Category Archives: Cryptocurrency
The IRS Wants to Know About Your Cryptocurrency Transactions – Interesting Engineering
Cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Ripple, make the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) nervous. They want to know what you're up to so that they can tax it, and due to COVID-19, you must file your 2019 income tax by July 15, 2020.
On their new Schedule 1 form, the IRS has thrown in a new question: "At any time during 2019, did you receive, sell, send, exchange, or otherwise acquire any financial interest in any virtual currency?"
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Unless you have a death wish, or don't mind doing hard time, you've got to include your cryptocurrency dealings on your income tax filing. We're going to tell you how to do it, but first, a disclaimer.
We're not tax professionals, so take the facts provided below as informational only. Also, those living in countries other than the U.S. may have very different income reporting obligations.
The IRS identifies cryptocurrencies as property, just like collectible coins, valuable paintings, vintage cars, or stocks. Property can appreciate or depreciate in value.
You must report all cryptocurrency transactions and all cryptocurrency, or digital currency income even if you didn't receive a tax form from a cryptocurrency exchange.
While some exchanges, such as the popular site Coinbase, provide a transaction history to every customer, they only provide an IRS Form 1099-K to those customers whose transactions meet a certain dollar amount.
According to the IRS website, "A Form 1099-K includes the gross amount of all reportable payment transactions, and you will receive a Form 1099-K from each payment settlement entity from which you received payments in settlement of reportable payment transactions."
The IRS requires you to report your gains and losses on each of your cryptocurrency transactions. You report cryptocurrency transactions at their fair market value in U.S. dollars.
To calculate your gains and losses, you'll need the cost basis of each transaction, that is, the amount you spent in dollars to buy the cryptocurrency and the amount in dollars that it was worth when you sold it. You can use losses to offset capital gains, thus making losses deductible.
You must pay taxes on cryptocurrency if you:
You don't have to pay taxes on cryptocurrency if you:
Section 501(c)(3) is the portion of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code that allows for federal tax exemption of nonprofit organizations, specifically those that are considered public charities, private foundations or private operating foundations.
On its website, the IRS states that "Only individuals are required to file gift tax returns. If a trust, estate, partnership, or corporation makes a gift, the individual beneficiaries, partners, or stockholders are considered donors and may be liable for the gift and GST taxes."
An airdrop is a usually free distribution of a cryptocurrency token or coin to numerous wallet addresses. Airdrops are done to help newer cryptocurrencies gain attention and new followers.
Recipients are either selected randomly or the airdrop is publicized on bulletin boards or in newsletters. Some airdrops require joining a group, retweeting a tweet, or inviting new users.
Airdropped cryptocurrency should generally be taxable as ordinary income, and valued at its fair market value on the date of receipt. If your exchange doesn't yet support the new coin, meaning it can't be sold, then it isn't taxable.
A fork is an upgrade to a blockchain network. Permanent forks are used to add new features to a blockchain, to reverse the effect of hacking, or to fix bugs, as was the case with the Bitcoin fork that occurred on August 6, 2010, or the fork that separated Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.
Crypto that is received in a fork becomes taxable when it can be transferred, sold, or exchanged. The IRS discusses forks on its Frequently Asked Questions on Virtual Currency Transactions webpage.
Things get even more complicated if you bought cryptocurrency at different times, then sold only a portion of it. You need to choose the cost based on FIFO (First-in-First Out), LIFO (Last-in-Last Out), or the Specific Identification method, which identifies exactly which coins were sold. This IRS page provides information on this choice.
If there is one thing the IRS has a lot of, it's forms. Some of those you may need to use to report cryptocurrency on your income tax include:
If you followed the last link provided, you land on an IRS page with the word "Attention" in red, which is never a good sign. It's followed by several paragraphs, the first of which states: "Copy A of this form is provided for informational purposes only. Copy A appears in red, similar to the official IRS form. The official printed version of Copy A of this IRS form is scannable, but the online version of it, printed from this website, is not. Do not print and file copy A downloaded from this website; a penalty may be imposed for filing with the IRS information return forms that cant be scanned. See part O in the current General Instructions for Certain Information Returns, available at http://www.irs.gov/form1099, for more information about penalties."
