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The BIS Vision: The Future Monetary System

The BIS Vision: The Future Monetary System

There are a few different visions for how the financial world should evolve. Most of us dream of a future where we can be independent and free. On the contrary, some institutions are vehemently opposed to such liberty. The 'powers that be' will never allow us to be free, as eliminating their control would mean cutting their puppet strings.

Central banks are among the most prominent financial puppeteers in the world. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is like a member’s club for the central banks, and for the last two years, the BIS has been attacking all forms of cryptocurrency, trying to fault the decentralized system. 

However, the cronies at the BIS have been some of the greatest advocates for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). They have been planning their vision of a future that would radically alter the financial system, verging on the dystopian. Recently, they released their latest report on this vision for the future monetary system. 

There is a quote that seems to have become the narrative of the crypto industry;

‘First, they ignore you, 
then they laugh at you, 
then they fight you, 
and then you win.’ 

It could be that crypto has entered the 3rd phase of the quote and is blatantly obvious in the rhetoric of the anti-crypto institutions, like the BIS, detailed in its report of a dystopian vision of the future of finance. It also documents a flawed and somewhat naive view of the crypto industry.  

What is the BIS? 

The Bank for International Settlements or BIS is the self-described bank for central banks. The BIS is owned by the 63 central banks that make up its membership and is based in Basel, Switzerland. The BIS's job is to help Central banks coordinate their monetary policies. An informational video by the BIS revealed that all 63 Central Bankers recently met in Basel to discuss monetary policy. A sporadic occurrence that only happens during times of Crisis.

The BIS has been working closely with central banks to develop their CBDCs, and CBDCs will make it possible for them to have total control over the economies of their respective countries by determining how and when money can be spent. It’s important to note that CBDCs are being built from the ground up to maximize financial control. 

In contrast, most cryptocurrencies were created from the ground up to maximize financial freedom and, in some cases, financial privacy. It’s no surprise that the BIS is not a fan of cryptocurrency whatsoever and that the report summary in this article can be summarized in one sentence. According to the BIS, everything that cryptocurrency can do, CBDCs can do better. 


Image source: Decrypt

The report was formulated by Hyun Song Shin, the economic advisor and head of research. Hyun is as anti-crypto as they come and attended a media briefing about cryptocurrency for the BIS in 2018. He talked about why cryptocurrencies will never replace fiat currencies because they can't scale and don't guarantee transaction finality; the ‘laugh at you’ part of the quote mentioned above. 

He did another media briefing about cryptocurrency in early June 2022, specifically about this report. He talked about why CBDCs are better than cryptocurrencies, a considerable shift in tone from four years ago, and the ‘fight you’ part of the quote above. At the media briefing, Shin was asked some critical questions about CBDCs by reporters, to which he had no clear answer.  

One reporter asked why are CBDCs necessary when we have alternatives? A second asked about people's privacy concerns about CBDCs, given that the BIS had specified that privacy will not be possible with CBDCs and that the central bank will keep all user data. 

A third reporter asked whether CBDCs would see any adoption given their concerning characteristics. A fourth reporter asked whether someone would be blocked from buying the likes of alcohol and tobacco or entirely blocked if they speak out against their government. 

Even though he couldn’t answer the reporters’ questions, he clarified and applauded that CBDCs problematic programmability could theoretically be applied to any payment system, providing a government successfully rolls out a digital ID. 

BIS REPORT: The Future Monetary System

The BIS report begins with a brief introduction that describes the financial system as it functions today. In short, it states central banks issue the money and creates trust in it, whereas commercial banks make it possible for people to use that money to buy, sell and borrow. 

If the idea that it's the central bank that creates the trust in money wasn't bad enough, the authors claim that “private sector innovation benefits society, precisely because it is built on the strong foundations of the Central Bank.” 

To add insult to injury, the following sentence reads, “the monetary system with the central bank at its center has served society well.” This statement is highly debatable given that central bank money printing has made life even more unaffordable for the average person while enriching the 1%.  

After briefly describing cryptocurrencies, the authors turned to Terra’s recent collapse as evidence that crypto can't beat the central banks. They claimed that the crypto industry constantly needs a “nominal anchor” such as fiat-denominated stablecoins. 

They believe the only solution to this crypto dilemma is to switch everything over to permissioned blockchains run by central banks with CBDCs and so-called fast payment systems that commercial banks will leverage the same way they leverage the central banks today.

What Do We Want From A Monetary System?

The second part of the BIS report is titled, “What do we want from a monetary system?” It's important to remember that this report is intended to be read by powerful individuals and institutions, not the average person. So the authors aren't really asking what we want; they’re asking their wealthy and influential cronies.

Below is a table the authors provided that identifies eight monetary system goals. These are safety and stability, accountability, efficiency, inclusion, control over data, integrity, adaptability, and openness. It would seem that all eight of these can be rolled into one, and that's total control. 

These boxes explain how well these eight “wants” are satisfied by the current financial system, cryptocurrency, and the BIS’s dystopian vision of the future of finance. Given that the BIS is the author and creator of this table, it’s no surprise that crypto fails on almost all metrics, whereas the BIS’s future system succeeds on all eight. 


Image source: bis.org

This ties into the third part of the BIS report, which relates to cryptocurrency problems. Not surprisingly, the authors have no shortage of crypto criticisms, and they start with all the volatility in the crypto market and the fact that most cryptos are down more than 90% from their all-time highs. 

Of course, the authors don't explain the reason why crypto is so volatile and that its implicit goal is to replace the financial system, which is a massive undertaking. The authors also don't acknowledge that the volatility of most major cryptocurrencies has been on the decline over the years.

The authors seem to imply that crypto can't replace central banks because their blockchains are fragmented. Meaning they can't interoperate, which just isn't the case. Most crypto holders know the industry will be multi-chain, and interoperability innovation has been explosive. 

They highlight that new cryptocurrencies are pretty centralized, and many existing cryptocurrencies have started to centralize to increase their speed and competitiveness. The authors then turn to decentralized finance. Notably, there’s growing awareness that the central banks and commercial banks alike see Defi as the biggest threat because it has the potential to play both of their roles. 

Because centralized exchanges somehow fall under the umbrella of Defi, the authors list a few critiques of them, too, including the lack of transparency around crypto holdings, a lack of oversight compared to regular exchanges, and the fact that they let you withdraw your crypto.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), whose so-called recommendations aim to make self-custody next to impossible by labeling anyone who tries to hold their own crypto as high risk because they believe only the banks are allowed to preserve your assets, comes to mind. 

Regarding the “structural limitations of crypto,” the authors argue that cryptocurrencies are incentivized to keep their fees high because it's the only way they can adequately compensate miners and validators. This is an interesting albeit flawed argument. 

This is an argument that Hyun Song Shin made in his first media briefing about cryptocurrency in 2018. He and the authors of this report fail to realize that economic incentives and self-interest are why anyone does anything at all, ultimately.

While it's true that there are risks associated with securing a cryptocurrency blockchain, there are even more considerable risks related to giving control of the financial system to a small group of central bankers. And crypto’s inherent value is increasing as people start to realize this. 

In the graph below, the results of a crypto study conducted by the BIS found that “a rise in the price of Bitcoin is associated with a significant increase in new users, i.e., the entry of new investors, with a correlation coefficient of more than 0.9. It analyzes the age and gender of users, exogenous shocks, and risk factors, which could convince the reader that crypto is dangerous.    

The authors proclaim that “regulatory action is needed to address the immediate risks in the crypto monetary system and to support public policy goals.”  These regulations the authors want to see include;

  • Regulators to crack down on stablecoins, especially decentralized stablecoins, which is no coincidence, given that stablecoins compete directly with all kinds of fiat currencies as per the BIS’s own admissions. 
  • Cryptocurrency exchanges that hide transacting parties' identities and fail to follow basic know your customer (KYC) and other FATF requirements should be fined or shut down.
  • Regulators should consider restricting retail access to certain altcoins, banning Defi, and even crack down on crypto oracles like Chainlink for daring to provide data to decentralized applications without approval from the government.
  • Regulators should ensure that cryptocurrency doesn't become too big as it could compromise the integrity of the fiat financial system. To that end, the authors advised that regulators focus on the centralized entities in cryptocurrency, be they exchanges, custodians, or otherwise. 

Because crypto is global, the authors even call on governments to create a new international regulatory authority and present the BIS as the ideal institution to play this role. 

The authors also revealed that the BIS is developing a “cryptocurrency and defi analysis platform” that combines on-chain and off-chain data to produce vetted information on market capitalization, economic activity, and international flows. They concluded the crypto section of the report with; 

“Overall, the crypto sector provides a glimpse of promising technological possibilities, but it cannot fulfill all the high-level goals of a digital monetary system. Central Bankers can provide such foundations, and they are working actively to shape the future of the monetary system.” 

 

BIS Vision: Four Roles Of Central Banks

The report explains the central banks' four specific roles in the BIS's eyes. These are;

  1. Issue Money
  2. Provide Transaction Liquidity
  3. Ensure Liquidity (also known as money printing)
  4. Assist In Regulations

According to the BIS, the future of finance takes the four roles of the central bank to the next level by introducing Wholesale and Retail CBDCs. Select individuals and institutions will use the wholesale CBDCs, whereas the average person will use retail CBDCs. 

Essentially, we will have two systems, and the BIS is OK with that because, as far as it is concerned, “central banks are mandated to serve the public interest” and are totally not influenced by politics or influential individuals and institutions in the private sector. 


Image Source: Technode.global

The authors then outline the different components of their vision of the future of finance and highlight concepts like programmability, composability, tokenization, interoperability, instant payments, open platforms, and inclusive designs. Wait a minute… It sounds like they’re describing the future of cryptocurrency! 

The image below displays the metaphor they use to explain their vision of the future of finance. They paint a picture of trees with central banks as the trunk, showing how all the different central banks will lock branches, calling it the Forest of the Global system. 

It seems a bit ironic as the report simultaneously claims that a fragmented financial system of this kind would never work. The authors also commented that putting central banks at the center of the financial equation is a “prerequisite for private innovation that serves the public interest,” which seems to imply that private innovation is incapable of serving the public interest in the absence of central banks.

