Tag Archives: bitcoin

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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Z Generation And Cryptocurrency

The Z Generation And Cryptocurrency

 

In recent years, we have witnessed the emergence of a new generation, who are often referred to as the “Z Generation.” A generation that has only ever known a world with the Internet. They have grown up in a time of rapid technological development and have been raised with ever-increasing political, social, and economic uncertainty. 

 

They are connected, globally-minded, and innovative; they are a product of their time in many ways. Gen Z is very familiar with technology and has always had access to it, and they do not need to be taught or encouraged to use it. They live their lives through their devices and social media, and many have turned to cryptocurrencies as an alternative investment.

Money And Excitement From The Game. 

The young are not discouraged by the endless crashes from cryptocurrencies, and they see it as a means to accumulate wealth and an investment opportunity. 

 

As 20-year-old Paxton See Tow told the BBC, "All my friends were talking about cryptocurrencies, so one day I decided I could get involved too and see if I could make a living." 

All he needed was a phone, and he was only a few clicks away from thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency purchases.

 

Who Are Gen Z?

Generation Z is a group of people born around the mid-1990s until about 2010. So it grew up in an interconnected world at a time when the Internet was practically everywhere. They are used to playing online games and meeting friends virtually, without physical contact.

This new generation was born into a relatively peaceful time. However, a peaceful childhood is undoubtedly compensated for by the events that take place during their adolescence. Recent developments in the world are proof of this. 

The Black Lives Matter movement in America, the riots in Hong Kong, and the Fridays for Future Movement have spread around the world. All these movements were founded or strongly supported by representatives of the Z generation.

The Economist has described Generation Z as a more educated, well-behaved, stressed, and depressed generation in comparison to previous generations.

From Wikipedia:

Other proposed names for the generation include iGeneration, Homeland Generation, Net Gen, Digital Natives, Neo-Digital Natives, Pluralist Generation, Internet Generation, Centennials, and Post-Millennials.

 

They Are Among The Technologies At Home

The development of technology is undoubtedly an important factor that contributed to the definition of Generation Z. 

In his article Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Marc Prensky describes Generation Z as a digital native, and they are surrounded by technology from birth. According to Prensky (2001), the younger generation "thinks and processes information significantly differently than its predecessors."

The possibility of quick profits has always attracted young people to invest in risky assets. For Generation Z, it is the significant price fluctuations – and the decentralized nature – of digital assets that are pulling. 

Whether they are cryptocurrencies or so-called unmistakable tokens (NFT), however, no one regulates the sector, which means minimal investor protection.

 

 

The trend for young people to trade in cryptocurrencies and NFTs has intensified during the pandemic. 

"The market has gone through extreme price fluctuations. When you have such fluctuations, you have an opportunity in the market," says Lily Fang, a professor of finance at INSEAD Business School. 

"Young people stayed at home, and it became almost a game. All these factors created the perfect conditions for that."

 

The Thrill Of it All

But in addition to financial losses, addiction is also a great danger. Resh Chandran, a financial educator, said, “The cryptocurrency market never sleeps, so people really swallow it up.”

Andy Leach from an addiction clinic in Singapore says he has experienced an increase in addictions to the thrill of trading crypto and NFTs and confirms Chandran’s sentiments, stating, 

“You can watch the bitcoin rise and fall, the whole process, the roller coaster ride, the highs and lows – all on your phone, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.” 

 

Making Money As A Game

But even the stories of people who lost a lot of money on cryptocurrencies do not seem to discourage young traders. Many of them have encountered digital assets for the first time through games that allow them to obtain NFTs or cryptocurrencies and use them within the game itself or exchange them for cash.

"Every child wants to make money playing games," says a 23-year-old Malaysian businessman who is nicknamed YellowPanther. "This is the dream of my generation."

“In the Czech Republic, the number of wallets with cryptocurrencies is estimated at half a million,” says Binance marketing manager Maya Bersheva.

