Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Pakistan Seeks to Block Websites Dealing in Cryptocurrency: Report

Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) is reportedly seeking to block websites dealing in cryptocurrency. The decision followed a meeting the agency had with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) which recently recommended a complete ban on crypto.　　 Pakistans FIA Reportedly Seeks to Block Cryptocurrency Websites　　Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) is seeking to block websites dealing in cryptocurrency, Dawn newspaper reported Sunday. The FIA is “a border control, criminal investigation, counter-intelligence, and security agency under the control of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan,” according to the Pakistani government website.　　FIA Director-General Dr. Sanaullah Abbasi told the press Saturday that his agency will approach the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block crypto websites to prevent fraud and money laundering.　　His statement followed a meeting he had with senior officials of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the countrys central bank. The FIA chief said:　　“The SBP officials gave a presentation in the meeting about a regulating mechanism.”　　During the meeting, the SBP officials noted that the central bank recently submitted recommendations under the direction of the Sindh High Court on the legal framework for cryptocurrencies in Pakistan. The State Bank has recommended a complete ban on cryptocurrency.　　Emphasizing that his department is mainly concerned about fraud and

2022-01-17Deep Dive

Walmart Filings Reveal Plans to Create Cryptocurrency, NFTs

Walmart Inc. is preparing to create its own cryptocurrency and collection of non-fungible tokens, filings with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office show, setting the stage for meeting its customers in the emerging metaverse.　　The retailer sought several new trademarks in December that show it intends to make and sell virtual goods such as electronics, decor, toys, sporting goods and personal-care products.　　The applications, which were first reported by CNBC, represent a significant step for the retail giant as it studies how to participate in the metaverse, a virtual world that blends aspects of digital technologies. Walmart in August advertised a position to develop “the digital currency strategy and product roadmap” while identifying “crypto-related investment and partnerships,” according to a job posting on the companys website.　　The applications were among a flurry the company filed on Dec. 30, including three under “Walmart Connect” -- the name of the company‘s existing digital advertising venture -- for a financial exchange for virtual currency and advertising. Applications also were filed for “Verse to Store,” “Verse to Curb” and “Verse to Home” for shopping services. It’s also seeking trademarks to apply the Walmart name and “fireworks” logo to heath-care services and education in virtual and augmented reality.　　“Walmart

2022-01-17Deep Dive

Developers and users need to focus on the strengths of different blockchains to maximize benefits

Big names such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon, Polkadot, Avalanche, Algorand and Solana tend to crop up in any discussion about blockchain, but amid the technologys rapid growth and the ever more competitive nature of the market, developers are increasingly locked in a race to make sure their blockchains come out on top. 　　In this highly competitive and changing environment, it is important for developers to consider the processes that are key to understanding how different blockchains can meet specific needs. These factors include consensus mechanisms, decentralisation, sustainability, security, speed, cost and governance. All of these attributes should be examined in order for companies to push for growth and efficiency, and will, ultimately, decide the key competitors in the market.Understanding consensus mechanisms　　Consensus mechanisms are used in blockchain systems to ensure that all nodes are synchronised with one another. Consensus mechanisms are used for validating and authenticating transactions.　　There are multiple types of consensus mechanism, each which align with different needs. Two of the most commonly used are Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake. 　　Proof-of-Work (PoW): Bitcoin and Ethereum use PoW. For a Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism, large quantities of computational power are necessary to authenticate and verify nodes. Since it uses a lot of energy, it

