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A new local bitcoin cash venue opens for trading worldwide and the community is nearing a funding goal milestone for BCH developers. Watch these and other developments discussed in this week’s video update on Bitcoin.com’s Youtube channel.

Also Read: Why Bitpay Is Really Charging More for BTC Transactions

Local BCH Venue Opens as Localbitcoins Removes In-Person Cash Trades

This week’s show discuses the successful opening of Local.Bitcoin.com, a privacy-focused peer to peer global marketplace for trading bitcoin cash (BCH). Over 11,000 people have signed up to the service and already created more than 3,000 offers since the platform’s official June 4 launch date. The launch couldn’t come at a better time for many cryptocurrency traders who prefer to transact in-person for cash as Localbitcoins just removed that option a few days ago.

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The weekly update also covers how the bitcoin cash community is advancing in its efforts to support developers with a fundraiser whose contributions are donated to Bitcoin ABC, Bitcoin Unlimited, BCHD, and Bcash. The campaign is closing in on the 15% milestone out of an initial goal of raising 800 BCH by Aug. 1, 2019.

Other developments in the bitcoin cash ecosystem mentioned include the non-custodial Badger Wallet being made available for iOS mobile devices, a recently released browser extension that enhances bitcoin cash addresses for easy tipping, decentralized social network system Memo adding support for creating SLP tokens, and Monarch Wallet adding SLP support for users on both iOS and Android devices. Additionally covered in the weekly update is how Anypay and Cointext have partnered to make remittance transfers cheaper and faster for cross-border payments using bitcoin cash.

Make sure to subscribe to the Bitcoin.com Youtube channel and leave a comment on the latest video.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Verify and track bitcoin cash transactions on our BCH Block Explorer, the best of its kind anywhere in the world. Also, keep up with your holdings, BCH and other coins, on our market charts at Bitcoin.com Markets, another original and free service from Bitcoin.com.

Avi Mizrahi

Avi Mizrahi is an economist and entrepreneur who has been covering Bitcoin as a journalist since 2013. He has spoken about the promise of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology at numerous financial conferences around the world, from London to Hong-Kong.

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On June 9, digital currency markets have been meandering along in a consolidated manner after the slight downturn this afternoon. At the moment, the entire cryptocurrency market is around $243 billion, but global trade volume has dropped from $80 billion on June 5 to $56 billion this weekend.

Also read: Bitcoin.com’s Local Bitcoin Cash Marketplace Is Now Open for Trading

Crypto Markets Under Pressure

About six days ago digital currency markets lost between 2-15% throughout June 2 through June 5, but market participants managed to recapture some of those losses throughout last week. Currently, bitcoin core (BTC) spot prices are hovering between $7,625-7,700 per BTC and the market is down 2.2% today. BTC has an overall market capitalization of around $136 billion this Sunday and $16 billion in global trade volume. The second largest market valuation belongs to ethereum (ETH) but ETH has lost 4.6% in the last 24 hours.

One ETH is swapping for $232 per coin and the entire market valuation is $24.7 billion this weekend. Following ETH is ripple (XRP), which is down 6.2% today and 12.9% for the week. One unit of XRP is trading for $0.38 at the time of publication. Lastly, litecoin (LTC) has managed to bump bitcoin cash (BCH) out of the fourth market cap position as LTC markets are only down 0.9%. Each LTC is swapping for $114 per coin and LTC has a market valuation of around $7.09 billion.

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) Market Action

The fifth market capitalization on Sunday, June 9 is bitcoin cash (BCH) as each coin is trading for $378 at press time. BCH markets are down 3% today but around 14% for the entire week. The total market valuation for all the BCH currently in circulation is $6.7 billion while global trade volume is around $1.24 billion. The top exchanges swapping the most BCH this Sunday include Coinbene ($222M), P2pb2b ($90M), Hitbtc ($54M) Digifinex ($28M), and Huobi Pro ($27M). Exchanges trading large sums of BCH like Idax, Fcoin, Binance, and Coinbase follow behind. The most traded pair today with bitcoin cash is BTC which is capturing 44% of all BCH trades this weekend. BTC/BCH pairs are followed by USDT (35.7%), USD (8.8%), KRW (5%), JPY (1.8%), EUR (1.4%), and TUSD (1.4%). Since June 1, BCH daily onchain transactions have been between 44,000-58,000 per day.

BCH/USD Technical Indicators

Looking at the 4-hour BCH/USD chart on Kraken shows foundational support is holding up and bears have been struggling to bring the price down below the $380 region. Right now most oscillators are showing buy and neutral signals while most moving averages are indicating sell signals. For instance, the two Simple Moving Averages (SMA), both long term (200 SMA) and the short term (100 SMA) trendlines, have crossed paths. The longer-term 200 SMA is above the 100 SMA indicating the path toward the least resistance is the downside. However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI ~35.53) is impartial at the moment and the Stochastic reveals similar findings.

The MACd (~2.93), the momentum oscillator that subtracts the longer-term moving average from the shorter-term moving average, shows bulls could spring back and bring prices back up. Looking northbound at order books, however, shows that there’s tough resistance around the $400 region and the $425-440 zones as well. On the backside, there’s still decent support around the $380 area and some more support between the $340-360 range.

The Verdict: Crypto Analysts Still Bullish Despite the Recent Drop in Value

Most cryptocurrencies have done incredibly well throughout the month of May gaining between 40-80% in a mere 30 days. Although some skeptics believe a pullback is on the cards and Bloomberg analysts report that BTC/USD charts show the GTI Vera Convergence-Divergence indicator has shown a sell signal not seen in over two months. Because of this, the analysts believe prices may reverse toward the downside throughout June. Then there’s been rumors that the Facebook coin whitepaper will be published on June 18 and crypto enthusiasts don’t know what to expect from this launch. Still, some analysts believe that June will be a very bullish month for BTC and cryptocurrency markets in general and that the Facebook coin launch will be a catalyst. Market researcher Naeem Aslam is convinced that June will be a very good month for the digital asset space.

“I am optimistic about the bitcoin price during this month and I believe the Facebook event will be the catalyst for the bitcoin price to move higher,” Aslam remarked on June 7.

Where do you see the price of bitcoin cash and the rest of the crypto markets heading from here? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Price articles and markets updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not to be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Always remember that only those in possession of the private keys are in control of the “money.”

Images via Shutterstock, Trading View, Bitcoin.com Markets, and Coinlib.io.

Want to create your own secure cold storage paper wallet? Check our tools section. You can also enjoy the easiest way to buy Bitcoin online with us. Download your free Bitcoin wallet and head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can buy BCH and BTC securely.

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Analysis, BCH, Binance, bitcoin cash, Bitcoin Cash Markets, Bitcoin Cash Network, Bitcoin Core, BTC, Charts, Cryptocurrency, Ethereum, Fed, Fed Chair Jerome Powell, Federal Reserve, gold, indicators, LTC, Markets, Markets Update, P2pb2b, President James Bullard, Prices, Technical Analysis, Technicals, Tether, trade volume, Traders, trading, Value

Jamie Redman

Jamie Redman is a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open source code, and decentralized applications. Redman has written thousands of articles for news.Bitcoin.com about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

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Debit cards tied to cryptocurrency wallets provide an opportunity to spend your digital coins almost anywhere fiat money is accepted. It’s a working solution, at least until wider adoption comes around. That’s why they’ve become so popular in the crypto community. Challenges of different sorts have negatively affected some of the earlier offerings, but it’s good to see products that have survived and new ones that are gaining traction or are about to enter the market.

Also read: These Tourist Destinations Welcome Bitcoin Cash Enthusiasts

A Global Crypto Debit Card

During the past year, crypto winter forced businesses to downsize and adjust to unfavorable market and regulatory conditions. Many are still trying to adapt and some are already seeking opportunities elsewhere. For example, the company that issued Shift, arguably the first bitcoin debit card in the U.S. which allowed holders to spend from their Coinbase wallet, is not offering it anymore. It’s now operating under a new brand name, Apto Payments. And in Europe, many card providers suffered a hard blow when Visa terminated Wavecrest’s membership – some have recovered, others are yet to return.

Not everything is so bleak, however. Paycent is a crypto debit card that’s been available worldwide since relatively recently but according to its website, over 53,000 cards have already been delivered globally. They enable users of the Paycent wallet to spend their digital assets in brick and mortar stores as well as with online merchants through conversion to fiat. You can also withdraw funds in local currency from ATMs in just about any country. The card can be ordered from the platform’s wallet which supports a number of coins including bitcoin core, ethereum, litecoin, dash, and the Binance token.

