Over the past few months,

the Japanese Bitcoin exchange market led an upward momentum for the global Bitcoin exchange market, continuously pushing Bitcoin price to new highs. In a period of 30 days, Bitcoin price increased from $1,200 to $1,760, recording a 32 percent monthly increase in value. Cointelegraph particularly provided extensive coverage of the Japanese exchange market’s overwhelming performance and influence over the global exchange. The demand toward Bitcoin in Japan significantly increased following the legalization of Bitcoin and the acceptance of Bitcoin payments by the country’s single most influential electronics retailer Bic Camera. Also, some of the largest multi-billion dollar corporations have announced the launch of their independent Bitcoin and digital currency exchanges.

Absence of fees raises concerns

One criticism over Bitcoin’s recent price surge has been the absence of fees in the Japanese Bitcoin exchange market. Some analysts suspected that the Japanese exchange market’s decision to exclude fees could have a similar effect the Chinese Bitcoin exchange had on the global exchange market. In an interview, Japan’s two largest Bitcoin exchanges QUOINE and BitFlyer clarified that the Japanese Bitcoin exchange market does in fact have fees in place. Yuzo Kano, the CEO of BitFlyer, the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange which controls over 67 percent of the Japanese Bitcoin exchange market share

stated:

“We charge trading fees for BTC and ‘swap point’ for FX. So it’s a different situation from China before this January. We are seeing funds inflowing not only to BTC but also all crypto markets.”

Mike Kayamori, CEO of QUOINE, which also controls around 10 percent of the Japanese Bitcoin exchange market share further emphasized that fees are charged for all traders other than spot trading of BTC/JPY. Thus, the claims of analysts that there currently is instability in Bitcoin price due to the low fees or absence of fees on Japanese Bitcoin exchange market are false.

Kayamori says:

“At QUOINE, we are charging fees on all trades other than spot trading of BTC/JPY. Every other currency pair, as well as margin trading, there is a fee. And our spreads are quite large, hence our volume is actually lower in April/May than it was March.”

Bitcoin as an alternative investment

Jon Southurst, a journalist based in Tokyo, noted that high profile and institutional investors along with casual traders are seeking out for alternative investments such as Bitcoin due to the government’s quantitative easing practice. On April 24, Cointelegraph reported that Bitcoin price could surge as the Japanese government moved on to print massive amounts of cash. At the time, Holger Zschaepitz, the senior editor of the financial desk and market maniac at

Welt, stated:

“For such reasons, it can be concluded that the current surge in Bitcoin price and the rising demand toward Bitcoin in Japan are well supported and justified.”

As the 24-hour transaction volume of the top digital currency Bitcoin

reached a historical high of $1.3 bln this week, the days of altcoins that solve no substantial problem may soon be over – or tested to a point of failure. The rising Bitcoin price which seldom reflects negatively on most alternative currencies is going to tell on their success. For those who have noticed, the more Bitcoin rises, the lowermost altcoins go – even the super altcoins. This could be as a result of the established fact that one has to buy Bitcoin to get into altcoins and vice versa to opt out. Or it could be as a result of a reduced confidence in what some – if not most – of these altcoins have to offer. There are also words of some being scams and others being clones of another or serving the same purpose with another.

Time for altcoins show what they are worth

Whatever is the case of every altcoin, what they really stand for would be tested in due course unless the rise of Bitcoin gets stalled. Their existence could be affected negatively unless they evolve to be a true representation of their initial ideas and market more to show off their achievements. New ideas are popping up every day and some would definitely become obsolete. The thought that the market decides really needs to be given consideration now especially as there is a growing notion that an altcoin bubble is in the making and it could pop at some point. Bitcoin’s rise is setting a standard that altcoins need to rise up to so as to wax stronger as well.

Bitcoin’s superiority

The reality of each and every passing year that Bitcoin has survived without being crushed to the ground- some investors report huge returns on their investments along the way- is sinking into the minds of more people. The confidence level in the currency has risen and new users are coming into the cryptocurrency world. It’s truly decentralized nature also makes its extremely difficult for its protocol to be changed by anyone or some developers unlike it’s the case with some altcoins – a good side to the SegWit/scalability standoff. Now aiming for the $2,000 price tag, the Bitcoin scarcity factor seems to be kicking in and pushing for demands that increase its value – remember last year’s block reward halving. It throws a greater challenge to altcoins and their need to brace up for what could be coming.

