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Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, IOTA, Litecoin, NEM, Cardano - Price Analysis, Jan. 23

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, IOTA, Litecoin, NEM, Cardano — Price Analysis, Jan. 23

When the markets are bullish, a lot of traders only focus on high target levels. This leads to a left out feeling among the ones who have missed out on the rally, and they rush to buy at elevated levels. This results in a huge loss of capital to the uninformed traders.

The opposite works when the market falls. One starts to hear bearish voices with the analysts forecasting apocalypse and novice traders get scared and dump their holdings. They buy when they should be selling and sell when they should be buying.

Hence, it is always better to take these forecasts with a pinch of salt. We, therefore, avoid giving unrealistic target levels to our readers and try to keep them on the right side of the trade.

BTC/USD

In our previous analysis, we had predicted that Bitcoin would turn down from the $13,202 levels and that is what happened. The cryptocurrency topped out at $12,988.89 on Jan. 20. It is currently retesting the critical support zone of $10,704.99 to $9,300.

For the past two days, the bulls are defending the $10,000 levels. If this level holds, we may see another attempt to pull back. The trend will turn positive in the short-term only when the BTC/USD pair breaks out of the down trendline 1.

This trade should be taken with only 50 percent allocation because on the way up, Bitcoin will face resistance at the neckline of the head and shoulders pattern and at the down trendline 2.

On the downside, a break of $10,000 is likely to hurt sentiment, resulting in a decline to $8,000 levels.

ETH/USD

We had forecast a rally to $1174.36, which is the 61.8 percent Fibonacci retracement level of the recent fall from $1424 to $770 and Ethereum topped out at $1,160 on Jan 20.

The price has returned to the trendline support, which has offered strong support since Dec. 10.

The bulls have been attempting to hold the trendline support for the past two days. We believe the support zone between $900 and $845 is likely to be defended strongly by the bulls. The ETH/USD pair will indicate a change in trend only after it breaks out of the down trendline.

If the above-mentioned support zone breaks, the decline can extend to $770 levels. We don’t find any buy setups; hence, we are not suggesting any trade on it.

BCH/USD

In our previous analysis, we had anticipated Bitcoin Cash to return from the $2,072 levels, and it topped out at $2,112.11 on Jan. 20.

The moving average has completed a bearish crossover, and the price is quoting below the 20-day EMA and the 50-day SMA; which is advantageous to bears. If the retest of the recent lows at $1364.96 fails, a fall to $1194 is likely.

If the bulls defend the $1364.96 levels, the BCH/USD pair is likely to become range-bound for a few days.

As the trend is still down, we are not suggesting any trade on it.

XRP/USD

Ripple returned from the 20-day EMA on Jan. 18. It currently has support at the $0.87 levels.

We believe that the XRP/USD pair will become range bound for the next few days between the support of $0.87 and the resistance of $1.74.

We shall wait for a breakout above the overhead resistance to initiate any long positions. On the downside, though we expect the $0.87 to hold, it might be reasonable to wait for a bounce before buying. As the trading inside the range is likely to be volatile, we shall only try to buy closer to the supports.

IOTA/USD

We had mentioned that $3.032 is the critical level for IOTA and a failure to break out above it will attract another bout of selling and that is what happened.

The cryptocurrency is currently attempting to hold the Jan. 16 low of $1.923. If the bears succeed in breaking down this support, a fall to the lows of Dec. 22 of $1.10 is likely.

If the bulls hold the $1.923 levels, the IOTA/USD pair is likely to remain range bound for the next few days. It will become positive only if the price breaks out of the down trendline of the descending triangle.

LTC/USD

Litecoin broke above $205, but could not reach $225, as we had expected. It turned down from $214.48 levels on Jan. 20.

The bears are trying to break down of the critical support level of $175.19. If successful, a fall to $140 is likely.

In the short-term, the first sign of bullishness will be when the LTC/USD pair breaks out of $215. Currently, we don’t find any trade set up on it.

XEM/USD

On Jan. 20 and Jan. 21, the bulls could not sustain above the downtrend line. As a result, NEM has resumed its decline.

Currently, the bulls are attempting to hold the $0.86 level. If this breaks, a fall to the Jan. 16 lows of $0.551 is likely.

On the upside, the down trendline is likely to offer strong resistance. The first signs of bullishness will be when price breaks out of the $1.21 levels.

