Author: Frederik Nielsen (Page 25)

After only five months, Facebook has begun to backtrack on its cryptocurrency advertisement ban which was put into effect back in January. The move by Facebook was quickly followed by similar bans imposed by Google and Twitter on their respective platforms. Now, however. it would seem that the social media giant is slowly but surely opening the doors back up to certain cryptocurrency advertisers.

The ban was never easy to enforce

Facebook had trouble enforcing the ban for quite a while after it was initially put in place. Mere days after the ban, cryptocurrency advertisements were still being seen on the social network. The method of enforcement was perhaps slightly naive on Facebook’s part. The idea was to put a blanket ban on ads making any mentions of terms like ‘cryptocurrency’, ‘ICOs’, ‘initial coin offerings’, and ‘blockchain’.

Clever crypto-enthusiasts simply reworded their ads in order to bypass the filter put in place. All they had to do was use the term ‘c-currencies’ and ‘c-trading’ instead of ‘cryptocurrencies’ and ‘crypto-trading’. As such, Facebook had to widen the scope of words their filters would catch, and thus began a long back-and-forth between the platform and the advertisers.

The reversal of the ban is only partial

One of the main reasons for the ban in the first place was the fact that so many ICOs turned out to be scams. For this reason, the ban imposed on advertisers still holds for ICOs and binary options. When it comes to cryptocurrencies themselves, and other related products and services, the ban has effectively been lifted. A spokesperson for Facebook has however mentioned that all advertisers will have to go through a vetting process before they’re allowed to place an ad.

This vetting process involves advertisers having to submit an application along with their ad. Along with the application, the advertisers need to let Facebook know of any licenses they hold, if they have a presence on public stock exchanges, as well as provide details of their official business information. These restrictions will greatly reduce the number of advertisers who are eligible to place an ad on Facebook.

Facebook calls on the community to help out

The ban was initially put in place to protect the Facebook community from fraudulent activity. This activity can still be seen occasionally, with the odd ‘Bitc0in’ ad having passed through the filter. Some scammers have even claimed that cryptocurrencies are now an official currency in Sweden, in order to lend legitimacy to their ad.

Because Facebook’s filter will never be able to catch 100% of scammers, the spokesperson has called on the wider Facebook community to help police the space and report any dodgy advertisements they come across.

Meanwhile, Facebook is working on their own cryptocurrency. If and when this is launched, the ban might be completely reversed and the restrictions lifted. It could, however, also go in the completely opposite direction. Why would Facebook not ban all other cryptocurrencies than their own? The temptation to eliminate competition in this way would be irresistible to most companies.

Those of us who have been following the progress of blockchain technology since the launch of Bitcoin back in 2009 have spent a lot of time discussing the money side of things. But blockchain technology is so much more than simply a gateway to a new form of currency.

The technology that underpins cryptocurrency is much more potent than that. It has the potential to transform several aspects of our everyday lives. Fortunately, people in the know are working relentlessly on bringing about the realisation of blockchain technology’s full potential. Verification is a huge part of our society, as it helps ensure that trust is not only built, but also maintained. with this in mind, let’s have a look at some of the kinds of verification the blockchain can help us improve.

From coffee supply chains to land ownership

The prosperity of a country relies heavily on its ability to trade with other countries by exporting goods and services. Ethiopia is a country that relies on its export of coffee beans. Cardano is a blockchain platform that is being developed to help Ethiopia track the comings and going of their valued export. Input Output HK is the company behind Cardano, and they have ambitions that stretch much further than the tracking of coffee beans. Their vision includes the tracking of land ownership on the African continent.

From beef to university diplomas

Similar to Ethiopia, Cambodia and Vietnam are relying on their individual exports to prosper. In this case, the goods are not coffee, but beef. Here, Cardano is also being used to track the progress of the beef supply chain. The company applying Cardano in Cambodia and Vietnam is another blockchain startup called Emerge Hong Kong. Although they are not seeking to use the Cardano platform for tracking land ownership in Asia, they do have other uses for it in mind. Their plans include using the platform to issue digital university certificates. In a world of fake news and scam artists, this is a much welcomed addition to the verification of official documents such as university diplomas.

