cryptocurrency

Leading Swiss Stock Exchange Now Offers 12 Crypto Exchange-Traded Products

25/01/2020 by Idelto Editor

Switzerland’s principal stock exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange, now has 12 cryptocurrency exchange-traded products listed. The latest addition, the 21shares Short Bitcoin, allows investors to profit from falling prices of the digital currency. Other listed crypto products include those that track the price movements of BCH, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, and tezos.

Also read: Regulatory Roundup — New US Crypto Tax Bill, Central Banks Join Forces on Digital Currencies

Newest Addition: An Inverse Product

SIX Swiss Exchange has listed an inverse bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) issued by fintech company Amun AG. The company announced on Thursday that this product “is the first short or inverse product of its kind using a digital asset as the underlying for an ETP structure.”

The product “tracks the opposite performance of bitcoin to give investors an easy, cost-effective and convenient way to gain exposure in both directions of the bitcoin price movements,” the company detailed. It is “designed to enable investors to profit from falling adverse price movements of bitcoin.” According to the announcement:

The 21shares Short Bitcoin ETP (Ticker: SBTC) seeks to provide a -1x return to the performance of bitcoin for a single day. This product obtains short exposure through borrowing bitcoin and simultaneously selling it on an execution platform.

Leading Swiss Stock Exchange Offers 12 Crypto Exchange-Traded Products With One That Shorts Bitcoin — The above chart reflects the value of a $100 investment at the inception of the ETP, as of Dec. 31, with 2.5% per annum fee deducted. Returns shown are for illustrative purposes only and do not reflect any transaction costs or expenses. Source: Amun AG.

According to SIX Swiss Exchange’s website, the 21shares Short Bitcoin ETP started trading on Jan. 22. It is rebalanced daily, resetting at the end of each day, and its performance is not rolled over.

12 ETPs Listed on Leading Swiss Stock Exchange

SIX Swiss Exchange has a range of crypto ETPs listed. The first one was the Amun Crypto Basket Index ETP in USD, which began trading on Nov. 21, 2018.

The exchange then listed 10 more ETPs in 2019, nine of which were issued by Amun. They are Crypto Basket Index, Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Bitcoin Cash, Binance, Tezos, Bitcoin Suisse Index, Bitwise 10, and Sygnum Platform Winners Index — all trade in USD, except the Amun Bitcoin Suisse Index which trades in CHF. The 10th ETP launched on SIX Swiss Exchange last year was Wisdomtree Bitcoin in USD.

This year, besides the aforementioned inverse bitcoin ETP, the leading Swiss stock exchange began offering several existing Amun ETPs in additional currencies. On Jan. 7, the Amun Bitcoin ETP and the Amun Ethereum ETP started trading in both CHF and EUR in addition to USD. On the same day, the Amun Crypto Basket Index ETP started trading in EUR, with the Amun Crypto Basket Index as the underlying investment. According to Amun, all of its crypto ETPs are listed on SIX Swiss Exchange, BX Swiss and Boerse Stuttgart in CHF, USD and EUR.

Amun further explained in its Thursday announcement that “21shares” now represents the new name of all ETPs it issues. The 11 existing ones will be migrated over to the new brand during the second quarter of this year. Moreover, the company’s base prospectus for exchange-traded products has recently been approved by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority.

What do you think of all the cryptocurrency ETPs listed on SIX Swiss Exchange? Would you invest in the new inverse bitcoin ETP? Let us know in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Amun AG.

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Iran Issues More Than 1,000 Cryptocurrency Mining Licenses

25/01/2020 by Idelto Editor

Iran Has Issued More Than 1,000 Licenses for Cryptocurrency Mining

The Iranian government has reportedly issued more than 1,000 licenses for cryptocurrency mining since it began regulating the industry. A number of large mining farms have set up in the country, but high electricity tariffs have kept many small investors away.

