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Ripple’s Head of Social Impact Joins Mojaloop as a Member of the Board, Promises Far-Reaching Positive Effects

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Ripple, the Brad Garlinghouse led cryptocurrency organization has always followed a pattern of creating partnerships and tie-ups with multiple fintech firms across the globe. Apart from having its own native cryptocurrency, XRP, the parent company has ensured that creating new networks is always a topmost priority.

A recent interview with Ripple Head of Social Impact Ken Weber shed light on the organization’s latest venture- taking the Mojaloop Foundation to new heights. The Ripple official spoke about Mojaloop was working as a charitable organization to support the deployment of the native open-source software. 

Weber plays a big role in expanding Mojaloop’s reach by serving on the firm’s board of directors. According to him, creating economic fairness and opportunity for the unbanked and vulnerable populations was a key mission. Since Ripple has always been invested in cross-border transactions, it makes it easier to provide an infrastructure for Mojaloop to use. During the interview, Weber stated:

“Ripple is proud to continue to collaborate with fellow Mojaloop Foundation Sponsor members in working towards a more inclusive future where everyone, everywhere can access digital financial services needed to connect to the global economy. Ripple’s founding vision is to enable the world to move value like information does today—a concept we refer to as the Internet of Value (IoV).”

Ripple revealed that they would target the 1.7 billion strong unbanked population spread across regions like sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Southeastern Asia. The San Fransisco based organization plans to make use of the rising use of mobile phones and digital wallets, paving the way for greater innovations.

Ripple will work in tandem with Mojaloop to initiate on-ground partnerships such as those with entrepreneurs and developers. This relationship will then be extended to collaborate with mainstays like central banks, financial institutions, and NGOs. Mojaloop has clarified that the onboarding Ripple as a board member will be the first step in creating a seamless connection with technical progress and charitable targets. Ken Weber assured people that stakeholders all across the world will have access to resources from the two companies that will enable them to take their mission forward.

Lockdowns Due to COVID-19 Seems to Have Lent Traction to Fintech Acceptance Movements; Changes Here to Stay

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The coronavirus pandemic has brought with it multiple changes that have permeated almost all major industries on the planet. One of the sectors where the effects of the pandemic have been felt is the financial world, which is in the midst of a complete transformation.

The latest studies have shown that as the pandemic has progressed, more and more people were delving into the world of financial applications. This was a marked change from the time when people preferred in-person meetings with their brick and mortar establishments.

Market experts have stated the pandemic has revealed the underlying expectations of users who are involved in making big money transfers. Since a majority of the people were stuck at homes because of government-mandated lockdowns, they were delving into mobile applications built by banks as well as non-banks. The non-banking sector has been heavily involved in the fintech area for some time now and their progress has beaten all market expectations.

One of the fintech firms that has benefitted massively from this pandemic was the San Fransisco based Plaid. The firm, which was recently acquired by Visa for a whopping $5.3 billion has been on a roll with many services using its digital architecture to carry out transactions on a large scale. Plaid’s chief executive Zach Perret went on an interview with CNN, where he stated:

“I think the pandemic has made it incredibly clear that digital financial services are here to stay. People are trying digital finance for the first time. It’s going from an attitude where people think, ‘I do my banking in person,’ or, ‘I do financial services in person,’ to an attitude of thinking, ‘I could use these digital services. Breaking that zero-to-one gap, that’s the biggest gap.”

Analysts have also agreed with Perrett’s sentiment, with many predicting a future where big banks will make use of fintech architecture to keep up with customer demands. New technologies like blockchain and smart contracts have opened up an entirely new avenue for speed and efficiency. Although the cryptocurrency market still has a major share of critics, more and more people were warming up to the idea of its foundation, blockchain technology. As major banks try to create their own version of the existing blockchain system, only time will tell if it becomes a complete mainstay.

Australian Citizen Sent to Prison for 15 months for Using Government Facilities to Mine Cryptocurrencies

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The cryptocurrency market has witnessed several events in its short history for people to sit up and take notice. As the number of developments and updates has increased within the industry, so has the number of people tapping it for nefarious activities.

According to recent reports from down under, a 34-year old Sydney resident has been sentenced to prison for utilizing the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization’s computer systems to mine cryptocurrencies. The illegal activity was undertaken by a single individual whose hearing took place just last week. 