How does it all work?

Trading with cryptocurrency involves the recording of transactions on the blockchain. The decentralised nature of these transactions is what makes them so safe compared to traditional forms of transactions. Because the records are not kept in one particular place at any given time, but rather spread across many devices at all times, they are never lost. Furthermore, once a transaction is recorded, it cannot be deleted or modified in any way. Finally, because the records are kept on a collective network, there are much lower costs associated with maintaining the database. This is what is so attractive about the blockchain model, particularly for developing countries, and which is why it is applicable to supply chains.

What does the future look like?

Input Output HK are working closely together with the Ministry of Science and Technology of Ethiopia, which indicates that the governments can see the potential in blockchain technology. Input Output HK have also started offering free classes to aspiring developers, so they can contribute to the project with their talents. Back in Cambodia, the government is also interested in the ability of Cardano to prevent the smuggling of beef to China, which has banned the import of Japanese beef.

Strykz ICO Review

With the World Cup raging on, there is no doubt that football is the most popular sport in the world. Fans are not content with simply being spectators, however, they want to be part of the game. This has been made possible with the emergence of fantasy football, which football fans across the world have participated in for many years. Now, however, fantasy football is about to be ‘blockchainized’. Let us have a look at the Strykz project and their Football-Stars platform.

What is Strykz?

Strykz is an ICO that aims to tokenize all fantasy sports, starting with football. The team behind the ICO already has an existing platform for this in place, called Football-Stars. The platform has won numerous awards, and the Strykz ICO is intended to take it to the next level. It is an attractive platform for people passionate about football, as many of them have a deep knowledge of the game that they want to put to the test.

Football-Stars is a platform where they can take on the role of coach and manager, create their own team of real-life football players, and compete with their friends and family. The outcome of the games is calculated based on the real-life players’ performance statistics. However, the team behind Strykz have plans on allowing users to generate their own games so that they are not bound by traditional rules. This will allow the community to define the criteria for winning a particular game, as well as the costs of participating in it.

How does Strykz work?

The aim is to develop Football-Stars into a community-driven platform, where users generate the majority of the content. No longer will they be constrained by the leagues and games set up by platform administrators, users can put together their own leagues and games that others can enjoy. In return for contributing with the content of their own, they will be rewarded with cryptocurrency tokens.

These tokens can, in turn, be redeemed for additional platform features or real-life football merchandise. It is also possible to spend the tokens on participating in other user-generated challenges on the platform. The advantage of doing this is that users will be rewarded with more tokens for doing so. In essence, they can continue to play indefinitely. Being monetarily incentivized to play fantasy football and receiving merchandise in return for it is a dream come true for any football fan.

What are the key features of Strykz?

One of the main attractive features of the Football-Stars platform is that the developers offer is as a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS). This means that other companies can launch it internationally, and thus spread it to other markets in other languages than English. The team behind the platform offers this as a way for businesses to save 70% on development costs, in exchange for purchasing a license. As mentioned earlier, users will also be able to monetize their contributions to the platform and be rewarded with tokens that can be exchanged for merchandise. A win-win situation for everyone involved.

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My ETH adress:
0xcD3347Bd7595750473b2dC8d2F32f28a32C868b7

Cotrader ICO Review

If you are in the game of trading assets or currency, you will know that there is a lot of red tape involved. All trades usually have to go through a number of intermediaries before it can be finalised. Would it not be nice if there was a way to avoid all the hassle involved with trading, so you could you get on with business?

Fortunately, the cryptocurrency space has spawned a solution to this problem. As always, blockchain technology makes the process of getting real work done much easier than legacy technology. Cotrader is one of the ICOs that are designed to make life as a trader much easier than ever imagined before.

How does Cotrader work?

By utilising blockchain technology, the team behind Cotrader has cleverly circumvented many of the obstacles slowing down the process of trading. The platform aims to give traders much-needed control over their assets, whilst also securing them on an unprecedented scale. At the same time, this eliminates the chain of middlemen that is usually involved in the trading process. The peer-to-peer system integrated into the platform puts traders in direct contact with each other, which also reduces the costs associated with transactions. The exchanges that are built in to the platform also allows traders to do their business using multiple kinds of cryptocurrency tokens. In short, Cotrader is looking to revolutionize the $16 trillion asset management industry in the United States.

