Blockchain is not cryptocurrency
Bitcoin is just one example of a cryptocurrency, though; other cryptocurrency networks are also powered by blockchain technology. So although Bitcoin uses blockchain technology to trade digital currency, blockchain is more than just Bitcoin. Looking at the wider applications of blockchain Because blockchain and Bitcoin are so inextricably linked, it took people a long time to realise that blockchain actually has much wider applications beyond cryptocurrency networks.
Here are just a few examples of the wider applications of blockchain beyond Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies: Executing smart contracts. Thanks to Bitcoin, we already know that blockchain is great for facilitating digital transactions, but it can also be used for formalising digital relationships through smart contracts.
With a smart contract, automated payments can be released once the contract terms have been fulfilled, which promises to save time and help to reduce discrepancies or solve disputes. Maintaining a shared, transparent system of record. Blockchain is the ideal solution for maintaining a long-term, secure and transparent record of assets land rights would be a good example that all parties can access securely. Auditing the supply chain.
Blockchain allows users to trace the records of ownership for goods all the way back to the source. As an example of this, Diamond company De Beers has started to use blockchain to trace diamonds from the mine to the end customer. Anyone who wants to verify that their diamonds are free from conflict will have a transparent and complete record.
Providing proof of insurance. Nationwide insurance company is planning to use blockchain to provide proof-of-insurance information. Of course, the safekeeping of that digital record will be critical to this new trust foundation, and will introduce an entirely new world of digital security requirements. With new blockchain initiatives launching pretty much daily, the path ahead is anything but certain, but the implications of the technology on many of the fundamental underpinnings of our business and legal structures are already starting to become clear.
Most of the attention on the technology has been focused on using the technology to streamline back-office processes such as trade processing, clearing, and settlement. With digital currencies, by contrast, the ledger containing the record of all transactions by all users is publicly available to all. Rather than requiring users to have trust in special institutions, reliance is placed on the network and the rules established to reliably change the ledger.
In one fell swoop, by taking all of the third parties and proprietary processes out of the equation, blockchain addresses everything from anti-money laundering and corporate transparency issues to seamless trade identification and reporting in a single, elegant package. Chapter Four The cryptocurrency gold rush Financial professionals were initially more interested in the ledger technology underlying cryptocurrency, than the currency itself. That all started to change this year as a cryptocurrency gold rush has made bitcoin the hottest financial asset of And, while mainstream institutional investors have largely stayed clear of the nascent market , there are financial leaders pushing for continued exploration of FinTech in the global financial community.
For instance, think of countries with weak institutions and unstable national currencies. Instead of adopting the currency of another country—such as the U. Call it dollarization 2. The below graphics show the top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, and compares them to several country GDPs and various cultural financial powerhouses.
Top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization Cryptocurrencies, compared Data sources: 1 Country comparisons taken from cryptocurrencyprices. Note this website updates in near real-time, therefore the values shown at any time in the future may be different to those shown illustrated on this visualisation. Comparable country is nearest country by value in the linked ranking, regardless of whether it is above or below the reported crypto-currency.
This does not include the figures for Spectre the last film in the series 7 The large shaded circle represents the size of the U. The move allows the company to start offering options on bitcoin to institutional investors this year, making it the first federally regulated bitcoin options exchange. Those watching these developments closely anticipate that the institutional uptake of cryptocurrency trading on regulated platforms could pave the way for consumer ETFs offering cryptocurrencies in the near future.
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CRYPTOCURRENCY ARBITRAGE HOW TO BE FAST
The difference between blockchain and Bitcoin What's the difference between blockchain and Bitcoin? Many people wrongly conflate the two. Do you know the difference? Blockchain is the technology that underpins the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, but Bitcoin is not the only version of a blockchain distributed ledger system in the market.
There are several other cryptocurrencies with their own blockchain and distributed ledger architectures. Meanwhile, the decentralisation of the technology has also led to several schisms or forks within the Bitcoin network, creating offshoots of the ledger where some miners use a blockchain with one set of rules, and others use a blockchain with another set of rules.
