Konstantin Anissimov, Executive Director at CEX.IO
BTC/USD
BTC/USD started off Thursday, 4th February, at 37,658.5. The pair rose above 38,000 in the first two hours and took a bit of a downside retracement to 37,537 between 02:00 and 04:00 UTC. From 04:00 to 06:00 UTC, BTC/USD was edging sideways and took another local upswing between 06:00 and 07:00 UTC. Thus, the pair rose from 37,671 to 38,129.
Between 07:00 and 08:00 UTC, BTC/USD pared the gains slightly and took a big up-and-down swing between 08:00 and 09:00 UTC, with the pair going from 38,800 to 37,100 as per the CEX.IO exchange rate. From 09:00 to 14:00 UTC, the pair was mainly staying between 37,260 and 37,707. A breakdown below the local support level at 37,260 happened between 14:00 and 15:00 UTC, with the hourly candlestick closing at 36,801.
Another bearish candlestick of a smaller size took place between 15:00 and 16:00 UTC, closing below the 50-period hourly SMA. However the breakdown below it did not trigger further sell-off. The price rebounded in the next hour to 37,017 and continued rising until 20:00 UTC, coming to 37,486.
The BTC/USD seems to have met support at 37,715 and slightly pared the recent gains. There was some indecision in the market as no one-direction consensus was achieved, with the pair going up and down during the day. Therefore, a little more time will be needed this week to see whether the price breaches through the local resistance and tries to reach 42,000 or turns down to try to reach the 31,000 support level. The local support level at 34,967 is acting as support and will be key one to breach on the way to 31,000.
Presently, the situation is slightly rather unclear and the trading session of 5th February could give a clearer understanding of what price target will be the next one for BTC/USD.
ETH/USD
For ETH/USD the trading session of 4th February began at 1,670; the day’s high as well as a new all-time high was achieved in the day’s first two hours when the pair rose to 1,697 as per the CEX.IO exchange rate. The pair then edged down below the level of the close between 02:00 and 04:00 UTC. In the next two hours of little action, the pair did not see much price change and took a slight spike worth $23.25 to 1,679 between 06:00 and 07:00 UTC.
Starting from 07:00 UTC, the pair was edging down consistently until it reached 1,556.1 between 15:00 and 16:00 UTC. The pair was supported in that hour by the 50-period hourly SMA and closed the hour above it at 1,585. The buying pressure continued to dominate in BTC/USD in the next four hours. The biggest spike happened between 16:00 and 17:00 UTC when the pair reached 1,631, only making it to 1,658.9 between 17:00 and 20:00 UTC.
ETH/USD continues its confident bullish price action, setting sequential all-time highs. This extraordinary ETH/USD price growth is happening alongside the tumultuous outbreak of the entire DeFi market that has never stopped since the beginning of 2021. Apparently, this is no coincidence since 96% of all DeFi transaction volume has taken place on Ethereum’s blockchain. On top of that, over $10 billion worth of DeFi liquidity is stored in Ethereum’s smart contracts.
Therefore, we can reasonably assume that the ongoing DeFi outbreak is acting in Ethereum’s favour as well. And it should be taken as another defining factor for ETH/USD price action in the near future at the least. At present, we expect the ETH/USD price to continue setting new all-time highs in the week of 1st February, which could soon take the ETH/USD price rate to 1,800.
According to Ark Invest, Bitcoin can climb by $40,000 if S&P 500 companies allocate 1% of their funds to BTC
If institutional investors put 6.5% of their cash in BTC, the price can hit $500,000
Researchers claim that BTC is a good asset for diversification in portfolios
In a recently published report, Ark Invest discussed Bitcoin and the potential prices it could reach in the future if more institutional investors enter the market. According to Ark Invest, if S&P companies allocate 1% of their funds to BTC, its price will ascend by around $40000. The report goes further and talks about 10% of the institutional investors’ cash, and it claims that it could add $400,000 to the Bitcoin price.
The best case scenario
According to the report, if the institutional investors allocate 6.5% of their funds to BTC, they will experience the best output. Meanwhile, Bitcoin can meet the $500,000 price target from the massive impact of that capital. The report says institutional allocations to Bitcoin should likely range between of 2.55% and 6.55% – it will depend whether the specific investor is trying to minimize volatility or is instead seeking maximum returns.