Wholesale CBDCs

Regarding wholesale CBDCs, the authors note that they can be used to govern the inner workings of the financial system and promise their audience, which is again primarily powerful individuals and institutions, that their privacy will be protected, thanks to zero-knowledge proof—also used in the cryptocurrency industry. 

The authors also described how a wholesale CBDC would be used to settle a digital currency transaction that’s not done in a retail CBDC. They gave someone buying a house with privately issued eMoney with the deed automatically transferred as an example. They suggested that “the same system could also allow for digital representations of stocks and bonds.” 

In other words, they would be tokenizing all real-world assets on their permission blockchains. Some would argue that if this happens, the central bank and, by extension, the government would own your assets. They would be able to revoke your ownership of anything and everything. And if you don't have physical evidence that it was once yours, you will have no way of proving to anyone that it ever was. 

People in crypto communities that understand crypto know that buying and holding cryptocurrency in your own wallet is the way to circumvent this, as no one can take it away from you.  

Retail CBDCs

There’s no need to worry just yet because the next section of the BIS report talks about the real problem for us; the retail CBDC. It points out the mass adoption of Brazil's fast payment system as proof that the average person will voluntarily adopt a retail CBDC, even though the BIS’s own research shows that only 4-12% of adults in developed countries would voluntarily adopt a retail CBDC.

The authors also applaud the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston's milestone of reaching 1.7 million transactions per second in its CBDC trials, noting that this is faster than payment networks like Visa and cryptocurrency blockchains. 

It seems the authors conveniently forgot about Bitcoins Lightning Network, which can process an estimated 40 million transactions per second.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, if you're wondering, how will the central banks convince anyone to adopt this? The authors clearly state that by allowing non-bank entities to offer CBDC wallets, they can also overcome the lack of trust in financial institutions that holds back many individuals in today's system.

In other words, central banks will use private companies that people trust to roll out their retail CBDCs. This is funny, considering the authors spent the earlier part of the report trying to convince the reader that the central banks and their financial systems are the pinnacles of trust. 

What's even funnier is that the BIS actually reported on how much people trust the financial system. The figure is only around 60% in developed countries and possibly even lower now. 

The authors then reiterate what's been said in other BIS reports about the privacy of retail CBDCs, stating that “central banks have no commercial interest in personal data and can thus credibly design systems in the public interest.” Put simply, privacy for them but not for us. They also quote that transactions would not be recorded on a public blockchain visible to all. 

If all of this wasn't bad enough, the authors discuss a global “multi CBDC platform” that the world's central banks will govern in the following subsection. And the cherry on top is that the privacy of these entities will be insured, so the public will have no idea who controls this powerful system. 

Although these statements are made in the context of a wholesale CBDC, the authors make sure that the reader knows that the same global platform could be put in place for retail CBDCs and similar types of digital currencies. 

BIS Report Conclusion

The authors conclude by briefly commenting on the progress being made on the BIS’s explicitly stated goals and list the following statistics, 

  • 90% of central banks are exploring CBDCs. 
  • Three retail CBDCs are currently live
  • 28 CBDCs in development
  • Sixty countries are working on Fast Retail Payments.

This list includes the United States Federal Reserve’s plans to roll out the “FED NOW” fast payment system in 2023. It will have many of the same qualities as a retail CBDC, especially if the US government manages to roll out a digital ID system as per Shin’s remarks in his media briefing. 

Meanwhile, France and Switzerland are working on a multi-CBDC platform, as are Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, South Africa, Hong Kong, Thailand, China, and the United Arab Emirates. 

“In sum, central banks are working together to advance domestic policy goals and to support a seamlessly integrated global monetary system with concrete benefits for their economies and end-users.” 

And because the authors still need to bash crypto and drive home the conclusion,

“Instead of serving society, crypto and defi are plagued by congestion fragmentation and high rents, in addition to the immediate concerns about the risks of losses and financial instability.” 

This statement might be the most hypocritical of the report because many central banks are testing their CBDCs using cryptocurrency blockchains. 

What Does This Mean for Crypto?

So, the big question is, what does all this mean for the crypto market? Many believe this news is insanely bullish for crypto because nobody is buying into the BIS’s “BS” except the central bankers. 

Other previous BIS reports could be considered shamelessly evil, and the average individual and institution would not adopt this technology voluntarily. The only way you could convince the average individual and, or institution to adopt this technology would be through force or a crisis, and, conveniently, there's no shortage of those these days. 

It's also fascinating how the authors hold up the central banks as the center of the universe and how they are willingly or unwillingly unable to acknowledge just how fast innovation in crypto has been. Four years ago, the BIS laughed at crypto. Now, it's starting to fight it. Does this mean that crypto will win in four years' time? 

Let's just say that it's interesting that this is around the time we would see the next crypto bull market top. This obviously doesn't mean that fiat currencies will be defeated in four years, but it could mark the tipping point where crypto adoption becomes so widespread that it genuinely can't be stopped. 

References:
Bis.org
Coinbureau

 

 

Editor and Chief Markethive: Deb Williams. (Australia) I thrive on progress and champion freedom of speech. I embrace "Change" with a passion, and my purpose in life is to enlighten people to accept and move forward with enthusiasm. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

This information is provided for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed as financial, legal, or tax advice.

Also published @ BeforeIt’sNews.com 

 

From Economic Depression To Economic Hope

From Economic Depression To Economic Hope

Economic Depression

As we progress in 2022, many commentators suggest we are entering into a deep depression which will surpass the Great Depression of the 1930’s.  If you look at the statistical picture below, it tells its own story over time about the declining value of the dollar. This is not just something which happened in the last two years alone.

With travel being curtailed in the wake of high inflation, hikes in energy prices,  gas prices, not to mention the travel disruption across airports and trains, it seems that mankind is being backed into a corner via government policies that don’t make sense.

How things fare in the long run is largely going to be determined by the capacity to see opportunity and revive business in a way that brings greater value.

Many brick and mortar businesses are operating work from home policies. With more people having to work from home, the opportunity to work online is becoming more apparent. You may be seeking alternative income to supplement your job, or to replace it for a different lifestyle.

If you have never run your own business, or even if you are having to start again from scratch, the proposition of online working may feel scary. You may even be wondering if it is worth making money when your hard earned money is effectively being zeroed out.

 

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Economic Hope

The good news is that money never disappears in a downturn. It simply transfers from one place to another. 

An example in kind is that while the economy crashed, those who had invested in vaccines made a lot of money because the vaccines were deemed to be the answer to a health crisis en masse.  I will not comment further on the politics and ethics of this subject here.

However the point is there is always opportunity if you are prepared to take a step back, do some research and adjust your path moving forward. Here are some suggestions to move you toward economic hope.

Start With You | Create Your own Away Day

Start with yourself and take some time out uninterrupted whether at home or away. Do  a brain dump on every gift and ability. What skills do you possess? What do you feel passionate about? What lifestyle would you like to create going forward? 

If you could do something in life that would combine your abilities, yet give you a sense of purpose in life, what would that look like? Do not answer according to your circumstance or that of the economy for now. Just let your creativity and imagination flow for now

Lifestyle Design | How Money Works

On the note of lifestyle you may want to get conversant with how money works,  because money and business go hand in hand when devising a plan. You could use something like Cashflow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki as a framework to aid your thinking.

Image source: Robert Kiyosaki The Rich Dad Channel

Financial Literacy is important because this is an area where many rank low. It concerns the basics of how money works, and if you don’t have a fundamental grasp of this it is difficult to make money work to support your lifestyle aspirations.

Kiyosaki proposed four areas of money flow, employed, self-employed, business owner and investor. The difference between the left and right hand side of the quadrants is that on the left hand side you are the one working for money. The opposite applies on the right hand side.

How does this apply to offline and online  business?

Employee 

So this is where your ability to earn money is dependent on your presence and input of work. As a general rule, if you don’t show up, you don’t earn money. In this scenario you are trading time for money unless you have performance related pay or bonuses.

It’s important to do what you love, and for some that will be in the form of employment, whether that be in a service or a business working for someone else. 

One point to note is that if you have a job you love, you can still become wealthy. I made a mistake in my thinking on this because while I was still nursing the opposite was emphasized, that to become financially independent and free I needed to start my own business. 

I wanted to do that, so it was not a problem. But I could have become wealthy sooner while in employment had I learned about investing. This takes me back to financial literacy and its importance, and I will expand on this point under investment shortly.

Self-Employed

This is where you are in business as an entrepreneur. It's not quite the same as the Business Owner category above because you are the boss and also the employee in your own business. This makes you more of a solopreneur until you start building a team around you that you can outsource your non core competencies if you choose. 

When starting out in self employment it is important to establish the product or service you will supply, to whom and where. It must solve a problem or meet a significant desire in your prospects. So some research is important.

The simplest thing is to start having conversations with people about their needs and wants to get a sense of what might work. Often this is glossed over but is crucial if you want to set yourself up for success.

You can use online surveys such as MonkeySurvey, or if you want to go deeper there are some good courses built around various aspects of business including this type of research. Ryan Levesque built a whole course around the theme of asking. You can check his course called The Ask Method.

This will give you a solid marketing foundation from which you can build a product or service. Bear in mind that with a product it is easier to scale.

Affiliate Income

If you are not able or willing to create your own product or service you may wish to consider the affiliate model of income. This is where you market an already existing product created by someone else in exchange for a percentage of the sale in commissions. 

The benefit of this is that everything is supplied for you, leaving you to focus on marketing the product. The more a product solves a critical problem, the better the chance of making a sale.

For example if there was a product which plugged the gap in the declining value of the dollar,  do you think people might be interested.

Gold is real money, and inflation proof, and there are affiliate businesses based round this. While many deem this to be a long term investment, solutions are arising to allow you to make purchases in gold.

Kinesis is one such example where they tackled the problem of Gresham’s Law, which states that the current system means that people spend ‘bad’ money [fiat money ] while saving ‘good’ money [ gold ].

They have now made it possible not only to purchase gold [ and silver ], but are coming out with a debit card which will allow you to spend that physically allocated gold you have purchased, while getting yields for saving, spending and referring.

With this solution you can take remedial action to stop the rot of economic depression by plugging the gap of the declining value of your money, while earning money from helping others at the same time.

Business Owner

This is on the right hand side of the quadrant where money is working for you. It is often referred to as passive income. This is where you set something up, and with a little work up front, it pays you over and over again. 