The unnamed culprit used the facilities to divert power from government-sanctioned projects for his own selfish needs. Sources close to the investigation revealed that the facility and the projects accumulated losses over $76,000 because of the recent activities. Australian Federal Police Cybercrime Operations stated that the culprit was first hired as a contractor back in January 2018. This gave him access to sensitive servers and a treasure trove of information.

During his tenure at the CSIRO, the culprit accessed servers and supercomputers to mine cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin worth $9,400. This was precious time and resources that were meant to be used for coming up with solutions for issues of national importance. Speaking about the arrest, AFP Commander Cybercrime Operations Chris Goldsmid stated:

“The AFP commends the prompt actions of CSIRO in identifying this criminal conduct and swiftly reporting it for investigation. This man’s activities diverted these supercomputer resources away from performing significant scientific research for the nation, including Pulsar Data Array Analysis, medical research and climate modeling work to measure impacts to the environment from climate change. The consequences are clear – this was a misuse of Australian taxpayers’ trust by a Commonwealth employee, motivated by personal gain and greed.”

Once the AFP got wind of the illegal activities, the body procured search warrants for the culprit’s place of residence. From there, the AFP discovered items such as laptops and mobile phones used to conduct the crime. As soon as sufficient evidence was collected, the culprit was charged with offenses related to the Commonwealth. The case took on its next step when the 34-year old ex-contractor pleaded guilty in February of this year. He was charged with 15 months in prison last Friday which also includes 300 hours of community service.

Cardano [ADA], IOTA, Dogecoin [DOGE] Hold Fort as Bear Tries to Shake Up Crypto Industry

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The cryptocurrency market’s performance over the past week has been slightly positive with bullish changes across prices and market caps. Although Bitcoin is yet to cross the $11,000 mark this week, investors were hopeful that it was setting a good precedent for the rest of the industry.

On Friday, the altcoin market displayed green across the board with some major altcoins pumping after extended time periods. Tokens like Cardano, IOTA, and Dogecoin stood the test of the bear by showing increases in prices and daily trading volumes.

Cardano

The Charles Hoskinson co-founded Cardano shot to fame because of its promise to integrate virtual assets with daily use cases. Although it has not spiked to its expected potential, the cryptocurrency was still holding strong in the face of stiff competition.

At press time, ADA was trading for $0.093 with a total market cap of $2.91 billion. A 1.43 percent price increase over the past 24-hours had elevated the daily trading volume to $999.4 million.

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Cardano’s Chaikin Money Flow indicator had spiked above the zero line, a sign that the capital coming into the Cardano market was much more the capital leaving the market. The RSI, on the other hand, was still struggling to break into the zone because the graph had fallen below the oversold zone.

IOTA

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Another altcoin enjoying a decent stint on Friday was IOTA, climbing by 1.4 percent in the hourly spectrum. IOTA was valued at $0.27 with a total market cap of $774.207 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $8.089 million. The cryptocurrency’s technical analysis was more bullish than Cardano’s as evidenced by the RSI and the CMF.

IOTA’s CMF was right on the zero line, signalling the slowdown in capital inflow. Some analysts predict that if the Internet of Things based cryptocurrency shows more developments, then it could head towards a significant price increase. The IOTA RSI was on the verge of breaking towards the overbought zone due to an increase in the number of people buying into the IOTA market.

Dogecoin

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Dogecoin, the meme-inspired cryptocurrency was one of the few tokens showing green on all three timeframes. At press time, DOGE was trading for $0.0028 and held a market cap of $354.679 million. The Jackson Palmer founded virtual asset was one of the few assets that showed a decent performance on the price charts.

DOGE’s Chaikin Money FLow had reached its highest point since March, signalling a massive shift in investor sentiment. The surge in capital could be because of the lack of stellar movements from the incumbent cryptocurrencies. Dogecoin’s RSI had also spiked over the past week after having fallen to a 6 month low.

 

Deutsche Bank see a bright future for CBDCs, Releases Report Citing Benefits and Perks

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Since the inception of the cryptocurrency industry, it has been met with several criticisms and jabs from the naysayers. Most of the critics claimed that the industry would never gain the acceptance of the masses because of the lack of transparency and trust within the system.

