Bitcoin Magazine

Crypto Derivatives Volumes Crash 36% to $393 Billion in June, a Low for 2020

07/07/2020 by Idelto Editor

Crypto derivatives trading volumes plunged 36% to $393 billion in June, the lowest they have reached in 2020, according to a new report by Cryptocompare.

The decline may be the result of a lull in investor interest in the instruments during the month in review.

In May, derivatives – contracts signed by at least two people to buy or sell a digital asset at an agreed price in the future – soared to a record high $602 billion, possibly driven by the hype that accompanied Bitcoin’s third halving in that month.

Total spot volumes fell fastest, however, sliding 49% to $643 billion in June from $1.27 trillion the previous month, said the London-based data analytics firm.

The bulk of spot trading happened on exchanges considered by Cryptocompare as low-tier and unregulated, accounting for $466 billion of the volume while top-tier exchanges traded $177 billion.

“Spot volumes have gradually dwindled throughout the month of June, now representing roughly half of the daily volumes seen in the previous month,” notes the report, published July 6.

In June, derivatives share of the cryptocurrency market rose to 37% compared to 32% in May and 27% in April. Cryptocompare said all crypto derivatives exchanges saw large decreases in trading volume last month.

Bitmex reported the biggest decline of 50% to $51.6 billion while the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), which focuses on institutional investors, posted the least decrease, with trading volume dropping 17% to $6.7 billion.

However, Huobi accounted for the largest trade volume of $122.4 billion, down 38% from a month earlier. Okex and Binance followed with $107 billion and $86 billion worth of trades, respectively. Both the exchanges reported volume decline of over 30%. At Deribit, volumes crashed 43% to $8.8 billion.

Institutional options volumes on CME hit a record monthly high of 8,444 contracts traded, up 41% since May. The regulated exchange said futures volumes, as measured by the number of contracts, fell 23% to reach 128,258 in June.

Deribit monthly options volumes tanked 17.8% to about $2.5 billion in June, “but this is less of a decrease than seen on other derivatives exchanges that only offer futures products,” Cryptocompare observed.

What do you think about the declining crypto trading volumes in both the derivatives and spot markets? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Crypto Derivatives Volumes Crash 36% to $393 Billion in June, a Low for 2020 appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Developer Reveals Layer-Two Private Messaging and Payment System on Bitcoin Cash

07/07/2020 by Idelto Editor

On July 4, 2020, the Bitcoin Cash proponent Cain published an interview with the blockchain developer, Shammah Chancellor, about a new project called Stamp Chat. At its basic level, “Stamp is a prototype of a layer-2 private messaging and payment system on Bitcoin Cash. It implements stealth [plus] confidential transactions on top of Bitcoin Cash using layer-2 protocol technologies.”

This week Bitcoin Cash supporters were introduced to a new tool called Stamp, an encrypted message and payment system that leverages the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) chain. The project is being developed by the software programmer Shammah Chancellor, otherwise known as @micropresident.

The project was introduced on Saturday, July 4, 2020, by the Bitcoin Cash proponent Cain (@bchcain) via the read.cash blog. Cain gives a summary of how governments today have the ability to censor our speech online, and our financial lives as well through centralized parties. The BCH enthusiast highlights how our freedom of expression is censored and monitored by the powers that be.

“The fact that we are being monitored limits our freedom of thought and our freedom of expression,” Cain’s interview stressed. “You might think twice about entering something into a search engine, or posting something on Facebook or Twitter. This limits our ability to communicate and explore ideas, and this is why I am so excited by Stamp, the new Bitcoin Cash project being developed by Shammah Chancellor, aka @micropresident.”

Cain’s post further added:

Stamp is still in its early stages and only available on testnet, but the interface already looks polished and many features like group chats and nested messages have already been deployed. According to his Github page: “Stamp is a prototype of a layer-2 private messaging and payment system on Bitcoin Cash. It implements stealth [plus] confidential transactions on top of Bitcoin Cash using layer-2 protocol technologies.