Bitcoin was the best investment opportunity in the last decade. BTC was unrelated to traditional assets and regulations in the previous years, and today, it is a smart choice for the institutions to diversify their portfolios. The market cap for this asset is experiencing rapid growth, and it is a positive sign of a bright future for the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
ARK says that within six years, BTC has the potential to overtake both US stock market and the international FX spot market in terms of daily market volume. Right now, institutions have many different instruments to enter the BTC market. For instance, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s Bitcoin futures contracts are one of the most used instruments by institutions who want to get exposure to Bitcoin. ARK believes Bitcoin has a very favorable risk/reward ration and in their estimation, Bitcoin’s market cap can go to $1-5 trillion in 5 to 10 years. In the end, the report calls Bitcoin an opportunity that the institutions shouldn’t ignore.
There is considerable enthusiasm for bitcoin among institutional investors, and even if they only invest a small percentage of their cash in BTC, the results could be tremendous.
Billionaire investor Mark Cuban seems to have accidentally disclosed the portfolio of his Ethereum wallet
Cuban said that he owns his fair share of “shitcoins”
Cryptocurrencies have been met with a mixed response from famous investors
Famous billionaire investor Mark Cuban seems to have accidentally disclosed the contents of his Ethereum wallet. The wallet contains many ERC-20 tokens, some with very low market caps. After the revelation, he jokingly said: “I definitely own my fair share of shitcoins”. “Shitcoin” is a term used in the cryptocurrency community to jokingly describe low market cap cryptocurrencies.
Cuban posted a video of himself dancing while wearing the apparel of the Dallas Mavericks, the NBA team which he owns. The video was posted as a non-fungible token (NFT) on Rarible, a popular marketplace for NFTs. Cuban’s account on Rarible contained an Ethereum address that was later traced by sleuths on Twitter, who found another Ethereum wallet that contains many different crypto assets.
What was in Cuban’s wallet?
After the disclosure of Cuban’s Ethereum wallet balances, users were shocked to see that Cuban has only 0.54 ETH. The central part of his portfolio was AAVE, and it seems that Cuban is staking it. There were 40 other tokens in his portfolio that users have labeled as “shitcoins”.
FWB, MASQ, LADZ, FTM were among some of those “shitcoins”. Some of these coins, for example FTM, experienced sharp price increases after the contents of Cuban’s wallet were revealed.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that this is not Cuban’s only Ethereum wallet and that he also has other holdings which are unknown.
Cuban is interested in DeFi
In an “ask me anything” session that was recently hosted on the r/WallStreetBets subreddit, Mark Cuban discussed his thoughts on decentralized finance (DeFi).
In the AMA, Cuban was asked about his crypto portfolio at the moment, and in response, he referred to SUSHI and AAVE as two tokens worth following.
Reports also mention that Cuban also has Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, which is not too surprising. Cuban has talked about DeFi, and he sees DeFi as some other new technologies like green technology. He believes in the potential and bright future of DeFi. Cuban believes DeFi could prove to be a revolutionary technology in the next decade.
He has also talked about the other aspects of crypto space, like the strength of Bitcoin HODLers – just the fact the he used the term HODL shows that Cuban is getting deeply involved in the crypto world. What do you think
Leading investors have different approaches to crypto
Cryptocurrency is a new technology, and like most new technologies, it has met a very polarized response from investors. Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently embraced Bitcoin, saying that he views himself as a Bitcoin supporter. Before the recent comments, Musk mostly discussed cryptocurrency in a humorous manner, leaving the crypto community confused about his actual stance on cryptocurrency.
On the other hand, there are leading investors like Warren Buffet who criticize Bitcoin outright. Previously, he addressed Bitcoin as “rat poison squared”. However, it’s worth mentioning that Buffett does believe that Blockchain is a useful technology. As for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Buffett maintains that they have no value and won’t generate anything.
Some leading figures in the crypto world have tried to convince Buffet to accept BTC, but they haven’t been successful. Justin Sun and Charlie Lee are some of these leading figures. Justin Sun, the TRON founder, had dinner with Buffet, and he couldn’t change Buffet’s position about Bitcoin and crypto.
Bitcoin is the world’s highest profile cryptocurrency, and while many are using it as an investment opportunity, it is also entirely possible to buy and sell goods and services with it as well.
If you are interested in exploring this option and leveraging the benefits that Bitcoin brings to the table in comparison with traditional types of transaction, such as improved security and privacy, keep reading to get the lowdown on how to actually buy things with it.
