1. Home
  2. bitcoin cash

bitcoin cash

US Government Seizes Trezor Wallet With $6.3 Million in Bitcoin From Gift Card Fraud Case

US Government Seizes Trezor Wallet With .3 Million in Bitcoin From Gift Card Fraud CaseOn September 22, 2021, a U.S. district judge from San Antonio, Texas, granted a summary judgment on the civil forfeiture of 147 bitcoin worth $6.3 million held on a Trezor hardware wallet. According to the court filing, the crypto assets stemmed from a Target gift card fraud incident that started in 2016. Gift Card Fraud […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Evolve or die: How smart contracts are shifting the crypto sector’s balance of power

Smart contract capabilities are rendering old-school megalithic crypto projects obsolete as blockchains evolve beyond just being a medium of exchange.

One of the familiar themes seen in previous crypto market cycles is the shifting market caps, popularity and ranking of the top 10 projects that see significant gains during bull phases, only to fade into obscurity during the bear markets. For many of these projects, they follow a recognizable boom-to-bust cycle and never return to their previous glory. 

During the 2017–2018 bull market and initial coin offering (ICO) boom, which was driven by Ethereum network-based projects, all manner of small smart contract-oriented projects rallied thousands of percentage  to unexpected highs.

During this time, projects like Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Litecoin (LTC), Monero (XMR) and ZCash (ZEC) also rotated in and out of the top 10 ranking, but to this day, investors still argue about which project actually presents a “useful” use case.

While all of these tokens are still unicorn-level projects with billion-dollar valuations, these large-cap megaliths have fallen far from their previous glory and now struggle to stay relevant in the current ecosystem.

Let’s take a look at a few of the current projects that threaten to unseat these dinosaur tokens from their perch.

Dollar-pegged stablecoins take the stage as the most “transactable” currency

Bitcoin’s (BTC) original use case stipulated that it would simplify the process of conducting transactions, but the network’s “slow” transaction time and the cost associated with sending funds makes it a better store of value than a medium of exchange when the other blockchain networks are considered as options.

Terra (LUNA), a protocol focused on creating a global payment structure through the use of fiat-pegged stablecoins, has emerged as a possible solution to the issues faced when trying to use the top proof-of-work (PoW) projects as payment currencies.

The main token used for transacting value on Terra aside from LUNA is TerraUSD (UST), a U.S. dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin that forms the basis of Terra’s decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. The market cap of UST has steadily been increasing throughout 2021 as activity and the number of users in the ecosystem increased.

UST supply changes. Source: SmartStake

The recent addition of Ether (ETH) as a collateral choice for minting UST on Anchor protocol has given token holders a way of accessing the value in their Ether without having to sell and create a taxable event.

This opens the possibility for other tokens such as BTC to be utilized as collateral to mint UST that can be used in everyday purchases.

As it stands, the borrowing APR for UST on Anchor stands at 25.85%, while the distribution APR is at 40.67%, meaning users who borrow UST against their LUNA or Ether actually earn a yield while borrowing against their tokens.

From privacy coins to privacy protocols

Privacy is also a cornerstone characteristic of the cryptocurrency sector and privacy-focused projects like XMR and ZEC offer obfuscation technologies that support covert or what, for a time, were thought to be untraceable transactions.

Unfortunately, regulatory concerns have made it more challenging for users to access these tokens, as many exchanges have delisted them for fear of drawing the ire of regulators and the overall demand among crypto users has declined alongside their availability.

Their lack of smart contract capabilities has also limited what these protocols are capable of and, so far, users do not appear to be too excited about utilizing Wrapped Monero (WXMR) for use in DeFi, as the token loses its privacy capabilities in the process.

These limitations have led to the development of privacy-focused protocols such as the Secret Network, which allows users to create and use decentralized applications (DApps) in a privacy-preserving environment.

Privacy features are not common among smart contract capable platforms in the crypto ecosystem, which makes Secret something of an experimental case in the ever-evolving Web 3.0 landscape.

