Heres how you can control eczema and psoriasis flare-up during changing weather – The Indian Express

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By: Lifestyle Desk | New Delhi | Updated: September 22, 2020 10:39:01 pmThe lesions usually occur on cooler places of the skin like the elbows, the knees, the scalp, on the palms, soles, etc. (Source: Pixabay)

The body reacts differently to the changing weather, and those who suffer from skin conditions would know that weather always factors in whenever there is a sudden deterioration of the condition.

Eczema (or dermatitis) is a condition wherein the patient develops severely-itchy lesions with fluid-filled vesicles/oozing during an acute exacerbation phase, and psoriasis is a skin disease wherein the turnover of the skin speeds up. Instead of the average two months, the skin turns over in three or four days, leading to red or pink lesions with silvery-white scaling. The lesions usually occur on cooler places of the skin like the elbows, the knees, the scalp, on the palms, soles, etc.

Dr Smriti Naswa Singh, Consultant Dermatologist, Fortis Hospital, Mulund, says the reason for developing eczema could be external (sun, aero-allergens, some irritant applications, etc.) or internal (familial allergic tendency, endogenous eczema, old age, or a manifestation of other internal diseases like diabetes, chronic liver or kidney disease, cancer, HIV, etc.). While psoriasis and eczema do not spread to others, they do flare up during winters or cooler seasons, since the dryness of the skin increases, leading to more itchiness; when a person scratches, the patches aggravate.

ALSO READ |Home-based care for COVID-19 infection; here are some dos and donts

Dr Singh suggest the following ways to control the outbursts:

* Change of weather to cooler weather makes the skin dry. Applying a moisturizer is key. Moisturizers work best on wet skin and have to be frequently applied throughout the day.

* Itch-scratch is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken to control the exacerbation. So whenever one feels itchy, they should apply moisturizer and not scratch the area. Oral and topical medications help in controlling the itching sensation; do consult a dermatologist for guidance.

* Weather-change is usually associated with an increase in aero-allergens, so those suffering from atopic dermatitis (eczema due to allergic tendency running in family) suffer more. They should try to keep their immunity high by consuming fruits and vegetables, taking adequate rest and staying away from common allergens like dust, sweat, synthetic clothes, wool etc. Cotton clothing is the preferred choice.

* Stress is known to exacerbate both psoriasis and eczema, and hence, should be avoided. Adequate rest and work-life balance are important factors.

ALSO READ |What patients on dialysis need to know about controlling diabetes

* Psoriasis is directly linked to metabolic syndrome. Psoriatic patients have a tendency to be more prone to lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension and altered lipid profile. If the person indulges in oily foods, junk foods, gains weight, does not exercise, psoriasis can worsen. Adopting appropriate lifestyle measures will help in such scenarios.

* During the COVID-19 pandemic, people have been overzealous in washing hands and using hand sanitizers. Detergent strips off the skin from natural moisturizing factors for at least 6 hours before the skin replenishes it. Sanitizers can be irritant/allergic to sensitive skin. Refrain from excessive use of soaps/washing detergents/sanitizers. Applying a moisturizer after washing/cleaning your hands/feet will help prevent the aggravation.

A patient can prevent exacerbation of psoriasis and eczema by keeping in mind the aforementioned methods. But for treatment of the lesions, one needs a carefully-formulated, tailor-made prescription of oral/systemic and topical medications. You should visit your dermatologist at first instance of the flare-up, or when the rashes are noted; these can be treated with topical cream formulations alone.

ALSO READ |How do COVID-19 triggered blood clots affect the heart? A doctor answers

If unfortunately, there is delay and the disease becomes extensive, oral medications may be required and sometimes, especially in psoriasis and certain cases of endogenous eczemas, there may be a need for control of acute exacerbation. We call such cases as acute skin failure with risk of hypovolemia, infection, electrolyte imbalance and thermal dysregulation, Dr Singh explains.

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Heres how you can control eczema and psoriasis flare-up during changing weather - The Indian Express

Hopes of breakthrough for psoriatic arthritis patients after Sanger Institute and Oxford University discovery – Cambridge Independent

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A third of patients with the skin condition psoriasis develop psoriatic arthritis, for which are some treatments but no cure.

The long-term condition, which causes affected joints to become swollen, stiff and painful, can worsen over time. In the worst cases, it can permanently damage joints, meaning surgery is required.

But there was new hope for those with the condition on Monday, when a study was published showing psoriatic arthritis may be activated by the same trigger in different patients.

The research by the Wellcome Sanger Institute and University of Oxford gives the strongest evidence yet of a single cause for the disease after identifying high levels of a specific receptor in immune cells from patients.

It could help scientists find the exact molecular trigger, which would raise hopes of finding a targeted treatment.

The researchers used single cell technology and machine learning to analyse thousands of individual immune cells from fluid drained from the knees of patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Dr Hussein Al-Mossawi, honorary research associate at the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS) at the University of Oxford, said: Our data suggest that psoriatic arthritis doesnt just appear out of nowhere. Each receptor is like a unique lock that recognises a molecular key and we discovered, that across the patients, they are recognising a common molecule.

This gives the first evidence that the T cells are seeing and reacting to the same molecule, which acts as a trigger for the disease. We dont know the exact culprit yet, but this is a great step forward in understanding the disease.

Dr Sam Behjati, group leader and Wellcome Trust intermediate clinical fellow at the Wellcome Sanger Institute , said: Our study produced the largest single cell dataset from psoriatic arthritis patients to date.

It is helping us to understand the intricate mechanisms behind psoriatic arthritis, including starting to unravel the signals that tell the T cells to cross over into the joint fluid.Imagine the cells as train passengerswith a ticket that tells them at which station to get off - the single cell data is allowing us to read that destination for each cell, and understand the signals.

Paul Bowness, professor of experimental rheumatology at NDORMS said: Our findings indicate that specific T cells are likely to be targeted to enter the joint, where they are triggered to expand, creating inflammation and causing psoriatic arthritis.

The next stage of research will be to find the key that is unlocking the disease in patients - from the signals that direct cells to the joint, to what then triggers them to expand. If we can understand these, we could move towards creating therapies that would prevent this, potentially providing a cure.

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Hopes of breakthrough for psoriatic arthritis patients after Sanger Institute and Oxford University discovery - Cambridge Independent

Greater Joint and Skin Improvement With Ixekizumab vs Adalimumab in Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis – Rheumatology Advisor

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Among patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), ixekizumab may be superior to adalimumab in terms of joint and skin improvement, according to study results published in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

Results of the SPIRIT head-to-head trial indicated that ixekizumab was superior to adalimumab with regard to the achievement of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR)50 and Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI)100 responses at 24 weeks..

The 52-week, multicenter, phase 3b/4, open-label, randomized, blinded-assessor study (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03151551) aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of ixekizumab compared with adalimumab in adults with PsA. Patients with inadequate response to conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and no previous exposure to biologic DMARDs were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive either ixekizumab or adalimumab. The primary outcome was superiority of ixekizumab to adalimumab according to ACR50 and PASI100 responses after 24 weeks. Prespecified outcomes after 52 weeks included musculoskeletal, psoriasis, quality of life outcomes, and safety.

The study cohort included 566 patients, of whom 283 received ixekizumab and 283 received adalimumab. Of the total cohort, 246 participants (87%) who received ixekizumab and 237 (84%) who received adalimumab completed the 52-week study visit.

At week 52, treatment with ixekizumab vs adalimumab was associated with a higher percentage of patients achieving both ACR50 and PASI100 (39.2% vs 26.1%, respectively; P <.001). Differences between the groups were evident after 8 weeks, and maintained throughout the study. A significantly higher percentage of patients who received ixekizumab achieved PASI100 (64.3% vs 41.3%, respectively; P .001). However, similar response rates for ACR50, ACR20, and ACR70 were observed with ixekizumab and adalimumab, as were other efficacy outcomes, including treat-to-target outcomes, enthesitis, and dactylitis resolution.

When used as monotherapy for 52 weeks, ixekizumab was superior to adalimumab for simultaneous achievement of ACR50 and PASI100 (38% vs 19%, respectively; P =.007), and PASI100 responses (66% vs 35%, respectively; P <.001). While response rates were higher with a combination of adalimumab and conventional synthetic DMARDs vs adalimumab monotherapy, response rates for ixekizumab were consistent irrespective of concomitant conventional synthetic DMARD use.

There were no new safety findings for either ixekizumab or adalimumab.

The study had several limitations, including the open-label design, potential assessment bias, and no available data on antidrug antibodies to ixekizumab or adalimumab.

SPIRIT-H2H study comparing ixekizumab [vs] adalimumab is the first fully disclosed direct head-to-head study in PsA; its findings over 52 weeks will inform future treatment recommendations and may impact selection of therapy in bionaive patients with active PsA, the researchers concluded.

Disclosure: This clinical trial was supported by Eli Lilly and Company. Please see the original reference for a full list of authors disclosures.

Reference

Smolen JS, Mease P, Tahir H, et al. Multicentre, randomised, open-label, parallel-group study evaluating the efficacy and safety of ixekizumab versus adalimumab in patients with psoriatic arthritis nave to biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drug: final results by week 52. Published online July 13, 2020. Ann Rheum Dis. doi:10.1136/annrheumdis-2020-217372

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Greater Joint and Skin Improvement With Ixekizumab vs Adalimumab in Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis - Rheumatology Advisor

Psoriasis Biologics and Heart Disease Risk – Everyday Health

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People with psoriasis who are on biologic therapies may get an added boost to their overall health: a reduced risk of heart disease.