Paycent’s operator, Singapore-based company Texcent Asia, issues three types of cards – Mastercard, Union Pay International and China Union Pay. The Ruby card (CUP) has spending and withdrawal limits of $2,500, while the Sapphire card (UPI) and the Solitaire card (MC) are limited to $5,600 for transactions and $1,650 for withdrawals. They come as both physical and virtual cards and are delivered for $49. You can find out more about the applicable fees and limits on the Paycent card site.

At the moment, Paycent is offering one of the few, if not the only, crypto debit cards with global coverage. Nevertheless, there’s a number of other options that we’ve previously reviewed and here are those that are still available in mid-2019. Wirex is a popular choice in Europe. Its Visa card supports conversion from several major cryptocurrencies and provides a 0.5% BTC cashback on in-store purchases. The card issued by Bitpay remains a working option for U.S. residents who can use it to shop with Visa merchants anywhere in the world. They can spend bitcoin cash (BCH) and bitcoin core (BTC) from their Bitpay wallet and the cryptos are converted to dollars.

Cryptopay is a platform that offers a prepaid card which can be loaded from its wallet supporting four cryptocurrencies – bitcoin core, ethereum, litecoin, and ripple. The card is currently available for clients in the U.K., Europe and Russia, with negotiations underway with a new issuer in Singapore. It comes in plastic and virtual form and allows holders to spend their coins both online and offline as well as withdraw fiat cash worldwide.

Cards Supporting Bitcoin Cash

A growing number of card issuers now support bitcoin cash in their products, with the above-mentioned Bitpay being the most notable example. Other platforms added the cryptocurrency more recently. Crypto.com’s MCO Visa card has allowed you to spend BCH since the end of May, when the Hong Kong-based payment processor announced it had introduced the coin to its wallet and card app. The company started shipping its debit cards to customers in Singapore last October and promised to take them to the U.S. through a partnership between its Florida-registered affiliate Foris Inc. and the Metropolitan Commercial Bank in New York. Its wallet is currently available in 36 states but there’s been no update on the plans for the card itself.

Crypto enthusiasts who have a Uquid account can order one of their virtual and plastic cards. The platform promises unlimited online spending and ATM withdrawals as well as fee-free POS purchases. You can top up your balance with a staggering number of coins and tokens, a total of 89 so far, including bitcoin cash. Your digital assets can be converted to British pounds, euros and U.S. dollars. The card is not offered in the United States, however, and you’ll be able to determine if your country is eligible only after logging in to your account. Creating one is free of charge but ordering the physical card will cost you up to $17, depending on the fiat currency you’ve chosen.

Bitnovo buys and sells more than 20 major cryptocurrencies. The trading platform has a mobile app and issues debit cards with which you can pay in stores and online with coins converted to euros. To use it you don’t need to have an associated bank account and you can top up with crypto. Bitnovo added BCH to its options in September last year. It also supports bitcoin core, dash, litecoin, ripple, zcash and stellar. Bitcard allows you to withdraw fiat from ATMs for €1 per transaction and there’s a monthly fee of €1.20. The card is currently available only for EU residents. Ordering a Basic Level card does not require any registration but you can only load up to €250 on it. The Level Plus (up to €2,500 per year) and the Premium Level cards (maximum €15,000) do come with the obligation to share personal data.

An offering known from before the Wavecrest saga is now returning to the market. Belize-based company Advcash is preparing to launch its virtual and plastic cards in the European Union, Russia and other countries. The fiat currency of the ADV Cards will be either euro or U.S. dollar but holders will be able to withdraw any currency at teller machines around the globe. You’ll be able to fund your card with the ADV wallet which supports BCH along with other leading cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, LTC, HRP, and ZEC. Advcash promises free shipping for their cards and no maintenance fees but you need to pay 14.99 in euros or dollars for the card. Detailed information about other fees and limits can be found on the issuer’s website.

A new player in the niche is the Spanish fintech startup 2gether, which is targeting its products and services at the crypto community in Europe. The platform released its prepaid Visa card in April and its holders can use it in any of the 19 members of the Eurozone with plans to expand availability to the rest of the EU. It allows you to spend your digital coins anywhere Visa is accepted through instant conversion to EUR, which is the common fiat currency of the Eurozone countries. Bitcoin cash (BCH) is one of seven supported cryptocurrencies along with ETH, BTC, XPR, EOS, XLM, and LTC. 2gether lets you hold and manage euro and crypto balances in the same app as well as to buy and sell digital coins.

Are you using any of the crypto debit cards mentioned in this article or other similar products? Let us know in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to third party companies or any of their affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any third party content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Paycent, Uquid, 2gether.

You can now easily buy Bitcoin with a credit card. Visit our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can buy BCH and BTC, and keep your coins secure by storing them in our free Bitcoin mobile wallet.

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cards, Coins, conversion, crypto, Crypto Cards, Cryptocurrencies, debit cards, Digital Assets, MasterCard, Merchants, PoS, Purchases, stores, Union Pay, VISA, Wallets

Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Bulgaria, which sometimes finds itself at the forefront of advances it cannot easily afford. Quoting Hitchens, he says: ”Being a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.“ International politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.

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SendFriend, a venture-backed FinTech using decentralized finance based in the US finally goes active with its Ripple’s product – xRapid. Their partnership was earlier announced in Jan 2019 and was planned to accomplish in the same year.

SendFriend establishes a remittance corridor between the United States and the Philippines. The main motto of this firm is to make it easier to transfer assets overseas from the US to Phillippines. But the previous correspondent banking system was slow in their transaction and also inefficient and costly. This created hurdles for SendFriend in achieving their purpose. Henceforth the partnership with Ripple to employ xRapid and acquire faster and secure payments through Ripple’s blockchain service. The official twitter handle of SendFriend reads that;

Cheaper 💸 Faster ⚡ More Secure 🔒

Sending money to the #Philippines has never been easier! How do we do it? By using blockchain technology to innovate the money transfer process!

Learn more ➡️ https://t.co/MZAwahBl4w#SendFriend #SendFriendInc #Filipino #FilipinoAmerican pic.twitter.com/fUCOpHCLI4

— SendFriend (@sendfriendinc) June 5, 2019

This partnership has come live to offer the customers a cheaper and faster way to send money to the Philippines in real-time. This, in turn, brings a blockchain payment solution that leverages XRP to address many of the existing problems with the remittance services.

SendFriend utilizes blockchain technology to transfer the money to the Philippines in order to provide their customers a better option for cross border, which is faster and reliable. Being independent of banks, SendFriend puts the customers as their preference and ensures to provide them an effortless and comfortable payment.

It renders services with lower fees and better exchange rates. Payments are received in a fraction of seconds by converting USD to PHP via XRP rather than waiting for days. With the adoption of Ripple, the money will be directly transferred to the pockets of the users with data encryption policy. Along with Ripple, SendFriend is backed by 8 Decimal Capital, 2020 Ventures, TechStars, the Barclays Accelerator, and others.

Adoption of Ripple’s xRapid indirectly conveys that SendFriend uses XRP for their transactions. This supports XRP to have its way of getting employed by more firms in the coming days with its increasing demands. This joint venture is helpful for Ripple to stabilize its footing in Asian countries. With these developments, it is expected that XRP value would increase which is still positioned at third place in the market capitalization with the price of $0.409070USD

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Over the last 48 hours, cryptocurrency enthusiasts have been discussing a Bitcoin snapshot fork called Bitcoin2. The little known coin gained over 5,200% since May 28 on only two exchanges and managed to get listed on Coinmarketcap.com as well. Bitcoin2 is believed to be merely a pump and dump scam, much like a great majority of the Bitcoin snapshots airdropped in the past.

Also read: Bitcoin.com’s Local Bitcoin Cash Marketplace Is Now Open for Trading

BTC2 Gains Attention After Pumping 5,200% on Two Relatively Unknown Exchanges

Bitcoin2 (BTC2) was forked from Bitcoin Core block number 507850 on February 5, 2018. The reason people have just noticed this new snapshot fork is because it was recently listed on two exchanges and added to the coin market valuation website Coinmarketcap.com. The market price aggregation site shows historical price data for Bitcoin2 started on May 28 at $0.68 per BTC2 but the value spiked over 5,200% to a high of $36.93 on June 6. This has caused members of the crypto community to speculate that BTC2 is merely a scammy pump and dump scheme being propped by the creators and two unknown exchanges.

