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Bitcoin expected to build momentum in Q4
Cryptocurrency analysts are speculating on the future of Bitcoin as we enter the fourth quarter and the year is drawing to a close. Many voices have noted that Bitcoin could see an exponential rise towards the end of the year if the trend of 2017 is anything to go by. Whilst Bitcoin has recently seen an unprecedented period of calm and stability, analysts predict that there is a bull market on the horizon. Some are worried that this will lead to a similar rise and fall as seen last year. Although it’s been almost a year since Bitcoin’s rise to, and subsequent fall from, an all-time high, cryptocurrency experts just can’t seem to let go of this event. Fortunately, their predictions have so far been anything but reliable, so for the time being it’s safe to say that Bitcoin will maintain its position as the leading cryptocurrency in terms of market cap.
Bitcoin watch and an art exhibition to celebrate the anniversary of Bitcoin
The Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Hublot announced on September 19th that they would release a new watch called Big Bang Blockchain. The release is meant to coincide with the 10th anniversary of Bitcoin. Interested buyers will have to sign up to a dedicated website in order to get their hands on the new watch. The payments for the watch will be handled with Hublot’s new partner Octagon Strategy Limited. Hublot is not the only brand celebrating the anniversary of Bitcoin, however. An art exhibition called Bitcoin Art (R)evolution will be put on by a Parisian gallery to create more awareness around cryptocurrency. The exhibition will also allow visitors to purchase items in exchange for the cryptocurrency. Payments aren’t limited to Bitcoin, however, but can also be made with Monero, Litecoin, and Ethereum.
BitGo to release $1 trillion Bitcoin wallet
The security provider BitGo has for a long time been at the forefront of cryptocurrency wallets. Their wallets could contain $10 million worth of cryptocurrency tokens back in 2013. Two years later, that figure rose to $100 million. Two years after that, BitGo’s wallets could hold tokens worth almost $1 billion. Although the technology to contain more tokens is available, the stakes involved in storing so much money in one place continues to rise. This hasn’t stopped BitGo for setting their sights on the $1 trillion mark, however. The challenge for the security firm is to ensure that the money will be difficult to get to in case of the owner being threatened by a criminal.
Samourai wallet won’t display fiat value of Bitcoin
The company behind the popular cryptocurrency wallet has announced that future iterations will no longer display the value of cryptocurrency in fiat money. Users are currently able to view their balances in US dollars, but Samourai believes it’s time to end that. An official statement from the manufacturer says that “users will never be ready” to conduct transactions in Bitcoin unless they’re more or less forced to do so. They cite the familiarity of thinking in terms of fiat money, whilst the actual transactions are part of the cryptocurrency economy and not the traditional economy.
It has been another great 24 hours for Bitcoin, and other top cryptocurrency tokens as the market continue to bounce back. Check out the latest news below!
Bitcoin and Ripple are gaining ground
The price of all the main cryptocurrency tokens has gone up in the past 24 hours. Bitcoin has increased by 2% and is now trading at more than $6,500 per BTC. At the same time, Ethereum has gone up by 5% and is currently being sold for $220. Ripple clocks in at third place, rising a staggering 16.5% to a value of $0.53. Seems low? Don’t be so sure. Ripple has overtaken Ethereum regarding market cap twice in the past week. The cryptocurrency market is all in all doing pretty well at present. The total market cap is at $217 million, and over two thousand different tokens are being traded on the international exchanges.
Bitcoin is now a word in Scrabble
Yesterday, we covered how Merriam-Webster has added Bitcoin to the latest edition of its dictionary. This means that players of Scrabble can now use the word while playing the Hasbro game, and it’ll earn them nine points. The addition of Bitcoin to the dictionary is significant because it’s another step towards public awareness and acceptance. Among the other words added to the dictionary were “twerk” and “emoji.” This could indicate that the phrase Bitcoin is on par with these terms, both of which are arguably more commonly known. We will undoubtedly see a rise in token value and investment as the general awareness of cryptocurrencies spreads.
New Bitcoin startup backed by Goldman Sachs and Google
Marwan Forzely is the man behind Western Union and has a knack for creating shortcuts when it comes to money transfers. His new venture Veem will be utilizing Bitcoin to cut out the middle man — meaning the banks. The experiment is backed by investment giants like Goldman Sachs, Silicon Valley Bank, Pantera Capital, and Google Ventures. Users of Veem will be able to use Bitcoin to make direct transfers from their bank account to a vendor or supplier. The fact that Bitcoin has risen exponentially in value since the first investment round has only strengthened the project. When Forzely started, Veem Bitcoin was trading at $300 compared to its current value of $6,500.
