Cryptocurrency

Tron, a decentralized app platform looking to rival ethereum, has leaped higher over the last 24 hours, adding more than 10% and making the top 10 cryptocurrency worth more than $2 billion in total for the first time since August. The tron price has now passed both litecoin and stellar after a strong few months to take the seventh spot in the rankings of world's biggest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap, which tracks most major digital tokens. Tron's recent rally has seen its total value climb above the $2 billion mark. Getty Tron has outperformed both bitcoin and the U.S. dollar over the last month, with its price climbing over 130% since its bull run began in mid-December. Tron is however down by some 90% since its all-time high 12 months ago, which saw it propelled to an eye-watering market capitalization of more than $16 billion by bitcoin and the wider cryptocurrency market's massive 2017 bull run. Tron's recent ...

Sunday, Jan. 27 — most of the top 20 cryptocurrencies are reporting slight losses on the day at press time. Bitcoin ( BTC ) is trading under $3,600 again, according to Coin360 data. Market visualization from  Coin360 At press time, Bitcoin is down nearly 2 percent on the day, trading at around $3,562 , according to CoinMarketCap. Looking at its weekly chart, the current price is about $100 lower than $3,655, the price at which Bitcoin started the week. Bitcoin 7-day price chart. Source:  CoinMarketCap Ripple ( XRP ) has lost over 2.5 percent of its value in the 24 hours to press time and is currently trading at around $0.308. On its weekly chart, the current price is lower than $0.325, the price at which XRP started the week. Ripple 7-day price chart. Source:  CoinMarketCap Second-largest altcoin Ethereum ( ETH ) has also seen its value decrease by nearly 2.5 percent over the last 24 hours. At press time, ETH is trading at $114, having started the day about 2 d...

Since Bitcoin (BTC) came into being, the asset’ and blockchain network’s narrative has been misconstrued time and time again. Hot on the heels of another investor’s comment that Bitcoin isn’t digital cash, but rather, an up-and-coming global reserve asset , one commentator claims that BTC “already is” money. Related Reading:  Edward Snowden Bullish On Crypto: Blockchain Money Makes Sense Bitcoin Is Digital Money, No ETFs Or Bakkt Needed Jason Smith, an impassioned crypto believer, recently took to Twitter to convey five underlying noticings that came to mind during his stint in the industry. After lauding the flagship cryptocurrency for its non-inflationary nature, Smith went on to touch on the narrative that Bitcoin is pure digital cash. Interestingly, unlike the cynics that have made it their life mission to lambast BTC, Smith noted that the cryptocurrency “is ALREADY money.” Smith added that while opportunists have shilled Bitcoin to Wall Street with the idea that crypto-relat...

Bitcoin fell by more than 80% in the past twelve months. The overly impressive bull run of 2017, which led the digital currency value to the peak of $20,000, followed a whole bearish year whereby the price crashed to lows near $3,000. Lack of institutional investors and strict regulations, analysts believed, was one of the primary reasons behind the bitcoin crash. No ETF in Q1 2019 Bulls hoped 2019 to be a year of bitcoin correction when some of the biggest financial companies announced products for its market. Fidelity, a $2.5 trillion worth asset management firm, for instance, launched bitcoin custodian and trading services. Goldman Sachs, a banking giant, also confirmed that it would begin bitcoin futures trading. But exchange-traded funds remained to be the most exciting bitcoin product for bulls. Analysts believed that the launch of a regulated Bitcoin ETF would attract billions of dollars in investments. Traders expected that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the US ...

Bitcoin price is trading nicely above the $3,500 support area against the US Dollar. There is a major ascending channel formed with resistance at $3,650 on the 4-hours chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken). The pair needs to surpass the $3,650 and $3,720 resistance levels to gain bullish momentum in the near term. Bitcoin price made a few bullish breakout attempts, but it failed against the US Dollar. BTC/USD must stay above $3,500 and $3,480 to avoid a downside break in the coming days. Bitcoin Price Analysis This past week, bitcoin price remained nicely supported above the $3,500 level against the US Dollar. The BTC/USD pair started a recovery and moved above the $3,550 and $3,600 resistance levels. There was also a break above the $3,620 pivot level. Buyers pushed the price above the 50% Fib retracement level of the last decline from the $3,725 swing high to $3,443 low. However, the upside move was capped by the $3,650 resistance and the 100 simple moving average (4-ho...

In the face of a continuing economic crisis, many in Venezuela have, for some time, looked for alternative assets, far apart from fiat currency. Bitcoin has for some time been such a refuge and it would seem that with new Interim President Juan Guaido taking charge of the affairs of the country, use of the cryptocurrency is only going to rise further. Bitcoin has always been treated by Venezuelans as something like a safe haven asset, a digital asset that is untouched by government interference, devaluation or the risk of hyperinflation. And although cryptocurrencies themselves aren’t immune to hyperinflation, many Venezuelans believe they have more to offer when compared to the state of their national currency, Bolivar. The rise of Juan Guaido could be a boon in this regard as the new Interim President has for long been a proponent of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. In fact, he even tweeted out in support of a Bitcoin exchange that had opened in the country way back in 2014. Source: ...