“Bitcoin2 is a scalable Bitcoin fork supporting truly anonymous and instantly verified transactions,” the token’s website banner exclaims.

What the Hell Is BTC2 and Why Does This Coin Even Exist?

The coin’s website is hard to look at as the design is awful, but BTC2’s team claims the token has a vast amount of technological features. BTC2 is allegedly super fast due to the masternode system (a protocol framed in a similar fashion to the Dash network), and it also purports to be untraceable because it allegedly uses the Zerocoin protocol.

Much like Zcash, the website details there are two wallets, one for regular BTC2 transactions and then another wallet that sends zBTC2 transactions which are supposedly more private. The team also details how bitcoiners with BTC held prior to block 507850 can obtain an airdrop of BTC2. The coin is only listed on the trading platforms Crex24 and Escodex but BTC2 is now ranked 1,933 on Coinmarketcap.com.

On social media many people asked “What the hell is Bitcoin2?” and discussed how the token had all the elements of a laughable pump and dump scheme. One person on Twitter remarked: “Just when you’re hoping the crypto community is starting to gain some legitimacy — boom! pow! Whack! — Back to reality — Dumb money gonna do dumb things I suppose.” Another crypto fan jokingly wrote: “What the heck is this sorcery?” after observing the price spike on Friday, adding “#Scamalert” to his initial tweet. Another observer bemoaned:

Can someone explain to me what the flying figgity f*ck “Bitcoin2” is and most importantly WHY?!?!

Don’t Expect Flimflam Pump and Dump Crypto Projects to End Anytime Soon

The latest BTC2 spike was, as predicted by many observers, followed by a significant dump from its $36.93 high on June 6 to $4.18 per token just 14 hours later. Allegedly there’s $299,642 or 37.6 BTC worth of trade volume tied to BTC2 markets and a total supply of 17,288,923 BTC2. BTC2 does have open source documentation and the developers maintaining the project are dubbed ‘BTC2coredevs.’ The latest surprise market spectacle provided by BTC2 has led many crypto pundits to believe that investors have not learned from projects like these in the past and continue to be fooled by pumps.

The news also follows the recently announced return of Bitconnect. Reportedly, Bitconnect 2.0 plans to launch on July 1 and many people are extremely suspicious of this announcement. However, the proclamation post was removed from Twitter soon after it was revealed the shady operation was returning. Bitconnect was a crypto lending platform that promised significant gains, but was regarded as one of the biggest Ponzi schemes since Onecoin. Eventually, after the original Bitconnect was broken up by law enforcement, the coin’s price went to zero and lots of people had virtually forgotten about the scam until now. The BTC2 fork pump and dump and the Bitconnect 2.0 rebrand is just another reminder that fraudulent boondoggle projects are still prevalent within the crypto economy.

What do you think about the suspicious pump and dump market performance BTC2 saw on June 6 through 7? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Bitcoin.com does not endorse the fork “Bitcoin2,” “BTC2,” or any of its products/services. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the mentioned company or any of its affiliates or services. Readers should be cautionary of crypto market pump and dumps. Bitcoin.com or the author is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, the Bitcoin2 website, and Pixabay.

Did you know you can verify any unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction with our Bitcoin Block Explorer tool? Simply complete a Bitcoin address search to view it on the blockchain. Plus, visit our Bitcoin Charts to see what’s happening in the industry.

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Airdrop, Bitcoin2, BitConnect, Bitconnect 2.0, BTC2, Coinmarketcap.com, crypto community, Dumb Money, Fork, Fraud, Onecoin, Ponzi Scheme, pump and dump, Scam, Scam Pump and Dump, Snapshot-fork, Twitter, two exchanges

Jamie Redman

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Finance ministers and central bank governors from the G20 countries have gathered this weekend for a two-day meeting ahead of the G20 summit, and cryptocurrency is among the topics of discussion. Global standard-setting bodies have submitted their policies and provided tools to help the member countries with the regulation of crypto assets in their own jurisdictions.

Also read: G20 Countries Start Implementing Unified Crypto Standards

Crypto Discussions at G20 Meeting

World leaders will gather in Osaka as Japan hosts its first ever G20 summit on June 28 and 29. Ahead of the summit is a G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting which is taking place on June 8 and 9 in the Japanese city of Fukuoka. Besides the G20 countries, there are invited guest countries and international organizations that will be participating including the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization. Cryptocurrency, regulations, and how users should be protected in the new financial system are being discussed at the conference this weekend, according to local media.

G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting participants

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), mentioned crypto assets in her speech at the meeting on Saturday afternoon. She believes that “harmonization of different approaches from country to country, such as dealing with crypto assets and non-bank financial intermediaries, is important, but it also needs to aim for financial stability and consumer protection,” Nikkei conveyed. The IMF chief was further quoted as saying:

It is important to continue international dialogue, but it is not as easy as it looks.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde

At the G20 High-Level Seminar on Financial Innovation Saturday afternoon, Blockstream CEO Adam Back explained the differences between crypto assets, blockchains and the current financial infrastructure, local media reported. After talking about secure tokenization and using blockchain for remittances, he noted the importance of fiat currencies being issued on a blockchain and explained his aim to provide OTC traders and institutional investors with a way to swap stablecoins and bitcoins linked to the Japanese yen. A potential scenario, according to him, is where the public can purchase and store a digitalized version of the yen in a hardware wallet that is managed offline without being exposed to online attacks.

Outlining the G20 role and priorities under the Japanese presidency, Japan’s Finance Minister Taro Aso remarked, “We will also take steps to harness the potential benefits of technological innovation, such as distributed ledger technology, while mitigating its risks, including those posed by crypto-assets.”

Japan’s Finance Minister Taro Aso

Global Crypto Regulatory Standards

A number of global organizations have been working on regulatory standards for crypto assets which the G20 countries can apply in their own jurisdictions. They include the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), the Committee for Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI), the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB). Each covers different aspects of crypto asset risks within their respective mandates. The FSB elaborated:

Standard-setting bodies and other international organisations are working on a number of fronts, directly addressing issues arising from crypto-assets. They are mainly focused on investor protection, market integrity, anti-money laundering, bank exposures and financial stability monitoring.

The FSB is an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system. It has submitted several crypto-related reports to the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting. The most recent one, entitled “Decentralised financial technologies,” was published on June 6. It follows another which details standard-setting organizations’ regulatory approaches and work underway on crypto assets. The board has also submitted a report which lists all member countries’ crypto asset regulators to help them collaborate on regulations.

Crypto Exchange Registry

Among crypto-related topics to be discussed, finance ministers and central bankers from the G20 countries are expected to reach an agreement on creating a registry of crypto exchanges in an effort “to prevent virtual money laundering,” Nikkei Asian Review reported.

Japan is expected to lead the discussion, drawing from its own experience of requiring all crypto exchange operators in the country to register with its top financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency. So far, 19 exchange operators have successfully registered. They have to comply with strict rules imposed after one of the largest crypto exchanges in the country, Coincheck, was hacked in January last year. In September, a registered exchange, Zaif, was also hacked.

The tightened regulation has discouraged a number of operators from registering; some voluntarily withdrew their applications while others were rejected by the agency. Nonetheless, the regulator revealed to news.Bitcoin.com in March that over 140 more businesses had expressed interest in registration.

Financial Stability

The FSB continually assesses financial stability risks from crypto assets and reports to the G20. In March last year, the board reported that crypto assets did not pose material risks to global financial stability. In its report entitled “Crypto-assets: Work underway, regulatory approaches and potential gaps,” the board reaffirmed:

To date, the FSB continues to assess that crypto-assets do not pose material risks to global financial stability at present, but that they do raise a number of further policy issues beyond financial stability.

The European Central Bank shares the sentiment. In its May report, the bank stated that “At present, crypto-assets’ implications for and/or risks to the financial stability of the euro area, monetary policy, and payments and market infrastructures are limited or manageable.”

Another FSB report will be released in September which will include developments in stablecoins and tokenization. According to the FSB, the OECD is also “currently undertaking analytical work on tokenisation of assets and the impact a possible proliferation of such a mechanism would have on the financial markets, as well as around the benefits and risks of stablecoins.”