Decentralized applications on the Secret Network. Source: Secret

Secret is also part of the Cosmos ecosystem which means it can utilize the Inter-blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol to seamlessly interact with other protocols in the ecosystem.

The network’s native SCRT can be used as the value transfer medium on the platform as well as to interact with protocols that operate on the network, including Secret DeFi applications and the network's NFT offering, Secret Heroes.

New enterprise solutions aren’t better but they come without controversy

One of the ways cryptocurrency projects sought to differentiate themselves from the “medium of exchange” label was to offer enterprise solutions as a way to help corporations navigate the transition to a blockchain-based infrastructure.

XRP and Stellar (XLM) are two of the veteran protocols that fit this bill, but continual controversy and slow development has resulted in these early movers now playing catch up with newer networks that also don’t have the legal controversy that has followed Ripple for years.

Hedera Hashgraph has emerged as a competitor in this field and data shows that the network is capable of processing more than 10,000 transactions per second (TPS), with an average transaction fee of $0.0001 and a time to finality of 3-5 seconds.

These statistics are comparable to both XRP and XLM, which have indicated that their ledgers reach consensus on all outstanding transactions every 3-5 seconds with an average transaction cost of 0.00001 XRP/XLM.

Hedera is also smart contract capable, meaning users can create both fungible and nonfungible tokens, and developers can build decentralized applications to accompany the network’s decentralized file storage services.

For each sector (stablecoins, privacy and enterprise solutions), the main difference between the old-school and next-generation projects has been the introduction of smart contract capabilities and plans to develop within the side-chain and DeFi sectors where the top protocols exist. This gives newer projects additional utility, allowing them to meet the demand of investors and developers, thus increasing their token values and market caps as a result.

With smart contracts, the ability to interact with the growing DeFi landscape comes built-in, whereas the legacy tokens like LTC, XMR and BCH require special wrapping services which insert middlemen and thus insert additional fees, rigor and risk into the process.

Newer protocols have also embraced the more eco-friendly proof-of-stake consensus model that aligns with the larger global shift toward environmental awareness and sustainability. A plus is that holders can also stake their tokens directly on the network for a yield.

It remains to be seen if the slow march of time will eventually lead to a capital migration from older large cap projects to the newer generation protocols or if these legacy blue-chips will find a way to evolve and survive into the future.

Want more information about trading and investing in crypto markets?

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

AMC adds Ether and Litecoin to year-end crypto adoption plans

The cinema operator has expanded its plans to accept crypto payments for movie tickets with the inclusion of Ether and Litecoin.

AMC Entertainment will not only accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments for movie tickets by the end of 2022 but will also include other popular digital currencies in its crypto acceptance policy.

Tweeting on Thursday, the company’s CEO, Adam Aron, announced plans for AMC to accept three other cryptocurrencies — Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).

As previously reported by Cointelegraph, AMC initially unveiled plans to accept Bitcoin payments for online movie tickets before the end of the year.

At the time, Aron said that moviegoers were eager to use crypto as payment means for tickets and concessions at AMC locations across the United States.

The AMC chief also said that the company was working to finalize the necessary modalities required for accepting crypto payments.

As was the case with the August announcement, Aron’s tweet revealing plans for an expanded crypto acceptance agenda also drew significant criticism from Dogecoin (DOGE) proponents for failing to include the popular “meme coin.”

AMC accepting crypto is also part of a developing trend that has seen prominent retail establishments enabling support for cryptocurrency payments across the United States.

Related: BTC payments coming to certain Quiznos shops, thanks to Bakkt collaboration

The cinema operator’s crypto adoption plan comes amid a resurgence in revenue figures after a difficult 2020.

Amid the coronavirus lockdowns that characterized most of 2020, AMC saw dwindling revenues, with its Q2 2020 financials recording only $18.9 million. In Q2 2021, the cinema operator reportedly earned $444 million in revenue.