2022-01-17Deep Dive

The cryptocurrency deception

In recent times, there has been a great euphoria about investing in cryptocurrencies. Let us first try to understand whether a crypto investment means an investment in a currency or an asset. For any instrument to classify as a currency, it must have the following features: One, it is a promissory note wherein the issuer is promising the bearer or the holder a value. Two, it is backed by a sovereign nation and, therefore, there is never a question of any default in executing the promise. Three, the printing of currency in either physical or digital form is always based on some tangible asset, like gold or a basket of goods.　　From the above, its clear that cryptocurrency can never be a currency.　　Can crypto then be considered an asset？ An asset is something that has a tangible value. Even if its immediate utility is intangible, an asset should have some tangible benefits. The cryptocurrencies being promoted currently — bitcoin, litecoin, ethereum — are nothing but gaming points. Whenever a discussion on cryptos takes place, promoters talk of blockchain technology. This technology is just a technique to account for transactions and has nothing to do with cryptocurrencies, except that the cryptocurrencies digital

2022-01-17Deep Dive

The key drivers behind Fantom’s recent price rally

At the time of writing, crypto is entering a bear market as Bitcoin, Ether and most Layer-1 altcoins have dipped 20-30% from its all-time-highs. Defying these trends is the ghost-themed Fantom blockchain. In the past month, its native token FTM has seen a surging price rally of 121% to $3.02.　　Statistics of Fantoms performance is nothing short of impressive. Total-value-locked on Fantom went from $1 billion+ in September to $7 billion today.　　The Fantom Foundation published at the end of 2021 a list of important milestones that were hit, such as daily transaction counts of 700,000, while its unique addresses continue to increase into the 1.4 million range.The Fantom Foundations liquidity incentive program　　On the 30th of August 2021, the Fantom Foundation launched a massive liquidity mining program of 370 million FTM. Unlike traditional liquidity mining incentives that were directed to users, this FTM liquidity was targeted to Fantom developers as reward claims for achieving target levels of TVL on their protocols.　　Fantom‘s strategy of incentivizing developers directly over liquidity providers is part of its plan to establish an attractive foundation for a flourishing dApp ecosystem. What this does is to drive Fantom’s developers to create sustainable yield-generating products in the long-run, as opposed

2022-01-16Deep Dive

Crypto exchange FTX launches a $2 billion venture capital fund

Crypto exchange FTX recently announced the launch of a $2 billion venture capital fund–FTX Ventures.　　According to the official announcement made by the crypto exchange, FTX hired a former partner at Lightspeed and Discovery, Inc. executive Amy Wu to lead the new fund focused on investing in top projects building in Web3.A broad investment mandate　　With a “core mission” to further global blockchain adoption, FTX Ventures will focus on investing in teams building in Web3–covering a broad range of sectors, including social, gaming, fintech, software, and healthcare.　　“Our investors at FTX have made a deep impact in supporting our growth and development. We strive to do the same at FTX Ventures and are excited to find the brightest minds and disruptive innovation in tech,” said Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX.　　While investing in multi-stage companies and projects, FTX Ventures will be leveraging flexible funding and strategic support from FTX and its network of partners.　　According to the announcement, FTX Ventures will kick off with a team of eight, which will include Ramnik Arora as a general partner and Armani Ferrante as an advisor, amongst others.Particularly interested in Web3 gaming　　“I am thrilled to be joining FTX to work alongside Sam and some of the

2022-01-16Deep Dive

El Salvador is down $12 million on its Bitcoin buys

With the ongoing market slump, El Salvador is holding significant losses on its Bitcoin investments.　　Its buying process and wallets are undisclosed, so the exact amount remains unknown. But estimates put the loss at between $10 million and $12 million.　　El Salvadors “Bitcoin experiment” was hailed by some as pioneering in so far as leading the way for other nation-states to follow.　　But the losses highlight the risks involved with crypto investing. More so given the quantities involved and the public manner in which El Salvador has gone about its business.　　But has any of this unnerved other countries from adopting Bitcoin as legal tender？When the dip keeps dipping　　El Salvador made history on September 7 by being the first sovereign nation to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender.　　In the run-up to “going live,” and ever since the move has been vehemently opposed by some quarters. Including international agencies, such as the IMF, who warned it would interfere with funding negotiations. And private companies, including S&P Global and Moodys, which spoke of negative implications for its credit rating.　　This isnt helped by teething problems with the Chivo Wallet. Some users report identity fraud, and others talk about their Bitcoin balance mysteriously disappearing.　　Despite all of the above, President