On the opposite side of the globe, research has shown that one in five Australians believes that crypto is the key to homeownership as confidence in traditional savings dwindles. 

A survey conducted by the Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange found that a growing number of young Australians are depressed by traditional investment opportunities. Almost a quarter of respondents expressed concern that the value of money in traditional cash savings is declining.

A similar trend is confirmed by other research showing a change from traditional attitudes towards investment and property. More than a third of millennials view crypto assets as an increasingly valid alternative to an elusive investment property, a new survey finds.

Commissioned by cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, it found that around four million Aussies say they are likely to purchase digital currencies in the next 12 months.

The survey, which was conducted by global researcher YouGov, found 21% of Australians are readying to purchase digital tokens if they hadn’t already, including 34% of millennials and 32% of Gen Z.

According to the survey, young Russians consider cryptocurrencies a safe investment. Due to Western sanctions, which increase the pressure on Russia's economy, young Russians consider cryptocurrencies to be a reliable and profitable investment. According to a recent study on the existence of BTC, two-thirds of Russian citizens know.

 

New Research Shows That 40% Of Young People Want To Use Cryptocurrencies For Payments

Cryptocurrencies are rapidly gaining in attractiveness among younger groups, with 40% of consumers aged 18-35 expressing their intention to use cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, ethereum, and stablecoins to pay for goods or services within the next 12 months.

The report, entitled "Cryptocurrency Demystification: Shedding Light on the Acceptance of Digital Currencies for Payments in 2022," was presented by global payment provider Checkout.com at the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami on April 6. It revealed an increasingly positive trend in accepting cryptocurrencies for online payments.

Although digital currency often pretends to be an investment for young people, they often pay the most for its volatility. The "computer generation" perceives crypto as a game that can be easily and well earned.

 

Thanks for reading

                                   Margaret

 

Source:

https://zpravy.aktualne.cz

https://kryptomagazin.cz

https://medium.com

 

 

 

 

THE PRICE OF BITCOIN

 

     What happens to bitcoin, what is the price, and why did it fall so badly, the answers are multiple but also questions are many.

Bitcoin is the world’s first decentralized cryptocurrency, a type of digital asset that uses public-public key cryptography to record, sign and send transactions over the Bitcoin blockchain all done without the oversight of a central authority. It’s the original and most valuable cryptocurrency by far, despite its huge — and normal swings in recent months, ranging in value from less than $30,000 to more than $60,000. Bitcoin has also seen a lot of new investors, with more than half of all having bought in the past year.

It is also certain that the price now at this moment when I am writing this is $28,320.50, a change of -4.30% over the past 24 hours. The recent price action in Bitcoin left the token’s market capitalization at $539,510,082,593.91 USD. So far this year, Bitcoin has a change of -37.87%. 

The leading crypto Bitcoin is struggling to fully recover after weeks of losses. Bitcoin price crashed below $26,000 in early May amid a broader market sell-off of risky assets but has risen slightly a little many are saying all is because of the struggles and crash of TerraUSD (UST), one of the largest stablecoins, which play a big role in Bitcoin’s recent crash. Stablecoins are intended to bring stability to the crypto markets and have a similar value to hold as close to the U.S. dollar as possible, but the UST dropped below 12 cents in early May and many investors on the market panicked and sold off their coins. The Terra blockchain has officially halted and UST has remained de-pegged from the U.S. dollar since May.

To return to the question posed where will the price of bitcoin go I think no one knows, we can speculate about this, but still, it is good to believe in what bitcoin means for us crypto investors and what benefits it brings to the whole planet in implementing cryptocurrency, how the money transfer is faster and safer and how they eliminate the bank fees and other problems of the Bank system.

So believe in Bitcoin and don't sell wait .

 I believed the bitcoin will come back stronger than ever,in the end, I  want to end with a quote " People give value to things "

 

 

Do you Believe in Market Hive

Do you believe in Markethive, if so now is the time to take action. The price of bitcoin is high at the moment, which means you can agree to loan Markethive money for less bitcoin than ever (ILP).