Guidance on Virtual Currencies

The G20 countries have already reaffirmed their support for the FATF as the global standard-setting body in areas of combating money laundering and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system. They have also agreed to follow the FATF recommendations including those concerning crypto assets.

The FATF has promised to release its new “Guidance on Virtual Currencies” this month. A number of countries such as Japan, Russia and South Korea, have already begun complying with the crypto standards created by the FATF, as news.Bitcoin.com reported.

Different Regulatory Approaches and Gaps

The FSB explains that regulatory gaps may arise when crypto assets are “outside the perimeter of market regulators and payment system oversight” and “from the absence of international standards or recommendations.” Noting as examples “issues around crypto-asset wallets as specific vehicles for storing crypto assets,” the board asserted that “The rapid technological evolution of crypto-asset markets may also influence regulatory approaches and give rise to regulatory gaps or areas that require more regulatory focus,” adding:

A forward-looking approach in monitoring crypto assets can help provide a basis for identifying potential gaps and areas that should be prioritised or focused on.

The board, therefore, “recommends that the G20 keep the topic of regulatory approaches and potential gaps, including the question of whether more coordination is needed, under review.”

Banks Engaging in Crypto Activities

The BCBS is assessing and responding to the risk crypto assets pose to the banking system. It has been monitoring crypto-related developments and is “developing high-level supervisory expectations for banks engaging in crypto-asset activities.” Currently, the Basel framework does not explicitly apply to banks with exposures to crypto assets but “it does set out minimum requirements for the capital and liquidity treatment of ‘other assets,'” the FSB clarifies:

The committee is now considering whether to formally clarify the prudential treatment of crypto-assets across the set of risk categories.

Central Bank Digital Currencies

A study on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) has been conducted by the CPMI whose work on crypto assets focuses on innovations in payments, clearing and settlement, and their impact on the current standards for financial market infrastructures.

While most central banks are interested, the study has found that they “appear to have identified the challenges of launching a CBDC, but are not yet convinced that the benefits (mainly of enhanced payments safety and efficiency) will outweigh the costs,” the FSB details:

The CPMI’s future work includes advising central banks to proceed with caution on CBDCs.

The committee will also continue to monitor “CBDCs and private digital tokens used for payments,” exchange information and analysis with regulators and global policymakers, as well as explore “potential legal issues relating to digital currencies.”

Investment Funds and Crypto Trading Platforms

The regulation of crypto trading platforms and investment funds with exposures to crypto assets are currently the focus of the IOSCO, the global standard setter for securities market regulation. A final report by the commission is expected by the end of the year. The FSB described:

IOSCO’s policy committee addressing enforcement issues has also created a portal through which its members can access and share information on enforcement and other issues relevant to crypto-assets and other digital threats.

The organization has also been focusing on initial coin offerings (ICOs). Having established an ICO Consultation Network for members to discuss their experiences and concerns, it will also develop an ICO Support Framework to assist members in dealing with the regulatory risks from token sales in their jurisdictions. Last week, the organization published a consultation paper entitled “Issues, risks and regulatory considerations relating to crypto-asset trading platforms” and has requested feedback on key considerations by July 29.

What do you think of the G20’s progress in regulating crypto assets? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Bloomberg, and the Japanese government.

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Bitcoin, BTC, Central Banks, Christine Lagarde, countries, crypto, crypto assets, Cryptocurrencies, Cryptocurrency, Digital Currency, fatf, finance ministers, fsb, G20, IMF, Japan, meeting, OECD, registry, regulate, Virtual Currency

Kevin Helms

A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography.

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coin-river-blog · 5 years

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In this day and age, more and more people rely on income from remote jobs, and businesses often hire professionals who are located elsewhere. Cross-border payments within the traditional financial system are slow and sometimes problematic. Employers and jobseekers can now use websites such as Workingforbitcoins.com to pay and be paid with cryptocurrencies.

Also read: Top Up Your Airtime Minutes With BCH Using Yovopay

Platform Supports P2P Payments Between Employers and Freelancers

Workingforbitcoins is a new platform that connects businesses with freelancers. Employers can use it to hire people for coins and crypto enthusiasts can find a job and be paid in their favorite digital currency. Five cryptocurrencies are supported at the moment – bitcoin cash (BCH), bitcoin core (BTC), litecoin (LTC), ethereum (ETH), and a token called experiencecoin.

The website has a useful search feature that lets you find job postings by keywords. You can also browse the ads by categories such as Software Development, Marketing, Blockchain, and Design. The latest crypto-paid jobs are listed on the homepage as well. Hit Ctrl+F, type BCH and you’ll be able to find those that are paid with bitcoin cash.

For example, the description for one ad reads: “Need an article of about 500 words translated from French to English. The article is about the qualities necessary to play chess well.” The author of the posting has set the budget for the project at 0.02 BCH (around $8 at the time of writing). Freelancers from the U.S., Canada, Norway, Nigeria, India, and Iran have made 14 bids for the job.

Workingforbitcoins is commission-free for freelancers who can search for jobs and also post a summary of what they can do for living. For instance, you can hire a translator with the nick “red” who is a Swiss national living in Beijing and translates blockchain-related content from English, Chinese and German to French. Red’s hourly rate is 0.00403 BTC (approx. $32).

Payments between the two sides are made on a peer-to-peer basis. Employers are required to provide the wallet address from which they intend to pay for the services of the hired freelancers. That’s in order to verify whether they have the funds for the task they want to outsource. Their crypto address is kept private. Job posters can initiate conversations with bidders using the platform’s chat system.

Have you used the services of a platform like Workingforbitcoins to find a job or a contractor paid in cryptocurrency? Share your experience in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Workingforbitcoins.

Do you need a reliable Bitcoin mobile wallet to send, receive, and store your coins? Download one for free from us and then head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can quickly buy BCH and BTC with a credit card.

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Ads, BCH, bitcoin cash, crypto payments, Cryptocurrencies, employers, Freelancers, jobs, platform, Postings, The Daily Tip, website, Workingforbitcoins

Lubomir Tassev

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coin-river-blog · 5 years

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Gold and bitcoin enjoy a curious relationship. On the one hand, there is a significant crossover between investors in both, particularly from libertarians who don’t trust the U.S. dollar. But on the other hand, initiatives such as #DropGold have sought to position bitcoin as a more portable, divisible and scarcer form of gold. Can bitcoin and gold co-exist, or does the supremacy of the one threaten the other?

Also read: Electron Cash Users Can Now Send Bitcoin Cash to Mobile Phones

Bitcoin and Gold – Allies or Enemies?

Lately, bitcoin vs. gold has been presented as a zero sum game in which only one asset can thrive at the expense of the other. Grayscale Investments, creators of the “Drop gold. Buy bitcoin!” campaign, make it clear where their loyalties lie. “It’s not that gold is bad. It’s just that bitcoin is better,” they venture. This is is a matter of some debate, especially given that bitcoin’s utility as a gold-like store of value is fiercely contested within the cryptocurrency community.

Fortunately, you don’t need to plant your flag in either camp to benefit from exposure to both assets. Whether you believe bitcoin is best suited as a store of value or medium of exchange is immaterial. Likewise, whether you believe gold is a safe haven uncorrelated with global currencies, or a more trusted alternative to bitcoin, backed as it is by thousands of years of reputation, makes little difference. Provided you see value in both, there’s benefits to acquiring both, ideally without needing to convert to fiat along the way.

Peter Schiff

Renowned stockbroker and libertarian Peter Schiff enables investors to purchase gold and silver using BCH and BTC, via Schiffgold.com, and to take physical delivery of it. Buying precious metals doesn’t have to necessitate assuming custody of course – in fact in most cases it doesn’t. Yield-bearing crypto company Kinesis has initiated an EU and U.K.-wide debit card program with Contis Group, using real assets of gold and silver as the basis for digital currencies, which have a 1:1 allocation with physical bullion, essentially making gold spendable.

Another way of obtaining exposure to gold without ever setting eyes on an ingot is through Currency.com, which enables tokenized commodities to be traded including spot gold, at up to 100X leverage, using BTC or ETH. Like bitcoin, gold can assume many forms for investors, with derivatives, synthetic products, and third party custody taking precedence over non-custodial solutions. There’s the Digix gold token (DGT), for instance, tradable on various cryptocurrency exchanges, each unit of which represents one gram of gold.