If you understood this last paragraph, please let me know so I can put you up for a MacArthur Genius Grant. In the meantime, in July 2019, the IRS sent out over 10,000 letters telling recipients that they owed back taxes, interest, and penalties on their cryptocurrency transactions and that they needed to file amended returns. The IRS also lets recipients of the letters know that they could possibly face criminal prosecution and fines of up to $250,000.
In case you think dabbling in cryptocurrency sounds too complicated, consider this: on March 20, 2020, the value of Bitcoin rose 23% in just 24 hours, reaching $6,172.61.
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The IRS Wants to Know About Your Cryptocurrency Transactions - Interesting Engineering
Investors Who Bought iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (CVE:IMIN) Shares A Year Ago Are Now Up 56% – Simply Wall St
The simplest way to invest in stocks is to buy exchange traded funds. But you can significantly boost your returns by picking above-average stocks. To wit, the iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Inc. (CVE:IMIN) share price is 56% higher than it was a year ago, much better than the market decline of around 14% (not including dividends) in the same period. So that should have shareholders smiling. In contrast, the longer term returns are negative, since the share price is 33% lower than it was three years ago.
See our latest analysis for iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency
iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency didnt have any revenue in the last year, so its fair to say it doesnt yet have a proven product (or at least not one people are paying for). So it seems shareholders are too busy dreaming about the progress to come than dwelling on the current (lack of) revenue. Investors will be hoping that iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency can make progress and gain better traction for the business, before it runs low on cash.
Companies that lack both meaningful revenue and profits are usually considered high risk. There is almost always a chance they will need to raise more capital, and their progress and share price will dictate how dilutive that is to current holders. While some such companies do very well over the long term, others become hyped up by promoters before eventually falling back down to earth, and going bankrupt (or being recapitalized). iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency has already given some investors a taste of the sweet gains that high risk investing can generate, if your timing is right.
iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency had liabilities exceeding cash by CA$236k when it last reported in February 2020, according to our data. That makes it extremely high risk, in our view. So were surprised to see the stock up 122% in the last year , but were happy for holders. Its clear more than a few people believe in the potential. The image below shows how iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrencys balance sheet has changed over time; if you want to see the precise values, simply click on the image.
In reality its hard to have much certainty when valuing a business that has neither revenue or profit. One thing you can do is check if company insiders are buying shares. Its usually a positive if they have, as it may indicate they see value in the stock. Luckily we are in a position to provide you with this free chart of insider buying (and selling).
Its nice to see that iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 56% over the last year. Theres no doubt those recent returns are much better than the TSR loss of 1.4% per year over five years. This makes us a little wary, but the business might have turned around its fortunes. Its always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. Weve identified 6 warning signs with iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (at least 4 which are potentially serious) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.
Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on CA exchanges.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
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Investors Who Bought iMining Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (CVE:IMIN) Shares A Year Ago Are Now Up 56% - Simply Wall St
Bitcoin’s halving might see a large influx of investors wanting a piece of the cryptocurrency market – Mashable SE Asia
Cryptocurrency is the out of control child in the investment world. Its prices fluctuate by the minute and have been deemed one of the riskier investments to be made. Even Warren Buffet, one of the richest man in the world, is discouraging people from investing in it.
But every four years, the price of bitcoin will be cut in half, in a bid to stabilize the crypto market. Mining for the currency will only yield 50 percent, which will reduce the number of coins in the market and preventing it from going through price inflation.
But stabilizing the crypto market brings along another factor: It will attract more investors.
eToro analyst Simon Peters said, During and after the first halving in 2012, the key investors were those already involved in the asset class. The bitcoin investor base was almost exclusively made up of those in the know; blockchain scientists and data programmers as well as libertarians interested in the idea of a monetary system outside of political influence and central bank control.