2022-01-16Deep Dive

After Celo’s success, Polkastarter integrates Avalanche

As part of its efforts to achieve its multi-chain goal, Polkastarter has officially announced the integration of Avalanche. Polkastarter integrates Avalanche into its platform　　The move to integrate Avalanche commenced following the success recorded by the last integration exercise by the company. The exercise led to the addition of Celo into its network. 　　This new decision is primarily part of its effort to become a global multichain, as integrating Avalanche would make it available for IDOs and fixed swaps.　　With this integration, users of the platform can now take part in even more IDOs by having access to the Avalanche ecosystem. Interestingly, users will now pay lower network charges after the integration. 　　Already, Polkastarter has helped more than 90 projects raise capital through its IDOs. 　　Speaking on the development, Polkastarters Chief Executive Officer, Daniel Stockhaus, explained that it would bring more liquidity to the project. 　　He noted that with the integration, Polkastarters IDO process becomes even more accessible to participants and will propel its mission on multichain interoperability. 　　In his words,　　“Polkastarter is integrating Avalanche Network to bring more liquidity and foster community adoption of emerging protocols. Polkastarter‘s IDO process becomes even more accessible to participants and will propel its mission on multichain

2022-01-16Deep Dive

Which cryptocurrencies made the biggest gains in 2021?

Two weeks into 2022 and cryptocurrencies as a whole have had a stuttering start.　　The year opened with a total market cap of $2.2 trillion. Still, talk of inflationary pressures and interest rate rises hit hard, sparking a sell-off which bottomed at $1.9 trillion on Saturday.　　While we see signs of recovery, the looming threat of tightening monetary policy is ever-present. With that, crypto sentiment is caught in a precarious state, with investors waiting to see what happens next.　　This contrasts with the start of 2021. Back then, Bitcoin was riding a wave of momentum after breaking a three-year resistance level in December 2020. It went on to hit $65,000 in April 2021 and posted a new all-time high of $69,200 in November 2021.　　Nonetheless, Bitcoins overall 2021 performance was somewhat pedestrian (by crypto standards), up +60% over the year.　　Over the same period, Bitcoin managed to outperform the S&P500, which gained 27%, the Dow, up 19%, and the Nasdaqs 21% rise.　　All the same, these performances pale in comparison to the biggest cryptocurrency gainers of 2021.　　Which cryptocurrencies performed best in 2021？　　According to entrepreneur.com, these were the best performing cryptocurrencies of last year.　　Decentraland (MANA) – this virtual world platform comes in tenth place, posting +3,900%.　　Harmony (ONE)

2022-01-16Deep Dive

Sweden’s inflation rate at a 29 year high, “transitory”

Inflation is on the rise in many parts of the world. On Wednesday, The U.S. Federal Reserve reported a CPI inflation of 7.0% for December. Following this trend, the inflation rate of the Swedish krona SEK rose to 4.1% in December, a strong increase from November’s inflation rate of 3.6%.　　These levels of inflation have not been seen since December 1993, almost 29 years ago. The inflation, as reported by the Swedish Bureau of Statistics SCB, was higher than market expectations and far above the two percent target set by the Swedish central bank Riksbanken. The most important contribution to the higher inflation came from rising energy prices, but important contributions also came from raising prices on food, clothing and transportation.Inflation was down to zero in 2020　　The inflation pressure on the Swedish economy has been relatively low the past few years, which has led the Riksbank to drive an expansive monetary policy to keep the inflation rate around the two percent target. This has put a lot of pressure on the krona leading up to the Corona crisis. Consequently, the inflation rate fell down close to zero during the crisis in 2020, actually hitting zero percent in May 2020.　　In 2021 inflation

2022-01-16Deep Dive

...

345347

...

742