Spend Bitcoin Online
This is the most obvious way to splash out with Bitcoin, as a wide variety of entities and organizations now accept payments in this medium via their websites. This includes:
Online Retailers
E-commerce is a huge industry and while only a small minority of web-based retailers accept Bitcoin at the checkout, there are still a host of sites that will be eager to take payment from your wallet.
In terms of the major brands that support this solution, amongst the best known at the moment is technology retailer NewEgg. Customers can use a locally installed wallet to make a purchase, or scan a QR code using their smartphone to complete the transaction if their coins are kept elsewhere.
Furthermore since popular e-commerce platforms like Shopify allow their sellers to accept Bitcoin, you can find plenty of far smaller online outlets that are up to date with this recent development.
Casinos
Online casino operators have always innovated when it comes to improving security and enabling new ways for customers to carry out deposits and withdrawals. This includes the integration of Bitcoin compatibility in a number of browser and mobile-powered gambling services.
If you want to learn more about where you play, check out this ultimate guide to Bitcoin gambling for up to the minute information about which casinos are currently courting the Bitcoin crowd and how you can pay to make wagers, enjoy slots and much more besides.
Video Games
Buying video games digitally has never been easier, with wildly successful platforms like Steam giving PC owners in particular access to an almost endless library of classic and modern titles.
Again there are several ways to go about spending your coins to expand your gaming library, the first of which is to use a site like Joltfun, which lets you buy keys for games which can then be redeemed on other platforms.
The alternative to this is to use a service like Bitrefill, which lets you snap up gift cards which are accepted on everything from the PlayStation Store to the Apple App Store.
Gift Cards
Having spoken about buying video games through gift cards purchased with Bitcoin, it is worth exploring this idea further, as it is one of the most flexible ways to spend your cryptocurrency of choice if you want to shop with a retailer you know and trust which does not yet natively support Bitcoin transactions.
One of the most prominent providers of digital gift cards is eGifter. You can buy cards from it with Bitcoin and then use these at stores including Amazon, Walmart, Macy’s and more. With no fees to worry about, it is just one of a number of increasingly common ways to spend Bitcoin without having to jump through too many hoops.
Services
As with e-commerce, video gaming and online casinos, there are companies which provide services for sale over the internet which will gladly take Bitcoin off your hands in return for whatever it is they have to offer.
One of the most high profile examples is probably Virgin Galactic, the company run by billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson which promises to take passengers on trips out of the Earth’s atmosphere. While this is more of a marketing gimmick than anything else, it is an example of one of the many ways in which you can simply spend Bitcoin much as you would any other currency.
Spend Bitcoin Offline
The internet does not have the monopoly on accepting Bitcoin payments, as there are bricks and mortar businesses which have also embraced it, including:
Food
Thousands of restaurants around the world, including hundreds in the US and across Europe, have welcomed Bitcoin with open arms, although often this requires the use of a separate app.
For example, fast food platform Just Eat facilitated this in France, and it is also possible to use gift cards from Bitrefill to buy via Uber Eats, for example.
Transportation
Once again if you want to get around using Bitcoin, your best bet is to either search for a transport provider that accepts it natively, or use a gift card purchased with Bitcoin to facilitate this smoothly.
In short, as soon as you start looking for ways to spend Bitcoin, you will soon realize just how easy it is in the current era.
February 1, 2021 — The CEO of leading asset exchange KuCoin has written an open letter to the community, reflecting on the events of 2020 and outlining the company’s roadmap for the future.
Johnny Lyu did not shy away from discussing the security incident incurred by the platform in September, when $285 million of funds was stolen.
“Security has always been the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of crypto exchanges. When we encountered the breach, we acted quickly and transparently to protect all our users and partners,” wrote Lyu. “First, we gradually resumed the deposit and withdrawal services within a week, before fully restoring all features.”
“Secondly, with the efforts of all parties in the industry, we cooperated with exchange and project partners to recover $222 million (78%), and through further cooperation with law enforcement and security institutions, we recovered another $17.45 million (6%).”
“KuCoin and our insurance fund covered the remainder of around $45.55 million (16%). In the end, we ensured that no users sustained any loss in this incident, and we have since greatly strengthened our security level.”
Lyu also confirmed that KuCoin had gathered intelligence about the perpetrators, and indicated that investigations were ongoing.
