Image of The Day, 12 of November: Financial Times, Forbes, Yahoo.Finance and Others
We're presenting "the image of the day". Bitnewstoday.com has chosen the most important news about the digital economy and virtual currencies. Only the most valuable stories from only the trusted sources. Each and every event from this list will change the world of the digital economy either way. The most important stories of this day in the most indicative quotes are below!
1. STRONGER THAN ANY CHAIN (Blokt)
Malaysian government partners want to use blockchain solution to avoid frauds
Malaysia’s ministry of education announced on that it teamed up with a consortium of six universities to launch a blockchain-based system known as e-Scroll to issue and verify the authenticity of university degrees. The initiative was formed as a direct response to the growing number of cases of fraudulent degrees and how the internet is facilitating the growth of the industry. The e-Scroll system is built on top of the NEO blockchain protocol.
According to the Twitter post on Thursday, the ministry of education claimed that the:
“Need for such a secure and robust system has arisen due to the increasing number of fake degrees and how easily they are available on the internet.”
2. ATTACK OF ELONS (The Next Web)
US and Israeli politicians were hacked to promote ‘Elon Musk’ cryptocurrency scams
A verified account belonging to the Australian branch of consulting giant Capgemini has been spotted running malicious giveaway links on Twitter. Posing as Musk, the malicious tweet encouraged users to send small amounts of cryptocurrency for a chance to participate in a 10,000 Bitcoin (nearly over $60 million) giveaway.
Next to the malicious tweet from the Capgemini account, the attackers had also taken over a slew of other verified accounts in order to lend credibility to the original tweet. Among others, the hackers had gained access to the accounts of California state senator Ben Allen and Israeli politician Rachel Azaria.
3. ONE GOOD USE (Financial Times)
Banks find a use for blockchain: cross border payments
Finally banks may have found a problem that blockchain is able to solve now and at scale: cross border currency transfers.
The banking sector has seen years of overhype and experimentation surrounding distributed ledger technology, but one project led by JPMorgan Chase, the Interbank Information Network (IIN), is quietly producing results at scale. The IIN is essentially a more efficient way for participating banks to transfer US dollars across borders and institutions.
4. PROVE IT! (Forbes)
Blockchain still has yet to be proven useful
Cryptocurrencies have failed, and blockchain still has yet to be proven useful. There are two common patterns in technological invention and its subsequent commercialization. The first is a technological breakthrough that sparks interests in commercializing it. The second is an existing demand waiting for a new technology to be invented to meet the need.
The technology of blockchain and its application called Bitcoin, however, came as a single package: digital currency without a central bank, with transactions verified and recorded in a distributed ledger, the blockchain. But now it is abundantly clear that cryptocurrencies have utterly failed in their purported function as money since they don’t fall under any textbook category of the currency. But what with the blockchain itself? Once we unbundle the package of blockchain and cryptocurrency, we are then back to the first pattern of technology commercialization: an invention looking for a viable commercial application. Because blockchain was invented to create Bitcoin, what else can blockchain do on its own is a matter of exploration. As yet, nothing has been proven.
5. TOO LITE (FXStreet)
Litecoin Price Analysis: LTC/USD doesn't have the momentum behind bull move for now
LTC/USD upside momentum continues to be unsustainable for now, as price once again runs into near-term supply area. During the session on Sunday 12th November, upside was seen, printing a high within the mid-$51 region, but sellers pilled in to send price back south.
Technically, the bulls must break above the mentioned resistance, seen from within the mid-$51 region. Should this be breached, it could open the door for a fast return back towards the $55 territory. The price was last seen here on 7th November. A breach of the support seen at the psychological $50 area, could see a fast move south, back down to $47, double bottom area seen 29 and 31st October.
6. IT MAKES IT BIGGER (Yahoo.Finance)
Ethereum co-founder claims that blockchain can add wealth
Bitcoin, the world’s largest digital currency, was last fetching $6,381.71, up 0.6% since Sunday at 5 p.m. Eastern Time on the Kraken exchange. Over the weekend, the price of a single Bitcoin slipped below $6,300 for the first time since Oct. 31.
Speaking at the New York Times Luxury Conference on Monday, Joseph Lubin, the co-founder of Ethereum, said blockchain, the technology that underpins all cryptocurrencies, has the potential to create wealth. “We are going to be more in control of our identity and our agency on these different decentralized networks and I think that’s going to create more wealth... more interest in expressing ourselves, and I think there will be more appetite for luxury than less,” said Lubin.
7. MAKE WAY FOR THE BULLS! (Forbes)
Binance CEO predicts a Bitcoin and crypto 'bull run'
The Bitcoin price has been stuck in a downward trend all year — dragging the wider cryptocurrency market with it. The Bitcoin price is down some 70% from its peak while the likes of other major cryptocurrencies Ripple (XRP) and Ethereum are down around 80%.
But now Changpeng Zhao has said he expects another Bitcoin "bull run" to happen "sooner or later", telling CNBC's Crypto Trader program. "Even if I don’t know what will catalyze a Bitcoin bull run, I am certain it will happen... Sooner or later, something will trigger it."
8. TOUCHED BY THE XCURRENT (Daily Hodl)
xCurrent will let financial institutions ‘seamlessly access’ XRP-powered xRapid
A new document from Ripple shows the company plans to give all of its banks and financial institutions using xCurrent a way to “seamlessly access” the company’s XRP-powered xRapid. The revelation comes straight from a pamphlet Ripple is distributing at the FinTech Festival 2018 in Singapore, which was promptly posted on Twitter.
This essentially means every financial institution on RippleNet — Ripple’s network of banks and payment providers that use Ripple’s technology to process payments — will have seamless access to xRapid, which utilizes XRP to increase the speed and liquidity of cross-border payments. Ripple currently has about 200 banks and financial institutions on RippleNet, including Bank of America, Santander, and Mizuho Financial Group.
9. RAT POISON FOR THE BLOCKCHAIN (The Next Web)
Privacy poisoning might ruin blockchain
You might not have heard of “privacy poisoning” but it is stated to become a big problem for public blockchains (a.k.a permissionless blockchains) in coming years. Unless you’ve had your head under a rock this year, you’ve probably heard about the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations — or GDPR as most call it. GDPR states that users should have the right to control their data, and that companies that process this data should be held accountable if this is prevented in some way.
However, this creates a paradox as public blockchains are supposed to be immutable. The unchangeable nature of data stored “on chain” and the right to control our own data under GDPR simply appear to be irreconcilable. Sadly, as most public blockchains rely on a decentralized and immutable history of records most of them won’t be compliant with GDPR and they risk being “privacy poisoned.”
10. THIS IS THE END (FxStreet)
Bitcoin consolidation about to end
Bitcoin, the poster boy of the cryptocurrency world, has been consolidating in a narrrowing ranges for a long time, which seems to be nearing an end for now as the triangle in which the price was consolidating is nearing its completion.
Next key support of the BTC is placed at $6,242 while resistance is placed at 6,480. Given the earlier trend of the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, chances of BTC breaking lower for the next few weeks, are higher. Bitcoin did breakout on the long term chart, though, but bulls haven't been able to capitalise on the the breakout.