Image of the day, 2 of August: Forbes, Bloomberg, Fortune and others
We're presenting "the image of the day". Bitnewstoday.com chose only the freshest and 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 of today's stories in most indicative quotes below!
1.CRYPTO-STRALLIA! (Queensland Government)
Ozzies being pro-crypto again.
Australian government once again supports local crypto payment startups. According to officials, this will support the growth of tourism across the country.
This start-up is going to attract more tourists into the central Queensland by selling tours through the internet with crypto as a viable way to pay. This is one of 70 companies that received government grant in 8.3 mln USD.
“Tourism is one of Queensland’s most important industries. TravelbyBit has devised a clever way to make it easier for visitors to our state to pay for their purchases with a growing number of local businesses accepting cryptocurrency payments”, said Innovation Minister Kate Jones.
2. BRITCOIN (Forbes)
Coinbase adds support of the english sterling.
This move is designed to make it easier for Coinbase customers in the UK to deposit and withdraw pound sterling without converting it into Euro. This means that they can forget about transaction fees too.
3. TEACH ME BLOCKCHAIN! (Talk Business)
The University of Arkansas launches Blockchain Center of Excellence to work on industry applications.
UA students will work directly with industry on use cases and research for new applications and at the end of the course center will offer a graduate certificate in blockchain.
“Our vision is to make the Walton College a premier academic leader in advocating for and educating on blockchains,” said Mary Lacity, director of the center.
4. FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED (News Bitcoin)
Korean biggest crypto exchange suspends opening new virtual accounts.
Bithumb has suspended issuing new virtual accounts to crypto traders starting on August 1 after failing to renew the contract with its bank. These accounts are part of the real-name system enforced by the Korean government earlier this year. Only three exchanges in the country are now reportedly able to open new virtual accounts for their customers.
The bank has given Bithumb a one-month grace period. During this time, it will continue to provide deposit and withdrawal services for existing accounts.
5. PURE KINO! (Forbes)
MovieCoin creates a transparent platform for the film industry.
Next-gen financial technology company, MovieCoin, is developing a comprehensive blockchain technology solution consisting of its MovieCoin Platform and a new digital utility token called Moviecoin that can be utilized by consumers for a variety of uses relating to consuming film and other content.
“We think blockchain technology will help bring greater transparency for investors in the business and participants in a production. Right now there’s so much that’s murky when you invest in a movie,” said Christopher Woodrow, renown movie producer.
6. WE DON’T GIVE A 2! (Bloomberg)
Crypto Bulls Pile Into ICOs at Record rates, despite Bitcoin Rout.
This year’s selloff in virtual currencies has done little to dent investor enthusiasm for initial coin offerings, which attracted a record $12 billion in the first half.
Many bulls are hoping for a repeat of the eye-popping ICO returns seen in 2017, many of the blockchain-related projects funded by the offerings are likely to fail, said Lex Sokolin, global director of fintech strategy at Autonomous.
7. Tv-set and mining Rig (SCMP)
A 43-inch television that can double up as a bitcoin mining rig.
Canaan Creative, the world’s second biggest maker of bitcoin mining rigs,announced the start of production of the world’s first bitcoin mining TV-set.Called AvalonMiner Inside, the TV-set has a processing power of 2.8 trillion hashes per second. Its most powerful mining machine can process 11 trillion hashes per second.
Canaan says the Avalon TV is powered by artificial intelligence and has a voice control feature. In addition, the device can calculate bitcoin mining profitability in real time. The earned digital currency can be used to buy entertainment content or physical gifts through Canaan’s platform.
8. ZHAO HAS SPOKEN (Forturne)
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, gave an interview to Fortune.
Here are three insights gathered from CZ during the course of interview. What follows is a loose paraphrasing of his comments.
The Future is Decentralized but Will Take a While to Arrive.
Changpeng said that despite explosion of dApps in the last two years, in reality only a few are using them, because the user interface is unwieldy.
Popular Blockchains Are Under Threat.
CZ thinks none of the current contenders is poised for long-term success because they are too slow, and says that none of blockchain designed for general smart contracts will be swift enough. Instead existing blockchains will cede the field to more specialized ones.
The Cryptocurrency Market is Big Enough to Share.
CZ doesn’t see an Uber-Lyft style fight-to-the-death for market share. Instead CZ says that Coinbase appreciates the groundwork Binance is doing in Malta, while Binance is grateful for Coinbase’s work helping U.S. lawmakers to understand crypto.