Cut to a decade later and it has become evident that the world is on the verge of a new technological boom. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology have come such a long way that traditional organizations such as the Deutsche Bank Wealth Management group are also siding with the concept of virtual assets. 

In a recent report released by the Deutsche Bank Wealth Management, it was stated that the establishment of Central Bank Digital Currencies could better the world of financial relationships. The group suggested that CBDCs can operate in several forms but work best trough direct interaction with central bank accounts. According to the report, CBDCs need to adhere to two major factors: provide increased transaction speed, security, and transparency while maintaining a more effective monetary policy.

CBDCs can bring in additional benefits such as combating payment fraud and ensuring “good corporate governance”. Enforcing monetary policies has always been a painful procedure because of the sheer number of caveats in financial laws. With CBDCs, banks can try to remove the option to hold cash on investors’ balance sheets which makes transactions much more seamless. CBDCs are also expected to allow banks to lower their interest rates and onboard more users to their fold.

Although regulators and lawmakers are ready to take a leap of faith with the new technology, they still remain wary of the dangers associated with the industry. Multiple reports of hacks and fraudulent activities have forced even the Deutsche Bank Wealth Management to stay on their toes when it comes to crypto. Their report said:

“CBDC are currently being investigated by several central banks, with China and Sweden having undertaken trials. Major uncertainties remain about how full-scale CBDC would operate and about their implications for capital markets. Further, there are important concerns about potential threats to individuals’ privacy. But, as the report points out, CBDC may soon become part of our lives, so societies need to learn how to use them best.”

The bank joins several other organizations all over the world in experimenting with cryptocurrencies. Analysts and experts in the field claimed that it was only a matter of time before virtual assets become a part of the daily lore.

European Union Leaders Fully Back the Inclusion of New Technologies-Blockchain, AI of Key Interest

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The coronavirus pandemic has shifted the world’s axis with many countries realizing that concentrating developments in just one or two regions are just not going to cut it. Since March, major developmental hubs such as the US and China have taken a massive hit in terms of industrial prowess, forcing other countries to look elsewhere.

During a recent discussion by European Union leaders, it was decided that they would implore the EU executive next week to look at key areas where they depend too much on the P5 nations. The upcoming 24-25 September conclave will act as the meeting ground to discuss how countries can go about creating news sectors without the threat of embargo from mainstays. 

The discussions revolved around how countries rely heavily on China and the United States when it comes to drug manufacturing as well as cloud computing technology. According to sources, the 27-nation bloc will aim to set up digital and green technologies as numero uno priorities. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission addresses such key issues in her rallying speech on Wednesday. While the EU has decided to implement greener and cleaner steps, other countries were still looking to enforce such decisions amongst their citizens.

To help combat the current deficiency in a proper marketplace, the EU has set aside a 750 billion euro fund within its fold. This capital will be used to revive the economy post the pandemic while creating a new growth sector on its own. Some of the projects that would play a key role in creating jobs would be the Clean Hydrogen Alliance, the Internet of Things as well as the European Battery Alliance.

Apart from setting up mainstream industries, the commission is also looking to create industrial alliances and partnerships within the world of raw materials, microprocessors, telecommunication networks, and various Internet platforms. Blockchain technology was also a huge part of the EU discussion with significant changes to be made to regulations and certifications.

The nascent area of blockchain technology has been gaining steam for quite some time now and it is only a matter of time before it enters into the mainstream realms. Blockchain tech will also be accompanied by fields such as human-centered Artificial Intelligence, 5G mobile networks as well as improvements in secure communications.

 

Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Companies Can Breathe Huge Sigh of Relief After Latest Regulations Proposal by CSBS

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Regulations and the rulebook instituted by traditional organizations have always acted as obstacles for the nascent cryptocurrency industry which brings with it new functionalities and features. After years of debating over which set of regulations is best for the world of virtual assets, US state governments finally seem to have arrived at a middle ground.

On September 15, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors [CSBS] revealed a new regulatory regime for money service businesses that is set to enable a more seamless cryptocurrency industry. The latest proposal will include a single exam that will be conducted by state regulators which will determine the handing out of trading licenses.

