Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Bank Veterans Raise $1.5 Million for Digital Asset Startup
Monday, September 5, 2016

Yours Wants to Take Bitcoin Mainstream by Targeting Non-Bitcoin Communities

Back to School: Blockchain Education Network to Host Global Bitcoin Airdrop
Friday, September 2, 2016

Bitmain Is Launching a Silent Miner and PSU to Bring Mining Back Home
Beijing-based Bitmain Technologies Limited, owner of the Antminer series of bitcoin miners, Hashnest,
Antpool and BTC.com, is launching early next week the world’s most silent multi-terahash bitcoin miner
and a silent 2600W PSU specially designed for high-performance mining.
The Antminer R4 uses the world’s most power-efficient 16nm BM1387 ASIC chip for bitcoin mining. It can
deliver a hashrate of 8.6TH/s with a power efficiency of 0.1J/GH and a noise level less than 50dB. At an
ambient temperature of 35°C, the R4’s noise level is 52dB.
The Antminer R4 has been designed with great care to ensure the least possible sound with the maximum
hashrate. It replaces the traditional miner fan with a rotary blade system inspired by the fan of a silent
split air conditioner. The speed of this unique fan is automatically controlled to ensure that it never
produces more sound than is absolutely necessary. The slim design of the Antminer R4 allows it to be
conveniently placed in a book rack or computer table at home.
The APW5 power supply is compatible with the 220V as well as the 110V mains power supply in North
America. On full load, it has a power factor greater than 0.95. With a 220V supply it can deliver an
output of 2600W. It comes with seven 6-pin PCI-e connectors but can easily be fitted with 14 or 20 PCI-e
connectors. It is built for high-power performance and low noise. Like that of the R4, the APW5’s fan is
automatically controlled so it only produces as much sound as is absolutely necessary.
For home users who wish to utilize R4’s exceptional noise level with the optimum performance, Bitmain
highly recommends that they use it with Bitmain’s APW5 power supply.
With the release of these products, Bitmain hopes to bring bitcoin mining back to homes and continue
decentralizing the bitcoin mining network.
Thursday, September 1, 2016

'Settlement Coin' is All About Banks, Not Blockchain

Blockchain Startup Symbiont Adds Ex-Morgan Stanley Director
Wednesday, August 31, 2016

US Health Department Selects 15 Blockchain Research Contest Winners

UNTRACEABLE CRYPTOCURRENCY MONERO IS BOOMING
The value of Monero has more than tripled in the last ten days moving from around $2.47 to $8.10 as at the time of this publication.
Described as the new digital currency that online drug-dealers have started to adopt because it enables them to conduct business with more anonymity, the price of two-year-old Monero skyrocketed lately, driven by the announcement of several darknet markets to accept Monero as payment.
AlphaBay, one of the most popular sites for buying drugs like liquid LSD and hybrid cannabis, said last week it has partnered Oasis to begin accepting Monero on September 1. This led to increased media coverage, attracting more speculators towards the currency.
Whether the factor behind the quick rise is solely due to darknet markets’ adoption is unknown. However, with the report by RAND Europe that says illegal drug transactions on cryptomarkets have tripled since 2013, with revenues doubling, it couldn’t be far from being a major factor.
The research institute names vendors who indicated they were operating from the U.S. as having the highest market share of drugs (35.9 percent of total drug revenues) followed closely by the U.K. (16.1 percent), Australia (10.6 percent), Germany ( 8.4 percent) and The Netherlands (7.1 percent) revenue share. Another factor that could have contributed to the rise is the growing efforts to decriminalize Bitcoin use which may have shifted attention from the top cryptocurrency. A group of researchers two weeks ago announced the creation of an analysis tool for US law enforcement that can be used to overcome the challenges of criminals using Bitcoin for transactions. Sandia‘s work focused on law enforcement’s most immediate need to reduce the time and resources necessary to trace illicit commerce.
Trading in Monero has also increased with exchanges such Poloniex recording more than 1,300 Bitcoin worth of its trade in 24 hours.
The growing interest has also drawn the attention of wallets. Bitwala recently added it to the list of accepted Altcoins and Cryptocurrencies for its users to pay bills, send out international bank transfers and use it to top up their debit card.
Monero aims to be a secure, private and untraceable cryptocurrency. It was created in April 2014 as an open source project and is currently maintained by seven core developers, the most prominent fabulously calling himself “Fluffy Pony”.
The main differences between Monero and Bitcoin are its default use of stealth addresses and ring signatures, obfuscating most transaction data like sender, recipient and payment amount. By implementing these features, the currency offers its users full transaction anonymity.
Unlike Bitcoin forks, Monero is based on the CryptoNote protocol whose transactions cannot be traced through the blockchain to reveal its sender or receiver.
Bitcoin has its pseudonymity which enables its users not to be obliged to disclose ownership of bitcoins. However, given the transaction history and data that Bitcoin users have disclosed about themselves, it may be possible to recover information about particular bitcoins.
The market values of Bitcoin and Monero are also different. Despite its spike in price, the low rate of Monero is still affordable for interested users when compared to Bitcoin’s which has gone large scale and pierced into conventional financial system to be eyed by investors.
Monero may not be able to sustain the momentum when compared to bitcoin which has outgrown several phases. A further growth in the adoption of Monero may draw greater regulatory measures that won’t augur well for the future of cryptocurrencies in general.

