Day: September 7, 2018

It appears there is some excitement brewing among Litecoin enthusiasts. Even though the Litecoin price is not necessarily moving all that much, it would appear the ecosystem is in a slightly better place than most of its competitors. A new roundup of news seems to have a positive impact in this regard.

Litecoin Price Inches Ahead

It is evident most of the selling pressure has been removed from the cryptocurrency markets. That is a welcome sight, as the past few days have been rather unpleasant first and foremost. For the Litecoin price, the recent dip has negated its attempt at surpassing $70 altogether, although that price trend may still be reached later this year.

Litecoin community members are seemingly looking forward to what the future may hold. Some interesting observations are worth paying attention to in this regard. Technical analysis enthusiasts are eager to point out LTC is massively oversold right now. The same can be said for a lot of cryptocurrencies by the look of things, but the LTC chart below seems to hint at interesting movements ahead.

$LTC
The last time #Litecoin was this oversold on the Bitfinex 2wk, it was $3.50.

Also note the 2wk bull hammer from last period, as well as the possible inverted bull hammer in the making. The combo is being seen around the alt market & is sign of reversal. pic.twitter.com/e96lCI2V3h

— Eric Thies (@KingThies) September 7, 2018

Technical analysis only tells one part of the story, as always. A new project has come to market which effectively allows cryptocurrency holders to “lease” their portfolio. Although such ventures need to be thoroughly researched prior to giving them one’s money, it is evident Triplay will undoubtedly be of short-term interest to some. The platform also supports Litecoin, among a few others cryptocurrencies. Do your own research prior to committing funds to this new project, as it has no significant track record as of yet.

The biggest headline of today comes in the form of a new Seeking Alpha article. It is clearly written by someone who favors Litecoin, although the points raised do make a lot of sense. Getting some this level of mainstream media coverage – at least on the internet – can be quite beneficial to the Litecoin price in the coming hours and days.

So far, things are looking solid for Litecoin altogether. Its overall trading volume is slightly on the rise, which is a welcome sight for all cryptocurrency enthusiasts. With $237.83m in 24-hour volume, it is safe to say the demand to buy, sell, and trade LTC is very tangible. Most of this volume comes from DOBI Trade, although it remains unclear why that exchange generates this many trades.

As is always the case prior to the weekend, cryptocurrencies can evolve in many interesting directions. For the Litecoin price, retaking the $60 level will be a big challenge, albeit it is not impossible by any means. A new attempt at $70 will not happen anytime soon, unless Bitcoin would commence a major price reversal.

The post Litecoin Price: Oversold Market may Return to $60 Fairly Quickly appeared first on NullTX.

Bitcoin has suffered insurmountable losses over the past two days. Roughly 15 percent has wiped away from bitcoin’s value, and at press time, the price stands at about $6,404 – virtually unchanged from yesterday. It wouldn’t be so bad if at the beginning of the week the currency wasn’t trading for approximately $7,300.

Some analysts claim that bitcoin is simply waiting around – treading water while anticipating the next big move from either the bulls or the bears respectively. Jon Pearlstone – head publisher of the newsletter Crypto Patterns – explains:

“BTC continues to trade in a range between key support and resistance of $6,000 and $7,250. However, we don’t see that lasting much longer. The bulls’ last stand is strong support at $6,000 that’s hodling for now, and we’ve seen some bullish signs from the altcoin market, but BTC needs a catalyst that motivates buyers to break convincingly above the $7,250 level soon, which should bring a test of $8,000, or the bearish trend is likely to continue with a test of $5,000.”

Others are far more optimistic and positive when it comes to the bitcoin price, despite the numerous swings it’s experienced over the past several months. Mati Greenspan – analyst for online platform e-Toro – says:

“Bitcoin isn’t treading water; it’s swimming. The price is up more than 600 percent in the last two years. I’d say that’s pretty fantastic.”

Another opinion comes by way of Marouane Garcon, managing director of the crypto-to-crypto derivates platform Amulet. He feels that unless bitcoin experiences mass adoption, it’s always going to be swinging up and down as it’s done over the past week. He explains:

“Bitcoin prices are absolutely waiting for the next key impetus. The market doesn’t believe bitcoin is worth $8,000 or $10,000. People are waiting for a mass adoption play and making bitcoin accessible to more people is the name of the game.”

But it’s not entirely true that the market thinks so little of bitcoin. In fact, in other regions, bitcoin’s price is experiencing swells that would make enthusiasts’ heads spin. In Iran, for example, officials have recognized cryptocurrency mining as a legitimate and straightforward industry. As a result, bitcoin has experienced massive boosts in both price and popularity and is now trading for over $24,000 on some local exchanges.