When bitcoin was halved in 2012, the world saw the price of a one coin drop to US$13 and peeked at US$230 in just six months. Four years later in 2016, the coin was halved again, and thats when people started to pay more attention to it. Thus, the price rocketed to about US$9,800 per coin.
This was one of the reasons cryptocurrencies was put on the map, and more people were looking at ways to sink their hands into this digital gold mine.
During the halving, eToro saw that 50 percent of the investors in Malaysia were millennials.
Peters added, Alongside the computer programmers and blockchain scientists were ordinary people, from management consultants to electricians and hairdressers. Suddenly bitcoin was on everyones lips.
Since then, the crypto industry has matured, with talks of regulation, institutional investors entering the market and even central banks expressing an interest in the asset class. Combine this with another price rally expected after the 2020 halving, and we could be on the precipice of crypto becoming a mainstay of investors portfolios in the same way as stocks, bonds and commodities.
eToro believes that with every halving of bitcoin, its technology and pricing will improve, as well as increase in adoption and regulation.
The halving will happen on May 12, which could see the price of a bitcoin drop to about US$3,000 from is the current price of US$9,900.
If you plan to invest in bitcoin when the halving happens, do use services that have been endorsed by your countrys government, and only invest what youre willing to lose.
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Bitcoin's halving might see a large influx of investors wanting a piece of the cryptocurrency market - Mashable SE Asia
What is a cryptocurrency and why is it needed? – AMBCrypto English
Well, and, of course, a very significant magnet is the opportunity to make money on all this, and not only speculating on the cryptocurrency rate. There is also such a way of earning as Mining here they pay for the provision of computing power (for example, your PC or a specially assembled computing system) for the extraction of monetary units and conducting transactions (transfers).
Today well talk about what cryptocurrency is all about (Ill try to explain in simple terms, understandable to everyone), how it appeared and how it can be used today, what its current rate is, what cryptocurrency exchanges it is worth using, what you need for mining, in which place is better to exchange and where to find the most accurate course calculator?
When the first electronic money appeared, people began to make a great many payment transactions on the Internet. Of course, the administrators of payment systems chose not to lose their hands and set a commission for each transfer or exchange made, the commissions were especially strong when transferring electronic money to real ones.
Advanced network users wondered: How to make payment transactions commission-free?, Began to offer a variety of options. In 2009, anonymous Satoshi Nakamoto realized his own vision for solving the problem: he proposed the release of an information currency that was not backed by anything but could be a unique medium of exchange. The currency is called Bitcoin.
Why is cryptocurrency so-called and how does it work?
Obviously, the name comes from words cryptographic currency. In fact, it is encrypted (cryptography is just the area of science that studies the methods of encrypting and decrypting information) in such a system, not all, but much. Cryptography is used to protect the chain of transactions, i.e. of the most valuable, that is in this system, namely the database with all operations performed with monetary units. But we have to be able to trust de.thebitcoincode.io. If you trust only then you can get maximum profit using these coins.
Let me outline the structure of any cryptocurrency thesis (and now, apart from bitcoin, they have already divorced quite a lot), so that you can understand its radical difference from everything that was before:
In order to eliminate fraud attempts, it was decided to advertise absolutely all operations in the public domain every person using the cryptocurrency has the opportunity to see which wallet and how much bitcoins were transferred to. True, it is not a fact that extracts the name from this information, rather the opposite, because the system is truly anonymous.
The cryptocurrency is not provided with gold reserves or the economy of any state, but it has a certain rate, which is constantly changing and is listed on the exchange. The more people use bitcoins as a medium of exchange, the higher the rate, since the popularity of information money is increasing, and their total number is strictly limited. For example, in the case of Bitcoin, in accordance with the algorithm for its implementation, more than 21 million monetary units cannot be created. So far this number has not been reached and what the rate will be after the extraction of the last bitcoin is unknown.
