2019 Could Bring Amenable Regulations and Growth to the Cryptocurrency Industry

While 2017 successfully popularized bitcoin, altcoins and initial coin offerings (ICOs) due to the surge of the prices of all cryptoassets, 2018 brought back the proverbial rocket ship to earth via stricter regulations and blanket bans.

With more and more regulators looking to implement amenable policies for the cryptospace, coupled with the impending entrance of more institutional investors, 2019 may be another excellent year for cryptos and blockchain technology, reported the TheStreet on January 2, 2019.

The Highs and Lows of 2018

Following the impressive moonshot of BTC and other cryptoassets in late 2017, plus the launch of BTC futures contracts by the CME and CBOE, many market participants were optimistic that the party would continue in 2018.

The opposite was the case, however, as regulators in different jurisdictions increased oversight for their blockchain and crypto industry, while the cash-settled BTC futures contracts from the stables of CME and CBOE gave BTC pessimists the chance to bet against the flagship digital asset, thereby feeding the crash of BTC from $20,000 down to just above $3,000.

To further compound the cryptocurrency markets woes, the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejected several BTC ETF applications.

Interestingly, while retail investors were busy mourning their dead BTCs, institutional investors were seriously buying the dip, with heavyweights in the traditional finance ecosystem including the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), BlackRock, and a host of others announcing plans to join the cryptocurrency bandwagon.

Although 2018 saw many firms, and even nations, integrate blockchain technology and cryptos into their operations, the positive developments were however not enough to reinstate the bulls.

2019 the Big Year for Cryptos?

If all goes as planned, 2019 is expected to usher in good tidings for the burgeoning digital assets world, concerning friendly regulations, institutional investments, and other developments.

In December 2018, BTCManager informed that the SEC had pushed back its decision regarding the VanEck SolidX BTC ETF application to February 2019.

Importantly, earlier in November, the Bakkt team announced that the much-anticipated launch of its physically backed BTC futures contracts slated for December 2018 had been postponed to January 24, 2019, to afford them enough time to “get all the pieces in place.”

On the regulatory front, 2019 also promises to be fair to digital assets as more and more financial watchdogs are now looking to study and understand the DLT industry extensively to create robust policies that can protect consumers, curb bad actors, and foster innovation at the same time.

Regarding the now controversial status of ICOs, it is expected that more companies will turn to security token offerings (STOs) and stablecoins could help contribute to the growth of the cryptosphere this year.

Category: Altcoins, Bitcoin, Blockchain, Commentary, News, Regulation

Tags: adoption, altcoins, bitcoin, blockchain technology, commentary, Regulations

Published at Sun, 06 Jan 2019 02:00:20 +0000

December 6, 2017

Cointed Announces Crypto Debit Card Giveaway

Cointed is partnering payment solutions company to provide a crypto debit card that aims to make payments in crypto part of everyday life. Those who contribute to the Cointed ICO during December have the chance to win a crypto debit card.

Why a Crypto Debit Card?

Clients will link their wallets to the card, in the same way traditional cards work. Payments will be charged in crypto but the merchant has the opportunity to get paid in fiat. This will allow people who want to spend their crypto to do so without forcing merchants to accept digital currency in their stores.

During the Cointed ICO, anyone who contributes with more than 20ETH will get a Cointed Limited crypto card for free.

The Giveaway

However, 20 ETH is quite the amount to invest. Everyone who invests in the period from 00:00:01 UTC on Thursday, December 7, 2017, to 00:00:01 UTC on Thursday, December 14, 2017, will be eligible to win one of the five crypto debit cards. To increase your chances, Cointed will weight the chance that you win a card with the amount you invested. So, the more you invest during this period, the more likely you are to win.

Of course, people who choose to invest more than 20 ETH will still get the Cointed Limited crypto card and will be eligible to participate in the draw.

Conditions

The only requirements to participate are: make your investment during said period and have your email address linked to your wallet. This can be done on the Cointed Token Website. Your linked email address would not be disclosed to third parties and the only reason it is needed is to contact the winners.

The formula used for determining the chance to win a card will be:

Unfortunately, only people located in a SEPA country will be able to participate. Further information for the card you may find in the Cointed Crypto Debit Card Terms or Cointed Whitepaper

Winners Announcement

Winners will be informed via email. Make sure to follow CoinStaker’s latest Bitcoin News as well as Cointed’s social media profiles to find out who the winners are! Stay tuned!

Good luck!