Top news and views about Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency for 27 Mar 2017
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BitGo Reveals Hard Fork Planning; Will Not Support Bitcoin Unlimited
With a hard fork looming, BitGo, a multi-signature bitcoin wallet, has advised its customers what to do in the case of a new chain, whether it is Bitcoin Unlimited, which BitGo deems unsupportable, or a supportable option such as Segregated Witness.
Ben Davenport, co-founder and chief technical officer, advised users in a recent blog what actions BitGo will take and gave recommendations on what they should to in the event of a hard fork. BitGo did not assign a high probability of a hard fork until recently.
Bitcoin Unlimited Unsupportable
BitGo will not support Bitcoin Unlimited, which it does not consider supportable. It will support Segregated Witness, (SegWit) which it consider safe and tested in the core code.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2n7jCT7
BitPay Has Studied Bitcoin Blockchain Alternatives: “None of Them Are Compelling”
BitPay co-founders Stephen Pair and Tony Gallippi have been around Bitcoin for about as long as anyone else in the industry. The company was founded in 2011, and their actions generally indicate the future direction of the industry.
“When we started in 2011, we would be excited to get five or six transactions through BitPay in a day.” said Pair in a fireside chatwith Gallippi, held during the recent Distributed: Markets 2017conference in Atlanta.
BitPay would go on to cut deals with the likes of Microsoft, Newegg, Expedia and other major corporate customers to provide payment processing services.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2nj9dX8
BitPay Won’t Use Bitcoin Alternatives For Payment Systems Despite Scaling Issues
While many expected bitcoin to replace the use of credit cards and replace the banking system in 2013, the cryptocurrency has faced challenges as a payment system since it has not been able to safely accommodate its growth, according to Nasdaq.
Bitcoin is currently dealing with some issues as a payments platform, mainly because the system is experiencing growth at a rate faster than it can safely scale.
Stephen Pair, a co-founder of BitPay, said customer service inquiries have increased due to transaction confirmation delays. BitPay has also witnessed higher transaction fees for its own transactions, causing the company to stop covering bitcoin network fees on invoice payments.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2o7EuKQ
This Happens to Your Coins During a Bitcoin Hard Fork and Possible Blockchain Split
The first and foremost piece of information all bitcoin holders should know is that in the event of a hard fork that splits the blockchain, bitcoins you possess will be perfectly safe.
Over the past year or so hard forks have gotten a bad reputation for political reasons, but in actuality, most types of forks are merely protocol upgrades. A blockchain split occurs during a hard fork which in turn branches the chain into two parts. If this happens, there is nothing a bitcoin holder has to do but wait and watch the fork unfold.
The folks at the subreddit r/btc have compiled a very well written frequently asked questions post concerning protocol upgrades and how users are affected. The thread gives details about the hard fork process and what to expect.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2n7qFLu
Where Do You Stand on the Yin & Yang of Different Bitcoin Ideologies?
Over the past few months, bitcoin’s price has been on a tear. During this time people have speculated part of the reason the price spiked was due to the March Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) decision. The psychology of this matter ran deep as people wondered if bitcoin would be accepted by mainstream investors.
While people waited for the decision, many people got excited and hoped the SEC would approve the ETF. Throughout forums and social media one could see countless posts and articles covering the subject. Many hoped the chance of approval would send bitcoin to the moon. On March 10, the day of the ETF announcement, the subreddit r/bitcoin had over 2500 subscribed readers online simultaneously, who likely were waiting for the decision.
Before the SEC decision day, there were also a few bitcoiners who either didn’t think it was the right time for a bitcoin ETF or didn’t want it at all. Serial entrepreneur Vinny Lingham wrote an opinion piece on why he didn’t think 2017 was the year for a bitcoin ETF. Before the decision, there were many other talking points saying a Bitcoin ETF may be a bad idea.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2n7qIa8
Who's Buying Bitcoin? Demand Persists Amid Fork Fears
In spite of speculation the bitcoin network could split into two separate blockchains, demand for the digital currency continued to remain strong during today's trading session.
The digital currency has mostly been trading north of $1,000 today, dipping below but rebounding shortly after, according to the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index (BPI). Further, volumes at two of the world's largest exchanges, Bitfinex and Kraken, were robust, with figures charting higher than the 30-day average.
Yet, given the possibility that the network could see significant turbulence in the event of technical schism, some market observers were left openly wondering why bitcoin prices were still high.
At the time of report, bitcoin was trading at $1,005.29, 20% below its all-time high, but up 142% year-over-year.
Full story at http://bit.ly/2nj9tVY
Prepared by @SydesJokes
Original post from: http://CrowdifyClub.com/SydesJokes