Blockchain technology is vastly dominating diverse regions of the world and many residents of Deutschland seem to not want to miss out on this innovative trend.
A recent chart publicized by KuCoin displayed the progression of crypto adoption by Germans.
The wealthiest of all European nations seems to have over 44% of its citizens focused on cryptocurrency investment.
While this percentage of residents are inspired to partake of what is expected of the future of cryptocurrency, 37% of them have been noted to be traders on the platform within the past year.
Records also highlight Germany as the first amongst nations to acknowledge bitcoin as a standard of value, thereafter embracing the blockchain system.
KuCoins company’s head, Johnny Lyu, who spoke to CoinTelegraph, made further analysis of this released statistics stating how common it is amongst Germans to rely on their saved funds once they are retired. This has motivated the accumulation and diversification of funds through the blockchain currency space.
However, amidst all the buttering up of increased crypto demands, Germany is yet to establish certain regulatory policies to modulate the utilization of virtual currencies.
Other experts like Florian Dohnert-Breyer, the manager of F5 Crypto have had something to say.
He asserted that as the biggest of all European nations, “Germany is a role model for other EU countries, whose populations are generally more open to long-term investments.”
To him, Germany would progressively push for a crypto-favourable parliament.
Lyu’s words sighted Germany’s official acceptance of crypto investments through consented finance that were specifically assigned to virtual investment, as a solid foundation for crypto subscribers.
For Nigerians looking to improve their profits, learning to trade with bitcoin has become a valuable skill set.
Nigeria is a big but economy that boasts of having the world’s largest population of black people in the world. Its size and oil wealth has been served as a blessing with many challenges.
World Bank says,
“While Nigeria has made some progress in socio-economic terms in recent years, its human capital development remains weak due to under-investment.”
The high unemployment rate in the region is one factor pushing too many individuals to trade. In Nigeria, over the past five years, the unemployment rate has swelled to 27 percent despite the fact it is considered to be the largest economy in Africa.
This pattern also has a dark side. Trading and speculation have affected certain individuals. Like the rest of the world, some have lost money or fallen for a variety of scams as Africans have pursued cryptocurrency as a road to a better income.
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are also young, so people in Nigeria must have a grasp on which blockchain ventures are potentially beneficial rather than dangerous to them, as well as to the rest of the planet.
The data from U.S. blockchain analytics company Chainalysis showed that cryptocurrency payments to and from Africa of under $10,000 – usually made by individuals and small companies – soared more than 55 percent in a year to hit $316 million in June of 2020. This is a strong reminder of the growing relevance of cryptocurrency in the African continent.
Blockchain helps people make their companies more nimble and efficient, and helps those working in places like Europe and North America to hold on to more of the money they take home.
In only a matter of days since launching, the cryptocurrency (WOZK) of Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, gains in value by over 1000% hitting a market capitalization of over $1 billion.
Wozniak’s cryptocurrency project, Efforce, has caught the attention of many investors who hope for another legendary homerun from the technology entrepreneur. Efforce is designed to leverage the power of blockchain to increase access to energy efficiency projects, investment opportunities, and its token WOZX.
As the world seeks improvements in energy conservation, projects like Efforce gain greater relevance among people.
According to it’s website,
“EFFORCE is the first platform that allows contributors to benefit from the energy savings generated by energy efficiency projects worldwide.”
Users of the platform benefit from efficiency projects by getting tokenized future savings. Improvements made to energy efficiency are meant to be written in real time on the platform.
In only a decade, the energy efficiency market reached $241 billion in value with a 10% growth rate per annum. While these statistics are encouraging, there is much work to be done in order to improve the environment.
Global investment will need to grow by a further $584 billion between now and 2025, significantly improving the global goals for preservation of our environments.
Through Efforce, energy savings of third parties are tokenized and can be used by anyone.A limited supply of 1 billion in native tokens are proved by the project.