The latest unveil is set to benefit not just the smaller cryptocurrency companies but also financial mainstays like Western Union and PayPal. According to the CSBS, the leaner regulation scheme will make it easier for institutions to operate across multiple states. It has become important for the state governments to favor the aforementioned organizations because of the sheer amount fo economic traffic that they bring-just last year, the 78 large payment firms that come under the new regulations moved almost $1 trillion in terms of transactions.

The latest set of rules comes after years of complaints and recommendations from crypto companies and their supporters. Under the new regime, rules will be proposed by a selected set of regulators from a few states who will act as the overwatch for the entire country. This sentiment was also reiterated by CSBS president and chief executive John Ryan who fully backed the new idea. According to him, states will be able to share information from the initial exams with each state reserving the right to launch their own investigations if they seek to do so.

Mr. Ryan further added that the states weren’t giving up authority but were rather realizing the “efficiencies of sharing information”. Kevin Hagler, a member of the CSBS board added:

“One company, one exam is a significant and important shift in how state regulators will ensure compliance with consumer protection and safety and soundness standards for the largest payments companies. By working together and relying on the excellent work of fellow state regulators, we will be able to do even more.”

The decision has certainly been met with a lot of appreciation from the world of fintech, which has been burdened with red tape ever since its inception. If all things go according to plan, then it may only be a matter of weeks before cryptocurrency organizations can function at full tilt in the US legally.

Bridge Oracle Goes Ahead with IEO as Company Plans more Developments to Boost Tron Ecosystem

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The cryptocurrency market has witnessed several updates and developments since its inception, which has made the community realize the importance of constant innovation. One of the most active markets in the virtual asset industry belongs to Tron, with Justin Sun led crypto organization quite often releasing something new from its roster.

Tron has also been supported by other organizations in the quest for a decentralized financial ecosystem, with the Bridge Oracle system acting as an outstanding example. Bridge Oracle aims to create a path for mainstream external data to be available on the blockchain network, something that has been difficult to do in the past.

 The team at Bridge claims that their Oracle system stands out from the rest of the crowd because of the inbuilt features. According to sources, Bridge oracle system is the first-ever dedicated public oracle technology on the Tron network. The team at Bridge informed TWJ that the services offered by the Oracle system could be split into three different categories:

  • Enterprise Oracle System
  • Public Oracle System
  • Decentralized Oracle System

The aforementioned oracle types are all custom built to handle certain aspects of the blockchain network. In order to use a specific type of service, a proper API contract should be imported into the user’s smart contract based on the owner’s requirements. Apart from the multitude of options when it comes to oracle systems, Bridge has also taken into consideration the difficulties that users go through during payments. 

To do away with any complications related to payments for requests, Bridge has decided to give users the option to pay in either TRX or BRG. If users use the native BRG token, they are also given the option to use the discount. Another factor that made attractive to its customers, especially the new ones, was its open-source model. Users have always complained that when crypto projects fail to be transparent about their workings, it only generates a mental pushback in them. 

Bridge also offers other integral services to bolster the Tron ecosystem from its end. All of them are aimed to allow Bridge Oracle members to utilize the full power of the Tron blockchain. The ‘URL’ service allows users to fetch every kind of data using ‘Http/Http Requests’. Next up on the features line was ‘WolframAlpha’ which redirects users’ requests to computational knowledge of WolframAlpha. 

Bridge users also have access to the BitTorrent File System [BTFS]. When the BTFS was first launched by Tron, the main intention was for services like Bridge to make use of it and propagate the decentralized ecosystem. September also marks an important month for Bridge as BRG got listed on Bw.com as well as DigiFinex.com. The BRG token will also be going through an IEO on Bw.com, an event that fans of the token have been waiting for eagerly. 

Officials from within the organization reiterated that the rest of the year will see more listings with a mainnet launch to be expected at the end of this year. Looks like it sure is an exciting year for the decentralized market and especially for the decentralized Tron ecosystem. 

Bitfinex and Tether CTO Comes to the Rescue for User Who Lost $1 Million During Transfer

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The world of virtual assets has been the subject of speculation and strife since its inception, primarily because of the transfer of large sums of capital.  As years have passed, industry officials have also tried to ensure proper transparency and protection for all users.