Markethive ILP’s are nominated in $, so if you have just a small amount of Bitcoin 0.12571 you can sign up for $1,000 ILP. You can also use BCH, ETH,XMR or ZEC.

Remember you loan is secured with a corresponding amount of or own coin MVH, so in fact your investment is changing bitcoin for another cryptocurrency. Additionally, as Markethive starts to earn money as it grows you will start receiving a regular income from profits.

I have already used 50% of my bitcoin holding to set up an ILP, because I believe the future of the company is bright and I have nothing to lose.

David Ogden

Entrepreneur,
 

If you want to follow my lead Click Here 

See you at todays meeting

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

DOES THIS MARKET INDICATOR CONFIRM THE NOVOGRATZ PREDICTED REBOUND?

DOES THIS MARKET INDICATOR CONFIRM THE NOVOGRATZ PREDICTED REBOUND?

DOES THIS MARKET INDICATOR CONFIRM THE NOVOGRATZ PREDICTED REBOUND?

Bitcoin bull and highly cited cryptocurrency proponent Mike Novogratz called “bottom” this week on Twitter. On Friday, Bitcoin’s market performance and key market reversal indicated a possible turning point. What will Monday bring? Is the market still too bearish?

 

BITCOIN COULD HAVE OVERSOLD

According to a Friday report from Bloomberg, a key market sign — the Williams %R Indicator — is showing the market for Bitcoin (BTC) $6517.38 -0.04% has “oversold.”
 

This may portend that the great Bitcoin selloff is finally over. The Williams %R Indicator moves between a level of 0 and -100, showing an overbought or oversold market.
 

According to Bloomberg’s chart below, that measure is sitting at -83. This equates to an oversold market. The last time this level was reached Bitcoin price subsequently rose 22%, says Bloomberg.

NOVOGRATZ FORECASTS BOTTOM AND REBOUND TO EQUAL 2017 BOOM

On September 13, 2018, Mike Novogratz referred to the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index Chart, asserted a low, and likened market performance to “the point of acceleration that led to the massive rally/bubble.” He finished his tweet with the hashtag #callingabottom.
 

PRE-WEEKEND RALLY… WHAT WILL MONDAY BRING?

On the day of Novogratz’ tweet, Bitcoin’s value began at $6337.46 before rising to $6589.32. Over the weekend the price has fallen back, but not too far —$6495.18at the time of writing. Monday and next week’s trading will likely prove or disprove Novogratz and Bloomberg’s theories.

As per Bitcoinist’s analysis today, we could be looking at a slow and steady recovery towards $7000 or it could be an “oversold” bounce. We predict Bitcoin is “well situated” for short-term gains, but could still be victim to a bearish market.

Novogratz isn’t the only confident bull. Tim Draper, speaking at a DealStreetAsia summit in Singapore last week predicted the total market capitalization for cryptocurrencies will reach a whopping $80 trillion by 2023. As of today, Bitcoin is still dominating the cryptocurrency markets, with 55% of the total market capitalization invested in Bitcoin alone.

Bullish or Bearish? Where are your sentiments today? What do you think next week will bring?

 

MELANIE KRAMER | SEP 17, 2018 | 00:00

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Cryptocurrencies Pick Up – Bitcoin Emerges As Safe Haven

Cryptocurrencies Pick Up -  Bitcoin Emerges As Safe Haven

Cryptocurrencies Pick Up – Bitcoin Emerges As Safe Haven

Investing.com – Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies steadied on Thursday morning in Asia after days of plummeting.

Bitcoin rose 2.08% to $6,394.7 at 10:30AM ET (02:30 GMT) on the Bitifinex exchange.

Ethereum climbed 4.29% to $188.72 on the Bitifinex exchange.