With smaller networks, these cryptocurrency blockchains are more vulnerable to hacking attacks , one of which befell Bitcoin Gold in Bitcoin, founded by a no-one-knows-him Satoshi Nakamoto, was the first cryptocurrency known to us. Numerous cryptocurrencies have sprung up since then. In this post, we are going to discuss the relationship between one of the most powerful nations with this nascent technology — and try to decode its stance about this supposedly disruptive technology.
But yes! Their strategy is quite clear and based on 5 main reasons. Putting it on the Block chain Being the country with the highest number of patents in blockchain, China is undoubtedly big on blockchain, the underlying technology for cryptocurrencies. Just to keep us all from guesswork, the Chinese President himself made it pretty clear that blockchain is in fact a priority for him and the government.
But, what about one of the biggest use-cases for the same technology? A technology powerhouse in its own right, China and its companies have long emerged as one of the most pragmatic coalitions when it comes to building new products with bleeding-edge technologies.
As cryptocurrency was approaching its never-seen-before boom in , tech pundits across the world were interested in whether China would embrace the technology. As upstarts around the world started building products based on blockchain, putting cryptocurrency in front of users — oceans of apps were out there.
Soon enough, the conventional institutions such as central banks, card processors, and the governments — all slapped bans and sanctions on these products. Known for being an innovator in the last couple of decades, the pundits expected China to be different. But, it did. But the truth is — China has encouraged experimentation with cryptocurrency as well as the technology it is built upon, i. Chinas investments in blockchain innovation As a matter of fact, the Chinese government and its lower bodies have been pretty clear about their stance on investments in blockchain innovation.
There is another side to this, however. Around the same time as China and the blockchain advocates were figuring out a way to outplay Libra , a Stablecoin launched by Facebook that many in China believe to be US-backed, the Chinese government made an announcement.
It came with a stern warning about investors making sure that they invested in blockchain, and not any random projects that are in fact cryptocurrency masquerading as blockchain. As this happened, a lot of crypto believers were disappointed. The BTC prices nosedived, until they soared back up. The other side of this was pretty understandable. The announcement was made with a solid reasoning for this direction.
No one can totalitarian monitor the Internet Chinese officials believed that a lot of companies and exchanges set up servers outside China and put a front-office in the mainland, and then lure people into buying cryptocurrencies. A lot of these companies, as we know already, will put transaction limits on how much you can take out and even go on to manipulate prices with insane volumes. Not a lot wrong with that announcement, now you think?
But over the last couple of years, a lot of people in the blockchain and crypto community have believed that while China is bullish on blockchain — the same is not even remotely true for cryptocurrency. Fear of overloading the banking system The only way China could include cryptocurrency into its existing monetary and banking system is by getting their bankers to fight an uphill battle of technological innovation to even catch with the cryptocurrency-based transactions.
Because China wants to keep a close eye on each and every transaction, it would have been almost impossible to track and monitor every encrypted and anonymous transaction using cryptocurrencies. A big reason why China chose to distance itself from cryptocurrencies could be its foresight to predict an operational and technological catastrophe.
Known to control in its own beautiful manner, technological uncertainty is the last thing the Chinese government would allow in their backyard. Strive to keep regulation simple One of the biggest reasons why China is not enthusiastic about crypto is the fact that it suits their style of regulation. As the gold standards collapsed, economies started pushing for their own currencies.
The reason why this concept of currencies work is because it is based on something bigger than technologies and regulations — trust. The public and corporations trust the government to ensure a stable availability of banknotes in supply. Unlike a complicated governance system in the USA, where the governments and even regulatory bodies can be lobbied, China is way more ruthless than possibly any other government.
This is the reason why China refused to tag bitcoin and others as currency in the first place. By categorizing cryptocurrencies as securities entities that hold value or currency medium of value-exchange , the USA and many other countries were able to monitor and regulate it according to their existing system that has been around for decades.
The same could not be done in China. The black-and-white nature of how the Chinese government interacts with other bodies is the biggest reason behind this. The Sino-American Struggle for Supremacy The rate of growth that China has maintained over the past decades is phenomenal. So good that it has bought its way to the top ranks among nations.
Putting it behind no other country except America. Now, having interests in different issues around the world — the two power centers are always trying to outplay the other. This has led the two countries and their governments to have the opposite stance of their supposed adversary.
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