Based in Seychelles, KuCoin is one of the industry’s most recognized exchanges, serving a global user base of over six million. The platform works closely with over 200 blockchain projects and facilitates hundreds of millions of dollars worth of daily transactions. Reflecting upon the addition of 39 fiat currencies in the past year, Lyu confirmed that KuCoin now supports 53 national currencies with plans to integrate emerging payment tools and popular gateways such as BTC Direct and Mobilum. The CEO also heralded impressive growth in trading volume.
“In 2020, our margin trading volume increased 217% year on year and has supported 33 tokens and 54 trading pairs. Since the start of the year, KuCoin Futures have achieved a stunningly rapid 420% increase in trading volume and a remarkable 670% growth in user numbers. It now supports 17 coins, including USDT-Margined and Coin-Margined Contracts, and Perpetual Futures and Quarterly Delivery Futures.”
“Over the past year, the Pool-X staking platform – which supports over 50 projects – generated around $7 million of passive income for users.”
After reflecting on recent additions, including new DeFi and NFT trading boards, Lyu revealed that KuCoin will support the upcoming Polkadot parachain slots auction, enabling users to participate in the expanding Polkadot ecosystem. Outlining his vision for the next two years, the CEO stated his belief that bitcoin will overtake gold, that decentralized finance will continue to innovate, and evolve, and that NFT use will also increase.
“In general, the future strategy of KuCoin will be carried out by two priorities: ‘Find the next crypto gem’ and ‘Empowering KCS’. In order to achieve the former, our intercontinental blockchain project research team will keep up with industry trends to identify more promising projects. ”
“In the KuCoin community, KCS is the bond that connects us all, and ideally, all KuCoin users will become members of the KCS community. To this end, we will shed light on KCS and encourage users to become token holders, to grow with us and share the benefits from our growth. Moving forward, we will build KCS as a killer product rather than a simple token.”
Decentralization was a dominant theme in Lyu’s letter, with the CEO restating his belief that decentralization and blockchain-powered transparency can facilitate the free flow of value around the world.
“After evaluating all existing technologies and public chain ecosystems, we are going to launch new KuCoin decentralized trading solutions on the basis of KuChain,” Lyu wrote. “One thing is for sure: KCS will be the underlying fuel whatever the solution actually is.”
About KuCoin
KuCoin is a global crypto exchange that supports multiple crypto asset transactions. Established in September 2017, KuCoin has grown into one of the most popular crypto exchanges in the world. It currently provides Spot trading, Margin trading, P2P fiat trading, Futures trading, Staking, and Lending to its six million users in over 200 countries and regions around the world.
As Bitcoin ranges around the astronomical $35,000 mark, more and more people around the world are getting excited about crypto. Newcomers are looking for the next coin with massive upside potential, while seasoned crypto-enthusiasts are searching for their next investment opportunity.
Here’s a cryptocurrency that could be both.
The FunFair Token (FUN)
FUN is an ERC-20 token that represents the core of the FunFair technology ecosystem. Created in 2017, FunFair is the leading provider of blockchain-powered casino technology to the iGaming sector.
The FUN Token is a decentralized utility token listed on major exchanges like Binance, BitFinex, HitBTC, OKEX, and Changelly. It is fast, transparent, and extremely developer-friendly.
Why Is FUN One of the Most-Promising Cryptocurrencies of 2021?
FreeBitco.in, one of the biggest Bitcoin iGaming websites in the world, has chosen FUN as the designated token for its Premium Membership Program.
FreeBitco.in has over 41 million registered users. It is a simple and rewarding crypto-gaming platform that is dedicated towards promoting and facilitating cryptocurrency adoption through innovative new practices.
Their latest effort involves harnessing FunFair (FUN) for the program. Users are required to buy FUN Tokens to unlock these benefits on the website:
1% Cashback on Wagers
Free Spins Daily – Extra Opportunities to Win Upto $15,000 in BTC
25% Interest Boost – Users Earn Extra Interest on Their BTC Deposits
50% Referral Commissions for Life
However, that’s not all.
When the token sale goes live, 41 million users will be getting their hands on FUN Tokens to unlock the benefits mentioned above.
FUN’s value is set to skyrocket with this massive increase in demand and this could be an attractive investment opportunity for the long-term.
The Early Bird Gets the Coin…
You have a chance to acquire FUN Tokens before its value rises exponentially in coming weeks. The value of FUN has increased by 600% in the last month, and it can only go higher.
