Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

What to Do When Crypto Prices Experience High Volatility

Cryptocurrency is a new and exciting phenomenon in the global financial market. In many ways, these currencies have unique qualities compared to other financial assets. One such feature is very high volatility.　　Crypto Volatility defines the rate at which an assets price varies with time. Prices move aggressively up and down daily. Many people have made millions in the market, while others have lost both large and small investments in the sudden market changes.　　This guide will primarily focus on how you can use the volatility to your advantage and tips on how to trade and ensure you stay calm in a volatile market.　　Why are Cryptos so Volatile？　　Ever wondered why cryptocurrencies are so volatile？ The crypto market has been highly volatile since day one, but it has become particularly wild in the last few years. Many factors determine the price fluctuations. Here are some of the leading market factors that contribute to cryptos high volatility:　　The crypto market is still new and immature　　Cryptocurrencies are only virtual; hence their price is purely determined by demand and supply　　High speculation　　Influence from the media and prevailing headlines　　Uncertainty of future value of cryptos　　High inflation nations　　Keep in mind, when dealing with high-risk investments, one wrong decision could wipe out

2021-04-23Deep Dive

These Countries Banned Cryptocurrencies, Here’s Why

IN BRIEF　　Multiple countries have banned cryptocurrencies entirely.　　Many state illegal activities and a lack of central control as the reasons for the ban.　　Most recently, Turkey outlawed cryptocurrency payments.　　The relationship between governments and cryptocurrencies has always been tense. In some countries, this has led to outright bans on buying, owning, and trading.　　The outright prohibition of cryptocurrencies mainly happened around 2017 and 2018, coinciding with bitcoins (BTC) bull run. As central banks and governments noticed the surge in interest in cryptocurrencies, ignoring this growing market was no longer an option.　　While those were the biggest years for bans, some countries continue to consider prohibitions on these coins they cant control.　　Turkey bans crypto payments　　Most recently, the central bank of Turkey enacted a ban on cryptocurrency payments. However, this move wasnt a surprise, as the country had been tightening restrictions on the cryptocurrency exchanges over the last few months.　　Turkey‘s reason for this ban is the lack of regulation and a central authority for the coins. They consider this a risk to investors who can’t recover any losses.　　India continues to threaten a ban　　Indias government has yet to pass anti-crypto regulations. However, a draft bill proposing the ban on private cryptocurrencies will soon go before the Indian parliament.

2021-04-23Deep Dive

Bitcoin dominance is about to drop below 50% for the first time in 3 years

Bitcoin (BTC) revisited recent lows near $52,000 on April 22 as sustained weakness continued for the largest cryptocurrency.　　BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: Tradingview　　Traders await altcoin “magic”　　Cointelegraph Markets Pro and Tradingview revealed a lackluster day for BTC traders as BTC/USD briefly dipped below $53,000 before stabilizing around $1,000 higher.　　The move came as Bitcoin was about to lose its market cap dominance supremacy to altcoins in what traditionally marks the “real” start of “alt season.”　　Charts from on-chain monitoring resource CoinMarketCap showed that as of Thursday, Bitcoins share of the overall cryptocurrency market cap stood at just 50.1%.　　Having decreased sharply this year despite its own price gains, Bitcoins market cap share versus altcoins looked set to break through support which has held for over three years.　　Looking at historical behavior, each time Bitcoin loses the 50% mark, altcoins rapidly move in to pick up the slack, often led by Ether (ETH).　　The reshuffling thus sparks an altcoin run which truly fits the description of “alt season” — rapid gains to a peak, followed by a cooling-off period as Bitcoin regains some lost ground. This was the case in both mid 2017 and early 2018.　　Cryptocurrency market cap share chart. Source: CoinMarketCap　　Should history repeat itself, it

2021-04-22Deep Dive

Ethereum Has Dominated The “Scaling War”, But Can It Sustain Its Edge?