Individuals who are interested in Stamp can check out the Github repository and get more familiar with the project. The Github repo’s disclaimer is a touch different and states: “Stamp is in early alpha development stage. There will be multiple breaking changes from now until a stable release. We default to the Bitcoin Cash testnet as to protect against lost funds.”

Those who are interested in testing the Stamp protocol can do so by accessing the cashweb/stamp/releases section and grabbing test coins from faucet.fullstack.cash.

The Stamp developers who contribute to the project also have a Telegram chat channel as well for people who want to learn more about the project. Shammah Chancellor also describes the Stamp project in great detail during his interview with Cain.

“Stamp is the name of the wallet that uses a number of backend protocols,” the developer explained. “These protocols are a suite called ‘Cashweb,’ with the vision being that everything online is powered by Bitcoin Cash. Fundamentally, Cashweb is powered via standard web technologies: Websockets, JWT tokens, HTTP/2. The idea being to make it easy for non-cryptocurrency developers to integrate with.”

“Cashweb is a [three] tier network,” Shammah Chancellor continued. “The first tier being Bitcoin Cash. The second tier is a ‘keyserver’ network, which is used to look up, in a cryptographically secure way, important information about a Bitcoin Cash address. The third tier is a messaging system (called relay servers) which allows wallets to pass, encrypted, structured messages between them.” The developer concluded:

When you add a contact to a Stamp wallet, it reaches out to a keyserver and requests your contact information. This is then verified, and used to determine which relay server they accept messages on. Once your wallet has this information, it can start exchanging structured, encrypted, messages between itself and another user.

Cryptocurrency supporters who are interested in reading the rest of the interview between Cain and Shammah Chancellor can follow this link here that stems from the read.cash blog.

On the Reddit forum r/btc, BCH proponents seemed pleased with the announcement and some people contributed to the development funding. “Looks promising,” an individual wrote on Reddit. “I sent a bit of funding. Good luck with it.”

What do you think about the Stamp project built on the Bitcoin Cash network? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

The post Developer Reveals Layer-Two Private Messaging and Payment System on Bitcoin Cash appeared first on Bitcoin News.

European Blockchain Ecosystem Needs €350 Million for the Next 18 Months

07/07/2020 by Idelto Editor

A study report by Leadblock Partners, an appointed representative of Sapia Partners LLP, finds an accelerating growth of the European blockchain ecosystem.

The findings of the Leadblock Partners study suggest European respondents have a funding need for €350 million for the next 18 months.

The European Enterprise Blockchain start-up ecosystem is mainly composed of early-stage start-ups at the pre-seed to series A-stages.

About 60% of surveyed start-ups are now generating revenues, and of which 33% are generating €250k of recurring revenues.

The study notes that improving performance is due to the technology recently reaching sufficient maturity. The transitioning from proof-of-concepts (PoCs) and pilot projects to production mode is cited as another factor.

Nevertheless, Leadblock says the United States still leads. The country has $2 billion worth of assets under management (AUM) compared to Europe’s $100 million.

In the report, Leadblock offers some insights as to why half of the global funding for blockchain start-ups is going to the United States.

“We found that one of the key reasons is that blockchain venture capital funds lack AUM in Europe, with US funds having raised at least 20x more capital. U.S. startups typically raise 4x more,” the report affirms.

Another key observation from the findings is the fact that “most investors are not familiar with blockchain technology.

The average investor is not familiar with blockchain technology, its applications, and its benefits.

The knowledge gap is apparent as many investors do not “differentiate between blockchain from cryptocurrencies and its associated negative perceptions.”

Despite these findings, Leadblock still believes that as investors continue to learn about blockchain concepts “we expect to see increasing investments.”

Leadblock also remarks that the blockchain “is a strategic technology that should be seized across Europe.”