Not only does Lightning Network negate the existence of many altcoins but also takes a hatchet to smart contract platforms by enabling various apps (LApps). Harnessing the BTC network while enabling instant transactions and near-zero fees, these Lapps are already demonstrating some promising use-cases for Bitcoin’s second layer.  It is just over a year since Blockstream introduced their ‘Lightning Charge’ API, allowing easier creation of Lightning Apps. So it’s high time we took a look at how far the market has come, with a round-up of the best LApps available right now. Wallets The first thing you’ll need is a Lightning-enabled wallet. After all, it’s going to be very difficult to make and receive Lightning Network (LN) payments without one. Fortunately, user-friendly wallets have proliferated in the past twelve months, which means you won’t even need to set up your own Lightning node (though that is recommended to minimize trust). Early players like Zap (iOS and De...

Bitcoin (BTC) miners in China are in a bind after a ransomware by the name of ‘hAnt’ has been targeting specific mining rigs such as the Bitmain’s Antminer S9, T9 and L3. The ransomware has also found its way into Avalon rigs. The malicious code was first detected in August 2018. Up until now there is no clear source of origin. Some Chinese security experts suspect that hAnt comes hidden inside tainted versions of mining rig firmware that has been present online since last Summer. hAnt functions like any other ransomware by encrypting the files belonging to the infected miner. This results in the rig halting mining operations for the files are inaccessible till the user abides by the demands of the code. When owners of the rig attempt to investigate the affected machines, the are presented by an image of an ant flanked by two pickaxes in green ASCII characters. The image is similar to the red skull screen displayed by the NotPetya ransomware. When users click anywhere on the scre...

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency adoption has failed to meet expectations since the 2017 bitcoin price explosion catapulted the nascent technology into the public consciousness —something that's been partly blamed for the subsequent bitcoin bear market .  Many in the bitcoin and crypto sector expect increased bitcoin adoption , if or when it finally comes, will herald the next crypto bull run — but are waiting on app and retail development . Now, leaked images of the upcoming new Samsung Galaxy S10 suggest the smartphone could aid bitcoin adoption with a built-in cryptocurrency wallet. The bitcoin and cryptocurrency sector has been trapped in a bear market for the past 12 months, with many expecting it to drag on throughout 2019. Getty The leaked images, first reported by Samsung news outlet SamMobile , appear to show  the rumored Samsung Blockchain Keystore cryptocurrency wallet app running on the new Galaxy S10. Ethereum, currently...

If a dystopian future is indeed ahead, investors and companies may want to have more of a plan than merely mining cryptocurrencies. On average, the cost of creating a Bitcoin amounted to $4,060 globally in the fourth quarter, more than the value of Bitcoin, now trading for less than $3,600, according to John Normand, head of cross-asset strategy at JPMorgan Chase, who on Thursday released in a wide-ranging report on cryptocurrencies. In other words, the cost of mining Bitcoin is far outstripping what miners can fetch on the market. "Prices had declined to a point where mining became uneconomical for some miners, who have responded by turning their mining rigs off," Norland noted. That's not to say the equation doesn't make sense for some, with Chinese miners able to pay far less -- about $2,400 for each Bitcoin -- by making deals with electricity producers such as aluminum smelters with surplus power, the analysts found.  "The drop in Bitcoin prices from aro...

JP Morgan has doubled down on their criticism of Bitcoin (BTC) and Crypto in general in a recent report analyzing the nascent markets. Within this report, analysts at the financial institution made multiple claims regarding the markets, notably saying that Bitcoin may only be a good hedge in a “dystopian scenario.” This bearish report does not come as a surprise to the crypto industry as a whole and is likely the result of a trickle-down effect of anti-cryptocurrency rhetoric stemming from the bank’s top-executive – Jamie Dimon – who is an outspoken critic of Bitcoin. The Value of Crypto Remains Unproven, Claims JP Morgan Analysts The 2018 bear market that has now spilled into 2019 has fueled much of the anti-crypto rhetoric that opponents of the markets frequently peddle in interviews and opinion pieces, as price-based success currently remains one of the most prominent indicators that the market’s foes reference when making their cases against the technology. As reported by Reuters...