This revenue uptick has also come amid a massive increase in the company’s share price. Indeed, AMC was among some stocks converged upon by the r/Wallstreetbets group on Reddit during the short squeeze saga at the start of the year.

As of the time of writing, AMC’s stock is up over 2,200% year-to-date.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Interactive Brokers Launches Cryptocurrency Trading for Customers Through Paxos

Interactive Brokers Launches Cryptocurrency Trading for Customers Through PaxosInteractive Brokers, one of the largest online brokerage firms, has announced today it is offering cryptocurrency trading services in alliance with Paxos. Users of the platform now have a complete suite of cryptocurrency trading options, along with traditional trading offerings like stocks and bonds. The company recognized the importance of digital assets for traders to […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Bitcoin.com Adorns it’s Crypto-Friendly Casino with New Games from NetEnt

Bitcoin.com Adorns it’s Crypto-Friendly Casino with New Games from NetEntHot new games from two of the top providers added to Bitcoin.com’s very own crypto casino! Anticipation has been running high among players at Bitcoin.com Games for their favorite games from the leading software provider, NetEnt. Coming off of the recent addition of a range of live casino games from Evolution Gaming and iSoftBet, the […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Grayscale’s BCH, LTC, ETC Trusts Now One Step Closer to Becoming ETFs

Grayscale’s BCH, LTC, ETC Trusts Now One Step Closer to Becoming ETFsOn Friday, Grayscale Investments, the world’s largest digital currency asset manager in terms of assets under management (AUM), revealed that three trusts have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in order to become SEC reporting companies. The three trusts include individual crypto asset products such as the bitcoin cash trust, the litecoin […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Localcryptos P2P Market Adds Support for Bitcoin Cash

Localcryptos P2P Market Adds Support for Bitcoin CashLocalcryptos, the noncustodial P2P cryptocurrency market, has added bitcoin cash to its platform. This is the fifth cryptocurrency the platform has taken on for P2P transactions after having rebranded from Localethereum. The market will leverage the OP_CHECKDATASIG opcode, which presents some advantages. Also, users from Bitcoin.com Local will be able to migrate their reputation to […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Tether’s 1,500% Market Cap Increase in 500 Days — USDT Stablecoin Market Nears $70 Billion

Tether’s 1,500% Market Cap Increase in 500 Days — USDT Stablecoin Market Nears  BillionThe stablecoin giant tether is by far the largest dollar-pegged crypto asset in the crypto economy and today, the number of tethers in circulation is nearing $70 billion. 90 days ago on June 12, 2021, the number of tethers in circulation was around 63 billion tokens and the supply has swelled by 9.99% since then. […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Price analysis 9/8: BTC, ETH, ADA, BNB, XRP, SOL, DOGE, DOT, UNI, BCH

BTC and most altcoins are attempting to capitalize on today’s market-wide oversold bounce but the recovery could be thwarted by sell pressure at overhead resistance levels.

Analysts are attributing Bitcoin’s (BTC) plunge on Sep. 7 to the liquidation of over-leveraged positions. According to Bybt data, about $3.68 billion worth of long positions were liquidated in the last 24 hours in the Bitcoin options market.

On-chain monitoring resource Whalemap said the decline was largely caused due to selling by whales who had recently bought their Bitcoin and not by the HODLers. Separately, analyst Willy Woo also said:

“Leverage markets sold off but investor buying just got stronger.”

Every bull market has its share of corrections where weaker hands are shaken out and the stronger hands solidify their position. Therefore, if investors believe in the long-term story, they should not be perturbed by the pullbacks.

Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360

A new report by Standard Chartered’s cryptocurrency research team has projected Bitcoin to reach $100,000 “in late 2021 or early 2022” and $175,000 in the long-term. The analysts are also positive on Ether (ETH), valuing it “structurally” between $26,000 and $35,000.

Is the correction in Bitcoin and altcoins over or could there be another leg down? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.

