Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

ONE Sotheby’s Is Selling The First Real-World Home Through The Metaverse Using NFT Technology

Together, ONE Sotheby‘s International Realty and Voxel Architects, along with general contractor and NFT collector Gabe Sierra, are introducing the first ever ’MetaReal mansion that includes a real-world home and a virtual counterpart in the metaverse. The virtual home will live within The Sandbox metaverse, a community-driven platform where creators can monetize voxel assets on the blockchain.　　The buyer of the NFT asset will also acquire ownership rights of the physical home, set to be completed in Miami in Q4 of 2022. This is the first time something like this has been done.　　The home in Miami will be built on a one-acre lot in one of the city‘s most prestigious neighborhoods. It will span 11,000 square feet and include seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms. The virtual property will exactly mirror this, and Voxel Architects is helping to create it. The ’MetaReal‘ Mansion will be auctioned off in 2022 at a yet-to-be disclosed reserve price. The exclusive sales agent for the property is Michael Martinez of ONE Sotheby’s, who plans to execute the transaction on the Ethereum blockchain.　　“The metaverse counterpart of the home will serve as an extension of the real-world home, allowing the buyer to host in-home meetings, events and parties

2022-01-10Deep Dive

PayPal Working On Its Own Cryptocurrency, But Why?

American fintech company PayPal is reportedly planning to launch its own cryptocurrency in the future. Paypal originally opened crypto trading for its U.S. users back in 2020, enabling people to buy and sell Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash, before expanding its crypto operations last year. However, the companys latest plan is even more ambitious as it looks to debut its own digital token going forward.　　Cryptocurrencies have seen increasing acceptance in mainstream society over the past couple of years, both within and outside the U.S. Late last year, the first Bitcoin ETF began trading at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). A few weeks later, Americas largest movie theater chain, AMC Theaters, announced plans to accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for online payments. However, one of the most significant victories for cryptocurrencies came earlier in the year when El Salvador declared Bitcoin legal tender.　　In a statement to Bloomberg News this week, Paypals Senior Vice President of crypto and digital currencies, Jose Fernandez da Ponte confirmed that the company is “exploring a stablecoin.” He also promised that the company would work with the regulators to make its plans come to fruition. Stablecoins, for those unaware, are digital tokens whose values are

2022-01-10Deep Dive

HOW TO USE A BITCOIN HARDWARE WALLET

This is not a guide on the most advanced security for your bitcoin holdings. It is an easy way to improve on what most people do. It is not about any one type of hardware wallet, but hardware wallets in general.　　Aiming for extreme security right from the beginning is an unreasonable expectation; it must be done in stages, otherwise, you will have gaps in understanding, and such gaps are a security risk. It‘s also a security risk to blindly follow advice if you are going to self custody; you need to understand some of what you are doing, too. This series is about what I call “Level Three” of my ZeroTrust System — getting coins off of the exchange and into your own custody with a hardware wallet. This is something Bitcoiners regularly advise newcomers to do, and it’s excellent advice. (For those interested, here is a detailed explanation of why keeping bitcoin on an exchange is a bad idea.)　　As you can see from the ZeroTrust system, there are lots of things you can do, but getting all of your bitcoin off of the exchange is an important early step. Dont forget to go back to level two as well

2022-01-10Deep Dive

50% of global financial transactions might involve Ethereum in 10 years

Joey Krug, co-chief investment officer of cryptocurrency-centered hedge fund Pantera Capital has said Ethereum has prospects of becoming an integral player in the global financial system.　　In an interview with Bloomberg, Krug projected that over 50% of all financial sector transactions might involve Ethereum citing the assets underlying technology.　　He stated that despite Ethereum facing competition, the platforms position might go unchallenged, citing aspects like minimal trade-offs.　　“There‘s too many trade-offs other chains are making that Ethereum is not making on the decentralization side that are pretty important. … If you roll the clock forward 10 to 20 years, a very sizable percent, maybe even north of 50%, of the world’s financial transactions in some way, shape or form will touch Ethereum,” Krug said.　　According to Krug, before Ethereum achieves the milestone and shakes off competition, the ongoing network development will play a key role.　　He believes that once Ethereum migrates to the proof-of-stake protocol, the platform might act as a base for competitors to set up their projects.　　Pain point in transaction fees　　In general, Ethereum has been among the stand-out platforms registering significant use cases in the decentralized finance and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) sector.　　Consequently, Ethereums value surged significantly. However, the network still faces a significant

2022-01-10Deep Dive

President Bukele Insists “Inactive” Conchagua Volcano Is Perfect To Power El Salvador’s Bitcoin City

Steve Hanke‘s outburst against President Bukele’s Bitcoin policy this week has escalated to a whole new level, prompting Bukele to zero in on the economists remarks in a not-so-presidential manner.　　It all started on Thursday after Steve likened El Salvadors anticipation for the proposed Bitcoin City to Florida preparing for snow, insinuating that it was just a fad. Rubbishing the Conchaguo volcano as an inactive volcano unfit to produce energy, the economist went on to call out Bukele for what he termed as “attention-grabbing antics from a narcissistic president who is full of hot air.” Bukele who did not take the statement lying down retorted by calling Steve an “ID-10t”.　　Bukeles Defends His Volcano Energy Plan　　But the saga did not end there. “How much energy can you extract from the inactive Conchagua volcano？ Wheres the feasibility study？” Steve asked yesterday after a ton of insults from Bukeles supporters, “El Salvador already has an enormous energy deficit ve got a 90% chance of finding at least a +42 MW well. Enough to power all of Bitcoin City.” He says before adding “And if the city grows far more than expected (good problem), then we can still use the 95 MW plant we are