We don’t find any trade setups on the XEM/USD pair.

ADA/BTC

Cardano could not break out of the 0.00006 levels. It is now likely to gradually fall to the support levels of 0.000047, and after that to 0.00004070.

For the next few days, we expect the ADA/BTC pair to remain range bound between 0.00004070 on the downside and 0.00006915 on the upside.

We shall wait for the pair to bounce from one of the support levels before initiating any trade. At the present levels, we don’t find any bullish setups on it.

Author: Rakesh Upadhyay

Posted By David Ogden Entrepreneur
David ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Bitcoin hackers have stolen âÂ£285million’ from cryptocurrency investors causing âCHAOS’

January 23, 2018

Bitcoin hackers have stolen ‘£285million’ from cryptocurrency investors causing ‘CHAOS'

BITCOIN hackers have stolen an estimated £285million ($400million) from cryptocurrency investors that have caused “information chaos” as they utilise a fundraising mechanism for devious means, a recent report revealed.

New data has shown that hackers have stolen approximately 10 per cent of funds raised through initial coin offerings (ICOs) the are used to finance new projects, according to a report from Ernst and Young.

It read: “Hackers are attracted by the rush, absence of a centralised authority, blockchain transaction irreversibility, and information chaos.

“Project founders focus on attracting investors and security is often not prioritised. Hackers successfully take advantage — the more hyped and large-scale the ICO, the more attractive it is for attacks.”

Initial coin offerings are used to exchange crypto tokens for bitcoin or ether to finance a new project — they are similar to Initial Public Offerings (IPO) where investors purchase shares of a company.

The fundraising method has been utilised by those with ideas that fear they could be overlooked if traditional venture capitalists were utilised.

An estimated £2.6billion ($3.7billion) has been raised from ICOs between 2015 to 2017 — this accumulated from over 372 offerings from around the world.

Ernst and Young compiled the data from ICO trackers, interviews, blockchain network scanners and exchange reports.

ICOs have long been a worry for regulators with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Jay Clayton stating that they offer “substantially less investor protection”.

The susceptible nature of the offerings were exacerbated last year when the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a charge against an ICO scam that promised investors a 13-fold profit in less than a month.

The scam reportedly raised £10.7million ($15million) from thousands of investors.

A criminal complaint was filed to Brooklyn federal court — it was revealed that Dominic Lacroix sold digital tokens known as “PlexCoins” to investors.

The scam stated that its purpose was “to increase access to cryptocurrency services” around the world.

New data has shown that hackers have stolen approximately 10 per cent of funds raised through ICOs

A new division of the SEC, dubbed the Cyber Unit, declared that investors were caught off guard by the coin’s “false promises”.

Robert Cohen, the Chief of the Cyber Unit, declared: “This first Cyber Unit case hits all of the characteristics of a full-fledged cyber scam and is exactly the kind of misconduct the unit will be pursuing.

“We acted quickly to protect retail investors from this initial coin offering’s false promises.”

Author JOSEPH CAREY UPDATED: 03:08, Tue, Jan 23, 2018

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur
David Ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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The Bull And The Bear Case For Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, And Other Cryptocurrencies

January 22, 2018

The Bull And The Bear Case For Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, And Other Cryptocurrencies

There have been better days and worse days for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and other cryptocurrencies.

The better days were back in November and December when a “virtuous” rotation helped spread the rally from Bitcoin to other cryptocurrencies. This means that funds cashed out from one currency were invested in other currencies.

That’s a bullish "technical" sign for cryptocurrencies, as it keeps the momentum for the sector alive.

[Ed note: Investing in cryptocoins or tokens is highly speculative and the market is largely unregulated. Anyone considering it should be prepared to lose their entire investment. Disclosure: I don't own any cryptocoins or tokens.]

The worse days were early this week when the sell-off in major cryptocurrencies spread across the entire sector. This means that money cashed out from one cryptocurrency didn’t flow to other cryptocurrencies, but moved to cash or to other investments.

And that’s a bearish sign for cryptocurrencies, as it undermines the momentum for the sector.

Apparently, momentum is changing very fast in cryptocurrencies, much faster than in other asset classes.

That’s why technical analysis alone may not be a reliable indicator for trying to guess the direction of the cryptocurrency markets.

What about fundamental analysis?

For the vast majority of cryptocurrencies there are no fundamentals to talk about, other than a website with a message that promises to make capitalism better.

