Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Financial privacy: How blockchain eliminates unsolicited snooping

TL;DR Breakdown　　The Bank of America allegedly divulged users information to the authorities.　　This is not the first time such institutions have violated their users right to financial privacy.　　Blockchain is the easiest route financial services consumers can take to avoid such breaches.　　While blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency and the decentralized finance market, the blockchain module is a larger, more vast project, with standings in various sectors, especially areas needing more efficient cybersecurity options like financial privacy.　　In the last few years, the purpose of blockchain networks in finance has been to gradually facilitate the transfer of monetary authority from banking systems to individuals/users, a concept popularly known as “decentralized finance.” If you are an adept follower of blockchain and cryptocurrency, you would know that this transition though largely successful hasnt gone by without the traditional financial institutions and authorities hindering the functionality of blockchain. They have made several attempts at either outrightly banning cryptos, or imposing strict policies and regulations that are, at best, questionable.　　While these moves have mostly been motivated by the loss of financial resources, it has also been a fight for financial data control, the “non-existent” legal right of banks to violate their customers financial privacy by sharing

2021-02-22Deep Dive

The Technology Behind Bitcoin’s $1T Valuation And Its Application Beyond Cryptocurrency

Now a trillion-dollar asset, bitcoin is paramount to cryptocurrency culture after its 60% hike this month, surpassing any traditional asset in this record-breaking milestone.　　Since its introduction to the financial market in 2009, this first-of-its-kind cryptocurrency has been marked by high volatility and price fluctuations. Being a “highly speculative asset”, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has stressed the need for regulating any institution that handles bitcoins and investor protection in a recent CNBC interview. Despite the lack of regulation and vulnerability to scams and illicit transactions, a mixture of social proofing and celebrity endorsements has catapulted its popularity among investors and the masses.　　But behind bitcoin is the ingenious blockchain technology that enables this unprecedented digital asset. The symbiotic relationship between bitcoin and blockchain is so apparent that people often confuse the two. Simply put, without blockchain, bitcoin is useless. With each bitcoin transaction, a digital trail is created on a shared ledger. Though the transaction itself is open and public, the persons identity behind the bitcoin transaction is encrypted and remains private. As transactions are posted on this digital ledger, a perpetual “chain” of anonymous and real-time transactions is created.　　Though blockchain technology is most prominently recognized with its application to bitcoin

2021-02-22Deep Dive

CryptoCompare Report Highlights Top Crypto Exchanges and Why They Stand Out

Cryptocurrency exchanges have over time kept on increasing their operational standards and transparency, to the point most trading platforms are now considered Top-Tier and improved security has led to fewer hacking incidents.　　According to CryptoCompares Exchange Benchmark report, Top-Tier exchanges, those graded AA-BB, have gained an additional 13% market share in the last four months, from October 2020 to January 2021 – the same time period that saw the price of Bitcoin surge from little over $11,000 to a new high above $40,000.　　The report details that Top-Tier exchange market share grew from 61$ to 74% over said period, with these platforms going from trading $347 billion to $1.41 trillion per month. It adds that based on its grading, market share for last month would have been of 85% for these platforms.　　Market share for Top-Tier trading platforms partly increased because the number of exchanges being considered Top-Tier also increased to 84, up from 68 in July of last year. This, the report adds, as exchanges “increased their operational standards and transparency due to regulatory requirements and a competitive marketplace.”　　Source: CryptoCompare　　Exchanges throughout the cryptocurrency space have generally improved their security since July of last year, the report notes, with 20% of trading platforms