Gold market on Currency.com

Bitcoin and Gold Share Many Similarities

From an investment perspective, you don’t have to ascribe to the Store of Value thesis for bitcoin – or gold – to see it as a worthy long-term hold. One reason why both assets are attractive as part of a well-rounded investment portfolio is because they can increase its Sharpe Ratio. Investing in assets that have low correlation to one another can enhance a portfolio’s risk-adjusted return. While not immune from global economic downturn, bitcoin and gold have shown remarkable resilience to events that have dampened the world’s economy.

The beauty of each asset is that it can be many things to many people, and thus everyone has their own reasons for acquiring gold or bitcoin. Whether you favor gold for its beauty, its scarcity, or its intrinsic value is your prerogative. It’s the same with bitcoin, which can be locked away in a hardware wallet or used to purchase everyday goods and services. If you’ve got the means, you don’t have to drop gold to buy bitcoin or vice-versa – you can have both.

What are your thoughts on bitcoin and gold – do you think these assets complement one another? Let us know in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Bitcoin.com does not endorse or support claims made by any parties in this article. None of the information in this article is intended as investment advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or as a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Kai Sedgwick

Kai's been playing with words for a living since 2009 and bought his first bitcoin at $12. It's long gone. He's previously written white papers for blockchain startups and is especially interested in P2P exchanges and DNMs.

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coin-river-blog · 5 years

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Cryptocurrency needs places where you can spend it. Bitcoin cash, with its low-cost and fast transactions, is a good option for merchants and buyers. A platform called Greenpages.cash helps you find stores that will readily accept your BCH.

Also read: New Browser Extension Enhances BCH Addresses for Easy Tipping

BCH Merchant Directory Lists Over 1,000 Stores

Greenpages.cash is a community-maintained BCH merchant directory that currently lists well over 1,000 merchants processing bitcoin cash payments. You can find both brick and mortar and online stores accepting BCH. A useful search feature allows you to look for a particular platform by name, product and service, or location.

The website offers many filtering options that will let you pull listings by categories. For example, you can search for physical stores where bitcoin cash is accepted. Alternatively, you can find gift card sellers and Openbazaar vendors. You can also select products and services offered on the Forra online marketplace or reachable via the Tor browser.

Green Pages has a separate section for merchants selling gift cards which offer you a great opportunity to spend BCH indirectly in stores that don’t currently accept cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin.com is one of the listed vendors. Check out our Spend Bitcoin Cash page, where you can shop online for a variety of products and order gift cards of major retailers such as Adidas, Macy’s, and The Home Depot.

The BCH merchant directory has an interactive map that allows you to locate hundreds of stores around the world where bitcoin cash is accepted for payments. The page lets you calculate the price of the cryptocurrency in U.S. dollars, euros, British pounds or Chinese yuan. You can also learn the latest news and developments in the crypto space from news.Bitcoin.com.

What other platforms listing BCH supporting merchants do you know? Tell us in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Greenpages.cash.

Enjoy the easiest way to buy Bitcoin online with us. Download your free Bitcoin wallet and head to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can buy BCH and BTC securely.

Lubomir Tassev

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There’s been furious debate over the last few years on whether or not Satoshi created Bitcoin to be a peer-to-peer cash system or a purpose-built store of value. Lately, a few BTC proponents claim that Satoshi deliberately built Bitcoin to be a store of value (SoV). Despite the SoV narrative, the cofounder of OB1, Samuel Patt, wrote an in-depth research report uncovering nearly “everything Satoshi ever wrote,” which makes him firmly believe Satoshi’s invention was really “built for payments.”

Also read: Bitcoin.com’s Local Bitcoin Cash Marketplace Is Now Open for Trading

Store of Value Vs. Payments

BTC maximalists have been pushing the idea that Satoshi Nakamoto purposely designed Bitcoin to be a store-of-value (SoV) or the next digital gold. This debate has raged on for years, but more recently certain so-called thought leaders have determined that Bitcoin was meant to be an SoV and there’s absolutely no way it was designated to be peer-to-peer cash. Some have even said that Satoshi used the words peer-to-peer and cash because they think he/she couldn’t come up with anything better, while some have had the audacity to say they would go back in time and remove the words “cash” from the white paper.

One BTC proponent, Dan Held, cofounder of Zeroblock and Interchange HQ, has been bolstering the SoV narrative for quite some time. Held calls bitcoiners who believe otherwise the “cheap payments side” and often dismisses those who disagree him by saying “you don’t get it.” “Still think Bitcoin was meant for cheap coffee payments? Then you need to read this thread,” explained Held on Twitter. Throughout the subsequent thread, Held shares a variety of quotes from Satoshi that makes him believe the technology was purposely built to serve as a store of value.

However, on June 6 the cofounder of OB1, Samuel Patt, stated that he disagrees with the SoV theory and Held’s subjective valuation. OB1’s Patt has written a post called the “Breakdown of all Satoshi’s Writings Proves Bitcoin not Built Primarily as a Store of Value,” which shows Satoshi’s writings predominantly lean toward a payment system. Patt’s highly detailed post combs through hundreds of forum threads, emails from Satoshi, and the software itself. “After reviewing all of Satoshi’s writings, I can confidently state that Bitcoin was not purpose-built to first be a store of value — It was built for payments,” the research paper notes. Alongside this, Patt says he is merely debating the historical premise that BTC was purpose-built to be an SoV. Not what BTC is today or what it should be in the future, the author details.

“But that doesn’t mean that people should be given a free pass to rewrite history and make false claims about Satoshi’s intentions,” Patt writes. “That’s intellectually dishonest and needs to be called out.”

Satoshi Made Statements Supportive of the Payments Side and Never Discouraged Others From Talking About in This Manner

Patt’s research cites every single tweet within Held’s SoV Twitter thread and countless other comments from Satoshi’s online statements. Satoshi had also mentioned Bitcoin as a use case for payments 34 times and Patt also highlights that throughout the many Bitcointalk.org threads Satoshi never corrected people for referencing Bitcoin as a payment vehicle. “Satoshi encouraged these efforts and joined in many of these threads,” Patt details. The OB1 cofounder also details how people like Held have stated that Satoshi only mentioned these things to get the attention of cypherpunks.

Patt suggests that Held believes that Satoshi created an elaborate “marketing” scheme in order to get people to use Bitcoin. To Patt, the answer is far simpler than these claims. “Satoshi intended Bitcoin to be used for payments, and he reached out to the cypherpunks because he knew they would like the idea — Occam’s razor applies here, there’s no reason to propose a substantially more complex answer than the simple one,” Patt’s research paper details.

Crypto Luminaries Weigh In

Throughout the day, a few other well-known cryptocurrency advocates revealed that they agreed with Patt’s research. I’ve always maintained that payments were what Satoshi originally intended Bitcoin for, not ‘Store of Value,’” explained Vinny Lingham on Twitter. “That said, he left Bitcoin, so the community is now in control, for better or worse.” Multicoin Capital managing partner Tushar Jain said: “Satoshi clearly built BTC to be a medium of exchange — It’s literally called peer to peer digital cash in the title of the white paper.” Cornell professor Emin Gün Sirer shared his opinion as well concerning Samuel Patt’s study and stated:

An incredibly careful, detailed, and devastating post that takes down the false narrative that Satoshi was attempting to build a Store of Value.

Of course, Held and other SoV fans disagreed with Patt’s research and observations. Juan Galt detailed on Twitter that “Bitcoin was purpose-built to end central bank manipulation over interest rates and money supply.” “As to what the best technical path to get there is, the market continues to vote, Store of Value first, then Medium of exchange later, after scale, volume and price stability,” Galt added.

Held insisted he was “the first ever include both the white paper, forum posts, protocol, and timing” all of which he wrote to battle the “muh payments narrative.” It remains to be seen which narrative will triumph in the end with this seemingly never-ending debate. There are a lot of crypto enthusiasts who believe that a peer-to-peer electronic cash system is needed to bolster economic prosperity and don’t believe that people just holding and mere speculation works well over time. Over the last few months, the conversation concerning Bitcoin being specifically designed to be an SoV caused Patt to respond in a very detailed manner. It’s likely the crypto community will continue to debate this subject until people are truly satisfied that the market has answered.

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What do you think about the debate about Bitcoin being designed to be an SoV versus a P2P payment system? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, Samuel Patt, and Pixabay.

At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, check out our Tools page!

