The cryptocurrency market has started to gain some momentum and stability over the past 48 hours, with three consecutive daily buy candles recorded by bitcoin. Tokens such as OmiseGo and DigixDAO have seen notable increase in volume and price, but it is still unclear whether the market can initiate a new rally.


On yesterday’s report, CCN noted that if BTC recovers to the $7,700 mark swiftly from $7,300, a short-term drop to the $6,000 region can be prevented. Over the past 24 hours, BTC successfully recovered to $7,700 and stabilized in the $7,700 region, without recording any major movement.

Often, stability in the cryptocurrency sector signifies a potential build up for a bull rally in the short-term, especially if several daily buy candles are recorded consecutively. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and moving average convergence/divergence (MACD) demonstrate strong conditions for the BTC market, opening the possibility of BTC rebounding to $8,000 in the upcoming days.

But, one issue with BTC and the rest of the cryptocurrency market is the low daily trading volume. As of current, the daily trading volume of BTC remains just below $5 billion, a volume that is merely 30 percent of January’s daily trading volume.

Tether (USDT), the cryptocurrency whose value is hedged to the US dollar, still remains as the second most traded cryptocurrency in the market behind BTC, signifying that many traders are utilizing the US dollar-backed currency to hedge the value of cryptocurrencies.

Considering the strong recovery of BTC from $7,300 to $7,700, it is likely that BTC re-enters the $8,000 region in the upcoming days, testing a major support level at $8,500. While bears still remain in control of the market, the recent trend in the price of BTC shows that the majority of investors are reluctant to sell various digital assets at current rates.


The short-term trend of BTC has become more positive over the past few days but the market is dealing with a bear cycle. In a period like this, large-scale investors often look toward mid-term triggers and possible factors that could contribute to market recovery.

This week, Paul Vigna of the Wall Street Journal reported that SolidX Management and Van Eck Associates Corp have partnered to launch a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) within 2018, with the approval of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Last year, both companies had their ETF applications rejected by the SEC and failed to introduce a publicly tradable bitcoin instrument to institutional investors. To increase the chances of obtaining the approval from the SEC, the two firms teamed up to create a new bitcoin ETF called the VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust.

Previously, the US SEC stated that one of the major concerns regarding bitcoin ETFs is the lack of investor protection policies. The VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust will insure investors against theft and loss of access to BTC, eliminating the possibility of investors being impacted by unforeseen technical glitches or errors.

The introduction of a bitcoin ETF will enable institutional investors to enter the cryptocurrency market with full protection against potential security issues.

https://www.ccn.com/cryptocurrency-market-gains-stability-volume-still-low-but-more-bullish/

US financial company Susquehanna International Group announced it will offer Bitcoin trading to 500 clients following two years of offering the cryptocurrency in “private deals,” the New York Times reports.


Susquehanna International Group, an international trader which has headquarters in Pennsylvania and operates around the world, will move to offer Bitcoin futures and other products, continuing a trend involving an increasing number of major finance players.

“We believe that this technology and this asset class is going to change some facet of financial services, and we think it is going to exist forever,” head of Susquehanna’s digital asset group Bart Smith revealed.

From futures, the company will thereafter to allowing buying and selling of both Bitcoin and Ethereum, along with “a few other” cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin Cash, the Times adds.

The company already trades “millions of dollars” in Bitcoin using a team of a dozen traders, having expanded from just one trader in 2014.

More info - http://bitcoinist.com/susquehanna-opens-crypto-trading-desk/

NVB advertising model with embedded videos is very interesting for bloggers, youtubers, and advertising agencies. All parties are benefiting from new blockchain technology.

Team posted few articles targeting at Japan and Chinese investors. Advertising potential of Asia market is huge.

Смотрите, команда не скрывает и четко пишет что: "будут произведены еще большие транзакции, пока  количество монет на руках не достигнет 547,525,000 (сейчас 516,752,129 HBZ) . Еще частным инвесторам будет выслано 30,772,871 монет в течении 12 месяцев. "

Остается только ждать либо нового супер обменника, либо развертывания реального рабочего продукта. Черная электронная коробочка уже интригует.