For major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, there’s some information to make both a bullish and a bearish case.

The bullish case is about the advantages Bitcoin has a “headless” currency. "Increasingly widely accepted as a means of payment with no bank intermediation and absolutely no fees, Bitcoin has some of the attributes of a headless currency,” says Eric Pichet, a KEDGE professor.

Then there’s the rarity of the cryptocurrency and the low ownership rate, which explain its price spike, and the potential for further gains. “The relative rarity of the virtual product explains its rise in large part because only 0.01% of the world population own any,” adds Pichet. “Therefore, one can imagine the effect on its trading price if the primary cause of speculative bubbles, namely FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) were to spread to a mere 1% of the world population, or 100 times more holders.”

The bearish scenario centers on two major threats which cryptocurrencies face. One of them is an intrusion in the blockchain system and the circulation of fake coins. Another threat is a concerted effort by governments around the world to ban their use.

As Eric Pichet concludes, "Under these conditions, what type of needles would burst the bubble? The first would be the heist of the century: an intrusion in the blockchain system that created a deluge of fake bitcoins. The second would be the adoption of a common position by all national governments and central banks to prohibit this means of payment in the name of fighting fraud, for example.”

Author Panos Mourdoukoutas

Posted By David Ogden Entrepreneur
David ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Price Analysis, Jan. 19 — Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, IOTA, Litecoin, NEM, Cardano

January 20, 2018

Price Analysis, Jan. 19 - Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, IOTA, Litecoin, NEM, Cardano

Price Analysis, Jan. 19 — Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, IOTA, Litecoin, NEM, Cardano

After a sharp fall, the aggressive bulls jump in and buy at lower levels. This strategy has resulted in huge gains for the cryptocurrency traders in 2017. However, unlike previous occasions, we have not seen a sharp rise this time. This shows that the traders are not confident of a huge rally from the current prices.

In the next few days, we expect a range bound action in most of the top cryptocurrencies.

BTC/USD

We had expected a pullback from the $10,704.99 levels. But Bitcoin overshot on the downside and fell to $9,300 levels.

Currently, the bulls are attempting a reversal, which is likely to carry the cryptocurrency to the neckline of the head and shoulders pattern at $13,202 levels.

We expect another round of selling from those levels, which is likely to sink the BTC/USD pair back to the support zone of $10,704.99 to $9,300. If this support zone breaks, a fall below $8,000 is likely.

On the other hand, if the bulls succeed in holding the support zone, it will lead to a start of a new uptrend. Nimble-footed traders can play the rise, but others should wait for more clarity to develop.

ETH/USD

We expected the support zone between the trendline and $940 to hold. On Jan. 17, Ethereum broke below the trendline and fell to a low of $770.

The bulls bought the dip aggressively, which has resulted in a pullback that carried the cryptocurrency towards the 50 percent Fibonacci retracement levels of the recent fall from $1424 to $770.

For the past three days, the ETH/USD pair has been struggling to cross above $1097. If the price breaks out of the $1100 levels, we expect a move to $1174.36 and $1284.28 levels. As the stop loss is $930, which doesn’t offer a good risk to reward ratio, we are not suggesting any trade on it.

BCH/USD

We expected the $1733 levels to hold. Still, the bears easily broke through it and Bitcoin Cash fell to a low of $1364.96 on Jan. 18.

The current increase is likely to face resistance at the $2072 levels, which was the support of the range previously. We shall get a confirmation of a bottom during the next downturn. If $1364.96 breaks, a fall to $1194 is likely.

Our bearish view will be invalidated if the BCH/USD pair sustains above $2072 for a day.

XRP/USD

We had forecast a fall to 61.8 percent Fibonacci retracement levels of the latest rally, however, Ripple fell close to the 78.6 percent retracement levels, which coincided with the lower end of the descending channel.

The cryptocurrency has broken out of the descending channel, which suggests that the downtrend is over. However, the present increase is facing resistance at the 20-day EMA, above which a move to $2.20 is likely. At that price, the XRP/USD pair will face resistance from the trendline that had previously acted as a strong support.

However, if the cryptocurrency fails to break above the 20-day EMA, the bears will attempt to resume the downtrend. Support lies at $0.87.

We expect a few days of range bound trading.

IOTA/USD

IOTA broke down of the bearish descending triangle pattern on January 16, which gives it a pattern target of $1.10.