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Bitcoin, bitcoin cash, BTC, Dan Held, Emin Gün Sirer, gold, Luminaries, Maximalists, OB1, OpenBazaar, P2P Cash, Payments, Purpose-built, Samuel Patt, Satoshi, Satoshi’s statements, SOV, store of value, Thought leaders, Tushar Jain, Vinny Lingham, White Paper

Jamie Redman

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The developers behind the Bitcoin-Cash-based Electron Cash light client have added a slew of new features to the latest 4.0.6 version. Now Electron Cash users can send bitcoin cash to mobile phones via the Cointext service. In addition to this new functionality, the Cashshuffle implementation within the wallet now permits up to 99.9999 BCH per shuffle, instead of the default 50 BCH the platform previously allowed.

Also read: Bitcoin.com’s Local Bitcoin Cash Marketplace Is Now Open for Trading

Developers Add Cointext Functionality to the Latest Electron Cash Release

The Electron Cash wallet is a light client that offers Bitcoin Cash (BCH) users a bunch of versatility and privacy. The wallet was the first to introduce a noncustodial solution for Simple Ledger Protocol (SLP) tokens and Electron Cash (EC) users can create SLP tokens with a specific SLP version of EC. The light client also introduced the privacy-enhancing Cashshuffle protocol to the platform and BCH supporters who utilize EC can shuffle their bitcoin cash for added transaction obfuscation. On June 6, the developers upped the ante once again by adding various improvements to Electron Cash version 4.0.6. The first addition has excited the BCH community as the latest EC version gives users the ability to send BCH to mobile phones via Cointext.

Roughly three weeks ago the BCH-based and open source Android wallet Crescent Cash also added the ability to send coin through Cointext. This means that with EC implementing the Cointext feature, BCH users now have a few noncustodial solutions to choose from if they want to utilize this feature. After the latest EC 4.0.6 version release the Youtube channel Bitcoin Out Loud published a video that shows how EC users can send BCH to any mobile phone. BCH supporters were thrilled to hear the news and discussed the topic on the Reddit forum r/btc.

“Amazing work everyone — This is why BCH has a future,” one person remarked on the forum. “So many epic projects are happening here while ‘other’ projects are stagnating.”

Cashshuffle Shuffle Limit Extended to 99.9 BCH

Essentially, in order to use the Cointext option with EC simply enter ‘cointext: ANY_PHONE_NUMBER’ (e.g cointext:12125551234) in the send tab. There’s also a new transaction dialog feature that allows you to get accurate fees, input addresses and input amounts for any transaction in the wallet. Another notable improvement that should add more liquidity to the Cashshuffle protocol is the raised default shuffle limit to 99.9999 BCH. The former version of EC had a Cashshuffle default limit set to 50 BCH and now a great number of coins can be shuffled at once.

Electron Cash is so far the only wallet that has implemented the Cashshuffle protocol but since the release of the Cashshuffle library and statements from other wallet curators, that will change in the near future. People utilizing the EC wallet to shuffle coins have completed 10,422 shuffles since the official Cashshuffle launch on March 27, 2019. So far, 51,295 BCH or $21 million at current bitcoin cash prices has been shuffled. The latest Cointext implementation offered by the Electron Cash wallet also follows Cointext and Anypay’s recent remittance solution announced on June 3. Bitcoin cash payment processors, supporters and now infrastructure providers who develop wallets are finding great value in providing individuals with the ability to send BCH to any phone with SMS messaging capabilities.

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What do you think about EC adding Cointext abilities and the latest Cashshuffle limit increase for shuffling coins? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, Electron Cash, Acidsploit’s stat page, and Pixabay.

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BCH, BCH Supporters, bitcoin cash, Cashshuffle, Cointext, Crescent Cash, Cryptocurrency, Default Limit Increase, Developers, EC, EC 4.0.6 version release, Electron Cash, New Release, Noncustodial Wallet, Sending BCH via Text, Shuffling 99.9999 BCH, Simple Ledger Protocol, Simple Ledger Tokens, SLP version, SMS Messaging, Text Messages

Jamie Redman

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With its higher adoption rate and sharp increase in its price day to day, XRP has gained high momentum in the market and it is quite likely that it will continue to appreciate.

Recently, Jesse Torres, a top community influencer, author and entrepreneur conducted a poll on Twitter that asked the audience to vote for the cryptocurrency of their choice. Surprisingly, XRP gained the highest vote, despite being at the third position on the market capitalization chart. The other included options for the poll were Bitcoin, Ethereum, and others.

What’s your cryptocurrency of choice?

— Jesse Torres (@jstorres) June 4, 2019

XRP won the poll by achieving 65% of the total votes and was considered as the majority. Whereas Bitcoin gained 19% followed by Ethereum with 5%. It is also seen that the comments on the tweets favored suggesting Skycoin as their choice with its value of $1.73 USD.

This tweet by Jesse Torres has created a hype among the crypto enthusiasts. As a top bank influencer, Torres himself suggests that XRP would be on the top very soon. This has resulted in favor of XRP to gain a lot of appreciation. Also, in one of his comments on the same post, Torres hints that XRP would replace SWIFT soon.

He comments:

“On the prospect of it replacing SWIFT. If it was successful it would blow away pretty much anything out there. But that’s a big “if”.”

In this case, Torres believes that XRP has the capacity to replace SWIFT yet there’s still a lot of things to be considered. Everyone will want to tap into the most liquid, industry standard settlement asset at that point. As the XRP team has been working for years over it, if they make a way, there’s possibly a chance that it would replace SWIFT in mere future.

Apart from its recent adoptions worldwide, XRP still ranks at the third place on the market capitalization with $0.420119 USD. It has a volume of $17,745,397,043 USD with a positive mark of 4.24% in past 24hr observation.

So readers, what’s your choice of Cryptocurrency? And why would you suggest it to your fellas? Let us know in the comment section.

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There’s a lot of debate over whether bitcoin mining is bad for the environment. Many bureaucrats and mainstream media pundits claim that mining is wasteful and bitcoin’s energy consumption cannot be ignored. However, these claims have been refuted in the past and on June 6, Coinshares published a report that details mining is not environmentally imprudent but rather 74.1% of the Bitcoin mining industry is “heavily” driven by renewable energy sources.

Also read: Report Insists ‘Bitcoin Was Not Purpose-Built to First Be a Store of Value’

Bitcoin Mining Operations and Renewable Energy

There’s been clamoring over the years concerning bitcoin mining and how people believe the energy resources the industry consumes is reckless. For instance, there have been countless reports stemming from China that allege Chinese politicians are negative about the mining industry within the country. For years now the majority of bitcoin miners have been based in China and recently the country’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) wrote on April 9 that the department believes bitcoin mining “wastes resources and pollutes the environment.” This week Coinshares, a crypto investment products and research company, published an in-depth report that states otherwise and highlights how renewable energy is dominant within the bitcoin mining industry.

Chart source: Coinshares June 2019 Bitcoin Mining Report.

Throughout the report, Coinshares explained how the firm researched the efficiency, electricity consumption, electricity sources, geographical distribution, and composition of the mining network on the BTC chain. At the moment the study explains that the market average since November for the cost of creation at $0.05 per KWh and “depreciation schedules has decreased from approximately $6,800 to approximately $5,600.” This means at current prices mining bitcoin is very profitable and the researchers note that even older mining rigs are competitive. The biggest takeaway from Coinshare’s report is that most mining facilities are located near renewable energy suppliers. Coinshare’s June 2019 study states:

We calculate a conservative estimate of the renewables penetration in the energy mix powering the Bitcoin mining network at 74.1%, making Bitcoin mining more renewables-driven than almost every other large-scale industry in the world.

Chart source: Coinshares June 2019 Bitcoin Mining Report.

China Still Dominates Manufacturing, Older Mining Rigs Become Cashflow Positive, and the Penetration of Next-Gen Miners

According to the report, BTC miners captured an estimated $5.5 billion in block rewards and roughly $300 million in transaction fees. 97% of the $5.5 billion consisted of newly minted coins stemming from the block reward. While observing the mining industry Coinshares spotted two macro trends which include a large number of liquidations and bankruptcies and the “first at-scale deployment of the latest generation mining gear.” Coinshares also discussed the ~40% drop in hashrate during Q4 2018 and two separate drivers sparking the recent spike in hashrate. “The re-starting of much of the previously shuttered mining gear as the Bitcoin price recovery has caused even previous-generation mining units to become cashflow positive at commonly attainable wet-season electricity prices,” Coinshare’s report notes. The report also highlights the penetration of next-generation machines and asserts that the “deployment of next-generation mining gear at appreciable scale, predominantly in Sichuan, in line with the advent of the wet-season” was also a contributing factor.