According to a study published in the September 2020 issue of the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging, people who received biologics like adalimumab and ustekinumab for one year to manage their psoriasis had lower levels of a type of coronary plaque called lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC) compared with people who didnt receive the drugs.

LRNC has been linked with higher risk of heart attack and stroke in people with coronary artery disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes plaque as cholesterol deposits that accumulate on the walls of arteries, causing blockages that can lead to coronary artery disease. Coronary artery disease is the most common form of heart disease in the United States, affecting an estimated 18 million people, the CDC says.

[Our] current hypothesis is that treatment of psoriasis may result in a lowering of the risk of cardiovascular disease over time, explains Joel M. Gelfand, MD, director of the Psoriasis and Phototherapy Treatment Center at University of Pennsylvanias Perelman School of Medicine Philadelphia, who was one of the coauthors of the new study.

RELATED: The Consumers Guide to Biologics for Psoriasis

It seems biologic therapy as well as phototherapy two commonly used treatments for psoriasis may both work to reduce levels of LRNC in the blood. LRNC is among several leading biomarkers (measurable signs) that can predict future heart attacks, Dr. Gelfand says.

Biologics, which target specific areas of the immune system, have been used for psoriasis treatment since the early 2000s. The biologics used to treat psoriatic disease block the action of a specific type of immune cell a T cell or proteins in the immune system, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin 17-A, or interleukins 12 and 23, according to the National Psoriasis Foundation.

TNF-alpha and the interleukins all play a major role in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

RELATED: 7 Signs You May Need to Change Your Psoriasis Treatment

For the new study, Gelfand and his colleagues enrolled 209 people with psoriasis who had not yet been treated with biologics. Roughly one-half were prescribed biologic therapies to treat their condition, while the rest were not.

LRNC for people in both groups was assessed using coronary computed tomography angiography, with measurements taken at the beginning of the study and, again, one year later.

On average, those who received biologic therapy saw their LRNC decline from 3.12 square millimeters (mm2) to 2.97 mm2 or about 5 percent. Conversely, those who werent on biologic therapy saw LRNC increase from 3.12 to 3.34 mm2, on average a 6 percent rise.

RELATED: 8 Health Conditions Linked to Psoriasis

Although larger studies are needed to confirm the positive effects of biologics on LRNC and heart disease risk, the findings are exciting, Gelfand says, because recent research suggeststhat people with psoriasis are at increased risk for heart disease.

And this risk is more clinically significant in those with more severe skin disease, Gelfand notes. People with psoriasis should be screened for traditional cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol, and they should adopt a heart-healthy lifestyle whether theyre on biologics or not.

RELATED: Psoriasis and Heart Disease: The Hidden Connection

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Psoriasis Treatment Market Size, Analytical Overview, Key Players, Growth Factors, Demand, Trends And Forecast to 2027 – The Daily Chronicle

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Fort Collins, Colorado Reports Globe recently added the Psoriasis Treatment Market Research Report that provides a thorough investigation of the market scenario of the market size, share, demand, growth, trends, and forecast from 2020-2027. The report covers the impact analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 pandemic has affected the export-import, demands, and trends of the industry and is expected to have some economic impact on the market. The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the impact of the pandemic on the overall industry and offers insights into a post-COVID-19 market scenario.

The report primarily mentions definitions, classifications, applications, and market overview of the Psoriasis Treatment industry. It also covers product portfolios, manufacturing processes, cost analysis, structures, and gross margin of the industry. It also provides a comprehensive analysis of the key competitors and their regional spread and market size.

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Competitive Analysis:

The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the companies operating in the Psoriasis Treatment market, along with their overview, business plans, strengths, and weaknesses to provide a substantial analysis of the growth through the forecast period. The evaluation provides a competitive edge and understanding of their market position and strategies undertaken by them to gain a substantial market size in the global market.

Key features of the Report:

The report covers extensive analysis of the key market players in the market, along with their business overview, expansion plans, and strategies. The key players studied in the report include:

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Additionally, the report is furnished by the advanced analytical data from SWOT analysis, Porters Five Forces Analysis, Feasibility Analysis, and Investment Return Analysis. The report also provides a detailed analysis of the mergers, consolidations, acquisitions, partnerships, and government deals. Along with this, an in-depth analysis of current and emerging trends, opportunities, threats, limitations, entry-level barriers, restraints and drivers, and estimated market growth throughout the forecast period are offered in the report.

Market Breakdown:

The market breakdown provides market segmentation data based on the availability of the data and information. The market is segmented on the basis of types and applications.

Psoriasis Treatment Market Segmentation, By Type

Psoriasis Treatment Market Segmentation, By Applications

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The report provides additional analysis about the key geographical segments of the Psoriasis Treatment Market and provides analysis about their current and previous share. Current and emerging trends, challenges, opportunities, and other influencing factors are presented in the report.

Regional analysis includes an in-depth study of the key geographical regions to gain a better understanding of the market and provide an accurate analysis. The regional analysis coversNorth America, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa.

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The inception of Reports Globe has been backed by providing clients with a holistic view of market conditions and future possibilities/opportunities to reap maximum profits out of their businesses and assist in decision making. Our team of in-house analysts and consultants works tirelessly to understand your needs and suggest the best possible solutions to fulfill your research requirements.

Our team at Reports Globe follows a rigorous process of data validation, which allows us to publish reports from publishers with minimum or no deviations. Reports Globe collects, segregates, and publishes more than 500 reports annually that cater to products and services across numerous domains.

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Immune system may trigger anxiety in response to infection – Medical News Today

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A new study in mice adds to the evidence suggesting that the immune system not only attacks invading pathogens but can also influence mood.

Over the past few years, scientists have discovered some intriguing links between immunity and the mind.

One of the immune signaling molecules, or cytokines, that mediates these links is called interleukin-17a (IL-17a).

IL-17a plays a role in psoriasis, which is an autoimmune skin condition, but it may also contribute to the depression that many people experience. Indeed, a study involving a mouse model of psoriasis found that IL-17a caused depression-like symptoms.

In humans, researchers have also linked the molecule to treatment resistant depression.

Research in mice has even implicated IL-17a in the development of autism.

The brain and the body are not as separate as people think, says Prof. Jonathan Kipnis, a neuroscientist at the Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis, MO.

While working at the University of Virginia School of Medicine in Charlottesville, Prof. Kipnis and colleagues found that IL-17a causes anxiety-like behavior in mice.

We are now looking into whether too much or too little of IL-17a could be linked to anxiety in people, says Prof. Kipnis.

The scientists have published the results of their mouse study in the journal Nature Immunology. Kalil Alves de Lima, a postdoctoral researcher who is also now at the University of Washington, led the research.

Immune cells called gamma-delta T cells produce IL-17a. The cells are present in the meninges, which are the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

To determine what effect IL-17a might have on behavior, the scientists studied mice whose gamma-delta T cells did not produce any IL-17a and mice who lacked the cells completely.

They put the mice through standard tests of memory, social behavior, foraging, and anxiety. The mice performed just as well as normal mice on all tests apart from two that measure anxiety levels.

In those tests, the mice who lacked gamma-delta T cells or did not produce any IL-17a were more likely to explore open areas. In the wild, this kind of behavior would put them at greater risk of being eaten by predators.

The researchers interpreted this as a sign of reduced anxiety in animals without IL-17a signaling in their central nervous system.

Next, the scientists investigated how the signal affects neurons in their brains. They found receptors for IL-17a on a type of stimulatory nerve cell called a glutamatergic neuron.

When they genetically manipulated the neurons to prevent them from making these receptors, the mice exhibited less anxiety-like behavior.

Previous animal research has revealed a multitude of possible links between bacteria living in the gut and behavior, including anxiety-like behaviors.

This connection is known as the gut-brain axis, and scientists have proposed the immune system as one possible way that messages pass between them.

To investigate the role of IL-17a in the gut-brain axis, Alves de Lima and colleagues injected the mice with lipopolysaccharide. This is a toxin that bacteria produce. It provokes a strong immune reaction.

In response to the injection, gamma-delta T cells in the meninges surrounding the animals brains produced more IL-17a.

In another experiment, when the researchers treated the mice with antibiotics to kill the bacteria in their guts, the animals produced less IL-17a.

Together, the results of these experiments suggest that the immune system has evolved not only to fight infection but also to adjust behavior to keep animals safe while they are in a weakened state.

Selecting special molecules to protect us immunologically and behaviorally at the same time is a smart way to protect against infection. This is a good example of how cytokines, which basically evolved to fight against pathogens, also are acting on the brain and modulating behavior.

Kalil Alves de Lima

The team is now investigating how gamma-delta T cells in the meninges surrounding the brain can detect the presence of bacteria elsewhere in the body.

The researchers are also looking into exactly how IL-17a signaling in the brain changes behavior.

In their paper, they conclude:

Our findings provide new insights into the neuroimmune interactions at the meningealbrain interface and support further research into new therapies for neuropsychiatric conditions.

Although the physiology of mice and humans is very similar, scientists need to carry out much more research to explore the possible links between the human immune system and mood.

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Immune system may trigger anxiety in response to infection - Medical News Today

The infrastructure of Kick Ecosystem – hackernoon.com

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We launched KickICO in 2017 to create a safer means of raising capital for enterprises in the blockchain sector, and to open that safer new channel to a community of investors.

