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Bitcoin Prices Stable Near Record as Markets Eye $5,000

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Bitcoin edged higher on Thursday, as investors set their sights on a new milestone amid conflicting signals in the broader cryptocurrency market.

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Bitcoin Hovers Near Record Territory

The value of bitcoin (BTC/USD) climbed 1% to $4,624.00 Thursday morning, pushing its market cap to roughly $73 billion.

The BTC has broken out of a trading range that kept prices subdued below $4,400.00. Prices briefly traded above $4,700.00 on Wednesday, possibly setting the stage for a test of the psychological $5,000.00 threshold. Some analysts think we will reach that level soon.

The world’s No. 1 cryptocurrency has more than quadrupled since the start of 2017. The gains have been relentless with very few exceptions, as global investors embrace cryptocurrency as an asset class.

Ethereum (ETH/USD) is also approaching record highs after prices surged toward $400.00 on Wednesday. At present, ETH is up more than 1% at $384.00.

Bitcoin Cash Faces Uncertain Future

Since coming into existence one month ago, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) has experienced heavy volatility at a time when fellow cryptocurrencies are showing more lasting appeal. It’s not just that BCH has been volatile – its price action has been all over the map. What’s more, Forbes recently reported that BCH’s developer team has not provided much directionabout the future of the new coin.

Analysts say that BCH’s extreme volatility is precisely because nobody knows what it’s truly worth.

Prices were up more than 5% on Thursday to trade near $574.00. That puts BCH at a market cap of roughly $9.5 billion. Only bitcoin and ethereum are valued more.

Chinese Economy Gives Off Mixed Signals

China, itself a dominant player in the cryptocurrency craze, is struggling to maintain its robust growth pace. The non-manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI), which measures the country’s massive services sector, fell in August to the lowest level since May 2016.

The official non-manufacturing PMI dipped to 53.4 from 54.5 in July, government data showed.

However, factory activity expanded unexpectedly during the month, with the manufacturing PMI climbing up 0.3 point to 51.7.

On the PMI scale, anything above 50 represents growth. Anything below that level signals contraction.

China’s economy grew at a faster than expected 6.9% in the first half of 2017, but is struggling to overcome its heavy reliance on exports and investments. The country’s economic transition has boosted demand for bitcoin as mainland investors look to diversify out of yuan-denominated asses. So much so, in fact, that the People’s Bank of China clamped down on bitcoin exchanges to clamp down on virtual outflow.

Bitcache Creator Kim Dotcom Offers Employment to ‘Blockchain Gods’

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Entrepreneur Kim Dotcom has announced he is hiring “Blockchain gods” to work on his Bitcache content sharing platform.

Having unveiled the demo of Bitcache Tuesday, which integrates Bitcoin micropayments to share content among users, Dotcom added this week he required technical expertise and invited anyone to apply.

Want to be part of the Bitcache revolution? If you’re a Jedi coder, a digital Picasso, a blockchain God or data center Overlord, send me CV!

Bitcache will incorporate an internal Bitcoin wallet to facilitate payments, while last week’s announcement of an ICO to fund development may also see a bespoke token available to users.

Further details about the ICO and token have not yet appeared.

Following the call for collaborators, Dotcom reiterated Bitcache’s aim to “boost” use and awareness of Bitcoin.

K.im & Bitcache were designed for the benefit of content creators as well as consumers. A win-win innovation for all + a boost for Bitcoin 😎

“There will always be people who will pirate content – you can’t stop that, but you can get to all the people who have the money to pay for content, but have no way to access it,” he told the BBC this week about the project’s ethos.

“That’s about $10 bln worth of revenue that is just being left on the side.”

The demo is available to only ten thousand users, with the full version of Bitcache set to launch before the end of 2018. Twitter followers of Dotcom are in line to receive a pre-loaded wallet for use purchasing content, he has said.

Jaguar-Backed Blockchain Startup Wants to Trade Tokens for Transport Data

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A UK-based startup has announced an ethereum-powered platform aimed to reward users for sharing their transport data.

DOVU, which reportedly already has notable investors on board, plans to create a secure environment for individuals and companies to share any data relating to mobility – such as location, distance traveled and weather conditions.

According to TechCrunch, the startup has already received an undisclosed amount of funding from InMotion Ventures, an investment arm of automaker Jaguar Land Rover, and Creative England, a fund backed by the U.K. government for the support of creative industries.

