Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Rewards system allows decentralized messaging app users to earn crypto

The messaging app project was aimed at avoiding third-party data harvesting.　　Make Sense Labs, a decentralized application firm backed by venture capitalist Tim Draper, now allows users of its social messaging app to earn rewards in crypto.　　According to an announcement from Make Sense, the technology company launched the crypto rewards feature on Monday on its Sense Chat app first developed in 2018. The app reportedly allows users to earn the companys native SENSE tokens by interacting with others online, subscribing to different channels, inviting new users and creating message threads.　　Crystal Rose Pierce, CEO of Make Sense and wife of controversial crypto figure Brock Pierce, said the project was created to be free of third-party data-harvesting typically associated with high-profile social media and messenger companies like Facebook. She claims the apps users will retain control of their data while maintaining privacy.　　“We believe that a persons data is uniquely their own, and the value of that data should be theirs,” said Pierce. “By using Sense Chat, members are empowered to have more control over their experience, reward one another, and curate content using their SENSE tokens as a vote.”　　Even messaging apps created with the intention of preserving users privacy have experienced massive breaches.

2021-04-07Deep Dive

Goldman Sachs CEO believes Bitcoin regulations are set for a 'big evolution'

David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs has forecast a “big evolution” in how the U.S. government regulates Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, in relation to financial institutions.　　In an interview with CNBC today, Solomon was quizzed on the banking giants moves to adopt Bitcoin. The CEO kept his cards close to his chest but conveyed that the bank is keeping a close eye on digital currencies, amid increasing demand for crypto exposure from its clients:　　“We continue to think about digital currency and the digitization of money in a very proactive way, and in that context, we are engaged with our clients and we look at all this through the centricity of ‘what do our clients need？’.”　　The current U.S. restrictions surrounding financial institutions forbids them from offering direct exposure to volatile and risky asset classes such as Bitcoin. Due to these regulations, which deem crypto as a high-risk asset-class, financial institutions can only offer exposure to crypto in the form of custody positions in digital assets such as securities or ETFs.　　However, Solomon noted the crypto space is evolving, and foresees this situation changing over time, but didnt want to speculate on what that actually entails:　　“I think there will be a big evolution. As

2021-04-07Deep Dive

CoinMarketCap removes South Korea crypto exchanges from Bitcoin price tracker

Crypto price tracking website CoinMarketCap has removed many South Korean exchanges from its calculations for the price of Bitcoin as the coin dipped under $58,000 again.　　As of today, CoinMarketCaps Bitcoin (BTC) price tracker shows no data from major South Korean crypto exchanges including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit. The website uses data from many exchanges to estimate the average price for cryptocurrencies. At the time of publication, the price of Bitcoin is $57,721, having fallen more than 2% this morning.　　Speaking to Cointelegraph, CoinMarketCap content manager Molly Jane Zuckerman said the removal was due to the premium observed on crypto exchanges based in South Korea. The crypto analytics provider estimate the BTC price to be roughly 6% higher than that on other exchanges.　　“If the prices on South Korean exchanges stabilize, then we will add the data back in, but that hasnt happened yet,” said Zuckerman.　　The last time the price tracking website took similar action was in 2018, when CoinMarketCap announced it had “excluded some South Korean exchanges in price calculations due to the extreme divergence in prices from the rest of the world and limited arbitrage opportunity.”　　During roughly the same time three years ago, the price of XRP was falling significantly

2021-04-07Deep Dive

At Least 10 South Korean Crypto Exchanges’ ‘Survival Not Guaranteed’

More South Korean crypto exchanges are almost certain to fold in the months ahead, regulators and industry insiders have claimed, with just five months left before some of the toughest policing measures in the world come into force.　　Per Fn News, regulatory sources familiar with the matter claim that “at least 10 exchanges” are on the verge of closure and that their “survival cannot be guaranteed” after failing to meet real-name banking requirements.　　After the countrys first piece of crypto-specific legislation promulgated last month, exchanges now have a grace period of until September 24 to obtain banking contracts, put anti-money laundering (AML) protocols into place, gain information security management system (ISMS) management credentials and prepare documentation proving they have an adequate human resource network in place. Order book sharing with international partners may also become impossible. Those who fail to meet all the requirements must close, or face criminal prosecution and possible jail time.　　A number of exchanges – including big-name trading platforms like Binance and OKEx have already given up. OKEx Korea will cease trading on April 7. Joining their number is the latest casualty, Allbit, a decentralized exchange launched in 2018. The latters operator Ozys was quoted as stating that the

2021-04-07Deep Dive

BANK OF JAPAN SET TO BEGIN EXPERIMENTING WITH CBDC

Earlier today, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced that it began experimenting with the possibility of issuing its own central-bank digital currency (CBDC). The central bank first entertained the idea of a CBDC back in February.　　Now, the decision to ramp up their timeline coincides with other nations making strides in creating their own digital currency. China recently laid out its plans to create a digitized Yuan, with several pilot programs already under its belt. In March, the Eastern Carribean Central Bank also officially launched its digital currency.　　BOJ TO CONDUCT FIRST PHASE OF EXPERIMENTS THIS SPRING　　In a statement, the BOJ stated that its first phase of experiments will be carried out until at least March 2022 — focusing on the technical feasibility of issuing, distributing and redeeming its CBDC. Once that is complete, the central bank will transition to the second phase of its experiments, hammering out the detailed functions and payment infrastructure.　　BOJ Executive Director Shinichi Uchida stated that the central bank will likely launch regional pilot programs that involve payment service providers and end users. “While there is no change in the BOJs stance it currently has no plan to issue CBDC, we believe initiating experiments at this stage is

