A senior adviser to the operator of the Silk Road dark web marketplace has pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics in a Manhattan federal court. According to a United States Department of Justice press release dated Jan. 30, Roger Thomas Clark was a key figure in the development of Silk Road, advising on all aspects of the enterprise, and even attempting to arrange a murder-for-hire to protect its interests. Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht described Clark, who used a number of online aliases such as “Variety…
Month: January 2020
Crypto Tax Software Developers Get Serious About System Standards
A growing number of crypto tax software developers are trying to bolster their products’ technical credibility with the Certified Public Accountant’s (CPA) stamp of attestation. Attestation is an independent review conducted by a CPA, whose report includes conclusions about the reliability of data, statements – or systems, in the case of software services. Lukka and Verady, two competing developers, both announced on Jan. 21 their tax software solutions have received System and Organization Control (SOC) attestation reports from independent auditors. In doing so, the companies’ respective executives told CoinDesk, they…
IBM-Backed Hyperledger Fabric Releases Version 2.0
Hyperledger Fabric released version 2.0 of its enterprise distributed ledger technology (DLT) platform, according to a Jan. 30 announcement. Several major features were added to the platform that improve how its different participants communicate with each other. Hyperledger Fabric is one of the several products of the Hyperledger consortium, which features dozens of important industry players and is primarily backed by IBM. Fabric is a private or “permissioned” blockchain network that is used in industries such as finance and supply chains. It allows companies to control access to their networks…
Bitcoin Heads Into Historically Positive February on a Bullish Note
View Bitcoin’s January surge has put the bulls into the driver’s seat, opening the doors for a continued rally into five figures. A minor pullback to $9,000 could be seen in the next 24 hours or so, with intraday indicators are flashing bearish signals. The overall bull bias will remain intact as long as prices are holding above recent lows near $8,200. Bitcoin is holding its bullish trend while heading into the historically strong month of February The top cryptocurrency picked up a bid below $7,000 on Jan. 3 and…
Genesis Crypto Lending Firm Hits New Record in Loan Originations in Q4 2019
Over-the-counter digital currency trading and lending firm Genesis closed the fourth quarter of 2019 with record high results in loan originations since its inception. Per a Jan. 30 press release, Genesis facilitated over $4.25 billion in loans since its incorporation in March 2018, which made Q4 the best in company history. Genesis originated more than $1.1 billion in loans and borrows for its institutional customers, with total active loans of $545 million, showing a 23% increase compared to $450 million in Q3. Genesis noted an increase in its active loan…
Does Algorand 2.0 Prove an Appealing Option for Developers?
Algorand officially unveiled a suite of new features to its pure-proof-of-stake network at the end of November, dubbed Algorand 2.0. The latest suite of technical innovation by the emerging “frictionless finance” network, the upgrade encompasses the official commissioning of smart contracts on the network, along with the Algorand Standard Assets, or ASA, and atomic transfers. Algorand started off with a bang through its $60 million initial coin offering, which led into its vaunted technology upgrade — Algorand 2.0. Designed for building decentralized finance products, enterprise-scale DApps, and business-ready blockchain solutions,…
This Billionaire Bitcoin Investor Gives 3 Catalysts That Could Send Price Flying
Bitcoin has undoubtedly been on a tear over the past 45 or so days. Since hitting $6,400 in December, BTC has surged by almost 50%, hitting a local high of $9,550 on Thursday. According to Mike Novogratz — a Wall Street name who used to be a partner at Goldman Sachs and now heads crypto fund Galaxy Digital — there is a confluence of reasons why Bitcoin will continue higher in the months to come. He conveyed these reasons, or catalysts, in a recent interview with Bloomberg, though he was…
World’s Leading Research and Advisory Company Gartner Says Blockchain Smart Contracts Can Increase Corporate Overall Data Quality by 50 Percent
Gartner Inc., the world’s leading research and advisory company, predicts that by 2023, organizations using blockchain smart contracts will increase overall data quality by 50 percent, and trim data availability by 30 percent. The net impact is a positive result for data and analytics (D&A) Return on Investment (ROI). The impact of blockchain smart contract adoption on analytical decision making is profound. Gartner noted in a press release that blockchain enhances transparency, speed and granularity of decision making. It also improves the quality of decision making, as its continuous verification makes the…
1% Bitcoin No Longer ‘Crazy’ for Portfolios, Says Morgan Creek CEO
Bitcoin (BTC) represents an investment in technology and innovation, making it a must-have in any portfolio, suggested the CEO of Morgan Creek Capital, Mark Yusko, in an interview with Max Keiser on the Keiser Report, published on Jan. 30. Morgan Creek CEO: Bitcoin exposure boosts portfolios Keiser began by noting that portfolios with even 1% exposure to Bitcoin have more alpha or, in other words, have outperformed just about everything over the past five years. By definition, alpha represents the performance of a portfolio relative to a benchmark. Portfolio managers…
Deribit to Launch Daily BTC Options as Regulated Competition Heats Up
Deribit is launching daily options as the exchange faces increasing competition in the crypto options market. Deribit announced this week it would begin offering daily bitcoin index options Feb. 3. Scheduled every day at 08:00 UTC, users will be able to begin trading options at a strike price of $125. Contracts expire two days after being listed. The exchange will try to offer contracts that move within a 5-percent range around at-the-money (ATM) levels, Deribit’s post said. The news gives traders a much wider range of expiry dates, and the…