However, the cryptocurrency took support at $1.93 levels on Jan. 17.

Currently, the IOTA/USD pair is retesting the breakout levels of $3.032. If the bulls breakout of the overhead resistance and the downtrend line, our bearish view will be invalidated.

However, if the bears defend the $3.032 levels, we are likely to see another bout of selling, which will retest the lows.

We don’t find any clear pattern; hence, we are not recommending any trade.

LTC/USD

We had forecast a likely fall to $100 if Litecoin broke below $175.19. It rose from a low of $140.00 on Jan. 17.

For two days in a row, Jan. 16 and Jan. 17, the bears broke down below $175.19 but were unsuccessful in holding prices down.

If the bulls breakout of $205, a move to $225 is likely, where both the moving averages converge. This level is likely to act as a resistance.

We don’t find any reasonable trades on LTC/USD pair.

XEM/USD

NEM fell close to the 78.6 percent retracement levels on Jan. 16 and Jan. 17. Thereafter, the bulls have commenced a pullback, which is likely to face a strong resistance at the downward trendline.

If the price moves above the downtrend line, an increase to $1.45 can’t be ruled out.

The next fall towards the recent lows of $0.55134 will confirm whether the bottom is in place or is there further to go.

Until then, we shall remain on the sidelines on the XEM/USD pair.

ADA/BTC

Cardano broke below the trendline support on Jan. 16 and Jan. 17, however, the bulls defended the support and pushed prices higher quickly.

The ADA/BTC pair broke out of the downtrend line yesterday, Jan. 18, however, it could not pick up momentum. It is struggling to rally above 0.00006. Once bulls breakout of 0.00006, a move to 0.00007 and thereafter to the 0.00008 levels is likely.

The cryptocurrency pair will become negative below 0.00004730.

Author: Rakesh Upadhyay

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Cryptocurrency prices edge higher with ripple bouncing back 65% after âsevere’ sell-off

January 19, 2018

Cryptocurrency prices edge higher with ripple bouncing back 65% after âsevere' sell-off

Cryptocurrency prices edge higher with ripple bouncing back 65% after ‘severe’ sell-off

Bitcoin and ethereum — the first and second largest virtual currencies by market value — appeared to recover after Wednesday's lows.
Experts told CNBC earlier this week that investors had been "spooked" by news of regulatory crackdowns from both South Korea and China.
Regulators have expressed concerns over digital assets due to their extremely volatile nature and worries that they could be used for illicit activity.

Major digital currencies edged higher on Thursday, after a two-day sell-off saw the world's biggest cryptocurrency bitcoin lose more than 50 percent from its December high.

Bitcoin and ethereum — the first and second largest virtual currencies by market value — appeared to recover after Wednesday's lows.

Bitcoin fell as low as $9,199.59 on Wednesday morning, but bounced back to $11,702.74 as of Thursday at 12:00 p.m. ET, according to CoinDesk, which tracks prices from cryptocurrency exchanges including Bitstamp, Coinbase, itBit and Bitfinex. It was up 5 percent in the last 24 hours. The red-hot digital asset also broke the $12,000 level, hitting $12,045.10 at about 10:14 a.m.

Ethereum on the other hand dived below the $800 mark to a three-week low of $780.92 Wednesday, but lifted to $1,072.57 the following day. It was more than 5 percent higher in the last 24 hours.

Ripple's XRP, which is also known as ripple, surged 65 percent to $1.64 a coin, according to data from CoinMarketCap. The digital currency — which is controversial among crypto enthusiasts due the firm behind it being backed by big banks — fell as low as 90 cents the previous day.

Regulatory concerns

Experts told CNBC earlier this week that investors had been "spooked" by news of regulatory crackdowns from both South Korea and China.

South Korea — one of the largest markets for cryptocurrencies — has reportedly been considering the shutdown of trading through cryptocurrency exchanges. On Thursday, the country's policymakers said they were considering closing all domestic virtual currency exchanges, echoing a move last year from Chinese regulators.

China, separately, is reported to be deepening its clampdown of its digital currency market. According to reports from Bloomberg and Reuters, the country is planning to ban the centralized trading of digital currencies.

"Trade volumes were very noisy yesterday as the bulls and bears fought it out and some sort of calm has appeared on the markets after what has been a severe correction," Charles Hayter, CEO of digital currency comparison site CryptoCompare, told CNBC in an email Thursday.

