South African Investors to Lose $13 Million as Bitcoin Scammer Declared Bankrupt

A South African high court has declared an alleged bitcoin scam mastermind, Willie Breedt, bankrupt. The court decision follows an application by one disgruntled investor, Simon Dix, a News24 report states. Willie Breedt is the CEO of the defunct Vaultage Solutions (VS), the company at the center of the alleged cryptocurrency scam. According to South African media reports, an estimated 2,000 investors invested a total of 227 million South African rands or $13.35 million into Breedt’s company. Trouble for the company’s investors started when Breedt reportedly broke off all communication…

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

Crypto derivatives trading volumes plunged 36% to $393 billion in June, the lowest they have reached in 2020, according to a new report by Cryptocompare. The decline may be the result of a lull in investor interest in the instruments during the month in review. In May, derivatives – contracts signed by at least two people to buy or sell a digital asset at an agreed price in the future – soared to a record high $602 billion, possibly driven by the hype that accompanied Bitcoin’s third halving in that…

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

On July 4, 2020, the Bitcoin Cash proponent Cain published an interview with the blockchain developer, Shammah Chancellor, about a new project called Stamp Chat. At its basic level, “Stamp is a prototype of a layer-2 private messaging and payment system on Bitcoin Cash. It implements stealth [plus] confidential transactions on top of Bitcoin Cash using layer-2 protocol technologies.” This week Bitcoin Cash supporters were introduced to a new tool called Stamp, an encrypted message and payment system that leverages the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) chain. The project is being developed…

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

A study report by Leadblock Partners, an appointed representative of Sapia Partners LLP, finds an accelerating growth of the European blockchain ecosystem. The findings of the Leadblock Partners study suggest European respondents have a funding need for €350 million for the next 18 months. The European Enterprise Blockchain start-up ecosystem is mainly composed of early-stage start-ups at the pre-seed to series A-stages. About 60% of surveyed start-ups are now generating revenues, and of which 33% are generating €250k of recurring revenues. The study notes that improving performance is due to…

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Bitcoin Volatility Hits Three-Year Low, Sparking Fears of Massive Sell-Off

The cryptocurrency data analytics and research company, Skew has warned that bitcoin could see a massive sell-off due to declining volatility. The data analytics firm says that bitcoin (BTC) realized volatility hit 20% over the past 10 days – it’s the lowest 10-day reading in nearly three years. “Last time we reached that level, we had the great sell-off of November 2018 shortly after,” Skew cautioned on Monday. Back then, the price of BTC crashed by almost 50% from $6,500 in November to around $3,200 in early December. It was…

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Video: How To Install MyNode on Your Old Casa Node

Bitcoiners attempting to do their part to secure the network, and run their own full nodes that fully validate transactions and blocks, often turn to hardware and software solutions provided by a range of groups. But those who were leveraging node hardware provided by Casa are now in search of a new solution. Casa no longer supports its node hardware with ongoing updates, leaving plenty of Bitcoiners wondering how they can keep an updated full Bitcoin node running on their old Casa Node hardware. In the video above, Bitcoin Magazine’s…

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

On July 1, 2020, the partner of Polynexus Capital, Andrew Steinwold, detailed that the sales of blockchain-powered non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are about to cross the $100 million mark. The popularity of NFTs has grown massive since 2017, as blockchain cards, collectibles, digital artwork, virtual land parcels, and extensible virtual game items have become all the rage. Blockchain-Fueled Non-Fungible Token Assets Close to $100M in Sales Andrew Steinwold the managing partner at Polynexus Capital is a big believer in non-fungible token (NFT) solutions built using blockchain technology. NFTs have been around…

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700,000 Expedia Hotels Can Now Be Paid With Cryptocurrencies via Travala

More than 700,000 Expedia Group hotels and accommodations are now available via crypto-friendly travel booking platform Travala. Bookings can be paid with more than 30 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin. Despite covid-19, Travala saw a 170% increase in booking revenue from its 2 million properties in 230 countries. Travel With Crypto via Expedia and Travala Cryptocurrency-friendly travel booking platform Travala announced on Monday that more than 700,000 Expedia Group hotels and accommodations are now available on its website. Users can pay for their bookings with more than 30 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, in…

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Bitcoin Entrepreneur Brock Pierce Joins the 2020 US Presidential Election

Blockchain entrepreneur and former Disney child actor, Brock Pierce, is running for President of the United States this election. Pierce announced he was running during America’s Independence Day celebration on July 4, the same day Kanye West revealed his candidacy. Pierce is an advocate of technology and cryptocurrencies and he wholeheartedly believes “entrepreneurs are essential to the rebuilding of this nation.” On July 4, 2020, Brock Pierce, the child actor who starred in the classic Disney film the “Mighty Ducks” is running for President of the United States this election.…

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A New Price Valuation Model Says $10,670 Fair Value For Bitcoin

Seba, a Switzerland based bank, is proposing a Bitcoin valuation model that places its fair value at $10,670. At this price, the model suggests Bitcoin is trading at a significant discount, at just above $9,100. In a blog posting this past Thursday, Seba says the model’s estimate relies on the same concepts as other valuation models. It draws comparisons with the FX space. “In the FX space, for instance, Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) and Uncovered Interest Rate Parity (UIP), two models based on sound concepts, provide estimates challenged by empirical…

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