Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:50 AM on Wednesday, November 13th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
Canada’s Largest Bank Mulls Crypto Exchange After Bitcoin Ban
A Canadian bank, which banned its clients from buying Bitcoin (BTC), could now become the first in the country to launch a cryptocurrency exchange.Â
As innovation economy news outlet The Logic reported on Nov. 11, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is now rumored to be considering the plans.
A Canadian bank, which banned its clients from buying Bitcoin (BTC), could now become the first in the country to launch a cryptocurrency exchange.
As innovation economy news outlet The Logic reported on Nov. 11, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is now rumored to be considering the plans.
RBC reportedly planning multifunctional exchange
RBC is the largest bank in Canada by market capitalization, with $661 billion CAD ($499 billion) in assets under management.
According to The Logic, the bank is entertaining the possibility for
the exchange to function both for investments and allowing clients to
make purchases online and in brick-and-mortar stores.
The news follows a previous report that Canada’s central bank wanted to use digital currency in order to better track consumer spending habits.
“The trading platform would facilitate buying and selling of individual digital coins, including Bitcoin and Ether (ETH), as well as the transfer of funds combining different types of cryptocurrencies,†the publication summarized.
Bitcoin purchases “not allowedâ€
While little detailed information is currently available, the move
would run conspicuously in contrast to RBC’s current modus operandi on
cryptocurrencies. Last year, the bank abruptly banned clients purchasing
Bitcoin or altcoins with credit and debit cards.
“Effective immediately, RBC will no longer be allowing the use of RBC
credit cards for transactions involving cryptocurrency. We regret any
inconvenience this may cause,†a notice stated at the time.
Nonetheless, attention has since focused on how authorities will handle the fallout from QuadrigaCX,
a local cryptocurrency exchange that imploded in late 2018. While
recovery of lost funds is ongoing, users lost a total of around $190
million in deposits.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 5:27 PM on Monday, November 11th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
Crypto banks getting green light from regulators
New institutions specializing in digital currency are being granted official recognition around the world
By Paul Muir
Traditional financial institutions still have reservations about decentralized cryptocurrencies. A decade after Satoshi Nakamoto
unleashed bitcoin on the world in response to the global economic
meltdown, they are only just beginning to explore the potential of
digital assets. However, a new breed of banks specializing in crypto
have been working tirelessly to capitalize on the fiscal trend and are
now gaining regulatory recognition around the world, Bitcoin.com
reported.
Swiss crypto banks
Switzerland has become a leading crypto-friendly country and several hundred companies are currently operating in Crypto Valley,
which is situated in the canton of Zug. The country’s financial
regulators are taking an increasingly positive approach to the nascent
sector. Traditional banks have been reluctant to serve entities dealing
with cryptocurrencies but competition from new businesses focusing
specifically on the crypto market is likely to change that.
In August, the Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma)
licensed two companies to provide banking services to Swiss-based crypto
businesses and also trade securities. Zug-registered Seba Crypto and
Zurich-based Sygnum became Switzerland’s first regulated crypto banks,
Bitcoin.com reported. Another entity working with digital assets,
Bitcoin Suisse, applied for a banking and securities dealer license this
summer. A new Swiss venture called Tallyon expects the green light from
Finma to allow it to become a “next-generation†private bank employing
blockchain tech and working with cryptocurrencies.
These companies are not restricting themselves to Switzerland. In
late October, Sygnum was granted a capital markets services license in
Singapore. According to a report by Swissinfo, the Monetary Authority of
Singapore (MAS) has authorized the crypto bank to provide asset
management services in the Southeast Asian city-state. Seba Crypto,
which is currently focusing primarily on its upcoming launch in
Switzerland, is in talks with the MAS but has not yet applied for a
license. It plans to enter a number of other markets including Hong
Kong, the UK, Italy, Germany, France, Austria, Portugal, and the
Netherlands. Tallyon plans to expand into Asia after its launch in the
alpine country.
