In Canada, the British Columbia Securities Commission has taken control over the troubled Einstein Exchange, which owes over $12 million to users. At the end of October, Einstein announced that it would suspend services in the coming months, but the government agency seized the company before those plans could be implemented.

According to a published study which looked at job postings on the site, Indeed.com, the number of crypto job offers increased by 1,457% in the period from September of 2015 through September 2019. Searches for crypto-related work by jobseekers increased by 469% over the same period. According to the survey, the top 5 in-demand positions in the crypto economy are all for coders. Deloitte, IBM, and Accenture were the top 3 recruiters in the study.

The payments company founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, released its earnings results, reporting revenues of $1.27 billion in the third quarter of 2019. Square processed $148 million in bitcoin sales and the number of first-time bitcoin buyers has approximately doubled according to its third quarter investor letter.

The North African nation of Tunisia announced that it will soon release a fiatcoin tied to its currency, the Dinar. The Central Bank of Tunisia tested the currency by sending one dinar in value to an IMF representative.  Citizens will soon be able to use the E-dinar to save or make payments. The Tunisian central bank wants to use it for international transfer in lieu of the US Dollar or SWIFT system.
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Bitcoin had a real roller-coaster week. The price dropped like a stone on Thursday, falling to five-month lows of just over $7,000, only to bounce back to over $10,000 on Saturday. This 40% price surge represents the biggest daily gain since 2011.

In China, President Xi Jinping declared blockchain technology to be an important innovation. He said the country must increase investment and accelerate development in the crypto space. Following his remarks, the National People’s Congress passed new crypto laws which come into effect next year. While centralized crypto exchange companies won’t be legalized, they do encourage crypto research and education, while promoting adoption and providing regulatory clarity.

Bitmain, the major ASIC manufacturer and miner, is converting a disused aluminum smelting plant in Texas, into a Bitcoin mining farm. The plant will initially provide 25 megawatts of mining energy but soon could scale up to 300 megawatts.

Bakkt, the Bitcoin futures exchange backed by the owners of the New York Stock Exchange, hit a new all-time high in trading volume. 1,131 futures contracts have been traded representing approximately $9.7 million in trading capital.   

Andreas Antonopolous tweeted regarding an issue on the Bitcoin Cash blockchain that an unknown miner has majority hashrate control. This miner found 21 blocks over an hour, where 6 would be the norm. It appears the miner is exploiting BCH’s difficulty adjustment algorithm.
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It was not a good week for Facebook’s Libra project – again. Hotel reservation company, Booking.com, joined PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard to become the 7th major company to exit the project. Furthermore, a US Congressman said Facebook should drop Libra and instead implement Bitcoin. Warren Davidson criticized Facebook’s speech filters and feared similar filters on transactions.

The tax haven island of Bermuda is set to accept US Dollar-pegged Stablecoin, USDC, for tax payments. USDC is issued by the major US exchanges, Coinbase and Circle. Bermuda is known for its lenient approach to crypto taxation and legislation and now becomes the first nation to accept a stablecoin for tax payments.

Binance, the largest crypto-to-crypto exchange brought in approximately $186 million in profits in Q3; up 56% from Q2. Every quarter Binance burns BNB worth 20% of its quarterly profits. During the 9th burn, Binance sent 2 million BNB valued at 36 million USD to an inaccessible address. Cumulatively, the exchange has made more than $1 billion in a little over two years of existence.

The supply of Bitcoin reached 18 million BTC out of the maximum of 21 million. This means that over 85% of Bitcoin’s total supply has been issued. It’s expected to take another 120 years before all coins are mined.

Oxford University Press has added the term “satoshi” to their famous dictionary. The word “Bitcoin” was added in 2014.
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Some of the biggest corporate backers of Facebook’s Libra currency have withdrawn from the project, dealing a major blow to Facebook’s plans for a global cryptocurrency. Visa, MasterCard, eBay, and Stripe have all followed PayPal’s lead in bowing out of the Libra Association, just prior to its upcoming inaugural board meeting. These additional exits leave Libra with no major US payment processor.

The American financial regulator has taken legal action against the Telegram company for what it claims was an unregistered securities offering. Telegram raised $1.7 billion Dollars for its TON cryptocurrency. The SEC is seeking a restraining order to prevent the release within the US of the new TON tokens.

The Internal Revenue Service in the US has updated its rules for the taxation of cryptocurrency. The newly-published guidance clarifies how tax applies to new and formerly ignored situations, such as profits from the sale of crypto, income tax on crypto, and how crypto forks and airdrops are taxed. One downside is that people now may be taxed in excess of their gain from airdrops.

The United Nations Children’s agency announced a new fund for receiving cryptocurrency donations. UNICEF is the first UN agency to accept crypto donations, which they will use to fund open source technology of assistance to young people. UNICEF will hold and disburse donations directly in crypto form – not in fiat.
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Coinbase’s specialized exchange for advanced traders, Coinbase Pro, unexpectedly hiked its fees significantly. Beginning Monday, Coinbase Pro introduces a new tiered system whereby anyone trading under $10,000 per month will pay half a percent fee on every trade. Small traders are understandably unhappy with the new fee structure.

Crypto custodian BitGo has added staking to its services, beginning with cryptocurrencies Dash and Algorand. Through BitGo Staking, coin holders can earn between 7 and 13 percent annual returns. The coins will earn staking rewards while remaining in cold storage.

We recently covered the refusal by French and German officials to allow Libra to operate in their respective nations. Corporations are now joining the pushback, with Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, characterizing Libra as a “power grab by a private company”. Even more damaging, PayPal withdrew from the Libra Association. Facebook’s growing difficulties show the advantage of a decentralized cryptocurrency with no identifiable controlling entity.

Various banks around the world experienced significant issues this week, highlighting the need for cryptocurrency as an alternative. Turkey’s government has frozen up to 3.9 million bank accounts and one of India’s major banks, PMC, has engaged in fraud.

Despite its recent price struggles, Bitcoin is the best performing asset in 2019, outpacing gold, tech stocks, and bonds. Bitcoin has more than doubled this year, whereas the best performing US stock sector is only up 31 percent.
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Crypto markets suffered a serious drop this week. Bitcoin led the market downwards, as it slipped below its support level of $10,000. Bitcoin’s falling dominance is perhaps a result of stablecoins holding steady during this market decline. 

Binance.US, the American arm of cryptocurrency exchange giant Binance, has announced it is starting trading fiat-crypto and crypto-to-crypto trading pairs this week. The trading platform lists seven cryptocurrencies immediately upon launch; including Bitcoin, Binance coin (BNB), ethereum, XRP, bitcoin cash, litecoin and Tether. Users who already have deposits with Binance.com will not see their funds automatically transferred to the U.S. platform.

The Bakkt Futures exchange, offering futures contracts backed 1:1 with BTC, finally launched last week after much delay. Institutions may now trade Bitcoin on Bakkt, an exchange operated by the same company that runs the New York Stock Exchange. 165 BTC have been traded on Bakkt thus far.