The legitimization of crypto mining and bitcoin usage is a move thought to relieve the country of newly imposed sanctions by the U.S. One source states:

“The $24,000 figure was quoted on multiple digital currency exchanges, most notably Exir, where BTC traded hands at a price of 1,020,000,000 IRR. That quashes the previous high of $20,000 per coin. By comparison, bitcoin traded at around $7,000 on major cryptocurrency exchanges on Wednesday.”

Bitcoin Charts by TradingView

The post Bitcoin Price Watch: Currency Falls in the U.S. While Up in Iran appeared first on NullTX.

Bittrex has partnered with Cryptofacil, a new crypto exchange headquartered in the South American nation of Uruguay, to launch a crypto exchange across the Caribbean and Latin America. This is a major milestone since this region has lacked a major crypto exchange up until now. This new exchange will have over 200 cryptocurrencies and 270 token pairings.

Crypto exchanges are one of the most critical pieces of infrastructure for the adoption of crypto. Exchanges, like the one Cryptofacil is launching, provide a conduit for fiat currency to flow into and out of the crypto markets. Latin America and the Caribbean have numerous different fiat currencies, and major offshore crypto exchanges that usually only deal with USD, EUR, and JPY are simply inadequate. This launch is implicitly saying they will be making connections with banks in each nation in the region, to provide crypto trading for each type of fiat in the region.

Once Cryptofacil is fully launched, citizens of Latin America and the Caribbean will be able to buy and sell crypto with their native fiat currencies, massively accelerating crypto adoption and the usefulness of crypto in the region. There are hundreds of millions of people living in this region, so this is a major development.

Bittrex will provide essential infrastructure and liquidity for Cryptofacil. Bittrex has tens of millions of dollars in trading volume per day; Cryptofacil can connect with this trading liquidity, which will give its customers optimal trades even when this new exchange is just starting. Additionally, Bittrex is one of the biggest exchanges in the United States, and its experience will help guide Cryptofacil through complex international regulations.

Bittrex CEO, Bill Shihara, says, “Bittrex works every day to advance blockchain technology and this partnership with Cryptofacil will further drive its worldwide adoption. Cryptofacil and Bittrex will provide Latin American and Caribbean customers a reliable, fast and secure trading platform that also offers access to some of the world’s most innovative blockchain projects. As we continue expanding our global footprint, it is partnerships like this one that will serve to not only support the blockchain industry, but also to incubate innovative projects using this revolutionary technology.”

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French energy firm Engie announced Friday that it will help commercial customers build blockchain platforms with its new “Blockchain Studio” spinoff.

Larry Shover, the chief financial officer at SFG Alternatives, has stated that he feels the news circulating yesterday about Goldman Sachs’ shelving of plans to launch their own cryptocurrency trading desk has dealt the leading digital asset’s legitimacy a “severe blow.”

The main issue with Shover’s analysis is that it is based on a journalistic error.

Goldman Sachs’ Interest in Crypto Growing, Not Shrinking

In an interview with Bloomberg that aired yesterday, Larry Shover stated that the Bitcoin market is currently “dominated by speculators” and these speculators are hungry for legitimacy from established financial players like Goldman Sachs:

“It’s a market that’s so desperate for legitimacy, and the news about Goldman Sachs – although they are in the business, they’re not actively trading it… yesterday was a severe blow.”

Shover’s words are based on the circulation of a story picked up by several publications. Reports stated that Goldman Sachs are not going forward with their plans to launch a cryptocurrency trading desk as reported last year.

However, in the time since Shover made the claims that Bitcoin’s legitimacy was in question, it has emerged that there has been no change in the $90 billion investment bank’s plans to create such a trading venue.

The revelation comes courtesy of Goldman Sachs’ chief financial officer. Marty Chavez, speaking at the TechCrunch Disrupt 2018 conference, stated:

“I think one of the wonderful things about us is that we get written about a lot. I never thought I would hear myself use this term but I really have to describe that news as fake news.”

On the contrary, Goldman appears to be trying to secure itself a strong position in the emerging digital asset industry. Not only is it continuing with plans for a trading desk, the multi-national investment bank is also exploring how to offer a custody solution for cryptocurrency.

How this can be construed as a “severe blow” to Bitcoin’s legitimacy is a mystery. If anything, such an established name guaranteeing institutional investors a secure solution to store their crypto investments can only be bullish for the space in general.