"New has a lot to play with this," Hayter said, adding, "this market is now big and governments are sensing revenue for the coffers as well as a threat in some degrees. This will catalyze regulation where regimes who legislate severely will balkanise themselves to the industry."

Hayter said that regulation of cryptocurrencies "will be good in the long run," but warned that "unnecessary hoops and bureaucracy" could inhibit the industry's potential.

Regulators have expressed concerns over digital assets due to their extremely volatile nature and worries that they could be used for illicit activity.

Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at eToro, said: "Now that the reasons for the recent sell-off are more clear to everyone and the slightly sour regulatory concerns have been priced in and the Asian premiums are evening out, traders will most likely start focusing on the technicals."

Greenspan told CNBC Tuesday that South Korean and Japanese investors often pay a premium of "20 percent or more per coin."

Nolan Bauerle, director of research at CoinDesk, said that the sell-off was "a feature of the global, liquid cryptocurrency trading environment."
"When the price of bitcoin drops, there is a pattern of traders that move to take different positions, either in another cryptocurrency or in fiat," he told CNBC.

"These large drops, usually between the 25-40 percent range, generally find a bottom that is a consolidation of a previous all time high. When this bottom is found, the pattern continues with demand causing a new upward bounce."

Disclaimer: This story has been amended to reflect the fact that bitcoin lost more than 50 percent from its December high.

Author Ryan Browne Updated 10 Hours Ago

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur
David Ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Old hands in South Korea bitcoin market unfazed by threats of ban

January 18, 2018

Old hands in South Korea bitcoin market unfazed by threats of ban

Veterans of the bitcoin market say restrictions would be relatively easy to circumvent
Investors in the cryptocurrency market are used to wild moves in the space
Expert say a ban might discourage new participants, but anonymity makes it easy for those already in the markets to move digital assets around the world

Threats of a potential cryptocurrency trading ban in South Korea have scared many investors away, but some veterans of the young market are defiant, saying restrictions would be relatively easy to circumvent.

Although the cryptocurrency market lost about $200 billion this week, or a third of its value, these investors — known within the community as "hodlers" after a misspelled meme that went viral during Bitcoin's early days — are used to rollercoaster rides.

China's shutdown of local exchanges in September, for instance, caused a 50 percent drop in Bitcoin, but prices rebounded eight-fold to almost $20,000. Currently valued around $10,000, Bitcoin could be poised for a similar whirlwind this time around, some say.

"In case the government shuts down all local exchanges,investors can always go abroad and open an account there," said a South Korean student who declined to be named because of legal risks. "I can ask my friends who study abroad or travel there myself. It's not that big of a problem."

Cryptocurrency experts say the student probably has good reason to be relaxed. A ban could discourage new market entrants, but the anonymity of buyers and sellers and the ability to move digital assets anywhere in the world with a click makes it hard to impose restrictions on existing participants without a global consensus.

Places like Singapore and Hong Kong maintain light regulations, while neighboring Japan has encouraged a vast ecosystem of companies and investors around digital assets by pioneering a set of rules for the industry. Germany has said national restrictions may be useless.

VPNs, offline wallets

According to industry experts, the first step to circumventing a ban is hiding IP addresses from authorities via virtual private networks (VPNs).

Traders can then continue business as usual. Decentralized exchanges, such as Shapeshift or Stellar Dex, do not require identification and can be accessed from anywhere.

Cryptocurrency wallets such as Exodus and Jaxx are linked to such exchanges, so trading and storing the assets can still be anonymous. Authorities in countries with strong legal protections may need a warrant to check computers or smartphones for proof of such activity.

VPNs, offline wallets

According to industry experts, the first step to circumventing a ban is hiding IP addresses from authorities via virtual private networks (VPNs).

Traders can then continue business as usual. Decentralized exchanges, such as Shapeshift or Stellar Dex, do not require identification and can be accessed from anywhere.

Even then, unless caught in the act, the holder can claim no trading has taken place since the legislation was approved and has forgotten the password for the wallet.

Some decentralized exchanges offer derivative products that allow betting on the price of a cryptocurrency against a fiat currency, including the Korean won and Chinese yuan. But cashing out in fiat is not possible on such exchanges.

