Bitcoin (BTC) price analyst Oliver Isaacs thinks it will hit $25,000 around the end of 2019, according to a report by The Independent on June 5.

Isaacs discussed the reasons he still has high hopes for a rally in the near future, saying:

   "There are multiple drivers behind the recent resurgence. There are geopolitical, technological and regulatory drivers. The net effect
   of the trade war between the U.S. and China has led to the sudden interest in bitcoin as a hedge on investments."

Draper also reportedly commented on the state of mainstream adoption trends, with giant corporations such as Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks and Whole Foods all now accepting payments in crypto.

Investor Tim Draper thinks that mainstream adoption will occur within the next few years. Draper goes so far as to claim that BTC will hit $250,000 by 2023. He commented on how he pictures the near future looking, saying:

   "I think when you go to Starbucks to buy a cup of coffee, and you try to pay with dollars, they will laugh at you because you are not
   using bitcoin or other cryptocurrency [...] It will be like the old lady paying out with pennies."

Analysts at SFOX have been more pessimistic, calling the outlook for the crypto market “uncertain” and cautioning that bitcoin’s recent growth may have been simple FOMO (fear of missing out). They also pointed to the United State’s ongoing trade war with China as a reason for BTC’s rally last month.
As previously reported by Cointelegraph, The University of Notre Dame and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory conducted a study concerning the speed and scale of cryptocurrency discussions on Reddit. The study observed price and discussion on official subreddits for Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Monero (XMR) from January 2015 to January 2018.


source:  https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-analyst-says-btc-could-reach-25-000-by-end-of-2019

Ethereum devs constitute the vast majority of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) application (DApp) creators, according to a report by Binance Research on June 6.


     Number of DApps per blockchain, courtesy of Binance Research

According to the report, DeFi can be thought of as the following:

   “An ecosystem comprised of applications built on decentralized networks, permissionless blockchains, and peer-to-peer protocols for
   the facilitation of lending/borrowing or trading with financial instruments.”

This ecosystem purports to offer a permissionless, decentralized network for users, who reportedly retain full custody of their crypto assets. According to the report, the main underpinning of this ecosystem consists of lending and borrowing platforms that support blockchain assets. One of the primary pairs of blockchain assets used on DeFi, for example, is the token MakerDao (MKR) and its sister stablecoin Dai (DAI).

The report argues that since Ethereum is the largest blockchain platform by market cap, it makes sense that its the birthplace of most DApps. However, this may change with the introduction of new and growing platforms such as EOS.

As reported in May by Cointelegraph, New York-based blockchain firm ConsenSys recently published a “Blockchain and DApp Developer Job Kit” to support prospective developers looking to write DApps in JavaScript, Python, or Solidity on the Ethereum blockchain.

The blockchain/DApp kit explains core topics of the field, such as consensus algorithms, smart contracts, miners, security incentivization, token standards, scalability, public and private key encryption, digital signatures, zero knowledge proofs, and trusted execution environments.


source:  https://cointelegraph.com/news/vast-majority-of-dapps-for-finance-built-on-ethereum-blockchain

In 2016, crypto exchange Bitfinex was the victim of a devastating hack that resulted in the theft of nearly 120,000 bitcoins. Now it appears that some of those coins are on the move.

With losses valued at close to US$70 million [AU$100 million] at then-current prices. the Bitfinex hack was – at the time – second only to the infamous Mt. Gox hack in terms of severity and total amount stolen.

The stolen bitcoins were sent to thousands of BTC addresses where they remained unmoved for almost three years.

Stolen Bitcoin on the move
April 25th marked the first verified movement of the stolen funds when Reddit user u/jankeldidi alerted readers that more than 550 bitcoins – valued at more than $3 million – were transferred to new wallets with no previous transaction history.

Now it appears as if the hackers are at it again.

At 4:10 pm AEST Friday, five transactions totaling 165.43 bitcoins were moved from the hackers’ wallets to an unknown address.

Since then, a sixth transaction in the amount of 24.26 bitcoins has also been moved, bringing today’s total to 189.69 bitcoins valued at more than $1.5 million at current BTC prices.

The six transactions were posted on Twitter by @whale_alert, a service that tracks large cryptocurrency transactions.