XRP/USD also edged up 4.9% to $0.27088 on the Poloniex exchange, while Litecoin rose 3.83% to $52.866 on the Bitifinex exchange.
 

Despite the volatility of recent weeks, Bitcoin’s value has risen 0.1% over the past 30 days, making it something of a safe haven among digital currencies. Ethereum, on the other hand, has slumped about 45% over the past 30 days.

“In this case, Bitcoin is acting like more of a safe haven for cryptocurrencies – it’s kind of consolidating,” said Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at cryptocurrency brokerage eToro.

 

Market Intelligence platform CoinFi’s data revealed that short-sellers are putting pressure on markets as bets against Ethereum is at all-time high.

“Retail investors were completely euphoric a few months ago. Now, that emotion has flipped and they’re panicking. Shorts are going to ride that wave,” said CoinFi CEO Timothy Tam.
 

Chinese Wuhan General Group (China) Inc. is seeking to acquire a former U.S. Department of Defense data center to transform it into a digital currency mine and house 1,200 mining machines there.

“We had planned to build this operation three months ago, but with the bearish cryptocurrency market, we took a step back to reassess our strategy,” said Wuhan Group’s CEO Ramy Kamaneh.

 

On Tuesday, U.S. securities regulator announced tighter measures on companies involved with cryptocurrencies.
 

On Monday, Mexico also took steps to required crypto exchanges and banks offering crypto services in the country to obtain a permit from the Bank of Mexico. Users will also not be allowed to access cryptocurrencies on the same day their accounts are created, under new rules.

 

Assets acquired by crypto beneficiaries need to undergo additional validation checks to prevent money laundering and illicit activities.

 

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Bitcoin rises above 6300 as NY approves dollar-linked digital currencies

Bitcoin rises above $6,300 as NY approves dollar-linked digital currencies

Bitcoin rises above $6,300 as NY approves dollar-linked digital currencies

Bitcoin briefly climbed above $6,300 on Monday after New York state’s Department of Financial Services approved the Gemini Trust Company’s and Paxos Trust Company’s dollar-linked digital currencies, the first stable coins to get the nod from the regulator.

At 9:24am (1324 GMT), the world’s biggest and best known virtual currency was up 0.58% at $6,268.50 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange.

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

BTCUSD consolidates the weekend losses despite Citigroup plans to tap cryptocurrency trading

Bitcoin price analysis - BTC/USD consolidates the weekend losses despite Citigroup plans to tap cryptocurrency trading

Bitcoin price analysis – BTC/USD consolidates the weekend losses despite Citigroup plans to tap cryptocurrency trading

  • Bitcoin has gained 2% since his time yesterday, but the upside is limited.

  • Citigroup has reportedly invented legal way to trade cryptocurrencies.

BTC/USD is changing hands at $6,301 with 2% gains on a daily basis. The coin has partially recovered from the weekends' slump, however, the upside momentum is weak despite some positive news about Citigroup taking cryptos closer to institutional investors.

Citigroup solves the puzzle

Citigroup has developed a new way to get exposure to cryptocurrency market without actually owning the assets, according to Business Insider. The new structure is called Digital Asset Receipt or DAR and it would place digital assets within the regulatory framework, allowing institutions, hedge funds and other big investors to tap this profitable market in a less risky way.

The instrument will work like an American Depository Receipt or ADR, which allows US investors owning foreign stocks that are not traded on US exchanges.

"In this case, the cryptocurrency is held by a custodian and the DAR is issued by Citigroup, the people said. The bank will alert the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp, a Wall Street middleman that provides clearing and settlement services, once it's issued the receipt," a person with knowledge of the plans explained to Business Insider.

Bitcoin's technical picture

On the intra-day basis, BTC/USD is capped by SMA50 (1-hour) at $6,316, followed by SMA100 (1-hour) at $6,373. Once these areas are cleared, the recovery may be extended towards $6,400, though the ultimate bulls' goal is created by 23.6% Fibo retracement at $6,800, strengthened by SMA200 (1-hour).