EU Parliament Rep Seeks €1 Million for Blockchain Research
A member of the European Parliament is proposing that €1m ($1.1m) be spent on a task force that would focus on studying digital currencies and blockchain technology.
The push for funding comes months after the legislative arm of the European Union (EU) first approved the task force, proposed by MEP Jakob von Weizsäcker earlier this year.
Legislative records indicate that von Weisäcker is now asking for financial support for the measure. In notes, he said that support should be approved in order to position the European Commission – the economic bloc's executive branch – at the forefront of an emerging technology.
The MEP wrote:
"This pilot project aims at creating a Task Force, staffed with regulatory and technical experts, in order to build up technical expertise, regulators capacity and develop use cases, especially for governmental applications, in the field of distributed ledger technology (DLT) as proposed in the Resolution of the European Parliament on virtual currencies."
The task force initiative is one of the more notable legislative efforts to emerge from Europe on the subject of blockchain, as it is expected to focus on the developing government use cases.
In legislative records, von Weisäcker reiterated past statements about the task force's potential role in creating a balanced regulatory environment.
"Too early hard regulatory measures would stifle innovation and hamper its potential," he wrote. "Waiting too long might lead to a materialization of (systemic) risks."
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
For all the benefits Bitcoin bought along with it - it bought along paranoia, hysteria, volatility, market manipulation, losses and for an elite few- massive profit. Bitcoin's rise has been meteoric but it does not solve all the monetary problems we face in the 21st century. There have been a number of similar currencies launched in the recent past in order to solve various issues through the Blockchain. Ethereum - the second most common currency on a blockchain permits smart contracts or programmable currency in simpler words. There are other currencies that permit storage of files, reward prediction markets or even possess stakes on the potential profits of a gambling house.
There are a number of perks to this approach.
- Limited Coinage
Since the number of coins that will be released will be limited to the amount of gold that can be held, there will be anti-inflationary nature to the coin from day 1. Additionally, since the coin is anti-inflationary in nature, as more and more individuals buy into the coin, the price will slowly rise in value - Utility
While bitcoin itself is a token subject to market fluctuation and commonly agreed notions of what its price should be, the coin offering here is relatively less volatile as its offering is with Gold. This means, a traditional business seeking payments in heavy amounts could hedge its position with gold while being able to access the quick and easy remittance availability on a blockchain. While Bitcoin start-ups have struggled with adoption, this currency could rather easily pick up steam - Seignorage
The founders of the organization believe the only true way for a monetary system to actually be beneficial to all parties is through seigniorage and this lies at the crux of what the organization does. Instead of permitting banks to be the sole players benefitting from the issuance of currencies and their base value, the organization is paving ways for this to be a more democratic process - one that is accessible to anyone with access to the internet. Additionally it is a major socio-economic experiment that is being run for a while now with a strong user group backing it.
However, in light of the number of Scam ICO”s the community has seen in the recent past it becomes imminent to tread with caution. While the underlying technology, economic brilliance and pragmatism makes sense and does offer the average man from any corner of the gold access to Gold on a ledger, its implementation can be tricky. For instance, the total reserve of gold held by the institute is not verifiable as it is now. Additionally, the project fails to take into account the laws and legal procedures involved in shipping gold internationally. Customs, verification requirements and additional legal scrutiny in the event of someone looking to do a withdrawal could add delays to the process and make buying gold the conventional way seem more appealing.
A possible solution for the organization is to set up hubs around the globe from where gold could be shipped easier and much faster. While this would mean the organization has to take the added strain of finding reliable centers around the globe it offers a certain level of globalization and quicker access to the individual’s gold. Additionally, services that certify the amount of gold held in reserve and their purity in real time could be implemented into the project. With a strong advisory and increased transparency the project has the potential to question how we wee monetary systems.
Tangibility of gold and the transparency and speed of a blockchain coming together is just about every economist’s dream and Xaurum is taking us one step closer to that grand vision. While the system has its own bit of inherent flaws, all of them are the kind that can be worked out over time. The bright side is, the team behind the coin has worked on it for a fair amount of time and has the power to implement changes as and when required. As long as they hold true to their promises, things could change for the better. I have my eyes on the coin simply because of the economic understanding behind it and look forward to covering it further in the near future.
CCEDK Exchange
The launch of Bitcoin in 2008 was more than just an experiment in the financial realm. It was a
silent outcry against the injustices committed by the financial elite leading to the recession,
scripted in code. Satoshi’s creation laid the foundation for what would soon be the world’s
financial future. Unlike earlier, it wasn’t restricted to royalty or the elite to decide how this new
financial system would work. Rather, emperors of the new world, the innovators, entrepreneurs
and developers with the know how to build upon the blockchain were the ones that pushed this
new system to the frontier. Inspite of the massive attention given to it by the media, Bitcoin is
predicted to only have around 5 million users, by 2019. Considering a global population of 7
billion, and an unbanked population of 5.5 billion, this level of penetration will barely make a
dent in the financial realm. With an intent to solve these problems of market penetration and
creating products that are user friendly on the blockchain a new generation of entrepreneurs
have come forth with solutions that work faster, cheaper and at better levels of scale.
CCEDK in collaboration with Beyond Bitcoin have launched btstip.io with the intent of bringing
expriences on the blockchain to the average retail user. The company’s goal is to create product
offerings that are easy to use for internet consumers around the globe. Leveraging the speed of
Bitshares Blockchain which is able to process transactions at 60,000 transactions per second
and the relatively low transaction fees, which runs at 1/4th the fee of Bitcoin, the new system is
able to empower users and enterprises to experience what it feels like to remit via the
blockchain without having to go through the nuances of utilizing a bank or a bitcoin exchange. In
the first iteration of the product, the Tip Bot empowers existing users of the cryptocurrency
community to disperse digital tokens to individual contributors or groups on varying platforms
such as forums, reddit, twitter and facebook. In comparison with Bitcoin confirmation times that
take anywhere between ten to thirty minutes, the new system paves way for a large amount of
user cases by confirming transactions in a matter of seconds.
By creating active integrations with various social media platforms and empowering enterprises
to disperse digital tokens to the retail consumer, brands will now be able to reward consumers
directly for certain behaviour. The platform intends to bring the power of sharing economies and
social media into the age of digital, decentralized currency. While social media has empowered
people around the globe to share their thoughts, photos and lifestyles with anyone across the
globe, it is yet to help us come closer financially. Systems are still largely restricted, either due
to lack of an infrastructure or stringent fees imposed by banks upon international remittance.
The new platform, allows anyone with say, a facebook, reddit or twitter account, finding a post to
be valid to tip the author without having to go through a bank at a fraction of the cost. Similarly,
instead of paying advertisers hefty amounts, the new system allows enterprises to issue tokens
or financial rewards directly to the end user for following certain behaviour.
The core system at btstip.io will be drastically different from existing tipping systems as a result
of its close integration with CCEDK and it Nanocard. As a result of the nanocard, users will now
be able to “withdraw” the amounts they have received in terms of tips at any local ATM across
USA and Europe. This further enables the company to create a dent (albeit minor initially) in the
remittance market as freelancers, artists and individuals will now be able to charge money for
their work and withdraw it from their banks without having to go through multiple loops and third
parties. The system itself is built upon one of the most transparent exchanges in the world,
touted to be a “truly” decentralized system, open and auditable to anyone in the world openledger.
info
Although, the short term implications of the product are largely focused on empowering the
average user to experience the blockchain, the long term goals of the company are to create a
dent in the way money in itself is remitted around the globe. With a key focus on
microtransactions
and remittance, CCEDK, the banking partner for the project is working
towards creating a global banking infrastructure to enable individuals to convert their digital
takens to fiat and vice versa. The company intends to go beyond just tipping and evolve into pay
gateways, mobile remittance, ingame
economies and music.
In an age that believes money is power, digital currencies have lead the frontier when it comes
to giving it back to the people. While democracy and free speech have empowered individuals
to practice their rights and choices, restrictions in the financial realm have largely stopped
capital inflow to places that could truly use it. The founders of the system, believe, they can
change the situation by slowly building upon the product. While looking at any of the innovations
that truly changed the globe, it becomes evident that they were able to make a dent, solely
because they were created to be of use to the retail consumer. Projects like these, are an
attempt to truly take the power of decentralized currency to the average joe.
Friday, August 12, 2016