It was reported that by the end of March 2020, over 25,000 French stores will be joining those already accepting Bitcoin. These 30 brands include major international franchises like Foot Locker. The outlets are partnering with EasyWallet and Easy2Play Payment to offer Bitcoin purchases, with all crypto received instantly converted to Euros.

The Digital Exchange of the Stuttgart Stock Exchange now offers Bitcoin trading. Initial trading will be restricted to a few selected participants, with plans to expand it to institutional investors.
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Bakkt’s physically delivered Bitcoin futures trading went live for trading on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) on Sept. 22 at 8 PM EST (00:00 UTC Sept. 23). Following the launch, the volume is starting to pick up with some traders comparing the platform’s launch to Bitcoin futures launched by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in December 2017.

At press time, 29 bitcoins has been traded on the ICE’s Bakkt Bitcoin futures platform, with a last recorded trading price accounting for $9,992.

cointelegraph.com

Bitmain opened sales for its new Antminer S17e and T17e Bitcoin mining ASICs this week. The first batch was quickly sold out. The units are said to achieve high efficiency with max hash rate of 64 Terahash per second but cost up to $2700.

Crypto payment service BitPay was heavily criticized for blockading donations made to the Hong Kong Free Press, the region’s 1st crowdfunded media outlet. The agency’s editor Tweeted that no crypto donations had been received since the protests began in Hong Kong.

Perhaps in response to BitPay’s blockade of the Hong Kong Free Press, Square Crypto made a $100,000 donation to further the development of alternative, open-source, and decentralized crypto payment portal, BTCPay.

France’s Economic and Financial Minister said that France “cannot authorize the development of Libra on European soil.” Minister Le Maire said that Libra threatens the monetary sovereignty of states. This highlights the political risk inherent in centralized virtual currencies.

It was reported that Bitcoin transactions are a reality in Cuba. Crypto is becoming popular as a way for Cubans to avoid U.S. banking and payment sanctions to make online purchases. A local expert estimates about 10,000 Cubans are using crypto.

A vulnerability in the Lightning code was confirmed to have been exploited by hackers. Anyone running an LND, c-lightning node or Éclair node is urged to upgrade to avoid any issues.
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The trial between the self-proclaimed creator of Bitcoin, Craig Wright, and the family of his former partner, Dave Kleiman, was concluded this week. The judge found that Wright lied in his testimony and falsified evidence. The judge further ordered Wright to transfer 410,000 bitcoins thought to be mined by Satoshi, to Kleiman’s estate. It is highly unlikely that Wright will be able to comply with this order.

Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume, has launched a lending business. Initially, users will be able to lend their U.S. dollar-pegged USDT, ethereum classic (ETC) and Binance’s BNB cryptocurrency in order to earn interest.

Portugal’s tax agency published its latest ruling which states that crypto trading and income are exempt from taxation. The Tax Authority revealed the news in response to a question coming from a company interested in mining cryptocurrency. This move is likely to attract crypto users and companies to Portugal.

Canadian e-commerce giant, Shopify, which provides its payment platform to over 800,000 businesses across the globe, has adopted Lightning Network payments. Shopify is using a software plug-in developed by OpenNode to process Lightning payments.

Cielo, which provides credit card services and nearly one and a half million point-of-sale terminals across Brazil, announced that it is integrating Bitcoin transfers into its terminals. In October, the company plans to also accept crypto payments via its new mobile app.
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Online retailer, Rakuten, often described as the Amazon of Japan, announced the launch of its new crypto exchange app, Rakuten Wallet. Initially, supported cryptos are Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash.  The app is available for Android, with iOS coming next month.

Major crypto derivatives exchange, BitMEX, has barred users from Hong Kong, as well as Bermuda and the Seychelles. BitMEX took the action for compliance reasons, as it has staff and offices in those locations. BitMEX noted that closing trading in those jurisdictions is part of a wider effort to bring transparency to the crypto space as it becomes more regulated.

Cryptocurrency exchange and custodian Gemini, announced they’re expanding their business to Australia. Australians can now download the Gemini Mobile App and use it to buy, sell, and store cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ether, Zcash, and Litecoin.

It was reported that several operators at a nuclear power station in Ukraine were arrested by the country’s secret service for mining crypto with the plant’s electricity. The miners compromised the plant’s network which leaked details of its physical security systems. GPUs and other mining equipment were confiscated from the facility.

In a bombshell speech at the central banker’s conference held in the United States at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, suggested replacing the US Dollar as the international reserve currency with a cryptocurrency similar to Facebook’s Libra.
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New Zealand’s tax agency, the Inland Revenue Department, released a groundbreaking ruling, stating that salaries and wages may be legally paid in cryptocurrency. Income tax will be applied to such payments as per usual. To qualify, payments must be in regular amounts in cryptos which are immediately convertible to fiat.

Chinese crypto investor Dovey Wan tweeted regarding the activities of PlusToken, a Ponzi scheme with a total estimated value of about $3 billion. Wan claims the collapsed scheme is now liquidating its ill-gotten gains on multiple major crypto exchanges, which may be causing some downward price pressure.

Samsung released its new S-10 range of smartphones with preloaded support for cryptocurrencies like Ethereum. Notably absent from Samsung’s Blockchain Keystore app was Bitcoin support, but the company issued an update which adds this feature. The app stores private keys in the Secure File system to improve the security of Android mobile wallets

Coinbase spent $55 million to purchase Xapo’s Custody service. This service is famous for cold-storing crypto assets in a high-security bunker under the Swiss Alps. It’s estimated that Coinbase now stores around 860,000 BTC – or roughly 5% of the total supply – thanks largely to this most recent acquisition. The company reports it now has $7 billion in assets under management.

After successful testing, major new institutional crypto exchange service, Bakkt, has finally secured regulatory approval. The exchange will launch on the 23rd of September.

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Binance clients take note; it appears that KYC data from around 10,000 users have been stolen from the exchange and leaked online. The hacker was attempting to blackmail Binance for 300 BTC or would otherwise release the users’ photos. Binance refused to comply with the blackmail demands. The exchange has offered a 25 BTC reward for info on the attacker.

British tax authority sent demands for customer information to major UK-based crypto exchanges, including Coinbase, CEX.IO, and eToro. The agency is looking for client names and transaction records as it seeks unpaid taxes. This move echoes the letters sent directly to customers by America’s IRS in July.

South Korea’s government is taking a more active role in crypto regulation. The country’s Financial Services Commission plans to directly oversee the nation’s crypto exchanges by introducing a new system of licenses.

Blockstream, the Bitcoin-focused tech company revealed it runs two major mining facilities in Canada and the US. Together, their data centers have 300 megawatts of power and host mining operations for financial giant, Fidelity, and LinkedIn founder, Reid Hoffman. Blockstream plans to host more mining partners in future.

Currently, Bitcoin ranks 11th out of all global currencies in terms of base money supply. “Base money” refers to physical notes and coins only. Bitcoin’s market cap is higher than the South Korean Won and the Australian or Canadian Dollar.