Network marketing is an example of a model some companies use. There is a main company and there is a product which you can purchase on a subscription basis. You can then build an organization of distributors and get paid a percentage of their results. This type of income is referred to as passive income. 

You can be on holiday and make money from the efforts of your team. Rather like the affiliate model, you get to own a business without having to set up a brick and mortar structure and all the tools are provided, so you can work from home or anywhere there is an internet connection, hence the term, the laptop lifestyle.

A key difference is that network marketing income relies heavily on the recruitment of others. Affiliate marketing does not require that.

You may decide to create a traditional local business where you provide employment in the process. You are not an employee in this scenario but oversee the team of workers. The success of your business will depend on a lot of factors beyond the product or service itself.

I recommend Marc Allen’s book called The Millionaire Course published in 2003. In this book he not only describes how to become wealthy, but shares how he built a publishing business with spiritual principles, and put an infrastructure in place that made it difficult for his employees to want to leave as they felt so well cared for. 

This included generous pension plans and profit share bonuses as well as an environment where everyone could be creative and contribute to the company growth

If you don’t wish to deal with people trading the stock markets is another area where you can operate set and forget strategies for passive income, although you can work it manually too if you prefer.

Investor

You can also invest in a company’s growth and get paid dividends over time as it profits. If you choose this path, do learn how investments work, otherwise all you will be doing is speculating and hoping for the best, without proper strategy.

I was quite frugal in my upbringing and my mum taught me about the importance of saving money. I knew nothing about investments though. Let me ask you something. If you took $10 per month and put it into a ‘vehicle’ that returned 8% per month, with compound interest how long would it take to become a millionaire?

I thought it would be over 30 years and when I worked out the answer manually, then in a spreadsheet, I was shocked, and then I cried, because even I could have invested $10 per month as a nurse. 

I have since corrected that and planted investment seeds. This is a longer term strategy but an example of how you can work the left and right hand side of the quadrant above

Markethive is an example of an opportunity to invest in the growth of the company. Currently you can buy something called an ILP or an initial loan procurement and get paid as the company makes profits. 

Robert Kiyosaki is famous for his book Rich Dad Poor Dad, and teaches financial literacy and wealth so you can thrive rather than just survive. You can read more about the above model in his book Cashflow Quadrant available on Amazon.
 

 

 

 

About: Anita Narayan. (United Kingdom) My life's work is about helping individuals to greater freedom through joy and purpose without self-sabotage, so that inspirational legacy can serve generations to come. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why Aren’t Guns Banned in America?

Shared from Quora by Don Kepple

7/19/22

I get this question quite often from folks in other countries, and this is the most thorough answer, and best explanation I've found to date. 

A little history lesson. 

Written by:

Andrew T. Post Updated 2 years ago

gun owner and 2nd Amendment supporter

Why aren’t guns banned in America?

I’m going to answer this question literally.

See this dude?

His name’s John Locke.

Born 1632, died 1704. English physician and political theorist. One of the most prominent thinkers of the Enlightenment. Considered “the founder of liberalism.”

America’s Founding Fathers, people like Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, cribbed heavily from Locke’s work when they were building the moral and philosophical basis for the United States of America and writing the Declaration of Independence and The Federalist Papers and the Constitution and whatnot. And so did the 1st United States Congress when they were ratifying the Bill of Rights.

Locke wrote extensively on the topics of natural rights, the balance of power, and the origin and purpose of government. His liberal ideas were used as building blocks by America’s Founding Fathers to craft their new nation—the freest, purest, and most just republic the world had ever seen.

How did Locke come into these revolutionary ideas?

He built upon the work of philosophers who had gone before him, of course. Hobbes and Machiavelli and the like.

But in addition, some interesting things happened during Locke’s lifetime.

One of these was the English Civil War (1642–1651).

This was a war between the king of England (Charles I) and his royalist supporters (“Cavaliers”) vs. the English Parliament and their supporters (“Roundheads”). Charlie wasn’t a very good king, you see, and Parliament became unhappy with his repeated abuses of his royal powers.

Back in those days, Parliament didn’t really have the powers it has now. It was basically a cabinet the king convened at his sole discretion. But it did have the power to levy taxes, which came in handy for a total spendthrift like Charles I.

But anyway, Charlie got to feeling a bit too free and easy for Parliament’s liking. He went and married a French (and Roman Catholic) princess named Henrietta Maria in 1625. Then Charlie decided to send an expeditionary force to France to relieve the French Huguenots besieged at La Rochelle in 1627. Parliament began to breathe easy—despite marrying a Catholic, the king was showing support for the Protestant Huguenots. Then Charlie went and ruined everything by giving command of the expedition to the hugely unpopular Duke of Buckingham. The expedition was a complete shambles. Parliament opened impeachment procedures against Buckingham. King Charles responded by dissolving Parliament—which was the king’s prerogative at the time.

But now Charlie was in a bind—Parliament was the only way he could raise taxes to support his extravagant lifestyle. So he went ahead and convened a new Parliament. This new bunch (which included Oliver Cromwell) drew up a Petition of Right, which was basically a list of rights the king was forbidden from infringing upon.

Sound familiar, my fellow Americans?

Parliament submitted the Petition of Right for Chuckie’s approval. Chuckie approved it, but only so Parliament would give him his royal subsidy. Then he dissolved Parliament.

Chaz avoided calling a Parliament for the next eleven years. He practically bent over backward to make sure he didn’t have to reconvene it, in fact. He went so far as to make peace with France and Spain so he wouldn’t have an expensive war on his hands. He also resorted to some fairly tricky means to raise money for himself. He started fining people who failed to show up at his coronation and receive a knighthood. “Ship money” was a tax traditionally levied against English citizens in coastal districts, and which funded the Royal Navy’s anti-piracy efforts. Chuck started charging inland English counties for anti-piracy and anti-privateering measures. Naturally, this illegal and arbitrary tax made a lot of people angry, and some of them refused to pay it.

Once again, my fellow Americans—doesn’t this sound familiar?

There was also some religious crap that went down, as usual, but neither you nor I care about that.

For these and various other reasons, those eleven Parliament-less years were called “the personal rule of Charles I” or more bluntly, the “Eleven Years’ Tyranny.”

An emergency in Scotland caused Charles to reconvene Parliament in 1640. A majority of this new body decided to use Charles I’s desperate need for money against him. They pressured him to redress Parliament’s grievances against him and to abandon the war in Scotland. Charles, outraged, again dissolved Parliament. It had lasted only a few weeks. It came to be known as “the Short Parliament.”

Without Parliament’s approval, Charles I attacked Scotland. He suffered an embarrassing defeat. The Scots turned right around and invaded England, eventually occupying almost the entire northern region. Charles was soon forced to pay the Scots £850 a day to keep them from advancing further.

Well, this put ol’ Chuckie back in desperate financial straits, so he had no choice but to reconvene Parliament. As you may imagine, this new Parliament—the Long Parliament, as it came to be known—was even more hostile to him than the Short Parliament had been. And this time, they really had him over a barrel. They forced the king to agree to all kinds of demands. A raft of new laws was passed. Henceforth, Parliament would convene at least once every three years—whether or not the king had summoned them. The king could no longer impose taxes without Parliament’s express consent. Parliament could now review and censure the conduct of the king’s ministers. Oh, and here’s the kicker: the king could no longer dissolve Parliament without its consent, even after the three years were up.

My fellow Americans, does this sound familiar yet?

(I’ll give you a hint: the phrase “checks and balances” should be running through your head right about now.)

Anyway, tensions between Charles I and Parliament eventually reached their breaking point. Charles resented all the concessions he’d been forced to make to Parliament, and the Long Parliament suspected Charles of wanting to shut Parliament down and rule by military force. (They were also worried that he wanted to reintroduce Catholicism—okay, more like episcopalian Anglicanism, but close enough—to England.)

So the English Civil War broke out.

The outcome was pretty interesting. The Parliamentarians won. King Charles was put on trial and executed and his son Charles II exiled. England ceased to be a monarchy and became the Commonwealth of England, and then the Protectorate (ruled over by Cromwell as “Lord Protector”—essentially a military dictator). Then, finally, the monarchy was restored in 1660 when Charles II returned from exile. But it was restored only with Parliament’s consent. Constitutionally, a new day had dawned for England. Monarchs could only rule if Parliament gave ’em the green light. Britain was now on course to become the constitutional monarchy it is today.

The English Civil War, its causes, and its outcome were all extremely interesting to John Locke, that gaunt and mournful-looking fellow whose image adorns the top of this increasingly long-winded Quora answer.

Locke’s most influential work, perhaps, was his First and Second Treatise of Civil Government. The treatises were written in 1689, in defense of the Glorious Revolution the year prior, during which Mary II and her Dutch husband William of Orange deposed Mary’s father King James II and VII of England, Scotland, and Ireland (that’s, uh, just one guy, by the way—yeah, I know it’s confusing). William and Mary then turned right around and accepted Parliament’s invitation to become joint sovereigns of England and gave their royal assent to the English Bill of Rights, which finally established the authority of Parliament over the Crown.

(If you’ve ever wondered why Queen Elizabeth II doesn’t actually rule the United Kingdom, and Parliament and the prime minister are the ones who make all the important decisions, the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution are the reasons.)

Contained within the English Bill of Rights were a couple of things that Americans might find hauntingly familiar—the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, the banning of taxation without Parliament’s assent (taxation without representation, in other words), and the right of Protestants to keep and bear arms for their defense.

You’re beginning to see where I’m going with this, aren’t you?

In his defense of the Glorious Revolution, John Locke philosophized that men and women, back in the savage days, had the anarchistic freedom to pursue their own interests, which resulted in violent and brutal warfare. To put a stop to this chaos and protect people’s inalienable rights, governments were established to keep the peace. This peace was maintained by laws. This principle is something Locke referred to as the “social compact”—governments are established by mutual agreement of individuals for the purposes of protection and the security of their individual liberty.

The so-called first principle of the social compact is this: since governments are instituted by the people, governments necessarily derive their power from the consent of the governed. Since the government’s purpose is to protect people’s inalienable rights, a government has no power beyond what’s necessary to protect those rights. A just government is, therefore, a limited government.