And most importantly, any such cryptocurrency system can not only have a host but even an external or internal administrator. It does not belong to anyone and therefore it has almost no transfer fees. The system is controlled by the algorithm that is embedded in it, and no one (neither the courts, nor officials, nor persons in execution) can intervene in its work. This freedom has a downside, but this is what distinguishes bitcoins, light coins, and other coins from any other type of electronic money.
Disclaimer: This is a paid post and should not be considered as news/advice.
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What is a cryptocurrency and why is it needed? - AMBCrypto English
Cryptocurrency Market Update: Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple have a bullish start to Saturday, following Fridays drop – FXStreet
The price of BTC/USD has gone up from$9,806.63 to $9,848.50. There is a dip in the RSI, but it is still trending within the overbought zone at 79.63. While this ideally means an upcoming short term bearish correction, we believe that the bulls will continue to consolidate till Tuesdays halving.
The MACD indicates increasing bullish momentum. Ideally, the bulls will want to conquer resistance levels at 10,036 and $10,359.55. On the downside, healthy support lies at $9,500 and $8,780, which must be defended on the face of a sudden bearish onslaught.
ETH/USD is consolidating below the $218 resistance level as it went up from $211.50 to $213.20 in the early hours of Saturday. The price is hovering below the red Ichimoku cloud. The bulls gain enough firepower to enter the cloud by conquering the $227.40 resistance level. On the downside, there are healthy support levels at $207.25 and $198.
The SMA 50 is looking to crossover the SMA 200 to potentially chart the highly bullish golden cross pattern. The MACD shows slightly bearish market momentum.
XRP/USD bulls remained in control for the third straight day as the price went up a bit from $0.2187 to $0.219, trending above the triangle formation in the process. The bulls must garner enough momentum to beat resistance at SMA 200, $0.2284 and $0.2362. The last resistance level will bring the price above the 20-day Bollinger Band.
On the downside, the buyers must make sure that support at $0.2113 and $0.1962 remain strong. The Elliott Oscillator has fallen from 0.026 to0.0163 over the last seven days.
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Cryptocurrency Market Update: Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple have a bullish start to Saturday, following Fridays drop - FXStreet
Cryptocurrency Litecoin dipped to 12% – The Times Hub
Cryptocurrency Litecoin at 03:19 (00:19 GMT) Voskresenovka at a price of $42,860 according to the index Investing.com down by 12.32% in the day. This was the most significant fall in the value of cryptocurrencies since March 12.
The fall provoked a reduction of the market capitalization of Litecoin to $3,021 B, or 0.00% of the total capitalization of all cryptocurrencies. While earlier peaks capitalization of Litecoin was $14,099 B.
In the last 24 hours, Litecoin was trading in the range of $42,859 to $47,012.
In the last 7 days cryptocurrency Litecoin could feel the drop rate in the range of lost 5.56 percent. The amount of currency Litecoin traded in the last 24 hours before the date of publication of this material was $4,715 B or 0.00% of the total volume of all cryptocurrencies. The course was varied in the range from $42,8594 to $49,0882 in the last 7 days.
At the moment Litecoin is still below 89,80% from their peak values, amounting to $420,00, which was reached on 12 December 2017..
Bitcoin was last trading at $8.813,8, according to the index Investing.com falling of 11.98% during the day.
The Ethereum traded $196,24 , according to the index Investing.com, falling from 7.83 per cent.
The market capitalization of Bitcoin $174,801 B or 0.00% of the total capitalization of cryptocurrency, whereas market capitalization of the Ethereum $23,370 B or 0.00% of the total capitalization of the stock market.
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Cryptocurrency Litecoin dipped to 12% - The Times Hub
Hong Kong Cryptocurrency Platform Crypto.com Announces New $100 Million Insurance Policy Led By Arch Underwriting That Extends Total Coverage to $360…
Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency platform Crypto.com announced on Monday it has secured a $100 million direct insurance policy led by Arch Underwriting at Lloyds Syndicate 2012. The platform reported that this is the largest coverage that Crypto.com has secured for its cold storage assets on custodial partner Ledger Vault.