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What is Bitcoin Cash? 

A Beginner’s Guide Last updated: 8/6/19

The story of Bitcoin Cash (BCH) goes much deeper than just the creation of another cryptocurrency. It was actually one of the fiercest tests for Bitcoin’s decentralization.

Bitcoin Cash was created as a result of a hard fork in the Bitcoin network. The Bitcoin Cash network supports a larger block size than Bitcoin (currently 32mb as opposed to Bitcoin’s 1mb).

1. Hard Forks Explained 
A lot of people who are just starting out with Bitcoin or cryptocurrency in general, get confused when they see that there’s not just one “type” of Bitcoin. For example, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold and Bitcoin Diamond are all forks of the original Bitcoin.

A fork can be described as an alternate version of an original coin.

There are two types of forks:

soft forks and hard forks.

Soft forks  – Versions that work well with both the original version and the alternate version of the coin, so as a user, you can choose which version to run without a lot of concern.

Hard forks – Don’t play well with the original version. This means that you need to choose whether to update your software to run the alternate version, or to stick with the original one.
In other words, with hard forks, if the alternative is not accepted by 100% of the users, then a sort of split will occur in the network and a new coin will emerge. One that is similar to the original but not identical.

Bitcoin Cash and other Bitcoin versions are actually the results of suggested updates to the Bitcoin protocol that weren’t agreed to by everyone.

So what happened is that an alternate version, or a hard fork, stemming from the original Bitcoin was created and new coins came into existence.

If you want a complete detailed explanation about forks make sure to watch  Bitcoin99 Whiteboard Tuesday forks video as well.

2. The Bitcoin Block Size Debate
So now we know that Bitcoin cash is actually a hard fork of Bitcoin, but why was it created?

To answer this question, we need to pause for a second and go back a few years to discuss one of the most controversial topics of Bitcoin’s code – the block size and scalability issue.

Bitcoin transactions don’t get confirmed instantly. In order for a transaction to be considered as confirmed it needs to be included as part of a block of transactions on the Bitcoin ledger, known as the blockchain.

A new block of transactions is added to the blockchain on average about every 10 minutes.

Similar to any type of digital data, adding Bitcoin transactions to a block requires storage space, and the maximum capacity for each block of transactions is 1 MB. When you consider  the average Bitcoin transaction size, you’ll find that a block is able to hold about 2700 transactions.

Of course, Bitcoin allows you to pay a higher transaction fee if you want to jump the queue, but this might cause fees to reach ridiculous levels as more and more people try to “cut the line” with their transaction.

This isn’t something you want to have happened if you’re building Bitcoin to become a global payment method. As a result of this scalability issue, two different camps emerged.

3. Big Blocks Proponents
The first camp was the “Big Blocks” camp. This camp was led by Chinese mining giant Bitmain and Roger Ver, an early Bitcoin investor who was involved with a number of startups when Bitcoin was just gaining initial adoption.

Big blockers were afraid that Bitcoin’s scalability issue would prevent it from becoming what Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s inventor, initially intended – a peer to peer payment system.

With such long confirmation times and high fees, people wouldn’t use Bitcoin for day to day transactions and would instead treat it as a store of value – like gold.

The supporters of this camp suggested a very simple solution – Let’s increase the block size. If we increase Bitcoin’s block size to 8mb, we’ll be able to confirm as many as 8 times the number of transactions per second.

This will reduce the existing congestion of the network, and in the future, we’ll increase the block size as much as needed as Bitcoin achieves further adoption

4. Small Blocks Proponents
Opposing them was the “Small Blocks” camp. The supporters of this camp rooted for keeping the current 1mb block size, while finding solutions for optimizing transaction size and handling, in order to enable scaling.

One such solution was Segregated Witness or Segwit for short. Segwit is an upgrade to the Bitcoin protocol, which among other things effectively reduces the transaction size by 75%.

This means that a 1mb Segwit block can hold the same amount of transactions as what would be a 4mb non-Segwit block.

Additionally, Small Blockers talked about the development of the Lightning Network – A second layer on top of the Bitcoin protocol that allows for instant and fee less transactions.

Now, the lightning network is a pretty broad topic on its own, so make sure to catch Bitcoin99 Lightning Network episode for a detailed explanation on how it works.

Why Oppose a Block Size Increase? 
The reason is that small Blockers believe that in the long run this would hurt Bitcoin’s decentralization and functionality. Here are some of the arguments to justify their claim:

For one, an 8mb or even 32mb block takes more time to travel through the network than a 1mb block.

Additionally, once the block reaches a computer on the network, that computer now needs to verify all of the transactions inside that block. If the block is too big it might not be able to finish verifying all the transactions before the next block arrives within 10 minutes or so.

This means the network will start lagging behind new transactions, which can create disputes about the current state of the Bitcoin ledger.

On top of that, by not optimizing transactions you’re also not optimizing the size of the Blockchain which already takes up several hundred Gigabytes.

Forcing computers to verify oversized transactions, reduces the number of computers that can store the Blockchain on their hard drive, and therefore diminishes the network’s decentralization.

 I mean let’s think about it for a second:
If only high-end computers that are maintained by a handful of companies can validate transactions on the network, we’re basically taking away Bitcoin’s basic advantage – to have a large amount of participants to make sure no one is breaking the rules.

To make it simple to understand, consider this analogy: Imagine a street that’s suffering from heavy traffic. The obvious solution would be to increase the number of lanes, effectively the same solution as increasing the block size.

But what would you do once the street becomes more popular and even more cars come in? Eventually, there’s a limit to how many lanes you can add before running out of land to build it.

On the other hand, you could reduce traffic congestion by promoting public transportation routes or carpooling. Solutions similar to optimizing the transaction size and how transactions are handled by the network.

5. Arriving at a Resolution
This heated argument between the two rival camps went on for several years until it climaxed in August 2017. Back then, Bitcoin was making its first steps over the $1,200 mark and the network was getting pretty crowded due to an overflow of transactions.

As a result, many transactions got delayed and transaction fees skyrocketed as people were outbidding each other to “cut in line” and get confirmed faster. The average fee around that time was as high as $37 per transaction!

Now, you may be wondering why nobody took action to avoid this situation. Well, in order to answer this question we need to understand who actually decides anything on the Bitcoin network.

You see, Bitcoin is decentralized and this means there’s no one person that decides anything. Participants in the network vote through their actions. Their vote is actually whatever version of the Bitcoin protocol they choose to run on their computer.

Bitcoin Network Players 

Miners and mining pool operators – They are the ones in charge of creating blocks and updating the ledger of transactions. Some would argue that they have the ultimate say in what changes are finally accepted to the Bitcoin network.

Developers – A group of individuals collaborating together to maintain Bitcoin’s source code. Some believe that this group has the ultimate power since they are the ones writing the actual code that runs the network.

Exchanges – the gateways for cryptocurrency adoption. They can decide which version of Bitcoin to list under the ticker symbol BTC. They’re the ones who have the power of connecting people with the actual coins.