An option in that case is to trade all cryptocurrencies for a top one such as Bitcoin, Ethereum or Litecoin, and sell it at one the 2,064 crypto ATMs in 61 countries, although the transaction fees can exceed 10 percent. If need be, coins can be stored on offline "wallets" the size of a USB stick.

Alternatively, holders can open bank accounts in countries that have not banned Bitcoin, then join a local centralized exchange where they can trade cryptocurrencies for fiat.

"I hold everything in a hard wallet the size of my thumb. I have copies of my private keys in a safe. I have accounts on four exchanges on three continents. If any government wants my money, good luck to them," said a Hong Kong-based investor who claims to hold "about $1 million" in various cryptocurrencies.

Crossing borders

A 30-year-old nurse in Seoul said she had already switched to Hong Kong-based exchange Binance before the government's warnings hit the market. Company officers at Seoul-based exchanges say, anecdotally, such moves have accelerated.

"All this could lead to serious money outflow and only the government is not aware of it," one officer said, requesting anonymity.

South Korea accounts for between 5 and 15 percent of daily Bitcoin trading. The value of all Bitcoins is around $200 billion.

If opening accounts overseas proves difficult, friends,family or the local Bitcoin community can help. Another option is to find someone with access to an exchange — preferably using encrypted social media apps such as Whatsapp or Telegram — and sell to them at a discount. But fraud is a risk.

"There could be a black market where people who can cash out offshore can pay you in won for your Bitcoins," said Aurelian Menant, chief executive of Hong-Kong based exchange Gatecoin.

But that leaves the door open to "dodgy stuff," Menant said, adding that the fear of scams in the aftermath of a ban may deter new investors, potentially shrinking Korean trading volumes "from billions to millions."

Source CNBC

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur
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Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Bitcoin jolted by regulation worries, falls 7 percent on extended selloff

January 17, 2018

Bitcoin jolted by regulation worries, falls 7 percent on extended selloff

TOKYO/SINGAPORE (Reuters) — Bitcoin extended its sharp tumble of the past 24 hours, skidding more than seven percent on Wednesday in a rapid downturn in fortunes as investors were spooked by fears regulators might clamp down on an asset whose value has skyrocketed in the past year.

The price of the world’s biggest and best-known cryptocurrency fell to as low as $10,567 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange, not far from its six-week nadir of $10,162 touched the previous day. The session’s high was $11,794.07.

It led the fall in cryptocurrencies, although others such as Ethereum and Ripple, have also slid sharply this week after reports South Korea and China could ban trading, sparking worries of a wider regulatory crackdown.

“Cryptocurrencies could be capped in the current quarter ahead of G20 meeting in March, where policymakers could discuss tighter regulations,” said Shuhei Fujise, chief analyst at Alt Design.

At its lows on Tuesday, Bitcoin had fallen 25 percent in the session, its biggest daily decline in four months. It was a far cry from its peak close to $20,000 in December, when the virtual currency had risen nearly 2000 percent over the year.

Tuesday’s decline followed reports that South Korea’s finance minister had said banning trading in cryptocurrencies was still an option and that the government plans a set of measures to clamp down on the “irrational” cryptocurrency investment craze.

Separately, a senior Chinese central banker said authorities should ban centralised trading of virtual currencies as well as individuals and businesses that provide related services.

“Bitcoin is deciding whether this is the moment to crash and burn,” said Steven Englander, head of strategy at New York-based Rafiki Capital.

“My conjecture is that cryptocurrency holders are trying to decide whether to abandon Bitcoin because its limitations mean it will be superseded by better products or bet that it can thrive despite them.”

Bitcoin futures maturing on Wednesday on the Cboe Global Markets Inc’s Cboe Futures Exchange were at $10,740, with 1,586 contracts traded, after having opened at $10,850. The open interest was 2,895 contracts. The Cboe 14 March 2018 contract was quoted at $11,130.

The futures are cash-settled contracts based on the auction price of bitcoin in U.S. dollars on the Gemini Exchange, which is owned and operated by virtual currency entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.

The MVIS CryptoCompare Ripple Index, which covers the performance of a digital assets portfolio which invests in Ripple (XRP), a cryptocurrency developed by Ripple Labs, dropped 15 percent to $7,298 on Wednesday.

That equity index has seen a 66 percent slide in its value since the start of the year. Ripple itself was quoted at $1.15 on website CoinMarketCap, down from a high of $3.81 on Jan 4.