The data collected will be used to create more efficient services, such as combining “car data with insurance data to calculate smarter policies” or “geolocation data in conjunction with weather statistics to inform ride-hailing companies,” according to a statement.

In exchange for this information, DOVU will offer its own ethereum-based token called a DOV. Earned tokens could then be used to purchase “mobility services” such as public transport, the firm said.

The DOV token will be launched via an initial coin offering (ICO) taking place on October 3, and will be spendable in decentralised applications built on the open-source DOVU protocol, the company website states.

Also aimed to provide “payment across mobility services,” the token could potentially be used for riding public transport, vehicle rentals, and enabling users to share their vehicle or travel data.

Heading up the firm is CEO Irfon Watkins, who has worked on other ventures in the past including data-driven video advertising platform Coull. The DOVU advisory board notably includes Lars Klawitter, director of the Ethereum Foundation and general manager of Rolls Royce Bespoke.

China Considers Blanket Ban All ICOs: Report

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Chinese regulators are considering the possibility of a sweeping suspension of all initial coin offerings (ICOs), according to reports.

A report by Tencent has revealed details of a notable meeting among Chinese regulatory authorities that took place on August 18. The joint meeting, hosted by the People’s Bank of China, the country’s central bank, was also attended by officials from the Securities and Futures Commission, the Banking Regulatory Commission and the insurance regulatory body, among others.

Regulators reportedly discussed means of regulatory oversight that included control over the size and scale of the ICOs, strengthening disclosure requirements and issuing additional investment risk warnings.  Notably, the report added:

In addition, if a large [investor] risk is found, the regulation will even suspend all ICO activities and rectify them.

As things stand, the regulations are at a preliminary stage with discussions and comments collected from multiple regulatory bodies with policies speculated to be introduced at some point this this year.

Putin’s Advisor Announces Creation of Russian Blockchain Association

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Russia’s Internet advisor to Vladimir Putin has announced the creation of Blockchain Association which will give “preferential advantages” to participants.

Speaking as part of a meetup organized by local cryptocurrency news portal DeCenter, Herman Klimenko said that the Russian Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Association (RABIK) would come into being “within the next two weeks.”

“The new organization will unite participants from the Blockchain technology market, cryptocurrency owners including miners, as well as investors putting funds into Blockchain and cryptocurrency-based projects,” he commented.

Contradictory process

Russia is currently in the midst of a complex and contradictory regulatory process for cryptocurrencies.

Despite the government actively pursuing competition with China for Bitcoin mining supremacy, deputy finance minister Dmitry Moiseev said this week he had plans to ban cryptocurrency sales to members of the public.

He added it was “hard to argue against” the case that cryptocurrencies were a “pyramid scheme.”

The new association, however, continues the Moiseev’s notion that only “qualified” individuals should have exposure to cryptoassets.

“Various preferences among other things will be available to participants of the association,” Klimenko confirmed.

“This will include manufacturers of equipment used in creating cryptocurrencies, the option to present technologies before potential consumers and the chance to take part in major state events.”

ICO Oversight? Israeli Regulators Form Token Sale Study Committee

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Regulators in Israel have formed a new committee to study the applicability of domestic securities laws to initial coin offerings (ICOs).

Announced today, the development sees the Israeli Securities Authority panel putting together recommendations for potentially regulating ICOs. A report containing those recommendations sometime before the end of December. Officials working on the committee will also look into the approaches taken by other regulators worldwide, as well as the “the enforceability of securities laws in this area,” among other subjects.

With the move, Israel’s securities watchdog becomes the latest regulator of its kind to wade into the murky question of regulating ICOs.

Just last week, regulators in Canada released a staff noticing outlining how that, under its view, some blockchain-based tokens count as securities. At the same time, the Canada Securities Administrators (CSA) struck a proactive note and encouraged companies planning an ICO to reach out to the body.

Other regulators, including those in Singapore and the US, have also revealed their plans for regulating ICOs. Like Canada, their general stance is that while some token sales qualify as securities offerings, others – particularly tokens that have some kind of independent utility – do not.

It’s a noteworthy development as well given that the country plays home to several startups that have pursued or are planning to raise funds through the model. Perhaps most notable among those is Bancor, which raised more than $150 million through a token sale in June.

To date, nearly $2 billion has been raised through ICOs, according to data from CoinDesk’s ICO Tracker.