Wallet providers – They write software that allows users to manage their coins. Nodes – the different computers which run the Bitcoin code and make sure no one is breaking the rules. These nodes are the backbone of the Bitcoin network. Owners of the nodes can decide to only accept transactions that support specific changes.

Bitcoin users – who get to choose which coin to buy, which exchange to use and which wallet to download – Without even knowing it they actually have the most power. The coin that users decide to adopt will have a brighter future.

The DAO as an Example for User Adoption

A good example for the power of user adoption is the case of Ethereum’s hard fork. Back in 2016, after several million dollars were stolen from an Ethereum based project called the DAO.

Ethereum developers suggested rolling back the Ethereum blockchain and erasing the malicious transaction.

This created a heated debate,  at the end of which Ethereum forked into two different coins – Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.

However, what’s known today as Ethereum is actually the altered Ethereum version and not the original one. The reason this is considered the “true” Ethereum is because that’s the coin most of the users decided to adopt.

Miners, exchanges, wallet providers and even developers  – all rely on the acceptance of the public to survive. That’s why in the end, the users have the final say.

Now you understand why it’s so hard to get any change to the Bitcoin protocol approved. You basically need to get all of these groups to agree.

Throughout Bitcoin’s history, there have been several cases where such agreements were reached, but as the network grew larger it became harder to reach a consensus.

The Bitcoin Cash Hard Fork Going back to our story in 2017, the end result of this Mexican standoff between the two camps was that each side did what they initially intended to do, leaving it to users to decide which coin to adopt as the true Bitcoin.

On August 1st, 2017 Small blockers activated SegWit on the original Bitcoin protocol while big blockers created Bitcoin Cash – A Bitcoin fork with an 8mb block size.

Initially, it was unclear which version of Bitcoin would win, when “Winning” in cryptocurrency terms means having a longer blockchain, or ledger of transactions.

The more miners a coin has onboard means more computational power, hence a longer blockchain and a more robust network. Bitcoin Cash had support from mining giant Bitmain, and as a result, the original Bitcoin’s mining power was cut nearly in half when the fork occurred. However, when the dust settled, it became clear that the original Bitcoin was still standing strong even after the fork.

 6. Bitcoin Cash vs. Bitcoin Since the fork, Bitcoin Cash has consistently maintained its space at the top of the cryptocurrency charts. The coin is backed mainly by Roger Ver, a libertarian that allegedly owns around 100,000 Bitcoins making him one of the first Bitcoin billionaires.

Ver also purchased the domain name Bitcoin.com to promote Bitcoin Cash, as opposed to Bitcoin.org, which is the website for the original Bitcoin.

Bitcoin Cash is mostly similar to Bitcoin, but with some exceptions:
1. Its block size is bigger. When it first started out, Bitcoin Cash’s block size was capped at 8mb. Later on, the coin went through another update and the block size limit increased to 32mb.
2. Bitcoin Cash does not support SegWit or the Lightning Network.
3. Bitcoin Cash adjusts the mining difficulty for mining new blocks more quickly than the original Bitcoin.

While there are additional differences between the two coins, the ones I’ve just mentioned are the most notable.

7. Bitcoin Cash vs. Bitcoin SV 

In November 2018 Bitcoin Cash went through its own hard fork. This time the two camps were the original Bitcoin Cash, also known as ABC, and Bitcoin SV – which stands for Satoshi’s Vision.

Bitcoin ABC’s camp was led by Roger Ver and Bitmain. The Bitcoin SV camp was led by Craig Wright – a person who previously claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto but never supplied ample proof, and Calvin Ayre, the owner of the largest Bitcoin Cash mining pool, CoinGeek.

There are two main differences between the two Bitcoin Cash versions. Bitcoin ABC maintained a maximum block size of 32mb while Bitcoin SV increased its block size to 128mb with additional increases planned in future updates.

Additionally, Bitcoin ABC added smart contract-like functionality into its code, while Bitcoin SV chose not to accept this change.

For now it seems that Bitcoin ABC has become more popular and is considered by most as the “true” Bitcoin Cash.

8. Conclusion Sometimes the obvious solution to a problem isn’t necessarily the best one.

Low transaction fees are important to the usability of Bitcoin, but not at all costs, and a quick fix often has unforeseen consequences.

I mean, just imagine what life would be like if instead of investing in and developing file compression technologies, we would simply have to buy additional hard drives just to save all of our uncompressed documents, photos, videos, and projects to our computers.

How much longer would it take to transmit those files along the internet to our friends, family, colleagues, or clients?

Keeping this in mind, it would seem as though optimizing data within small blocks while maintaining decentralization will pay o in the long run. Adding to the block size might prove necessary, but it should be used sparingly.

For now, the Bitcoin Cash hard fork saga stands as a testament to the decentralized nature of the Bitcoin network. It demonstrated how unbiased the system is, and how no single party can dictate what will happen, even when very wealthy interest groups are involved.

I hope by now you understand what Bitcoin Cash is  – A hard fork of Bitcoin’s protocol that created a new coin with a larger block size.

You may still have some questions or comments. If so, just leave them in the comment section below.

This article was written by 99Bitcoins.com - What is Bitcoin Cash_ A Beginner’s Guide (2019 Updated)

 St. Louis Federal Reserve President, James Bullard, remarked that the US is headed towards a non-uniform currency, with crypto competing with the Dollar. Bullard further said that crypto tackles an “important social problem.”

Bakkt, the forthcoming institutional crypto exchange run by Intercontinental Exchange and partnered with Microsoft and Starbucks, opened its Bitcoin futures platform to user testing this week. Bakkt has been plagued by delay imposed by regulatory compliance. It’s unknown at this point when Bakkt will officially launch.

Robinhood, a trading platform for stocks and digital assets, announced a $323 million funding. DST Global, a prominent investor in internet startups led the financing round along with crypto-notables Ribbit Capital and Sequoia. The company will direct the capital towards expanding the business and offering new financial services.

Major European budget airline, Norwegian Air, announced that Norway-based travellers can purchase tickets with Bitcoin. The airline will also launch its own crypto exchange, the Norwegian Block Exchange, NBX in August. NBX will integrate Norwegian Air’s existing rewards program, and customers can earn points by trading on the exchange, which they can swap for discounts on tickets and other perks.

Major online tech retailer, Newegg is now expanding its Bitcoin sales service to 73 new countries, which is nearly its full range of operations.  Newegg was one of the first major online shopping destinations to start accepting Bitcoin as payment five years ago.

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Major US bank, Wells Fargo, will no longer allow its customers to purchase Bitcoin with their own funds. Specifically, the bank responded to a customer complaint on Twitter that ‘they do not allow transactions involving cryptocurrency.’ Last year, Wells Fargo banned the purchase of cryptocurrencies using its credit cards, claiming they are too risky of an asset. Wells Fargo’s policy runs contrary to the trend of increasing crypto acceptance and integration by banks.