BTC/USDT

Bitcoin witnessed huge volatility on Sep. 7 when it plunged from an intraday high at $52,920 to an intraday low at $42,843.05. Strong buying at lower levels resulted in a sharp recovery by the close, as seen from the long tail on the day’s candlestick.

BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

Today, the bulls held off another attempt by the bears to extend the correction by pulling the price below the 50-day simple moving average ($44,391). This suggests that traders are aggressively defending the zone between the 50-day SMA and the breakout level at $42,451.67.

If the zone holds, the bulls will try to push the price above the 20-day exponential moving average ($48,216). If they succeed, the BTC/USDT pair could again rise to $52,920 but the bears are unlikely to give up easily.

The relative strength index (RSI) has dropped below 47 and the 20-day EMA has started to turn down, indicating that bears have made a strong comeback. If the price turns down from the 20-day EMA, the bears will again try to sink the pair below $42,451.67. If that happens, the pair could enter a deeper corrective phase.

ETH/USDT

Ether’s failure to rise and sustain above $4,000 could have attracted aggressive profit-booking from the short-term traders. The selling intensified after the price slipped below the immediate support at $3,705.05.

ETH/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The bulls could not arrest the decline at the 20-day EMA ($3,486), resulting in a drop to the critical support at $3,000. This level attracted strong buying and the ETH/USDT pair staged a strong recovery, as seen from the long tail on the day’s candlestick.

Although bulls pushed the pair above the 20-day EMA today, they have not been able to sustain the price above it. This shows that bears are selling on rallies. The flat 20-day EMA and the RSI near the midpoint, suggest a range-bound action in the next few days.

ADA/USDT

Vertical rallies are usually followed by waterfall declines as traders rush to the exit and that is what happened in Cardano (ADA) on Sep. 7. The failure to sustain the price above the psychological level at $3 may have resulted in aggressive profit-booking by the bulls.

ADA/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

As the decline broke below the 20-day EMA ($2.62), it may have triggered several stops. Due to that, the ADA/USDT pair could have plummeted to the 50-day SMA ($2.03). The long tail on the day’s candlestick shows aggressive buying at lower levels.

If bulls fail to push and sustain the price above the 20-day EMA, the bears are likely to make one more attempt to sink the price below the 50-day SMA. If they pull it off, it will signal a change in trend where rallies are likely to be sold into.

Alternatively, if buyers successfully defend the 50-day SMA, the pair could enter a consolidation for the next few days.

BNB/USDT

Binance Coin (BNB) turned down from the overhead resistance at $518.90 on Sep.7 and broke below the moving averages. Although bulls defended the 50-day SMA ($399) on a closing basis, the failure to push and sustain the price above $433 may attract further selling.

BNB/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The 20-day EMA ($458) has started to turn down and the RSI slipped into the negative territory, indicating that bears have the upper hand. They are likely to sell on relief rallies to the 20-day EMA.

If the price turns down and breaks below the 50-day SMA, the BNB/USDT pair could drop to the next support at $340. Such a move could keep the pair range-bound between $340 and $433 for a few days.

XRP/USDT

XRP rallied and closed above the overhead resistance at $1.35 on Sep. 6 but the breakout proved to be a bull trap. The bears sold aggressively and pulled the price to the 50-day SMA ($0.98).

XRP/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The long tail on Sep. 7 and today’s candlesticks show that bulls are attempting to defend the 50-day SMA. If the price sustains above $1.05, the buyers will try to push the XRP/USDT pair above the 20-day EMA ($1.18).

If they manage to do that, the pair could consolidate between $1.05 and $1.35 for a few days. On the contrary, if bears sustain the price below $1.05, the likelihood of a break below the 50-day SMA increases.

SOL/USDT

Solana (SOL) soared to a new all-time high at $198 on Sep. 8 but higher levels attracted profit-booking. The bears pulled the price down but the long tail on the day’s candlestick shows strong buying near the 50% Fibonacci retracement level at $130.84.

