Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

How a Next-Generation Blockchain Addresses "Privacy Poisoning"

The introduction of the EUs General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018 marked a pivotal moment in the history of data privacy. Intended as a blow to the unchecked data harvesting of big tech firms such as Facebook and Google, the regulation brought in far-reaching legislation, putting significant responsibilitieson to companies as data processors.　　Intriguingly, given that blockchain advocates are also often vocal proponents of privacy rights, GDPR also throws up some interesting problems in the context of data stored on a blockchain. It contains clauses that stipulate data must be “kept in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary” and perhaps even more critically, introduces the “right to be forgotten.”　　The latter allows any citizen of the EU to request that their data be permanently deleted. Furthermore, it doesnt matter whether the data processor is in the EU or outside; EU citizens rights must be upheld.　　 Blockchain vs. the GDPR　　These rights are at odds with one of the core features of a blockchain – that data and transactions are immutable. Nobody can delete or change a transaction once its taken place. In the context of Bitcoin, where addresses arent tied to any personal data,

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Greenidge Expands Mining Operations, Raises Environmental Concerns

The struggle between cryptocurrency‘s climate impact and environment groups grows with news of Greenidge power plant’s planned expansion.　　Greenidge power plant, located in Upstate New York, is back in the news, with a planned expansion of its power usage. The once-abandoned power plant was purchased by equity firm Atlas Holdings for mining bitcoin (BTC).　　The plant, which used to provide electricity to the nearby town, now mines a reported 5.5 bitcoin every day. At todays price of $57,497.80, the plant mines around $316,000 daily.　　The natural gas plant, located near the Finger Lakes in Dresden, is made up of more than 7,000 mining rigs and powered on-site. The server farm is a result as a part of a $65 million rebuild of the crumbling coal plant. Conversion from coal to natural gas, as well as the electrical infrastructure, needed to mine at such a rate were the two major spends of the project.　　The farm is currently configured to consume less than 15 megawatts of power. Now, Greenidge is planning to ramp up its mining operation from 7,000 machines to more than 18,000. The recent approval of a data center expansion will add an additional 10,000, bringing the total to 28,000 mining machines on-site.　　The

2021-05-11Deep Dive

The Next Generation of Blockchain Infrastructure is Here

Defi　　Today, decentralized finance is widely regarded as one of the most popular use cases for blockchain technology — with over $76 billion locked up in DeFi protocols on the Ethereum network alone.　　The dramatic growth in DeFi seen in recent months has been largely catalyzed by a wave of innovation and the rapid iteration of novel protocols and tools that allow users to do more with their assets. Nonetheless, while DeFi is still very much in its earliest days, a new generation of DeFi products is beginning to paint a clear picture of where the industry is going.　　Yield Farms Have Evolved　　Though the DeFi landscape is remarkably diverse, one particular subset of DeFi products has emerged as particularly promising — were talking about yield farms. With many yield farms offering massive APYs that eclipse the returns offered by regular savings products and even crypto savings accounts, they have the potential to help cryptocurrencies and decentralized technologies appeal to even mainstream investors.　　Despite the fact that yield farms are a relatively new phenomenon that is being used by an increasing proportion of DeFi users, theyre also one of the fastest evolving niches — with new yield farm products, cross-chain farms, and unique takes on

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Traders Rotate From Bitcoin To Alts, While JPMorgan Sees Ether As Overvalued

Ethereum (ETH) and altcoins might keep outperforming bitcoin (BTC) in the months ahead, while the most popular crypto is preparing for a lift off, according to major crypto exchange Kraken. Meanwhile, JPMorgan sees “froth” in the crypto market and claims that ETH is now heavily overvalued. (Updated at 17:04 UTC with the latest market data, a new section - Time to sell, time to buy, time to hodl - has been added.)　　On average, April is its best performing month, but BTC posted its third-worst April performance (-2%) and its first negative monthly return since September 2020, Kraken said in its recent report.　　BTCs dominance falling to a 3-year low of 49% and ETH/BTC soaring to a 3-year high further indicate that “market participants are preferring altcoins over BTC at this point in the market cycle.”　　This “underwhelming performance” may be the result of market participants using their BTC to rotate into altcoins to try to generate higher returns, given that “as BTC gets larger and larger, it cannot sustain the same growth. Therefore, market participants may see altcoins as having a greater upside and/or a better risk-reward profile.”　　However, “staying true to the trend,” the percentage of BTC on exchanges decreased in April

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Japanese Assembly Members Seek to Make Tokyo a 'Cryptocurrency Trading Center'

Japan is steadily becoming an area of interest for the cryptocurrency industry, and a politician in the capital city is looking to strengthen the trend. A member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly wants to transform the Japanese capital into a “trading center” for cryptos.　　Blockchain as a ‘Growth Strategy’ to Create Industry Hub　　Yuu Ito, the third term assembly member in question, commented about the possibility of bolstering the citys financial sector by increasing its involvement with the digital asset business.　　The statement comes after his recent support of economic plans unveiled by Yuriko Koike, governor of Tokyo. Ito also pointed out challenges Tokyo faces in order to compete with other major financial hubs, like London, Macau, and Hong Kong. He believes high rates in bitcoin (BTC) tax might have deterred investors and companies from being active in Japan, and that significant action is necessary to advance the industry domestically.　　Nobuko Irie, a fellow Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly member, commented in a similar vein:　　The country is printing deficit-financing bonds in the wake of the corona. Even in Tokyo, we must create new financial resources by setting technology that can generate wealth like blockchain as a growth strategy.　　Guaranteeing a Healthy Taxation Environment for Bitcoin　　She praised how

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Ether balances on centralized exchanges fall to lowest level since June 2019