Locke argued that the definition of liberty is freedom from restraint or violence by other people, and this cannot be accomplished without laws. Anarchy repulsed him. But tyranny repulsed him even more. A just government, in Locke’s view, was one with checks and balances—where the legislative branch of government had the power to check the executive, and the people were armed and ready to defend themselves against tyranny from either the legislative or executive branches. Or both.

I’m currently reading a book called The Philosopher’s Handbook (edited by Stanley Rosen). In his introduction to Part One (Social and Political Philosophy), Paul Rahe wrote something about Locke that I found rather interesting. (Emphasis mine.)

Locke was perfectly prepared to acknowledge the horrors of anarchy, but he doubted very much that they so exceeded those of tyranny that human beings could be persuaded to give up the right to organized self-defense. A well-ordered government would include a monarchical executive armed with a prerogative enabling him to execute the laws, defend the realm, and respond to emergencies; it would include a representative assembly empowered to lay taxes, make laws, and examine the conduct of the executive's ministers. But it would rest ultimately on an enlightened citizenry prepared, in the face of executive and legislative abuse, to take up arms in defense of the right to life, liberty, and property.

MY FELLOW AMERICANS, DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR YET?

Like I said, America’s Founding Fathers stole a hell of a lot of Locke’s ideas. They used Locke’s principles of the social compact, consent of the governed, and the right to keep and bear arms to form a near-perfect union—to shape (and philosophically defend) the fledgling United States of America. The Declaration of Independence says “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” It also says that “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”

And the Second Amendment, which is part of the Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments to the Constitution), says “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

That’s not something the 1st United States Congress pulled out of thin air. It comes straight from Locke.

And at long last, ladies and gentlemen—that is why America “allows the general public to keep guns.” Because the right to keep and bear arms was seen as being necessary to the security of the free state envisioned by John Locke, and early American statesmen, heavily influenced by Locke’s writings and philosophy, saw fit to enshrine the inalienable right to keep and bear arms in the Bill of Rights.

QED.

Sources:

Social Compact Theory

John Locke and the founding fathers

Does gun control violate the 2nd Amendment? - Quora

 

 

ecosystem for entrepreneurs

Dispute Over The Kazakh Oil Pipeline

Dispute Over The Kazakh Oil Pipeline

Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental landlocked country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe.

The country dominates Central Asia economically and politically, generating 60 percent of the region's GDP, primarily through its oil and gas industry

Kazakhstan holds about 4 billion tonnes (3.9 billion long tons; 4.4 billion short tons) of proven recoverable oil reserves and 2,000 cubic kilometers (480 cubic miles) of gas. Kazakhstan is the 19th largest oil-producing nation in the world.

The economy of Kazakhstan is the largest in Central Asia in both absolute and per capita terms. Kazakhstan has attracted more than $370 billion of foreign investments since becoming an independent republic after the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

 

Large energy companies such as Chevron, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, and Eni own since the 90th  rights for oil and gas production in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan has a customs union with Russia and Belarus and is also a member of the Eurasian Economic Union. Yet, for example, in 2017, the European Union was Kazakhstan's most important trading partner, with a share of 38.7% in foreign trade. Kazakhstan has the potential to be a world-class oil exporter in the medium term. 

Kazakhstan has the largest and most powerful economy in Central Asia. The economy of Kazakhstan, supported by rising oil production and prices, grew by an average of 8% per year until 2013, before slowing down between 2014 and 2015. It was thus the most dynamic world economy of the early 21st century after China and Qatar.

 

Problems of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium

Beginning of July a Russian court ordered that the Caspian pipeline consortium  (CPC) must suspend operations for 30 days. The court justified the decision by the possibility of environmental damage. The report adds to global concerns about oil supplies, Reuters warned.

 

The capacity of the Caspian pipeline

CPC brings oil from Kazakhstan to the Russian Black Sea coast and is one of the largest oil pipelines in the world. It transports about one percent of the world's oil.

The consortium that owns the pipeline said that it must abide by the decision, but intends to appeal against it. At the same time, it refused to comment on its activities. A Russian court on Monday 11th July overturned the ruling against CPC and instead fined it 200,000 roubles ($3,300). 

 

Kazakhstan – Caspian pipeline

The CPC pipeline has been in the spotlight since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has curtailed Russian exports and caused a sharp rise in oil prices. The United States imposed sanctions on Russian oil but said that flows from Kazakhstan through Russia can continue to operate without interruption.

According to the CPC, deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation Viktoria Abramchenkova ordered the regulatory authorities, including the Rostechnadzor technical supervision authority, to inspect the facilities in the Russian part. The inspection allegedly found discrepancies in documents relating to oil spill management plans. Oil leaked from the terminal last year. CPC originally received a deadline of 30. November, but eventually the authorities changed the decision and the court gave them the truth.

CPC is the only oil export pipeline on Russian territory that is not fully owned by the Russian company Transneft which owns a 24 percent stake in the consortium. Other shareholders include Kazakh company KazMunayGas and American companies Chevron and Exxon. Its length is over 1500 km.

According to Interfax, the explosion of the pipeline occurred on Wednesday 6th July at the Tengiz field, whose reserves are estimated at 3.2 billion tons. The causes of the explosion, in which, according to Nexta, two people were killed and three others were injured, are unknown.

The site in the west of Kazakhstan is managed by Tengizchevroil, which is 50% owned by the American Chevron and another 25% by ExxonMobil. In Tengiz, a $ 45.2 billion mining expansion project has now been launched, which was to be completed in 2023. Kazakhstan is in terms of oil production with 1.7 million barrels per day at 11. place in the world, reports the Moscow Times.

The shareholders of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium are:

  • Transneft – 24%

  • KazMunaiGaz – 19%

  • Chevron Caspian Pipeline Consortium Co. – 15%

  • LukArco B.V. – 12.5%

  • Mobil Caspian Pipeline Co. – 7.5%

  • Rosneft – Shell Caspian Ventures Ltd. – 7.5%

  • CPC Company – 7%

  • BG Overseas Holdings Ltd. – 2%

  • Eni International (N.A.) N.V. S.ar.l – 2%

  • Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures LLC – 1.75%

  • Oryx Caspian Pipeline LLC – 1.75%

Disputes between Russia and Kazakhstan

Between Russia and Kazakhstan there have recently been disagreements over the war in Ukraine, the agency DPA warned. Kazakhstan recently offered the EU to supply more oil and gas to Europe and did not recognize the independence of the separatist republics in eastern Ukraine.

Through the CPC pipeline, 54 million tons, or 1.2 million barrels per day, of Kazakh CPC Blend light sour crude oil were exported last year. Through the terminal in the Russian port of Novorossiysk flows 80 percent of oil exported from Kazakhstan. The handling capacity of the pipeline is 67 million tons per year. Its operation has already been interrupted once this year due to damage to the equipment of the Black Sea terminal.

Kazakhstan's key oil pipeline is back up and running since 13th July again. But Russia wants to push to stop it and according to sources from three Western companies operating in Kazakhstan, it is likely that a long-term shutdown of CPC operations may still occur. Kazakhstan does not have access to the sea and thus has very limited alternative transport options. A failure of the CPC would mean a drop in exports of up to 50 million tons of oil per year.

In spite of all the complications, the president of Kazakhstan Tokaev thinks that his country could create a kind of "buffer zone" to compensate for the imbalance in the distribution of energy between East and West and North and south, he said. In this context, Tokayev called on the EU to expand alternative transport corridors, including across the Caspian Sea. This would make it possible to supply raw materials to Europe outside of Russia.

Many Western companies have exited operations in Russia, with oil majors among the first to leave in the days after the conflict began. Western sanctions have disrupted Russian exports and pushed up energy prices.

In response, Russia made steps towards seizing oil and gas projects Sakhalin 1 and 2, where Shell and Exxon have stakes. A Western executive familiar with CPC operations said Sakhalin was "a definite sign of things to come for CPC".

Shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, international oil prices spiked to their highest levels since the records of 2008.

They have since eased to just above $100 a barrel as the market anticipates economic weakness will lower demand, although selling has been limited by concerns of tight supplies that would be exacerbated by a cut in CPC output.

"Losing one million barrels per day in an already tight environment can lead to an unsolvable problem for the oil market," Amrita Sen from Energy Aspects in London said.

JP Morgan analysts predicted last week that oil prices could jump to an all-time high of $190 per barrel if a combined 3 million BPD of output from Russia and Kazakhstan was hit by sanctions and related issues.

Lack of Alternatives

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev told his government to diversify oil supply routes. All alternatives are challenging, for instance, shipments over the Caspian sea face tanker shortages and have little capacity to take more oil.

The United States imposed sanctions on Russian oil but said that flows from Kazakhstan through Russia can continue to operate without interruption. Now, however, this possibility is under threat, and it is not certain that Russia will not take further action against the functionality of this pipeline.

Relationship between Russia and Kazakhstan

This was the third time in recent months that the CPC has run into trouble.

The freeze on activities stood to cost Kazakhstan hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue. 

The reality is that Kazakhstani-Russian relations have been less than ideal for weeks, not to say months or even years.

The depth of Kazakhstan’s economic ties with Russia cannot be underestimated. Of the $101.5 billion of trade that the country did in 2021, around one-quarter was with Russia, a country with which Kazakhstan shares more than 7,600 kilometers of the border. The regimes of the two countries are bound also in other ways. Kazakhstan is a member of the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation defense bloc.

 

Sources:

Themoscowtimes.com

Reuters.com

Eurasianet.org

Echo24.cz

Ceskenoviny.cz

byznys.hn.cz
 

 

 

Bitcoin Holds 2022 Lows as Inflation Soars and More Troubled Crypto Companies Emerge

Bitcoin Holds 2022 Lows as Inflation Soars and More Troubled Crypto Companies Emerge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another month, another red-hot inflation data. As of Wednesday 13th, July, the consumer price index (CPI, a key measure of U.S. inflation) was up 9.1% from a year earlier. Meaning shoppers are paying significantly more for everything from groceries, gasoline and rent. The higher-than-expected reading immediately spooked cryptocurrencies and stocks, as Bitcoin plunged 5% and the S&P 500 opened by 1%. The liquidity crisis plaguing crypto firms; Three Arrows Capital and Celsius continued to spread across the market. Well, it hasn't been all bad news for the crypto sector. Let's dive into the water.