Leading digital currency asset manager, Grayscale reported that its assets under management nearly tripled from $1 billion to $2.7 billion due to the increase in crypto prices in the second quarter of this year. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust was up 178%. The asset manager also reports strong inflows into its funds, signaling strong institutional demand for crypto investment.



Steve Wozniak, famous for co-founding Apple, announced his involvement with a Maltese blockchain startup. The new company, Efforce, is focused on using blockchain technology to improve electrical efficiency. Wozniak has made supportive statements in the past regarding Bitcoin



America’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating crypto exchange giant, BitMEX, for allowing US citizens to trade. Popular crypto trader, Tone Vays, was banned from trading on BitMEX due to his US citizenship but the CFTC suspects other Americans may be trading on the site by disguising their US IP addresses. $85 million was reportedly withdrawn from BitMEX after reports of the investigation. That’s what happened this week in Bitcoin. See you next week.

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The Fold mobile app, which allowed discounted Starbucks purchases for Bitcoin is now back with Lightning Network support. Fold now allows for almost-feeless purchases at Amazon, Starbucks, Uber, Home Depot, Target, and more. 

Bitcoin got its first mention by a sitting US president. Trump tweeted that he is “not a fan” of Bitcoin, claiming that it’s volatile, un-backed, and can enable crime. He then bashed Facebook’s forthcoming “Libra” coin, saying the company will have to seek a banking charter and comply with banking regulations to operate. Trump ended his Tweet-storm by praising the US Dollar.

American football team the Miami Dolphins will accept cryptocurrency payments.
The partnership with the Litecoin Foundation will kick off at the start of the 2019 NFL season and fans will be able to pay with litecoin and bitcoin when buying tickets for the team’s home games.

During his testimony before the U.S. Senate, FED Chairman Jerome Powell said that “almost no one is using Bitcoin for payments” but it’s used as an “alternative to gold” and that “it’s a store of value.”
US lawmakers expressed concern during the session that BTC might replace the US Dollar as the world reserve currency. 

Japan’s Bitpoint crypto exchange halted operations after reporting a hack. $32 million was stolen of which about 2/3 belonged to clients. The exchange’s parent company lost nearly 20% from its share price following the news
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eToroX, the specialized blockchain division of social trading platform eToro, has announced the launch of the first five of 120 ERC-20 tokens. ERC-20 is a technical standard that sets rules for tokens launched on the Ethereum or related blockchains. The new tokens include two eToro stablecoins and three crypto assets: Maker, Basic Attention Token and OmiseGO.

South Korea’s Shinhan Bank will impose stricter rules and monitoring on bank accounts related to any crypto trading. A string of hacks and fraud related to crypto exchanges in the country was cited as the motivating factor.

Fujitsu Laboratories has announced the development of a digital identity exchange technology. The blockchain based tech makes it possible for individuals and businesses involved in online transactions to confirm the identity of the other parties.

A 2019 global blockchain survey from Big Four accounting firm, Deloitte reveals that 73% of Chinese firms believe that blockchain is a top 5 strategic priority for their nation. 53% of responding companies in the United States held the same view, which is an annual increase of 10%.

Free speech social media platform, Gab.com, has opened crowdfunding for the development and decentralization of its Twitter-like platform, Gab Social, and its new web browser, Dissenter. Gab’s Dissenter browser is forked from Brave but allows commenting on any web page and uses Lightning Network BTC payments to reward users who view ads.
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A video surfaced this week of an Iranian Bitcoin mining operation running inside a mosque, buildings which receive free electricity in the country. It was reported that $260k worth of Bitcoin has been mined inside 100 different Iranian mosques. Meanwhile, the government is shutting off power to identified Bitcoin miners and seized about 1,000 ASIC miners from two abandoned factories.

Square’s Cash App is launching bitcoin deposits. Cash App users can purchase and sell Bitcoin and they can also make cryptocurrency transfers to other wallets. The app might have started rolling out the feature prior to full launch according to Bitcoiners on Twitter as deposits are not yet available for all Cash App users.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has cleared Bitcoin derivatives provider LedgerX to offer physically settled Bitcoin futures contracts. Unlike the cash-settled Bitcoin futures, in a physical settlement, the buyer receives Bitcoin when a contract expires, rather than the fiat equivalent. LedgerX is the second company to receive approval to offer physically settled Bitcoin futures.

Coinbase released a report stating that 58% of Americans are able to identify Bitcoin as a cryptocurrency, whereas 37% are aware of it in general. Also, Bitrefill has unveiled a new Recharge service which allows Lightning Network integration with Coinbase. Coinbase users will be able to easily leverage the full capabilities of the Lightning Network through their Coinbase accounts.
 99Bitcoins

Watch: https://youtu.be/jwns5Mkn5Mw for information about IEO, ICO & STO

The bull trend continued this week, driven by Bitcoin’s breakout above the $10,000 level. After breaking through $9,000 resistance, Bitcoin gained momentum to reach as high as $11,150 on Saturday. These are the highest levels seen since June of 2018. In fact, according to our very own HodlCalc, there have only been 70 days in all of Bitcoin’s existence, where buying and holding Bitcoin was considered unprofitable.

Facebook, the social media giant unveiled its highly anticipated and until-now secretive cryptocurrency, Libra. The Libra token will run on a blockchain network secured at launch by 100 distributed computer servers, which will eventually be fully governed by the independent Libra Association. The group of 28 founding members of the Libra Association includes Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Uber, Lyft, Coinbase, and others.

 Crypto mining hardware giant Bitmain is said to be relaunching its IPO plans, but this time in the U.S. instead of Hong Kong. Bitmain is consulting with advisers over a U.S. public listing, potentially in the second half of 2019.

Kaspersky Lab, the famous Russian anti-malware firm, released a cryptocurrency survey stating that 19% of people have bought some form of crypto. The report also stated that only 10% of people feel they understand how cryptocurrencies work. 31% of respondents said that crypto prices need to be more stable before they’d get involved.
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Binance, the most heavily traded stock exchange, is launching a new trading platform aimed specifically at US customers, in partnership with BAM Trading Services. The platform will be operated by BAM, using Binance's wallets and advanced trading technologies. At the same time, Binance has updated the terms of use to indicate that it is "unable to provide services to US citizens" due to new regulations. As of September 12, US users will no longer be able to trade on Binance.com.

Quinn Base has expanded its Debit Card service into Europe. Coinbase will now operate in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain and users will be able to use the balance from their Coinbase account anywhere that receives a visa. This service is already available to UK users.

The Financial Action Task Force, or FAT-F, is a collaboration between the US, the European Commission, China and India. This body has imposed banking regulations on stock exchanges around the world, requiring them to submit details of each customer who has made a trade over $ 1,000. FATF also requires the identity of every person who receives a crypto. The group warned that countries that did not comply with the requests would be blacklisted.
Macrobit.co.il

America’s Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint against popular messaging app creator, Kik, for failing to register its recent “Kin” ICO as a securities sale. The SEC is seeking to impose a $100 million fine on the Canadian firm; about the same value of Kin sold. This case is likely to set precedent for ICOs which cater to Americans without SEC registration.