In its first two years, the KickICO platform had played a key role in helping over 35 startups to raise 800,000 ETH.

However, ICOs have vanished and IEOs have been labeled as scam right in the beginning since its non-transparent realization that various exchanges have implemented and did not make it fair and transparent like was described in our White Paper.

Anticipating this back in 2017, and clearly understanding that the ICOs that were done in such way will soon die out, we began to build not just another platform for fundraising, but a large ecosystem in which fundraising is just one core element of our broader vision for a new financial paradigm driven by mainstream use of digital assets.

The primary services and pioneering concepts at the heart ofKick Ecosystemcame about through necessity. The Initial Coin Offering model was broken, creating opportunities for rogue developers and providing zero transparency or protection for consumers.

We found no exchange using a better model, and so we created our own; The initial exchange offering (IEO) and auction-based initial coin offering (AIO). It was not just the sale models that needed fixing, but exchanges too. Many were using ICO and IEOs for their own benefit, to the detriment of all other market participants, so we decided to launch our own exchange,KickEX, which could lead the way in open, trustworthy token finance.

In developing the exchange infrastructure, it became obvious that many services could be developed for enterprise use or harnessed by other projects.KickID, for example, is used in WHIRL, and our subsidiary blockchain-powered crowdfunding platform is used for private individuals, not companies.

Until now, the fintech sector has consisted of myriad apps scattered across the cryptoverse, defined more by their poor user journeys and barriers to entry than their innovation and traction. There has been no single entry point into the world of fintech, which helps to explain the gap between rapid technological progress and adoption. No single platform exists that brings together every service that individuals and businesses need, that anyone can use. That is the Kick Ecosystem vision. Every service, made for all: Beginners, professionals, and everyone in between.

We believe a one-stop hub for cryptocurrency services will be the driving force in mainstream adoption, but also that individual products and services can be useful to traditional enterprises without dependency on mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Using Kick Ecosystem as the foundation, we are releasing autonomous global services that allow for interoperability to create an ambitious financial services network that far exceeds any current model.

By harnessing critical elements from P2P, B2B, and SaaS technologies, were able to design and implement a range of autonomous services that can function both independently and in synergy with each other as part of the ecosystem.

With unparalleled usability and integration at their core, our services can be applied to a virtually limitless range of commercial applications in non-crypto projects, from gaming to e-commerce and retail.

Every element within the Kick Ecosystem performs an important role in the exponential growth of users and partners.

KickEX is the primary entry point for new users including traders, investors and miners. Users are then able to access the fundraising platform and to other services and back. All services are linked to KickID the unified ID services, a B2B solution, which is offered to external business, that will become a part of our ecosystem.

KickID andKickWalletare the core tools which enable users to seamlessly navigate the network of products and services, while KickRef gives them a role in the organic scaling of our user base.

For commercial partners, the advantages and synergies of operating within the Kick Ecosystem are obvious. Businesses can transform their bottom lines, access a qualified consumer base and bring the benefits of Kick to their existing database of users.

Reliable implementation and the development of standards will be key to the success of Kick.

Each service is developed by a separate team with a single protocol, standards and API. Services are modular in design, with the ability to function as a stand-alone product and as part of the wider ecosystem. All Kick services are compatible with cryptocurrencies and digital assets, although they can be configured to operate with or without them.

Thanks to a single standard of communication between services and IPAs, the ecosystem can be easily expanded with other services that do not yet exist.

From the very beginning of exchange development, security and decentralization of user funds have been key priorities for us. We employ CISCO next-generation hardware firewalls, DELL server hardware stacks, geographically distributed data centers and cloud hosting services based on private networks with the latest generation of encryption.

We also use the most advanced and modern data access algorithms, and third-party detection and prevention mechanisms with updated real-time signatures of new types and methods of attack.

Security is further enhanced with proprietary, provider-level mitigation services for DDoS attacks, automatic start-of-the-attack protection mode if suspicious activity is detected and Trusted Platform Module systems that protect against physical access to servers.

These and many other security measures and technologies allow us to guarantee the clear and uninterrupted operation of all services and the safety of user funds.

Our fundamental strategy for the expansion of Kick Ecosystem is to design tools and services that solve the challenges we face ourselves. Thats how KickID andKickRefwere born.

That strategic vision flows through everything we do, from high-level roadmaps to each service and mechanic. This is the reason that the entire architecture of the Kik Ecosystem is built using a microservices model. Each service can function independently, which increases fault tolerance a problem in one part of the system does not affect other services and the chance to operate each service as a stand-alone project.

Our team mirrors our technology, with a large group of developers divided into smaller teams responsible for each product. Microservices communicate with each other through a common, unified communication protocol that allows us to make B2C products such as KickEX exchange and then evolve them for enterprise use.

Our strategy can be seen in the creation and evolution of the KickID and KickRef services. First, we created them for ourselves, debugged, optimized, and further understood what features were necessary for success. Now we are transforming these services into B2B products suitable for third-party use.

The evolution of microservices into independent B2B products expands the entire Kick Ecosystem exponentially. Each new user who registers via KickID or KickEX becomes part of our ecosystem, with the opportunity to utilise and easily switch between any services. Having registered and verified once, each users journey through the ecosystem will be seamless.

Our strategy is based on synergy, the snowball effect, and business virality. By implementing new parts of the ecosystem, new services, which will then be distributed by other companies, projects and businesses, we believe our technology and values can transform any sector for the good of every enterprise and its end users.

Each new member of the ecosystem will enjoy all the benefits that were created by members that came before them and create value for the community they join. Using these principles of leverage and synergy to drive our exponential growth strategy, we are creating right now, the connected digital world of tomorrow.

KickIDis an end-to-end authorization and authentication service that connects all of our services and enables full access to the Kick Ecosystem through registration and universal KYC verification. As well as being an essential component of Kick Ecosystem, KickID is also the perfect tool for businesses seeking access to a single database of users already registered in the ecosystem, or who need an effective stand-alone solution for registering and verifying their users.

KickID was designed to slash the cost of KYC by requiring users to be verified only once. As the ecosystem grows and more users install KickID, KYC overheads decrease further. Over time, that cost will drop to virtually zero, saving businesses who operate on Kick millions of dollars.

By removing the need for new customers to complete verification more than once, KickID optimises consumer user journeys and has the potential to dramatically increase conversion rates for all third-party businesses that have integrated KickID for themselves.

Access to a pool of active accredited consumers gives business not only a valuable new acquisition channel but also enables them to develop more competitive offers and reward programmes. Businesses who use KickID can also reduce or eliminate the time and cost involved in processing data, payments and verification while ensuring they meet all compliance obligations for their jurisdiction.

KickRefis a zero-cost multi-level marketing solution that can be used to drive quality traffic to almost any online product or service. In just 6 months and with no marketing budget, KickRef has proven its effectiveness by acquiring 1 million users with a genuine interest in KickEX.

KickRef uses a 10-level referral model that any online business can harness to create viral growth with minimal cost, effort, or risk.

By distributing a part of the companys profits proportionally throughout a users network of referrals, the KickRef model is perfectly suited to businesses such as online games, gambling, and e-commerce. Just as KickID is able to improve registration and conversion rates, KickRef can increase traffic, create an instant user base, improve average customer value and reduce churn.

Like every proven Kick product that is tested and optimised within our own Ecosystem first, KickRef can be customized to specific business requirements. Rewards can be configured to suit specific business models and audiences using real money, game points, bonuses, and other virtual items.

Affiliate programmes should be simple, quick, and effective tools for its user-evangelists. With built-in tools such as leagues, ratings, statistics, and messengers, KickRef is a powerful enterprise affiliate solution for promotion and growth.

TheKickEXdigital asset exchange is the core feature of Kick Ecosystem. With pioneering trading functionality, enhanced security, and innovative reward mechanisms, we are certain that believe our exchange can become the gold standard for cryptocurrency exchanges.

Most cryptocurrency exchanges suffer from a limited selection of order types: market order, limit order, and simple stop-order. As a result, traders have to use various third-party services and software to implement their strategies. KickEX smart orders such as trailing or double stops, chain orders, and others, allow users to automate their trading and maximise profits. These features also allow novices to trade professionally without the need to buy and master additional software tools, reducing the skill gap between beginners and professional traders.

Three years after the first initial coin offerings rewrote the rules of fundraising, token sales are still the primary means of fundraising for blockchain projects. But not all ICO platforms are equal. KickICO is a fundraising platform underpinned by a ready-made audience engaged by social features.

From the technology we use to the features weve provided and messaging across every, KickICO reflects the wider values of Kick Ecosystem. With such a high profile history of fraud and unethical behavior, its critical that fundraising is open, transparent, fair, and safe.

Launching a fundraising campaign is just the first step for blockchain projects. We empower projects to exceed their campaign goals with a complete toolkit which includes automated advertising capabilities to maximise reach with minimal effort.

KickICO has remained at the forefront of crypto fundraising with a pioneering Auction Initial Offering (AIO) fundraising model invented by the Kick team. Projects will soon have access to a new Security Token Offerings (STO) model too.

Campaigns launched via KickICO have greater potential thanks to integrations with KickEX exchange and other Kick services such as KickID. By allowing projects to conduct multi-platform token sales through KickICO, KickEX, and their own channels using a simple, secure widget, Kick Ecosystem offers blockchain projects the best possible chance of success.