Also read: Regulatory Roundup — New US Crypto Tax Bill, Central Banks Join Forces on Digital Currencies

1,000+ Licenses Granted to Miners

An official with Iran’s ICT Guild Organization, Amir Hossein Saeedi Naeini, has revealed the state of the country’s cryptocurrency mining industry, the Financial Tribune reported Friday. In an interview with Ibena publication, he said that cryptocurrency mining is a new industry but many people have been attracted to it in Iran. Noting that miners need to obtain a license, he shared:

The Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade has issued more than 1,000 licenses for cryptocurrency mining in the country.

The official further elaborated, “Our studies show that the crypto mining industry has the potential to add $8.5 billion to the economy,” the news outlet detailed.

Major Challenge – Electricity Cost

Amir Hossein Saeedi Naeini believes that the cryptocurrency mining industry has the potential to help the Iranian economy. However, he explained that the cost of electricity is a major challenge for crypto miners in Iran. While “A number of large and industrial farming mines have been set up,” the official told the news outlet:

High electricity tariffs plus stringent regulations have made the sector less appealing for small investors.

He opined, “the operating conditions in this industry should not be such that only large capitalists enter the cryptocurrency mining market but that all miners can operate,” emphasizing that modifying the electricity rates and terms could boost the crypto mining industry and generate more revenue.

Iranian Crypto Mining Law

Iran’s cryptocurrency mining industry has been regulated since last year. The Iranian government officially recognized cryptocurrency mining as an industry in August after months of deliberation, Aljazeera reported on Aug. 4, 2019. Crypto miners must be licensed by the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade before beginning their operations.

The recognition of the industry followed a crackdown by various government authorities on crypto miners accused of using subsidized power. In June last year, Iran’s state television reported that the authorities seized approximately 1,000 bitcoin mining machines in two abandoned factories allegedly using government-subsidized electricity. A spokesperson for the country’s Energy Ministry said at the time that these mining machines were responsible for a 7% increase in power consumption.

“The electricity price offered to miners will be equal to the average rial price at which Iran exports its electricity to other nations, or to 70% of the average rial price at which the country ships off its natural gas,” the news outlet explained. Furthermore, the cabinet’s directive states that “Using electricity or natural gas to mine cryptocurrencies is forbidden in peak consumption times,” and calls for the ministry to set peak hours and install a grid of smart power meters. In addition, “using electricity and gas provided at household, agricultural or industrial grades is forbidden and will be met with legal action if found out,” the directive adds.

However, Amir Hossein Saeedi Naeini told Ibena that discussions are underway to set more favorable terms for crypto miners. Meanwhile, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has been discussing creating a unified cryptocurrency for Muslim countries with leaders of other Muslim nations.

What do you think of the mining industry in Iran? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Ibena.

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Bitpay Users Can Now Purchase Crypto With Fiat In-App

25/01/2020 by Idelto Editor

Bitpay App Users Can Purchase Crypto Via the Firm's Multi-Service Solution

On January 23, the cryptocurrency payment firm Bitpay announced it will be allowing customers to purchase digital assets using the Bitpay platform. The Atlanta-based company partnered with fiat-to-crypto payment processor Simplex to offer the crypto purchasing experience. Bitpay says the latest feature will provide an “all-in-one solution” for cryptocurrency-related activities.

Also Read: Bitcoin.com Partners With Mecon Cash, Enabling Withdrawal at ATMs Across South Korea

Bitpay App Now Allows Crypto Purchases

Bitpay has been a leading cryptocurrency payment processor since the firm was founded in 2011 by Stephen Pair and Tony Gallippi. From 2011 until 2018, Bitpay only accepted BTC payments for invoices and settlement. However, in the spring of 2018, bitcoin cash (BCH) was added to the company’s services. Bitpay now supports BTC, BCH, ETH, and three different stablecoins. During the first month of 2020, Bitpay announced XRP integration and the coin is now live on the platform since last Tuesday.

The Atlanta firm has seen a number of changes since it began supporting new coins, and after announcing XRP support, it revealed that Bitpay users can now purchase digital assets. Bitpay app users have the ability to purchase BTC and other cryptos through the firm’s partnership with Simplex. Bitpay revealed that users can also buy the supported cryptocurrencies with a credit card without leaving the application.