Four decades of high inflation and the Fed's efforts to combat it are weighing on stocks and crypto markets and sparking fears of a recession. Consumer prices rose 9.1% in June from a year earlier, beating Dow Jones's 8.8% forecast. The most significant inversion of the yield curve between 10-year and 2-year Treasury bills (a key indicator of a recession) occurred since 2000. The latest inflation report could mean another rate hike is on the horizon for the Federal Reserve, which has accelerated efforts to unwind pandemic-era stimulus. Riskier assets such as cryptocurrencies and tech stocks have benefited from excess consumer cash in the past, but have since suffered some of the sharpest losses.

Two months after the Terra/Luna debacle, liquidity and credit issues continue to plague overstretched crypto firms like Three Arrows Capital (3AC), Celsius, Voyager, and more. A legal battle has erupted between the founders and liquidators of 3AC, which manages $10 billion, after it filed for bankruptcy on July 1.

The fallout from 3AC affects Blockchain.com. (3AC lost $270 million on loans), Voyager Digital (filed for bankruptcy after 3AC failed to repay $670 million), and BlockFi. FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has since "bailed out" the latter two. Meanwhile, Celsius, one of the first companies to suspend withdrawals due to liquidity issues paid off a huge Defi loan ahead of its bankruptcy filing Wednesday night.

Bitcoin mining companies are also feeling the pinch.

Despite the fall in cryptocurrency prices, global mining output has remained near all-time highs over the past month. Meaning mining energy costs are high even as the value of cryptocurrency block rewards falls. As a result, some miners are selling their cryptocurrency to pay fees.

Core Scientific, one of the largest miners in the world, sold $167 million worth of BTC (over 75% of its BTC) to pay off servers and other debts. Canadian miner Bitfarms sold $62 million worth of BTC (more than 75% of its BTC) to improve liquidity, and Argo Blockchain liquidated $15.6 million to repay Galaxy Digital's loan.

What's the good news?

Regarding global adoption, Italy subsidizes Internet blockchain projects with $46 million. The Central African Republic has announced a new national cryptocurrency, Sango Coin, whose president says it will be "a gateway to the country's natural resources." portal." Meanwhile, $5.5 billion in venture capital flowed into crypto projects in the year's first half. Most recently, Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis raised $150 million for blockchain gaming, and Layer 1 protocol Rubix raised $100 million from a company specializing in cross-border transactions.

It's also important to note that Ethereum successfully launched proof-of-stake on its Sepolia test net, the second of three milestones ahead of a blockchain energy-efficient upgrade known as Merge.

Why this matters

Months into the crypto winter of Bitcoin's 70% drop from its November all-time high, a big question is permeating: Are we near a bottom? While some analysts claim that macro factors are crucial like the Fed slowing rate hikes or cutting stock earnings forecasts, others think we're close to a bottom. While no one can predict how the crypto market will move, finding a bottom is more than just price levels. As one cryptocurrency trader told CoinDesk:

"The bottom is as much a product of time as the price…Cynical sentiment must die down and give way to optimism."

The price of crypto has been steadily declining since the beginning of the year. This is a common market trend and seems to be generally accepted. The fall in price is not only concerning for those who invested a considerable amount of money in crypto, but it also affects people who are just curious about it. Although the fall in price may be seen as a negative trend, it also has its own set of benefits.

 

 

 

 

What’s Wrong With News And Social Media Today?

What’s Wrong With News And Social Media Today? 

A democratic society values a free-flowing media ecosystem. A healthy media ecosystem is one of the characteristics of a democratic society. Mass media outlets such as newspapers and cable TV networks were prominent in the past. Today, the internet and social media platforms allow for greater communication across society. 

Journalism, investigative correspondents, and even freelance writers are essential to that ecosystem. High-quality reporting revealing brutal truths and users' scope and exposure on social media to either create or access information are forces that can drive genuine societal change. And even keep the power structures in check. 

Despite the positive aspects mentioned above, harmful practices and negative external forces related to the media ecosystem often eclipse them. These issues are usually easy to recognize once they’re identified. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge them and spread awareness about their potential risks. 

Doing so will help you make informed decisions about how you use media and how it can impact your life and the lives of others. The following are a few issues pervasive in many digital news sites, forums, and social media platforms. 

 

Image source: VisualCapitalist

Implicit Bias vs. Explicit Bias
An explicit bias in media has two types: explicit and implicit. It is possible for publishers with explicit biases to control the framing of stories in their publications by overtly dictating the types of stories that are covered. They push their agenda by using narrative fallacies or false balance. 

Implicit bias refers to unintentional filtering or skewing of information. This can occur by turning a blind eye to specific topics or issues because they would tarnish an advertiser's image. These are known as no-fly zones, and because the news industry is financially troubled, these zones are becoming increasingly dangerous. 

Difference between Misinformation and Disinformation
Inaccurate information is known as either misinformation or disinformation. While misinformation is unintentionally disseminated due to a lack of knowledge or truth on the topic, disinformation is purposely designed to mislead people. For example, a deepfake image, video, fake news story, or concept is considered disinformation. 

The term 'fake news' is frequently used to describe poorly written news content or inaccurate news reporting, as well as conspiracy theories and poorly written or incorrect tweets by politicians. Fake news might refer more broadly to information that an individual disagrees with.

Context Stripping
Through social media, stories are shared widely by many participants, and the most compelling framing usually wins out. More often than not, the truncated, provocative posts spread the furthest. The process of stripping context away from an idea may distort its meaning.

Sharing video clips on social platforms is a perfect example of this context-stripping process. Despite the absence of context, much discussion occurs around the video, especially if it’s controversial or shocking. As a result, viewers are unintentionally encouraged to stereotype the individuals in the video and to bring their own preconceived notions to the discussion table, helping fill the gaps. 

Cherry Picking 
Media contributors search for attention-grabbing story angles to make their point in an article. This may result in cherry-picking information and ideas. Because the content is usually accurate, it makes sense on the surface, but it is missing critical context. 

So cherrypicking can be questionable and compromising. It is tempting to create simplistic narratives that are compelling such as good-vs-evil, but real-world situations are often much more complicated than they appear. 

Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures
Journalism is experiencing difficult times. Newsrooms are working with less staff and budgets, and 'churnalism' is one outcome. This term describes the act of publishing articles directly from wire services and PR releases. Even if it isn't widely known, 'churnalism' replaces more rigorous reporting. It is also an avenue for advertising and propaganda and harder to recognize as news. 

 

Image source: VisualCapitalist

Paywalls
The drive to generate revenue is leading to other issues as well. Quality content is increasingly being restricted to subscribers only, otherwise called paywalls. This has resulted in a two-class system, with subscribers receiving in-depth, well-researched news and everyone else having access to trivial or sensationalized content only. 

It’s not only about people with limited incomes; young people are also widely included. The average age of a paid news subscriber is 50 years old, raising concerns about the future of the subscription business model. 

Advertisement Clutter
Desperate times have led to desperate measures for advertising-reliant outlets. User experience has taken a backseat to ad impressions, with ad clutter (e.g., auto-play videos, pop-ups, and prompts) constantly interrupting content. One or two ads on a web page are manageable, but when ads overrun the site, it's distracting and disorienting. 

Surveillance Capitalism
In surveillance capitalism, organizations collect large amounts of data about their customers, employees, and other groups that are viewed as valuable sources of information. This information can be used for various purposes, such as generating revenue by selling data or predicting consumer behavior and targeting them with highly personalized advertising campaigns to increase their profits.

Some organizations capture and profit from individual information utilizing browser fingerprinting. When you visit certain websites, third-party companies scan your device and browser settings to track you online. Despite all the opt-in privacy prompts, these third-party trackers can still watch your every move digitally. Most people are not aware of this process.
 

Deplatforming
Many individuals and communities have been banned from social and publishing platforms for various reasons. While harassment and violence, fake accounts, and bots are obvious reasons to remove the offenders’ accounts, many would argue the rules are inconsistently enforced. Users are falling victim to being suspended or deleted from a platform for having a different point of view than the mediators of the platform. 

While we all are responsible for our online behavior as individuals, platform owners must also be careful to preserve the value of their platforms by avoiding over-zealous enforcement tactics that could lead to deplatforming. Invariably this causes irrefutable damage to the individual or company with a loss of followers and content. 

In many cases, this behavior from specific platforms is seen as a structural bias and agenda-setting from the top down by placing importance on selected topics and is very quick to censor legitimate political discourse or other forms of honest expression. A problem that seems ingrained with legacy social media and a battle we can’t win. 

 

Image source: VisualCapitalist

Argument Culture
It’s ultimately deviating to an adversarial approach when encountering people with an opposing worldview. Two examples of this are Twitter flame wars and broadcasts where hyperpartisan critics argue. While these are fun for some people, these activities do not require critical thinking or problem solving and are not helpful for the overall health of our society. 

A flame war is created when multiple users engage in inflammatory responses to an original post, sometimes flamebait. Flame wars often draw in many users, including those trying to defuse the flame war, and can quickly become a mass flame war that overshadows regular forum discussion.

When engaging in argument culture, people will often cherry-pick facts to strengthen their argument, ignore facts that weaken their argument and dismiss facts that reinforce the opposing argument. This approach to facts is often referred to as post-factual. Similarly, people often use hyperbolic language when arguing with others.

Brigading & Social Bots
Social media companies can be powerful enablers and disrupters where users can communicate in new and meaningful ways to help foster community engagement. On the other hand, they can also pose some unique challenges. They are driven by algorithms that privilege engagement with certain kinds of content over others. 

There are autonomous or human-run accounts on certain social media platforms that manipulate discussions and boost specific messages. This alters the tone of online discourse and artificially inflates the spread of messages. These accounts often promote particular agendas, benefit specific groups, or spread misinformation. This type of social media manipulation is referred to as brigading.

Some websites use bots to delete specific comments that they feel do not fit into the narrative of their website and promote what they consider “positive” comments instead. The potential consequences of using bots to promote or suppress specific comments will negatively impact the website and be perceived as one with an agenda that does not allow open discussion. 

 

Who Can You Trust? 
The issues mentioned above have led to a significant decline in confidence and trust across the various media outlets. A study of news media perception from 40 nations revealed that trust varied widely around the world, with European media trusted the most. Western Europeans trusted their media more than those in other parts of the world, and the Finnish were the most trusting, with 65%. The United States and Slovakia scored near the bottom regarding how much consumers trusted their news media at 26%.

