ICO market deflates in April
When Bitcoin took flight in late 2017, the ICO movement was also gathering momentum — momentum that continued to run hot early in 2018 but now shows signs of cooling
Tax day 2018 is history — how to choose a crypto accountant for 2019
With April 17th now a fading memory there’s never been a better time to start vetting crypto accountants for next year’s big day
Top cop to crypto exchanges ‘explain yourselves!’
The Attorney General of New York has written to 13 major crypto exchanges requesting disclosure on their operations, use of bots, conflicts of interest, outages, and more
Heuristics are not an investment strategy
A heuristic strategy for problem-solving might otherwise be described as a ‘rule of thumb’ or ‘best guess’ approach. It’s fine for some things — like pumping up your tyres or watering plants — but it’s arguable that it has no place in cryptocurrency investing
New York law firm launches crypto litigation tracker
The life-cycle of blockchain startups is fraught with legal uncertainty and their volatility makes them particularly prone to claims for compensation both in and outside of the courts. As this new frontier of investing keeps expanding, litigation monitoring could be a useful metric for investors when doing due diligence on crypto assets and used as part of a screening process.
Investment Watch: A guide to emerging cryptocurrency technologies
This article outlines three emerging cryptocurrency technologies, all of which have the potential to disrupt today's blockchain industry and make a significant contribution to the new decentralised global economy.
Why the ‘Half of all ICOs Have Failed’ stories are (kinda) fake news
Not surprisingly, Bitcoin.com's story in late February that 46 percent of all blockchain projects had already failed sent shockwaves through the crypto community. But the reality is actually more nuanced than it might first appear. Comparatively, the failure rate of ICO projects is not extraordinary when compared to startups in general, or businesses funded through traditional venture capital channels
Cryptocurrency volatility: Why the risk-reward tradeoff is skewed
Cryptographic assets are one of the most — if not the most — volatile asset class there is; you can make loads of money or lose everything. While for many the possibility of generating spectacular returns is the key attraction of crypto, are the risks consummate with the potential rewards?
The regrettable under-performance of the ICO
Despite their phenomenal rise, it is nonetheless arguable that today's ICOs are greatly underperforming. Not because they are not effective in raising capital for startups and projects, but because their true potential is only fractionally used and their inherent power is only very partially harvested
Will Bitcoin’s rising tide continue to float all boats?
While bitcoin holders are rejoicing about the incredible year-end rally that bitcoin is experiencing, many holders of alternative cryptocurrencies and digital tokens are positioning themselves to benefit from a possible altcoin rally off the back of bitcoin's success — but should they be?
Cboe to launch Bitcoin Futures trading on December 10th
In a move that looks set to pip the CME at the Bitcoin Futures trading post, Cboe Global Markets has announced plans to offer trading in bitcoin futures beginning on Sunday, December 10th.Cboe bitcoin futures will trade on the CBOE Futures Exchange under the ticker symbol XBT and there will be no fees for trades during December the company says.
ICOs and cryptocurrencies – a ‘rough’ guide to global regulation
Cryptocurrency mania, especially new ICOs, has led to an internationally inconsistent regulatory response. Some authorities have issued total bans on ICOs, whilst others have decided to take a more observational approach to regulating the burgeoning industry. Notably, a number of regulators, have issued warnings to consumers about the lack of investor protection, high risk of fraud, and price volatility which can characterise ICOs and cryptocurrencies in general. This article seeks to provide a brief overview of the approaches taken by a number of regulators and provide readers with an idea of the current regulatory status of cryptocurrencies and ICOs in a number of key FinTech jurisdictions.
Risk minimization strategies for trading cryptocurrencies
Investing in cryptocurrencies is a high risk/high return activity. There is currently no other asset class that is this lawless yet has such high returns potential — as this year’s exuberant price rallies of bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) illustrate. Bitcoin rallied by over 720 percent while ether has rallied by over 4,300 percent year-to-date. With high reward comes high risk, however, and crypto investors face a multitude of them in this largely unregulated and immature market.
Crypto continent — an African snapshot
When the bitcoin ecosystem began to take shape, one of its first “killer apps” was supposed to be its ability to provide banking services and low-cost remittances to regions of Africa poorly served by the traditional banking sector. Due to bitcoin’s relatively high transaction fees, however, and the lack of exchange liquidity to convert bitcoin into local fiat currency, personal remittances using bitcoin have proven to be more expensive than existing services like WorldRemit — and using bitcoin for personal payments makes little sense for most Africans.
For Bitcoin, is being a store of value more important than a payment system?
The drama surrounding Bitcoin in recent times has almost entirely revolved around conflicting opinions on how the network should scale to accommodate increasing demand and reduce transaction delays. After years of debate the two sides remain — those who believe Bitcoin to be a digital cash-like payment system, and others who primarily view it as a store of value, like gold.
High demand for crypto exchange traded notes in Europe
Exchange traded notes (ETNs) are debt backed securities which offer investors exposure to the change in value of an underlying asset. They are typically listed on public exchanges and can be purchased by any broker with access to the listing exchange.