According to Crypto.com, the new policy brings its total cryptocurrency insurance to $360M, including direct and indirect coverage through custodians. Crypto.com also claimed that the policy will significantly expand security protection for its rapidly growing user base against physical damage or destruction, and third-party theft. Speaking about the new insurance policy, Kris Marszalek, Co-Founder and CEO of Crypto.com, stated:
We have committed deeply to the security of our platform, a top concern shared by early adopters and those new to crypto. This additional insurance policy from Lloyds, coupled with our previous large policy and ongoing proactive Defense in Depth approach, provides another layer of protection for our users.
The insurance policy follows Crypto.com recent announcement that its platform has reached two million users, a key milestone achieved just six months after the platform hit its one million user mark.
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Hong Kong Cryptocurrency Platform Crypto.com Announces New $100 Million Insurance Policy Led By Arch Underwriting That Extends Total Coverage to $360...
Verady Unveils Ledgible Accounting Partnerships With Blockchain.Com and Algorand – AiThority
Verady, the leading cryptocurrency tax and accounting software company, announced two major Ledgibleplatformclients, Blockchain.com and Algorand. The accelerated adoption by two prominent blockchain organizations highlights theLedgibleplatforms adaptability, security, and trusted brand within the cryptocurrency space.Ledgibleadds a necessary financial infrastructure component to both organizations as they expand their offerings.
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Blockchain.com, who has over 48 million wallet users and an exchange providing best-in-class trading capabilities, will benefit from the integration by incorporatingLedgiblesinstitutional grade reporting internally.
Algorand, a next-generation blockchain platform that enables the frictionless exchange of value, will leverageLedgiblefor internal accounting and auditing. In addition,Ledgiblewill be integrating ALGO into its software, so that all holders of the native token of the Algorand platform (managed by the Algorand Foundation) will have integrated accounting. Thisexpands the growing suite of digital financial products and services that are available to Algorand users.
Algorands next-generation blockchain technology is already breaking new ground with notable applications like the worlds first central bank digital currency.Ledgiblesintegration for institutional level financial management and reporting helps to further innovations like these that advance the crypto industry as a whole.
New product and service offerings, likeLedgiblesprofessional-grade accounting can leverage blockchain technology to spur mainstream adoption. As these solutions become more widely available and accessible, they will become as familiar as traditional financial solutions.
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WithLedgiblesability to perform AICPA SOC assured tax, accounting, and reporting of cryptocurrency activity, Blockchain.com and Algorand now have reliable, secure insight into their crypto financial transactions.
As one of the oldest crypto companies and one of the largest crypto exchanges with more than 48 million wallets in 140 countries with over 100 million transactions to date our accounting needs are immense, said a spokesperson for Blockchain.com. WithLedgible, weve found a platform that meets our institutional standards and brings best-in-class speed to our financial reporting and tracking.
One of Algorands goal is to enable enterprises to easily embrace the opportunity that blockchain provides, said W. Sean Ford, COO of Algorand. Broadly applicable financial reporting tools likeLedgible Accountingfurther that goal. Were excited to partner with Verady to not only account for our own assets, but to provideLedgible Accountingto our partners who are helping to develop and grow the Algorand blockchain.
Verady is determined to help move the cryptocurrency industry forward with advanced, secure, and intuitive reporting tools. In a rapidly changing economic landscape, were glad to work alongside leaders in the industry to make crypto more accessible, said Kell Canty, co-founder and CEO of Verady.
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Verady Unveils Ledgible Accounting Partnerships With Blockchain.Com and Algorand - AiThority
7 Explosive Cryptocurrencies to Buy for the Bitcoin Halvening – InvestorPlace
[Editors Note: 7 Explosive Cryptocurrencies to Buy for the Bitcoin Halvening was originally published in February 2020. It is regularly updated to include the most relevant information.]