Portuguese premier league team, Benfica, is now selling tickets and merchandise for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the UTRUST token native to its payment processor. The team currently has around 14 million fans.

The updated Apple operating systems now support the Bitcoin “B” symbol in their SF Symbols app. Microsoft added support for the symbol in late May, for the latest versions of both Windows 10 and Excel.

Crypto exchange OKCoin has launched in the EU. Once one of China’s “Big 3” crypto exchanges, OKCoin’s new spot trading offerings cover euro pairs with Bitcoin, Ether and Bitcoin Cash at launch, with more pairs planned. The firm said until September, euros can be deposited and withdrawn without any fee.

And finally, CoinShares Research published a report stating that at least 74% of the energy powering Bitcoin mining is from renewable sources. The report further states that hydroelectric power is the most common energy source and that around 60% of mining is occurring within China’s southwestern provinces during the current rainy season.
99bitcoins.com

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a complaint against the popular messaging application developer Kick for not being able to register their ICO, Kin, as securities. The SEC seeks to impose a $ 100 million fine on the Canadian company; At the same value where the Kin is sold. This case may set a precedent for ICOs intended for Americans without registration from the SEC.

A big team in the first division of Portugal, Benfica, now sells tickets and products for Bitcoin, Ethereum and UTRUST Tucan Local. The group currently has 14 million fans.

Apple has updated its systems and now supports the Bitcoin "B" icon in their Symbols SF application. Microsoft added support for the icon in late May, for the latest versions of Windows 10 and Excel.

The OKCoin kraft market has launched a service in the European Union. The exchange will offer Euro-currency trading with Bitcoin, Atrium and Yakash at launch, with plans to add more coins in the future. The company said that by September, it is possible to deposit and withdraw euros without any commission.

Finally, the CoinShares study reveals that at least 74% of the energy used for Bitcoin mining is from renewable sources. The report further states that hydroelectric power is the most common energy source and that around 60% of mining occurs in the southwestern provinces of China during the rainy season.
.macrobit.co.il

The LocalBitcoins trading platform has removed the ability for users to trade digital currencies through cash. Now only online payment methods remain. This move comes shortly after imposing stringent requirements for KYC and AML. Cross-platform Bisq, HodlHodl, LocalCoinSwap and various other services still offer trading via cash-free identification requirements.

Yahoo Japan holds a 40% stake in the new Taotao Stock Exchange, launched this week. This is a regulatory exchange that currently offers trading in Bitcoin and Atrium, and will add additional Alets soon. The new stock exchange also operates a mobile application.

The report of the United Nations on the widespread activity of financial breaches by North Korea indicates that South Korean users on the Upitit Stock Exchange were affected by phishing attacks, allegedly from the north. Hackers sent e-mail claiming to be from the South Korean stock exchange, where they were tempted to run a malicious file with the promise of high traction.

Appra Crypto Mobile application has announced the expansion of Bitcoin -powered services in 150 countries, except the United States. Investors can use Bitcoin to trade small stocks, commodities, ETFs, Fiat and other digital currencies - no trading fees.

Coinbase added EOS currency support for its retail customers. The new option allows users to buy, sell, convert, send, receive or simply store EOS. The token is added to the Pro platform in April.
Courtesy: .macrobit.co.il/

Facebook is said to be finalising plans to launch its own cryptocurrency next year. testing of the cryptocurrency, referred to internally as GlobalCoin, will start by the end of this year. Facebook is expected to outline plans in more detail this summer, and has already spoken to Bank of England governor Mark Carney.

Europol and the Dutch Criminal Investigation Service took down the 6 servers hosting the Bestmixer.io coin tumbling service. Supposedly the first such policing action against a tumbler by law enforcement, it is alleged that the tumbler was aiding in money laundering. The tumbler was one of the 3 largest, and handled Bitcoin, Litecoin, and BCH.

The Coinstar service which is running a trial to allow customers in various grocery stores to purchase Bitcoin has now expanded to cover 21 American states. There are now over 2,200 such kiosks available to Americans in high traffic retail locations.

Crypto podcaster Guy Swann reported that the Bitcoin Cash blockchain had been reorganized by two mining pools working together to achieve hashrate dominance. While details remain sketchy at this time, it’s clear that the miners reorganized 2 blocks to reverse a theft of coins which occurred around the latest Bitcoin Cash fork.

US telecoms giant, AT&T announced that they will now accept Bitcoin for payment of mobile bills. AT&T is the first US mobile carrier to accept crypto.

Courtesy: 99Bitcoins.com

Crypto markets this week reached their highest level since August of 2018. Markets then corrected downwards, however, sentiment is still bullish, with major news networks covering the resurgence of crypto. 

Bitcoin, Ethereum, BCH, and Gemini exchange’s US Dollar-based stablecoin can now be used to purchase goods from Starbucks, Whole Foods, Nordstrom and many more retailers. The US-based payments service, Flexa in collaboration with Gemini confirmed that their new crypto app, Spedn, will enable instant crypto payments in participating stores. 

It was reported that BitOasis exchange, which is based in the United Arab Emirates, received a preliminary license to operate. If a full license is granted, BitOasis would be the first officially approved and regulated exchange in the region to offer crypto trading and storage. 

San Francisco Open Exchange, or SFOX, has partnered with M.Y. Safra Bank, to bring Federal deposit insurance to the Bitcoin trading space. The move represents the first time that crypto traders will have their funds guaranteed by the state, up to $250,000. This is another strong signal for the increasing integration of crypto into mainstream finance. 

New Zealand’s Cryptopia exchange was hacked in January of this year. The exchange went offline this week, displaying only a message that a firm has been appointed to handle liquidation proceedings. Most users have been unable to withdraw funds from Cryptopia since the breach occurred. 

Courtesy: 99bitcoins.com

Binance has just suffered a $40.7M Bitcoin theft, its largest loss ever
Binance has long been lauded for its top-notch security, but this week the exchange discovered a security breach that saw more than $40M in Bitcoin stolen. The exchange is still in the process of identifying impacted customer accounts, and will be using its SAFU fund to cover the shortfall in funds lost by affected customers.

Inside Zuckerberg’s decade-long battle over crypto with the Winklevoss twins
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the Winklevoss twins have always had a contentious relationship. But the twins’ deep involvement with crypto could prove to give them a leg up on the race with Facebook to develop the world’s leading cryptocurrency. The rivalry between the two parties has only intensified in recent years as both begin to compete more heavily on the crypto front, even after the Winklevoss twins won a $65M settlement from Facebook for slighting them in its early days. 

Facebook’s new digital coin could double or triple crypto’s global user base
Recent analysis has shown that the introduction of Facebook’s digital coin could potentially triple the number of crypto users worldwide. The rollout could also drive an overall uplift in the markets, particularly if the cryptocurrency sees heavy usage early on. The social networking giant is presently searching for investment and technology partners to help it build and launch the new payment solution.