In total, more than 742 BTC have been moved by the hackers since April.

No bad deed goes unrewarded
There is an interesting excerpt from the LEO whitepaper – Bitfinex’ native platform token – that reads:

“[Bitfinex] is working with industry leaders to create a procedure to offer the hacker the chance to safely and privately refund the majority of the stolen funds while keeping a percentage of them as reward for collaborating in finally resolving this issue.”

This is in specific reference to the 2016 hack and essentially means that Bitfinex is exploring the possibility of a system that actually rewards hackers for returning stolen funds by allowing them to keep a certain percentage.

While some may see such a policy an acceptable compromise in the crypto space’s current Wild West environment, others feel that it will simply encourage further attacks.

For its part, the exchange denies that the possibility of such a reward system has anything to do with the movement of the stolen bitcoins.

“We are not involved, and the movement is not tied to the procedure outlined in the UNUS SED LEO white paper,” said Bitfinex marketing director Anneka Dew in an email to Hard Fork.

Getting out while the getting is good
Another possibility is that the hackers may be trying to cash out while they can still launder their ill-gotten gains.

Between May 22nd and June 2nd, two of the world’s largest crypto mixing services – Bestmixer.io and Bitblender.io – were shut down.

Six of Bestmixer’s servers were seized in connection with a year-long money laundering investigation, while Bitblender voluntarily shut down its operation.

With such services being viewed by international authorities as little more than money laundering operations, if this trend continues, opportunities for hackers and other criminals to ‘wash’ their cryptocurrencies could become fewer and farther between.


source:  https://micky.com.au/could-bitfinex-reward-hackers-for-return-of-stolen-bitcoins/

The Reserve Bank of India is denying any knowledge of a proposed ban on cryptocurrencies — despite reports that a number of governmental agencies have backed the draft legislation — according to a Right to Information request filed on June 4.

Varun Sethi, a lawyer specializing in blockchain, filed the inquiry into the RBI’s involvement with “Banning of Cryptocurrencies and Regulation of Official Digital Currencies Bill 2019″ draft, following a report from the Economic Times. The legislation would ban the sale, purchase, and issuance of all types of cryptocurrencies.

Bank officials said that the RBI was not in communication with governmental agencies during the legislative process and had not received a copy of the bill. The bank forwarded several of Sethi’s questions to the Department for Economic Affairs as well as the Ministry of Finance — including, “What are ‘official digital currencies’ as per the RBI?”

The bank has been involved in cryptocurrency legislation as recently as April when the organization unveiled a regulatory sandbox that would allow blockchain products — excluding digital currencies —  to be tested on a sample of consumers. It has not endorsed a full ban on cryptocurrencies in the past.

Several governmental initiatives within the world’s second-most populous nation have been undertaken to regulate blockchain, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi first established a panel to study how to regulate the crypto sector in November 2017.

The Economic Times reported that a committee in support of a total ban, including representatives of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), among others was “of the view that already there is a lot of delay in taking action against cryptocurrency.”

If passed, those who “mine, generate, hold, sell, transfer, dispose, issue or deal in cryptocurrencies directly or indirectly” could be jailed for up to 10 years.

The draft also advocates introduction of an official digital currency for India, the ‘Digital Rupee,’ that would presumably not land users in jail.


source:  https://www.coindesk.com/reserve-bank-of-india-denies-involvement-in-draft-bill-to-ban-cryptocurrencies

By CCN: According to local reporting, Facebook’s Global Coin might soon be used to value barrels of oil, according to one wide-ranging article about the impact of technology on the Russian economy.

Warning that further American dominance in technology will likely lead to increased sanctions and other problems for Russia, including trade and tariff imbalances.

WHAT DOES GLOBAL COIN MEAN FOR THE GLOBE?
The Russian government has been back and forth about the fate of cryptocurrency in the large region. On the one hand, they might end up with regulations that require one to be a qualified investor to buy cryptocurrency. On other, the Kremlin is pushing for rules to be completed as soon as possible.

Russians are primarily concerned with expanding their energy industry and gaining regional dominance over whatever they possibly can. In a potential bid to boost local technology companies, the Russian government recently gave itself the authority to enact a “kill switch” for the outside Internet. The legislation sparked massive protests.