The source is one factor that plays a significant role in whether or not an individual trusts news. On a global level, social media was the least trusted news medium, with Europe and North America leading this sentiment. A survey of U.S. adults found that most news on social media was regarded as biased.

Young people worldwide find it difficult to rely on mass media due to its current climate of polarizing political events and fake news. Older generations also share this viewpoint, and one of the top reasons for avoiding news was the inability to rely on its truthfulness.

Alternative Conservative Platforms Stand Up
Participants who lack trust in these disingenuous and agenda-driven platforms or feel their voice is not heard are migrating to other websites where they can be heard. More alternative media are popping up, Conservative-based, bi-partisan, and some are even non-partisan, with their only agenda being freedom of speech, liberty, and sovereignty. 

Conservatives are expanding their media outlets, aggressively building a conservative ecosystem with their own apps, cryptocurrencies, social media, and publishing houses. It includes Trump’s Truth Social and Gettr, launched by ex-Trump aide Jason Miller, with Rumble, the conservative alternative to YouTube, driving the news.

It is their effort to counter the perceived escalating liberal internet and media institutions and stand up against the developing cancel culture and censorship rife in legacy media. That is very commendable; however, it may well be perceived as still having a right-wing agenda that has the potential to stifle the platform’s ability to proliferate. 

 

An Alternative To The Alternative
Where can the people go who have no agenda, are critical thinkers, and have a completely unbiased worldview? People with an entrepreneurial spirit and a “live and let live” attitude that can rise above the injustices, evil trickery, and pettiness of the world. 

Today, the Markethive Social Market Broadcasting Network is growing in prominence as the ecosystem for entrepreneurs with a non-adversarial, bipartisan free speech ethic and a collaborative culture. It is a system of all things media, including a video platform and news broadcasting. It is a culmination of several distinct mechanisms that will harmonize, delivering the resources we need for everything we do online in a decentralized sovereign environment. 

Markethive Media has embraced blockchain technology and cryptocurrency, building an ecosystem that belongs to “we the people,” eliminating many of the issues plagued by media outlets today. With its meritocratic culture, dynamic social media interface, and growing community, Markethive is enhancing and bringing the platform into the future internet with new technology and interfaces, but still in keeping with the human touch.

There is no simple solution to the current problems facing news and social media. However, suppose we are more media literate and aware of what’s happening. In that case, we are better equipped to circumvent or even help fix these broken systems by encouraging honesty and transparency in communication channels that bond society, given that these mediums have become the primary source of information and interaction in the current dystopian climate.  

Reference
Visual Capitalist

 

 

 

 
 

Supervising Crypto In Europe

Supervising Crypto In Europe

 

End of June 2022, Cointelegraph.com published an article on the new agreement reached by the European Council to form an Anti-Money Laundering (AML) body that will have the authority to supervise certain crypto-asset services providers (CASPs).

But let's start with a summary first. The first flurry of regulation of crypto-assets appeared in Europe even before the pandemic in December 2019. Debugging took place throughout the first half of the following year, and in September 2020, the European Commission adopted it under the legislative designation draft regulation on markets in crypto-assets (MiCA for short).

A definite topic in the world of finance is currently the government regulation of cryptocurrencies, which is taking place across the globe. The approach in different states is diversified –  some states give cryptocurrencies a clear green light, others treat them more cautiously and introduce many regulatory regulations, and finally, there are states that have said a clear “no” to cryptocurrencies and banned them on their territory. 

The market segment with cryptocurrencies, estimated at $2.1 billion, is still subject to inconsistent regulation, which prevents the creation of legislative regulations that should prevent money laundering while protecting investors and creditors. 

However, increasing regulatory pressure is preventing crypto companies from innovating their products. For example, the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase global warned that over-regulation would hamper innovation.

Image Source: Cointelegraph

Wild West Of Crypto Is Nigh

We are putting an end to the wild west of unregulated crypto, closing major loopholes in the European anti-money laundering rules,” said European Parliament member Ernest Urtasun.

The European Council said it had agreed on a partial position of a proposal to launch a dedicated Anti-Money Laundering Authority or AMLA. According to the regulatory body, the AML body will have the authority to supervise “high-risk and cross-border financial entities,” including crypto firms — “if they are considered risky.”

First proposed in July 2021, the AMLA should be operational in 2024 and “start the work of direct supervision slightly later,” according to the European Commission. 

It is evident that the taming of cryptocurrencies in the EU is imminent. By regulators who don't understand it much.

Europen Central Bank, Frankfurt,  Germany

The European Central Bank (ECB) is calling for decisive regulation of cryptocurrencies. People are speculating on life savings because of them, which is not to the liking of the head of the bank, Christine Lagarde. Its approach does not seem to many analysts, according to which most regulators propose measures that are not really applicable in practice.

The first application of the new regulatory conditions around cryptocurrencies could come in the next few months. The European Commission has already presented such measures, and the European Parliament should finalize them soon.

This is MiCA regulation and, therefore, regulation aimed explicitly at crypto-assets. But analysts recall that most regulators do not understand cryptocurrencies at all and are therefore rather skeptical about the proposals.

In addition to Christine Lagarde, other ECB officials have previously expressed concerns about cryptocurrencies. One of them is executive board member Fabio Panetta, who said in April that crypto assets are creating a new wild west and compared them to the subprime mortgage crisis of 2008. 

On the other hand, European monetary policymakers have confidence in their new digital euro project, which could take place as early as the next four years.

"Basically, almost all traditional institutions view cryptocurrencies as something dangerous and potentially exploitable or as a tool for money laundering and unfair activities. In doing so, these fears are completely odd and senseless. Regulators mainly want to achieve the greatest possible monitoring of financial movements, " said Czech analyst Martin Kysela.

Cryptocurrencies And Crime

The suppression of illegal cryptocurrency trading is taking place on more fronts than it might seem at first glance. The fight against money laundering has already moved to Europe. 

German authorities announced a raid on the world's largest darknet market, in which they seized bitcoins worth 25 million euros. This raid was carried out in cooperation with the German cybercrime centre and the federal criminal police office (BKA). For what reason did the raid occur, and what was its result?

In a raid on the world's largest darknet network called Hydra market, 543 bitcoins were seized. This illegal network has reportedly been operating since 2015 and has read an incredible 17 million customers. 

In the Hydra market, more than 19 000 sellers were registered who focused on the sale of illegal narcotics. According to the press release, other items were seized during the raid, which brought profits to the sellers.

 

                      

 

Nanny Mentality Undermines Freedom Of Choice

On Dutch television, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, said this in May.

Cryptocurrencies are based on nothing and should be regulated so that people avoid speculating with their life savings.” 

She is afraid that people who do not understand the risk can lose everything and be very disappointed. Therefore, she believes that cryptocurrencies should be regulated.

First of all – if Ch. Lagarde and others believe that cryptocurrencies are worthless, they would not be so afraid of them, which leads them to the regulations to which the cryptocurrency market is already subject today. 

Many people see cryptocurrencies as a sign of freedom (and it doesn't matter what anyone thinks about it), and the EU obviously doesn't like that. It seems the representatives of the EU think people are unruly and should be regulated. 🙂

In the black scenario, some crypto specialists think that regulation could significantly damage crypto services in the EU. It may trample on user privacy and expose users to the risk of personal information being hacked. As a result, it may have a minimal impact on the fight against money laundering, which the EU seeks with this law.

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase stressed that it is cash that continues to be a popular means of money laundering. Blockchain technology, unlike cash, has allowed authorities to track suspicious transactions using advanced analytical tools.

Cryptocurrencies are highly speculative investments (and therefore attractive). The principle of any highly speculative investment is that money moves from those who lose a lot of money on the speculation to those who make a lot of money on it. It is difficult to regulate anything on this.

It’s All About Control

Crypto is unwanted by the top politicians because it gives the owner immense freedom to dispose of their finances in their own way and store them wherever they want – without the need for control by any regulator.

By the way, this control requirement is fully in line with the current direction of EU policy. Therefore, it is undesirable for someone to have access to finances that can not be regulated. The regulation or abolition of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies would bring us a step nearer to totality.

 

Source:

cointelegraph.com

Idnes.cz

Cryptosvet.cz

Forbes.cz

 

 

An Introduction To Cryptocurrency

An Introduction To Cryptocurrency

 

If you are relatively new to cryptocurrency and have been wanting to learn more and get started here is a brief quick start guide.  Let’s start with some context.

R.I.P. Fiat Money

The word FIAT derives from latin, meaning a determination by authority. Our money is controlled by the central banks and the system is broken. It has been for a long time, only now the house of cards appears to be collapsing fast. 

Last year Turkey reported that its Lira has lost approximately 40% of its value over the last two years alone, but in truth we have been in a state of hyperinflation for way beyond that time. 

Something had to give, and you know that’s true when the World Economic Forum comes out and says that it is time for a reset. They want to bring in a Central Bank Digital Currency, which basically means they will control your money, albeit in a different form. That does not solve anything.

I recall here in the UK the last recession, when we experienced a bank run after the collapse of Northern Rock bank back in 2008. People could not get access to their money. It underlined that the current banking system controls your money and can freeze your account at will. 

What’s more, the bailouts and bail-ins of the big banks are effectively funded by you! Not to mention how that this same money can also be forged easily

 

Source image: ginifoundation.org

What is Cryptocurrency?

It is out of the rubble and backdrop of that recession that cryptocurrency emerged in the form of bitcoin. May 22nd 2021 marked the 11th anniversary of bitcoin, and you may be aware of the famous story of two men who sold two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoin, which was next to nothing back then. 

Cryptocurrency is a form of digital cash which is secured by something called cryptography so that it cannot be duplicated. It is decentralized meaning that you own it when stored in your own private wallet. It effectively allows you to become your own bank. As it gets widespread adoption you can use it in the same way you use traditional money.

Already you can use cryptocurrency to send digital cash to friends irrespective of where they live in the world. You can trade with it. You can pay for business services with it. You can also get cash backs in the form of cryptocurrency at certain shopping outlets. The list goes on.

