Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Google Forms Web3 Team — Sees Tremendous Potential, Demand for Crypto Tech Support

Google Creating Web3 Team Within Cloud Unit　　Googles cloud unit is creating a team to build services for developers who are composing their own Web3 software and running blockchain applications, CNBC reported Friday.　　Amit Zavery, a vice president and head of the Google Cloud, informed employees in an email on Friday that the aim of the initiative is to make the Google Cloud platform the first choice for developers in the field. He wrote:　　While the world is still early in its embrace of Web3, it is a market that is already demonstrating tremendous potential with many customers asking us to increase our support for Web3 and crypto related technologies.　　The new Web3 team will consist of employees who have been involved in Web3 internally and on their own, the VP said. James Tromans, a former Citigroup executive who joined Google in 2019, will lead the product and engineering group. He will report to Zavery.　　The Google Cloud VP told the news outlet:　　We‘re not trying to be part of that cryptocurrency wave directly … We’re providing technologies for companies to use and take advantage of the distributed nature of Web3 in their current businesses and enterprises.　　Google Cloud launched a new dedicated Digital Assets Team in

2022-05-08Deep Dive

Sony, Theta Labs to giveaway glasses-free 3D display with exclusive NFTs

Theta Labs is partnering with Sony to release a unique 3D NFT that works without 3D glasses.　　The “Tiki Guy” NFT will work with a Sony Spatial Reality Display, retailing at $4,999. However, purchasers of the NFT will be able to claim a free display with a valid US shipping address.The Tiki Guy　　Only 10 of the NFTs will be minted, so demand may far outweigh supply, especially if the price is lower than the RRP of the display itself. Sony, an investor in Theta Labs, says the device tracks eye movement to deliver a 3D image no matter how you view the display.　　A high‐precision micro‐optical lens separates images for each eye to create a 3D experience without special glasses. The website for the product lists the use cases like gaming, entertainment, and medical.　　However, the scope for use as a high-end display for NFTs is evident. For investors spending thousands on unique NFTs, the ability to showcase them to friends, family, and the wider community is limited.NFT viewing experience　　There are NFT frames on the market available for 2D content. They primarily work by connecting to your wallet to verify ownership and display the associated content. However, you could also download the image

2022-05-08Deep Dive

The Central Bank of El Salvador accepted Qredo registration to provide cryptocurrency services

Bitcoin service providers registered in El Salvador include Chivo, the Company behind the state-issued cryptocurrency wallet and kiosk, Paxos Trust Company, Paxful and OpenNode.　　Qredo, a decentralized finance company, has received approval to register as a Bitcoin (BTC) service provider in El Salvador.　　Qredo said in Wednesdays announcement that el Salvadors Central Reserve Bank has accepted the cryptocurrency companys registration as a recognized bitcoin service provider under the countrys Bitcoin law. According to the registration website, Qredo is authorized to hold BTC, offer Bitcoin wallets, process payments and act as an exchange for digital assets.　　As a cryptocurrency service provider, Qredo said it must comply with local laws and international practices regarding digital assets, as well as risk management to prevent loss or theft. Other providers registered in El Salvador include Chivo, the Company behind state-issued crypto wallets and kiosks (similar to Bitcoin ATMs), as well as Paxos Trust Company, Paxful and Bitcoin payment processor OpenNode.　　Integration of Bitcoin and Chivo in El Salvadors economy: Success or failure？　　“BCRs decision opens the door to additional opportunities for Qredo in El Salvador and expands our footprint in Latin America, where we believe there is great potential for digital assets,” said Qredo CEO Anthony Foy.　　A survey reported

2022-05-08Deep Dive

Terra Drops 9.6% in 24-hours Despite the Luna Foundation Buying $1.5B Worth of Bitcoin