Using Global Coin, Facebook’s forthcoming crypto offering, as a new way to measure the price of oil would indicate that it’s likely to be a widely useful crypto. One question, of course, is why they don’t just use Bitcoin or some other standard crypto asset? The source, Igor Sechin, explicitly “admits” that Facebook’s crypto will be used in the “near future.”

If we consider the massive size of Facebook’s user base, and the potential impact on stores to accept it, especially in places where people travel from all kinds of countries, then Facebook’s crypto might have some legs. People suddenly don’t need to worry about a currency exchange when they get to the airport – they use GlobalCoin. These are problems that any crypto could traditionally solve, but GlobalCoin has the added benefit of coming preloaded with a massive number of users.

WHY FACEBOOK COIN?
The Facebook crypto project comes loaded with other questions as well. For example, if people can be banned from the platform for their political beliefs, that means that if the currency gains much dominance, those people will be increasingly cut out of the financial system.

Genuinely the opposite of the primary intended use case for cryptocurrency, the problem either puts a cap on the overall expansion of Global Coin or it raises the question of what makes something a utility. If Facebook were suddenly regulated as a utility, would the Global Coin inherently be a utility coin?

Most payment providers understand that there needs to be some finality in transaction settlement. However, within the bounds of customer agreements and merchant contracts, there’s only so much they can do. It’s unclear what, if anything, Facebook’s coin project could do to help with this.

The primary drive for something like it would be the universality of the Facebook app. Everyone has it, so if it can suddenly be used to make payments, then it’s a digital option available to most everyone. For kids, it can act as a gift card that works in many places. For adults, especially those that travel to foreign countries, it can act as a way to avoid currency exchanges and go straight to making payments.

If massive tourist destinations like China begin accepting Global Coin, in the same way they do things like WePay, then you will see a massive increase in demand. The coin could truly go global. Or it could just be something that’s talked about from time to time, but sees no real adoption. That’s always the gamble.


source:   https://www.ccn.com/russian-oil-industry-facebook-global-coin

 - There was a sharp decline in bitcoin price after it spiked above the $9,000 level against the US Dollar.
 - The price declined below the $8,600 support and tested the key $8,000 support area.
 - There was a break below a major bullish trend line with support near $8,540 on the 4-hours chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed
    from Kraken).
 - The pair tested the $8,000 support area ad recently bounced back above $8,400 and $8,500.

Bitcoin price recovered sharply after a major drop to $8,000 against the US Dollar. BTC is currently consolidating gains and it seems to be preparing for the next wave.

Bitcoin Price Weekly Analysis (BTC)
This past week, bitcoin price remained in a positive zone and climbed above $8,800 against the US Dollar. The BTC/USD pair even broke the $9,000 resistance level and traded to a new 2019 high. A swing high was formed near $9,090, but the price failed to stay above the $9,000 level. As a result, there was a sharp decline below the $8,800 and $8,6000 support levels.

Moreover, there was a break below a major bullish trend line with support near $8,540 on the 4-hours chart of the BTC/USD pair. The decline was strong as the price even broke the $8,200 level. The price tested the key $8,000 support area and the 100 simple moving average (4-hours). It seems like the 100 simple moving average (4-hours) acted as a strong support near $8,000. The price bounced back above $8,400 and $8,500. There was a break above the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $9,093 high to $7,990 swing low.

The price even traded a few points above the $8,600 level. At the moment, the price is consolidating near the 50% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $9,093 high to $7,990 swing low. On the upside, an initial resistance is near the $8,650. If there is a clear break above $8,650 and $8,700, the price is likely to gain bullish momentum.



Technical indicators
4 hours MACD – The MACD for BTC/USD is slowly moving in the bullish zone.

4 hours RSI (Relative Strength Index) – The RSI for BTC/USD is currently above the level 50 and it could move higher.

Major Support Level – $8,400

Major Resistance Level – $8,700


source:  https://www.newsbtc.com/2019/06/02/bitcoin-btc-price-weekly-forecast-technical-bias-signaling-fresh-increase/

From a rising interest in Bitcoin and crypto to a release date for an XRP-based banking app, here’s a look at some of the stories breaking in the world of crypto.