In a press release published on its website, Sygnum revealed that its
first product will be a multi-manager fund that “allocates investments
across a portfolio of managers that tap into the global digital asset
opportunity using different and uncorrelated investment strategies.†It
will be available to institutional and private qualified investors in
Switzerland in the future as well, through the company’s banking
platform there. In partnership with the largest German stock exchange
and Swisscom, Sygnum is also working to launch a new digital asset
trading venue.
Tencent’s ‘virtual bank’
The expansion of the crypto industry in any jurisdiction inevitably
creates demand for related banking services. China’s recent focus on
blockchain development is likely to have the same effect. Some Chinese
companies are already moving to take advantage of the changing
environment that creates new business opportunities.
Tencent, the tech and internet giant behind the popular messenger
Wechat, was recently granted a license from the Hong Kong Securities and
Futures Commission (SFC) that will allow it to establish a “virtual
bank.†Speaking at the World Blockchain Conference in Wuzhen on November
8, Cai Weige, general manager for blockchain at Tencent, revealed the
holding is already assembling a team for the financial platform.
According to Chinese media outlets, the forum was devoted to
blockchain, digital assets, central bank digital currency, artificial
intelligence, and 5G. During his keynote speech at the conference, Cai
noted that blockchain and cryptocurrencies receive more attention now
that the Hong Kong government has begun to regulate crypto transactions.
The SFC recently established a new regulatory framework that allows
crypto exchanges to opt-in to be licensed and regulated. Trading
platforms can now apply for a license if they meet certain requirements,
including the implementation of measures to guarantee the safe custody
of crypto assets.
“The framework will enable virtual asset trading platforms to be
regulated by the SFC, a major development which builds on a way forward I
outlined at the same time last year,†SFC Chief Executive Ashley Alder
said, according to a Cointelegraph report last week.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:44 AM on Friday, November 8th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
From Online Gambling to Pot, Crypto Commerce Takes Off This Year
Bitcoin still accounted for about 90% of commerce transactions
Nearly $6 million in transactions done daily: Chainalysis
After being given up for dead, cryptocurrency-based commerce — albeit still tiny — has started growing again.
The amount of digital money sent to 16 merchant service providers
such as BitPay rose 65% between January and July, according to data
researcher Chainalysis. The price of Bitcoin, which accounted for 89% of
all such transactions, had more than doubled over the seven months, to
about $10,000. Typically, steep run-ups in the cryptocurrency’s price
push people to spend less, and instead to hold or to speculate.
The resurgence is in contrast to last year, when Chainalysis found that Bitcoin-based commerce was in decline.
This time around, the researcher looked not just at Bitcoin but also at
Tether, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash, which are used to fund everything
from online gambling to purchases at pot shops.
“It suggests there’s more overall trust in crypto,†Kim Grauer,
senior economist at New York-based Chainalysis, said in a phone
interview.
In one of the biggest efforts for mainstream use, Intercontinental Exchange Inc. plans to begin testing
its consumer app for digital assets with Starbucks Inc. in the first
half of 2020. Processor BitPay and others are adding support for new
coins, also boosting commerce. The company, which says it processes more
than $1 billion annually, anticipates continued growth as new
cryptocurrencies are added to the mix including Bitcoin Cash Ether and
XRP, spokesperson Jan Jahosky said in an email.
The overall amount of crypto used in commerce remains tiny: It was
$5.5 million on average per day in July, up from only about $3 million
in January. Starbucks alone books about $70 million in sales daily.
Inconvenience has been a major barrier. Transaction confirmation on
the Bitcoin network can take an hour — making it hard for someone to
just walk in a store, buy a cup of coffee and leave. Many businesses
still don’t accept the coins. And many consumers are still leery to
spend them anyway, due to most cryptocurrencies’ wild volatility.
Increased use of Tether
— a so-called stablecoin because its price doesn’t typically fluctuate
much — gave crypto commerce a boost, with the token’s use in commerce
increasing five-fold between January and July, according to the
researcher. In those seven months, Tether accounted for 9% of all
commerce, Chainalysis said.
“There’s still a lot of growth in Bitcoin,†Grauer said. “But if you
look at Tether, especially in the second half of the year, Tether took
off.â€
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:47 AM on Wednesday, November 6th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
China reverses decision to ban crypto mining in 2020
The plan to include cryptocurrency mining in China into a list of industries that would be banned in the country has reportedly been scrapped.