A Belgian programmer solved this perplexing crypto puzzle 15 years too soon
Last month, a Belgian programmer solved a decades-old cryptographic puzzle that has eluded even the most masterful problem solvers. Despite the puzzle being devised 20 years ago, its underlying principles have a significant amount of overlap with existing crypto protocols that leverage blockchain technology.

The story of Crypto Capital’s dark past, and its ties to the crypto industry
Crypto Capital is quietly becoming a quasi-central bank of the crypto industry, helping offer banking services to crypto exchanges, blockchain startups, and the like. Incorporated in Panama, the shadowy company has been helping exchanges like Bitfinex handle billions in customer funds. Two of its employees were arrested for money laundering earlier this week, casting a shadow over the organization.

Bitmain has reportedly cut its crypto mining capacity by up to 88%
This week, Bitmain revealed that it had reduced its Bitcoin mining power by 88%. The statistic is indicative of an overall reduction in capacity, and signals that the crypto mining giant is beginning to shut down at least some of its mining equipment. The news also runs counter to Bitmain’s claim that it would be deploying $80M worth of new mining equipment later this year.

Here’s how Cosmos is looking to put the global economy on the blockchain
Cosmos is a relatively new blockchain project that enables independent blockchains to interact with one another. This could open up an entirely new set of use cases and opportunities for crypto platforms to collaborate, and it’s perhaps the most promising interoperability solution yet.

A “blockchain bandit” is guessing private keys and scoring millions in crypto
Security researchers have discovered that a mystery thief is stealing millions of dollars in crypto, simply by guessing private keys. While the concept is simple, the execution of the theft appears to be quite complex, involving an array of advanced cryptographic techniques used to “predict” a user’s private key.
Courtesy: CRYPTO WEEKLY

The Bakkt Stock Exchange is nearing regulation. The company's high level of investment in the New York Stock Exchange, it has acquired a company specializing in cold storage for the preservation of digital assets. Bakkt also unveiled a partnership with the New York Mellon Bank to implement cold storage solutions at its secure facilities.

A MasterCard credit card requires regulatory approval for use in Europe. The prepaid card will allow customers to convert and send crypto assets wherever MasterCard is obtained. The request is under review by the Gibraltar Financial Authority.

A recent poll by Harris Poll for Blockchin Capital reveals that 89% of American adults are aware of Bitcoin, 43% see Bitcoin as positive financial innovation, 33% believe most people will use Bitcoin within 10 years, and 27% Years. All of these positive statistics have grown since the last survey in 2017, indicating that the youngest demographics are good for Bitcoin.

A HSBC account linked to the Betfinx is perceived by the US Department of Justice. The firm claimed that the account was used to channel money from the American Crypto Exchange, which was banned for US banking customers. Moreover, Zhao Dong, a major shareholder in BitFinex, said on Twitter that the stock exchange is looking to release its Toucan to raise $ 1 billion.
Courtesy: /macrobit.co.il

Crypto payments processor, Moon, announced a new Chrome browser extension which will allow Amazon purchases via Bitcoin’s Lightning Network. Coinbase account holders will also be able to pay via Bitcoin’s base layer, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash.

 A survey of South Koreans revealed that 7.4% of the country’s population owns some form of crypto. South Koreans own an average of over $6,000 worth of crypto, which is a 64% annual increase. People in their 50s hold the largest crypto balances.

 South Korea’s Samsung conglomerate reported they have invested $2.9 million into French hardware wallet manufacturer, Ledger. This funding brings Ledger’s total valuation to $290 million. As we covered in previous reports, Samsung’s new S10 mobile includes support for crypto wallets.

 More than 400,000 confirmed Bitcoin transactions were recorded this week, which is the highest level since the transaction volume spikes seen briefly in December of 2017. However, the average transaction fee is about 6 times lower than what it was then, indicating that Bitcoin’s transaction processing capacity has greatly improved.

 New York’s Attorney General announced a court order against iFinex, owners of the Bitfinex crypto exchange and Tether stablecoin. The state’s attorney alleges that iFinex secretly used $850 million reserved for backing the Tether stablecoin to disguise customer and corporate losses on the Bitfinex exchange. Bitfinex denied the allegations, including the loss of any funds in a statement.
99Bitcoins

Belorussian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, last week called for a large Bitcoin mining center to be
constructed near the country’s new nuclear power plant which is expected to be fully operational by
2020. Belarus has already developed a special economic zone, the High-Tech Park, with significant
tax breaks for IT and crypto companies.

Sweden’s largest political party, the Social Democratic Party, tweeted that the Swedish Krona was
abolished in favor of Bitcoin and renamed its account to “Bitcoin Democrats”. Swedes were further
surprised by tweets about rising taxes and crime stats. It was revealed later that the account had
been hacked by a group of hackers who wanted to raise the attention to security gaps.

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is expanding crypto-to-crypto conversions and trading services
to 11 more countries. The San Francisco-based announced that customers in several countries
in South-America and Asia can now access crypto-to-crypto exchanging services. The company said
that it is offering the services via both Coinbase.com as well as Coinbase Pro, its professional trading
platform.

Andrew Yang, a Democratic candidate in America’s 2020 election, issued a statement arguing the need for uniform regulations for cryptocurrency. Yang said that different rules for crypto
among various states and agencies create unnecessary confusion. Yang also referred to New York’s
BitLicense as “onerous” and detrimental to the growth of crypto in the US.
Courtesy: 99 Bitcoins

• France is reportedly going to try to convince other European Union member states to adopt cryptocurrency regulationssimilar to its own
   
• Corporate Traveller, the largest travel management firm in the United Kingdom, is now accepting Bitcoin for payments
   
• Japanese financial services giant SBI Holdings will delist bitcoin cash (BCH) from its virtual currency exchange in June 2019, following several major crypto trading platforms delisting BSV, while OKEx announced that it decided not to delist BSV
   
• EToroX, the blockchain division of global social trading platform eToro, has launched a crypto exchange for pro traders and issued eight stablecoins
   
• Institutional-grade investment management firm Arca Funds filed with the SEC to issue digitized securities as ERC-20 tokens on the ethereum blockchain
  Courtesy: Cointelegraph.com

Professional crypto traders suggested that this week’s dramatic price rise was a result of a major short squeeze in a low liquidity environment. A major Bitcoin buy order was split between at least three major exchanges, and the resulting upwards price pressure led to $500 million in desperate short-covering occurring within an hour on BitMEX.

 As usually happens when Bitcoin price news is trending, search volume is exploding. Google Trends reveal that search interest for the keyword “Bitcoin” is at its highest level since last November. Meanwhile, China’s major search engine, Baidu, reported that “Bitcoin” was its fastest-rising search term.

 The US Security and Exchange Commission released regulatory guidance to help clarify which crypto offerings constitute a security, and thus fall under existing securities laws. Although the ICO mania has ended, any project issuing tokens to US citizens should now have much greater regulatory clarity.