We recognise that social fundraising is an increasingly important means of attracting investment and generating early demand for innovative technology. As a result, KickICO comes pre-loaded with widgets for forums, websites, and blogs, as well as integrations with KickRed referral marketing features which allow users to earn money by attracting backers to fundraising campaigns.

By connecting KickICO with KickEX and KickRef, we supply projects with an organic, free flow of verified users with a confirmed interest in emerging technologies that only the most expensive PR campaigns could achieve.

Together, the Kick Ecosystem tools make KickICO the most powerful, one-stop fundraising and marketing platform in crypto.

KickMessengeris an instant communication tool created for use with KickRef as well as, but now available for a wide range of B2B use cases.

Unlike other messenger applications that facilitate anonymity, KickMessenger requires users to be verified, although communications and content remain secure and private.

By integrating KickMessenger with the Kick Ecosystem, fraudulent or spam users can be identified and blocked throughout the network with a single click, reducing the impact and cost of criminal or unethical behavior.

We believe transparency and accountability are crucial to the long term success of Kick services and are also fundamental requirements for enterprise use. Unlike most messenger applications where illegal behavior is allowed by platform owners to flourish, KickMessenger does not support anonymity and ensures that users who breach the law or platform terms will be held accountable for their actions.

We made KikMessenger both for ourselves and for all projects who require a simple and easy-to-integrate messenger. Although originally designed for Kick Ecosystem users, we will release a stand-alone version of KickMessenger software which can be easily integrated with external B2C and B2B platforms.

KickWalletis our native solution which allows users to conveniently and safely store, send and spend their funds.

Users can easily store a range of digital assets, manage their portfolio, deposit, convert, and withdraw. The KickWallet roadmap includes support for credit and debit cards, and once released, gives users a single payment gateway for all businesses within the ecosystem, and enables businesses to quickly integrate a wallet solution into their applications.

Currently, KickWallet is a B2C service within the KickEX exchange, and fully functions as a custodian service. For B2B use, we are combining the technology behind KickWallet andKickMobile to offer a portfolio of funds and tokens, deposit and withdrawal of fiat funds, and simple and quick conversion of fiat and cryptocurrencies.

Depending on demand, we may also introduce a physical payment card linked to KickWallet.

KickAcquire is a planned crypto-enabled payment gateway for personal and enterprise use which allows users to deposit to, transact with and withdraw funds from cryptocurrency projects.

For crypto projects that cannot access traditional banking services, KickAcquire will give them the ability to accept payments and guarantee secure custody of funds.

Thanks to one-click integration with products and services as well as simple widgets, merchants can accept cryptocurrencies without the usual hassle or risk involved in creating their own infrastructures.

As with all Kick Ecosystem services, KickAcquire will also leverage the power of KickID to increase conversion, as many users will already be verified.

KickAcquire will be a B2B solution for enterprise use.

KickCPA is more than just a dedicated digital advertising tool for the cryptocurrency sector. As a means of reaching bigger audiences and rewarding acquisition in an honest and transparent way, KickCPA is a blessing for everyone in the cryptosphere.

Existing ad networks do not serve the needs of blockchain organisations and particularly fundraising projects. For crypto projects looking for initial investment, acquiring investors through digital marketing has become prohibitively expensive. And with some of the biggest ad networks, crypto marketing may not be possible at all.

Advertisers often end up paying for vanity metrics such as clicks and views and are at higher risk of fraud.

KickCPA solves these problems by enabling projects to raise funds through KickICO and pay only when leads convert from a visit to investment.

KickCPA also enables publishers, bloggers, and individuals with an online audience to generate revenue by serving ads that drive meaningful traffic to KickICO campaigns and result in backing.

Once it has proven its worth on KickICO, the technology behind KickCPA will be extended beyond KickICO fundraising to provide an independent advertising network that third-party businesses

We believe in empowering our users with both effective products and vital knowledge.KickAcademyis an online learning centre which covers all aspects of cryptocurrencies and trading. With tools such as our unique trailing stop constructor, inexperienced traders can accelerate their learning curve, understand how markets function and how to place orders without risking their own funds.

Our institute also publishes comprehensive and exclusive data about the latest academic research in the crypto markets, investments, exchanges, and fintech fields:

One in Two Crypto Users is a Referral ProgramStudy of the crypto community opinion and level of trust in stablecoinsResearch on the usage of orders on crypto-exchangesWhat is KYC and why the global crypto community needs user identification?

There are also educational articles for beginners and professional crypto traders to learn the basics oftechnicalandfundamental analysis, trading strategies,risk management,indicators, and other crypto trading professional tools. All the materials are available on the official academy website for free.

The studies made by KickAcademy team are being regularly published in top crypto media like DeCenter, Hackernoon, Coinspeaker.

After being credited to the clients exchange wallet, the cryptocurrency is transferred to the Mosaic Wallet to ensure reliable storage and eliminate the risk of cryptocurrency theft from the clients cryptocurrency wallet.

In Mosaic Wallet, cryptocurrency during its life-time is not stored in the same cryptocurrency wallet but moves between different cryptocurrency wallets at a certain frequency. At the same time, Mosaic Wallets, on which the cryptocurrency was already stored, do not participate in the further stages of the cryptocurrency life-cycle. The frequency of movement of cryptocurrency between Mosaic Wallets is set in the system settings. This approach can significantly reduce the risks of theft of clients money from the Mosaic Wallet cryptocurrency wallets.

In addition, various types of cryptocurrency wallets are installed within the Mosaic Wallet, depending on the maximum amount of cryptocurrency allowed to be stored in this wallet.

Thus, the risk is divided into different areas, such as R1, R2, R3. For example, the R1 wallet does not allow storing cryptocurrency in the equivalent of more than 100 USDT, the R2 wallet does not allow storing cryptocurrency in the equivalent of more than 1000 USDT, and the R3 wallet does not allow storing cryptocurrency in the equivalent of more than 10000 USDT. In case of the compromise of private keys for one of the wallets, the risk does not apply to the other wallets.

The cryptocurrency is stored on Mosaic Wallet until a command is received from the client to withdraw the cryptocurrency asset to an external wallet that does not belong to the exchange.

Mosaic Wallet private keys are not stored on electronic storage devices. When creating a private key, several responsible persons of the company receive one character string each, which is the basis for obtaining a private key. Thus, one employee of the company cannot single-handedly access the Mosaic Wallet cryptocurrency wallets. To gain access to the Mosaic Wallet cryptocurrency wallets, all responsible persons of the company must simultaneously enter all the strings of characters transferred to them for storage. This approach minimizes the risks of internal fraud and collusion of company employees.

To minimize operational risks associated with the unavailability of company employees and/or the loss of character strings handed over to them for storage the company introduces the roles of deputy responsible persons and duplicates of character strings required to obtain Mosaic Wallet private keys are stored in the safe deposit boxes or other secure offline data vaults.

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This is the size of undisturbed ecosystems lost in 13 years – World Economic Forum

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Between 2000 and 2013, Earth lost an area of undisturbed ecosystems roughly the size of Mexico.

That's the mind-melting finding of a new study published in One Earth and the researchers say it has "profound implications" for global biodiversity and for humans who rely on natural resources.

"We were expecting there to be high levels of intact ecosystem and wilderness loss, but the results were shocking," lead researcher Brooke Williams of the University of Queensland told The Guardian. "We found substantial area of intact ecosystems had been lost in just 13 years nearly two million square kilometres which is terrifying to think about. Our findings show that human pressure is extending ever further into the last ecologically intact and wilderness areas."

In total, the researchers found that 1.9 million square kilometers (approximately 700,000 square miles) of previously intact ecosystem area had been "highly modified" during the study period. They also found that 58.4 percent of Earth's land ecosystems were under "moderate or intense" pressure from human activity, while only 41.6 percent of ecosystems were intact and 25 percent were true wilderness.

The 1.9 million square kilometers lost were mostly tropical and subtropical grasslands in Asia, South America and Africa, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which participated in the research. The rainforests of Southeast Asia also suffered significant human encroachments.

The 1.9 million square kilometers lost were in Asia, South America and Africa.

Image: One Earth

To achieve these results, an international team of 17 scientists from six countries used satellite imagery to assess the human footprint on land-based ecosystems and how it had changed between 2000 and 2013, The Guardian explained. The researchers found that human pressure increased on nearly 20 percent of the globe and decreased on only around six percent.

"Data does not lie," senior author James Watson from WCS and the University of Queensland said in the WCS press release. "Humanity keeps on shrinking the amount of land that other species need to survive. In a time of rapid climate change, we need to proactively secure the last intact ecosystems on the planet, as these are critical in the fight to stop extinction and halt climate change."

The study comes amidst other dire news for wildlife and biodiversity. A UN study released last week found that world governments had failed to achieve any of the 20 targets they had set for preserving biodiversity by 2020. Another study published this month found that wildlife populations had plummeted 68 percent on average over the last 50 years.

Williams explained to WCS why the loss of intact ecosystems is such a big deal for humans and other animals.

"Intact lands are relied on by biodiversity for habitat, and by people for ecosystem services such as climate regulation and clean water," Williams said. "We continue to take these last functioning places for granted, and our results show urgent action is needed to protect those lands that do remain intact."