SOL/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

After the strong recovery on Sep. 7, the SOL/USDT pair is witnessing renewed selling today. If bears sustain the price below the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level at $146.10, the pair could drop to the 20-day EMA ($117).

If the price bounces off this level, the pair may remain range-bound for a few days before starting the next trending move.

Alternatively, if the price turns up from the current level or rebounds off $146.10, the bulls will again try to push the pair toward $195.48. A breakout and close above this level may start the next leg of the uptrend.

DOGE/USDT

Dogecoin (DOGE) failed to pick up momentum after breaking out of the falling wedge pattern. The price slipped below both moving averages on Sep. 7, indicating strong selling by traders.

DOGE/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The DOGE/USDT pair dropped to the $0.21 support where buyers stepped in. This started a recovery, as seen from the long tail on the day’s candlestick. The RSI has dropped into the negative territory and the 20-day EMA has started to turn down, indicating that bears have the upper hand.

If bulls fail to push the price above the 20-day EMA ($0.28), the pair could witness another round of selling. A break below $0.21 could challenge the critical support at $0.15. The bulls will have to push the price above $0.32 to signal a comeback.

DOT/USDT

Polkadot (DOT) broke below the rising wedge pattern on Sep. 7. Aggressive selling pulled the price below the breakout level at $28.60, resulting in a fall to the 50-day SMA ($22.77).

DOT/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The DOT/USDT pair rebounded sharply off the 50-day SMA as seen from the long tail on the day’s candlestick. The bulls are currently attempting to push the price above the overhead resistance at $28.60. If the price sustains above this level, the buyers will again try to resume the uptrend.

Conversely, if the price turns down from the current level, it will suggest that the sentiment has turned negative and traders are closing their positions on rallies. The bears will then again try to pull the price below the 50-day SMA. If that happens, it will suggest that the break above $28.60 was a bull trap.

Related: Sell or hodl? How to prepare for the end of the bull run, Part 2

UNI/USDT

Uniswap’s (UNI) range-bound action between $25 and $31.41 resolved to the downside on Sep. 7. The bulls tried to stage a recovery and push the price back above $25 today but failed.

UNI/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The 20-day EMA ($27) has turned down and the RSI has dropped below 38, indicating that bears have the upper hand. They are attempting to sink the price below the intraday low at $21 made on Sep. 7.

If they succeed, the UNI/USDT pair could drop to the pattern target at $18.69. If the price rebounds off this support, the pair may trade between $18.69 and $23.45 for a few days. The bulls will have to push and sustain the price above $25 to signal a comeback.

BCH/USDT

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) turned down from the overhead resistance zone at $806.90 to $864.30 on Sep. 7. This suggests that bears are aggressively defending the overhead zone. The altcoin could now remain stuck inside the large range between $383.50 and $864.30 for a few more days.

BCH/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView

The flattening 20-day EMA ($673) and the RSI near the midpoint suggest a balance between supply and demand. If the price rebounds off $596, the bulls will again try to propel the price above the overhead zone.

If the price turns down from the zone, the BCH/USDT pair could consolidate between $596 and $684.30 for a few days. A breakout and close above the overhead zone will indicate the possible start of a new uptrend while a break below $596 could open the doors for a further decline to $500.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk. You should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Market data is provided by HitBTC exchange.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth

Meet the First BCH Dex Built on Smartbch — Benswap.cash Presents High-Yield Liquidity Pools, Noncustodial Swaps

Meet the First BCH Dex Built on Smartbch — Benswap.cash Presents High-Yield Liquidity Pools, Noncustodial SwapsDecentralized finance (defi) has set a trend during the latter half of 2020 and into this year, as statistics show $168 billion is locked in defi across various blockchains. The Bitcoin Cash network now has the Smartbch protocol and in recent times, a decentralized exchange (dex) platform has joined the defi fray. The newly launched […]

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, hits record $348B net worth