If you don’t have a FreeBitco.in account, click here to learn more about the program. FUN costs $0.04 at the time of writing; get them now and ride the rally to the moon as the program gets going.
Freebitco.in is a Bitcoin Gaming platform based on a fully automated, proprietary tech-stack that powers a variety of Free-to-Play games, Betting Contests, Lotteries, Giveaways, and a signature Bitcoin Dice game.
According to SimilarWeb, FreeBitco.in is one of the largest bitcoin gaming websites and the seventh-largest online casino in the world. With over 52 million visits and 3,600 BTC wagered every month, FreeBitco.in’s reach in the crypto space is unrivalled.
FreeBitco.in’s provably fair algorithm has created a trustless ecosystem for online gamblers everywhere, as evidenced by 2.8 million new sign-ups and $600 million wagered in 2020, with a 30% year-on-year growth.
Behind these achievements is a dedicated team of experienced developers focused on constructing the best gambling experience possible. Not only that, since 2013, they have dedicated themselves to advancing the interests of crypto around the world.
Don’t forget to follow them on social media to stay up to date with their projects:
Revolution to the traditional fiat currency can be traced back to almost eleven years when new and innovative blockchain technology was introduced. Back then, only a single application was revealed to the world that we now recall as cryptocurrency. Some of us may refer to blockchain as a distributed registry technology. Over the years, this distributed registry technology or called DRT further popularized what we now call distributed ledger technology DLT.
Now, what is DLT? For a better understanding of the blockchain, this electronic database (DLT) must be thoroughly overviewed. Spread over multiple devices or better known as nodes; this electronic database can be accessed over multiple channels as the system is closely interconnected. A node consensus technique is utilized for proper functioning. This interconnection and spreading over several networks ask for privacy and intense security; for this, every single update over the network is encrypted by a distinctive cryptographic signature. All in all, this is what makes the process secure.
The earliest triumph
Foreseeing a great potential in the initial stages, many people adopted this unconventional technology. Proving its worth through the creation of private and public networks, the decentralized technologies altered the whole financial industry. Bitcoins are the best example of it. People made billions of dollars by investing in bitcoins. For the best investment tips, visit https://buyshares.co.uk/cryptocurrency/bitcoin-prime-review/.
Millions of users are constantly mining cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoins to decode various complex financial problems. In mining, certain algorithms are developed to decipher complex and unique mathematical equations that cannot be solved by traditional finance.
The sudden inclination of users towards this technology is since there is zero state and bank involvement in the process. State and its regulated banks are commonly involved in the traditional financial opportunities that make it quite difficult for the general public. Cryptocurrencies, on the other hand, are free of any government or legal entity’s involvement. It makes them quite cheaper and more secure than the traditional fiat. Therefore, we may refer to blockchain as a proficient second to banks.
Due to the excessive adaptations, this proxy economy terrified politicians and all the stakeholders that come under the umbrella of the economy especially the financial institutes. The developed countries with a stable economy accepted this innovative and unfamiliar economy. But, the developing and under-developed countries still think of technology as a radical alternative to their traditional payment systems. As a result, an absolute ban was imposed on cryptocurrencies in certain countries. However, noticing the trends, the governments are trying to make amendments to the legislation.
Various applications of decentralized technologies
This widespread decentralized technology i.e. blockchain is not only limited to cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrencies are just a single successful scenario that requires this technology. Blockchain technology can be used for:
Public health
Imagine you can share your reports and consult any doctor across the world. This can be done by using a decentralized registry system. In such a way, all the patient’s credentials from medical history to various lab reports can be accessed from doctors across the globe. Besides, different logistics companies and airlines can use this innovative technology for drug shipment tracking. The drugs can be delivered more quickly and securely to remote and needy areas. As a result, the widespread of diseases can be controlled timely.
Administration
For administration such as supply chain and logistics; a decentralized network can increase the overall efficiency. The transparency of multiple parcels, couriers, and products will prevent swindlers. Even the military industry can gain numerous benefits due to the solid encryption and protection. Certain oil manufacturing and agriculture producing industries can also avail such benefits. However, the telecommunication industry is the one gaining the most from decentralized technologies.
Elections
A country’s future always depends upon how fairly its elections are carried out. Using a decentralized technology, more confidential and transparent elections can be carried out. The results concluded from such voting would be fair. It is because it’s almost impossible to tamper with the results to get the desired outcomes.
Some common challenges
There are some challenges associated with the decentralized technologies that organizations must thoroughly undermine.