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This is the size of undisturbed ecosystems lost in 13 years - World Economic Forum

Humans Destroyed Intact Ecosystem Land the Size of Mexico in Just 13 Years – EcoWatch

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Where would you go if, say, a flood devastated the city you live in? Millions of people around the world have been forced to answer this question. In 2017, 68.5 million people were displaced more than at any point in human history, according to the Brookings Institute. More than one-third of those were uprooted by sudden weather events, including floods, forest fires and intense storms. A 2018 report from the World Bank, which focused on three regions Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Latin America found that without tangible climate action, more than 143 million people in just these three areas will be forced to move to escape the impacts of climate change by 2050.

But more than 1 billion people worldwide will live in countries with insufficient infrastructure to withstand climate change by 2050. The Pacific Islands are expected to be affected especially hard. Sea level there is already rising at almost 0.5 inches per year. Eight islands have already been submerged and two more are close to vanishing. By the year 2100, experts fear 48 more islands in the Pacific will be completely underwater.

So what about the people who live there? What do we call these people who will be displaced? It's actually complicated. It's difficult to determine what category these migrants should fall under because no global definition exists. Why does that matter? Without a standard method of classification, there's no way to track how many people are affected or displaced by an environmental or climate event. So the most commonly used term is "environmental refugee."

Experts credit the term and its definition to UN Environment Program (UNEP) researcher Essam El-Hinnawi, who in 1985 wrote the United Nations report titled "Environmental Refugees." El-Hinnawi defined environmental refugees as:

... those people who have been forced to leave their traditional habitat, temporarily or permanently, because of a marked environmental disruption (natural and/or triggered by people) that jeopardized their existence and/or seriously affected the quality of their life.

This working definition has been the baseline for current debate.

But according to the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention, a refugee "is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their country of origin owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion" [source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees]. Environmental refugees do not legally fall under this status.

Why environmental refugees flee their homes is a complicated mixture of environmental degradation and desperate socioeconomic conditions. People leave their homes when their livelihoods and safety are jeopardized. What effects of climate change put them in jeopardy? Climate change triggers, among other problems, desertification and drought, deforestation, land degradation, rising sea levels, floods, more frequent and more extreme storms, earthquakes, volcanoes, food insecurity and famine.

The September 2020 Ecological Threat Register Report, by the Institute for Economics & Peace, predicts the hardest hit populations will be:

  • Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa
  • Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Chad, India and Pakistan (which are among the world's least peaceful countries)
  • Pakistan, Ethiopia and Iran are most at risk for mass displacements
  • Haiti faces the highest risk of all countries in Central America and the Caribbean
  • India and China will be among countries experiencing high or extreme water stress

The report also suggests that developed countries like the United States and regions like Europe are not immune. "The European refugee crisis in the wake of wars in Syria and Iraq in 2015 saw 2 million people flee to Europe and highlights the link between rapid population shifts with political turbulence and social unrest." Developed countries including Sweden, Norway, Ireland face little to no threat, the report found.

Climate change does not impact all people and all parts of the world in the same way. While floods ravage some areas, deserts are spreading in others. Desertification and depleted resources, including shortages of water and fertile land, are long-term consequences of climate change. But one of the biggest threats will be food insecurity.

"Ecological threats and climate change pose serious challenges to global peacefulness," Steve Killelea, founder and executive chairman of the Institute for Economics and Peace said in the in the 2020 Ecological Threat Report. "Over the next 30 years, lack of access to food and water will only increase without urgent global cooperation. In the absence of action civil unrest, riots and conflict will most likely increase. COVID-19 is already exposing gaps in the global food chain."

The report suggests global demand for food will increase by 50 percent by 2050. That means if there's no increase in food supply, many people could starve or be forced to flee in search of food. Currently, more than 2 billion people around the world are already food insecure.

When faced with the decision to flee, most people want to stay in their own country or region. Leaving a country requires money and could mean leaving behind family; simply relocating from a rural to urban area in search of work and resources may be easier. Plus, the chance to return and resettle back home is unlikely if a family leaves their country entirely. In instances when an area is temporarily inhabitable, like after a destructive hurricane, returning home may be an option. But when coastlines or entire islands are underwater, the possibility of going home is out of the question.

The future impacts of climate change will disproportionately affect the world's poorest but will also pressure countries around the globe through mass migration of refugees. Adaptation and resilience will be the key to reducing displacement risk both temporary and permanent in the forms of early warning systems and flood-defense infrastructure, sustainable agriculture and drought-resistant crops, as well as other protections.

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Humans Destroyed Intact Ecosystem Land the Size of Mexico in Just 13 Years - EcoWatch

maurices Partners with TCS to Build Greenfield IT Ecosystem for its Growth and Transformation – PRNewswire

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SAINT PAUL, Minn. andMUMBAI, Sept. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS), a leading global IT services, consulting, and business solutions organization, has partnered with maurices, a women's fashion-apparel retail chain in the US and Canada, to help create a new flexible and scalable IT landscape for the latter.

Followingits journey as a standalone organization, maurices selected TCS as its digital transformation partner to help build its greenfield IT ecosystem that will optimize more than 200 existing applications and software components in the next 17 months of their transformational journey. TCS will help maurices strategize, create and operationalize the new scalable, secure and future-proof architecture for the underlying IT infrastructure, security layer, and a new application stack, as well as remediate its technical debt. Leveraging TCS' Machine First Delivery Model, powered by ignio, its cognitive automation software,maurices' technology transformation will drive synergy across the enterprise, integrating business, operations and IT teams without disruption to existing services.

In addition, TCS will help maurices build a brand-new data analytics platform with extensive reporting features. The project will also involve a refreshed, upgraded ecommerce platform that will facilitate quicker business decisions and faster go-to-market responses to industry or fashion trends.

"We are creating a greenfield IT and Infrastructure that will lay the foundation for the growth of maurices' business and operations. TCS being the industry leader has been chosen as our SI partner to implement the Project Split Rock, the initiative to standup the IT Ecosystem. We look forward to leverage TCS' Partnership Skills, Tools, Processes, Practices and Thought Leadership to ensure the success of Project Split Rock," saidFred Argir, Chief Information Officer & Chief Digital Officer, maurices.

"We are delighted to partner with maurices as they embark on their IT ecosystem transformation. The new resilient, agile, and scalable platform, powered by MFDM and ignio, will help them accelerate innovation, improve customer experience, build competitive differentiation, and fuel future growth," said PC Thomas, Head of Retail, North America S&W, TCS. "We look forward to building a long-term, trusted relationship with maurices."

TCS is utilizing its pioneering Secure Borderless Workspaces, a transformative operating model that allows organizations to fully and seamlessly transition to virtual workspaces, to enable a remote program kick-off from multiple locations.

About Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (TCS)

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that has been partnering with many of the world's largest businesses in their transformation journeys for over 50 years. TCS offers a consulting-led, cognitive powered, integrated portfolio of business, technology and engineering services and solutions. This is delivered through its unique Location Independent AgileTM delivery model, recognized as a benchmark of excellence in software development.

A part of the Tata group, India's largest multinational business group, TCS has over 443,000 of the world's best-trained consultants in 46 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $22 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020, and is listed on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) and the NSE (National Stock Exchange) in India. TCS' proactive stance on climate change and award-winning work with communities across the world have earned it a place in leading sustainability indices such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), MSCI Global Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index. For more information, visit us at http://www.tcs.com.

For TCS global news, follow@TCS_News.

About maurices

Maurices is a women's specialty apparel retailer that celebrates feel good fashion for real life.

Maurices is committed to its service with stylepromise and offering affordable fashions that take women from workday to weekend, and all of life's adventures in between. With inclusive sizing from 0-24, maurices is famous for its versatile styles including key categories such as denim, dresses, tops and more. Established in 1931, maurices operates 916 stores in communities across the U.S. and Canada and offers even more fashion at maurices.com. maurices is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota.

TCS media contacts:

SOURCE Tata Consultancy Services

http://www.tcs.com

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maurices Partners with TCS to Build Greenfield IT Ecosystem for its Growth and Transformation - PRNewswire

Helping the UN Guide Ecosystem Restoration Into the Mainstream – CSRwire.com

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WSP USA is a key participant in the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a major global initiative to bring awareness to the fight against climate change.

Sep. 22 /CSRwire/ - When the United Nations General Assembly declared 20212030 as the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, it did so with an objective of taking a leadership role to find nature-based solutions to restore vital ecosystems around the globe.

The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration aims to massively scale up the restoration of degraded and destroyed ecosystems as a proven measure to fight the climate crisis and enhance food security, water supply and biodiversity. It is targeting widespread engagement with governments, UN agencies, international non-government organizations, academia and large corporations.

This initiative moves ecosystem restoration from a fringe movement to an essential response necessary to protect our global food and water supply and help change the trajectory of climate change, said Jennifer Brunton, WSP USA national practice lead for ecosystem restoration.

For its part, WSP provided feedback for the strategy report,United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030 - Strategy for the Decade.

As identified in the report, The global public is largely unaware of the extent to which ecosystem degradation is impacting the well-being and livelihoods of billions of people, the costs of this degradation, and the profound benefits that would accrue with major investments in ecosystem restoration.

At the end of the decade, my hope is that the political support and public will is behind the scale of restoration needed, Brunton said. Policies, regulations, and legislation are changed to promote smart growth and habitat protection/restoration, and the financial mechanisms for supporting ecosystem restoration are in place.