Kim Dotcom Pitches Bitcoin Payment Plugin Bitcache to YouTubers

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‘New Bitcache Video Gives Preview to the Pull Requesting, Ad-Free Web’. Or maybe that’s a bad description. Bitcache really gives rise to a new paradigm of web usage. Similar to the Basic Attention Token, which has a browser to go with it, the idea of Bitcache is not that people don’t want to pay for content, but that it’s too difficult for them to do so, or in the case of BATs, actually dangerous in terms of computer security.

Even users who watch ads on purpose have no idea how little money actually arrives in the account of the content creator. Barring sites like CCN or Hacked.com, where you can be sure the author is a professional earning a paycheck for his content (we can’t even say the same for many other sites in cryptosphere), most people have no way to ensure that the content they actually want to support ever receives their support.

Now imagine if there were a better experience. Imagine you’re one of the millions of people who gets your daily content from YouTube creators. Imagine that everytime you watched one of your favorite videos, instead of sitting through an Ad, signing up for a premium service from which most of the money goes to the host corporation instead of the creator who draws you back, you can just voluntarily contribute an amount that is equal or more than they were previously getting from their advertising partnerships. Kim Dotcom’s Bitcache appears ready to roll, aimed strictly at YouTube videos (for now).

From previous descriptions of the service, we now have a much more complete and approachable concept. Specifically speaking of YouTube, when a user watches any video by creators they approve of, they can pay the content creator based on the creator’s wishes. The video above shows a prospective user having a choice of platforms, but the most advertised use-case yet has been in the above-embedded video, which shows how both viewers and producers would interact with it.

As Dotcom said in a previous interview, security is less of a headache because most people will not keep large amounts of money in their Bitcache wallets, only needing microamounts for each video producer. Pivoting to a video specialization automatically removes them from the flood of other efforts briefly herein mentioned.

Teaser: Bitcache for YouTubers!
More income for YouTubers!
YouTubers with 500k+ subs may DM me for beta partnership. https://youtu.be/HOAvSwX7Aqc 

In a tweet of the promotional video, Dotcom encouraged content creators who want to try Bitcache out early in a “beta partnership” to direct message him through Twitter.

If this thing takes off, plagiarism will become a more serious issue for YouTube than it ever has been before. It’s still unclear if transactions within the Bitcache system will be reversible, but judging by Dotcom’s design implementations on Mega.co.nz, it seems unlikely.

Whether you support the man or not, it’s inarguable that a lot of people have used Dotcom’s services over the years to profit from content they themselves did nothing at all to create. For the author this becomes an issue of morality more than it does of legality.

Massive leap from consuming without paying to stealing and then selling, in terms of damage done to the producer who took the risk or what have you. As a people we will suffer culturally if we promote or too enthusiastically foster situations which do not equitably compensate people for their efforts.

That we are interested in a Bitcache system at all illustrates that YouTube and the web 2.0 options for independent publishers aren’t getting the job done, either.

Plagiarism will be more problematic for YouTube and the rest of the intellectual property industry as content becomes easier and easier to monetize, because most cryptocurrencies are appreciating assets on the long-scale. So the longer an unjust situation persists (think advanced bootlegging instead of sampling), the more damage the victim will feel when they realize how much money was made from their work. As such, we can predict some interesting if not semi-dramatic news surrounding Bitcache and its rollout, but also, hopefully, a lot more independent media makers being able to connect directly to their audience.

Singaporean Blockchain Data Storage Startup Bluzelle Raises $1.5 Million in Series A

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Blockchain solutions provider Bluzelle has announced the successful closure of a $1.5 million Series A round. The new funding will help the startup develop a decentralized scalable database service for enterprises.

Founded in 2014, the startup has notably provided solutions for a number of global institutions after partnering the likes of KPMG and Microsoft. Bluzelle’s solution draws parallels to the likes decentralized blockchain storage provider Storj.

For Bluzelle CEO and co-founder Pavel Bains, blockchain technology is a part of the ecosystem heralding the next generation of the internet. To facilitate the ‘new internet’ to run efficiently and scale exponentially, Bluzelle is developing a decentralized database service. “What Oracle provides for the current internet, we provide for the New Internet,” stated Bains, who added:

By 2020, there will be over 20 billion devices sending data to reach other – and that data will have to be stored securely, with high performance and low cost. In the blockchain powered New Internet, everything from applications to back-end platforms to data storage will be decentralized.

