Adam, Andreas, Jonathan and Stephanie discuss the SEC’s recent comments, Circle’s Acquisition of Poloniex and where these events indicate we are on the march towards “legitimacy”.
After the break, cryptocurrency conferences have come a long way… Well, not all of them.
This episode of Let’s Talk bitcoin! was sponsored by EasyDNS.com and was edited by Matthew Zipkin.
Today’s discussion featured Stephanie Murphy, Jonathan Mohan Andreas Antonopoulos and Adam B. Levine.
This episode featured music by Jared Rubens & General Fuzz. Any questions or comments? email adam@letstalkbitcoin.com
South Korea’s real-name system for cryptocurrency trading has been enforced for over a month, but most accounts have not been converted to the new system. Banks are still not converting accounts for most crypto exchanges and the government will not force them or investors to use the new system.
Also read:
After 1 Month – 19% Conversion Rate
One month after the implementation of the government-mandated real-name system, the conversion rate of virtual accounts from the old system to the real-name system in South Korea is only 19%, No Cut News daily newspaper reported. “There is still a large number of investors who do virtual currency trading without [the] real name change.”
According to the news outlet, Bithumb’s conversion rate of 15% is the lowest, while Coinone’s 26% is the highest. In addition, have converted accounts for small and medium-sized exchanges. The news outlet described that during the month:
Of the total 169,500 accounts, 19% completed the real-name conversion. Only one out of five people who use virtual currency transactions use real-name conversion services.
Shinhan Bank has previously issued 125,000 virtual accounts, 28% of which have been converted into real-name ones. Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) has converted 34,000 virtual accounts out of 127,791, putting its conversion rate at 22%.
Nonghyup Bank has been issuing the largest number of virtual accounts to crypto exchanges. It has converted 90,000 out of 139,000 virtual accounts at Bithumb, and 26,000 out of 100,000 accounts at Coinone, the publication described. The bank recently started issuing new virtual accounts for crypto exchanges. As of Friday, it has opened a total of 174,000 virtual accounts using the real-name system for Coinone and Bithumb, Seoul Finance detailed.
Still No Conversion for Small Exchanges
The real-name system went into effect on January 30, putting a stop to the anonymous trading of cryptocurrencies within the country. Six banks have this system installed, but only three of them are converting virtual accounts for crypto exchanges: Shinhan Bank, Nonghyup Bank, and IBK. Furthermore, they only service the country’s top four crypto exchanges: Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit.
The lack of real-name conversion is a major problem for over 25 small and medium-sized exchanges. The Korean Financial Supervisory Services (FSS) is aware of the problem and has urged banks to rectify the situation. However, ultimately, it is up to banks to decide whether to provide the services. An FSS official was quoted by No Cut News:
We aimed to secure transaction transparency and prevent money laundering through a bank real name account…It is out of our goal and authority to manage more than that.
No Reasons to Convert Accounts
According to the publication, a large number of investors do not feel the need to convert their account to the real-name system. “Even if you do not switch to real names, you can still buy and sell virtual currencies with your existing money,” the news outlet wrote and quoted Hong Ki-hoon, a Hongik University professor of business administration, commenting:
I think that there will be abuse cases with name accounts such as one person using a real name account and this person acting on behalf of another person.
In addition, he finds the current efforts by the financial authorities to prevent money laundering, such as banning minors and foreigners from cryptocurrency trading, “somewhat satisfactory,” the news outlet conveyed. Citing the speculative nature of the cryptocurrency market, the professor believes that “The government’s intention to catch speculative demand will be difficult to keep up.”
Do you think more banks and investors will start using the Korean real-name system soon? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Korea Biz News.
Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our section.
The post appeared first on .
In times of economic uncertainty, bitcoin flourishes. In times of high fees, litecoin prospers. And in times of Coinbase rumors, ripple shines. Today was one such day. In a repeat of December, January, and every other month, XRP has been linked with Coinbase, the altcoin rose rapidly in value on March 5…only to sink once the U.S. exchange debunked those rumors.
Also read:
Ripple Does a Ripple
In the movie Groundhog Day, weatherman Phil Connors, played by Bill Murray, is forced to relive the same day over and over until he finally learns to get his affairs in order. Ripple fans seem to be stuck in their very own Groundhog Day, a recurring nightmare in which XRP only pumps when the Coinbase listing rumor is trotted out. For all the work Ripple have done in seeking to develop Middle Eastern partnerships and persuade banks to trial their cryptocurrency, it seems to have had little impact on price. At the mention of Coinbase, however, the coin embarks on a rapid ascent that puts other altcoins in the shade.
On March 5, XRP began one of those climbs and was soon the day’s best performer, up 15% to a peak of $1.07. Still a long way off from its January peak of $3.64, admittedly, but a solid start nonetheless, and enough to give ripplets hope that their chosen coin was undergoing a long-overdue revival. A Coinbase listing was coming, the word on the web went, and ripple was as good as confirmed. And then, cruelly, Coinbase to state that it had no plans to add new altcoins any time soon. While it didn’t mention XRP specifically, the implication was clear: “We have made no decision to add additional assets to either GDAX or Coinbase. Any statement to the contrary is untrue and not authorized by the company.”
If the groundhog sees his shadow, there’ll be no ripple listing for six more weeks.
When Coinbase?
