself as the only decentralized exchange purpose-built for “pegged” cryptocurrencies, or “stablecoins”. Upon launching the platform, Sparkdex expects to trade in over 1,600 cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrency exchanges facilitate value exchange across the globe and open up opportunities to a wider market. With liquidity, security, and privacy-centricity being the most important features of all decentralized products, the lack thereof, as seen in compromising exchanges, can be appalling. This compromise results in less than efficient trading experiences.

As cryptocurrencies continue to gain traction around the world, it would seem that Hong Kong has the potential to encourage adoption through its commitment to being one of the world’s freest economies. With the current cryptocurrency exchanges in Hong Kong being centralized, the limitations of trading experiences have a profound impact on cryptocurrency adoption. As people are becoming more aware of the potentials in cryptocurrencies, so does the need for more user-centered optimized peer to peer (P2P) trading platforms, especially in terms of security and liquidity.

About Spark

Spark, formerly known as Bitspark, is a company based in Hong Kong that was established in 2014. Its intention is to provide future bankless transactions with services like trading cash-in cash-out remittance. Transiting from the Bitcoin blockchain to Bitshares has enabled it to create a system for fiat-pegged cryptocurrency trading. One of the advantages of the Spark service chain includes easy access for the unbanked.

The overall objective with the Sparkdex platform is to provide a secure environment to trade cryptocurrencies with confidence. Additionally, businesses and consumers will be able to transfer money across country borders via these stablecoins.

What Spark Offers?

Sparkdex decentralized exchange introduces security solutions and efficient trading services to traders. As one of the first worldwide to allow traders to own their funds and trade P2P, the decentralized exchange empowers and protects traders, a rare quality among cryptocurrency exchange platforms. They will use Graphene, a technology which is used to power most blockchain transactions enabling up to 100,000 tps.

George Harrap, Co-founder, and CEO of Spark had this to say:

“Spark is proud to be debuting Sparkdex which enables traders to access the world’s largest, most active, most liquid and highest capacity exchange in the world.”

In the same vein, Maxine Ryan, Co-founder, and COO of Spark, buttressed the CEO’s view adding that:

“The Sparkdex is next generation trading available now. It’s the biggest advance in trading security from centralized risk since cryptocurrency exchanges went mainstream. We are excited to begin building Spark’s liquidity from our international markets directly on Sparkdex.”

Features of Sparkdex

The decentralized exchange’s design has been tailored to optimize business and trading activities. Some of the features include:

1. Built on the technology of the BitShares blockchain.
2. Made for stablecoins, cryptocurrencies, and tokens
3. Access to over 180 pegged international currencies through its stablecoins
4. No centralized storage of user’s funds
5. No need for invasive documentation
6. No imposed transaction limits on withdrawals or deposits
7. Trading fees set at 0.2% to as low as 0% (depending on crypto asset traded)
8. High-performance trading volume experience, on par with Nasdaq.

Learn more about Sparkdex on their website.

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