A member of the French National Assembly participating in the study, Jean-Michel shared Leadblock’s sentiments on the importance of the technology.

Jean-Michel, who is keen to see greater adoption of the technology, tells interviewers of his vision for the continents’ blockchain space, which he says is evolving.

Jean-Michel wants Europe to become “a leading player in the blockchain industry and impose its own standards.”

The French politician is optimistic about the technology’s prospects. He cites the use of blockchain already “in real estate, mass distribution, food, energy and even in some political votes.”

The thriving global enterprise blockchain start-up ecosystem is growing rapidly (500+/year). The growth is fuelled by two main drivers, new start-ups created every year, and existing bank-to-bank (B2B) start-ups adding a blockchain layer to their existing software solutions.

What do you think about the European blockchain ecosystem needing €350 million? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

The post European Blockchain Ecosystem Needs €350 Million for the Next 18 Months appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Video: How To Install MyNode on Your Old Casa Node

06/07/2020 by Idelto Editor

Bitcoiners attempting to do their part to secure the network, and run their own full nodes that fully validate transactions and blocks, often turn to hardware and software solutions provided by a range of groups. But those who were leveraging node hardware provided by Casa are now in search of a new solution.

Casa no longer supports its node hardware with ongoing updates, leaving plenty of Bitcoiners wondering how they can keep an updated full Bitcoin node running on their old Casa Node hardware. In the video above, Bitcoin Magazine’s Nik Hoffman recommends installing MyNode on existing Casa Node hardware to continue contributing to the Bitcoin network.

To help, he provides a step-by-step tutorial on how to do so along with a visual walkthrough. Basic steps include:

Unplugging your node hardware
Opening the hardware and removing the microSD card inside
Plugging the microSD card into your computer
Visiting MyNode’s website and following the steps listed to install its software onto the microSD card
Reinserting the microSD card into the Casa Node hardware
Plugging the device back into its power source, router, etc.
Visiting MyNode.Local to complete the onboarding process and return to securing the Bitcoin network

Of course, the video tutorial above provides much more detail and a visual walkthrough for those looking to keep their Casa Node running. Be sure to watch it and subscribe to Bitcoin Magazine’s YouTube page for more helpful Bitcoiner walkthroughs.

The post Video: How To Install MyNode on Your Old Casa Node appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

The Tokenized Metaverse: Non-Fungible Token Sales to Surpass $100 Million

06/07/2020 by Idelto Editor

On July 1, 2020, the partner of Polynexus Capital, Andrew Steinwold, detailed that the sales of blockchain-powered non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are about to cross the $100 million mark. The popularity of NFTs has grown massive since 2017, as blockchain cards, collectibles, digital artwork, virtual land parcels, and extensible virtual game items have become all the rage.

Blockchain-Fueled Non-Fungible Token Assets Close to $100M in Sales

Andrew Steinwold the managing partner at Polynexus Capital is a big believer in non-fungible token (NFT) solutions built using blockchain technology. NFTs have been around for years and the first mention of NFT technology stemmed from the Mastercoin white paper in 2012. Over the years, news.Bitcoin.com has reported on a number of blockchain projects that leverage NFT solutions like Counterparty’s Rare Pepe trading cards, Spells of Genesis cards, Cryptokitties, extensible game items and rewards, and many more unique concepts.

Decentraland where NFT-based parcels of land and extensible items are sold.

In a recent post written on the blog called “Bankless,” Steinwold notes that the NFT sales have amassed close to a $100 million worth of lifetime trade volume. The data stems from the web portal nonfungible.com, which gives a comprehensive overview of the NFT ecosystem. Steinwold thinks that the $100 million mark is just the start of the NFT evolution and the economy will grow much bigger going forward. “I believe NFTs will be a trillion-dollar market someday,” Steinwold stressed. “That means $999.9 billion in future opportunities. We’re just .01% of the way in.” Steinwold added:

We’ve talked about redemption NFTs in the past. We’ve learned about NFTs across gaming, art, culture, collectibles, and domains. But we’ve never zoomed out to look at the market as a whole. What are the categories? collectibles, gaming, worlds, art, culture. Which categories are winning? Volumes, value, [and] projects.