In the daily chart, Ethereum (ETH) has the biggest gains on the crypto top 10 by market cap. At the time of writing, ETH is trading at $2.433,80 with a 12.7% profit in the past day and 5.6% in a week. In contrast, Bitcoin (BTC) has a 1.6% profit in the same period.　　ETH with important gains in the daily chart. Source: ETHUSD Tradingview　　ETH has dominated many areas of the crypto space as a report by Wilson Withiam, a researcher at Messari, indicates. Since the beginning of 2020, there has been an increase in the demand for decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. In Q1, 2021, the total value locked for DeFi protocols has seen a 200% rise and stands at $58 billion, according to DeFi Pulse data.　　ETH has reigned on top of this sector. The Quarterly Layer-1 Market Capitalization indicates that DeFi demands as “spilled over to networks outside” of Ethereum. Since Q1, 2020 and Q4, 2020, this metric has seen a 1,408% and 234% increase, respectively.　　Source: Messari　　As the chart shows, the Quarterly Layer-1 Market Cap sits at around $364 billion with Ethereum representing close to $200 billion and occupying the undisputed number 1 position. The numbers also indicate a trend. Since

2021-04-22Deep Dive

NFT Performance Art: Corporations Could Capitalize On Protest

Russian artist Petr Davydtchenko made what what he claims was the first performance art NFT in February. According to an article in The Art Newspaper, in a digital recording, Davydtchenko “eats a live bat in front of the European Parliament in Brussels.”　　An NFT, or non-fungible token, is a digital record of the stake in ownership of a digital object (but not the copyright), often an artwork. This digital certificate says, “I paid for this special thing, now its mine!”　　The Art Newspaper reports Davydtchenkos “performance” had received only one bid of 2.5 wrapped ethereum, valued at USD 3,848 when the story was published on Feb. 26. But profits for some NFTs go into the millions.　　Davydtchenko says the event was a protest against pharmaceutical companies. Davydtchenkos performance art references vaccines and COVID-19.　　As a scholar of communication and performance studies, what interests me is how NFTs are redrawing parts of the art world in radical ways by raising questions about how artists, audiences and critics understand performance, criticism or protest in a capitalist society.　　We should keep an ear open not only to questions about authenticity and who profits but also about what these kinds of transactions mean for us as spectators, virtual audience

2021-04-22Deep Dive

Ripple’s Chris Larsen Says Bitcoin Should Switch to Proof-of-Stake

In a recent blog post devoted to Earth Day, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen is urging Bitcoin miners, exchanges, and core developers to consider ditching the proof-of-work consensus mechanism:　　“Let‘s encourage and work with the people who build and contribute to Bitcoin’s code — the key miners, exchanges, and core developers — to consider a move away from PoW.”　　Larsen claims that such a change would be “critically important” for Bitcoin to remain the dominant cryptocurrency.　　He warns that institutional investors will “undoubtedly” face pressure from regulators to divest their holdings due to PoWs massive carbon footprint.　　Meanwhile, he adds that Ethereum should be “commended” for its decision to switch to proof-of-stake.　　Larsen maintains that Bitcoin has to move to either PoS, which now makes up 43 percent of the total crypto market cap, or the XRP Ledgers Federated Consensus.　　As reported by U.Today, the ex-Ripple CEO claimed that China could ultimately destroy Bitcoin. His unsubstantiated statement was widely criticized within the cryptocurrency community.　　Bitcoin as a key driver of clean energy future　　Contrary to what Larsen is writing in his blog post, major Bitcoin investors are actually focused on debunking the myth that the flagship cryptocurrency is damaging to the environment instead of caving in to pressure.　　Cathie Wood‘s