The third big bitcoin halvening is coming in May, and according to our very own Matt McCall whose Ultimate Crypto portfolio has averaged a jaw-dropping 16% gain in 2020, against a market thats down 12% year-to-date thats a huge reason to be bullish on cryptocurrencies in 2020.
But, before we jump into understanding what that halvening is (also referred to as a halving) and which cryptocurrencies to buy for 2020, lets first understand why cryptocurrencies as a broad asset class have a bright future.
The core purpose of cryptocurrencies is relatively simple: leverage technology to eliminate the middle-man in financial transactions and make buying and selling things less costly and more efficient. Through the blockchain a decentralized public ledger of transactions that anyone can view, is consistent across the whole network, and is unable to be edited and/or updated unless the whole network agrees with the update cryptocurrencies are able to conduct and verify financial transactions without needing any central oversight.
That may sound like a mouthful. Its not. Traditional currencies need big banks to oversee and verify all transactions. Cryptocurrencies do not. This means theyre less costly and more efficient than traditional currencies, because theres no middle-man to pay and no paperwork to fill out.
Sure, there are risks to cryptocurrencies achieving mainstream adoption and overtaking government-backed currencies. But, lower transaction costs and quicker transactions are large enough value props to warrant there being a bright future for cryptocurrencies (even if they dont take over the world).
Now, lets take a deeper look at why cryptocurrencies will rise in 2020.
Two key characteristics of bitcoin are limited supply and constrained supply growth.
There are a fixed number of bitcoins in the world (21 million). The bitcoin world started with most of those bitcoins being locked in the system. Each time an individual updated bitcoins ledger (also called mining), the individual would unlock new bitcoins. But to constrain supply growth and retain incentives for mining, the bitcoin system is set up so that every so often, the amount of new bitcoins unlocked for mining a block is halved.
So far, bitcoin has undergone two halvings. After the first halvening in 2012, bitcoin prices rose about 8,000% over the following 12 months. After the second halvening in 2016, bitcoin prices rose about 2,000% over the following 18 months. In both instances, many alternative cryptocurrencies actually rose far more than bitcoin.
In other words, bitcoin halvings have traditionally been exceptionally bullish catalysts for cryptocurrencies. And that makes complete sense. Prices are determined by supply and demand. If supply growth slows, and demand growth doesnt, then prices should go up.
The third bitcoin halvening is coming in May 2020.
The number of bitcoins unlocked for mining one block will fall from 12.5 bitcoins, to 6.25 bitcoins. Because of this halving, bitcoins supply is expected to rise by just 2.5% in 2020 an all-time low for the cryptocurrency. Its expected to rise by less than 2% in 2021.
Concurrently, demand growth should accelerate in 2020, driven by the introduction of more financial derivative products, broader support from central banks and increasing recognition of bitcoin as a digital store of value.
Bigger demand growth plus lower supply growth equals higher cryptocurrency prices. Thats largely why Matt McCall, who has already picked one 70%-plus altcoin winner this year, thinks that the best of the big 2020 cryptocurrency rally is still ahead of us.
With all that in mind, I suggest readers keep a close eye on these seven explosive cryptocurrencies in the coming year:
Of course, the most obvious cryptocurrency to buy for 2020 is bitcoin. Over the next few months, bitcoin will be a direct beneficiary of slowing supply growth and accelerating demand growth across the cryptocurrency world.
On the supply side, the third halving in May will directly impact the amount of new bitcoins coming into market, and will lead to relatively slow supply growth.
Meanwhile, on the demand side, cryptocurrency interest will soar in 2020 as the third halving draws media coverage and public attention. Bitcoin demand will move higher simply because this is the gateway into cryptocurrencies for new investors. That is, as new investors enter the cryptocurrency market over the next few quarters, most of them will likely start by getting their feet wet with bitcoin.
Accelerating demand growth plus constrained supply growth will lead to higher prices for bitcoin in 2020.