From one first to the next,

Japan will soon offer Bitcoin users fixed term deposits with interest. The Financial Services Agency has yet to push for regulation as it watches from the sidelines of what could seriously challenge the traditional banks fixed term deposits. Asian Nikkei reports that digital currency users and traders will soon be able to earn interest from the exchange. This fixed deposit interest accruing account is the first of its kind being made available in Japan.

Four fixed deposit options

Coincheck, founded by Koichiro Wada and Yusuke Otsuka has operated as an exchange since 2014 exchanging up to $160 mln worth of transactions per month. Its track record helps build credibility for clients interested in the interest accruing accounts that will be rolled out. The company will roll out four fixed deposit options. A 14-day option with a one percent annual interest accrual, 30-day option with a two percent annual accrual and a 90-day option with three annual percent interest. The longest time deposit and highest interest accrual will be for a 12 month fixed deposit netting five percent interest gain. This can prove a popular option as traditional banks in Japan moved their interest rates to 0.00 percent earlier this year.

Impact on demand for Bitcoin

Japan’s Financial Services Agency declared that the deposits are exempt from banking regulations as Bitcoin is not yet legal tender. There is speculation that they might change their stance on regulation if Bitcoin becomes a widespread method of payment. With multiple parties applying for exchange licenses to operate in Japan, it is likely that competing exchanges will offer the same value-added benefit to their customers. The scaling adoption of Bitcoin as a means of payment in physical stores drove up the price of the currency to record highs. If digital currency deposits succeed as fixed deposit accounts, there is no doubt that the demand will rise even further.

Now that the Litecoin price is hovering at around $30

– as the Lightning Network, expected to make transactions faster on the network, is set to kick off in about two days – is it time for the digital currency, dubbed as the silver to Bitcoin’s gold, to aim for the $50 goal? As it stands, its market cap has crossed the $1 bln mark to join the three other major networks – Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple –

In the category.

"This is a huge plus for the currency which just got listed on top Korean cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb. This comes in the wake of its addition on the Coinbase platform also last week."

If Litecoin succeeds with the SegWit activation and LN implementation – considering that Bitcoin has not been able to reach this far in terms of its scalability issue – it would definitely reflect in LTC price in the coming days. As such, wallet providers and other major users are expected to deploy SegWit-enabled apps.

"Litecoin’s Charlie Lee also confirms that Bitcoin Core developers have been working with his network on Confidential Transactions (CT) and Merkelized Abstract Syntax Trees (MAST)."

As it is expected to take the first mover advantage as one of the first to activate SegWit, all eyes would be on Litecoin and what it has to offer in terms of making transaction confirmation quicker. This will continue to be the case for as long as Litecoin serves as a relief to any transaction issues that are usually associated with Bitcoin. This will make it easier to send money from a point to another instantly and for less.

Upgrade important

The current issue of transaction delays on the Bitcoin network and rising transaction fees now seem stuck at the moment and some say it is no longer seen as an incentive to encourage new users to switch from fiat. Though not the first and only network to be working on activating SegWit, the upgrade is important for Litecoin because it is one of those networks with the oldest Blockchain beside Bitcoin. It also has an identical code to that of Bitcoin. However, despite the forward-looking consideration of how Litecoin is going to benefit users, we are yet to see it proven that people in the market really need what it has to offer. The debate on whether there is demand for its use continues.

Bitcoin is beginning to seem like a viable currency,

especially since reaching the $2,000 mark. Major setbacks, such as the loss of $480 mln due to Mt. Gox’s neglectful management of Bitcoins, have caused the cryptocurrency to plummet in the past. Slowly but surely, the first-ever Blockchain currency has climbed back.

Presently, Bitcoin is performing better than it ever has. Early in 2017, Bitcoin price hit historic highs, surpassing the value of gold. Nearly a decade after Bitcoin’s quiet release, dozens of copycat currencies have arisen. Utilizing Blockchain, a public database or ledger that records transactions involving encrypted keys, developers are vying to improve the original digital currency. A few, namely Ripple and Ethereum, have proved to be exceptional competitors. Indeed, the Ethereum Enterprise Alliance was formed by “Fortune 500 enterprises, startups, academics, and technology vendors” to establish standard practices for the use of the platform/currency hybrid

“at the speed of business.”