Earlier this year, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in China revealed it was considering putting crypto mining on a list of banned industrial activities, which would have effectively phased out the industry from the country.
The plan to include cryptocurrency mining in China into a
list of industries that would be banned in the country has reportedly
been scrapped. Earlier this year, the National Development and Reform
Commission (NDRC) in China revealed it was considering putting crypto mining on a list of banned industrial activities, which would have effectively phased out the industry from the country.
Crypto mining industry now safe in China
The future of the crypto mining industry in China has
been uncertain for the past six months, as the country’s State Council
has been considering implementing guidelines that would have forced the
entire industry out.
Back in April, the Chinese National Development and Reform Commission
(NDRC) published a draft proposal of its Industry Restructuring
Catalog, in which it recommended that crypto mining be put on a list of industries to be restricted in the country.
While just a draft, the proposal garnered a lot of negative reactions
in China, with many industry leaders arguing that it could be
detrimental to China’s dominance in the field. The country is not only
home to some of the largest mining hardware manufacturers, including Bitmain, Canaan, and Ebang, but also has some of the largest mining operations in the world.
However, the country seems to have scrapped its plans to blacklist crypto mining, as NDRC has published an updated version of its guidelines that come into effect on Jan. 1, 2020.
According to local media reports, NDRC, which works under China’s State Council, has removed cryptocurrency mining
from the list of industries that should be removed from the country.
The catalog contains detailed descriptions of what constitutes “virtual
currency mining.â€
Half of Bitcoin’s hashpower will remain in China
Officials from NDRC held a press conference on Wednesday, Nov. 6, where they explained
their decision behind updating the draft they published back in April.
The commission said they received over 2,500 suggestions on how to deal
with various issues raised by the draft catalog, adding that most of
them were “taken into consideration.â€
While there were no comments on NDRC’s decision to scrap plans for phasing out crypto mining, the commission was most likely responding to overwhelming pressure from the industry.
It’s important to note that even if the commission hadn’t changed its draft proposal, crypto mining
wouldn’t have been immediately banned from the country. The proposal
only included guidelines for local governments advising them on how to
gradually phase out the burgeoning industry from the country, not
legislation outlawing it.
When the news about the potential “ban†broke earlier this year, many
argued that it could ultimately be beneficial to the industry,
especially Bitcoin mining. The problem with Bitcoin mining centralization has been a looming one and dethroning China as the place responsible for more than half of Bitcoin’s hashpower could have brought much-needed decentralization to the space.
But, the latest NDRC guidelines show that Bitcoin mining will continue to be centralized in China—at least for now.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 2:45 PM on Monday, November 4th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
I’ve been an entrepreneur in this wild cryptocurrency industry for
over 5 years. My focus has been on leading a team of core developers to
build an open decentralized protocol that solves real problems for real
users. I’m not alone in this endeavour. There are at least a few dozen
of my peers leading projects with broadly similar goals.
To the outside world, we’re all crypto geeks building alternatives to
Bitcoin. That said, there are nuances in the designs and goals of
various projects that form the basis of some early investments theses
that leading funds have adopted to guide their selection criteria when
looking at digital assets.
Without getting into all the specifics, for the purposes of this
article, I want to focus only on the specific digital asset classes that
are native to their own networks or blockchains, rather than tokens
built into “dApps†or other similar models.
The reason this is important is because there are an increasing
number of funds, both institutional and not, that are looking at digital
assets as the next asset class to include in their diversified
portfolios that include everything from public equities, to real estate,
to gold, to bonds and other instruments. Who knows, maybe the next time
you check your pension, your favourite digital asset could be in it.
As such, it’s helpful to have a standard way to think about
the differences and similarities among digital assets, such that they
can be categorized for investment decisions.
To the outside looking in, this industry can be extremely opaque to
understand and evaluate. How value will be created, on what time horizon
and how does one form opinions on the quality of the project they’re
looking at. While there is infinite nuance between projects, protocols,
dApps, etc., most digital assets fall within common buckets, that have
formed the informal standard crypto theses. This mental model is helpful
for any observer, technologist or fund that has been researching or
thinking about allocating capital or time into this industry. It also
might help us understand new opportunities for value that fall outside
of these established categories (more on this later).