Chart source: Coinshares June 2019 Bitcoin Mining Report.

Coinshares says that it is true there is uncertainty when it comes to Chinese miners and the government’s policy toward them. However, unlike the mainstream media, Coinshare underlines the big difference between local municipalities and the national government’s treatment toward the mining industry. The report emphasizes that China still plays a leading role within the mining sector and claims:

On the other hand, Chinese dominance in the hardware manufacturing sector remains as strong as ever and is showing no immediate signs of reduction. Even if the most damning rumours of Bitmain’s struggles were true (we have our doubts), it would have minimal impact on Chinese dominance in the miner manufacturing sector as all other relevant manufacturers are also Chinese.

Chart source: Blockchain.com – timespan: 2 years

The report also reveals an estimated electricity draw from the mining industry which assumes that currently the entire bitcoin mining industry is consuming roughly 4.7 GW worldwide. With the renewable power generation in the mining industry capturing more than four times the global average, the number has still has dropped a hair since last November. Last year’s November report detailed the amount of renewable energy-dependent miners was 77.8%, but Coinshares notes this is due to a recent upstart of smaller mining clusters using fossil fuels.

“Overall, our findings reaffirm our view that Bitcoin mining is acting as a global electricity buyer of last resort and therefore tends to cluster around comparatively under-utilised renewables infrastructure,” the research report concludes. “This could help turn loss-making renewables projects profitable and in time—as the industry matures and settles as permanent in the public eye — could act as a driver of new renewables developments in locations that were previously uneconomical.”

What do you think about the latest Coinshares report that notes the mining industry is using renewable power heavily across the globe? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Blockchain.com, and Coinshares June 2019 Mining Report.

Did you know Bitcoin.com offers cloud mining contracts? Both BCH and BTC: You can either choose to mine Bitcoin Cash (BCH) or Bitcoin Core (BTC), and you can easily switch between the two at any time. Check it out today!

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Bitcoin Core, Bitcoin mining, BTC, China, chinese miners, Clean Energy, Coinshares, Electrical consumption, Electricity, Energy, environment, geothermal, GREEN Energy, Hash, Hashrate, hydro, price recovery, Renewable Energy, renewable energy sources, report, Research, Solar, Wasteful, wet season, wind

Jamie Redman

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Latest Ripple News

The financial landscape is not smooth. There are dents, financial gullies, and a fitting sink is necessary if not mandatory. In a market reeling from 2018 turmoil, XRP performance is not as impressive.

The asset may be trading in the top-5, rubbing shoulders with ETH but underperforming and lagging. That’s despite a stream of bullish news in the last five months. Setting the foundation for a possible upside is the shifting regulatory tone.

As a San Francisco based startup with big ambitions of replacing SWIFT as a preferred platform for cross border transactions, comments from the main regulator, the SEC, is shaping. Luckily, in a recent directive, the SEC Director of Corporation Finance William Hinman said they may change their standing on crypto projects with a use case even if their crowd funding did cross the line.

All the creators of the project have to do is demonstrate use case and thus, its viability. Ripple, as it is in the public domain, has their troubles with the law demanding immediate clarity from the concerned.

Note that there is a lawsuit where three plaintiffs are seeking damages because Brad Garlinghouse and Ripple allegedly sold them securities with a promise of reaping big from their investment. All in all, XRP status clarification will be a big boost, opening doors for xRapid adoption.

XRP/USD Price Analysis

At the back of a MoneyGram acquisition rumor, XRP shot, adding 3.9 percent in the last day. Even though losses are visible in the last week, that was enough to rejuvenate bulls, propelling prices above the 40 cents mark.

Because of yesterday’s upsurges, there is a double bar bull reversal pattern off the 50 percent Fibonacci retracement level as buyers press higher, rejecting lower lows. Despite the uncertainty, there is opportunity for aggressive traders to ramp up on dips while targeting 50 cents.

On the other hand, conservative traders should wait for a firm close above 50 cents or May high before fine tuning entries in smaller time frames with targets at 60 cents or 80 cents of Sep 2018 high.

Ideally, what should mark this upward correction above this 10 cents correction with caps at 50 cents is a spike in trading volumes exceeding those of May 14th of 187 million. That will spark an interest of XRP, driving demand and price as a result.

All in all, any liquidation forcing XRP to change hands below 34 cents at the back of increasing volumes nullifies this upbeat projection.

Chart courtesy of Trading View—Binance

Disclaimer: Views and opinions expressed are those of the author and aren’t investment advice. Trading of any form involves risk and so do your due diligence before making a trading decision.

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Mobile communications are becoming more accessible every day. While subscription plans are the way to go in most cases, a prepaid service can be a better choice for customers in certain situations. A platform called Yovopay lets you refill your airtime using cryptocurrencies including bitcoin cash.

Also read: Greenpages.cash Will Help You Find Merchants Accepting Bitcoin Cash

Purchase Mobile Services With Crypto in 130 Countries

Yovopay allows crypto holders to pay for services offered by over 500 prepaid mobile operators around the world. The long list of supported providers includes well-known names such as AT&T, Verizon, Vodafone, Orange, Telenor, Viber, and Мегафон working in more than 130 countries. Yovopay has a full list of all supported jurisdictions and operators on its website.

Prepaid mobile services are still popular in many countries with low-income populations and also among travelers who would like to save on expensive roaming charges. With most companies in the sector still shying away from digital coins, they could also be a good option for crypto enthusiasts with the help of Yovopay and similar businesses.

How It Works

To order a refill for your prepaid plan you need to first choose a country code and enter your phone number and then select an operator. On the next page you’ll be prompted to pick one of the top-up amounts for that particular provider. Once you do so, you will be taken to a page where you’ll see a summary of your order. Before finalizing it, you’ll have to provide a valid email address to receive instructions on how to redeem your purchase.

After ticking a box to agree with the terms of service and privacy policy, you’ll be able to pay the bill with cryptocurrency. Yovopay allows you to check out with Coingate, a payment gateway that allows web-based businesses to accept payments in many of the most popular cryptocurrencies. That includes bitcoin cash (BCH) which is an optimal choice with its cheap and fast transactions.

Buying a £5 voucher from Vodafone UK, for example, will cost you 0.0181 BCH, at the time of writing. According to the price quoted by Google, that will be around £5.65 GBP. As Yovopay do not provide detailed information about the applicable fees on their website, it’s wise to check the final amount before ordering and sending the coins.

The operator of the platform, Yovo Services Ltd., is based in crypto-friendly Malta. In the past couple of years, the island nation which is an EU member state has become a hub for crypto and blockchain businesses, many of which have already opened an office there and registered under its dedicated laws and regulations.

Would you buy airtime minutes with cryptocurrencies from platforms like Yovopay? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Are you looking for a secure way to buy Bitcoin online? Start by downloading your free Bitcoin wallet from us and then head over to our Purchase Bitcoin page where you can easily buy BCH and BTC.

Lubomir Tassev

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There are perks to working for Blockstream, aside from having to answer to Samson Mow. Developers for the Bitcoin Core software company are alleged to earn up to $850K per year thanks to a “stock option” that sees them paid 20% of their salary in BTC. That BTC is pegged at the price bitcoin was at in 2014, meaning that employees are paid around 85 BTC annually as part of their salary, a bonus of around $700K at current prices. That’s according to a new website called Cashbleed that claims to lift the lid on Blockstream’s salary structure.

Also read: In a World Where Central Planners Push Debt, Cryptocurrencies Look Better Every Day

Blockstream and the Reputed Golden Handcuffs Deal

Technically speaking, Blockstream employees could walk away from the company any time they want. In practice, there is no incentive to do so thanks to a salary option in which 20% of their wage is payable in BTC, perennially capped to the price it was at in 2014 when the firm was founded. That’s according to Cashbleed.com, a controversial website registered in the last 48 hours that makes some back of the envelope calculations and some bold claims.