2022-01-10Deep Dive

Swedish Municipality Looking to Diversify Investment Portfolio With Crypto

Staffanstorp Municipality in Sweden has agreed to research crypto. All politicians agreed to this by April 20, 2022. The municipality has a robust economy and an investment portfolio of over SEK 500M (~$55M). Investments made by the municipality include fixed income and securities. The municipality is now looking to crypto investments as a possible method of risk diversification. Christian Sonnesson, chairman of the municipal board, believes that it is not about owning bitcoin.　　“We believe that we will receive offers about this in the future and now want to investigate to be better read. I think many people need to make a journey of knowledge; then everyone gets to make their assessment.” Investments will be made through crypto funds that follow the value of cryptocurrencies.　　The opposition leader Pierre Sjostrom agreed but expressed concern as to the risky nature of crypto, considering that tax revenue will being used.　　Chairman Weighs In　　Should the investigation yield a positive result, it is unclear whether the Local Government Act would allow it. The Act states, “Municipalities and regions must manage their funds in such a way that requirements for good returns and satisfactory security can be met.”　　Sonnesson believes that a fear of the unknown prevents people [from

2022-01-10Deep Dive

Ruling Party Sources Deny Plan to Levy 40% Tax on Crypto Yields in Turkey

The government in Turkey does not intend to impose a 40-percent levy on crypto-related gains as has been alleged, members of the ruling AKP party have indicated to the local press. They have also emphasized that the current regulatory efforts are aimed at creating a sustainable environment for the blockchain industry.　　Turkey to Establish Regulatory Base for Cryptocurrency Market　　A legislative proposal tailored to regulate cryptocurrency trade in Turkey is likely to be submitted to the parliament in the upcoming weeks. Sources from the Justice and Development Party (AKP), the countrys ruling political force, have “strongly denied” allegations that authorities in Ankara are going to tax cryptocurrency gains at a rate of 40%, the Turkish newspaper Hürriyet reported.　　One of the AKP representatives, the deputy leader of the party‘s parliamentary group Mustafa Elitaş, commented on social media last month that the new law will serve to regulate Turkey’s crypto system, while “preventing malicious acts, protecting investors and countering grievances” as he put it. He remarked that drafts prepared by other institutions have also been mentioned by the media but stressed that the legislature will have the final say.　　On Dececmber 29, Elitaş organized a meeting with 13 representatives of cryptocurrency platforms operating in Turkey

2022-01-10Deep Dive

PayPal Exploring Launch of Its New Stablecoin in Push for Crypto Adoption

PayPal is reportedly planning to launch its own stablecoin as part of its strategy to take advantage of crypto adoption.　　PayPals senior vice president and general manager of blockchain, crypto and digital currencies, Jose Fernandez da Ponte, confirmed to Bloomberg that the payment giant is considering having its own regulated stablecoin.　　“We are exploring a stablecoin; if and when we seek to move forward, we will of course, work closely with relevant regulators.”　　Fernandez da Ponte‘s announcement comes after iOS developer Steve Moser discovered parts of the PayPal iPhone app’s source code that indicated that the company may be working on a stablecoin called “PayPal Coin.”　　A PayPal spokesperson says that the images and codes inside the app were from a hackathon within the companys blockchain, crypto and digital currencies division. Therefore, the logo, name and features of the coin may still change before the crypto asset gets released to the public.　　Fernandez da Ponte said in November that PayPal has not found a stablecoin purpose-built for payments. At the time, he said that PayPal is looking at two things before issuing its own stablecoin.　　“The technology getting ready and especially in terms of security, throughput and scalability is one aspect. The other aspect is that

2022-01-10Deep Dive

How big is crypto? Comparing the market to traditional asset classes

2021 was a record-breaking year for crypto, with the global market cap surpassing $2 trillion for the first time.　　NGRAVE put this milestone in a wider context and explored how big the crypto market is relative to other more traditional asset classes.　　To assess the significance of the industrys total market cap, the crypto security provider compared it to the value of other global industries.Compared to precious metals, real estate, and equities　　Currently, gold has a market cap of $11.4 trillion, making it around five times the size of the crypto market and 13 times the size of Bitcoin, also referred to as ‘digital gold.’　　“In 2021, $10 billion has been pulled from gold funds as BTC posted new ATHs amid rampant money-printing,” noted NGRAVE, pointing to competition between the two, as Bitcoin grew to represent a sound ‘safe-haven’ asset.　　However, when compared to the size of the global silver market, which stands at $1.28 trillion–the crypto market cap is almost double the size.　　“The most significant store of wealth known to man”–the world‘s real estate market is thought to be roughly four times as much as global GDP, eyeballed at around $340 trillion–at least 160 times the size of crypto’s market cap.　　While set against the

2022-01-10Deep Dive

What Is the Environmental Impact of Cryptocurrency?

As the world grapples with how best to combat climate change, weve identified fossil fuels, farming, and industrial pollution as major offenders, but in recent years, the discussion has turned to cryptocurrency. Mining, particularly Bitcoin mining, uses an immense amount of energy, while the race among would-be crypto millionaires to build the most powerful mining rig produces a lot more electronic waste than fat bank accounts.　　How much does cryptocurrency cost the environment？ Does mining and transacting with crypto actually contribute to climate change？ Heres what we know so far.How Much Energy Is Too Much Energy？　　The most obvious environmental impact of crypto is the electricity required for the mining process, which is how new digital coins are created. While most know this as Bitcoin mining, many forms of cryptocurrency rely on mining. But since Bitcoin‘s release, it’s become progressively harder to mint new units of currency through mining. This was by design, as the currency was capped at 21 million units, so the more units minted, the fewer units there are available to mine, and the more computational power it takes to mint new ones.　　That preprogrammed scarcity combined with the potential for financial gain (one Bitcoin is worth about $42,000 as

2022-01-09Deep Dive

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