In speaking to a prominent investor in the cryptocurrency industry recently, he summarized this very simply:
“I understand and believe in Bitcoin and Ethereum. Everything else is just playing copy-cat and trying to play the same game.â€
In a broad sense, this is generally how the industry has evolved.
Bitcoin became dominant, and then many built alternatives (“altâ€-coins)
broadly solving for a similar goal, and then Ethereum introduced a new
type of protocol that was quickly followed by its own inspired
alternatives – something that Chris Burniske of Placeholder Ventures
refers to as “Ethereum Killersâ€.
The funds investing in this industry have had to build their theses
around this reality. As such, you’ll often find funds with a deep
conviction for Bitcoin and Ethereum, and then, to a lesser extent, a
series of “hedges†into alternatives that could grow in relevance and in
some cases potentially overtake the projects that first inspired them.
Many of these alternatives have taken different technical approaches,
but in general seek to solve the same problem and target the same
‘blockchain-converted’ developer or investor audience.
These investment themes behind Bitcoin and Ethereum are similar in
that they are both digital assets, but they’re different in the problems
they seek to solve.
Bitcoin established a category of digital assets that Multicoin Capital likes to refer to as “Global, State-free Moneyâ€.
This theme focuses on a growing need for a global form of money that is
independent of institutional trust and provides a digital alternative
to gold. The need for such an asset is to address the >500m people in
the world who live in countries with greater than 10% inflation, and to
provide a place for people to store their wealth that is safe from
seizure and “portable†across geographic boundaries.
Although it’s unclear how to measure the size of that addressable
market, the thesis implies a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity in this
category.
Ethereum, on the other hand, professed to be building a “world
computer†or in other contexts, the basis for a “decentralized
internetâ€. This category of digital assets known as “decentralized
internet†projects is what primarily caused the run up of the ICO
markets in 2017-2018. Believers in this thesis argue that the causes of
many of the inequities online today stem from the overly “centralizedâ€
nature of the internet’s infrastructure, such that incentives lead
towards monopolization of online services – think Facebook and Google.
As such, there is a massive interest in owning a piece of the “fuelâ€
that will power the renewed internet infrastructure of the future.
On top of this thesis are companies building utopia as they see it.
These ideas range from a system of finance that is open and alternative
to banking, a system of identity independent of governments, to other
lofty and worthy ideas that would find their homes in the “decentralized
internet†category.
Within these two broad categories, there are nuances and further
sub-categories, but at the highest level, this is a helpful frame to
better understand where a particular project fits, and what alternatives
it should be compared against. This framing should also help to better
understand why Bitcoin and Ethereum are fundamentally not competing
technologies, but why EOS, Tron, and Cardano have yet to prove why
they’re contenders to supplant Ethereum, their category king. As with
categories in other online industries, we’ll likely see a market where
75% of the value is dominated by the category leader, and the rest
spread among its competitors.
With 25-30+ launched or soon-to-be live networks looking to compete
in Ethereum’s category, its quickly become saturated. At the current
state of adoption in our industry, we’re nearing an oversupply of novel
technical solutions and a real need for actual usage. Networks have
collapsed into mirror-like narratives (build a dApp here!), use cases
(build DeFi here!), and are all seemingly speaking to the same audience.
So when looking at how this market might evolve, the real
breakthroughs will likely lie with projects that have a disproportionate
chance of dominating these two categories or projects that define a
brand new category with massive market potential. More on this next
week.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:24 AM on Thursday, October 31st, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
Bitcoin And Crypto Is Heading For An Epic Social Media Showdown
While the social media monetary situation is not this clear cut, both
Dorsey and Zuckerberg have emerged as champions of two similar but
opposing ideas; the internet needs its own currency, one sees it as
centralised, through Facebook, the other sees it as decentralised,
through bitcoin.
“I believe that this is something that needs to get built,”
Zuckerberg told U.S. senators last week, defending Facebook’s
involvement in the controversial libra project and arguing libra could
bring financial maturity to millions, if not billions, of people around
the world.