Privacy is a top priority in the cryptocurrency community, and privacy-focused coins will likely win big in 2020. Thats why McCall has picked top privacy coin Zcash as one of his top altcoin investments for 2020.
Zcash, which is one of McCalls favorite altcoins in hisUltimate Crypto portfolio, is a pure play on the growing importance of privacy in cryptocurrency.
That is, the first wave of cryptocurrencies was all about decentralization
Existing currency valuation models do not quite take into consideration decentralization a potentially distinguishing feature of cryptocurrencies, says Professor William Cong of Cornell University.
Now that cryptocurrencies have gained more mainstream traction and are starting to exhibit staying power, its time for another distinguishing feature to emerge privacy. Privacy is one of the more important and discussed characteristics in both the crypto world and the financial transaction world at large.
As the importance of privacy grows in the crypto world, privacy coins will outperform, and Zcash looks particularly primed to outperform given the companys recent pivot into private mobile transactions.
A leading altcoin positioned for potentially big gains in 2020 is Ripple.
Ripple is a company which leverages blockchain technology to enable banks, payment providers, digital asset exchanges and corporations to send money globally, usually using the companys cryptocurrency, XRP.
In many ways, then, Ripple is the infrastructure behind cross-border cryptocurrency payments.
As cryptos gain more mainstream traction, Ripple is adding more and more banks and various other customers to its network. Most recently, the National Bank of Egypt just partnered with Ripple.
More and more banks will partner with Ripple in 2020 as cryptocurrency awareness and demand rises. As it does, the price of XRP will rise, too.
One of the more interesting cryptocurrencies to watch in 2020 and which could explode higher is Basic Attention Token.
The core idea behind BAT is pretty simple. The digital advertising model is broken, in that user and advertiser incentives are not aligned. Instead, they run opposite one another. That is, advertisers want users to watch their ads, while consumers want to skip the ads.
The idea of BAT is to realign the incentive structure in the digital ad network so that user and advertiser incentives match one another.
To do this, users get paid Basic Attention Tokens to watch ads in the Brave browser, so that they are now financially incentivized to watch the ad. The end goal, of course, is that more consumers watch ads, and advertisers sell more product/generate more brand awareness.
Its a pretty smart business model.
And, as cryptocurrencies gain more mainstream consumer traction in 2020, this smart model for compensating users to watch ads should similarly gain traction. As it does, the price of BAT should rise.
One of the hottest cryptocurrencies, and one which Matt McCall thinks will remain red hot for the foreseeable future, is Chainlink.
In his Ultimate Crypto portfolio, Matt first recommended Chainlink in early January at a price of $2.09. Today, Chainlink trades hands at $3.66, up a whopping 75% in just four months. Whats more, that 75% return over the past four months, follows a 450% return in 2019.
In other words, Chainlink has been scorching hot. Strengthening fundamentals imply that it will remain hot for the foreseeable future.
Specifically, Chainlink leverages blockchain technology to create smart contracts, which are essentially self-executing contracts that can be executed without central oversight.
But businesses have been slow to adopt smart contracts because data is integral to executing these smart contracts, and there hasnt yet been a reliable way to connect external data with the smart contract.
Thats exactly what Chainlink does. So, they provide a very necessary gateway to usher in broader adoption of smart contracts. This adoption uptake in 2020 will provide a natural tailwind for LINK, and the coins red-hot rally will likely persist.
The Synthetix Network Token is a cool platform in the ethereum ecosystem which leverages blockchain technology to help bridge the gap between the often very obscure cryptocurrency world, and the far more tangible traditional asset world.
That is, in the Synthetix Network, there are Synths, which are synthetic assets that provide exposure to assets such as gold, bitcoin, U.S. Dollars and various equities like Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). The whole idea of these synthetic assets is to create shared assets wherein users benefit from asset exposure, without actually owning the asset.