The digital asset of Terra (LUNA) has dropped by almost 10% in the last 24 hours　　This is despite the bullish news of the Luna Foundation Guard buying $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin　　However, the drop is understandable given Bitcoin has lost its $38k amidst anxiety over the US Fed increasing interest rates by 50 basis points　　LUNA/USDT risks losing the 200-day moving average ushering in a bear market for the digital asset　　The digital asset of Terra (LUNA) has been hard hit by the ongoing crypto market correction that has seen Bitcoin lose the critical $38k support level. According to the team at WuBlockchain, Terra (LUNA) is down 9.6% in the last 24 hours despite the bullish news of the Luna Foundation Guard buying $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin to add to its UST reserves.Terra (LUNA) has Lost 12.66% in the Last Week　　A glance at Coinmarketcap.com confirms that Terra (LUNA) has lost almost 10% in value in the last 24-hours and 12.66% in the last seven days. This, in turn, means that majority of LUNAs losses have been experienced in the last day alone.LUNA‘s Woes are Linked to Bitcoin Losing $38k and the US Fed Increasing Interest Rates　　From a technical analysis point of

2022-05-08Deep Dive

HOW BANKS ARE TRYING TO DISCREDIT BITCOIN

Each year, Bitcoin continues to grow in stature. Bitcoin is going mainstream by every metric — financial value, adoption rates, transaction volume, you name it.　　But not everyone‘s happy Bitcoin adoption is growing. In particular, the banking industry feels threatened by bitcoin’s rise and continues to wage war on the cryptocurrency.　　That banks don‘t like Bitcoin shouldn’t be a surprise. Satoshi Nakamotos invention is the greatest disruption to the age-old monetary system in decades. As a peer-to-peer network for creating and exchanging value, Bitcoin may render banks useless.　　To protect their position, banking institutions have resorted to the classic tool of warfare: propaganda. By spreading misinformation, banks hope to discredit Bitcoin — reducing public adoption and encouraging stricter regulation.A (BRIEF) HISTORY OF BIG FINANCES PROPAGANDA WAR ON BITCOIN　　From the onset, Big Finance must have realized Bitcoin could potentially disrupt the banking system. But they chose to believe its use would remain restricted to drug dealers, computer geeks, cypherpunks, libertarians and other fringe elements.　　But as cryptocurrency adoption grew, especially among institutional investors, panic spread in the banking system. For the first time, the possibility that this “magic internet money” may displace banks was real.　　Thus, banks launched a coordinated effort to discredit cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin was

2022-05-07Deep Dive

Cryptocurrencies Unlikely to Help Russia Evade Sanctions

Crypto Assets Not Viable Option for Sanctioned Russia, Moody‘s Report Suggests　　Western sanctions, imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, have raised questions whether Russian citizens and government can utilize cryptocurrencies to bypass the restrictions and conduct financial transactions, Moody’s Investors Service notes in a report published this week.　　The agencys bond credit rating unit highlights the recent increase in the volume of small transactions made by Russians. But the authors also say that despite their anonymous nature, crypto assets are not that useful when it comes to evading financial penalties. They insist:　　Given the ruble-to-crypto markets limited size and low liquidity, we believe that, for now, crypto assets are unlikely to provide a viable and efficient solution for individuals to circumvent sanctions.　　Moody‘s also recalls that officials in Moscow have recently indicated that Russia may accept payments in cryptocurrency for its oil and gas exports. However, its experts think that again the market’s current size and insufficient liquidity would undermine this option, too.　　Furthermore, crypto platforms are often obliged to comply with anti-money laundering and know your customer requirements and they usually check customers during onboarding. “A centralized digital asset venue with well-established screening and compliant onboarding processes would be able to flag

2022-05-07Deep Dive

Mercury Wallet Review: Bitcoin wallet with Layer 2 scaling and improved privacy

It is commonly believed that Bitcoin is one of the most private methods to send money and that payments are concealed somewhere in the blockchain. The fact is that using Bitcoin to make a payment is the most visible method to do so. Unlike a traditional bank, where your data is private, every Bitcoin transaction is recorded in the blockchain, a public ledger.　　Mercury Wallet is one of the most recent Bitcoin wallets. It employs the notion of statechains and is based on the new Bitcoin layer-2 scaling technology.　　As a result, the wallet may accept BTC deposits (UTXOs) without incurring any transaction fees. Because the monies are safely moved between owners without the need for an on-chain transaction.　　As a consequence, as the owner, you will be able to quickly transfer complete custody of a Bitcoin amount to anybody. This improves privacy and eliminates miner costs.　　Mercury wallet makes use of the unspent transaction output (UTXO) model, which is the underlying item that establishes value and ownership in a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. A transaction ID, or TxID, and an output index number, or n, are used to identify the UTXO.　　The wallet also employs a new technology known as statechains, a Layer 2 scaling

