Mass adoption will also take place soon in my opinion, but doesn't mean a lot of money will come in jacking up the price. For example in one of my previous posts, I spoke about how important crypto debit cards are for the general public. Knowing bitcoin should never be spent and is a store of value but not your everyday individual is going to buy a lambo with their bitcoin- they're smarter to hodl. Especially now.

hahaha

the SEC does have a major influence nonetheless, but my man here has a solid point. Right now, China is a huge reason a ton of money hasn't come in- they've got fiat flowing all over the place with no where to put it

ALSO, only if we start serious institutional money flood in and smart money continuing to short the market. That's when the pumps will return....

"Following the incredible bull run of 2017, which attracted unprecedented attention towards Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, 2018 was marked by an equally forceful regulatory backlash. While Bitcoin remains legal in most OECD jurisdictions, the crypto market and its participants are being increasingly penalized for using the digital assets of their choice."

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/geraldfenech/2018/11/12/is-2019-the-year-in-which-crypto-finally-gets-connected-to-the-global-financial-system/#651b747c4c03

Do you think we will see another bull run in 2019 after this long bearish market?

I personally think NO. Since 2009, Bitcoin itself has been repeating history in the markets. We've been in bear markets before, but not with this much money involved. The thing is, we've been in a bear market for only 9 months give or take and they usually last roughly 2 years. There are 10 times as many weak hands dumping out of fear and leaving the market because they've either A) lost a lot of money (should have hedl), or B) don't believe that we are building use cases.

Right now, people finally understand that it is time to build instead of buy. As the great Brock Pierce said, "I've done my best work in bear markets- keeping my head down and steadily working, not worrying about price" - Futurama 20:18

What do you expect to see in 2019?

And we've ended in a tie...

Overall summary: crypto debit cards WONT save cryptocurrency but it is an outlet for mass adoption.

BTCANKING ON BTCITCOIN

"EQIBank acquired its banking license in September 2018 to become the world’s first licensed and regulated bank to provide customers with a single banking relationship for their entire national currency, crypto and digital asset ecosystems. Instead of having to form multiple relationships with separate financial institutions, customers can access a comprehensive suite of services including clearing and settlement, trading, custody, lending, and banking." Pulled from https://www.financemagnates.com/thought-leadership/eqibank-the-first-licensed-bank-for-crypto-national-currencies/

As I look around and try to find the next biggest trend in crypto, I came across a company called EQI. I've been in the space for roughly 4 years and have seen it start from ICO's to Airdrops, Exchanges, and now Oracles and crypto-banking. I've looked over this project for some time and they seem to have their s%$! together as far as compliance, team, and vision.

Being in America, I think this would suit those best as we have to deal with these centralized giants like Wells Fargo, Chase, Suntrust, etc taking our funds and the fact we don't even own the money that we think we do- it's just what we are "owed".  I believe this can be the next wave of crypto trends and I hope to see others follow in the same path. We need to eliminate the disease of big banks we have now that are taking our money! What are your thoughts on EQI and the current banking system? Are we nearing a solution to this epidemic?

I think it's convenient if you NEED to spend some coin if you get paid in crypto. It's good to be liquid in this case but BTC should remain labeled as a store of value

This guy gets it ^ people know the wave back in December saying stuff like "bro u herd of bitcorn makin tons of dollarz" but didn't want to get involved because they didn't understand the underlying tech. so now that we have something that is a widely used commodity like debit cards. why not start getting them in from there? plus, you can load these with fiat right and get CRYPTOBACK. perfect way to get involved but thats just me

Definitely. NEO apparently can process up to 5-10k tx's a second. Once we find a solution that can surpass VISA and other providers, there won't be a need for them. They're just convenient for the time being as far as purchasing anything.

I don't think it would per-say "save" cryptocurrencies but there are tons of benefits attached to it. This is a key to mass adoption. It's another gateway to buy and sell crypto assets and spend them in places where they don't accept crypto. I've personally only been able to buy goods in a few places and they are usualy cafes. One time at a sushi place called Thai, How are u in Austin, TX (HIGHLY recommend!)

There are a few reasons I personally believe crypto-cards can shape our future and potentially save cryptocurrencies.

• Mass adoption can take place as more people use debit cards than even cash. When will the majority of people start to get involved into crypto? This gives the regular wise guy an easy outlet to not only buy, but sell his bitcoin or altcoins instead of OTC or thru LBC.
• The convenience is key. People pay for convenience; so if you decide you want an easy place to cash in and out, crypto cards are the way to go.
• So easy, my mother could do it (she is not technically inclined whatsoever). People love simplicity and ease of access.
• Lastly, trading. Wirex, for example, you can buy and sell your crypto for fiat (not tether) and play the markets that way. The only issue would be fees but hey, what exchange doesn't have 'em!?