Bitpay Users Can Now Purchase Crypto With Fiat In-App — Bitpay has partnered with Simplex to offer in-app crypto purchases.

The goal of adding more crypto accessibility into the Bitpay app is to “eliminate the need to navigate a cryptocurrency exchange to fund payments.” “Cryptocurrency exchanges can be intimidating for new users,” Bitpay’s co-founder and CEO Stephen Pair explained on Thursday. “The Simplex integration, however, makes the blockchain payment experience seamless.” The Bitpay executive added:

Whether converting fiat to crypto to make crypto payments or converting crypto to fiat to pay with the Bitpay card, the Bitpay app is an all-in-one solution.

In a Short Period of Time, Bitpay Has Added ETH, XRP, USDC, GUSD, and PAX and Other In-App Services

Simplex has been working with a number of digital currency companies like Changelly, Xapo, Bithumb, and Binance to provide cryptocurrency purchases via credit and debit cards. The fiat-to-crypto payment processor Simplex undertakes the settlement process, credit card processing, and delivery of crypto coins. Simplex does levy a transaction fee for the processing and has a minimum transaction amount of around $10. The company’s founder and CEO Nimrod Lehavi said the firm looks forward to working with Bitpay.

“A real breakthrough in usability can only be achieved when the leading crypto payment app meets the leader in fiat infrastructure for crypto,” Lehavi explained during the announcement. “We are proud to launch this partnership with Bitpay and will work together to add more innovative solutions in the future.”

In the last few weeks, Bitpay has integrated gift card purchasing abilities for app users in the United Kingdom, while also adding the coins XRP, USDC, GUSD, and PAX. With the added stablecoins, Bitpay believes the firm can create more efficiency when settling transactions between the U.S. and Western Europe by bypassing antiquated schemes like ACH, SEPA, and bank wires. Bitpay thinks that stablecoins will shake up the payment industry and they “provide the speed of cryptocurrency with the stability of the United States Dollar.” The latest partnership with Simplex and the new coin additions indicate the Atlanta company is attempting to cast out more nets into the cryptoconomy’s enormous ocean.

What do you think about Bitpay providing people with the opportunity to purchase cryptocurrencies via the Bitpay app? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the subject matter written above. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any ideas, software, concepts, content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Bitpay Blog, Bitpay logo, Simplex Logo, Fair Use, and Pixabay.

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Alexander Vinnik Accused of Laundering Billions Through BTC-e Extradited to France

25/01/2020 by Idelto Editor

Alexander Vinnik, the Russian-born IT specialist who spent over two years in detention in Greece, where he was arrested on a U.S. warrant, is now in Paris. The alleged BTC-e operator, suspected of laundering at least $4 billion through the now defunct crypto exchange, has been handed over to France after the Greek judiciary turned down a plea against his extradition.

Also read: Russian Opposition Leader Navalny Raises $700,000 in Crypto Donations

From a Greek Hospital to a French

On Thursday, law enforcement officials took Alexander Vinnik from a Greek hospital away in an unknown direction, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported. That happened right after the Council of State, the highest administrative court in Greece, published its decision to dismiss a complaint filed by Vinnik’s lawyers against his extradition to France and the United States. Ekaterina Sakellaropoulou, the court’s presiding judge until recently, was elected the first female president of Greece.

Alexander Vinnik Accused of Laundering Billions Through BTC-e Extradited to France — Ekaterina Sakellaropoulou and Alexander Vinnik. Source: Zoe Konstantopoulou

The accused was taken to the airport and eventually transported to France where he is currently in the Hotel Dieu hospital in Pairs, his Greek lawyer Zoe Konstantopoulou announced on Facebook. Last night, French authorities questioned Vinnik, reportedly against his will. He is in a deteriorating condition more than 30 days since he started his latest hunger strike, she added, quoting a French colleague. Social media commenters speculated that French authorities were in a hurry to interrogate Vinnik in order to proceed with his extradition to the U.S.