On the downside, the nearest support comes at $6,116 (September 8 low), followed by critical $6,000.

BTC/USD, 1-hour chart

Tanya Abrosimova

FXStreet

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Bitcoin BTC Price Watch- Nearby Inflection Points to Watch

Bitcoin (BTC) Price Watch- Nearby Inflection Points to Watch

Bitcoin (BTC) Price Watch- Nearby Inflection Points to Watch

Bitcoin Price Key Highlights

  • Bitcoin price continues to crawl higher and is moving closer to completing its double bottom.

  • Once completed, price would need to break past the neckline at $8,400 to confirm a long-term uptrend.

  • Corrections from the climb could find support at the short-term rising trend line that held since last month.

Bitcoin price is slowly moving up to form a double bottom reversal pattern, and a neckline break could lead to more gains.
 

Technical Indicators Signals
 

The 100 SMA is also completing its bullish crossover from the 200 SMA to indicate that the path of least resistance is to the upside. This would mean that the rally is more likely to resume than to reverse. Price is also moving above a rising trend line connecting the lows since mid-August and the moving averages could serve as dynamic support close to this area.

However, RSI is pointing down after recently reaching overbought territory, which means that selling pressure might still return. Similarly stochastic is on the move down so bitcoin price could follow suit while bearish pressure is in play.

Market Factors

In the absence of any major updates lately, bitcoin appears to be taking its cues from the improving sentiment in the industry. More and more analysts are renewing their bullish calls, with one group even predicting that it could reach $33,000 in 2019.

Furthermore, Satis ICO Advisory Research projects that bitcoin price could surge to $96,000 over the next five years then to $143,900 in 10 years. The firm is also bullish on Monero, predicting it will reach $18,000 over the next five years.

On the flip side, it is less optimistic about ethereum and litecoin while being bearish on Ripple, Bitcoin Cash, EOS. The report also wasn’t optimistic on utility tokens either, and this “weeding out” sentiment appears to be more favorable to bitcoin.

 

SARAH JENN | SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 | 4:19 AM

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member

Bitcoin BTC Price Watch – Don’t Miss This Bullish Pullback

 

Bitcoin (BTC) Price Watch – Don’t Miss This Bullish Pullback

Bitcoin Price Key Highlights

  • Bitcoin price is trending higher inside an ascending channel on the 4-hour chart and is testing the top.

  • A pullback to support might be due from here, so as to gather more bullish energy on the climb.

  • The uptrend is likely to resume since the 100 SMA is completing a crossover above the 200 SMA.

Bitcoin price hit resistance at the top of the channel but might be ready to resume the climb on a test of support.

 

Technical Indicators Signals

The 100 SMA is crossing above the longer-term 200 SMA to indicate that the path of least resistance is to the upside. This suggests that the uptrend is more likely to resume than to reverse or that support is more likely to hold than to break.

However, RSI is pointing down to indicate that sellers are trying to regain control from here while buyers take a break. Similarly stochastic is moving south so bitcoin price might follow suit while bearish pressure is in play.

Price could bounce upon hitting support at the Fib levels or the channel bottom, which lines up with the 61.8% level in particular. This also coincides with a former resistance around $7,000, which might also hold as an area of interest.

A larger pullback could last until the swing low just above the moving averages, which might be the line in the sand for any bullish correction.

BTCUSD Chart from TradingView

Bitcoin price does seem to remain support, especially after landing back above the $7,000 major psychological mark that many are watching. Optimism for approval by the SEC in bitcoin ETF applications appears to be keeping bulls present for fear of missing out on a big rally.

Apart from that, many analysts are renewing their bullish calls on this particular cryptocurrency, with Tom Lee even citing that the launch of ethereum futures might wind up positive for bitcoin.

 

Sarah Jenn – NewsBTC – 1 hour ago

Alan Zibluk Markethive Founding Member