Monthly Archives: April 2022

BitBoy Crypto Founder Ben Armstrong shares key takeaways from the Bitcoin 2022 Conference in Miami and what lies ahead for the crypto world.

- Well, speaking of buzz, lots of buzz coming out of Bitcoin '22 in Miami. To break it all down with us and to look ahead at what's next, I'm joined by Ben Armstrong, BitBoy Crypto founder. Good to have you back, Ben. So Ben, in terms of the attendance this year at this big event and what you got out of the experience, how would you describe it?

BEN ARMSTRONG: Well, the attendance was very high. Supposedly, the Miami Beach Convention Center could hold up to 15,000 people. It certainly didn't seem like it was at capacity at all times, but maybe if you factor in how many people were going through the weekend, there might have been upwards of 15,000 people there. The estimate said as many as 30,000 people were going to be coming down to the conference.

It just kind of, like, doing several of these big conferences-- I'll let you know, a lot of people go down for the city, for the afterparties, and they don't even necessarily go to the actual event itself. But I think it was very upgraded over last year. I go back to two conferences ago, to 2019, Bitcoin 2019. Of course, we had the COVID year of 2020 where there wasn't one. And I can tell you, this conference came miles and miles and miles away.

It is the largest crypto conference we have today. And there's definitely a lot of excitement. There were some big announcements. Some a little lackluster. But definitely an event worth attending if you're into Bitcoin or crypto.

- And what were the biggest announcements that stood out for you?

BEN ARMSTRONG: Yeah, so the biggest announcement-- there were really two. One that came out that there are-- of course, last year, El Salvador was announced it was going to be accepting Bitcoin is legal tender. This year, we have the potential of possibly Honduras, we have the potential of a city off of Portugal, possibly, and then Mexico actually considering. We didn't get that really big boom announcement, like there is a giant country accepting Bitcoin as legal tender at this point, but those were maybe some preemptive announcements of some things to come.

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But the big, big, big thing was that, now, NCR, which is the world's biggest point-of-sale system, they were-- I think Bed Bath & Beyond, Walgreens, McDonald's, Ted's Montana Grill, tons of other companies, that they're actually going to be integrating with the Lightning Network so that using your Cash App and a Lightning wallet, which is like a layer to Bitcoin, you'll be able to spend Bitcoin at several different locations you couldn't before. And it's a different network.

It's not the standard card network, which the retailers lose 3% on all of those sales. It's a much, much lower fee-- less than 1%-- that they would be losing. So I think, to me, like, it was a little lackluster because I think you have to get the retail side, the stores themselves, to really push this narrative that, hey, we can give you a discount if you use this network, or something like that. I think we're still dealing with a motivation problem, because it's a couple extra steps to actually spend your Bitcoin-- or you can actually spend US via the Cash App using the Bitcoin Lightning Network as well.

But it's a few extra steps to get people to do it. And I feel like people are going to still offer card because it's easier.

- And it's interesting because, obviously, when Bitcoin first came about, it was considered the currency. But then it's obviously shifted now, and you see more people using it as a long-term investment. So then how now does this point-of-sale use-- how does that perhaps either hurt or help Bitcoin and crypto's growth overall?

BEN ARMSTRONG: This is a great question, and I don't think there's a great answer to it. You know. So you had Michael Saylor, who came on stage with Cathie Wood. And as he left the stage, he said don't ever, ever, ever sell your Bitcoin. And of course, the crowd goes wild, clapping and all this stuff. And then you have Jack Mallers, who comes up and makes this point-of-sale announcement.

This is basically like, hey, here's a new way for you to spend your Bitcoin, which is the equivalent of selling it, and the crowd goes wild. And there's a lot of hero worship in the world of crypto, and I think people ought to think critically. Once again, the only way that this actually helps is from the retail side to motivate customers or users to use another network so they save money.

You're right, Bitcoin, to me, has become digital gold. It's not something that you want to sell. It's an asset you want to accumulate more of. That's why I also think when you come to countries accepting crypto and-- or Bitcoin as legal tender specifically, like, why would we want a third-world country to accept Bitcoin as legal tender, meaning that the people that live in that country that are already living lives in poverty that they're actually spending and appreciating asset. It doesn't really make sense.