Key Objectives

The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration has set several key objectives. The effort aims to:

showcase successful government-led and private initiatives to halt ecosystem degradation, restore those ecosystems that have already been degraded;

enhance knowledge exchange on what works and why (policy, economics and biophysical aspects), and how to implement restoration at scale;

connect initiatives working in the same landscape, region, or topic, to increase efficiency and impact;

create links between ecosystem restoration opportunities and initiatives with businesses interested in building a solid portfolio of sustainable production and impact investment; and

bring a wider spectrum of actors on board, especially from sectors that are not traditionally involved, by demonstrating the importance of ecosystem restoration to conservation as well as generation of social and economic benefits.

I have seen the transformation that can happen when ecosystem restoration projects are implemented, Brunton said. Its a powerful thing to witness a barren landscape change into lush breeding and foraging grounds supporting a diverse array of species. It can be done.

The UN initiative is raising the understanding that widespread improvements on a local scale will have a profound impact on the global environment.

Our ecosystems are connected in a complex web, and that includes us humans, Brunton said. The fish we buy at the market may breed in marshes, rivers, or streams but spend their adult life migrating in the open ocean. This results in an interconnectedness between us as individuals and habitats that extend well beyond our borders.

She added that the UN initiative aims at articulating these links to target shifts in culture and political/economic drivers so the act of restoring habitat is part of a broader initiative and ecological restoration is mainstreamed. Brunton stressed that there must be complete ownership of responsibility for the environment, even when it is not in our own backyard.

For example, the destruction of rainforests do affect us through this network; it is not some far way problem for someone else, Brunton said. The products we buy connect us to these degradations. For example, the fruit we buy at the store may be grown in fields developed from clearing the rainforest.

Environmental Partnerships

Currently, the UN lacks the technical capacity to implement a strategy to address the scale of restoration needed on its own and is looking to corporate partners like WSP to help guide its successful development.

WSP has over three decades of experience restoring habitats, which has culminated in over 10,000 acres of restored habitats, Brunton said. We have one of the largest benches of restoration experts in any organization. Pairing our technical strength both by numbers and range of expertise we have with our global reach makes our firm an ideal partner for this initiative.

WSP has been involved in several ecological restoration projects that exemplify the goals of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration initiative, including:

Higbee Beach Tidal Wetland Restoration The restoration of several hundred acres of marsh into a greenway near Cape May, New Jersey is providing habitat for migratory species, and supports maritime and early successional forest, as well as a public access network. WSPs restoration design is grounded in science and supported by extensive baseline studies, including hydrodynamic modeling, extensive sediment sampling, and detail threatened and endangered species surveys.

Saw Mill Creek Wetland Mitigation Bank A 68-acre wetlands area on Staten Island has been threatened by flooding, invasive weeds and illegal dumping for years, and suffered severe degradation following Superstorm Sandy in 2012. To turn the tide, the New York City Economic Development Corporation selected WSP to provide wetland restoration for New York Citys first wetland mitigation bank.

Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan WSP is providing the South Florida Water Management District with scientists, engineers and restoration specialists to protect the water supply and control flooding in the region by preventing saltwater intrusion, encouraging responsible agriculture and urban development, and preserving fish and wildlife habitat in the Everglades.

Lincoln Park Wetlands Restoration A large tidal marsh was designed by WSP to fit into the natural landscape adjacent to Lincoln Park in Jersey City, which had become a landfill without a permit. Today the wetlands, streams and salt marshes, once blighted with debris, are now restored with 42 acres of tidal habitats, new inter-tidal channels, and public walking trails.

Wisconsin Point Dune Restoration A three-mile-long natural sand spit along Lake Superior, part of one of the longest freshwater sandbars in the world and a popular recreation area, had become degraded by excessive heavy foot traffic and activity, destabilizing the shoreline. WSP provided environmental and resilient design services to restore and stabilize 48,000 square feet of sand dune habitat.

Future Generations

The work carried out today will leave a legacy for future generations, and Brunton believes that this initiative is one way to establish tangible positive impacts in our own generation.

We have the understanding of the negative impacts of habitat degradation on climate change, food security, and biodiversity; and we also know the substantial benefits gained from uplifting degraded habitat to high functioning systems, Brunton said. What we have not done effectively is integrate these facts into the political and economic engines that are driving protection and restoration of habitat. This initiative aims to infuse a respect for habitat health into the global culture.

She believes it is possible to map ways for development to progress in balance with the global health.

We have not run out of time to repair the imprint we have left on the earths landscape, Brunton said. It will require slicing the problem from many angles economic, political, cultural. The UN is the one entity infused globally whose network and influence can forge the change needed.

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Helping the UN Guide Ecosystem Restoration Into the Mainstream - CSRwire.com

Don’t eat the rainforests: Top brands complicit in Indonesia’s ecosystem destruction, probe alleges – Down To Earth Magazine

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Companies procuring oil from and financing the Royal Golden Eagle, which set up palm oil and pulp plantations in Indonesia, finds investigation

Palm oil is the go-to-product for food companies trying to meet the zero transfats limit in their products. But this shift has implications for the rainforests in Indonesia from where most companies source this oil.

An investigation by global watchdog Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has shown that food and cosmetic companies as well as financial institutions have links with companies implicated in the destruction of the Leuser Ecosystem, a forest area on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia.

This rainforest is said to be the only place left on Earth where tigers, orangutans, elephants and rhinos still coexist in the wild.

The investigationclaimed the following companies for procured oil from and financed the Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) group, which has established the destructive oil palm and pulp plantations in the area through subsidiary companies.

RGE, for example, procures palm oil from a mill supplied by PT Tualang Raya, a palm oil producer in the Leuser Ecosystem, the investigation claimed.

PTTualang Raya is also known to have cleared at least 60 hectares of lowland rainforest in the Leuser Ecosystem over the past six months. This is three times the rate of clearance in the last six months.

RAN investigation pointed out that many of these companies and banks had pledged to conserve the environment. For example, Kao, the Japanese Consumer Goods manufacturer, was the first company to adopt a No Deforestation, No Peatland and No Exploitation policy.

Similarly, MUFG and ABN AMRO, which were found to providefunds to RGE, are signatories to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Banking and have policies on financing sustainable palm oil.

These brands and banks must all suspend sourcing from, or joint-ventures and financing of, the Royal Golden Eagle group and all its subsidiaries and associated companies until the corporate group can prove its compliance with No Deforestation, No Peatland and No Exploitation benchmarks, said Gemma Tillack of RAN.

Palm oil is also detrimental to human health. As the world moves towards zero industrially produced transfat status in cooking mediums, palm oil has found favour because it is naturally saturated.

The adverse effects of palm oil are often contested, but a meta-analysis showed connection between palm oil consumption in 23 countries and mortality from ischaemic heart disease.

India is currently grappling with self-sufficiency in edible oil and has for long explored the possibility of plantations of palm oil. In 2019, the Andaman and Nicobar administration approached the Supreme Court to revoke a 16-year-old ban on monoculture plantations in the fragile ecosystem.

In 2014, Union minister and BJP leader Nitin Gadkari urged the authorities to consider oil palm because the hot and humid tropical climate of the island was suitable for its growth. But the idea was mooted again at the meeting on oil palm promotion policy held at the Prime Ministers Office on July 9, 2018.

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Don't eat the rainforests: Top brands complicit in Indonesia's ecosystem destruction, probe alleges - Down To Earth Magazine

Colombia: Cross Border Tech Innovation and Ecosystem building – PRNewswire

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SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Colombia continue its nearshoring virtual tour with a new stop, San Francisco, CA. The Organization Latin San Francisco, is coordinating an exclusive conversation on Colombian Tech and Colombian Silicon Valley success stories with former Vice President and current Colombian Ambassador to the United States Francisco Santos and the President of ProColombia Mrs. Flavia Santoro.

"Colombia is a hot spot for innovation, and it's only getting hotter. With a resilient economy, creative talent and the backing of the government, Colombia offers entrepreneurs, tech companies and venture capital firms a vibrant ecosystem for growing their business," said Francisco Santos, Ambassador of Colombia to the United States.

Colombia has secured its spot on the global map as a top emerging tech destination. From the World Economic Forum choosing Medellin as its Spanish language HQ for the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, to a total of $1.09 billion in venture capital investments across 36 deals last year, according to LAVCA, Colombia is at the forefront of machine learning, fintech, e-commerce and logistics as well as a great location for nearshoring.

"Thanks to its advances in competitiveness, economic environment, innovation and level of risk, Colombia is projected as one of the countries in the region with the greatest potential for attracting Venture capital funds. The development of the Venture Capital fund industry in Colombia, coupled with a government that is committed to strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem, has allowed our country to climb in the ranking of the Latin American Private Equity & Venture Capital Association," stated Flavia Santoro, President of ProColombia.

The Event coordinated with Global San Francisco will also have a guest appearance from Ricardo Garcia-Amaya founder of VOIQ and Top US Latinx Tech Leader.

"At LatinSF we help our San Francisco tax paying companies and VC Funds find opportunities in Latin America. In the past 18 months, I've been asked time and time again, what are the latest Colombian startups that we should have on our radar? We want to invest in the next Rappi ," said Jolynn Vallejo, Director of LatinSF.

This virtual nearshoring tour will continue in other key states around the US including New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Florida.

Other major Colombian investment events are happening, the sixth version of the Colombia Investment Summit this year, 7-9 October, will be virtual and is expected to attract between 1,200 and 1,500 attendees. More than 550 investorscoming from markets in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and North Americawill participate in over 1,000 business meetings.