What is a Smart Fund?

Because Cotrader is using the Ethereum network, smart contracts are bound to pop up. In this instance, a Smart Fund is a smart contract that has several people attached to it, including fund managers and investors. The smart contract also has shares, which can be traded for cryptocurrency. These shares are allocated to the investors of the Smart Fund. The fund manager of the Smart Fund can in turn use the investors’ money to make a profit. The advantage here is that investors are able to withdraw their investment at any time, much like depositing money into a bank.

What is a Fund Manager?

In order to become a Fund Manager on the Cotrader platform, you have to pay a small one-time fee for each transaction that is connected to any given Smart Fund. This fee is deducted from any profit that a Fund Manager makes from an investment in any given Smart Fund.

What is a Calculating Fund?

The investors will deposit their investments into Smart Funds. When using Cotrader, these investments will automatically be converted into the native cryptocurrency, which is COT tokens. When an investment is made, the value of the Smart Fund is calculated. Based on this calculation, the number of shared allocated to the investor is then worked out. If the Smart Fund is only based on COT tokens, this process is simple. However, if there are several different kinds of cryptocurrencies involved, each with their own value, it becomes slightly more complicated. Fortunately, the algorithms used by Cotrader are very sophisticated.

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HumanCoin ICO Review

Charities around the world have begun to open their eyes to the possibilities offered by cryptocurrency. In the cryptocurrency community there is an untapped resource of donors that charities could have access to if they have a method of accepting donations in cryptocurrency. Like most businesses, the majority of charities are not in this position. It could be argued that it is even more difficult for charities to adopt a new method of payment, as they have fewer resources to work with than big businesses have.

Cryptocurrency donations have so far only been possible for Save The Children, Red Cross, United Way, and other major charities with substantial funds and infrastructure. With this in mind, it was only a question of time before some clever cookies came up with another way for charities to accept donations from cryptocurrency holders. This is where HumanCoin enters the picture.

What is HumanCoin?

More than just a way for cryptocurrency holders to donate their tokens to charitable causes, HumanCoin brings together donors, charities, and e-commerce platforms. By using the HumanCoin platform, donors can send money to charities around the world, keep an eye on their transactions, and look at reports from the charity to see what the money has been used for. With blockchain technology, HumanCoin has made charitable donations a much more transparent and secure experience for donors and charities alike. On top of this, the HumanCoin team has also successfully incorporated the aggregation of e-commerce loyalty programs into their platform, further enhancing the utility of their tokens.

How does HumanCoin work?

Interested donors quite simply sign up to use the HumanCoin platform, where they will be able to view all the charities that are signed up. Once the donors have picked a charity of their choice, they select the amount of HUMA tokens (the native currency on the platform) they would like to send to the charity. HumanCoin will be using Ethereum’s smart contract technology to ensure that the charities are using the funds being sent to them for the intended purpose. The if/then concept of smart contracts will ensure that donors can rest easy knowing that their money will not be spent on anything other than the charity’s goal. Donors will also be able to take advantage of a number of loyalty programs tied to the many e-commerce organisations HumanCoin has partnered with.

What are the key features of HumanCoin?

The platform eliminates the costly and time-consuming process of donating to charities through a chain of intermediaries. Rather, the donors will be in direct contact with the charities they have chosen to donate to. HumanCoin is also the first blockchain project that has aggregated e-commerce loyalty programs.

What about the HumanCoin tokens?

The native currency on the HumanCoin platform is the HUMA token. These tokens can be traded for any other cryptocurrency token. This means that no matter what kind of token donors are holding, they can convert them into HUMA tokens and then donate to a charity. The tokens can also be converted to loyalty points, vouchers, and coupons, which can be used with the many e-commerce partners affiliated with HumanCoin.

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InsCoin ICO Review

For many people, the insurance industry can be a minefield to navigate. Although there are many legitimate insurance companies that do have their customers best interests at heart, there are also some bad apples.