I do think it's time for the Bitcoin maximalists to move away from this argument of "let's have it as a currency and everybody is spending it," and let's accept it for what it is at this point, which is an appreciating asset that you want to gain more over time.

- And I want to talk turning points. I mean, we saw with Bitcoin, some people say, look, I mean, obviously, Bitcoin down today. It's currently under $40,000. Some people are saying it's going to hit $30,000. Cathie Wood, as you mentioned there, she's predicting Bitcoin could hit $1 million by 2030. And then, of course, you have the Ethereum merge that everyone has been waiting for.

If you could just quickly give us your expectations, in terms of the biggest turning points for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

BEN ARMSTRONG: Well, for me, the biggest turning point right now is going to be this ETH merge over the summer. So traditionally, what we see is a Bitcoin four-year cycle based on what we call the Bitcoin halving, where the block rewards are cut in half. Basically, the production of Bitcoin is cut in half every four years. This leads to a price surge for about a year and a half, and then a tremendous price drop. Right now, we're right in the thick of where we should be in the middle of a bear market.

But Bitcoin has held. We haven't seen new lows since last summer. So to me, I think the only chance that we break out of this four-year cycle and that we do see Bitcoin hit all-time highs again-- maybe by the end of this year, beginning of next year-- is for Ethereum to finally take its seat at the top of the market and to lead the market. I ultimately believe Ethereum will pass Bitcoin in market cap. I don't even think it's a question.

It's just a matter of when. So with this ETH merge, with inflation of ETH going from, like, 4.3%, dropping 90%, down to 0.4% per year, I think this is a tremendous moment in crypto history, and this is going to be the moment that is going to determine can ETH take its seat and lead the market or will we still be slaves and dependent on Bitcoin to move the market. And if that's the case, then buckle in, the next year might be kind of rough as we lead up into the 2024 halving, which should occur sometime March or April in 2024.

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Bitcoin 2022: Whats next for the cryptocurrency space - Yahoo Finance

Rain, a cryptocurrency exchange that is licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain, has introduced zero per cent trading fees as digital currencies gain more acceptance among mainstream investors globally.

The zero per cent trading fees will allow users to see the price of the cryptocurrency they want to trade and know there are no further costs, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

We believe introducing zero per cent commission trading is the fastest way to on-board millions of new customers in the Middle East that are newly interested in the crypto industry, AJ Nelson, co-founder of Rain, said. Rain wants to set the tone for the market.

Cryptocurrencies have become a popular mode of investment over the past two years, partly spurred by increased digital adoption during the pandemic. It has also been driven by bored investors with time on their hands during pandemic movement restrictions and extra money to invest after a series of government stimulus packages.

About 33 per cent of UAE residents have invested in cryptocurrencies, a survey by online market research company Toluna found last week. Residents in the Emirates plan to allocate 26 per cent of their investable assets to cryptocurrency, compared with 20 per cent globally, it said.

Last month, Dubai adopted a law to regulate virtual assets, which is aimed at creating an advanced legal framework to protect investors and provide international standards for virtual asset industry governance that will promote responsible business growth in the emirate

The Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority serves as the single custodial entity mandated to licence and govern the burgeoning cryptocurrency sector in Dubai, including all mainland and free zones, but excluding the Dubai International Financial Centre.

Rain was founded in 2017 by Abdullah Almoaiqel, Mr Nelson, Joseph Dallago and Yehia Badawy. Rain Financials subsidiary, Bahrain-based Rain Management, became the first licensed crypto-asset service provider in the Middle East in 2019 by the Central Bank of Bahrain.

The cryptocurrency exchange is not currently licensed by a financial services regulator in the UAE, although it received in-principle approval for financial services permission from the Abu Dhabi Global Markets Financial Services Regulatory Authority in January.

Once Rain satisfies all approval conditions and receives its permit, the company will be able to list a greater number of virtual asset pairs provided it meets the accepted virtual assets criteria set out by the ADGMs regulatory authority.

Earlier this year, the exchange secured $110 million in Series B funding. The round was co-led by San Francisco-based cryptocurrency-focused investment company Paradigm and Silicon Valley venture capital company Kleiner Perkins. US-based Coinbase Ventures, Global Founders Capital, Middle East Venture Partners, Cadenza Ventures, Jimco and CMT Digital also participated in the round.