Bitcoin

There are so many different cryptocurrencies arising right now. The most well known cryptocurrency is bitcoin, reportedly created by someone called Satoshi Nakamoto. Depending on who you talk to there are various interpretations as to who this person is or was – an individual, team, or maybe a covert government set up.

It has a total supply of 21 million and a current circulating supply of just over 19 million. Over 15,000 businesses accept bitcoin including paypal, microsoft, home depot and starbucks to name but a few. On the downside bitcoin is having to deal with congestion and latency problems which may reflect in its transaction fees.

Bitcoin ATMs are springing up and becoming more ubiquitous, with the USA and Canada leading the way. You can find out where they are via this map.

 

Source: https://coinatmradar.com

What is The Blockchain

All transactions take place on something called the blockchain. The blockchain is like a  digital ledger system which records all transactions in a way that cannot be removed or altered, making for greater transparency. There are different blockchains for different cryptocurrencies. When you perform a transaction you can check its status from start to finish on the blockchain. The blockchain is a trustless system bringing transparency to the financial world.

Become Your Own Bank

Before buying bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency it is important to grasp the concept of being your own bank. This comes with a responsibility to manage your security and privacy.

You need somewhere safe to store your bitcoin for peace of mind. When you use an exchange to buy cryptocurrency it is important not to leave it there as exchanges can be hacked.

There are various types of wallet which can be created seamlessly and quickly. They fall into two broad categories. Hot wallets and cold wallets. A hot wallet is a wallet that remains connected to the internet. 

Exodus would be a common example. Exodus is a wallet you can download to your computer and also has an inbuilt swap feature for several cryptocurrencies, which is very useful. I have this on my computer.

A cold wallet on the other hand is not connected to the internet, a bit like a flash drive. These types of wallets cannot be compromised, and I strongly recommend you buy one and store it in a fireproof safe for obvious reasons. 

The three common cold wallets are ledger, trezor and yubikey. I have the ledger nano S

The other important aspect of opening a wallet is that you will be given private keys in the form of seed words which need to be stored offline ideally in a fireproof safe. They act like unique passwords, with the important exception that if you lose them they are not recoverable like passwords are. Be warned, and store them safely on paper.

How To Buy Cryptocurrency

I will use bitcoin as an example. You can buy bitcoin at an exchange like coinbase, and coinbase also has tutorials to aid your learning. Other popular exchanges are binance and kucoin. You do need to check if the exchange operates in your country as there are variations.

You will usually need to attach bank details or a debit card in order to make a purchase, and if it is a first time, just be aware that your bank may reject the transaction, so you may need to liaise with them to prevent it repeating.

If you want to acquire bitcoin without payment or risk, you can use faucets such as cointiply to get your feet wet, so to speak without risk. This is just one of many faucets. You can also use mining sites such as nicehash but I would be cautious due to the energy it might consume in electricity given the rise in energy prices. 

There are social media sites you can join that give you cryptocurrency for engaging on their site. For example Steemit, and our own Markethive Ecosystem.

In Markethive you can pay for membership in bitcoin, and you can also acquire their own markethive coin just by engaging in the platform through various marketing activities. That could be reading someone else's blog, adding content or referring friends. They have some fun gamification like the wheel of fortune too.

These are just a few simple and safe ways you can get started with cryptocurrency that are low cost or no cost. Welcome to the cryptocurrency world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Effective Ways to Avoid Emotion-Based Investing

Effective Ways to Avoid Emotion-Based Investing

Effective portfolio monitoring is essential for navigating the changing tides of financial markets. Still, it is also necessary for individual investors to manage their behavioral impulses of emotional buying and selling of assets that can come from following the market's ups and downs. It is no secret that emotions play a significant role in investment decisions. This is because humans tend to make decisions based on feelings rather than reason. 

Emotion-based investing is a term that refers to selecting stocks or other investments based on factors such as feelings, emotions, and intuition rather than purely objective analysis. The main reason why emotion-based investing can be dangerous is that it leads investors to make decisions without understanding the consequences of their actions. Emotion-based investors are more likely to react emotionally instead of rationally when making investment choices.

If you want to avoid emotion-based investing, it's essential to learn how to control your emotions and to measure how emotionally invested you are in investment. This is easier said than done, but you can use a few techniques to manage the situation, which will be discussed in this article.

Investor Behavior

Investor behavior is an essential topic of research that has been studied and analyzed for many years. Investor behavior can be broadly categorized into two types:

  • Behavioral finance
  • Financial engineering

Behavioral finance focuses on the psychological factors that influence investment decisions, while financial engineering seeks to use mathematical models and computer simulations to understand how markets work. Behavioral finance considers investor decision-making under uncertainty, which is a critical factor in modern portfolio management. Financial engineers use mathematics to model complex relationships between returns, risk, dividends payouts, stock prices, interest rates, etc.

Recognizing different investor behavior types can help you make more informed investment decisions. Investor behavior is a critical part of successful investing. By understanding different types of investor behavior, you can make informed decisions that will lead to greater returns.

Humanizing Your Investment Decisions

When making investment decisions, we often take into account the potential return on our investment, as well as the potential loss. However, it is often difficult, if not impossible, to divorce ourselves from emotion when making these decisions ultimately. For example, we may feel excitement, fear, or panic when considering a potential investment loss or gain, and this can tilt the scales in favor of an investment that would otherwise be seen as risky.

Image Source Cooperators

We often humanize our investment decisions by attaching emotions, thoughts, and feelings to the different choices we make. We might justify a decision based on how it makes us feel or what it means to us. This tendency can significantly impact our financial decisions because it can lead us to overlook important facts and risks. Our emotional attachments can also distort our judgment about risk-reward relationships, which could result in poor investments.

Time-Tested Theory

The belief that several market participants buy at the top and sell at the bottom has been proven by historical money flow analysis. The analysis looks at the net flow of funds for mutual funds and constantly shows that when markets are hitting highs or lows, buying or selling is at its highest. The notion of a trade cycle has also become accepted as most economic cycles have a 3 to 6-year period where money flows into equities and then flows out for the next ten years or more. 

This theory was first introduced by Benjamin Guggenheim and later popularized by Paul Samuelson, who called it "the efficient market hypothesis" (EMH). Much research has been done on this subject, including work by Eugene Fama, Robert Shiller, Mark Rubinstein, and John Campbell.

While this concept was well known to Wall Street in the 1980s, it's now being applied to individual and institutional investors as we all try to time our investments to make a profit based on price movement rather than fundamentals and timing market tops and bottoms. A Simple strategy that worked over 30 years ago, legendary investor Bruce Kovner described an investment strategy he called "buy and hold."

Image Source Sarwa

It seem like a challenging approach, but it works! His method involves purchasing stocks at low prices and holding them until they rebound. This is a great way to find bargains because the stock market will go up over the long term more than down.

Understand the Benefits of Market Timing

Market timing is an investment technique that predicts the stock market's direction. Market timing has been shown to be a very risky strategy. The main reason why market timing is so dangerous is that it can lead investors to buy high and sell low, which often results in significant losses. There are many reasons why market timers fail: they may incorrectly predict future trends, focus on short-term rather than long-term factors, or make decisions based on emotions rather than sound logic.

There are many benefits to market timing, including:

  • Increased returns
  • Increased profits
  • Better risk management
  • More accurate portfolio allocation
  • Easier investment 

The best time to invest in stocks or other securities is when the market is undervalued. When the market is overvalued, there is a greater chance that a security will appreciate, regardless of the quality of the underlying business. When the market is correctly valued, you can profit by buying undervalued securities and holding them until they reach their actual value.

The key to good market timing is to use a diversified portfolio that includes a wide range of securities. By diversifying your investments, you reduce the risk of panicking and making poor investment choices. By investing in a variety of assets, you can ensure that you are exposed to a variety of markets and will have a chance to capture favorable market trends.

Techniques to Take the Emotion Out of Investing

Investing is a vital part of any person’s life. It can provide security and stability and help achieve financial goals. However, like any other activity or decision-making process, investing comes with its own emotions and concerns that need to be considered when making an investment choice. The emotional component of supporting stems from the fact that investing involves risk and potential gains and losses.

Two things are difficult to cope with emotionally, especially if you have just started on this journey of building wealth for yourself and your family through investing and savings decisions and actions over time. The first thing to understand about the “emotional” aspect of investing is that it has to do more with how we make decisions rather than what we decide to invest in or not since many factors are involved in such decisions.

The second part is understanding how to get rid of them to make informed decisions based on facts and figures, not feelings and biases which can lead to wrong choices or decisions that may come back to haunt you later on in your investment journey (and life).

There are several strategies that investors can use to take the emotion out of investing so that they can make informed decisions based on facts and figures alone. Let’s have a look at some ways to take the emotion out of investing and start investing more effectively and safely.

Be Patient

Image Source Sarwa

When it comes to investing, patience is key to success! I know that seems contradictory but bear with me for a moment. In my experience, when you think about what you can do to improve your financial situation, it is easy to get caught up in trying to solve all your problems today. Rather than focusing on solving them one step at a time over the long term and ensuring that those steps work for you every day of the week, even if they feel small and unimportant, to begin with. The first step towards increasing your financial literacy level is understanding where you currently stand financially and then deciding how you want your finances to be in the future.

Remember the Past

When the market takes a deep dive, remember that this isn't the first time it's happened. The stock market has overcome many obstacles, such as 9/11, the Great Recession, and the market crash of 1987. It is always destined to recover eventually, although a few people might argue that the market hasn't recovered yet, considering the recent decline in stock prices and unemployment rates, which need attention for countries to come back on track economically and socially.

So when a crisis hits like what we're experiencing now, investors need to remember that panic is the worst thing they can do. Inexperienced investors who have only seen a bull market are more prone to become emotionally charged during times of prolonged volatility.

Benjamin Graham, a British-born American economist, professor, and investor, once said, 

"individuals who can not master their emotions are ill-suited from profiting from the investment process."

Consult With an Expert 

Consulting with a financial expert will help you examine the accuracy of your thinking and give you something else you need; which is time. If you can not afford a financial advisor, at least speak to someone before you make an investment decision. That is, as long as they are knowledgeable enough and not panicking. (Of course, some people are both.)

You must choose the right company for you because many investment companies have investment offers that may be suitable for one type of investor but not another, or investors in certain countries but not others. When choosing an investment firm, you need to know which investment types to look out for. Be sure you're willing to accept the risk level if you want to invest your money with them, such as investing through the stock market, putting cash into bank accounts, bonds, certificates of deposit, crypro, or any other investments.