Zuckerberg also warned the U.S. could fall behind other countries if
lawmakers moved to block the development of libra and similar digital
money projects.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:29 AM on Wednesday, October 30th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
Twitter’s Dorsey puts another bet on crypto
Bitcoin proponent Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey continues to bet on crypto by investing in CoinList, a two-year-old venture that helps startups raise money through token sales.
The company says it connects investors with thoroughly vetted
blockchain-related companies in compliance with crypto regulations.
CoinList has supported more than $800M of token offerings since August 2017.
Dorsey participated in a recent $10M funding round, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The new capital will help with its plans to offer new services
including a new exchange, CoinList Trade, and a crypto wallet.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 2:17 PM on Friday, October 18th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
Crypto Correlations Change As Ethereum Becomes Benchmark, and Bitcoin Analysis Today
An important change from Q2 is a gradual ‘flippening’ of Ethereum and Bitcoin.
As the #1 cryptocurrency began increasing its dominance, Ethereum became the benchmark asset for the rest of the market, with most cryptocurrencies showing higher correlation with it than Bitcoin.Â
The cryptocurrency markets are seeing a small retracement today. Bitcoin continues
its low-volatility trading around the $8,400-8,500 level, while
altcoins are still pulling back from their previous gains.
Notable exceptions are 0x (ZRX), Algorand (ALGO) and Chainlink (LINK), which gained 3%, 10% and 5% over yesterday respectively.
Cryptocurrency price dynamics on October 11, by Coin360
Correlations, correlations everywhere in crypto
A report by Binance Research
analyzed the relative performance of cryptos in Q3. As markets slid
downwards from their yearly high in the summer, large market-cap coins
did so in unison.
“Over the third quarter of 2019, the average correlation between
Bitcoin and most other large cryptoassets ​remained in line with the
previous quarter,†the report notes. “​However, the average
correlation among large cryptoassets increased in Q3 2019 with a
significant positive increase in the correlations of BNB, ChainLink, and
Bitcoin SV with other cryptoassets.
An important change from Q2 is a gradual ‘flippening’ of Ethereum and Bitcoin. As the #1 cryptocurrency began increasing its dominance,
Ethereum became the benchmark asset for the rest of the market, with
most cryptocurrencies showing higher correlation with it than
Bitcoin. But correlation with Ethereum Classic was surprisingly among
the lowest, amounting ‘only’ to 0.69.
The report also highlighted the significant correlation between XRP and Stellar, previously noted by Crypto Briefing.
Lastly, cryptocurrencies appear to be specializing in distinct
branches. Proof-of-Work assets such as Bitcoin, Litecoin and Bitcoin
Cash exhibited higher correlation between each other than median. The
same can be said for privacy coins such as Monero, Zcash and Dash, as
well as programmable blockchains including EOS, NEO and Ethereum.
But while some of these trends have a logical underpinning, the report cautions that the future is unknowable. “Yet,
past empirical results are not representative of the future of this
industry. Hence, it remains to be seen whether some of these findings
will repeat in the fourth quarter of 2019,†analysts conclude.
Daily Bitcoin Commentary With Nathan Batchelor
Bitcoin is under downside pressure as we head into the U.S trading
session, after the BTC/USD pair reversed sharply from just above $8,800
level earlier this morning.
Around $10,000,000,000 was wiped off the total market cap of the
entire cryptocurrency market in just under one-hour. Interestingly, the
total market cap of the cryptocurrency market hit its highest level in
two-weeks before reversing.
No apparent fundamental catalyst has been attributed to the news. The
only real bearish news is that one of the largest payment systems in
China, Alipay, has recently promised to ban all payments related to
Bitcoin.
From a technical perspective, traders will likely continue to fade
rallies until the market cap of the entire cryptocurrency starts to
trade comfortably above its 200-day moving average.
Traders are currently selling advances towards the $230,000,000,000
level, as it represents the 61.8 Fibonacci retracement of the September
monthly trading low to the September 24th swing-high.