Bitcoin

According to a new report from Binance, the leading crypto exchange saw a sudden spike in Bitcoin from both institutions and retail traders in May. The report points to a surge in trades on the company’s over-the-counter (OTC) trading platform and from new retail traders as key examples.

   “Compared to March and April, which were relatively quiet in altcoin space, May was a much more active month in terms of OTC
   trading. The initial move higher in BTC was likely fueled by Blockchain week in NY (Consensus, Magical Crypto Conference and other
   events) and led to a lot of renewed interest in buyers of BTCUSD…

   We have [also] definitely seen more interest from the non-crypto public this month, and hope that the market ‘behaves’ such that the
   interest continues to build.”

The report also highlights that big-time traders forking over a premium to buy shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust are a leading example of the lengths institutions will now go to in order to invest in the space.

   “Institutional investors, currently representing (in our conservative assumptions) less than 10% of all long-term investors, are
   growing their exposure to digital assets and cryptocurrencies, as illustrated by a premium of nearly 40% for Grayscale Bitcoin Trust
   (GBTC) over BTC spot price at the end of May.”

The detailed report also looks at JP Morgan’s new crypto asset, Facebook’s reported stablecoin, the implications of Monero’s latest fork, and more. You can check it out here [https://info.binance.com/en/research/selections/Binance-Research-Latest-Insights-and-Analytics-(3.2019-5.2019).pdf]

Ethereum

The latest edition of EthHub Weekly is out, covering all things Ethereum.

This week’s post looks at new developments on Grayscale Ethereum Trust, Loopring, Etherum 2.0 and more.

Ripple and XRP

The founder of XRPL Labs says the company is aiming to release a beta version of its new XRP-centered banking app this year. The app, called Xign, is designed to let users hold and spend various currencies like the dollar and euro, in addition to XRP.

       Wietse Wind
       @WietseWind

   Replying to @preadyplayerone @XrpMr
   We'll release it when it's ready. We rather spend a few more months and get it right. But we're definitely looking at a beta release this
   year.
   1:49 PM - May 31, 2019

Litecoin

Litecoin hodlers are passing around a tweet from LTC developer Loshan, teasing “good news” on the Lightning Network (LN).

       Loshan
       @loshan1212

   Good news regarding Litecoin & Lightning Network soon! Follow the @LTCFoundation for the latest updates.
   4:53 PM - May 27, 2019

The pre-announcement announcement follows a similar tease from crypto exchange OKEx, which dropped a tweet featuring the Litecoin logo and lightning bolt last week.

        OKEx
       @OKEx
   It's about time to light up the market.@litecoin @SatoshiLite
   1:06 PM - May 22, 2019


Stellar

The team at the Stellar Development Foundation has released an in-depth look at the platform’s upcoming Protocol 11 upgrade.

The update is designed to improve network capacity and change the way fees are structured.

“You now choose the maximum fee you’re willing to pay, but you’re actually charged the lowest possible fee. If network activity is light, you’ll pay the absolute minimum. If it’s heavy, you’ll pay up to the amount you specify, but no more. As a result, you can choose the highest fee you’re comfortable with, safe in the knowledge that you’ll only pay that fee if required by circumstance.”

       Stellar
       @StellarOrg

   On Monday, June 10th at 16:00 UTC, validators will vote to upgrade the Stellar Network to Protocol 11!

   We wrote a walk-through of the upcoming protocol improvements and what they mean for developers, users, and businesses building
   on #Stellar:https://www.stellar.org/blog/protocol-11-improvements-stellar … pic.twitter.com/0zoCwPpw7d
   4:17 AM - May 31, 2019


Tron

Tron’s latest report [https://medium.com/@Tronfoundation/tron-dapp-weekly-report-05-25-05-31-92cc4562c417] on the platform’s decentralized app (DApp) ecosystem is out.

According to the new edition, 55 new DApps have debuted on the network in the last week, with the total number of DApps on the network now standing at 447.



source:  https://dailyhodl.com/2019/06/01/binance-reveals-sudden-surge-in-bitcoin-btc-and-crypto-trading-plus-ripple-and-xrp-litecoin-ethereum-stellar/