В своем последнем видео, сооснователь Open Collectors Network Андрей рассказал о уникальных особенностях идеи. Наш мир наполнен уникальными индивидуальными объектами и контентом, и это то что OCN хотят токенизировать. Дополнительно, существуют масса компаний, которым есть что токенизировать в рамках своего бизнеса.

Будет создан обменник, где можно торговать уникальными токенизированными объектами.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6Pny_ykU4o

SETHER представит свои лучшие достижения на CannesLion 2018 / 18-22 июня, 65 международный фестиваль творчества. Обещают демо версию работы KPI (ключевой показатель эффективности), конкурсы и призы.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) already has a cryptocurrency task force, and now it’s designated a crypto advisor. The Wall Street regulator has named Valerie A. Szczepanik to spearhead the application of securities laws to “digital asset technology and innovation” across cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs).

Her appointment seems apropos, considering that Szczepanik was the maiden SEC official to comment on ICO projects about a year ago when she urged ICO startups that if they wanted the industry to flourish, to keep investor protection at the forefront.

It’s a newly created position, with her official title being “Associate Director of the Division of Corporation Finance and Senior Advisor for Digital Assets and Innovation for Division Director Bill Hinman,” and it’s yet another sign of the resources that the SEC is pouring into the cryptocurrency space despite a lack of any specific regulatory framework.

“With her demonstrated skill, experience, and keen awareness of the importance of fostering innovation while ensuring investor protection, Val is the right person to coordinate our efforts in this dynamic area that has both promise and risk,” said SEC Chairman Jay Clayton in a press release.

Szczepanik is already leading the SEC’s distributed ledger technology (DLT) working group and is a cybersecurity veteran. The SEC is no doubt looking to harness her veteran status in securities laws and her knowledge about the cryptocurrency space. With her appointment, the SEC is either moving closer to announcing regulation or stalling.

More info - https://www.ccn.com/sec-appoints-new-crypto-chief/

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak isn’t convinced that bitcoin will supplant national currencies to become a de facto global currency, but he says that he hopes this will one day be the case.

Speaking on the sidelines of Money20/20 Europe, Wozniak told CNBC that he is attracted to the “purity” of the idea that people around the world could one day share a single currency, despite being separated by national borders.

He said:

“I buy into what Jack Dorsey says, not that I necessarily believe it’s going to happen, but because I want it to be that way, that is so pure thinking.”

As CCN reported, Dorsey, who is CEO of both social media giant Twitter and digital payment processor Square, said recently that he believes bitcoin will be the world’s only currency — perhaps within a single decade.

The “Woz” has long been a fan of bitcoin, a fact that has not changed since he decided to sell off most of his holdings after finding that he spent too much time watching price movements.

Hearkening back to comments that he has made in the past, Wozniak said that bitcoin is “pure digital gold” and — unlike many cryptocurrencies — “totally decentralized” since it is not run by a company and does not have a business model.

“Bitcoin is mathematically defined, there is a certain quantity of bitcoin, there’s a way it’s distributed… and it’s pure and there’s no human running, there’s no company running and it’s just… growing and growing… and surviving,” he said. “That to me says something that is natural and nature is more important than all our human conventions.”

Notably, Wozniak is also bullish on Ethereum, particularly since it views itself as a platform rather than just a store of value. Last month, he said that he believes the project could become the next Apple in terms of its status in the tech sector.

https://www.ccn.com/i-want-bitcoin-to-be-the-worlds-single-currency-apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak/

Если вы заметили Pillar PLR подрос за последние дни. Все потому что скоро будет продемонстрирован Pillar кошелек и состоится бета тест. Всех приглашают на конференцию, Вильнюс, 15 – 22 Июля 2018. Вход бесплатный, но нужно забронировать номер в принимающем отеле.

https://pillarproject.io/unconference2018/

Is it possible to see «Guide to Digital Scarcity with David Siegel» in record? I cannot find this webinar on youtube or pillar official channel. If somebody made a record, please share it within a community.