The swift changes in an organization’s culture
Decentralized technologies like blockchain eliminate the traditional tools and methods. One of the primal things inside an organization that gets affected in the process is the organization’s culture. Eliminating the need for centralization means the loss of control. This may result in some unsettling outcomes. New imaginative approaches to complex situations are required to understand new opportunities.
Complexity
One of the fundamental challenges that come with decentralization is its complexity. Not realizing the need for adaption and complexity may result in a loss of investment and time. However, strongly coping with the technology may bring new ideas and revenues.
By-passing of regulations
Decentralization comes with the by-passing of conventional regulations. In the case of bitcoins, all the inefficiencies related to conventional payment methods are tackled. The centralization in the financial sector despite its disadvantages acts as a cushion against various challenges. Decentralization, on the other hand, provides less cushion against bottlenecks. Therefore, all the stakeholders involved in the process are affected directly. To tackle such a situation, proper guidance on the related process is necessary.
Costly
The high speed and effective decentralized technologies such as blockchain networks come at a cost. The high transaction cost for peer-to-peer agreements cannot be avoided. By any means, if you are looking to avoid the high costs, the organization encounters inefficiency in all processes. It is since a decentralized system works on an integrated node system. And if you try to override one network, all the others associated with it become irregular.
The bottom line:
The revolution in decentralized technologies offers certain opportunities to various sectors. The benefits that come with adopting this innovative technology are high-end encryption and secure transactions. Understanding the applications and certain challenges, the adaptation process becomes quite easier.
Cryptocurrency is still the most discussed and is still receiving close reviews in the financial world. With having ample knowledge, it is the proper time to invest in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoins. The article probes into different ways in which you can invest in bitcoins and own some. Follow these simple yet meaningful steps to own bitcoins.
Start with owning a digital crypto wallet
The process begins with a digital wallet. The wallet serves multiple purposes including stashing the bitcoins. Like an ordinary or physical wallet, you can utilize a digital crypto wallet for storing bitcoins. And like any electronic wallet such as bank credit card’s mobile applications; you can send or receive bitcoins from anywhere in the world. Ordering or getting one is not a complex task, various websites offer crypto wallet services. And there are various bitcoin trading websites likethe Bitcoin Prime app where you can invest and earn insane profits.
An online bitcoin wallet ensures high-end encryption from the user side making it quite secure, however, swindlers and hackers can break into your wallet to steal or transfer money into their desired accounts. Therefore, the companies offering 100 % encryption are lying to attract potential customers.
Certain desktop wallet applications are also available that can be accessed using a computer or a laptop. In such cases, the digital cash is stashed over the desktop crypto wallet’s applications. But these applications are easier to hack than any cloud storage mobile applications. Therefore, it is often recommended by the companies to regularly backup the data.
An online wallet works similar to any standard website i.e. owning a unique IP or Bitcoin address. Every single wallet has a unique id that is different from any other. This distinct address serves various functions like it offers high-end encryption. Secondly, by sharing this peculiar bitcoin address, you can receive bitcoins from anyone. Furthermore, the address is quite complicated which makes it somehow impenetrable.
After owning a crypto wallet, start to store bitcoins. However, many analysts recommend thoroughly read all the best practices to overcome any potential risk involved in the process. In addition to owning a digital crypto wallet, there are multiple ways in which you can store or even produce bitcoins on your own like:
Sell products and accept bitcoins in return
Own any retail outlet? Even a small bakery offering customized cakes. You can start to accept bitcoins (the fractions) from your customers instead of dollars. There are multiple ways you can tell your customers. A neon-lit board hanging above the cash counter is a good option. Or you can chat it up with your customers while trying to show them the discounted products. Flyers or email newsletters are another way of spreading your messages. However, before beginning such promotional or informative campaigns, it’s better to choose a bitcoin merchant first. Bitcoin merchants offering such processing services that enable you to convert the received bitcoins into your desired fiat currency.
And if invoices are your mode of payment, then mentioning your bitcoin address on the bottom of the invoice is a good practice. However, practicing such methods, you must never share your private key. The private key is high end encrypted password that enables you to transfer bitcoins.
Search for adjacent traders or friends
Another good practice to trade or buy bitcoins is to search for adjacent traders or your friends. Numerous websites offer such services where you can find the bitcoin owners and traders just by highlighting your city. All the traders in that radius will be highlighted. And also, these websites offer the opportunity for connection with these people. After connection, you can trade your bitcoins.