That said, bitcoin has survived well enough for almost ten years without the involvement of massive financial institutions. The fact that so many are now exploring offering various products highlights a change to the previous narrative of discrediting the financial innovation – a rationale akin to “if you can’t beat them, join them”.

Now Goldman Sachs and other established players are pouring into the space, the narrative looks a lot more like: “Bitcoin doesn’t need Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs needs bitcoin.”

The post Bitcoin Suffers Severe Blow to Legitimacy, but It’s Based on “Fake News” appeared first on NewsBTC.

The President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, has declared that cryptocurrency is legal, and has announced some initial regulations for trading and mining crypto. A new set of laws specifically for crypto are going to be developed by the government, which has decided not to use existing securities laws for crypto. One positive thing right off the bat is it appears Uzbekistan will not be taxing crypto revenue.

Uzbekistan is a nation in Central Asia with roughly 33 million people, about 10% the population of the United States. A review of Bitcoin legality by country on Wikipedia reveals that Uzbekistan had no laws whatsoever regarding cryptocurrency, meaning up until now, anything involving crypto was allowed.

Therefore, even though the legalization of crypto in Uzbekistan sounds positive, it actually means this is the beginning of regulations that will make some crypto activity illegal. Kyrgyzstan is the only neighboring country which has legalized crypto activity. This lack of regulation in the region probably indicates that crypto activity has been low in the region and is just now increasing to the point that laws are needed.

The Presidential decree specifically legalizes crypto exchanges. Apparently, crypto exchanges have already been operating in the country, but now they must obtain a license. The National Agency for Project Management will issue crypto exchange licenses and monitor crypto exchanges for criminal and terrorist activity. Crypto exchanges will be required to have a reserve of 30,000 “minimum wages” to get a license but it is unclear how much money this is. A monthly minimum wage in Uzbekistan as of 2017 was USD 185 and if this is the right number, then exchanges need over USD 5 million of reserves to operate. Additionally, crypto exchanges will have to host their site on servers in Uzbekistan and must keep all transaction and know your customer (KYC) data in storage for five years.

The decree briefly mentions crypto mining and states that crypto farms over 100 KW will have to purchase designated real-estate from Uzbekistan’s state energy companies.

Although these new laws may open up Uzbekistan crypto users to legal violations, backing up and looking at the broader picture, it is positive that the country has decided to regulate cryptocurrencies instead of outright banning them.

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USD is the most traded fiat against in crypto markets, says recent research from consulting firm GreySpark

China‘s Supreme Court set an international precedent Friday by adjudicating that blockchain evidence can be seen as legally binding in court, effective immediately.

The decision comes with the minor caveat of courts requiring both parties in each case to provide evidence that blockchain technology was legitimately used in the manner they claim.

The ruling puts an end to any uncertainty surrounding the legality of blockchain-backed evidence provided during proceedings. The Chinese Supreme Court cited this as including ”digital signatures, reliable timestamps, and hash value verification or via a digital deposition platform”.

Companies that offer these services may well expect to see a growth in their number of clients given the added value in being legally recognized, particularly in cases where their intellectual or creative property can be protected by a blockchain platform as it is usually the more economical choice.

Setting a national standard

Since the first internet court was established in Hangzhou, China last year to deal specifically with internet-based disputes usually involving digital data, a number of questions regarding how and where blockchain evidence can be used have emerged.

In June this year, a copyright infringement case saw blockchain accepted as evidence in the deposition as legally viable with the judge commenting, ”We can’t exclude it just because it’s a complex technology. Nor can we lower the standard just because it is tamper-proof and traceable.”

In this specific case, the main question was whether the plaintiff’s blockchain-backed evidence could be seen as proving the authenticity of their work, in a similar way to a traditional notarization service. The judgment approved that it could indeed, due to the fact that the Bitcoin and Factom blockchains used in the case first hash all content uploaded, then store this on a distributed network.

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This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

It’s not secret that a dauntingly large percentage of ICOs are fraudulent from the start. However, in most cases, it’s quite simple for speculators to separate the scams, and funds are primarily accumulated from inexperienced or otherwise naive investors that the coin offering targets.

Unfortunately, every now and then, these scams pass, unsuspected, until the perpetrators successfully make off with the funds, often worth tens of millions of dollars. ABLE Project (ABLX), represents one such instance. Its team members consist of stock pictures and fake LinkedIn profiles, and listed advisors are industry leaders throughout Southeast Asia unaware that they were listed as participants of the project.