As far as Bitcoin is concerned, the cryptocurrency is back under
short-term selling pressure while trading below the $8,500 level, with
its 200-day moving average currently located around the $8,660 level.
According to short-term technical analysis, the BTC/USD pair can
expect to find support from the $8,215 and $8,100 levels if the reversal
continues.
If there is a sustained loss of the $8,100 level, we should expect
short-term bulls to capitulate, leaving the door-open for further
decline towards the $7,715 level.
* ‘The weekly time frame is showing that a bullish falling
wedge is forming. A move away from the $9,780 to $7,500 price range will
trigger the pattern’. *
SENTIMENT
Intraday bullish sentiment for Bitcoin has fallen, to 51.50%,
according to the latest data from TheTIE.io. Long-term sentiment for the
cryptocurrency is unchanged, at 61.50%.
UPSIDE POTENTIAL
Buyers need to move price back above the $8,500 level to stabilize
the BTC/USD pair today. A multi-day price close above its 200-day moving
average is currently needing to encourage a technical test of the
$9,000 level.
The daily RSI indicator is starting to roll over and now trades below
40, while the Choppiness indicator on the mentioned time frame is
showing that the market is still lacking a strong trend.
DOWNSIDE POTENTIAL
The loss of the $8,500 level has encouraged traders to test towards
the $8,300 level. A loss of the $8,300 level later today may lead to a
key test of the BTC/USD pair’s weekly pivot point, at $8,100.
Extended intraday technical support for the BTC/USD pair is currently located at the $7,715 and $7,500 levels.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 3:14 PM on Thursday, October 17th, 2019
SPONSOR:ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE)
Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a
Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed
small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More
than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest
small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.
IDK: CSE
Crypto is coming for Fortnite – whether it likes it or not
Fortnite’s Chapter 2 launched this week. Will crypto be part of its next big evolution?
Here’s how the game has already crossed paths with blockchain tech.
Epic Games’ enormously popular battle
royale shooter Fortnite made headlines this week after it shut down—but
only for a couple of days. Epic cannily replaced the game’s vibrant map
with a black hole, which fans stared at until it revealed the game’s Chapter 2 update, adding a brand-new environment, fresh gameplay elements, and a refreshed interface.
With some 250 million total players
as of this past spring, Fortnite is a cultural sensation that goes
beyond core gamers—and it’s big business too. The game may be free to
download and play, but in-game costumes and other paid perks have
generated huge revenues for Epic—$2.4 billion in 2018 alone. Naturally, that’s got the blockchain community asking: when will Fortnite include crypto?
You can’t (yet) spend cryptocurrency
in the game itself, but both Fortnite and Epic Games have already
crossed paths with crypto and blockchain in a number of ways. Can
in-game integration be far behind? Here’s a look at the ever-growing
intersection between Fortnite and crypto.
You can bet on Fortnite matches with crypto
Fortnite is one of the fastest
growing esports around, and Epic Games has facilitated its growth by
pumping the competitive scene full of prize money and large-scale
tournaments. According to Esports Earnings,
Fortnite competitions have awarded more than $84 million to date in
prizing, with July’s Fortnite World Cup responsible for about $33
million of that.
With sports inevitably comes betting—and yes, esports betting is definitely a thing. Unikrn
is one of the most popular esports betting sites, allowing users to bet
on the outcomes of official competitive matches, as well as matches
from popular Twitch streamers.
Unikrn betting is based on the platform’s own
UnikoinGold token, which can be bet
on professional Fortnite matches, wagered in your own in-game battles,
and used to enter prize giveaways. The esports industry is rapidly
ballooning in size and value, with esports analytics service Newzoo
estimating a $1.1 billion total
value this year and nearly $1.8 billion in 2022. Betting will only grow
more appealing as more and more people get hooked on esports—and crypto
is already making inroads on the industry.
For a brief moment at the start of
the year, you could actually buy Fortnite merchandise through an
official Epic Games store using Monero (XMR). Monero developer Riccardo
Spagni seemed (understandably) thrilled about the news, and suggested
that it was chosen for its privacy-centric approach compared to Bitcoin.