You may shy away from joining speculators on the ups and downs of the cryptocurrency markets. However, there are a few strong cases for investment.

Here are three reasons to consider investing in cryptocurrency:

Bitcoin is experiencing massive growth

By far the most popular digital currency is the progenitor of Blockchain technology. Bitcoin owns the lion’s share of the emerging market. Its trading volume is much larger than any other competing currency and its valuation is many times more than the second cryptocurrency of choice, Ethereum. Wider adoption and regular mainstream coverage have elevated Bitcoin from an intriguing security experiment to a possible real-world asset. Additionally, Bitcoin’s exponential growth may portend good things for Blockchain currency in general. After a few major cases of theft for both Bitcoin and Ethereum, trust in the currency seems to be rebounding. Some believe the cryptocurrency is a bubble about to burst, but contentious political and economic conditions could push the price up even further.

Ethereum is gaining traction

Ethereum is the silver to Bitcoin’s gold.

Although it currently sits at under $100 a unit, it’s the most viable alternative to the dominant cryptocurrency. In fact, the competing form of cash was crafted by one of Bitcoin’s co-founders.

Ethereum is both a platform that allows for the creation of decentralized applications and a currency. The currency, Ether, fuels the platform. Its incorporation of smart contracts, which allow for anonymous agreements on the Blockchain, spawned the DAO (decentralized autonomous organization). The currency is more flexible for developers and has attracted major tech players, such as Intel and Microsoft.

It may see friendly regulation

The anonymity and lack of oversight concomitant with decentralized currency create opportunities for abuse. Certain alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins), ones that enforce private transactions and anonymous transfers, such as Zcash and Monero, have been used extensively by criminal organizations. Although altcoins like Monero have increased in value due to acceptance from darknet users, this illicit usage of cryptocurrency has dealt damage to overall adoption rates.

Thankfully, we may see tighter regulations. Ethereum famously experienced a massive theft of $53 mln in Ether due to an exploit in a smart contract. Theoretically, the Ethereum Blockchain is immutable. The community voted to override this “immutability” in order to return stolen funds. Further, in 2013, a representative for the Bitcoin Foundation told US regulators that they would be open to transparent rulemaking. According to MarketWatch, digital currency advocates are pushing for

more regulation.

With recent interests from Japan and Russia to legitimize Bitcoin, these rules and regulations could help further cryptocurrency as a legitimate finance asset.

Diversify

Blockchain technology has the capability to change everything. The currencies running on the distributed ledger model could revolutionize how we interact with all forms of liquidity. While it is unlikely that fiat currency will be subsumed or overtaken by the digital mint, it’s quite possible that these currencies will see greater integration with our current systems.

At the very least, cryptocurrency is seeing a meteoric rise in the short-term. What the future holds for digital currency is uncertain. Currently, there is a cautious sort of endorsement for Bitcoin and Ethereum. Some speculators are pouring their cash into speedier alternatives, such as Litecoin and Dash. Still, most remain hesitant about moving their assets into an unbacked,

unregulated currency.

Although the Bitcoin ETF was recently shot down by the SEC, there is still plenty of reason to diversify your portfolio with a small investment in decentralized digital currency. As time has worn on, cryptocurrency has steadily risen in price and has experienced wider adoption.

To be sure, there has also been a great deal of volatility concomitant with Bitcoin’s rise. Valuation specialists continue to have trouble pinpointing the exact value of the currency itself and sentiment can vary wildly. Still, market capitalizations continue to grow. If you are able to steel yourself against booms and busts, you may profit from cautious investment. Continue to do your due diligence. If you remain uncertain, consider consulting a financial analyst. Remember to monitor updates, vigilantly investigating changes in sentiment. As always, be prepared to lose any amount you put into a speculative investment. Dedicating yourself to mindful investing will undoubtedly lead to the best result – especially in a market as volatile as the cryptocurrency market.

Chuck Reynolds
Contributor
Please click either Link to Learn more about – Bitcoin.