Days and days of sideways consolidation and tightening volume has been the name of the game for the bitcoin market. A narrow range of $200 has caused a weeks worth of activity to coil and consolidate in preparation for bitcoin’s next move: Figure 1: BTC-USD, Daily Candles, Narrow Range The figure above shows just how narrow the range has been over the last week as the market has continued to grind out support and fail to break above overhanging resistance. The thick, blue line shows a prior support level that is now resistance. The lower highs and the lower lows are continuing to show signs of diminishing demand and continuing supply on the macro scale. However, if we look at lower time frames, we do see some signs of potential accumulation: Figure 2: BTC-USD, 4-Hour Candles, Potential Accumulation Range A closer look at the narrow range shows a well-established horizontal boundary (shown in green) with consolidating volume. The one and only candle that breached the lower bounda...

Although the cryptocurrency markets have found some levels of support and stability around their current prices, many investors and analysts alike are looking towards future events that could potentially lead to a Bitcoin (BTC) price surge. Now, analysts are speculating that anticipation for Bitcoin’s upcoming “halving” event could lead its price to surge. Analyst: Bitcoin (BTC) Could Surge in Next Few Months on Halving Anticipation At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading flat just below $3,600. Over the past couple of weeks, BTC has established the $3,500 region as a strong level of support, but without the cryptocurrency’s bulls ramping up buying pressure, this support level could be weakening. Despite this, one theory regarding the potential price effect of the Bitcoin mining rewards change that is set to occur sometime in May of 2020 (assuming there aren’t any major swings with Bitcoin’s mining hash rate) shows that historically, Bitcoin’s price has surged precisely one year ...

Friday, Jan. 25 — the top 20 cryptocurrencies are reporting discreet price action in mixed directions on the day to press time. Bitcoin ( BTC ) is hovering under $3,600 again, according to Coin360 data. Market visualization from  Coin360 At press time, Bitcoin is seeing virtually no change on the day, trading at around $3,590 , according to CoinMarketCap. Looking at its weekly chart, the current price is about $100 lower than $3,668, the price at which Bitcoin started the week. Bitcoin’s intraweek high hit just over $3,700 on Jan. 19. Bitcoin 7-day price chart. Source:  CoinMarketCap Ripple ( XRP ) has kept its value mostly stable in the 24 hours to press time, trading at around $0.314, losing just half a percent on the day. On the weekly chart, the current price is lower than $0.326, the price at which XRP started the week — and down from $0.333, the midweek high reported on Jan. 19. Ripple 7-day price chart. Source:  CoinMarketCap Second largest altcoin Ether...

Fundstrat Global Advisors co-founder Tom Lee appeared on Fox News earlier today to talk to talk about traditional markets and cryptocurrency . It was not long before his famous “$25,000 by the end of 2018” Bitcoin price prediction was brought into question. Lee blamed the proliferation of the ICO fund-raising technique for the inaccuracy in his price call. He was also asked if he still thought $25,000 per Bitcoin was at all possible. His answer was a resounding “yes”. Tom Lee: 2018 was a “Huge Disappointment” Anyone who keeps up-to-date with the Bitcoin price predictions made by various cryptocurrency market participants will certainly know the name Tom Lee . He has been repeatedly bullish over the years and has stated many times that he expects the market to continue growing . Perhaps Lee’s most famous Bitcoin price prediction was for the number one digital asset to reach a price of $25,000 by the end of 2018. He reasserted this a couple of times before dropping his target in J...

As part of an international effort to wrest power from Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela , the Bank of England has denied the nation access to gold deposits stored with the institution. Such instances highlight just why a permissionless store of value like Bitcoin is important on both the global and personal level. Several members of the international community, led largely by the US, recognised Juan Guaido as the rightful president of the South American country on Wednesday. However, Maduro continues to hold onto power and has the backing of the military. This has led to the withholding of Venezuelan assets stored overseas, such as the $1.2 billion worth of gold currently sitting in the Bank of England’s vaults. Could Bitcoin be the Ultimate Check on International Power Abuse? There is currently an effort being made to strangle Maduro’s leadership economically. According to a report in Bloomberg , Venezuela holds around $8 billion overseas. Members of the international community are atte...

Bitcoin price stagnant in a $300 range Charles Hoskinson says crypto will retest 2017 peaks in 11 years Transactional volumes low, average 12k thus consolidation According to Hoskinson, the crypto market is far from mature. In that case, he expects assets like Bitcoin to retest 2017 highs in the next 11 years. Even so, there are movements, and the failure of bears to drive prices below $3,500 is an endorsement for bulls. Bitcoin Price Analysis Fundamentals Charles Hoskinson is the founder of Cardano and the co-founder of Ethereum Classic. However, he is not shy to engage and give his two cents on important as well as contentious matters. Though he is unfazed by stagnating prices, he is optimistic and realistic at the same time. At the moment, investors are anxious, and as they wait for prices to rally, Charles is pouring cold water on their ambitions. In a recent interview at the Crypto Finance Conference, he said the crypto ecosystem should mature in the next 11 years. Like Amazon, ...