Nonfungible.com stats show that as of July 5, 2020, the total sales of NFTs is around $96.1 million so far.

Close to 20,000 Opensea Wallets and $2.5M in Monthly NFT Trade Volume

Steinwold’s data shows there are 18,552 wallets on Opensea and there is $2.5 million in global NFT trade volume on a monthly basis. As of June 5, 2020, the total lifetime trade volume of NFTs is around $96.1 million so far. The average price is around $20.90 per NFT according to nonfungible.com and Steinwold’s statistics.

The NFT projects n0wear and cryptopunks.

“With December 2017 as our starting point, the NFT market has only been around for ~2.5 years, an extremely small amount of time compared to bitcoin (11 years) or traditional markets (hundreds of years),” Steinwold highlighted. “While monthly trade volumes are low at roughly $2M per month, the NFT market has seen a steady increase over time.” Steinwold says the aforementioned data shows just how early it is when it comes to NFT technology.

“The above stats show just how early we are in a market that one day could be worth trillions of dollars — Of course, that trillion-dollar figure will only be reached once there’s a functioning metaverse, but I strongly believe we are headed in that direction,” Steinwold said. The Polynexus Capital partner further stated:

Perhaps the most shocking statistic is the number of wallets on Opensea: about 18,500 wallets have either purchased or sold an NFT. Since Opensea is the dominant NFT marketplace, this metric should give us a rough indication of the current number of NFT users overall.

Some of the projects Steinwold mentions include NFT ideas like Cryptopunks, Cryptokitties, Avastars, Gods Unchained, Axie Infinity, My Crypto Heroes, Crypto Space Commanders, Decentraland, Cryptovoxels, Somnium Space, The Sandbox, Async Art, Superrare, Nifty Gateway, Knownorigin, Makersplace, n0wear, Zora, and Foundation. Steinwold also mentions the possibilities of “ticketing for events, property titles, [and] digital identity” concepts.

Rare pepe and Spells of Genesis trading cards were one of the earliest versions of colorful and artistic versions of NFT technology.

A number of blockchains provide NFT technology but the most dominant is Ethereum by a long shot. Other blockchains like Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) can also be leveraged to created NFTs. In August 2019, the Simple Ledger Protocol (SLP) developer, James Cramer, announced the launch of the Electron Cash SLP version 3.5, which allowed the creation of non-fungible tokens that can be grouped together by a single ID. News.Bitcoin.com has published a step-by-step walkthrough on how to create non-fungible assets and collectible tokens with Bitcoin Cash.

The Growth of the Metaverse Is a Very Big Deal

Moreover, Forbes published an editorial on the coming of the metaverse on July 5 and exclaimed that “it’s a very big deal.” Columnist Cathy Hackl writes that today’s foundations concerning the metaverse are being built as we speak.

“Today, the metaverse is a shared virtual space where people are represented by digital avatars (think Ready Player One),” Hackl writes. She adds:

The virtual world constantly grows and evolves based on the decisions and actions of the society within it. Eventually, people will be able to enter the metaverse, completely virtually (i.e. with virtual reality) or interact with parts of it in their physical space with the help of augmented and mixed reality.

NFTs are going to be a big part of this growth according to Steinwold, and the innovations are just getting started. “When comparing these physical uses to gamers doing some new behavior in a virtual environment, the pace of innovation is often much higher in the digital world,” Steinwold’s observation concludes. “Going forward, I expect more differentiated NFT categories to arise and NFT market activity to increase dramatically.”

What do you think about the non-fungible token economy sales coming close to reaching $100 million so far? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

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