The company offers its customers a platform to buy and sell cryptocurrencies, as well as custodian services to hold their assets. It also provides educational opportunities for those interested in learning more about the digital tokens.

The simplified fee structure aims to bring a new generation of investors into the Middle East and customers can feel more comfortable placing their first trade, while they build their confidence in the crypto world, Rain said in the statement.

In 2019, the start-up raised $2.5m from BitMex Ventures and Bahraini cryptocurrency fund Blockwater.

The FinTech also raised $6m in January 2021 in a series A round of funding, led by MEVP, with participation from Coinbase Ventures.

Rain has performed more than $1.9bn worth of transactions to date and hosts more than 185,000 active users.

Updated: April 14, 2022, 1:31 PM

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Middle Eastern cryptocurrency exchange Rain waives trading fees - The National

Toronto April 14, 2022 The Bank of Canada, a G7 central bank, and Multiverse Computing, a developer of quantum computing solutions for the financial industry and other sectors, announced completion of a proof-of-concept project using quantum computing to simulate the adoption of cryptocurrency as a method of payment by non-financial firms.

The quantum simulations were designed to help generate examples that illustrate how similar firms may end up adopting different levels of cryptocurrency use.

We are proud to be a trusted partner of the first G7 central bank to explore modelling of complex networks and cryptocurrencies through the use of quantum computing, said Sam Mugel, CTO at Multiverse Computing. The results of the simulation are very intriguing and insightful as stakeholders consider further research in the domain. Thanks to the algorithm we developed together with our partners at the Bank of Canada, we have been able to model a complex system reliably and accurately given the current state of quantum computing capabilities.

Companies may adopt various forms of payments. So, its important to develop a deep understanding of interactions that can take place in payments networks.

Multiverse Computing conducted its innovative work related to applying quantum computing for modelling complex economic interactions in a research project with the Bank of Canada. The project explored quantum computing technology as a way to simulate complex economic behaviour that is otherwise very difficult to simulate using traditional computational techniques.

By implementing this solution using D-Waves annealing quantum computer, the simulation was able to tackle financial networks as large as 8-10 players, with up to 2^90 possible network configurations. Note that classical computing approaches cannot solve large networks of practical relevance as a 15-player network requires as many resources as there are atoms in the universe.

We wanted to test the power of quantum computing on a research case that is hard to solve using classical computing techniques, said Maryam Haghighi, Director, Data Science at the Bank of Canada. This collaboration helped us learn more about how quantum computing can provide new insights into economic problems by carrying out complex simulations on quantum hardware.

Motivated by the empirical observations about the cooperative nature of adoption of cryptocurrency payments, this theoretical study found that for some industries, these digital assets would share the payments market with traditional bank transfers and cash-like instruments. The market share for each would depend on how the financial institutions respond to the cryptocurrency adoptions, and on the economic costs associated with such trades.

Multiverse Computing is a leading quantum software company that applies quantum and quantum-inspired solutions to tackle complex problems in finance to deliver value today and enable a more resilient and prosperous economy. The companys expertise in quantum control and computational methods as well as finance means it can secure maximum results from current quantum devices. Its flagship product, Singularity, allows financial professionals to leverage quantum computing with common software tools. The company is targeting additional verticals as well, including mobility, energy, the life sciences and industry 4.0.

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World Quantum Day: Bank of Canada in Quantum Simulation of Cryptocurrency POC with Multiverse - insideHPC - insideHPC

RELATED: Who are the worlds richest billionaires aged under 30?

Changpeng Zhao, founder and chief executive of cryptocurrency trading platform Binance, is the worlds richest crypto billionaire with a net worth of $65 billion, according to Forbes 2022 World Billionaires List.

Mr Zhao, also known as CZ, owns an estimated 70 per cent of the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange, which this week received in-principle approval from Abu Dhabi Global Market to operate as a broker-dealer in virtual assets in the UAE capital.

Last month, Binance also secured a virtual asset licence to operate in Dubai after the emirate outlined clear regulations to govern emerging technology sectors such as cryptocurrencies in an effort to safeguard investors.

The Forbes list, which used stock prices and exchange rates from March 11 to calculate the personal fortunes of the worlds richest people, features a record 19 billionaires who made their money from cryptocurrency and blockchain technology seven more than in 2021.