Emilie Choi
Ripple fans must feel like Brian Armstrong and co are taunting them. When will the dominant U.S. exchange finally add ripple and put an end to this eternal Groundhog Day? Not anytime soon, by the looks of it. Spreading rumors of a Coinbase listing – all it takes is a photoshopped API purporting to show the ticker – has become one of the easiest pumps to perpetrate.
The strange thing is that due to its already high liquidity, a Coinbase listing is likely to apply only a temporary bump in price. Thereafter, normal service will be resumed. Ripple bagholders may be overstating the importance of such a development, should it materialize. Coinbase did make one new listing today at least, Linkedin exec Emilie Choi has joined as VP of Corporate and Business Development.
Do you think Coinbase is going to add ripple any time soon? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Coincodex, and Columbia Pictures.
Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our section.
The post appeared first on .
On March 2-4 the international pro-liberty nonprofit, Students For Liberty, hosted a three-day conference called Liberty Con, an event that aims to “to educate, develop, and empower the next generation of leaders of liberty.” In addition to the many ideas that promote freedom attendees got a taste of cryptocurrency from the bitcoin.com booth alongside a 45-minute debate about the legitimacy of bitcoin between bitcoin.com’s communications ambassador and the well-known precious metals advocate and economist Peter Schiff.
Also read:
Libertycon Attendees Learn About the Free Market Benefits of Cryptocurrency
This year the organization (SFL) hosted a three-day event aimed at teaching and promoting liberty throughout the many college campuses located all across the world. was filled with many organizations that promote liberty across many different global campuses, industries, and business sectors. This includes groups like the Atlas Society, Institute for Human Studies, FEE, Reason, Young Voices, Free the People, Tzero, the Mises Institute, and of course bitcoin.com. Many of the Liberty Con attendees, sponsors, and organizations were very interested in and blockchain technology as a free market concept that can help remove the chains of tyranny.
Hundreds of Wallets Downloaded
Over the course of the weekend, hundreds of Liberty Con participants downloaded the and received a few bucks of (BCH) during the event. Students were taught how to send and receive cryptocurrency transactions, and many of the young minds were very interested in this emerging technology.
Attendees learned the very basics of digital currencies because many of them had heard about cryptos but never invested or tried them before. More importantly, Liberty Con participants learned how cryptocurrencies can be used as a free market tool to help remove money from the nation state’s control.
Liberty Con attendees downloading .
bitcoin, Gold, and Beanie Babies
One highlight of the three-day event’s festivities included a between and the celebrity ‘gold bug’ . The debate discussed whether or not bitcoin or cryptocurrencies, in general, are ‘legitimate.’ Mr. Lujan kicked off the debate by explaining that there’s nothing wrong with precious metals but gold and silver are not entirely evolutionary — rather precious metals have always done the same things. He explains that bitcoin, however, is an evolving peer-to-peer technology that will relentlessly grow and evolve into a continuous innovation much like the internet. Further, Mr. Lujan details that intrinsic value is based upon the subjective valuations of market actors a concept solidified by the . Which means the value of bitcoin, gold, and everything else on this earth is based on the
From left to right: SFL’s Fred Roeder, the economist Peter Schiff, and bitcoin.com’s Sterlin Lujan.
Of course, Mr. Schiff didn’t see eye to eye with Sterlin’s arguments and pretty much went over his usual arguments that bitcoin is nothing more than “” Mr. Schiff details that gold does have intrinsic value and he explains how gold has been used for millennia. Moreover, he says that bitcoins can easily be stolen or confiscated by the government, but it would be more difficult to steal people’s gold. Of course, Mr. Schiff must have forgotten when FDR seized everyone’s gold in the U.S. back in 1933 and made it for owning the precious metal. Additionally, Schiff explains that he believes cryptocurrencies are not scarce due to the 1,500 other altcoins and eventually the price of bitcoin will plummet to zero — “with no one left but bagholders.” Of course, Mr. Lujan countered the arguments but he could not persuade Mr. Schiff to see things a different way.
Conscious Capitalism
Besides the debate about the legitimacy of bitcoin, many of the attendees saw quite a few keynote presentations and an SFL awards dinner featuring the founder of Whole Foods Markets, John Mackey. Mackey discussed his debate with the economist Milton Friedman and explained his concept and book called “.” Further students saw presentations from individuals like Tzero and Overstock’s , the anarcho-capitalist David Friedman, the economist and author Deirdre McCloskey, among many other special guests.
The entire event was dedicated to spreading the ideas of liberty, like , the idea that expresses , the , and of course cryptocurrencies like .
SFL’s Dr. Wolf von Laer.
Overall the event was a success in the eyes of the many participants who attended this year’s Liberty Con. closed out the day by thanking all the students who attended and the many liberty promoting organizations who helped out. Meanwhile, hundreds of students got their and some fractions of to test and experience how the technology works. Many of the attendees were happy to see a booth dedicated to cryptocurrency education as the technology goes hand in hand with the promotion of free markets and liberty.
Are you attending any conferences this year? Or did you attend Liberty Con 2018? Let us know in the comments below.
Images via Students For Liberty, bitcoin.com, Pixabay, Jamie Redman, David Shares, and Twitter.
At all comments containing links are automatically held up for moderation in the Disqus system. That means an editor has to take a look at the comment to approve it. This is due to the many, repetitive, spam and scam links people post under our articles. We do not censor any comment content based on politics or personal opinions. So, please be patient. Your comment will be published.
The post appeared first on .
