For the average millennial or at least anyone that pays attention to the business world, the term “cryptocurrency” would not seem like such a strange word. If that is, then the terms Bitcoin, Ethereum or at least Blockchain should ring a bell. One might wonder, why are these terms suddenly so prevalent, especially cryptocurrency news? Computing is getting rather pervasive and the society is leaning towards digital services. The finance world too isn’t spared as the disruption of technology into this sector has fostered the birth and development of Fintech organizations.
These Fintech organizations look to digitize payments and transactions, offering the same services that are currently in existence but in a better, efficient and more effective way.
Blockchain is the network upon which most of these cryptocurrencies operate on. The history of blockchain and bitcoin, in particular, does not have a definite story. In 2009, an individual or group of individuals known to be “Satoshi Nakomoto” developed and published the technology to allow people make digital payments between themselves anonymously without having an external party to verify or authorize the transfer of the currency being exchanged.
Although technologies like this might seem rather complex, understanding how Blockchain works is quite easy, given that one has a basic idea of how networks work. Blockchain is simply a database shared between several users, containing confirmed and secured entries. It is a network, where each entry has a connection to its previous entry.
This technology affords a very secure model whereby every record in the database cannot be tampered with. Apart from the stellar security that this network offers, the transparency and speed at which the network operates give it an edge over the conventional way of conducting transactions.
In simple terms, cryptocurrencies are just monies in digital form, transacted via digital means and over a digital network. The transfer of these currencies is utilized with cryptography and the aforementioned blockchain network. Up until the 2010s, cryptocurrencies were not really known until Bitcoin made its breakout and this gave rise to the birth of new cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrencies have had their fair share of bullish and bearish trends, going to show how unstable they can be. The latest cryptocurrency news reports lots of people predicting prices for various cryptocurrencies in the years to come but no-one can say for sure.
Blockchain, on the other hand, is making its way into pervasive computing, especially IoT, giving way for the development of new solutions that embrace data security and transparency.
Bitcoin price dropped just as the SEC unveiled its decision but managed to recover quickly keeping close to $1,200 barrier.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has denied a request to launch the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF, prompting bitcoin price to fall by 35% within a day.
The People’s Bank of China explained that it would begin blacklisting exchanges that would continue violating the regulations.
The SEC seeks advice of organizations and officials related to the approval of the Winklevoss twins’ Bitcoin ETF to get independent insight.
The Qtum Foundation aims at wider blockchain adoption and makes great efforts to adapt existing products and services for the new technology.
The price of virtual currency has been climbing as the Securities and Exchange Commission is on the way to approve the first bitcoin exchange-traded fund.
The companies have announced plans to launch a new distributed ledger platform that is expected to change and improve the global logistics industry.
The man who claimed to be the creator of bitcoin is currently working on filing a number of patents related to bitcoin and the blockchain technology.
The news can be a sign that Bitcoin is becoming more mainstream and investors get more interested to invest in the cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin keeps up the speed and has made gains in the new month – analysts says that the value can reach $3,500 level soon.
Thomson Reuters, PwC, UBS and other companies have established a new blockchain group in Switzerland to facilitate the growth of the blockchain ecosystem.
Hyperledger Project continues to attract new companies, with the overall number of members now accounting for more than 120 organizations.
Chronicled demonstrated a solution that creates a secure link between any physical asset and the blockchain.
J.P. Morgan, Chase, Intel, Microsoft, Banco Santander and other firms have established an alliance to develop solutions for financial companies using Ethereum blockchain.
The acquisition is likely to enhance Bloq’s suite of analysis tools and maximize the value of blockchain data sets through artificial intelligence and machine learning.