Its been a wild 12 months for the world of cryptocurrencies, from the Elon Musk-fuelled ascent of Dogecoin, to Web3 innovations and non-fungible tokens [NFTs], to the wild swings in Bitcoin and other crypto tokens, Forbes said.

Amid all the action, theres also no shortage of money to be made in the $2 trillion crypto economy.

Last November, Bitcoin reached an all-time high of $68,000, then crashed in January to settle just above $35,000. Today, the digital token is trading in the $41,280 range.

Last week, Forbes declared Elon Musk, founder and chief executive of electric car maker Tesla, the worlds richest person, with a net worth of $219bn.

However, the Russia-Ukraine crisis, Covid-19 pandemic and volatile stock markets have taken a toll on the combined wealth of the worlds richest people, which slipped 3 per cent to $12.7 trillion over the past year, from a record $13.1tn in 2021.

In total, there are 2,668 billionaires in the world, down from an all-time high of 2,755 last year.

Meanwhile, Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder and chief executive of global cryptocurrency exchange FTX, was ranked as the second-wealthiest crypto billionaire with a personal fortune of $24bn, followed by Coinbase co-founder Brian Armstrong with a net worth of $6.6bn.

In March, FTX received a virtual asset licence to set up regulated trading and clearing services in Dubai.

Gary Wang, also a co-founder of FTX who was crowned the worlds richest billionaire aged under 30 by Forbes, ranked fourth with a net worth of $5.9bn, while Ripples Chris Larson rounded out the top five with a fortune of $4.3bn.

Newcomers to the list include Nikil Viswanathan and Joseph Lau, co-founders of Web3 infrastructure company Alchemy, each with a net worth of $2.4bn, and Devin Finzer and Alex Atallah, co-founders of NFT marketplace OpenSea, who are worth $2.2bn, Forbes said.

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, granddaughter of French pharmacist and LOreal founder Eugene Schueller, is the worlds richest woman, at $74.8 billion.

Updated: April 14, 2022, 9:06 AM

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Who are the worlds richest cryptocurrency billionaires? - The National

By Anna Peel

Dogecoin is the cryptocurrency searched for the most in 23 states, the highest of any cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin has the second-highest number of states searching for it the most out of any other cryptocurrency.

Seven states searched for Shiba Inu the most out of any cryptocurrency

New research has revealed the cryptocurrency that each state wants to invest in the most with Dogecoin taking the top spot.

The research conducted by cryptocurrency experts Coin Insider analyzed Google Trends data to establish the cryptocurrency that each state wants to invest in based on searches.

Source: ValueWalk/Coin Insider

The analysis revealed that Dogecoin had the highest number of states wanting to invest in the cryptocoin with a total of twenty-three states, including Illinois, Florida, Hawaii, and New Jersey. The rise in interest can be partially attributed to the endorsement of Elon Musk who stated in 2021 that Tesla would accept Dogecoin as a form of payment.

Bitcoin was the second most popular with ten states searching to invest in Bitcoin more than any other cryptocurrency, including Connecticut, Alaska, Mississippi, and New Hampshire.

A total of eight states want to invest in Ethereum the most, the third-highest number in the research. States seeking to invest in Ethereum the most include Georgia, Louisiana, Virginia and Ohio.

Shiba Inu debuted nineteen months ago and has grown astronomically, rising more than 14,000,000%. This leads it to be seven US states most searched for cryptocurrency to invest in, with states including California, New York, Texas and Nevada.

Lithium was the most popular cryptocurrency in one state Pennsylvania. Cardano was also the most popular cryptocurrency in only one state Colorado.

Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson for Coin Insider said: The rise in cryptocurrencies has been enormous in recent years, with more and more people looking to invest in them.

This study offers incredible insight into where these investments are coming from across the US, with Dogecoin surpassing Bitcoin as the most popular cryptocurrency on the internet. With more than 6,500 cryptocurrencies available globally, it is fascinating to see currencies that may not be the most valuable are still the most sought after.

The study was conducted by Coin Insider, a leading digital media company that provides news, market analysis and investor insights focused on cryptocurrency.

Originally published at ValueWalk.

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Dogecoin Is Officially the Most Popular Cryptocurrency in America - 24/7 Wall St.