Indonesia's Futures Exchange Supervisory Board (Bappebti), a commodities market regulator under the country's Ministry of Trade, has reportedly ruled that cryptocurrencies are commodities that can be traded on the country's futures exchange.

According to a Jarkata Post report on Monday, the agency's market supervision chief, Dharma Yoga, has confirmed the decision and said the ruling came after a four-month study period that examined the issue.

According to Yoga, the agency has now signed a decree to formalize the decision, potentially clearing the way for the launch of a bitcoin futures product in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, other regulations around cryptocurrency exchanges and related taxation in the country will also be revealed by the country's central bank and its taxation agency, Yoga said.

The central bank, Bank Indonesia, suggested late last year that it would prohibit bitcoin payments in the country, and subsequently stated it does not recognize the cryptocurrency as a legal payment method. However, it did not mention cryptocurrency exchanges at the time.

Yoga further indicated that, in order to prepare a comprehensive regulatory framework, the agency is now requesting domestic cryptocurrency exchanges to submit regulatory proposals.

https://www.coindesk.com/indonesian-regulator-gives-green-light-for-crypto-futures-trading/

Hitbtc has suspended its services for Japanese residents to avoid any trouble with the country’s financial regulator since it is not authorized to operate in Japan. Users with Japanese IP addresses will be asked to provide their residency information within the exchange’s know-your-customer (KYC) procedure to prove they are not residents of Japan.


Hitbtc, the world’s eighth largest crypto exchange according to Coinmarketcap, has announced a service suspension for Japanese residents.

On its website, the Hong Kong-based exchange added a new section called Service Restriction to the Legal Information page of its Terms of Service. “You shall not use our services and immediately cease using those if you are a resident or become a resident at any time of the state or region where Hitbtc is not authorized to act,” the exchange wrote, adding:

/For the avoidance of any doubt and in accordance with the Japan Payment Services Act, Hitbtc has temporarily suspended providing virtual (crypto) currency exchange services to residents of Japan./

The exchange elaborated, “In case our technology detects that you use our services from an IP address registered in Japan, or any other services registered in Japan, you would be asked to confirm that you are not a resident of Japan by providing information on your residency within KYC procedure.”

The exchange subsequently posted a notice on its website on Sunday confirming the suspension, reiterating that it “will apply only to those living in the country.”

Hit Solution Ltd provides access to crypto assets exchange platform under the registered trademark Hitbtc. Since 2013, the platform “has been providing markets for bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin, dogecoin, monero, USDT, and more than 300 cryptocurrencies in total,” its website details. The exchange’s 24-hour trading volume at the time of this writing is $281,395,577.

More info - https://news.bitcoin.com/cryptocurrency-exchange-hitbtc-suspends-services-japan/

The South Korean government has clarified its position in response to the recent ruling by the country’s Supreme Court stating that cryptocurrency is an asset with measurable value that can be confiscated. The government says its position should be viewed separately from that of the Supreme Court.


South Korea’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), has responded to the ruling by the country’s Supreme Court recognizing cryptocurrencies including bitcoin as assets, according to local media.

The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday, May 30, that cryptocurrencies are assets that can be confiscated as criminal proceeds. The case involves a porn site operator and his 191 BTC. This decision represents the first time the Court has recognized cryptocurrency as property.

The head of the FSC’s cryptocurrency countermeasures committee, Hong Sung-ki, was quoted by Aktv clarifying:

''The judgment of the Supreme Court and the position of government policy should be viewed separately.''

More info - https://news.bitcoin.com/korean-government-clarifies-position-supreme-court-crypto-ruling/

Vermont's governor has signed a bill allowing for the creation of so-called "blockchain-based limited liability companies," public records show.

CoinDesk reported in January that state lawmakers were weighing the measure, which at the time referred to "digital currency limited liability companies" and contained language indicating that such businesses – effectively running on a distributed blockchain network – would pay taxes to the state in crypto. According to the text, those businesses are described as "limited liability compan[ies] organized pursuant to this title for the purpose of operating a business that utilizes blockchain technology for a material portion of its business activities."