2021-04-22Deep Dive

UK Bank NatWest Bars Businesses That Accept Crypto

The banks head of risk pointed to warnings by the UK Financial Conduct Authority.　　UK commercial and retail bank NatWest will not accept corporate customers who deal in cryptocurrencies.　　“We have no appetite for dealing with customers, whether taking them on as new clients or having an ongoing relationship with people, whose main business is backed by an exchange for cryptocurrencies, or otherwise transacting in cryptocurrencies as their main activity,” said NatWest head of risk Morten Friis during a shareholder event today, as reported by The Guardian.　　Friis indicated that the NatWest board, of which he is a member, is taking its cues from the UKs Financial Conduct Authority, which earlier this year issued a warning to crypto customers that Bitcoin and other digital assets are risky investments.　　NatWest is one of the largest banks in the UK. Its part of the NatWest group, which includes the Royal Bank of Scotland.　　The bank‘s stance aligns somewhat with one recently taken by UK-based investment bank HSBC. The multinational firm recently removed the option to buy shares in cloud software company MicroStrategy from its retail stock trading platform; Bitcoin comprises 80% of MicroStrategy’s holdings, making its stock reliant on crypto markets.　　“HSBC has no appetite for direct exposure

2021-04-22Deep Dive

Pinknode Brings Interoperable Infrastructure to Decentralized Applications

Blockchain technology is a fundamentally complex way to deal with a revolutionary simple solution. On a show called Last Week Tonight in 2018, comedian John Oliver gave a humorous yet truthful insight on blockchain – it‘s “everything you don’t understand about money combined with everything up don‘t understand about computers.” To bring this concept on a more serious note, blockchain pushes the boundaries of technology and finance that has been slowly merging since at least the creation of paypal in 1998. The major issue with blockchain technology isn’t its functionality- it works very well and can revolutionize social-economics – but the issue is blockchain works so well that solutions must be created to make it easier to use for the average user and developer.　　Pinknode has a proper solution to consider and one that will be addressed in this article. They are a platform that can bring the simplicity of blockchain infrastructure with the interoperability of Polkadot.　　The Gateway to Polkadot Solutions　　Pinknode is a solutions platform on Polkadot that aids developers by creating a better life cycle for their products. They are able to manifest this solution suite into three main areas: providing a node-as-a-service (NaaS), providing a bridge for the application

2021-04-22Deep Dive

Q1 2021 Industry Trends: NFTs Rise to Fame, DeFi Consolidates 2020 Gains

After a year of exponential growth and activity, the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector is beginning to cool.　　In Q1 2021, the dollar value of crypto assets under management by DeFi applications appeared to grow 150%, from roughly $20 billion to $50 billion. However, the majority of this activity reflects the rising dollar value of ETH and other Ethereum-based tokens, not growth in the real number of crypto assets under management.　　Adjusting for this “price effect,” by fixing crypto asset prices over a 90-day period, we can see that total value locked (TVL) in DeFi grew 50% over the quarter, with a gradual correction towards the end of March.　　Total value locked in DeFi　　Source: DappRadar　　Trading volume on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) also saw a similar pattern of steady growth and a slight decline near the end of the first quarter.　　The sector that stole DeFis thunder is the non-fungible token (NFT) industry, with an over 25x increase in trading volume and valuations over $2 billion for certain marketplaces.　　Monthly trade volume for NFTs　　Source: Nonfungible.com　　NFT marketplaces like NBA TopShot are fast approaching the same levels of user activity as the top DeFi apps. However, it remains to be seen how much of the NFT sectors initial burst of

2021-04-22Deep Dive

How To Do Foreign Exchange Trading With Crypto - PrimeXBT

Whether you are a trading pro or a beginner, forex trading is a great way to diversify your trading. Forex trading often has livelier markets than stock indices. It is a great way to find opportunities when the stock or crypto markets are experiencing a lull. With over 50 assets, PrimeXBT is a platform where you can quickly access a wide variety of stock indices and forex trading options. With these at the ready, you will never find a dull moment when trading. By utilizing forex trading through PrimeXBT, you are given an array of options with trading analysis tools and customizable widgets.　　 What is Forex Trading？　　Forex is short for ‘foreign exchange’. It is a worldwide marketplace used in the exchange of national currencies. Because of the easy interchangeability of currencies, forex trading is an incredibly liquid market. With how global the world has become, forex markets have high potential since they account for market circumstances like tourism and geopolitical events. Traders who are able to notice and time the valuations of currencies can make use of plenty of opportunities.　　Although professionals make a career out of forex trading, it is often considered a great option for beginners to get started

2021-04-22Deep Dive

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