Alexander Vinnik was arrested in the Greek city of Thessaloniki in July, 2017 during a family vacation. U.S. prosecutors accuse him of illegally establishing and operating the BTC-e digital asset trading platform, through which between $4 billion and $9 billion were allegedly laundered. Vinnik is also wanted in his home country for the theft of 600,000 rubles (less than $10,000) from a defrauded entity and Russia has tried to secure his extradition to Moscow.

Paris Accuses Vinnik of Cybercrime, Extortion and Money Laundering

France filed its extradition request in June 2018, claiming Vinnik was part of an organized criminal group that specialized in extortion and money laundering. According to the documents, its members broke into the emails of 5,700 victims around the world and extorted over 20,000 BTC. The arrest warrant issued by Paris cites cybercrimes, legalization of illicit proceeds, and participation in a criminal organization. Vinnik’s defense, which includes Russian lawyer Timofei Musatov, maintains that the said crimes were conducted while the accused was in jail, that the European order has long expired, and also that Vinnik has been kept in detention without charges.

The case has become a source of international tension, with Greece finding itself under pressure to extradite Vinnik to either France and the United States or the Russian Federation. There have been four separate decisions by Greek courts for the extradition of Vinnik so far – to the U.S., France, and two for Russia. Authorities in Athens have officially notified the Russian embassy about the extradition to France. On Friday, a spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on the current situation and redirected relevant requests to the Justice Ministry. Doctors at the Hotel Dieu hospital have also refrained from statements.

A French judge is expected to preside over a hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 28, which will determine the conditions of Alexander Vinnik’s further detention, his lawyer in France, Ariane Zimra, told RIA. “Depending on the state of his health, the judge may have to hold this hearing at the hospital,” Zimra added. According to Timofei Musatov, the court can impose restraint on remand in custody only if charges are brought against the Russian citizen. Otherwise he must be released, the lawyer insisted. Vinnik’s legal team plans to file international lawsuits in his defense after he spent 30 months in jail without charges.

What are your expectations about the future developments in the Vinnik case? Share your thoughts in comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, RIA Novosti.

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How to Obscure Bitcoin Cash Transaction Data by Leveraging Cashfusion

24/01/2020 by Idelto Editor

Bitcoin Cash developers recently released the alpha software for Cashfusion, a privacy-preserving feature added to the Electron Cash wallet. During the last week, crypto proponents and developers have been testing the protocol regularly in order to find issues and provide the Cashfusion team with feedback. News.Bitcoin.com tested the alpha version of Cashfusion so readers can get a glimpse at how the feature works and how you can fuse transactions on your own.

Also read: How to Create Custom SLP Tokens With the Bitcoin.com Mint

Cashfusion Privacy: A New Realm of Transaction Anonymization

BCH privacy is of great importance to Bitcoin Cash proponents and the Cashshuffle platform gathered a lot of traction since its inception. Following the Cashshuffle release, developers started working on a project that would greatly improve coinjoin-based transactions making them more private. With Cashshuffle, blockchain analysis could possibly uncover clues to where shuffled funds originally derived from when users consolidate shuffled funds. The BCH supporter “Bigblockiftrue” wrote a comprehensive report on the issue with Cashshuffle when he tracked the shuffled 300 BCH donation to Bitcoin Unlimited. “To get better Cashshuffle privacy yourself, you can avoid combining inputs into a single transaction. For a long-term user-friendly solution,” Bigblockiftrue noted at the time. “We will likely need some extension of the Cashshuffle concept to allow private consolidation of multiple inputs, for example, Cashfusion,” he added.

The difference between Cashfusion and traditional coinjoin schemes is how Cashfusion does not have equal amount requirements for shuffling. “Cashfusion is actually the fusion of two powerful ideas,” Cashfusion developer Jonald Fyookball stressed. “One is a contribution from myself, which is (in a nutshell): enable trustless, private, multi-input coinjoins with blame capabilities by using a commitment-based multiparty computation scheme.” Fyookball emphasized that the second part of the fusion stems from the software engineer Mark Lundeberg’s innovation.