Anti-Money Laundering Software to Help Banks Prevent Illicit Transfers
Money Router, to be introduced in September, is designed to improve the safety of global payments, enabling financial institutions to set parameters in accordance with anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing regulations.
Developed in London by a team led by a compliance officer employed at a major U.K. bank, and a tech entrepreneur with a background in money transfer, Money Router is designed for both banks and money service businesses (MSBs).
The banks need to monitor the money coming into their accounts from the MSBs customers. By integrating the bank accounts with the money transfer system, banks can manage the end-to-end anti-money laundering (AML) compliance of the money transfer transactions in one place. They can achieve this by using regularly updated and compressive AML databases and regulatory registers such as the FCA Payment Services and HMRC Money Services Business registers.
Overseas workers often transfer part of their earnings to families abroad. As migration has increased worldwide, the total value of these "home remittances" to emerging economies has doubled that of direct foreign aid. But since much of the sector is unregulated, it has been linked to money laundering and terrorism.
Banks Are Constrained
Banks, fearful of fines, have been missing out on significant revenues and contributing to financial exclusion by exiting the remittance sector for the following reasons:
1) Inadequate visibility over MSB activities of transferring money on behalf of their customers;
2) Lack of anti-money laundering (AML) monitoring systems to deal with MSB on-boarding and real-time transaction monitoring;
3) Increased regulatory emphasis on the risk-based approach to AML monitoring;
4) Lack of awareness among MSBs about money laundering regulations and techniques used by criminals to launder money in the remittance industry;
5) Terrorist attacks by returning Islamic State fighters.