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Colombia: Cross Border Tech Innovation and Ecosystem building - PRNewswire

The DNS Ecosystem, Its Vulnerabilities, and Threat Mitigations – CircleID

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David Conrad, CTO of The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), recently presented a keynote during a webinar we collaborated on with other internet organizations. Below is a summary of his explanation of the domain name system (DNS) ecosystem, its vulnerabilities, and threat mitigations.

The Internet, as we know, largely depends on DNS. It is akin to the telephone book of the Internet, translating domain names into IP address, so users can easily look for websites with names instead of a string of numbers. The DNS isn't a single entity, and comprises the protocol, namespace, and service; its ecosystem extends to include software, provisioning, and others.

The DNS protocol, invented in 1983, was intended to be lightweight with a simple query-response behavior. To allow the DNS to scale, it was designed with a tree-like structure; each branch and level of domains, such as top-level domains, can be independently administered. With an expanding structure and multiple segments in the DNS ecosystem software, registries, network operators, hosting providers and more the DNS' complexity adds to the challenge in security.

David shared that "the DNS is a critical component of the Internet, and the DNS ecosystem is large, complex, and has myriad players of varying levels of competence, resulting in a (very) large attack surface."

When the DNS was first developed and defined, with no protection against data corruption, security wasn't a focus. Below are some of the DNS ecosystem vulnerabilities and their mitigations.

We have seen recent incidences compromising the DNS on various fronts:

The DNS provides a ubiquitous service critical to the function of the Internet. This, combined with the large attack surface, make the DNS ecosystem an excellent (and frequent) target of attack. It's constantly evolving to improve its efficiency, security, and function, such as DNSSEC. But each part of the DNS and its larger ecosystem has its own set of vulnerabilities, from bugs within the DNS protocol itself to how the DNS is deployed for operation. Hence, fixes for those vulnerabilities requires participation of all actors within the ecosystem from registrants to registries, DNS operators to software developers, end-users to governments to play a role in ensuring the security of DNS and the Internet.

To listen to the full explanation and details by David Conrad, watch the recorded webinar here.

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The DNS Ecosystem, Its Vulnerabilities, and Threat Mitigations - CircleID

Scaling Up The Start-up Ecosystem Recommendations Of Standing Committee On Finance – Finance and Banking – India – Mondaq News Alerts

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24 September 2020

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Recently, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance(2019-20) (Committee) presented its Twelfth Report on the subject'Financing the Start-up Ecosystem' (the Report) to theHon'ble Speaker on 9 September 2020.

The Committee was tasked with the responsibility of recommendingmeasures to enhance the availability of the risk capital to thestart-up ecosystem in India with a particular focus onstrengthening the Indian financial system so that more domesticequity capital is available to scale up the start-up ecosystems forbuilding on the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat.

During the sittings, the Committee acknowledged the importanceof the start-up ecosystem in developing an innovation-driveneconomy and its role in recovery of the economy during and postCOVID-19 pandemic. The various steps were taken by the Departmentfor Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) throughdifferent government schemes since 2016 were also noted. TheCommittee also considered several representations made by theprivate equity (PE)/venture capital (VC) industry representativesas well as consulted relevant ministries, including the Ministry ofFinance (MoF) and Ministry of Commerce (MoC), Department ofEconomic Affairs (DEA), and various regulators in relation to therepresentations made.

Basis the above discussions, the Committee, in its Report, hasmade recommendations for the growth of finance to the start-upecosystem. The paragraphs hereunder discuss the key recommendationsmade by the Committee.

The above recommendations of the Committee echo thelong-standing demands from the PE/VC industry and should go a longway in providing the much-needed financing for start-ups topersevere throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. These recommendationscould mobilize domestic finance from PE/VC funds, banking andfinancial institutions, HNIs, and mature companies. Theserecommendations could also bring parity in commercial gains andtaxes imposed on the risks capital for start-ups, boost foreigninvestments in Indian start-ups and make India a more attractivejurisdiction for raising funds. Considering that the above measuresare required to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on thestart-up ecosystem, it would be pertinent that these measures areimplemented at the earliest.

The content of this article is intended to provide a generalguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be soughtabout your specific circumstances.

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Scaling Up The Start-up Ecosystem Recommendations Of Standing Committee On Finance - Finance and Banking - India - Mondaq News Alerts

Why the new farm Bills should excite the advertising ecosystem – Business Standard

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Many years ago, in the late 1980s, when I was an Account Executive at HTA Delhi, and servicing both Nestl and HMM (Horlicks), one important assignment on my job list for both clients every year in February-March used to be the Summer Milk Mobilisation Program. Both clients manufacturing plants those days were concentrated in Punjab Moga and Nabha, respectively. And for both milk was the base raw material. Weaning foods and baby foods needed perennial milk supplies at Nestl; malted milk foods (Horlicks and Boost) needed continuous volumes of milk, too, as the base manufacturing ingredient at HMM (which became SmithKline Beecham in time, and then sold its brands to Hindustan Unilever). In the lean summer months, milk supplies would dry up considerably. So, Nestl and HMM needed to shore up milk supplies through special promotions to tie up milk from all those cow owners who used to otherwise sell to local gwaalas (milkmen), mithai shops and milk cooperatives like Verka, Vita and Saras.

On the face of it, a promotion to buy more milk sounds simple and uncomplicated enough. In reality, it was perhaps the most important and 'mission critical' piece of communication that we would create as an agency for both the clients. Far more valuable than any commercials for brand support. Why? Because without desired quantities of milk, the plants would come to a screeching standstill.

The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services; Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill were all slated for parliamentary approval earlier this month. The first two Bills have been passed by both Houses, though there is widespread opposition as of now. Hopefully, the dust will settle down, sooner rather than later.

The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill allows barrier-free intra- and inter-state trade of farm produce. So far, farm produce has been sold at notified wholesale markets, or mandis, run by Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs). Each APMC, of which there are about 7,000-8,000 nationally, have licensed middlemen who buy from farmers at prices set by auction before selling to institutional buyers like retailers and big traders. Under the proposed new system, farmers can (eliminate middlemen and) sell directly to institutional buyers at prices agreed between them. This throws up a host of possibilities for corporates planning to get into the agriculture business in the days to come. In the many years that I worked as Airtels exclusive monetisation partner for advertising apertures, one of our most potent rural offerings was the Green SIM card that Airtel had populated in rural/farming areas in partnership with Iffco. There were over half a million of them at one point. It was, and still is, a large readily addressable base of actual farmers that would be of interest to corporates wanting to join the new ecosystem. A whole new agricultural digital ecosystem is waiting to be created. Also, many years ago when I was at Zee, we discussed an agriculture/rural television channel with Rabobank of Netherlands. But 20 years ago, the opportunity was just not viable. Today, just Punjab and Haryanas mandis transact about Rs. 81,000 crore worth of rabi and kharif sales (wheat and rice crops, respectively). Markets in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and other states are equally attractive.

The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services is supposed to allow contract farming, or allow farmers to enter into agreements with agri-firms, exporters or large buyers to produce a crop for a pre-agreed price. This will necessitate corporate brand building by companies among farmer folks. And these companies are not the ones selling tractors or seeds or fertilisers. They will be entities like ITC, Pepsi, HUL, Britannia which will want to create farm-to-fork value-chains portraying themselves as trusted, and dependable partners to work with. Ad agencies have their tasks cut out.

There is a lot of good work ahead in agri-tech that will get linked to market research and data analytics; there is going to be a lot of new digital stuff soon on price discovery, logistics, insurance, farm loans, best practices dissemination, content creation, media apertures, loyalty management, localised public relations, interface with panchayats, zila parishads, mandi boards, bigger and better rural melas of the B2B kind, not the usual haats.

There are 6,100 ITC e-Choupals in operation in 35,000 villages in 10 states (Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) today, touching around 4 million farmers. I expect this number to grow exponentially in the months to come. And for other companies to set up similar digital bridges to the agri-world. So, there is going to be tonnes of work for the advertising ecosystem to partner with clients.

The one big issue, going forward, is going to be trained manpower, and talent, capable of understanding the needs of this new B2B agriculture segment and empathising with the end customer. There are very few trained resources who understand this domain. The Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA) was a pioneer in this space. No other B-school has even looked in this direction.

Leaders of the advertising business have not been very nimble in spotting and grabbing opportunities in the past. They somehow have waited for the ball to reach them, before starting to respond or react. The farm Bills have opened up a vast canvas of 360-degree intervention points that have good revenue potential for ad agencies. Ad head honchos just need to be ready with offerings before management consultants grab the space. I really, and earnestly, hope they do not miss this bus going to Moga, Khanna, Hissar and beyond.

Dr Sandeep Goyal has worked 36 years in advertising & media

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Why the new farm Bills should excite the advertising ecosystem - Business Standard

VR AR Content Creation Ecosystem Market will Register a Significant CAGR During Period 2020-2026 | 18.5% CAGR| Know the Companies List Could…

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The Global VR AR Content Creation Ecosystem Market size is projected to reach USD XX Mn by 2026 from USD 385.5 Mn in 2018, at a CAGR of 18.5% during the forecast period.

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VR AR Content Creation Ecosystem Market will Register a Significant CAGR During Period 2020-2026 | 18.5% CAGR| Know the Companies List Could...

Tokenized Bitcoin on Ethereum Now Tops $1.1 B: Here’s Why – CoinDesk – Coindesk

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To the surprise of many, bitcoin (BTC) has been a breakout star in Ethereums decentralized finance (DeFi) moment. Taking the form of wrapped or tokenized bitcoin, the digital asset takes the best of both blockchains bitcoins price value and brand along with Ethereums programmability into one highly in-demand token.