Wozniak said, “Energy consumption and CO2 emissions worldwide have grown exponentially, leading to climate change and extreme consequences to our environment. We can improve our energy footprint and lower our energy consumption without changing our habits. We can save the environment simply by making more energy improvements.”
Wozniak also has interests in Equi Global, an organization that is looking to push the bar higher for the investment markets with its unique approach to investing with blockchain solutions.
Photo by Pierre Borthiry on Unsplash
Bitcoin has gained ground in 2020, despite Covid-19 and the perilous market conditions which many traditional assets were not able to handle.
The Bitcoin rally of 2020 caught many people by surprise. In previous years, the cryptocurrency had been mocked by critics and labeled as fool’s gold. The tables have turned. In a Covid-19 era, the cryptocurrency has shown more resilience than many assets, including gold.
Financial journalists who once laughed at Bitcoin are changing their tune as the cryptocurrency continues to rewrite the history books of economies around the world.
Many believe that the demise of cash is inevitable and that Covid-19 has simply accelerated the process. Economists like Ken Rogoff welcomes the demise of cash as it could make the management of monetary policy easier and organised crime harder to commit.
A combination of different driving forces in the technological realms are shaping a monetary revolution that even the most experienced economists may not be able to comprehend to its full extent. The different performances of the U.S. dollar, gold, and Bitcoin sheds light on the new trends that are taking place.
The dollar is the world’s favorite money. Central banks around the world operate based on the movement of its value as it dictates the tempo of international transactions. Over the years, its value has decreased along with the confidence of the masses in it due to disproportionate amounts of quantitative easing and bad debt led by central banks.
According to Bitcoin expert Anthony Pompliano,
“Governments have held a monopoly on monetary policy for decades. They used it to manipulate economies, while driving insane levels of wealth inequality. Bitcoin is the only option built for the people. They can use it to protest central banks, while protecting their wealth.”
With inflation being the thorn in the side of fiat, including the dollar, it is no surprise that more people look to Bitcoin as a store of value, not just as a medium of transfer. Bitcoin has a monetary policy that is anti-inflationary. With its limited supply, it is impossible to devalue it through bad debt like many banks have done with fiat.
Photo by Pierre Borthiry on Unsplash
The CEO of Microstrategy, Michael Saylor says that his business intelligence firm plans to hold Bitcoin for the next 100 years. He also adds that he has no intention of selling it.
Saylor believes that the king cryptocurrency is the world’s best collateral and that it does not even compare to gold or other commodities.
“Bitcoin, if it’s not a hundred times better than gold, it is a million times better than gold, and there is nothing close to it.”
The bold assertions made by the seasoned business executive have been backed by even bolder actions. On August 11, the firm purchased 21,454 BTC worth $250 million. The investment is now worth well over $278 million.
In an interview with Real Vision CEO Raoul Paul, Saylor says that the decision to invest $250 million was influenced by the board of directors, executives, investors, and the firm’s auditor.
It continues to increase its holdings. More reports reveal that it now holds $425 million worth of Bitcoin, an eye-watering amount for any private entity.
According to Saylor, Bitcoin is evolving. Over the years, it has become more resilient. He describes BTC as a hive of “cybernetic hornets protected by a wall of encrypted energy”.
Other top tech executives share similar sentiments to Saylor on Bitcoin. Twitter CEO, Dorsey is reported to have bought $50 million worth of Bitcoin, joining a growing list of CEOs leading their companies to acquire cryptocurrency.
In a short space of time, the number of companies holding Bitcoin (and their reserves) have grown significantly, exceeding previous expectations for Bitcoin adoption among private entities. On October 10, 13 companies listed with a combined total of 598,237 BTC ($7.6B) or 2.85% of the total supply. Now, there are 23 firms on the Bitcoin treasury list with much higher reserves (785,999 BTC) worth approximately 3.74% of Bitcoin’s 21 million capped supply.Â
Photo by Roger Brown from Pexels
Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey has called for Bitcoin donations to be made to support the efforts of people protesting for police reforms in Nigeria.