___________________________________________________________________



If you’re new to cryptocurrency, then chances are you’re thinking ‘How do I spend it?’ After all, while great for transferring money, a large number of online shopping experiences require you to input physical card details. With transfer fees to consider, crypto doesn’t always make sense to the serious shopper.

There are several companies out there who offer physical debit cards linked to a cryptocurrency exchange, but for the people I have spoken to, they are worried about the physical security of the cash. So I was intrigued to learn that one such debit-card offering company Wirex, based in London, was recently granted UK Financial Conduct Authority approval. A pretty large rubber stamp in the grand scheme of financial security.

Why is FCA approval so important?

After the 2008 banking crash, the FCA became more stringent. Its job is to measure the security of the banking industry, enhance market integrity and protect it, as it is accountable to the UK treasury. Currently, it regulates over 56,000 financial services and markets, but new applications can take 12-months to approve and can only be done by submitting governance and monitoring paper works that underline the integrity of an organization.


It also means that holders that have been approved and granted a license can then create e-money accounts in over 25 different currencies allowing the possibility to trade securely around the globe.

Called the E-money License, recipients of the certificate can freely operate in 23 countries from the European Union as well as issue personal International Banking Numbers, legal ATM cards, exchange services and hold client funds in segregated accounts instead of company accounts.

Pulled from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ginaclarke/2018/10/22/why-debit-cards-and-visa-could-save-cryptocurrencies/

Anyone here use the LOBSTR wallet? I see they've collaborated with a Stellar fork (DigitalBits) to add their wallet. Dare I say, interesting? They've partnered up for some loyalty rewards campaign. Why do you think they chose Stellar out of all blockchains?

Source: https://www.crypto-reporter.com/press-releases/lobstr-partners-with-digitalbits-to-launch-xdb-wallet-5522/

this UI is dope. lets hope they can pull the compliance factor off

I mean why not? It's more cost efficient and goes way faster. AND in the future i'm assuming it will be very organized as well. This is a good use case for a lot of different reasons

it's nearly certain that it will happen. the fact they had switched up their mind and put it into consideration, i think majority rule might play a big part when it comes down to the final decision

I think i'd rather do everything like this on the blockchain as it will be recorded on some sort of ledger and can't be mutilated. Using acyclic graphs, we'd be able to transfer massive amounts of data for a cheaper cost and a smoother transaction. I vote YES 

There are tons of marketplaces to sell data or intellectual property on the blockchain, but how effective is it, really? Would you sell/share your data on the blockchain or do it in a more "traditional" way? Let me know your thoughts!!!

"What if BTCusinesses, public bodies and even individuals could share all their data as widely as they wished, without worrying about it being stolen or altered? More to the point, they could sell it themselves.

That is the goal of one new start-up, CyberVein, who want to guarantee the integrity of data but using a faster proof of work concept most commonly used in digital currency.

With its blockchain-based system guaranteeing this link of shared data, CyberVein believes organizations that have so far been reluctant to share information can now be more confident in doing so.

Controlled sharing

Through a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) architecture - touted as Blockchain 3.0 - CyberVein has two functions, to protect and transfer user data while opening up a new platform for its potential sale.

For instance, it cites pharmaceutical companies and researchers into machine learning as just two examples of users who could benefit by sharing their data with others but who are also worried about potentially losing control over it.

In its White Paper, CyberVein believes that by using its system universities and research organizations would be “incentivized to perform collaborative research, maintain their heavy-duty datasets, and to make them publicly available”, while governments could be more transparent with the information they collect.

“Maintaining databases with qualities that are normally attributed to blockchains – meaning immutability, security, and transparency – makes enormous sense in a variety of industry, research and governance use cases,” says Arthur Yu, CyberVein founder who previously worked with J.P. Morgan in London and holds finance and computer science degrees from Imperial College there."

Read more from the Forbes article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ginaclarke/2018/09/17/how-to-use-blockchain-as-a-marketplace-to-sell-your-own-data/#5af1b8852a77

Regardless of marketing, it doesn't hurt. I mean, what other exchanges are offering this kind of insight? Half of them don't even give you tutorials of the exchange before you trade nonetheless. There could definitely be some more core information on trading, but I found it helpful and so have the other people I have passed it on to. You don't always have to get rekt for a learning experience, although it helps, but it's ALWAYS good to DYOR beforehand- especially in a bearish market.

Definitely!
Most traders, especially new ones, don't know this stuff. There's no issue having this info for everyone- I thought it was refreshing personally.

Is RightBTC integrating fiat pairs? 

Seems crazy, only heard of one other platform TRYING to do it. It's every exchanges dream