The most recent version of the text, according to LegiScan, shows that the language related to taxation has been stripped out, though it still contains sections regarding the limited liability companies as well as mandates for a "Fintech Summit" and a follow-up study of backing up public records using the tech (an earlier review ultimately deemed the use case too costly).

Among the requirements for setting up a blockchain-based company in Vermont: applicants must "specify whether the decentralized consensus ledger or database utilized or enabled by the BBLLC will be fully decentralized or partially decentralized and whether such ledger or database will be fully or partially public or private, including the extent of participants' access to information and read and write permissions with respect to protocols."

Vermont governor Phil Scott signed the bill on May 30, LegiScan reveals.

The newly-signed law also calls for a study – due before January 15 of next year – into the tech's use in insurance and banking and how state officials can clear the way for such applications within the state's economy.

"The Department of Financial Regulation shall review the potential application of blockchain technology to the provision of insurance and banking and consider areas for potential adoption and any necessary regulatory changes in Vermont," the text states.

https://www.coindesk.com/vermontdao-state-governor-signs-bill-clearing-way-blockchain-companies/

A deputy director for the International Monetary Fund's Monetary and Capital Markets Department believes that central banks need to offer "better" fiat currencies in order to fend off any potential competition from cryptocurrencies.

The suggestions came in an article published Thursday, penned by deputy director Dong He. In that article – which boasts the tagline "Crypto assets may one day reduce demand for central bank money" –  He argues that central banks may want to consider adopting some of the concepts in order to "forestall the competitive pressure crypto assets may exert on fiat currencies."

It's a notable statement and one that echoes past remarks from He as well as other IMF officials, including director Christine Lagarde. Indeed, Lagarde, back in March, said during an event that regulators should deploy some elements of the tech in order to "fight fire with fire."

He's argument in the latest piece is based on the possibility that, should cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets see wider adoption, there is a chance that central banks will lose their ability to influence the economy through tactics such as interest rate changes.

The deputy director suggested that tightening regulation could provide a boost for central banks.

"Second, government authorities should regulate the use of crypto assets to prevent regulatory arbitrage and any unfair competitive advantage crypto assets may derive from lighter regulation," He wrote. "That means rigorously applying measures to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism, strengthening consumer protection, and effectively taxing crypto transactions."

He also pointed to the idea of central banks creating their own digitized assets that could be exchanged in a peer-to-peer fashion

"For example, they could make central bank money user-friendly in the digital world by issuing digital tokens of their own to supplement physical cash and bank reserves. Such central bank digital currency could be exchanged, peer to peer in a decentralized manner, much as crypto assets are," the article went on to say.

It's an idea that a number of central banks are researching, though opinions differ on the effectiveness of such proposals. Just this week, for example, an official for the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (the region's de facto central bank) said that it currently has no plans for a digital currency launch in spite of its research in the area.

https://www.coindesk.com/imf-official-central-banks-need-compete-crypto/

US independent rating agency, Weiss Ratings, has published its complete list of 93 cryptocurrency ratings. The company has upgraded its BTC rating to B-. The list shows 14 coins with B ratings including ETH, IOTA, NEO, XRP, STEEM, TRX, and XLM. Fifty-four of the rated cryptocurrencies carry C ratings.


On Tuesday, May 29, Weiss Ratings made public its complete list of 93 cryptocurrencies rated by the company. The American independent rating agency, founded in 1971, has been rating approximately 55,000 institutions and investments such as stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, insurance companies, banks, credit unions, and cryptocurrencies.

Compiled on Friday, the list shows an overall rating of B- for BTC and C- for BCH. It can be obtained by signing up with an email address on the company’s website until June 4.

No cryptocurrency on the list has received an A or a B+ rating. Overall, fourteen coins were rated B or B-. ADA, DCR, EOS were rated B, whereas BTC, ETH, BTS, IOTA, ONT, NEO, XRP, STEEM, TRX, XLM, and ZIL were rated B-.

54 cryptocurrencies were rated either C, C+ or C-. They include BCH, DASH, DOGE, ETC, LSK, LTC, XMR, XEM, QTUM, SC, STRAT, UBQ, VEN, WAVES, and ZEC.