Horror stories of how customers have had their claims rejected due to a technicality are widespread. One the other hand, it is not just among the insurance companies there are bad apples to be found. Some customers have also engaged in fraudulent activities in an attempt to cheat the system and get an insurance claim paid out based on false premises. Needless to say, there is a certain element of distrust in the insurance world. Fortunately, a solution is on the horizon. InsCoin for Knox Project is an ICO that aims to address this issue by incorporating blockchain technology into the insurance system.

What is InsCoin?

InsCoin is a part of the Knox Project, which aims to be the first insurance company that combines the real world aspects of insurance with the world of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. By using digital ledger technology, the team wants to eliminate forgery, fraud, and the rejection of legitimate claims. The decentralized nature of the blockchain will ensure that all records are kept on a secure network. Using Ethereum’s smart contract system will also create an unprecedented transparency that will benefit both companies and claimants.

How does InsCoin work?

The platform will be using smart contracts as the core agreement between customers and insurance companies. The if/then premise of smart contracts will avoid false insurance policies, as the same system issues both the policies and the payments. Neither will the insurance companies experience any delays in the collection of credits, as their coverage is only issued after the customer’s payment has been made. This will not only make transactions easier but will also greatly reduce the managerial burden on the company. The most important and interesting thing is perhaps that the company will not be able to reject claims due to technicalities. The insurance companies will no longer be in control of the decision on whether or not to pay out a claim. Instead, whether or not the claimant is paid will come down to the stipulations in the smart contract. The money will only be released if the conditions for their release are met.

How is InsCoin progressing?

The project kicked off in March last year when the developers established the Team Building Establishment. In May 2017, the forecast business plan was fleshed out, and legal consulting was covered.

Two months later, the IT insurance platform was licensed. In October last year, the project secured partnerships with more than 300 insurance brokers. 2018 has seen the team plan the ICO launch and marketing plan. Last month the official Pre-ICO started, and the actual ICO started just this month. The rest of 2018 will be spent on getting InsCoin onto the main cryptocurrency exchanges and securing authorizations from official authorities to provide legal insurance to their clients. Customers will be able to utilize the platform in late 2018.

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This is the third part of our three-part coverage of some of the most prominent cryptocurrency exchanges. If you have not read the first two parts, check it out here on the site.

Bit-Z

Based in Hong Kong, Beijing, and Singapore, Bit-Z is an exchange that caters mainly to Chinese customers. Trading in 74 different tokens and hosting 105 markets, Bit-Z handles transactions for just over $250 million every day. Like some of the other exchanges we have covered in this series, Bit-Z has its own native cryptocurrency token called DKKT. One of the advantages of Bit-Z is that it is not regulated. Another advantage is that it facilitates the over-the-counter trading of cryptocurrency.

Bibox

Another Chinese exchange is Bibox, which only launched last year. Despite its relatively young age compared to the other exchanges, it has consistently ranked in the top lists of highest trading volume. Clocking in at $200 million every day, Bibox has 62 tradable coins. Traders can use five different currencies to pay the transaction costs. Bitcoin and Ethereum, as well as USDT, DAI, and BIX. The last token is the native currency issued by the exchange during their ICO. Bibox is not limited to China, however. The exchange has satellite offices in Japan, Hong Kong, Canada, the United States, and mainland China. One of the advantages of this exchange is that it is not regulated. Another is the advanced AI that helps traders optimize their trades.

Kraken

Before this guide becomes too Asia-centric, let us return to the United States briefly, and look at Kraken. Based in California, this exchange handles $135 million worth of transactions every 24 hours. Here, traders can use the most widely accepted fiat currencies, such as the US and Canadian Dollars, the Euro, the Pound, and the Yen. As opposed to some of the newer exchanges, Kraken was founded back in 2011 and is one of the first exchanges in the US. One of the advantages of Kraken is the proof-of-reserves they offer as part of their partnership with a cryptocurrency bank.

GDAX

GDAX, short for Global Digital Asset Exchange, is the advanced arm of Coinbase described in the first part of this series. Once beginners have honed their skills in crypto-trading, they can move on to using GDAX. This exchange is partnered with the New York Stock Exchange, among other credible institutions. Moving funds from Coinbase to GDAX is very easy, and all customers are insured for up to $250,000. By the end of this month, GDAX will be renamed Coinbase Pro.