The new funding round was led by a venture capital firms Global Brain, LUN Partners Capital and True Global Ventures. The funding will be used by the startup to scale its enterprise business, develop its core service in the decentralized database platform and supporting its initial developer community. “Based on our global investment activity, Bluzelle is one of the onoly companies to provide solid enterprise blockchain services,” stated Global Brain CEO Yasuhiko Yuirmoto.

The Singaporean startup is also working toward its initial coin offering (ICO) of its ‘Bluzelle tokens’ in late October. Bluzelle tokens will also be earned by the community of operators, or ‘farmers’ who provide the hardware resources required for data storage. “It’s upcoming token sale and development plans will ensure the company’s position as a perennial player in the global blockchain arena,” added Kotsuki Kaede, partner at investor LUN Partners Capital, who underlined the startup as a leading provider of enterprise-grade blockchain solutions for financial solutions in Southeast Asia.

Ripple Price Soars Following Presentation to PBoC Officials

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The Ripple price increased more than 10% on August 29 following news that the FinTech startup had hosted prominent officials from the Chinese central bank.

Ripple Hosts PBoC Officials

One tweet: that’s all it took to ignite the Ripple price and add $1 billion to the XRP market cap. On August 28, Ripple announced that they had hosted a delegation that included academics, industry leaders, and officials from the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the nation’s central bank. The presentation took place at the FinTech startup’s San Francisco headquarters and purportedly focused on the “latest blockchain trends.”

Welcomed China’s central bank, industry & academic leaders to  HQ to discuss the latest  trends https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/WoPxMELtgIQyfUMfPP9d-Q 

Ripple has not tried to hide the fact that they would like to make deeper inroads into the Asian economy, and many people believed that last week’s conference reveal would include a major announcement about a partnership with an Asian bank or corporation. The Ripple price swelled leading up to the announcement but tanked after the details did not live up to investor hype.

Despite warning their residents to avoid cryptocurrency, the PBoC has quietly opened a “Digital Currency Institute” to research ways to digitize and transact CNY banknotes on a centralized, state-controlled blockchain.

Ripple Price Surges

Yesterday’s tweet was the type of announcement XRP investors were hoping for, and they responded by pumping the Ripple price by more than 10%. The Ripple price rose as high as $0.236, although it has since dipped to $0.220. Nevertheless, this represents a 24-hour increase of about 11% and gives Ripple a market cap of $8.4 billion. Ripple is now just $1 billion away from retaking the 3rd place market cap ranking from bitcoin cash.

However, investors should note that the fact that Ripple gave a presentation to Chinese officials does not mean the two parties will form a partnership. If the PBoC does decide to adopt blockchain technology, there is a strong possibility they will attempt to do it in-house.

XRP/KRW Dominates Daily Trading Volume

Once again, XRP volume was concentrated on Asian exchanges. Of Ripple’s $642 million in daily trading volume, $430 million belongs to XRP/KRW trading pairs. In fact, KRW is the only national currency pair to rank in the XRP’s top 5 single trading pairs (Poloniex’s USDT ranks 6th).

Interestingly, however, there has not been much activity on Chinese exchanges; the highest-volume XRP/CNY pair accounts for less than $6 million.

Colombian Central Bank to Test R3 Distributed Ledger Software

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Banco de la República Colombia, the South American nation’s central bank, has made an agreement with software company R3 to test its distributed ledger technology, Corda, a press release announced today.

With the news, Banco de la República Colombia becomes the latest member to join the more than 80 financial institutions worldwide that are today part of the consortium. Already, R3 has completed tests with the Monetary Authority of Singapore, though both institutions are arguably now emerging as key early adopters of distributed ledger tech.

Launched in 2015, Corda is an open-source distributed ledger for financial technology, developed by New-York based startup R3.

The news also coincides with a push by R3 to diversify its membership by adding financial regulators and government agencies to the group. Revealed as key to its strategy in May, CEO David Rutter at the time said broader buy-in is needed to expand R3’s existing tests.

“Ultimately, our goal is to have the regulators involved from the start, right from the design through the experiment and the pilot and the prototyping,” he said.

Though not the nation’s financial regulator, Banco de la Republica Colombia is nonetheless backed by the government, which could lead to more widespread support.

Still, in its statements, the organization was short on details on what might be ahead.

Banco de la República Colombia responded: “It is in our interest to evaluate the benefits of this technology for the safe and efficient management of the exchange of securities in the Colombian financial system.”