More info - https://news.bitcoin.com/weiss-ratings-complete-list-cryptocurrency-ratings/

Bitcoin price may continue to hover almost 70% below all-time highs, but the largest cryptocurrency’s technology is the strongest it has ever been.

Bitcoinist summarizes the newfound strength of the Bitcoin network, which continues to deliver record statistics in the month of May 2018.


As entrepreneur Alistair Milne noted this week,  Bitcoin transactions fees have dropped to their lowest levels in seven years. Not since 2011 was it was so cheap to use Bitcoin, when the network was a tiny fraction of its current size and value.

Bitcoin has even started beating altcoin Bitcoin Cash on network fees – something which the latter’s proponents continue to hold up as one of its major features.

In future, increasing expansion of the Lightning Network is expected to drive fees below 1 satoshi per byte, keeping long-term transaction costs at a nearly negligible amount.


Prior to Lightning’s mainstream adoption, however, 2018 saw mass uptake of Segregated Witness (‘SegWit’) technology, which for Bitcoin users also means lower fees and faster confirmation times.

As Bitcoinist reported earlier this month, SegWit transactions now make up a greater proportion of the total sent each week than ever before – almost 40%.


Bitcoin’s hashrate also climbed to its largest in history in May. Data from Blockchain republished on Twitter by trader and commentator CryptoYoda impressed users, with theories including miners mining at a smaller profit in order to generate long-term holdings.

That theory echoes research presented last month suggesting Bitcoin could be at the start of another protracted ‘HODL’ period.


Lastly, banking failures dominate the headlines this week, with Italy and the eurozone under political pressure and Australia and New Zealand lenders both suffering mass technical outages which cut customers off from their funds.

As Reuters reported May 26, National Australia Bank and the Bank of New Zealand were initially unable to confirm whether the problems were related or a coincidence. The source later turned out to be a power outage.

By comparison, the Bitcoin network has experienced 99.9923% uptime since it was launched back on January 3rd, 2009.

http://bitcoinist.com/bitcoin-price-4-reasons-be-bullish/

No fresh news from Spectre team since 10 May. They launched trading platform and what next? Tokens price are at the old level. Have they got roadmap, any important milestones are being scheduled on summer?

The South Korean government is moving to confiscate 191 bitcoins seized in a child-porn cybercrime case in which the perpetrator has now been sentenced to jail and a $640,000 fine.

According to Korean news agency Yonhap, the move comes after South Korea's Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that cryptocurrencies can be seen as property with value that can be subject to forfeiture in criminal cases.

As of press time, the nearly 200 bitcoins are worth a little over $1.4 million, according to CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index.

The Supreme Court order backs up a previous ruling from an appeal that overturned a lower court's decision to reject a prosecutor's petition to forfeit the criminal's cryptocurrency assets.

According to Yonhap, the lower court denied the request based on the argument that cryptocurrencies only "exist electronically and have no physical form." However, the appeals court later concluded that cryptocurrency can be seen as "profit earned from trade in goods."

It remains unclear, however, as to how the South Korea authority would handle the forfeited digital assets. That said, today's decision marks a notable legal reference, since there are ongoing criminal cases in South Korea involving cryptocurrencies.

As previously reported by CoinDesk, prosecutors from the Incheon district filed a suit in December 2017 against a firm called Max Mining and 21 suspects in an alleged $250-million cryptocurrency mining fraud.

Most recently, prosecutors in Seoul have also raided several local cryptocurrency exchanges over suspicions of fraud and embezzlement, reportedly seizing assets for further investigation.

https://www.coindesk.com/korea-seizes-bitcoin-worth-1-4-million-following-supreme-court-ruling/

INNOVATION DAY: 30 MAY 2018

10:00 – 11:30 Join Marcus Schmitt, Copytrack CEO in the panel “Can Blockchain Be Applied to the Photo Industry”

12:15 – 12:20 Stefan Bär, Copytrack CTO will explain “How and Why Photographers Should Use the Global Copyright Register”
Salon 2, Maritim ProArte Hotel, Friedrichstrasse 151, 10177 Berlin

Full details: https://copytrack.io/2018/05/16/meet-copytrack-at-cepic-congress/