Its a very unique idea, and a promising project in the ethereum landscape. Because it helps bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and traditional assets, it creates a level of familiarity and value that are often missing in other cryptocurrency assets. This familiarity and value ultimately position SNX price to rise in 2020.
On the smaller side, a cryptocurrency which look like an interesting speculative buy in 2020 is DxChain Token.
DxChain is a very ambitious project which aims to use blockchain technology to solve the worlds data computation, storage and privacy issues. Its a tall order. But, if it works, it could yield huge results in terms of DXC usage and value growth.
In 2020, data privacy concerns are front and center. As such, privacy-focused coins should rise. DXC is one of the more interesting privacy-focused coins with potentially huge long term upside.
While its still all very speculative, those attributes may make this altcoin worth the risk over the next few quarters.
In the bigger picture, its not an understatement to say that the opportunity in cryptocurrency in 2020 is a once-in-a-lifetime event.
New technologies are often undergirded by periods of rapid, exponential growth before either dying out in supernova fashion or normalizing to meet realistic expectations. So when cryptos had their first once-in-a-lifetime event in 2013 which turned every $1,000 into $93,000 the spectating world thought they had missed out.
Then came thenextlife-changing event in 2017, turning every $5,000 into $123,000 thatwas assuredly the big boom that you either rode to 25x gains or, well, you didnt, right? Wrong.
Cryptocurrencies are unlike any trend weve ever seen before, and there will be another opportunity for investors to turn a fistful of dollars intomillionsof dollars.
The key to this explosion is the Halvening. Dont miss out this time!
Luke Lango is a Markets Analyst for InvestorPlace. He has been professionally analyzing stocks for several years, previously working at various hedge funds and currently running his own investment fund in San Diego. A Caltech graduate, Luke has consistently been recognized as one of the worlds top stock pickers by various other analysts and platforms, and has developed a reputation for leveraging his technology background to identify growth stocks that deliver outstanding returns. Luke is also the founder of Fantastic, a social discovery company backed by an LA-based internet venture firm.As of this writing, he did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
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7 Explosive Cryptocurrencies to Buy for the Bitcoin Halvening - InvestorPlace
Cryptocurrency Market Update: Bitcoin leaves behind Ethereum and Ripple in the dust as bulls start consolidating their positions pre-halving -…
ETH/BTC bears had a field day this Thursday as it dropped from 0.0227 to 0.0022. IN the process, the bears managed to take control for the fifth consecutive day. Since ETH/BTC is now trending below the 20-day Bollinger Band, it shows that the price is currently undervalued and may face bullish correction soon. The RSI indicator has dipped to 33.75 and is on the verge of entering the oversold zone. On the downside, there are three support levels that the bulls must defend at 0.0217 and 0.0212.
BTC/USD bulls remained in control for the second straight day as the price flew up from $9,029.73 to $9,341.85 and entered the red Ichimoku cloud. The price is trending in an upward channel formation as the bulls aim for the $9,500 psychological level. The resistance levels beyond that are at $9,615.85 and $9,941.73. On the downside, there are two healthy support levels $9,187 and $8,826.75. SMA 20 is about to crossover the SMA 200 to chart a bullish cross. The MACD indicates increasing bullish momentum, while the RSI is trending within the overbought zone at 76.45.
ETH/USD bears remained in control for four straight days, as the price fell from $205.46 to $205.64. The price is presently consolidating in a flag formation. On the downside, there are two support levels at $196.85 and $188.60. On the upside, ETH/USD must overcome resistance levels at $214.25 and $224.35. The MACD indicates decreasing bullish momentum, while the Elliott Oscillator is has had three straight red sessions.
XRP/USD fell from $0.217 to $0.216 as the bears retained control for the fourth straight day. The price is consolidating in a pennant formation as the sellers aim for the $0.2125 and $0.203 support levels. On the upside, resistance lies at $0.2236 and $0.235. The MACD indicates decreasing bullish momentum, while the Elliott Oscillator has had four straight red sessions.