Also, by chatting with that specific person, you can choose a public place for a physical meeting. But be cautious in such scenarios as sharing your closet location or meeting a stranger in person or for the first time can be a bit risky. It is not the best-recommended practice.
It is better to use online platforms as they also offer bank transfer exchanging options. They (websites) have PayPal or Western Union on their electronic payment panels. However, such services come at a small cost. They charge a small fee as per transaction like a standard bank.
But the best way to trade bitcoins is to look for close friends who are holding bitcoins. Why spend hours looking for unknown bitcoins traders when you can just simply ask your nearest and closest colleagues or friends for small fractions of bitcoins in exchange for dollars.
Mine the crypto!
It is one of the most complex ways to collect bitcoins. People using such methods are commonly called miners. They do not recommend the beginners dabble in this method. By utilizing specific software and high end and modern computers, complex mathematical problems are solved. In exchange, a single bitcoin is produced. However, if you still consider yourself tech-savvy and want to take a ride on this adventure, go prepared.
Purchasing bitcoins from crypto-exchange
It is one of the easiest and general options to fatten up your digital crypto wallet. This straightforward method works like any standard stock exchange where you can sell or purchase. The bitcoin exchange offers users to exchange (buy or sell) bitcoins using any local currency. There is a standard market rate. For entering such an exchange, it is mandatory to own a traditional bank account and link it with a bitcoin exchange. In such away, you can transfer the funds between the two accounts.
However, the process can require a couple of days. As the standard banks are involved in the transactions, usually it takes three to four days for the bitcoins to fill up your crypto wallet.
The bottom line
With every day passing, new digital currencies are being invented such as Pi. But the trading and investment process is still the same. Therefore, concluding the article, the mentioned steps will assist you in purchasing your cryptocurrencies especially bitcoins.
The end of January 2021 was marked by the amazing uprise of retail investors who organized themselves on the r/WallStreetBets (WSB) subreddit. Their goal was not to make as much profit as they could, but to stick it up against major players on the financial markets, such as big hedge fund managers. The tech savvy millennials and members of Generation Z bought up stocks of GameStop (GME) and AMC Theatres (AMC) with no intention to sell, aiming to perform a short squeeze and pressure investors, who held short positions to either buy more stocks of liquidate their positions. The market battle between David and Goliath got even less fair when platforms such as Robinhood, often utilized by WSB investors, restricted the buying of aforementioned stocks. While this move lifted a lot of dust it also acted as free advertisement for cryptocurrency space and DeFi, where the risk of this sort of market interference is significantly lower. Last but not least, the WallStreetBets movements sparked the creation of its cryptocurrency-themed copycat r/SatoshiStreetBets, whose promotions contributed to the fact that two of the coins in this week’s selection skyrocketed so high.
1. Dogecoin (DOGE)
The cryptocurrency Dogecoin was introduced as a joke in December 2013 by Billy Markus. Markus built the cryptocurrency project around the Shiba Inu doge meme that went viral in 2013 and the Dogecoin even uses the Doge meme as its official logo. Surprisingly, the currency took off. Even more, it developed a relatively large community on social platforms such as Reddit, which used Dogecoin to tip other members of the community and for performing similar micro-transactions. The Dogecoin community also raised funds to sponsor their own NASCAR racer for a few races and pay for a physical gold Dogecoin to be delivered to the moon via crowdfunding. Although the currency is regarded as a joke by more serious investors, Dogecoin is currently the 13th largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization with almost 130 billion Dogecoins mined since 2013.
Subreddits r/WallStreetBets and r/SatoshiStreetBets pump DOGE
Users on r/SatoshiStreetBets, a cryptocurrency-themed version of the r/WallStreetBets, the subreddit which kickstarted the GameStop phenomenon, started posting memes about Dogecoin and encouraging each other to buy the coin. The campaign promoting to buy Dogecoin soon spread across other platforms, such as TikTok and Twitter. Largely (if not even solely) because of this movement, DOGE displayed triple-digit gains on January 29, when the price spiked from $0.0076 to an all-time high of $0.077 within 24 hours. Such pump (and dump) campaigns are nothing new for DOGE. Let’s remember the viral TikTok video from July 2020 that attempted to push the price of DOGE to $1. Dogecoin also tends to pump when Elon Musk promotes the meme coin on Twitter. It happened on March 3, 2020, December 20, 2020, and Musk may have referred to Doge in his recent tweet too:
At the time of writing, DOGE is trading at $0.0358, which is 55% lower than the ATH price but at the same time, over 500% higher than prior the pump. Does DOGE hold enough oomph to justify the price or will DOGE drop back to where it was changing hands prior to the rally – below $0.008?