The first two-quarters of the year 2017

have seen the crypto industry experience a massive growth in awareness and adoption. From a perspective of economics, the high demand for Blockchain products, whether for preliminary investigations or systematic adoption has automatically generated an influx of capital which consequently reflects the value of the tokens of these Blockchains. The growing Blockchain partnerships offers an explanation for the significant increase in market capitalization of various cryptocurrencies and the consequent surge in Bitcoin price and several top altcoins.

Partnership is key to adoption

One of the major ways being observed for the enhancement and adoption of the Blockchain technology is through partnerships with existing conventional companies. Recently, Ripple experienced a significant surge in value and market capitalization. This is perceived to be as a result of the establishment of a collaborative project amongst banks in the Japanese Consortium for cross-border and domestic payments. Another example of partnerships that have significantly impacted on the market capitalization and overall value of the Blockchain technology is the implementation of a partnership-based strategy by Ethereum with the launch of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance earlier this year. A partnership which attracts large-scale conglomerates like JPMorgan.

Another emerging collaboration

With several more partnerships expected, PwC Greater China Chairman, Raymund Chao believes that such partnerships are essential for robust execution in the present day business environment.

Chao says:

“Embracing advanced technology for growth becomes the top priority for many business sectors. Innovative applications and solutions could improve the effectiveness of supply chain, brand reputation, and even customer experience.”

Chao’s comment comes in the event of yet another partnership within the Blockchain industry. A partnership that sees business solutions company, PwC make its first Blockchain investment by adopting BitSE’s VeChain, a Blockchain-based anti-counterfeit and supply chain company out of China, with the aim of accelerating Blockchain adoption in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.

More partnerships to come

The impact of Blockchain adoption through partnerships by conventional entities has become very significant. As the industry grows and tending towards reasonable global adoption, more partnerships are expected. The direct consequence of such development is increased demand for the technology, which directly implies a surge in market capitalization and subsequent rise in the value of associated cryptocurrencies.

Chuck Reynolds
Contributor
Please click either Link to Learn more about – Bitcoin.

Wonders shall never end in Cryptoland!

On Sunday Cointelegraph predicted that it is going to be hot at the top 10 on CoinMarketCap this week. Truly less than 24 hours, on the early mornings on Monday, Ethereum Classic flew so much to make an upward adjustment of 31.46 percent.

ETC conquers Dash

In the process, ETC knocked down Dash to take over as the sixth most valuable cryptocurrency in the world. Nothing surprises anyone anymore in this ecosystem when it comes to the growth of altcoin. Just when everyone thought the battle between Dash and Ethereum Classic is over and that Dash has conquered, the latter has called it a bluff. This brings ETC's market capitalization to almost $900 mln and a market price of $9.72. The gap between it and the pacesetter of decentralized community governance is over $170 mln and even two steps behind.

A couple of weeks ago Cointelegraph spoke to Carlo Vicari of Ethereum Classic about its current impressive growth and he was really optimist of the future. He revealed how the Ethereum Classic community is bulging with newcomers. Looks like ETC is gunning for the top to get off his senior brother, Ethereum out of the way, even though it looks unfeasible at the interim. But then again, altcoin growth is like we are in wonderland.

Ethereum takes back number two

Moreso in a classic move Ethereum has regained the number two position from Ripple deepening the gap between them to more than $3 bln. It was with such great improvement of over 36 percentage point of growth. Its market price is now an admirable $174.81. As Cointelegraph predicted, the battle between the two is not yet over, and this was informed by how the two are all well-patronised utility. Whether Ripple can make another come back to the number two spot is just another interesting trend to be on the look out for in this space.

Bytecoin is biting

Yet still, the most intriguing development is Bytecoin that was firmly rooted on the tenth rank rising all of a sudden to the seventh position overnight. It made a casualty of Dash and Stellar Lumens and is now behind Ethereum Classic. On Sunday Cointelegraph asked whether Bytecoin has come to the elite echelons to stay or just one of those flash in a pan you see with altcoin. It appears they are proving it is not a fluke at all. The adjustment is unbelievably impressive! A 61.76 percent gain to knock out two strong cryptos tells you they mean business. Anyway, it doesn't look well for Monero at this stage. It's now sitting at number 10 with Dogecoin barking to push it away. For a few months now Cointelegraph has been referring to it as ‘gradually declining' Monero.

Chuck Reynolds
Contributor
Please click either Link to Learn more about – Bitcoin.