Last week alone, the supply of BitGos wrapped bitcoins (WBTC) topped 76,000 after setting an all-time record of nearly 21,000 wrapped bitcoins minted within one week.

The week before held the previous record of over 12,200 tokens minted in a single week, according to Dune Analytics.

Overall, investors have made tokenized bitcoin one of the largest assets on DeFi with nearly 107,000 BTC worth some $1.1 billion minted from seven issuers, mostly lured in by high rates of return on lending when compared to other options such as BlockFi.

Why use tokenized bitcoin?

What bitcoin on Ethereum does is simple: It provides liquidity for growing decentralized exchanges (DEX), such as Uniswap. Bitcoins current market cap is five times larger than the second largest cryptocurrency, ether (ETH), according to The CoinDesk 20. That money can be put to use making more money.

Tokenized bitcoin allows investors to bring large amounts of value over to the Ethereum network and its young DEX market in a few clicks.

DeFi is considered vastly immature when compared to traditional or centralized exchange (CEX) markets. This can be seen in the large price spreads between orders on exchange books between different DeFi markets.

Price differences on markets can be exploited by traders in what is called arbitrage opportunities.

Wrapped bitcoin is often the asset of choice for investors seeking arbitrage. Bitcoin packs a large punch in terms of price value. More money on DeFi trading platforms makes the markets themselves stronger as additional buying and selling options are presented.

But tokenizing bitcoin isnt without risks, particularly software risk. Investors who want exposure to bitcoins liquidity pay higher interest rates to cover the risk of losing an asset in addition to getting exposure to the first cryptocurrencies liquidity.

How this works in practice has taken on a few different forms.

Security of bitcoin investments

Different tokenizing models represent different security assumptions for investor funds.

For tokenized bitcoin, security boils down to the type of custodianship and if the investment is collateralized. Three major models exist: a centralized firm like BitGo; a smart contract system with collateral, such as tBTC; or a complete, synthetic-asset backing employed by sBTC.

Tokenized bitcoin by issuer (Dune Analytics)

BitGos Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) is the breakout star of the last few months with some $808.5 million in circulation, according to Etherscan.

Its centralized, meaning deposited bitcoin is held by BitGo. Parties wanting WBTC give BTC to BitGo and then receive an ERC-20 token-equivalent of BTC in return. That ERC-20 can then be sold on secondary markets or plugged into a DeFi application to earn yield.

Keep Networks tBTC, which launched Tuesday, is similar to WBTC but replaces the centralized BitGo model with a network of nodes, wallets and smart contracts. This network aims at bringing more decentralization to BitGos process by allowing both parties the bitcoin depositor and custodian to interact trustlessly through software.

A few features make this possible, such as the bitcoin depositors being able to choose who holds their bitcoin and a 150% security bond (held in ETH) pledged by the custodians on the off-chance they run to the hills with the deposits.

Rens rBTC that makes up about 20% of all wrapped bitcoin in the wild, according to Dune Analytics. It works in a similar manner to tBTCs node network by having the Ren Virtual Machine, RenVM, act as a trustless agent between the Bitcoin and Ethereum blockchains.

Lastly, sBTC is an ERC-20 version of bitcoin. But this time its backed by another token, the Synthetix Network Token (SNX). Each sBTC is not backed by BTC, but 800% of a BTCs value in SNX, the token for minting synthetic assets (Syns) on the Synthetix DEX.

An example of how wrapped bitcoin works

Take a recent transaction from Alameda Research (sister firm of the trading platform FTX).

FTX allows users to swap between BTC and WBTC. When users swap bitcoin for wrapped bitcoin, FTX pulls from Alamedas pool of BTC/WBTC. Users may send BTC to FTX (Alameda) and receive WBTC. When Alamedas pool of WBTC is exhausted, they replenish it directly with BitGo.

Alameda is a merchant and part of the WBTC decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), meaning it can initiate mints for new WBTC using BTC. They send BTC to BitGo and create a minting request on the Ethereum chain as a merchant.

BitGo validates the BTC has been deposited to a preminted address and approves a mint of the number of WBTC equal to Alamedas request. The WBTC can then be used on FTX or swapped with another token atomically (meaning via a peer-to-peer exchange) or even within a DeFi market.

To redeem, the process is reversed: The buyer will send the WBTC back to the merchant who will then provably burn the tokens.

The future of tokenized assets

The wild success of BitGos WBTC and WETH (wrapped ether) may lead to more constructions of other coin holdings. Ben Chan, CTO at WBTC co-creator BitGo, told Coindesk in August that the firm was looking at wrapping other cryptocurrencies.

WBTCs 2020 success has largely been thanks to DeFi, he said.

What weve seen this year is that WBTC traction has been largely thanks to the highly composable DeFi industry, Chan said.

Zack Voell contributed reporting.

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Tokenized Bitcoin on Ethereum Now Tops $1.1 B: Here's Why - CoinDesk - Coindesk

3 reasons why traders turned bullish after Bitcoin price surged to $10.7K – Cointelegraph

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Today the price of Bitcoin (BTC) abruptly rose by 6% from $10,136 to as high as $10,743.

After this powerful 24-hour rally, analysts are now turning cautiously bullish for various reasons but will Bitcoin price be able to tackle the $11K mark any time soon?

Cryptocurrency daily market performance snapshot. Source: Coin360

Currently, the factors that appear to be lifting investor sentiment are negative funding rates, BTC whale activity, and the U.S. dollars recent weakness.

BTC/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView.com

At the moment, Bitcoins funding rate across various futures exchanges is either neutral or negative, despite the price hovering above $10,000.

Bitcoin futures exchanges utilize funding to ensure there is balance in the market and it disincentivizes the majority of the market to prevent the market from swaying to one side for a prolonged period.

If long contracts, or traders betting on a Bitcoin price increase represent the overwhelming majority, they will need to pay short contract holders. The opposite applies if short contract holders dominate the market.

When the funding rate turns negative, it means the majority of the market is shorting BTC. Typically, when funding rates remain below zero, it causes a short squeeze and a surge in BTC price. It can also be an indication that the short bet is overcrowded, raising the likelihood of an upsurge.

A popular pseudonymous trader known as DonAlt tweeted that it is weird to see sentiment bearish with negative funding rates. He said:

It's very, very weird seeing sentiment be this bearish, with neutral or negative funding above $10K. Don't think I can remember a time where that has happened before.

The trader also noted that he sees an absorption of selling pressure at $10,000. He added:

Now I'm seeing absorption at $10K, it looks like the only people selling are people on derivatives and I've closed my shorts to see how the next week is going to play out.

The overcrowded Bitcoin market with short contracts coincides with some top whales possibly moving their holdings off exchange.

According to Whalemap, a group of on-chain analysts who track crypto whale activity, top buyers moved their BTC on Sept. 23.

A map of unspent HODLer Bitcoin. Source: Whalemap

The analysts said top buyers moving their funds have typically been a bullish catalyst for BTC. They explained:

Top buyers were moving their coins yesterday. From my personal experience looking at this metric, next day after top buyers move, we go up.

As the number of COVID-19 cases surges in the U.S., lawmakers are locked in a stalemate over the future of a much needed stimulus package and this is leading strategists to speculate on a weakening U.S. dollar.

Before the initial rally, Michael van de Poppe, a full-time trader at the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, said $10,700 to $10,800 is likely for Bitcoin.

The trader emphasized that if the dollar slows down, the $11,200 to $11,400 range could be a reasonable target. He wrote:

Nice, we're holding here. Looks ready to test the $10,700-10,800 areas and maybe even $11,200-11,400 if the dollar slows down for a bit.

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3 reasons why traders turned bullish after Bitcoin price surged to $10.7K - Cointelegraph

BitGo Is Bringing DeFi-Friendly Wrapped Bitcoin to the Tron Blockchain – CoinDesk – Coindesk

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Tron, the blockchain launched in 2017 by former Ripple devotee Justin Sun, has entered a strategic alliance with custody specialists BitGo.

The partnership will bring BitGos wrapped bitcoin (WBTC) into the Tron ecosystem as a TRC-20 token. (The token is backed roughly 1:1 by bitcoin deposited by users at BitGo Trust, a qualified custodian in the U.S.)

The introduction of WBTC plus a newly-created wrapped ether token from BitGo is meant to help fuel the incipient decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem on Tron. WBTC has been a key driver in the growth of DeFi on Ethereum. (Note: BitGo has nothing to do with the existing wrapped ether (WETH) token used widely in Ethereum DeFi applications.)

Everyone may now use their BTC/ETH to enjoy all the benefits of the Tron DeFi ecosystem without the high gas fees on Ethereum, Sun said in a statement.

Sun also pointed to a service similar to Uniswap on Tron called JustSwap, which he said has achieved $100 million 24-hour volumes since it was launched about a month ago.

BitGo CEO Mike Belshe said WBTC has seen tremendous growth in concert with DeFis boom.

Our new strategic alliance with Tron creates even greater opportunities for users to expand to other chains and tokenize their BTC on the Tron dApp ecosystem while transacting at a lower cost and faster speed, Belshe said in a statement.

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BitGo Is Bringing DeFi-Friendly Wrapped Bitcoin to the Tron Blockchain - CoinDesk - Coindesk