Gemini

The last exchange on our list is Gemini, another American exchange based in New York. Founded in 2015, it caters to traders based in Europe, Asia, as well as the United States. There are not many tradable coins, but users can rest assured that Gemini complies with all regulations. No short selling or trading on margin is allowed on Gemini, and it handles transactions for just over $22 million every day.

We hope this three part guide has given you some insight into the various cryptocurrency exchanges. Leave a comment in the section below if we have missed any important ones!

This is the second part of our three-part coverage of some of the most prominent cryptocurrency exchanges. If you have not read the first part, check it out here.

Bitfinex

Bitfinex is another of the many exchanges based in Hong Kong, and handles just under half a billion dollars worth of transactions every day. Unfortunately, Bitfinex has not had it easy as of late. It was subject to a massive hacking operation in 2016, in which it lost around $70 million in Bitcoin. Last year, it was accused of manipulating the value of Bitcoin by using a stablecoin called Tether. Finally, it is not possible for US traders to use Bitfinex due to regulatory issues. Nevertheless, traders are not required to provide any form of identification in order to use the exchange.

Bithumb

Bithumb is a smaller exchange based in the South Korean capital of Seoul, and handle transactions worth just over a quarter billion dollars in a 24-hour period. Bithumb is a bit different from most other exchanges in that it only allows for fiat money to cryptocurrency exchanges. In other words, you cannot trade one crypto token for another at Bithumb. Another reason the audience for this exchange is smaller is that only traders local to South Korea can use it. The only fiat money allowed is the South Korean Won. Just this Wednesday, on June 20th, Bithumb announced that it had been the victim of a hacking incident resulting in losses of around $31 million in cryptocurrency tokens.

UPbit

A fellow South Korean exchange handling similar transaction volumes as Bithumb is UPbit. Like Bithumb, UPbit is only available to South Korean traders and subject to strict South Korean regulations. As with many other South Korean exchanges, UPbit has been the subject of much scrutiny from the government. The exchange was created late last year and is the product of Kakao Corp., which is a mobile provider in South Korea, and Bittrex, which is an American cryptocurrency trading website.

HitBTC

Going back to Hong Kong, we find HitBTC, which is in a similar league to Bithumb and UPbit in terms of transaction value. The exchange was created back in 2013 and brands itself as the most advanced platform of its kind. Some of the features traders have access to on HitBTC include advanced algorithms and a rebate system. While HitBTC does not allow users to trade using fiat money, they are able to purchase Bitcoin using their credit card — provided their bank allows for it. Although there are few regulations, new Japanese regulations have caused HitBTC to suspend their services for Japanese residents.

ZB.COM

This exchange, which was founded late last year, focuses mainly on the Chinese market. Also clocking in at a quarter billion dollars in daily transactions, ZB.COM also available in English for non-Chinese users. Inviting a friend onto the platform will net users a 10% discount on transaction fees. It is, however, a requirement to provide some form of identification in order to trade on the platform. As the exchange is registered in Samoa, it is not regulated.

The driving force behind the cryptocurrency market is of course trade, and that trade takes place on the many cryptocurrency exchanges. We are going to have a look at some of the most popular exchanges in this three part series. Have a look below and see if you are trading on the right exchange.

Coinbase

Coinbase is located in San Francisco, California, and is a comprehensive platform that functions like an exchange, a digital wallet, and a range of tools traders can use to conduct their business. It is a very popular platform among beginners due to its simply design and ease of use. More advanced traders can use Coinbase’s sister platform GDAX (soon to be Coinbase Pro). With over 20 million people using it, it is considered to be one of the most prominent exchanges, and is valued at more than $1 billion. Having already partnered with companies like Overstock and Expedia, Coinbase has plans to expand into the Japanese market.

BitMEX

BitMEX is a cryptocurrency exchange based in Hong Kong, and processes around $2 billion worth of transactions every day. For better or worse, the platform is very reliant on Bitcoin, as all profits and losses made from trades are converted into Bitcoin. This means that even if a trader buys and sells cryptocurrency tokens other than Bitcoin, any eventual yields are dependent on the value of Bitcoin. BitMEX calls their unique system ‘leveraged contracts’, ‘futures contracts’ and ‘perpetual contracts’. Although the exchange is based in Hong Kong, it is registered in the Seychelles, which means it is subject to very little regulation.