The website describes the arrangement as a “scheme” that is ongoing, making it “very difficult for investors to get a return on their investment.” Blockstream, responsible for such Bitcoin Core technology as Segwit and Liquid, has raised $101M over three rounds from the likes of AXA and Mosaic Ventures. Cashbleed ventures: “Suppose an engineer was hired at $150,000 a year, and an extra 20% of their salary was paid as a bonus on top in Bitcoin. 20% of the salary would be $30,000. Blockstream then pays that amount in BTC assuming a price of $350/BTC. $30,000 / $350 = ~85 BTC to the employee, worth roughly $700,000.” It continues:

In effect the employee earns $850,000 a year. The salaries of senior executives are likely to be higher than this modest amount for an engineer.

The site came to light after Bitcoin.org owner Cobra tweeted a link to Cashbleed.com, writing in withering terms of how “Blockstream’s employees have been paying themselves grossly inflated salaries, despite the company’s lack of success with any real products.”

Allegations Receive a Mixed Response

Reaction to the allegations has been mixed, with Blockstream acolytes leaping to the company’s defense, while others have blanched at the sky-high salaries staff are allegedly entitled to. “So what?” shrugged one commenter. “They negotiated to be paid in the currency of their choice and it’s appreciated in value against USD. They took both the upside and downside risk.” “I would be pretty pissed if the company I worked for rescinded a stock option agreement after 5 years just because the stocks became 22x more valuable,” defended another Blockstream supporter. “If they purchased the BTC for the purpose of satisfying employee compensation packages the BTC isn’t even theirs to begin with.”

Estimated pay for Blockstream employees according to Cashbleed

If the alleged pay structure is broadly accurate, it may be so generous as to threaten Blockstream’s sustainability, according to Cashbleed. The website claims: “These obscene salaries are quickly depleting Blockstream’s Bitcoin reserves. We estimate the company won’t be able to survive more than a year of operation without raising another round of investment.”

On Subreddit forum r/btc, most commenters took aim at the source of the news, Cobra, with one instructing: “There is no evidence, it’s all made up. No sources, no nothing, just made up numbers and theories. Don’t fall for the snake’s tactics. Next week he’ll be back to praising Blockstream and bad mouthing BCH like he always does. He just wants a paycheck from Blockstream.”

Cobra is an enigmatic character who is known for his fierce and often contradictory opinions. In the past year, for example, he has oscillated between support for bitcoin core and bitcoin cash. Regardless of the veracity of the allegations, if Cobra was looking to cause a stir, he succeeded. On crypto Twitter, the debate rumbles on about one of the most controversial companies in Bitcoin and its controversial antagonist, Cobra.

Do you think these allegations about Blockstream are true? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Kai Sedgwick

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coin-river-blog · 5 years

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Economists have been predicting a worldwide recession which could pose a risk to financial stability throughout various countries. Fear of an economic downturn has caused the central bank of Australia to cut interests rates on Tuesday and both the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Reserve Bank of India are in the midst of discussing slashing interest rates as well. What is more frightening is the fact that smaller financial institutions are also offering negative interest rates to consumers in a predatory fashion.

Also read: Bitcoin Cash Markets and Network Gather Strong Momentum in Q1

Governments and Financial Institutions Push More Debt, Negative Interest Rates, and Trade Wars

On June 4, an international contributing editor from the publication Sovereign Man discussed how he was offered a 10-year mortgage from Denmark, Nordea with a negative interest rate of minus 0.12%. The writer detailed how he once thought that this type of lending traditionally stemmed from big banking institutions but nowadays he says “negative interest rates are the norm.” “In other words, the bank would pay me to take out a loan — Thousands, if not tens of thousands of Danes will go out and take out mortgages that will pay them every month.” The Sovereign Man editorial emphasizes “how broken the financial system really is.”

“Now, institutions and governments are incentivizing people to consume, instead of save. In fact, they’re paying people to go into debt,” the editorial details.

The day before the central bank of Australia cut interests rates for the first time in three years. Interestingly, on the same day, the Reserve Bank of India’s six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) started discussing slashing rates to help curb inflation as well. In addition to India and Australia, the St Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard and Fed Chair Jerome Powell talked about an interest rate cut too because the U.S. dollar has been under a lot of pressure. To make matters worse, the world is dealing with the current trade war spawned by U.S. President Trump. The World Bank Group, a family of five international financial organizations, coincidentally downgraded its 2019 growth forecast because of subdued trade growth.

The World Bank Group downgraded the global economy’s growth outlook n a report published on June 4, 2019.

Making the Insanity of the Financial System Work for Your Benefit

In the midst of all the fears of a spiraling economy possibly heading toward another deep recession, Sovereign Man editor Alex Moneton asserts that “it isn’t all doom and gloom.” In fact, when the global economy seems backward, Moneton and many others believe “you can make the insanity of the financial system work for your benefit.” There are alternative investments that can be extremely profitable in the future, Moneton claims, and all it takes is some willingness to find them and patience.

Sovereign Man describes investing in certain low-valued tech companies that have a solid foundation, but there are also the opportunities presented by cryptocurrencies. Digital currencies like bitcoin cash (BCH) and many others have outshined traditional investment assets like oil, gold, and popular stocks this year. Meanwhile, economic fears this year have pushed gold (Au) prices higher as Au values tallied a fifth straight session climb this week, capturing decent gains month after month since the first of the year. But Carlo Alberto De Casa, chief analyst at broker Activtrades, has written that gold prices are nearing all-time highs again and have yet to press past the upper resistance.

“The next target could now be the resistance area of $1,350-$1,370, a level which has always stopped gold in the last 4 years,” the analyst wrote this week.

Even though gold has been a safe haven asset for millennia, digital assets have proven to be more suited for permissionless free trade. Gold will likely still hold value due to its intrinsic value for things like jewelry and electronic components and people have always appreciated that Au is scarce. But cryptocurrencies like bitcoin cash (BCH) are not only scarce, but they also allow people to send the funds across borders for less than a U.S. penny per transaction. You cannot move $10 million dollars worth of Au so easily across the world due to gold’s weight, the need for strong security, and shipping costs. Even the head of Real Asset Strategy at Wells Fargo, John LaForge, revealed on May 28 that he believes investors are not looking toward the shiny yellow metal these days. LaForge told the press that gold prices no longer look attractive and investors should look elsewhere for defensive assets.

Cryptocurrencies Are Defensive Assets Due to Their Provision of Permissionless Capital Mobility in a World of Austerity Measures and Economic Uncertainty

Alternative investments like cryptocurrencies have shown incredible resilience this year and have been climatic in comparison to even gold’s rise in value. For instance, gold (Au) was priced at $1,284 per troy ounce on Jan. 1, 2019 and has increased 3.97% when spot markets opened this morning on June 6 at $1,335 per ounce. In contrast, bitcoin cash (BCH) prices on Jan. 1, 2019 were around $150 per unit and since then BCH prices ($385 per coin at press time) have increased in value by a whopping 156%. In a world that’s filled with predatory negative interest lending, trade war escalation, central banks causing more economic busts and booms, and nation-state issued currencies suffering from hyperinflation, digital assets continue to look better every single day.

Economists are predicting the world is headed toward a deep recession that could resemble the hard times global citizens experienced in 2008 or worse. The value of sending permissionless hard money like BCH across borders is becoming greater than ever. As Sovereign Man discussed, markets aren’t rational, but there are ways to escape the wrath of the storm. Beneath all the chaos there are smart investors making key decisions at a time when precious metals markets and global equity markets are becoming archaic relics. While the economy falters, the acceleration of cryptocurrency performance will shine brightly as an investment in permissionless capital mobility coupled with noncustodial solutions. If hard economic times push more individuals toward the incentives of cryptos, it might just be the learning experience people need to stop making the same economic mistakes over and over again.

What do you think about the world economy and where it’s heading? Do you believe a global recession is coming? Do you think cryptocurrencies like bitcoin cash are defensive assets against failing currencies and the faltering economy? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Images credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, The World Bank Group, and Pixabay.

Now live, Markets.Bitcoin.com – A comprehensive, real-time listing of the cryptocurrency market valuations. View prices, charts, transaction volumes, and more for the top 500 cryptocurrencies trading today.

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Alex Moneton, AU, Australia, BCH, bitcoin cash, Boom and Bust, capital mobility, Carlo Alberto De Casa, Cryptocurrencies, Economy, Fed Chair Jerome Powell, Federal Reserve, gold, Gold Vs Bitcoin Cash, James Bullard, John LaForge, Negative Interest Rates, Reserve Bank of India, Sovereign Man

Jamie Redman

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