According to analysis from on-chain analytics provider Glassnode, the sum of Ethereum on exchanges has fallen to its lowest level for almost two years.　　Glassnode estimates that just 13.3 million Ether is currently held on centralized exchanges, the lowest it has been since June 2019. As such, centralized platforms hold roughly $52.4 billion worth of ETH or 11.5% of Ethereums entire supply.　　The number of Ether on centralized exchanges has fallen 30% in 9 months since peaking at 19 million ETH during September 2020.　　A low balance of ETH on exchanges is typically understood to be bullish for the markets as it drives a reduction in supply relative to demand on popular trading platforms. Dwindling exchange balances suggest long-term investors are moving their assets into secure storage or locking their funds up to earn yields through decentralized finance protocols or staking.　　In its Monday “Week on Chain” report, the data provider also noted that there has been some reduction in exposure to Bitcoin in favour of Ethereum.　　Glassnode correlated the spending behavior of reasonably old Bitcoin unspent transaction outputs of between 6 months and 3 years, finding evidence that long-term investors could have been recently flipping into ETH:　　“Whilst this is only an empirical observation (correlation

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Almost $200 Billion Worth Of Bitcoin Is Currently At Risk – Report Warns

A recently published 2021 crypto report by Opimas LLC, a finance-based management consultancy firm, has revealed that approximately 3,480,000 out of the worlds mined 18.5 million Bitcoin, stands vulnerable to attacks as a result of improper safekeeping.　　The 36-page report by the Boston-based management company extensively covered the various institutional safekeeping gaps – capable of predisposing owners of cryptocurrencies to coin theft – that are still present and in need of solutions, in the world of crypto.　　What Are The Key Takeaways？　　One of the key takeaways Opimas highlights in its report is the need for the establishment of more middlemen in cryptocurrencies. These middlemen can exist in the form of institution-based custody solution providers, that is, the provision of solutions that help store, exchange, and hold cryptocurrency safely for big investors and corporations.　　This recommendation is gleaned from the reality that more and more corporate bodies and institutions are now beginning to invest heavily in crypto, following Michael Saylor‘s MicroStrategy and electric car manufacturer’s footsteps Tesla, as part of their asset diversification plan. But as it currently seems, there are very few standard holding or safekeeping solutions designed to handle such a volume of transactions and many of them still deploy security

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Why Ethereum’s Miner Extractable Value Problem Is Way Worse Than You Think

The anonymous hacker who first discovered “Miner Extractable Value” returns with a warning: The integrity of Ethereum is at stake.　　As I write this, ethereum is moon-bound. ETH holders are making a bundle, with the price up 370% this year alone. In all this fanfare, though, you may have heard some chatter about MEV (miner extractable value).　　In a nutshell, the Ethereum blockchain is written by consensus, but the content of each block is chosen by just one miner. Miners can profit from users by front-running, back-running, sandwiching and generally exploiting transactions in their block however they choose. The Flash Boys 2.0 paper, written by researchers at Cornell Tech, coined the term MEV to describe such exploits.　　But is it really that bad？ Isn‘t it inevitable？ And who cares if there’s a little extra slippage on Uniswap if by the end of the day your coins are worth 5% more regardless. Were all making hay here. Perhaps the whole MEV thing is overblown, FUD even.　　Pmcgoohan (a pseudonym) discovered the MEV issue in Ethereum pre-genesis in 2014. He makes a living working with purely algorithmic trading, using his own money. An analyst/coder, he has worked with scientific bodies, corporations and financial firms.　　As an algorithmic

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Why DeFi could be about to make crypto remittances even cheaper

Atom Solutions says that The Transfer Token (TTT), which is at the beating heart of its Eternal Wallet product, is going to be migrated to a DeFi token protocol.　　The change is set to deliver greater levels of transparency and security — and the migration was triggered by feedback gathered by users following a beta test.　　Its also hoped that a concerted shift to DeFi will help prevent misconduct and data manipulation by malicious actors such as third-party attackers.　　Shaking up remittances　　One of the strongest use cases that has emerged for digital assets is linked to remittances — amid hopes that cryptocurrencies could make money transfers between countries much more affordable than it is now.　　Data from the World Bank suggests that remittances currently attract fees of 6.5% on average globally, rates that considerably eat into the earnings of those who want to send funds home to their loved ones.　　Atom Solutions says that Eternal Wallet is designed to tackle this by making transfers faster and more affordable — delivering fees of as little as $0.05. And, while old-fashioned remittance providers take anywhere from 24 hours to five days to complete a payment, this crypto-focused alternative can send funds in under three seconds.　　To put this

2021-05-11Deep Dive

Crypto Analyst: Buying Litecoin Now Is Like “2020 Ethereum”

Litecoin is in scintillating form of late, having posted a new all-time high of $410 in the early hours. After months of stuttering, LTC finally joined the likes of BTC and ETH in reaching that milestone moment during this bull run.　　With that, the bull case is building. Some suggest this is just the beginning, with more upside for Litecoin on the way. This is especially applicable as the Mimblewimble upgrade draws closer to rollout.　　Litecoin Starting to Build Momentum　　Dogecoins top performance shows miracles can happen. DOGE is up an unbelievable 12,000% YTD, working its way into the fourth spot on CoinMarketCap off the back of this run.　　Meanwhile, Litecoins relative underperformance so far has raised several concerns. Even so, LTC manages to remain in and around the top-ten despite its underwhelming price action. However, in what some see as a turning point, Litecoin today posted a new all-time high.　　@KongBTC chimed in by drawing parallels between Litecoin now and Ethereum in October 2020, when it was priced around the mid-three hundreds.　　“Buying $LTC at $360 now is the same as buying $ETH at $360 in October ‘20. that’s the tweet.”　　Since Q4 2020, Ethereum has gone on to break all-time high after all-time high, growing

2021-05-11Deep Dive

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