Binance

Not constrained by a single location, Binance is a series of cryptocurrency exchanges spread out across several Asian countries. Although it only came into being last year, Binance already processes $1 billion worth of transactions every day. Rather than having a separate platform for advanced users, traders can switch between ‘beginner’ and ‘advanced’ modes when using the platform. What also makes Binance special is that it has its own cryptocurrency token called Binancecoin (BNB for short). Although BNB tokens are not a requirement for users of the platform, traders who hold BNB tokens receive a discount on transaction fees.

OKEx

Another exchange based in Hong Kong is OKEx. Processing over $1 billion worth of transactions every day, the exchange has announced plans to expand to the Maltese market. As with Binance, OKEx has its own token called OKB, and similar to Binance traders can get a discount if they hold OKB tokens in their digital wallet. As opposed to Binance, however, owners of OKB tokens also get the right to vote on company issues, and access to fiat and margin trading. One of the drawbacks of OKEx is the restricted areas. It is not possible for traders in countries like the United States and Hong Kong to use the platform.

Huobi

Huobi is another pan-Asian exchange, originally founded in China and now with offices in Singapore, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, as well as the United States. The latter is interesting, as the platform is currently not available to US traders due to regulatory issues. Nevertheless, Huobi is divided into Huobi OTC, where users can trade fiat money for crypto tokens for free, and Huobi Pro, which is similar to the more advanced trading platform offered by Coinbase. Huobi is about to launch a cryptocurrency ETF called HB10.

Hackers are having a field day with the cryptocurrency market. Another South Korean cryptocurrency exchange has now been hacked. This time, it was Bithumb, which is based in the South Korean capital of Seoul. More than $30 million worth of cryptocurrency tokens has been stolen. This comes hot off the heels of the Coinrail hack that happened recently.

Bithumb grinds to a halt after the hack

The exact amount the hackers got away with, as reported by Bithumb, is $31.56 million. This comes out to approximately 35 billion won, which is the local currency. As a safety measure, the cryptocurrency exchange has stopped all deposits and withdrawals until the situation is under control. The exchange has also issued a statement saying that it would compensate all customers who lost part or all of their funds.

As with the Coinrail hack, the cryptocurrency market as a whole has suffered from this hacking incident. Right after the hack was reported, the value of Bitcoin fell by 2% down to $6,600. This is a continuation of the very bad year 2018 has been for Bitcoin, as well as other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Ripple. Bitcoin has not been able to progress much since its all-time 2018 low in February.

Cybersecurity expert says hacks are part of the cryptocurrency market

Wall Street Journal interviewed Yo Kwon, who is the the head of a cybersecurity firm specializing in blockchain projects. Kwon mentioned that cryptocurrency exchanges being hacked is bad for the industry as a whole. However, he also pointed out that because the hacks happen so frequently, it has pretty much become part and parcel of trading in cryptocurrency.

The reason why this hack is a bit different than the other is that Bithumb is one of the biggest exchanges in the world. As a matter of fact, it was the exchange with the highest trading volume this time last year. South Korea is, despite their tough regulation of cryptocurrency, the global leader in cryptocurrency exchange. Bithumb recently lost its top position to another South Korean cryptocurrency exchange called Upbit.

Hacking remains a huge problem in the cryptocurrency space

Altogether, cryptocurrency traders and investors have collectively lost more than $1.4 billion due to hacks over the past four years. Fortunately, there are organizations working on reducing the number of attacks. The Asia Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (ASIFMA) is one of the organizations that have laid out a series of best practices for cryptocurrency exchanges.

ASIFMA reported that the “lack of due diligence and independent insight” were the main reason the hackers could gain access to the cryptocurrency exchanges. Because the industry as a whole is relatively young, many exchanges lack the experience it takes to prevent these kinds of hacks.Hopefully, as the market matures, these kinks will be ironed out.
What do you think can be done about the hacking incidents? And why are cryptocurrency exchanges especially vulnerable compared to other digital organizations? Leave your comments in the section below!