“In Cashfusion, we have opted to abandon the equal-amount concept altogether. While this is at first glance no different than the old naive schemes, mathematical analysis shows it, in fact, becomes highly private by simply increasing the numbers of inputs and outputs,” Lundeberg underscores in the Cashfusion specifications. “For example, with hundreds of inputs and outputs, it is not just computationally impractical to iterate through all partitions, but even with infinite computing power, one would find a large number of valid partitions.”

How to Leverage Cashfusion: A Step-by-Step Guide Using the Electron Cash Wallet

Since Cashfusion’s alpha was released, a number of crypto supporters and developers have experimented with the application. In order to obtain a copy of the Cashfusion alpha release, individuals need to join the Cashfusion Telegram chat group to find the software for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS. The following is a step-by-step walkthrough for people interested in testing the Cashfusion platform and fusing their own BCH transactions.

After obtaining the link to a specific copy of Electron Cash with Cashfusion support, you need to install the application which is around 40MB in size. For this specific walkthrough, we downloaded the Mac OS version of Cashfusion developed by Electron Cash programmer Calin Culianu. After the installation completes, you need to start a new wallet or use an existing Electron Cash wallet (New/Restore).

If you choose to create a new wallet, you also have to deposit some BCH into the wallet in order to fuse some UTXOs. When you have the alpha version of Electron Cash running with funds deposited, the next step is to turn on the Cashfusion feature. In order to do so, simply select the “tools” window and select “optional features.” At this point, you will see the option to toggle Cashfusion on or off at any point in time.

Once you turn Cashfusion on, at the bottom right side of the wallet window will be a green or red network circle. If the circle is red then you are not connected to the internet and may need to connect. After the wallet is online, simply double click the network circle which will reveal another network settings window. From here, you want to select the proxy settings and you will want to turn on Tor. The Cashfusion version of the Electron Cash (EC) wallet supports the Tor network which adds another element of privacy to the fused transaction. In the proxy window, select “start integrated Tor client” and make sure the Tor proxy is selected as well. After turning on Tor, the network circle at the bottom right side of the wallet should now be blue. After the Tor network is working with the wallet, shut off the Cashshuffle toggle switch in the EC client.

Then double click the Cashfusion symbol which is located to the left of the Cashshuffle symbol. Select “Cashfusion settings” and make sure the Tor client is connected and make sure that the “SSL” setting is not selected or shut off. If you followed all of these steps and there’s a fraction of BCH stored in the EC wallet, then you are ready for the Cashfusion process.

The wallet’s main window will show you the funds are being prepared for the fusing process and you might have to wait a while in order to fuse a transaction. While experimenting with Cashfusion it took me around an hour to fuse 0.01440652 BCH. You can select the Cashfusion settings again and watch the fusion progress by selecting the utility window called “fusions.” The utility window will tell you that you are queued in line or whether or not you are able to connect to people fusing transactions.

My test transaction of 0.01440652 BCH finally fused and a block explorer had shown there were 37 inputs and 79 outputs within the transaction data. Transaction signatures were also Schnorr signed and the funds fused with roughly $17.60 worth of bitcoin cash. The fused funds I had used were already shuffled using the Cashshuffle platform a few months prior. Overall, the Cashfusion feature for the EC client is fairly simple to use after following a few directions at least once. If you already have a grasp using Cashshuffle, then utilizing Cashfusion should be a breeze. The wait time for a fusion can be long, but if more people participate, then time frames between fuses should shrink. When news.Bitcoin.com first tested the Cashshuffle platform, the wait time was similar during the early testing phases. The trick is to be patient and simply let the wallet sit running in the background in order to prepare for the Cashfusion process and before you know it, you will notice that you’ve fused your first BCH transaction. For a step-by-step walkthrough that covers the Cashshuffle process, check out this article here.

What do you think about the Cashfusion protocol for the Electron Cash wallet? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the mentioned software. The software mentioned in the article above is in its alpha stage which could be buggy and have issues. Bitcoin.com or the author is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, software or services mentioned in this article. This editorial review/guide is for informational purposes only.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Fair Use, Electron Cash Wallet, Cashfusion logo, and Jamie Redman.

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