2. Ripple (XRP)
XRP is a cryptocurrency that was launched in 2012 by Chris Larsen, Jed McCaleb and Arthur Britto. Ripple’s network uses a unique consensus protocol, which is neither proof-of-work nor proof-of-stake to facilitate very fast and cheap transactions. The maximum supply of XRP is 100 billion coins, which were all created at launch. At launch 80% of the total XRP supply was given to fintech firm Opencoin, a company that was later renamed to Ripple Labs in 2015. As of today, Ripple still holds more than half of the total XRP supply. However, most of the company’s XRP holdings are locked in escrow and can only be accessed periodically.
WallStreetBets Causes 60% XRP price increase amidst turmoil with the SEC
Ripple has recently found itself amidst a legal war with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC officially revealed that they filed a lawsuit alleging that Ripple, its CEO Brad Garlinghouse and its executive chairman Chris Larsen raised $1.3 billion through the sale of unregistered securities Ripple, on December 22, 2020. The filing triggered a massive sell-off of XRP, which was additionally amplified by the fact that many exchanges, including Coinbase, Binance.US, Bitstamp, Crypto.com, Bittrex and OKCoin announced the delisting and halt of XRP trading. Affected by the restricted trading on exchanges and the uncertainty surrounding the SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit, the price of XRP stayed below $0.30 for most of the time. However, on January 30, Reddit investors got involved. Much like it was the case with DOGE, the r/Wallstreetbets cryptocurrency-focused off-shoot r/Satoshistreetbets started promoting XRP. The subreddit was apparently very successful with its pump, as XRP ended the day 60% higher, making XRP the best performing asset of the day by far. XRP rose from $0.28 to a peak at $0.51 before profit selling pulled the price back to $0.41. However, the coin has since almost doubled its value, reaching a high of almost $0.75, before it dropped back to around $0.40. XRP is currently changing hands at around $0.365 and is still up by 35% compared to 7 days ago.
In addition, the legal battle with the SEC has entered a new chapter, as Ripple filed its official answer on January 29. Stu Alderoty, the General Counsel at Ripple, shared the summary of the company’s preliminary response on Ripple’s official blog. At multiple points in the documents, Ripple aims to debunk SEC’s claims that XRP is an unregistered security. The “Answer” explains that there was no “investment contract” with the XRP holders whatsoever and tries to prove that XRP is solely a virtual currency and thus, outside the SEC’s jurisdiction. In addition, Ripple never held an ICO or offered future tokens to raise money. Holding XRP also does not entitle the holders to a portion of Ripple’s revenue or profits.
3. Alpha Finance (ALPHA)
Alpha Finance Lab is a researching and innovation-focused blockchain project that works on the frontiers of the decentralized finance space. The main goal of the project is to fill in the market gaps in the DeFi section with a simple yet novel solutions.
The Alpha Finance team have recently announced that Alpha Honora V2 was set to launch on February 1. The upgraded version of the Alpha protocol, which is already live, features an integration with leading DeFi protocols including Uniswap, SushiSwap, Balancer, Curve Finance, and Cream Finance. Consequently, users will be able to lend ETH (ibETHv2), USDT (ibUSDTv2), USDC (ibUSDCv2), and DAI (ibDAIv2). In addition, Alpha Honora V2 supports leveraged pools such as the Curve’s 3pool allowing CRV farming with leverage on USDT/USDC/DAI, Balancer’s PERP/USDC pool enabling PERP farming with leverage on USDC, SushiSwap’s SUSHI/ETH pool enabling SHUSHI farming with leverage on ETH, and Uniswap’s UNI /ETH pool with leverage on ETH. To celebrate the launch of the upgrade a meme competition with rich rewards was set in place. All the details about the launch can be accessed here.
In the expectation of the V2 launch, ALPHA soared towards its new all-time high price of $2.36, achieved on January 30. It will definitely be interesting to see how it will the platform’s native cryptocurrency will perform in future weeks. ALPHA is currently changing hands at $2.03, with support levels lying at $2.02, $1.90 and $1.80.