Around the world, more people have joined the movement for police reforms in Nigeria, including Twitter’s CEO, Jack Dorsey. In a tweet, he tells followers to donate via Bitcoin to support the movement. His tweet included a link to a censorship-resistant cryptocurrency donation site which is run by a group of feminists, many of whom had their bank accounts frozen or closed during the protests.Â
Thousands of Nigerians have taken to the streets with thousands more joining them across the globe to call for police reforms. The nation is crying for change and the world is hearing its cries.
The ripple effects of the youths’ freedom of expression can be felt across the globe as the winds of change create waves of revolution. While some may believe that it is too early to tell, this is a moment in history that will change the path of Africa’s most populous nation in more ways than one.Â
Protestors complain of police brutality by a unit of the police force, SARS and the thousands of cases where claims of assault by victims have gone unanswered. Every day, innocent men, women, and children across the nation fall victim to abuse of power by bad eggs in the SARS unit of the police force. Even during the protests, unarmed men and women have been shot or assaulted, reminding Nigerians that there is still much work to be done to protect fundamental human rights in the nation.
The presidential panel on the reform of the special anti-robbery squad (SARS) accepted the five-point demand of the #EndSARS protesters. The demands included calls for:
• Immediate release of all arrested protestors
• Justice for deceased victims of police brutality and appropriate compensation for all their families
• Setting up an independent body to oversee the investigation and prosecution of all reports of police misconduct
• In-line with the new police act, psychological evaluation & retraining of all disbanded SARS officers before they can be redeployed
• Increase police salary so that they are adequately compensated for protecting the lives and property of citizens.Â
It remains to be seen exactly how the government and police of the Federal Republic of Nigeria will implement the solutions demanded by protestors but with each new day, hope grows for all sides to benefit from a new path in the nation.Â
Photo by Tobi Oshinnaike on Unsplash
350 members of Spain’s lower house of Congress each received 1 euro in crypto through emails as part of an attempt to raise awareness about the future role of cryptocurrencies in societies.
Education startup, Tutellus helped to orchestrate the awareness exercise. The tokenization-focused startup is keen to raise awareness about the future role of cryptocurrencies in society.
According to Tutellus,
“We have explained to your honorable members that we are in a time of profound change in the use of money, in addition to highlighting the important role that cryptocurrencies have today.”
Miguel Caballero, founder of Tutellus says the transfers are “not a donation”. Some congress members may not be familiar with cryptocurrency. With the transferred cryptocurrencies, they have an opportunity to learn more.
Over the years, Spain has become more aware of cryptocurrencies and their use across the nation. In more recent times, it has doubled down on taxation. Notices were sent to 66,000 owners of cryptocurrency in the country, representing an increase from the 15,700 tax letters the agency sent to cryptocurrency owners in the previous year.
Spanish tax authority, the Agencia Estatal de Administracion Tributaria says it plans to quadruple notices to taxpayers with cryptocurrency going from 14,700 notices
“Going from 14,700 notices last year to about 66,000 in the campaign that started this Wednesday.”
The rise in tax notices could be considered as a reflection of how much cryptocurrency activity has increased in the nation where banking giant Santander has been able to use tokenization such as Ripple to enhance its operations.
Lawmakers in other nations have also received transactions. Decrypt reported that the political action committee (PAC) of the Chamber of Digital Commerce sent $50 Bitcoin to all 541 members of Congress in October. The transactions were made with the hopes of helping more people get a better working knowledge of cryptocurrency technology.
Cryptocurrency analytics firm, Chainalysis, and forensics firm Integra have sealed a one-year contract with America’s Inland Revenue Service (IRS) to find out how to trace wallet addresses and payments of privacy coins such as Monero.Â
The award notice for the engagement was given in September. Both firms were given $500,000 each to create tracing tools. They have been given eight months to give a working submission and will receive $125,000 if their solutions are successful and approved.
The IRS aims for the firms to create solutions that track transactions to a specific user, identify specific transaction details and provide specific information on network activity.