Bitcoin to become a multi-network token
There is no doubt that Bitcoin maintains the lead regarding market cap, but Ethereum has proven to have much more utility because of the way its network is structured. Countless ICOs have been made possible with the help of the Ethereum network. This is because Ethereum is a multi-network token. It utilizes a series of side chains, in addition to its main blockchain, to facilitate other developers using them. Bitcoin has been working on expanding its network to have the same capacity since 2014. It has taken up until now, however, to finalize the plans and put them into action. It will be interesting to see if Bitcoin will outcompete Ethereum when it comes to working with new ICOs. You can read a full description of the project here.
Bitcoin volatility down
One of the main reasons a lot of investors are hesitating to invest in cryptocurrency tokens is the volatility of the market. Bitcoin famously reached an all-time high in December 2017, only to crash down to one of its lowest points in recent history. 2018 has in other words not been a very relaxed year for Bitcoin traders.
Now things are looking up, however. For the past three months, Bitcoin has been at its most stable since the crash of last year. This is the most stable Bitcoin has been in the past 21 months, according to research by Bitcoinity.
They have used an analysis tool called Bollinger bands to estimate the level of Bitcoin’s volatility to compare it to the previous months. The device looks at Bitcoin’s moving average price point across a 20 day period and corresponds it to 20-day chunks of price movements.
These findings are good news for anyone currently trading, or considering trading in, Bitcoin.
Bitcoin takes another step towards becoming mainstream
The key to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, in general, going mainstream is public awareness. Although Bitcoin has been around for nearly a decade, public awareness of it is still nowhere near enough to make it a mainstream phenomenon. This has very much changed in 2018, however.
Merriam-Webster has just released the latest update to their dictionary, and Bitcoin was included among the new entries. Eminem also mentioned Bitcoin on his latest surprise album Kamikaze. There have also been numerous mentions of cryptocurrency in other music, film, and popular media, indicating that there is a growing awareness of blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
More public awareness will lead to more people investing in cryptocurrency, which will, in turn, lead to the growth of the industry as a whole.
Google scraps Bitcoin ad ban
Just earlier this year we were covering how all the internet giants, such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Reddit, were banning all ads related to cryptocurrency, ICOs, and blockchain projects. The reasons cited for the bans related to how there were too many criminal elements in the cryptocurrency community, and that scams and money making schemes were everywhere.
Now the tune has changed. Due to the regulations being developed to rein in the cryptocurrency market, companies like Google have decided to lift the ban on advertisement partially. It will not be possible to advertise Bitcoin on Google — but only in the US and Japan. There is still a ban on advertising ICOs, trading tools, and hardware wallets.
Google is careful, but it is difficult to see how they can maintain a band on these aspects of the crypto-sphere. ICOs are the future of crowdfunding for startups who can’t secure venture capital. Likewise, trading tools and wallets for cryptocurrencies will only become more popular and make their way further into the mainstream.
Since Google has lifted its ban on Bitcoin advertisement just three months after its implementation, it is possible we could see ICOs and other tools being allowed on the platform before 2019.
Belarus Minsk – Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference 2018
Belarus Blockchain & Bitcoin conference will be held in Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, Pobediteley Avenue 9 on October 10, 2018.
The conference is organized by Smile Expo, a global company that has a reputation of organizing similar events across the globe successfully. This will be second largest conference in Belarus to be organized by Smile EXPO.
One of the main objectives of the conference is to evaluate the future of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology in the country. The speakers will cover areas such as legalization of cryptocurrencies. The key topics will include:
- Blockchain technology based solutions for businesses
- 2018 Cryptocurrency forecasts
- Legislation: future prospects of cryptocurrency business in Belarus
- Initial Coin Offering (ICO) for organizers and investors
The expected participants in this conference are investors, developers, law experts, blockchain entreperenuers, crypto enthusiasts and visionaries and the list is endless. The organizer aims to empower the participants with information about the potential and future of cryptocurrency as well as highlight the growth opportunities in the industry that are yet to be fully explored and exploited. Investors who are planning to launch an ICO will get first-hand information on how to do so without breaking the law.
The conference will be held from 10.00 AM to 6.00 PM. You can’t afford to miss this informative Belarus blockchain & bitcoin conference. Buy your ticket today to avoid last minute rush.