2021-02-19Deep Dive

Billionaire Mark Cuban on Stock Market, HODLing, DeFi, NFTs

Recently, Mark Cuban shared his thoughts on the the stock market, decentralized finance (DeFi), and non-fungible token (NFTs) during an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) session.　　Cuban is the majority owner of the professional basketball team Dallas Mavericks, as well as one of the “sharks” on the highly popular reality show “Shark Tank” (which is aired on the ABC television network).　　Cuban‘s comments, a few of which are highlighted in this article, were delivered during an AMA session (on February 2) hosted by Reddit’s now-famous group/subreddit “/wallstreetbets”.　　Are Current Valuations of Popular Stocks Justified？　　“1pct interest rates change all valuations. What is right or wrong is hard to determine. What is the right valuation, that is what the market is supposed to tell you. Stocks that dont pay dividends are only worth what someone will pay for them.”　　Does DeFi Really Have a Chance of Achieving Mainstream Adoption？　　“Father time is undefeated. Big Players die and are replaced by the next generation.”　　Will Stocks Eventually Be on the Blockchain？　　“Yes. Stocks will be on the blockchain in the future, and that will make the markets much more efficient, transparent and available to the small investor.”　　Advice for Those Who Lost Money During GameStop Saga　　BTC HODLers are a great example to

2021-02-19Deep Dive

Thailand tourism board targets wealthy Japanese crypto holders

In its latest effort to revive the Kingdom‘s pandemic-battered tourism industry, Thailand’s tourism authority is targeting cryptocurrency holders from Japan.　　The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) wants to establish the country as the first to go out of its way to welcome cryptocurrency holders, specifically those from Japan which it views as a regional hub of crypto activity. The authority has conducted a feasibility study on implementing cryptocurrency payments at tourism destinations.　　Thailand has been angling for well-heeled tourists ever since the collapse of the industry in the first quarter of 2020 when Asian nations began closing their borders in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak.　　According to the Bangkok Post, TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn said that cryptocurrency could be the key to attracting the high rollers:　　“If we can prepare the country for the cryptocurrency market, it will help attract more opportunities from high-spending tourists, especially the young and wealthy generations.”　　He added that the use of cryptocurrency must comply with regulations from the central bank and measures must be designed to deter money laundering.　　The authority cites three-year-old figures for Japan as having an 11% crypto ownership rate, however more recent 2020 figures from Statista suggest that it is closer to 4%.　　Mr. Yuthasak even

2021-02-19Deep Dive

Bank Account Data May Indicate a Rise in South Korean Crypto Activity

A new report has linked a spike in the creation of new bank accounts in South Korea to a rise in crypto trading – an indication that a large influx of new traders in the East Asian nation has taken up crypto in 2021.　　In 2018, Seoul created a set of guidelines that requires crypto exchanges to keep their own funds and those of their clients separate in banking procedures.　　The guidelines also require all individual customers to create real-name and social security number-authenticated bank accounts. The nations “big four” exchanges – Upbit, Korbit, Bithumb and Coinone – have all opted into these guidelines, which necessitates exchanges to strike six-month contracts with domestic banks. Under a soon-to-be-implemented new law, these guidelines will become obligatory for all exchanges in the country.　　And per Newspim, the three banks currently doing business with the “big four” exchanges have seen business boom in the past few months, coinciding with a huge rise in crypto prices. Bitcoin (BTC), for instance, has broken all sorts of records, reaching new heights of USD 52,000+ in recent weeks.　　The media outlet points to data from the financial sector that shows the banks in question had a bumper January for new clients. The

2021-02-19Deep Dive

Gemini launches crypto education platform featuring ‘Expert Network’

Cameron Winklevoss, Geminis president, unveiled Cryptopedia on Thursday. He described the new platform as a “free resource that provides open-access, high-quality crypto education to the world.”　　The platform currently includes categories devoted to cryptocurrencies, security, trading and investing, and DeFi.　　Cryptopedia was also designed for subject matter experts to share their knowledge about digital assets. The platform‘s “Expert Network” includes founders and thought leaders from some of the industry’s biggest projects, including Brave CEO Brendan Eich, Aave CEO Stani Kulechov, Tezos co-founder Kathleen Breitman and others.　　Although crypto markets have matured over the years, the need for education remains strong given the relatively limited use cases of digital money. Even projects within the crypto industry have identified education as essential to advancing adoption, especially at the individual level.　　According to the most recently available data on the subject, cryptocurrency adoption remains in its very early stages. Research from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance recently found that roughly 101 people across the globe currently hold Bitcoin (BTC) and other digital assets. In order to grow this number while avoiding the issues that plagued early crypto adopters, more education is needed.　　In presenting Cryptopedia, Winklevoss said:　　“We know that the lack of comprehensive education around crypto is