Switzerland’s publishing giant, Netzmedien AG announced it will start paying salaries in Bitcoin, after workers voted to receive BTC rather than Swiss Francs. The company publishes 8 technology magazines and a website. Switzerland remains at the forefront of mainstream Bitcoin adoption.

 And finally, the World Economic Forum issued a report that over 40 central banks are exploring blockchain technology, some with a view to creating their own fiatcoins. A former under-secretary -general of the UN, called for a global currency based on the IMF’s SDR instrument.
| 99Bitcoins

Bitcoin Will See Global Need After Future Applications Emerge, Says Andreas Antonopoulos

South Koreans will need Bitcoin (BTC) once its as-yet-unknown applications have been developed, Andreas Antonopoulos told the ongoing Deconomy conference in Seoul on April 4.

Speaking at the event attended by a Cointelegraph correspondent, the celebrated Bitcoin educator and entrepreneur forecast a fundamental shift in Bitcoin’s presence on the world stage.

The largest cryptocurrency will usurp the current fiat-based banking system, Antonopoulos said, but only after developing the next generation of use cases will the true global need for Bitcoin become obvious for the average consumer.

“What we’re doing today is trying to simulate the existing system with fewer intermediaries and centralization, so that we can rapidly exceed and start doing applications that are absolutely impossible with the current centralized financial system,” he summarized. Antonopoulos added:
“And then — and only then — Koreans will need cryptocurrency.”

Antonopoulos highlighted the fact that, in contrast to the utopian visions of the future, current cryptocurrency usage remains either a niche hobby or a product of desperation with the banks.

At present, only a tiny fraction of consumers use Bitcoin: this is logical, he says, given the overall difficulty of crypto and the technical knowledge required to store and transact with it successfully.
Cryptocurrencies and open blockchains “are only being adopted in the places where the pain of the current financial system is so extreme that people are forced to use something that is difficult to understand, difficult to secure, with very poorly designed applications and with very difficult wording,” he said.

Nonetheless, with advances ongoing, Bitcoin is at least set to overtake extant payment systems such as Visa and MasterCard, in his opinion.

“We are poised to achieve ten thousand times their capacity,” Antonopoulos added, echoing findings from a report into Bitcoin as the future of payments released earlier this week.

As Cointelegraph reported, scaling solutions for Bitcoin should help take it to the status of preeminent world payment system in as little as ten years, research from software company DataLight forecast
Courtesy: Cointelegraph

Wuabit crypto wallet will be accessible within WhatsApp. Bitcoin will be supported at launch, with altcoins set to follow. The wallet uses a simple and intuitive chat interface for transactions. This wallet has the potential to boost adoption, as WhatsApp has over a billion users.

Major Bitcoin investor, Tim Draper, met with Argentinian president, Mauricio Macri to discuss monetary matters. Draper bet Macri that Bitcoin will increase in value relative to the Argentinian peso. If Draper loses, he pledged to double the amount his fund is investing into Argentina. 

Bitmain’s attempt at a listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange has expired unsuccessfully. Their bid was not approved within the 6 month window, despite the company disclosing its somewhat precarious financial situation. Bitmain also announced this week its forthcoming 7nm mining chip and the addition of a new CEO to its ranks. 

ZebPay, formerly India’s biggest exchange, will now facilitate Lightning Network payments for all its clients. Using the ZebPay wallet, clients can send up to 10 Lightning transactions a day up to a current maximum value of 0.002 BTC, with all fees covered by ZebPay. 

And finally, Bithumb suffered a major hack last week. The major Korean exchange had roughly $12.5 million in EOS and $6,000 in XRP stolen from its hot wallets. Bithumb suspended deposits and withdrawals as it investigates the matter alongside local authorities
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Digitec-Galaxus, considered Switzerland’s Amazon.com, started accepting Bitcoin and 9 major altcoins. The company will utilize payment processor Coinify to instantly convert all crypto received into Swiss francs. The company may expand this initiative to German customers in future.

Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter and payments app Square, tweeted that Square is hiring crypto engineers. These developers will be paid for working on open source Bitcoin or crypto projects, and will be paid in Bitcoin.

Binance is launching a new way to buy Bitcoin from over 1,300 Australian news agents via its Binance Lite search. The purchase method will require KYC and carry a 5 percent fee, as well as sales tax.

Bitmain has suffered setbacks this year but seems to be returning to its core business; mining Bitcoin. China’s leading miner and ASIC producer is deploying 200,000 Bitcoin ASICs, in order to utilize the abundant hydro power available during China’s summer months. The equipment is valued at around $80 million.

And finally, a report released by Bitwise highlights an open secret in crypto: many unregulated exchanges are reporting falsely inflated volume. Bitwise’ research, which was presented to the SEC in furtherance of a Bitcoin ETF approval, suggests 95% of reported volume is fake. Bitwise state that Bitcoin’s daily -exchange traded volume total is around $270 million, traded mostly across 10 regulated exchanges, like Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken.
Courtesy: 99Bitcoins

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, Bitcoin (BTC) bulls and founders of the Gemini crypto exchange, say that while Facebook’s secretive crypto project is positive for the industry, ultimately crypto will usher in something greater than the social networking era. The twins made their remarks during an interview with British broadsheet The Telegraph on March 17.

The Winklevoss twins have a famously antagonistic history with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, having sued him for allegedly stealing the idea for the social network from them during the trio’s student days at Harvard. The case was eventually settled, with the twins receiving $20 million and 1.2 million Facebook shares (worth over $199.2 million to press time).

Years after the Winklevoss twins’ first entry into Bitcoin, Zuckerberg is now seemingly entering the crypto space with Facebook’s own highly secretive project to integrate crypto stablecoin payments into an overarching messaging service for WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Instagram.

In their interview with The Telegraph, the twins apparently put past differences aside, with Cameron affirming that a Facebook stablecoin would be a “really positive” development for the crypto industry, echoed by Taylor’s comment that it is “cool” Zuckerberg is entering the market they have championed for so long.

Nonetheless, the twins said they ultimately believe that the innovation heralded by crypto represents a more momentous and disruptive development than social networking platforms.

Cameron remarked that crypto’s use as a way to transfer value and bring resources to markets is more important than something like photo sharing, to which Tyler added:

“[It’s] powerful. People want to connect and stuff, but if you actually pay people and things in value that is almost, like, more significant.”

As Cointelegraph has reported, unconfirmed reports of Facebook’s plans to integrate a cryptocurrency for WhatsApp users first surfaced in December 2018, followed by further — yet still unconfirmed — details of the project this February.

The site is preceded by Russian-developed encrypted messaging app Telegram’s own, public plans, to create a crypto- and blockchain-powered messaging network.

The Winklevoss twins — whose numerous crypto investments span their crypto exchange and trading app, fiat-pegged stablecoin and sustained high-profile industry involvement — are meanwhile fielding a separate legal battle against Bitcoin entrepreneur Charlie Shrem, the result of a fallout over money owed from a years-old Bitcoin trade deal.

Courtesy: coindesk.com