Unfortunately, ABLX raised more than 10,000 ETH throughout several public pre-sale and global sales between April and August. At time of purchases, this amounts to approximately US$6.5 million worth of Ether. Able was officially marketed as a global blockchain bank, and claimed to have institutional support, primarily from players within the SEA region.

Shortly following the conclusion of the final sale, the founders went dark, deleting Telegram groups and social media accounts and ignoring all  messages. At this point in time, it is safe to assume that ABLE Project founders exit scammed, defrauding investors  collectively of millions of dollars. Additionally, thousands of bounty members, who spent countless hours promoting the project and creating content, have done so for no compensation. Freelance workers such as campaign managers have also reported they did not get paid for their services to the project over the course of its duration, which represents service throughout the majority of 2018.

Of course, deceptive websites and clever whitepapers alone do not equate to a successful token sale. Much of the support from investors was also garnered through support received by a number of firms within the crypto space. Of course, it is no secret that a lot of “partnership” or promotion in crypto comes from pay-to-play relationships, where certain entities will regularly provide services to anyone at the right price. While we do not know absolutely whether or not every firm that implicated support to Able was bought out, there are instances that are certain:

Offender #1: TrackICO

TrackICO, which is listed on Able’s website as a partner, granted the ABLX ICO with a perfect 5.0/5.0 rating. The ICO rating site rewards sometimes questionable ratings, likely due to covert payments. In the case of Able, a perfect rating for its team members (who are, again, fake) and other inconsistently generous ratings suggests that TrackICO absolutely took payment for its rating of Able. Its ratings should not be trusted, especially if other sites’ ratings vary heavily.

Offender #2: Coinrail

The largest contributions to the Able public sales came through the numerous pre-sales hosted on Coinrail. The Korean cryptocurrency exchange made purchasing Able easily accessible to its current users and the wider audience of investors into the scam. Cryptocurrency exchanges that host ICOs claim to adhere to a strict vetting process, but it’s clear this was not the case in Coinrail’s decision to providing a “helping hand” to the scammers.

Beyond these two firms, ICOmarks, ICOholder, Findico, and Foxico all awarded high scores to the Able ICO. As only TrackICO is listed as a partner (and was the only one to award ABLX a perfect score), it is possible that these sites may not have been malicious, moreso than erroneous in their judgement. Reuters news agency also published an article promoting Able, almost certainly in exchange for a “publishing fee” to the scammers.

Fortunately, there are some players who appeared to act honestly regarding Able. The project received little news coverage from cryptocurrency media as a whole. ICObench also awarded Able Project with a poor (2.9/5) ICO rating.

The post ABLE Project Exit Scammed, and These Crypto Firms are to Blame appeared first on NullTX.

The number of short orders placed on ETH/USD have reached a new high and is a clear reflection of bearish sentiment surrounding the cryptocurrency.

A recent survey by Bitcoin wallet Luno has shown the desire by UK residents for the launching of a “Bitcoin Barometer” which monitors the numbers of those currently involved in crypto.

The barometer, which was launched today, shows that an estimated 15.8 million UK residents either currently own or would consider owning cryptocurrencies in the future.

The recent survey of 2,000 UK residents by Luno indicates that over a quarter could see Bitcoin as becoming a valid currency in the future, used in the same way as traditional mainstream currencies in circulation. Some 23% wanted more information, a figure born out by previous surveys elsewhere, and a fifth of respondent said that they would like to see Bitcoin used online and in-store in retail.

Again, as other surveys have indicated, trust and understanding remain a key issue as a barrier to wider adoption in the community. Luno’s own figures reflected this with 43% of respondents admitting that they hadn’t purchased cryptocurrencies for this reason and over half called for further regulation.

Maya Kumar, company spokesman and head in the UK and Ireland, commented:

“Our survey showed that just under 2 in 5 (36%) had not purchased cryptocurrencies because they didn’t understand the concept. There are public misunderstandings around cryptocurrencies that lead to this lack of trust. We believe by making cryptocurrencies easier to understand through education and offering a user-friendly, safe platform, more people across the globe can trust, benefit from an upgrade to a better financial system.”

What came through clearly, based on the numbers, is that cryptocurrency is well established in the UK, far more so that many other nations in Europe, such as France where crypto uptake is particularly low. South Korea, Japan, and the UK currently lead the way in general cryptocurrency awareness.

Earlier this year, UK city minister John Glen suggested that regulation could be a “significant boost”  to the local cryptocurrency industry should the government be able to find an appropriate level of regulation.

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Ripple general counsel Brynly Llyr, who joined the firm in 2016 as its top legal officer, has left the firm, a spokesperson told CoinDesk.