2021-02-19Deep Dive

How To Earn Passive Income Through A DeFi Platform

The launch of Decentralized Finance technology brought a lot of changes at an economic level, convincing people to join the crypto community.　　And thats not even surprising since it made many bank activities possible on the blockchain - eliminating the need for third parties.　　In other words, you no longer need to wait for your transactions to be confirmed by the bank, nor do you have to worry about being charged additional transaction fees.　　However, at the base of DeFi‘s mass adoption in recent years is not only the blockchain’s safety and efficiency. An important role is played by the ability to generate passive income.　　 So how can you earn passive income on DeFi？　　There are three main methods you can use to generate additional assets DeFi:　　Staking - the simplest way possible　　Staking cryptocurrencies means locking your assets into a PoS consensus protocol. This will give you daily rewards, as long as you dont use your deposit.　　And you dont even have to check it every day since the rewards are accumulated anyway.　　With the continuous rise in cryptocurrencies value, many people started to use this method, increasing the demand. Therefore, crypto companies like vTrader have adapted and plan to provide this feature to their users soon.　　Yield

2021-02-19Deep Dive

Bill Gates Shares His Thoughts on Bitcoin and Digital Currencies

While predicting that the future of payments lies with digital currencies, Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates highlighted a “neutral view” on bitcoin. Nevertheless, he suggested that the digital form of money would need to enable transaction reversals and complete visibility.　　I Dont Own Any Bitcoin, Says Gates　　The 65-year old US business magnate, author, and philanthropist seems slightly more optimistic on bitcoin now compared to a few years ago. During the year-long bear market in 2018, Gates said that he would be short on BTC if “there was an easy way to do it.”　　Furthermore, he was given one bitcoin as a birthday gift years prior, but he quickly disposed of it. Despite saying that he still doesnt own any BTC now, though, he has taken a more “neutral” approach towards the asset, as he revealed in a more recent CNBC interview.　　“I don‘t own bitcoin. I’m not short bitcoin; Ive taken a neutral view.”　　Nevertheless, he believes that digital currencies will eventually become the main form of payment methods. He noted that the Gates Foundation is actively exploring such payment options that could also decrease transaction costs. However, according to Gates, therere several vital differences between BTC and the digital form of payments

2021-02-19Deep Dive

KPMG, BitGo, Coin Metrics Launch New Offering to Drive Institutional Adoption

KPMG, BitGo and Coin Metrics announced Thursday a combined offering that seeks to manage and monitor risks on public blockchain networks.　　The offering combines KPMG‘s Chain Fusion services and accelerators, BitGo’s custody technology and Coin Metrics data and intelligence products via a “deeply integrated combined offering.”　　Coinciding with the firms‘ offering, Coin Metrics also announced the commercial launch of a new suite of products known as FARUM providing BitGo’s existing and future clients the ability to monitor and manage risk on networks like Bitcoin and Ethereum.　　FARUM seeks to provide users with the tools to identify network attacks, transaction reorgs, fee volatility risks and unusual network event risks, according to the firms website.　　The combined offering is the result of a strategic partnership between KPMG and Coin Metrics that was formed in October. The alliance seeks to deliver data and insights, proprietary analytics and crypto-asset services to support growth in institutional adoption.　　The alliance also pairs Coin Metric‘s suite of institutional data products and infrastructure with KPMG’s Chain Fusion, a suite of tools designed to provide customers a way of handling financial reporting regulations.　　The firms said their offering also “collapses implementation cycles” while delivering core capabilities for financial institutions by leveraging their experience in system

2021-02-19Deep Dive