This focus on security was put on show recently when a user was able to receive their holding safely after having sent it to a false address. The user in question had sent $1 million to an unknown Swerve token contract and later found that it had all been lost. 

The issue was discussed by an entire Discord chat where users opined that the chances of the funds being recovered were very little. Some members of the group stated that the ideal way to send money to an address was to send a couple of dollars in the beginning and then confirm its legitimacy. The seriousness of the issue was escalated to such an extent that it even involved the Chief Technical Officer of Bitfinex and Tether, Paolo Ardoino.

The Tether official came to the rescue by claiming that the capital could be recovered because the transaction involved Tether. His tweet read:

Tether was considered as the ideal mode of transfer because of its connection to the United States dollar. Bitfinex and Ardoino himself have assured the concerned user that any further relevant steps will be taken to ensure the capital is safely returned. Ardoino further reiterated that users need to be careful when they use DeFi projects. Many users have complained about DeFi projects in the past because of the threat of transactions landing in the wrong place.

The Tether CTO also provided the trail of the $1 million recovery via an etherscan link. The transaction had a hash of 0x0b44bf8681cbfb337f1c0f5bdb2b662a070e29eb204ec848a575c8dc3549413e on block number 10841656. The funds were sent from a wallet with the address 0xabbc27c71eb28dc52098c8e2b4dafb428d559ffb.

 

Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin Price Analysis: Altcoin Stumble as the Cryptocurrency Market Struggles to Attract the Bull

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The cryptocurrency market’s rollercoaster movement has been seen by many as evidence for its sheer volatility. This rapid movement has not just been linked to the major tokens but also with altcoins that were finding its footing in the market.

After a week of decent gains, altcoins like Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin took a hit on Monday as the bear went on a rampage. Looking at the 24-hour changes, it was clear that altcoin would take more time to reach Bitcoin’s soaring price levels.

Ethereum, the largest altcoin in the cryptocurrency market maintained a decent price point even after a 4.71 percent fall over the previous day. Ethereum’s fall was the third-largest in the top 10 cryptocurrency club after Litecoin and Chainlink.

At press time, Ethereum was trading for $368 with a total market cap of $41.534 billion. The bear attack further dropped the 24-hour market volume to $66.92 million after holding above the $70 million mark the previous week.

Ethereum’s Parabolic SAR was above the price candles which meant that the cryptocurrency was heading into a continued dip. The last time the markers were below the candles was in the middle of August. The Relative Strength Index had also fallen towards the oversold zone after the selling pressure climbed higher than the buying pressure.

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The Chaikin Money Flow indicator climbed from the zero line after dipping for the first time since the start of June. This was a sign that the capital coming into the Ethereum market was more than the capital leaving the market.

Bitcoin Cash

Up next on the charts was Bitcoin Cash which had fallen to 7th place in the wake of the massive price shifts. At the time of writing, Bitcoin Cash was trading for $224.71 with a total market cap of $4.16 billion. BCH’s daily market volume also fell to $2.4 billion after a 3.6 percent fall in its price.

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Bitcoin Cash‘s RSI was one of the lowest on the cryptocurrency charts as the graph moved parallelly to the oversold zone. This was the lowest the graph had touched since it had fallen back in July. At the same time, the Chaikin Money Flow was recovering after having fallen below the zero line. BCH users may have regained some trust in the cryptocurrency after a slight climb in prices.

The Parabolic SAR was similar to that of Ethereum as the markers stayed above the price candles. It would take another major green run for the markers to push the candles from the top.

Litecoin

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Litecoin rounded off the set of most volatile cryptos in the top 10 list as the Charlie Lee founded cryptocurrency traded for $48.01. The 5.5 percent price fall had lowered the market cap to $3.14 billion while the 24-hour market volume had taken a turn for the worse by falling to $2.23 billion.

Litecoin’s technical analysis also painted a sombre picture for the market as all three indicators sided with the bear. The Chaikin Money Flow indicator was the only sign that the market was still confident in rise with the graph climbing slightly. The RSI on the other hand had fallen to its lowest level since March of this year, an alarming sign for holders and investors alike. Meanwhile, the Parabolic SAR continued to stay above the price candles with the last bullish signal coming in August.