“IRS-CI is seeking a solution with one or more contractors to provide innovative solutions for tracing and attribution of privacy coins, such as expert tools, data, source code, algorithms, and software development services.”
While the feat may seem impossible, Chainalysis previously said that it could track 99% of transactions involving Zcash and almost all of Dash’s coins- coins that are considered to be untraceable.
Chainalysis is one of the top firms in the cryptocurrency analytics space with a track record of providing different government agencies insights on the cryptocurrency sector. Integra, the lesser-known firm also has a track record of successful contracts in the cryptocurrency space with big names such as the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The spread of cryptocurrency awareness among government agencies over the years has enabled more agencies to create new strategies to get tax revenues from cryptocurrency users and organizations. While many of their attempts have fallen short, they continue to collaborate with private firms to deepen their influence in the landscape.
Fortunately for organizations and users in the cryptocurrency space, there are opportunities to legally save on taxes. Organizations and individuals have been able to register entities in different nations in order to legally save money on taxes.Â
Crypto software firm Zabo has announced its successful seed funding round. The company, based in Dallas, Texas has been able to raise a staggering $2.5 million.
The software-as-a-service startup was able to raise the money in a funding round led by Moonshots Capital. Investors such as Blockchange Ventures, Digital Currency Group, CoinShares, and Tezos Foundation were present at the event.
Zabo creates technology for financial services, both centralised and decentralised. It expects to grow its customer base with the funding provided. It also plans to increase its work force and number of partners.Â
According to partner at Moonshots Capital, Craig Cummings,
“Zabo has put together an impressive team and have been experts in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space for years. They have built an incredibly important piece of technical infrastructure that will enable cryptocurrency financial services to touch billions of people. We’re excited to support the team to bring cryptocurrency to mainstream financial services,”
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According to Zabo co-founder, Christopher Brown
“Despite being on a path to touch billions of customers and be an asset class measuring in the trillions of dollars, cryptocurrency is very underserved relative to other financial services. This is partly because connecting cryptocurrencies, wallets, and exchanges to the traditional financial system is highly technical and complicated.”
Zabo launched in September 2019 with the intention of solving issues related to infrastructure gaps in the financial sector. It also began raising for funding during the same period.Â
Investors’ appetite for cryptocurrency firms is growing steadily. More organizations recognise the need to innovate or die in the blockchain space. A report by Reuters suggests that JPMorgan could soon add more members to its 25 strong blockchain entity, Quorum. JPMorgan Chase & Co is in talks to merge its blockchain unit with Brooklyn-based startup ConsenSys.
Unstoppable Domains – a cryptocurrency domain name start-up has launched its .crypto domain registry on the Ethereum blockchain.
According to a press release, the .crypto registry will allow users to connect any cryptocurrency address to their domain, enabling them to receive payments using just the domain name.
That is, users could now ditch their long alphanumeric wallet address and just send payments to Example.crypto or John.Crypto.
“Payments — Replacing cryptocurrency addresses with human readable names. I own myname.crypto, I attach all of my crypto addresses to it, and I get paid in any currency. “
– Unstoppable Domains explains use of its new .crypto wallet address service
Unstoppable Domains says under this new service, payments will only require the receiver’s blockchain domain. This will eliminate the need for copy and paste of long cryptocurrency wallet addresses as well as simplify and decentralize payment process which will foster more adoption.
“We believe that tribalism in the crypto community is slowing down adoption of the technology. .Crypto is a domain name system meant to be used for any cryptocurrency payment and with any cryptocurrency wallet.“
Read about unstoppable domains here
Other benefits of the service include: the blockchain domain is stored by the ownwer, no third party is required, the domain registration is for lifetime and requires no renewal, domain ownership is transferable.
This .crypto domain names could prevent cases of error transfers such as BitcoinKeith’s who received 7.8BTC due to a sender’s mistake.
Would you prefer .crypto domain names over traditional wallet addresses? Share your thoughts in the comments.