“The run-up in Bitcoin created a mystique of one-way trading which is being shaken but the pricing requires faith that there will always be demand,” Englander wrote.

“This is far from guaranteed given the existence of alternatives with better characteristics.”

Reporting by Hideyuki Sano in TOKYO; Writing by Vidya Ranganathan; Editing by Shri Navaratnam

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Posted By David Ogden Entrepreneur
David Ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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DUBAI PLANS TO LAUNCH 20 BLOCKCHAIN-BASED SERVICES IN 2018

January 16, 2018

DUBAI PLANS TO LAUNCH 20 BLOCKCHAIN-BASED SERVICES IN 2018

Dubai is already running pilot programs in a few government departments but hopes to implement 20 blockchain-based initiatives in this year.

Dubai is making good on its nickname as the ‘City of the Future’. Its government had previously formed Smart Dubai, an agency created with the aim of making Dubai the most technologically advanced, and smartest city in the world. Part of that journey is to include blockchain-based services into a number of sectors.

Both IBM and Consensys have entered into strategic partnerships with the agency in advisory roles in order to help realize the goals of Smart Dubai.

BLOCKCHAIN IS NOT JUST FOR BITCOIN

According to The National, Aisha Bint Buti bin Bisher, who is the director general of Smart Dubai, believes that “blockchain will improve people’s experience.”

While at the Unlock Blockchain Forum, she went on to explain the implementation of this technology in the city:

The applications are in various fields, some of them are in RTA, road and transport, some of them are in energy, health and education. These 20-use cases are under pilot, and we are looking forward to see the results so we can scale it.

THE FUTURE IS NOW

Even though the initial deadline for the launch was scheduled for 2020, Bisher is confident that it can be completed this year. In fact, blockchain technology is already being used for land registry transactions.

Other government sectors, such as Department of Naturalization and Residency Dubai, are also running pilot programs. Additional departments, including Dubai Customs, are collaborating with IBM on future initiatives.

The agency has said that blockchain technology will improve service delivery in government by saving more than 25 million hours of productivity every year.

Bisher also said:

While others were still debating the prospects of this new technology, we went to work and today we are making Dubai the blockchain capital of the world, and we have already begun.

In addition, she touched on the blockchain benefits that the city is already experiencing:

Dubai broke ground when the world reluctantly approached this technology. Already, blockchain is rewriting how we deal with city services. In just a handful of years, blockchain has transformed key aspects of our city.

DISRUPTION BREEDS INNOVATION

While at the same conference, Ramez Dandan, who is the national technology officer at Microsoft Gulf, discussed how the disruptive technology is an exciting addition to the business sector:

Investment in blockchain across the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] and beyond is ramping up at an impressive rate as organizations recognize it for the disruptive technology that it is.

He further explained:

We strongly believe in the technology’s immense potential for enterprises of all scales and industries. It allows them to share business processes with suppliers, customers and partners, leading to new opportunities for multi-party collaboration and eventually exciting new business models.

Governments in the Arabian Gulf, including the United Arab Emirates, are looking to invest in technology to substantiate oil revenue, the latter of which has suffered recently due to oil price declines.

Author: NIKITA BLOWS · JANUARY 16, 2018 · 1:15 AM

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur
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Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

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Bitcoin investors BANNED from using their mega-profits to buy houses amid money-laundering fears

January 14, 2018

Bitcoin investors BANNED from using their mega-profits to buy houses amid money-laundering fears

Investors who’ve made a mint are now trying to cash in on their sudden windfall by milking the UK’s property boom.

BITCOIN investors are being knocked back by mortgage lenders amid fears about money laundering.

The price of the virtual currency has rocketed nearly 1,500 percent in the past year.Some have made massive profits on Bitcoin but are facing obstacles because of transparency fears And now investors who’ve made a mint are trying to cash in on their sudden windfall by investing in the UK’s property bubble.

But lenders are now worried about the source of the cash and have been rejecting them for mortgages.

Broker Mark Stallard said one investor had a £40,000 deposit pot after investing in bitcoin but even he was denied a loan.

Mr Stallard, from House and Holiday Home Mortgages: said: "The first mortgage lender I rang asked me what a cryptocurrency was.

"I rang two other lenders and they said they would not touch it.

"When I mentioned where the money had come from there was massive reluctance to help or understand the problem.