Control Your Risk Aversion

You can control your risk aversion by understanding why you feel the way you do. We all have a fear of losing, which is based on our past experiences. You are likely to have lost lots of money in the past. You remember this pain very well, and it has influenced your current investment behavior. When we are faced with a risk we do not understand, our brain automatically sends a signal to our body to reduce our intake of that risk. We do this by reducing the amount of dopamine which is a neurotransmitter.

To be able to make informed investment decisions, we need to be able to take the emotion out of it. We can do this by breaking the decision down into smaller steps. This is where the technique of breaking down a problem into manageable steps can be of great help. By doing this, we can reduce the fear of Failure and increase our chances of success.

Other things to consider are:

  • Be cautious when investing heavily in shares of any stock
  • Evaluate your comfort zone in taking on risk
  • Draw a personal financial roadmap
  • Evaluate an appropriate mix of investments
  • Cultivate and maintain an emergency fund
  • Consider rebalancing your portfolio occasionally
  • Resist circumstances that can lead to fraud

Develop a System of Investment

There are several benefits to developing a system of investment. One advantage is that an investment system allows you to make prudent decisions concerning your overall financial status. You can adjust your asset allocation as needed to match your risk tolerance and desired return objectives. Furthermore, an investment system allows you to take advantage of compounding returns, resulting in high returns over time.

To create an investment system, you must clearly understand your goals and objectives. You also need to understand your financial situation and risk tolerance clearly. Once you have established these baseline parameters, you can start constructing a system of investment. Many options are available to you, and choosing the appropriate one for your unique circumstances is crucial.

The Bottom Line 

Successfully Investing without emotion is easier said than done, but some key considerations can prevent individual investors from chasing wasted profits or panicking by overselling. Understanding your investment risk is an essential basis for making rational decisions. It is also important to actively understand the market and the forces driving uptrends and downtrends.

The following questions will help you build a solid foundation for investing without emotion:

  • What are your expectations?
  • How do you feel about your past experiences?
  • Do you have any biases that might cloud your ability to make sound decisions?
  • Can you clearly define what constitutes a “win”?
  • Do you believe in luck or miracles?
  • Does your family history affect how you think about money and finance?
  • How much time do you want to spend learning?
  • Are you willing to pay the price in time, effort, and attention required to develop and maintain a disciplined approach to investing?

If you provided unbiased answers to these questions, then it is possible to invest successfully without emotion. While sometimes aggressive and emotional investing can be successful, overall, data shows that following a realistic investment strategy and staying the course despite market volatility often yields the best long-term performance returns.

 

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advise.

 

 

 

 

 

Are You New To Markethive? Do You Want To Start Accumulating Markethive Coin Before The Next Bull Run?

Are You New To Markethive? Do You Want To Start Accumulating Markethive Coin Before The Next Bull Run? 

REFER THREE TO MARKETHIVE TO RECEIVE BONUS AIRDROPS AND ACTIVATE MICROPAYMENTS 

Referral Program For Free Members And Upgraded Associates

As Markethive continues to gain traction with new members joining daily, Markethive is steadfast and in preparation to take a large share of the new Market Network that is the next generation following the social media craze of Web 2.0. Markethive is a Social Market Broadcasting Network. It sounds like a mouthful, and it is!  

Markethive is an all-encompassing platform that has integrated;

  • Social Media (like Facebook, LinkedIn), 
  • SAAS tools (like GoToMeeting, Aweber, Google Apps),
  • Inbound Marketing (like Marketo, Hubspot), 
  • Commerce platforms (like eBay, Freelancers, Amazon) 
  • Digital Media (like Cointelegraph, Bitcoin.com). 

As Markethive’s foundation is Blockchain-driven, it has its consumer coin, currently named Markethive Coin (MHV), but soon to be renamed Hivecoin (HVC – the Ticker Symbol). It is fully integrated into the system and has created an Ecosystem for all Markethive members, free and upgraded Entrepreneurs. 

So Markethive has established its niche as the only Social Market Broadcasting Network with an infinity Airdrop and a system that rewards the users for engaging on the platform and learning how to use it with ongoing, real-time micropayments, otherwise known as a Faucet.

Markethive has the combined power of Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketo, and Amazon, with the real advantage of deriving income within the Markethive system while promoting your business and enjoying the social media interface. 

What If You’re A Free Member?

If you’ve just signed up for Markethive, you will have received your airdrop of Markethive’s Hivecoin (HVC) to your CoinClip. (The airdrop is currently at 500 coins.)

The next thing to do is to refer just 3 of your friends or colleagues to Markethive, which unlocks the Micropayment Faucet, allowing you to receive lifetime rewards of HVC.

So a Free Membership in Markethive allows you to earn coins with every post, process, and function within the system and, like a faucet system, earn micropayments of Markethive Coin. 

Remember, it is not just another payment service provider other Social Media platforms have adopted. You genuinely earn Hivecoin (HVC), and now is a perfect time to accumulate your coins. 

 

Bonus!

Markethive will also reward you with a  bonus of 250 HVC for the first three members you invite to join us. You will receive these coins to your coin clip as soon as they sign up and complete the verification process via SMS code.

Please note: To receive the maximum of 500 MHV bonus airdrop for all subsequent referrals (after the first three), you will need to upgrade to Entrepreneur One.

Markethive Wallet And Coin Exchanges

As the Markethive internal wallet is in the final stages of development, the next step is listing HVC on reputable coin exchanges and allocating an external wallet on the Solana Blockchain to Markethive members. You’ll be able to convert it into the currency of your choice or buy products and services within the Markethive ecosystem. 

After the release of the wallet, Markethive will launch a new offshore company to build its own exchange. Simultaneously, the Markethive Multidimensional Wallet App will be on the table for development. 

Markethive will roll out a schedule to deliver the wallets and administer them in tiers and stages led by the upgraded Entreprepreneurs as the first cab off the rank. 

Thinking About Upgrading To Entrepreneur One?

Upgrading to Entrepreneur One provides many benefits and extra opportunities to monetize your activities and businesses, as defined in this article, and is predominantly an online cottage industry. 

Furthermore, apart from the matching coin bonus of 500 MHV for each person you refer, you will have access to an advanced CMS control panel for your new "associate leads" found in the Friends section. You are essentially building your email list for your email autoresponder and broadcaster within the Markethive SaaS tools portfolio. 

As an Entrepreneur One Upgrade, you are considered an early adopter of Markethive, so ILP shares (Incentivized Loan Program) are included in the net profit revenue of Markethive. 

This is a unique opportunity to create a legacy and reap the rewards only venture capitalists could otherwise enjoy.

To upgrade to Entrepreneur One level, navigate to the home page and click on “Loyalty Programs” displayed in the menu. As displayed in the image above, a pop-up will appear where you will be prompted to follow the steps required.  

You can have more than one subscription, which not only multiplies the assets you receive as an Entrepreneur One associate; you also have the opportunity to onsell the subscription through the upcoming ILP exchange. The Entrepreneur One upgrade will no longer be available from Markethive when the internal wallet is released. 

The Entrepreneur One will become extremely valuable as we introduce more unique money machines, including the Press Release system and video advertising. 
 

The Automated Referral Panel

Using your referral links via the automated referral panel is an easy way to promote Markethive to your friends and colleagues on other social media sites. This will also be incentivized with micropayments soon. 

You will find the automated referral panel on the home page menu named Referral Program. You have two links, as shown in the image below.

1. The top one is the link to your Profile Page or Bio. As explained here, sharing this link is excellent for branding yourself or your business. 

Share your unique Referral Link on your social network profile consistently and quickly receive a lot of referrals! Click on the Social Media buttons, and your Capture page referral link will automatically be included. An assortment of thumbnails (images) will rotate, giving your post a fresh new look every time you share. 
 

The Capture Page 

2. The second link is your Capture page which is incredibly informative with a video and bullet point explanations. It’s intuitive, simple, and captivating. 

 

The Bottom Line

Bottom line, by joining Markethive, you will get a Market Network Inbound Marketing platform worth $2500 per month for free and get “Airdropped” paid up to 500 Markethive coins (HVC) just for joining. 

By referring Markethive to three people only, you activate the micropayment faucet and continue to receive HVC coin payments for the duration of your life within the hive for all activities you perform on the Markethive Platform. 

Since the entire system runs on the Markethive coin, (soon to be named Hivecoin), you can expect the volume demand and increased velocity of the MHV coin to drive coin value accordingly. This is one of the main reasons we refer to our system as a legitimate alternative to universal income, based on ethics and integrity, not government-mandated theft and graft.

Interestingly, the first Faucet invented was the Bitcoin faucet launched by Gavin Andresen, one of the earliest Bitcoin developers, in June 2010. At that time, Bitcoin was about 8 cents. It gave out 5 Bitcoins a day until 2011, when it ran out of coins. 

Markethive has embraced this reward system and applied it to the many marketing and communications aspects within Markethive.  The big what if is; in 10 years, will the Markethive coin have a similar rise in value? No doubt in my mind, given that HVC is a consumer coin with an actual use case, unlike so many other altcoins on the market. Time, technology, and the universal need for a holistic platform such as Markethive are on our side. 

Although crypto is currently in an unprecedented bear market, with many companies collapsing, it is considered by industry experts as a catalyst for emerging genuine projects to flourish. This includes Markethive and its rise to prominence as a pioneer in the social media and marketing sector of the Blockchain and Cryptocurrency space. 

With its comprehensive wallet and member merchant accounts nearing completion, we couldn’t have asked for better timing for Markethive to distinguish itself in the crypto market that is seeing companies rise and fall based on their true worth, as detailed in this article.

ecosystem for entrepreneurs

Meanwhile, get busy and refer three people to unlock the faucet and start accumulating HVC coins. You will enjoy the fruits of the Markethive ecosystem, which is Markethive’s vision for everyone and is destined to achieve. 
 
To follow Markethive’s progress come to the meetings on Sundays at 10 am MST. The founders of Markethive, Thomas and Annette, present all the latest updates and developments. See and hear explanations, ask questions, and witness the ever-evolving technology and concepts of Markethive. The link to the meeting room is located in the Markethive Calendar. See you there.