2021-04-07Deep Dive

5 Ways DeFi Can Revolutionize the Healthcare Industry

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent growth of the decentralized finance (DeFi) market could change the game for the healthcare industry. Lets explore several examples.　　1. Medical devices　　With regards to medical device financing and leasing, currently, no one is offering a global solution — no government agencies, banks, or insurers. As healthcare systems around the world struggle to cope with the challenges inflicted and exacerbated as a result of COVID-19, it is clear there is a real need to change the process around medical equipment leasing and financing.　　Telehealth and virtual care are quickly becoming the most attractive way of accessing healthcare, both as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing landscape of healthcare. Patient devices include apparatus such as blood pressure monitors, glucose meters, oximeters, weight scales, and even thermometers. The distribution of 4G medical devices for remote patient monitoring provides patients with chronic illnesses with the equipment they need to take control of their health. This facilitates the coming together of the administrators, practitioners, and patients in an efficient and trust-minimized manner. By financing the leasing of medical devices through decentralized solutions we can provide better patient outcomes, and promote transparency.　　Professional devices such as

2021-04-07Deep Dive

The Dark Side Of Coinbase Listing

Coinbases plan to go public in April highlights a troubling trend among tech companies: Its founding team will maintain voting control, making it mostly immune to the wishes of outside investors.　　The best-known US crypto exchange is doing this by creating two classes of shares. One class will be available to the public. The other is reserved for the founders, insiders and early investors, and will wield 20 times the voting power of regular shares. That will ensure that after all is said and done, the insiders will control 53.5% of the votes.　　Coinbase will join dozens of other publicly traded tech companies – many with household names such as Google, Facebook, Doordash, Airbnb and Slack – that have issued two types of shares in an effort to retain control for founders and insiders. The reason this is becoming increasingly popular has a lot to do with Ayn Rand, one of Silicon Valleys favorite authors, and the “myth of the founder” her writings have helped inspire.　　Engaged investors and governance experts like me generally loathe dual-class shares because they undermine executive accountability by making it harder to rein in a wayward CEO. I first stumbled upon this method executives use to limit the

2021-04-07Deep Dive

NFTs Will Emerge Stronger After The Bubble Bursts

Peter Wood, the CEO of up-and-coming UK exchange CoinBurp, believes NFTs are caught in a bubble that will eventually pop. However, Wood says that much like cryptocurrencies consolidated through crypto winter to emerge stronger, so will NFTs after the pop.　　Signs of Digital Art NFTs Cooling　　Following the record-breaking $69.3mn sale of Beeples The First 5000 Days last month, the man himself warned that digital art NFTs are a bubble.　　“I absolutely think its a bubble, to be quite honest. I go back to the analogy of the beginning of the internet. There was a bubble. And the bubble burst.”　　Last week, nonfungible.com released data showing a cooling of interest in the segment. The average daily volume of NFTs sold across marketplaces had fallen from $19.3mn to as low as $3mn on March 25.　　Although the figures lack sufficient data points to draw any firm conclusions at this point, those who jumped in headfirst are left wondering if this is a short-term lull or whether the top is in.　　Wood isnt too concerned with the situation, citing boom and bust cycles as natural phenomena of all financial markets. He added that when the bubble does burst, the NFT space will regroup and emerge stronger off the

2021-04-07Deep Dive

Square, Coinbase, and Fidelity set to rollout a Bitcoin Trade Group

Square, Coinbase, and Fidelity; companies owned by some of fintechs top guns, along with other leading crypto companies are joining forces to lead the industry into a better regulatory environment.　　The three firms intend to achieve this by creating a Bitcoin Trade Group. Their main goal is quite simple; carry out projects and research centered around the industry, outline the rewards of digital currencies and promote them within the global market and seek to influence policymakers.　　This comes at a time when the cryptocurrency industry is transitioning into a new stage, as prices of many digital assets surge and rake in tremendous returns for investors in the largest fintech organizations.　　The relevance of this group cannot be overemphasized, when the state of the market and the relationship between the crypto-industry and lawmakers are reviewed.　　Even as traditional investors who had previously discredited Bitcoin make their way into the industry, lawmakers are still approaching the subject of digital currencies with military precision.　　Statistically, the benefits of digital currencies outweigh the downsides by a large mark, but this has not stopped regulators and watchdogs from enforcing strict policies and cracking down on some of the biggest crypto firms.　　Surely with Fidelity, Square, and Coinbase taking the matter up,

2021-04-07Deep Dive

The Top Blockchain Launches to Watch in Q2

The first quarter of 2021 brought many new exciting updates to the blockchain industry. Over a half-billion dollars worth of NFTs were transacted, nearly $50 billion was locked in various DeFi protocols, and mainstream adoption exploded with the likes of VISA, Tesla, and other institutions actively participating in the market. Without question, one of the driving factors to this growth was the consistent innovation emerging from blockchain and DeFi-specific startups.　　As we look towards the future, these innovative startups are going to be at the forefront of global adoption by helping solve challenges like scalability, liquidity, and safety. On the consumer side, we are starting to see dApps with real use cases and traction arise. The following list represents some of the most promising companies and their respective launches scheduled in Q2.　　 1. Crowny　　Crowny is an innovative advertising platform built and supported by Solana and the Serum Foundation. Using the Crowny app, users and advertisers are incentivized to display and engage with relevant content that benefits all parties. Brands can also leverage the platform to create free loyalty programs, complete with a robust content delivery system and analytics.　　The platform is helping solve one of the most challenging aspects of advertising: providing

2021-04-07Deep Dive

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