"I do not believe the mortgage providers in general are ready for this issue and research tells me that a lot more people will be knocking on our doors with funds made or raised in this fashion.”

The perceived problem with cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, are that they are not regulated by central banks. Instead they are held digitally by people using electronic identities which allow them to remain anonymous and so could be used by criminals.

Several building societies said they would not accept a deposit derived from a cryptocurrency, while banks including Santander, Nationwide and Aldermore said they had no formal policies.

The Building Societies Association said: "There is currently no regulation of these electronic currencies, which puts them into the highest risk category in relation to money laundering.

"In addition, it is well known that such currencies are popular with criminals, who use them to launder the proceeds of crime.”

Author: By Patrick Knox 13th January 2018, 3:44 pm

Posted By David Ogden Entrepreneur
David ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreenur

Of course if you pay cash for the property, a bank may also want to know the source of the funds, So maybe you could get the seller to accept Cryptocurrency and record the transaction on the blockchain, which opens up a new ball game.

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Markethive

Bitcoin is no long the only game in crypto-currency town

January 12, 2018

Bitcoin is no long the only game in crypto-currency town

IT STARTED as a joke. Dogecoin was launched in 2013 as a bitcoin parody, using as its mascot a Japanese shiba inu dog, a popular internet meme. The crypto-currency was never really used, except for tipping online, and one of its founders has called it quits. But recently its price has soared: on January 7th the dollar value of all Dogecoins in circulation reached $2bn, a sign of how crazy crypto-currency markets have become. It is also a reminder that, for all the focus on bitcoin, it is no longer the only game in town. Its market capitalisation now amounts to only about one-third of the crypto-market (see chart).

Bitcoin is no long the only game in crypto-currency town

A new crypto-currency is born almost daily, often through an “initial coin offering” (ICO), a form of online crowdfunding. CoinMarketCap, a website, lists about 1,400 digital coins or tokens, including UFO Coin, PutinCoin, Sexcoin and InsaneCoin (worth $7m). Most are no more than curiosities, but by January 10th, around 40 had a market capitalisation of more than $1bn.

First on the list, after bitcoin, was Ethereum, whose coin, called ether, reached a market capitalisation of $137bn. Ethereum’s claim to fame is that it is also a platform for “smart contracts”—business rules encapsulated in software. Most ICO tokens, for instance, are issued by such contracts. Its success has attracted crypto-copycats: Cardano ($20bn) and NEO ($8bn), a Chinese version.

Ripple, too, is defying gravity. It is all the rage in crypto-crazy South Korea, which this week roiled crypto-markets with plans to ban trading on exchanges. Ripple sells software to move money between countries; more than 100 banks have signed up to its technology, based on a coin called XRP. Its market capitalisation jumped by more than 40,000% in 2017, reaching nearly $149bn on January 4th, before falling back to $78bn. That still makes Chris Larsen, a Ripple co-founder, one of the world’s richest people, at least on digital paper.

Less well-known coins have also taken wing. Monero ($6bn) and Zcash ($2bn) focus on privacy. Stellar ($9.8bn) has developed a system to transfer funds cheaply that is used by charities, particularly in poor countries. IOTA ($10.1bn) allows connected machines to exchange information and payments securely. And then there is Bitcoin Cash ($46bn), whose founders split from bitcoin in August 2017 because they were unhappy with how it was run.

Might any of these one day replace bitcoin as crypto-land reserve currency, something insiders call the “flippening”? Given bitcoin’s governance problems (another “fork”, or split, may be in the offing) and limited capacity (a transaction now costs nearly $30, on average, in fees), this cannot be excluded. But the others have problems, too. Ethereum’s user fees have soared and the system has again hit technical snags. As for Ripple, some question the extent to which XRPs are actually used.

Come what may, the field will only get more crowded. Kodak, the archetypal victim of digital disruption, wants to jump on the crypto-wagon: on January 9th it announced that it will launch a coin to allow photographers to charge for their works. More ambitious will be the ICO of Telegram, a messaging service with 180m users: it aims to raise $1.2bn and issue a token called Gram that can be used to pay for a range of services from online storage to virtual private networks. Even Facebook has reportedly started looking into creating a token. Should the world’s biggest social network ever make that move, bitcoin’s days as the leading crypto-currency would almost certainly be numbered.

Source: The Economist

Posted by David Ogden Entrepreneur
David Ogden Cryptocurrency Entrepreneur

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member