However, there was a snag in the excitement: Epic Games didn’t actually mean to enable Monero support. After a few days, the option was disabled and company founder and CEO Tim Sweeney tweeted,
“Actually, Fortnite’s brief foray into crypto was accidental. We worked
with a partner to open a merchandise store, and somewhere along the way
Monero payment was enabled.”
Tokenize all the Things
A multimedia collection by Decrypt. Explore how “tokenization†is redefining our relationship to ownership.
While that official crypto dalliance
was sadly unintentional, you can actually purchase V-Bucks—Fortnite’s
premium, in-game currency—with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, and
Dogecoin, right now. However, it’s through a third-party service, Bitrefill…
and it’s via a very simple workaround. Essentially, you choose which
game system or platform you play on, and then you’re sent a gift card
code for that store. You can use then use that code to purchase V-Bucks
and load up on silly character skins, colorful weapons, and fancy dance
moves (really).
Epic Games is actually excited by blockchain tech
Epic’s swift shutdown of Monero
support in its merch shop might seem like a sign that the company
doesn’t see a future in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, but
worry not: Sweeney tweeted that they’re into it, but just not ready to
roll it out to a huge, mainstream audience.
“Many of us at Epic are big fans of
the decentralized computing tech underlying cryptocurrency, however a
lot more work is needed on volatility and fraud-proofing before bringing
it to such a broad audience that includes younger gamers,” he tweeted in January, adding that,
“Epic doesn’t have any cryptocurrency partners and aren’t in any crypto
partnership discussions with anyone. We do read lots of papers and talk
to smart people to learn more in anticipation of an eventual
intercept.”
Since then, though, Epic Games has changed its tune; in May this year, it announced a partnership with The Abyss,
a blockchain gaming platform that allows game developers to tap into
Epic’s Unreal Developers Network. Studios that put their games on the
platform can accept Abyss Tokens for both the games themselves and
in-game purchases.
The crypto industry, meanwhile,
continues to chip away at the rock face. Recently, devs for the Nano
cryptocurrency unveiled a beta plug-in for Unreal Engine 4â —the game engine that underpins
Fortniteâ —that lets users pay for in-game items in the Nano
cryptocurrency as well as earning Nano for in-game tasks such as killing
enemies and participating in tournaments.
Call it baby steps, but it’s
certainly something. Sweeney’s comments suggest that a crypto future for
Epic Games could just be a matter of time—and surely interest from the
blockchain community is huge, considering how much money flows through
both Fortnite and the video game industry as a whole (an estimated $152.1 billion in 2019). Until then, we’re sure to see more unofficial crypto initiatives spring up around Fortnite’s fringe.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:48 AM on Wednesday, October 16th, 2019
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Brokerage firm eToro has brought a new tool to the market that’s supposed to help investors crack the code of investing in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin – crypto Twitter.
By: Harsh Chauhan
Brokerage firm eToro has brought a new tool to the market that’s
supposed to help investors crack the code of investing in
cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin – crypto Twitter.
In a recent blog,
eToro announced that it is partnering with cryptocurrency information
service provider TIE, which uses algorithms based on crowd-driven
sentiment to develop trading strategies.
Twitter can help you make money in bitcoin and crypto
The brokerage firm points out that TheTIE-LongOnly CopyPortfolio will
open trades on the basis of positive Twitter sentiment. The machine
learning-powered algorithm will analyze over 850 million tweets daily to gauge cryptocurrency and bitcoin sentiment.
What’s more, eToro claims that the crypto Twitter-based trading
strategies have led to returns of 281 percent after fees in the past two
years. The annualized return of the trading strategy is 123 percent,
which outpaces the 29 percent return delivered by an equally-weighted
basket of identical underlying crypto assets.
eToro claims that the algorithm has also beaten bitcoin’s 41 percent
return over the past two years. So, the premise of the Twitter-based
investment strategy looks promising given the track record over the past
couple of years. But what’s the reason why this strategy seems to be
working so well so far?
Sentiment-driven investing could be the key to cracking crypto
Cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are relatively new. So the world seems confused about the characteristics
of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which was originally meant to be
a method of peer-to-peer electronic cash system for making online
payments.