2022-05-07Deep Dive

Bored Ape Yacht Club Land Sells Out in within hours

Although the concept of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) was first coined in 2014 by digital artist Kevin McCoy, the popularity of NFTs exploded in 2021. Prestigious and well-established auction houses such as Sotheby‘s and Christie’s contributed to the boom of NFTs when they started selling NFT art themselves.　　Towards the end of 2021, social media giant Facebook took a new leap into the Virtual Reality (VR) world and ultimately rebranded as Meta, and welcomed the next generation of the internet, VR and Web3 as we know it – introducing the Metaverse.The Marriage Between NFTs and The Metaverse　　NFTs and the Metaverse are completely different concepts and one may wonder how the two could be integrated. In short, the Metaverse is a 3D version of the internet as we know it, whereas NFTs refer to unique digital assets existing on a blockchain, and can be anything ranging from artwork, real estate or in-game avatars.　　Oleg Fonarov, through Forbes, has identified three ways in which NFTs could be used in the Metaverse. These include the integration of a virtual marketplace, allowing users to view assets in the VR landscape as well as integrating art galleries into the world of Web3. The final connection is the purchasing

2022-05-07Deep Dive

Blockchain activity rises in April as P2E games and NFTs get back on track

April was a busy month for the cryptocurrency industry, with a number of positive initiatives and developments in the month proving that the industry is still moving forward despite the overall drop in cryptocurrency prices. A new report from DappRadar shows that blockchain activity increased in April, with play-for-play and NFT back on track, even though Yuga Labs Otherside NFT brings the best and worst of the cryptocurrency and Ethereum ecosystems.　　The report, shared with CNF, shows that the number of daily unique active wallets interacting with any decentralized app (dApp) exceeded march levels. In April, the number was 2.36 million, with BNB Chain (formerly Binance Smart Chain) and Wax leading the way with 568,000 and 492,000 unique daily active wallets.　　Hive and Polygon are the other major players in this category. Notably, Solana saw the biggest increase in inactive users, with Solana dApps seeing a 58% increase in active users in April to exceed 100,000 for the first time ever. Orca Finance, its largest decentralized exchange (DEX), is the most active.　　That growth has persisted despite another disruption to Solana. On April 30, it halted operations for more than eight hours due to “a programmatic issue with the Metaplex Candy Machine.” Most

2022-05-07Deep Dive

Gucci to Accept Crypto Payments in Retail Stores

Gucci to Start Accepting Crypto Payments　　Italian high-end luxury fashion house Gucci will start accepting cryptocurrency payments in five stores later this month, Vogue Business reported Wednesday.　　The five stores are located in New York City (Wooster Street), Los Angeles (Rodeo Drive), Miami (Design District), Atlanta (Phipps Plaza), and Las Vegas (The Shops at Crystals).　　Gucci will accept bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ethereum, wrapped bitcoin, litecoin, dogecoin, shiba inu, and five stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar, the publication conveyed.　　These coins are the ones supported by popular crypto payment service provider Bitpay, which also supports GUSD, USDC, USDP, DAI, and BUSD stablecoins.　　Marco Bizzarri, the president and CEO of Gucci, commented: “Gucci is always looking to embrace new technologies when they can provide an enhanced experience for our customers.” He added:　　Now that we are able to integrate cryptocurrencies within our payment system, it is a natural evolution for those customers who would like to have this option available to them.　　The publication added that the fashion house plans for all of its directly operated North American stores to accept crypto payments by this summer.　　Gucci has been ramping up its non-fungible token (NFT) and Web3 efforts. The company recently established a Web3-focused team and released a few

2022-05-06Deep Dive

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