Cryptocurrency will play a big role in our lives in the future

The growth of cryptocurrency and blockchain

The interest in cryptocurrency is often referred to as the ‘digital gold rush’ attracting thousands around the world to invest in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and others like Litecoin, Ethereum and Ripple.

The value of Bitcoin is linked to sentiment – whenever people rush to invest, the prices go up and when people decide to sell, the price goes down. This volatility has resulted in prices skyrocketing. In 2017, Bitcoin surged in valued from $830 to $19300 and is now fluctuating around $8,000. Other cryptocurrencies like Ripple and Ethereum are following a similar trend. This cryptocurrency rollercoaster has helped lucky investors to make fortunes.

Blockchain, the technology behind Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, was designed to facilitate, authorise and log the transfer of bitcoins.

How does blockchain technology work?
Blockchain is a shared database populated with entries that must be confirmed and encrypted. Traditional databases are owned by a central authority like banks and governments, but blockchain does not belong to anyone.

The impact that blockchain technology is having is similar to the impact of the internet in the 90s. As society becomes increasingly digital, financial services providers are looking to provide customers with more efficient, secure, and cost-effective services. Therefore, blockchain technology will become more applicable to our daily lives.

Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies depend on blockchain technology that makes transactions so secure that they are almost unhackable.


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Everything you need to know before you buy cryptocurrencies

You’ve been following cryptocurrencies for a while and seen Bitcoin rise in value from cents to its highest point of almost twenty thousand dollars. You have been thinking about joining the crypto rush but your knowledge is very limited. You want to invest an amount of $500 and are probably wondering which cryptocurrencies to invest in.

However, before you buy, you should do your research in order to find out everything there is to know about cryptocurrencies. To help you, we have compiled our own research. Read on to find out more.

What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a popular digital currency created and stored electronically. It is digital money that is not linked to any financial institution, banking or currency system which can be transferred between individuals without any financial intermediaries.

What makes Bitcoin valuable?
Bitcoin gets its value because many people want to trade and accept it. It follows the basic rules of supply and demand. As people hear about others making money from cryptocurrencies, they buy their own and this makes the price increase.

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Samsung joins cryptocurrency bandwagon

Samsung reveals plans to create mining chips as it officially enters cryptocurrency arena

Samsung have announced that their foundry business makes chips designed for cryptocurrency mining. The move was reported by Korean newspaper The Bell who revealed the chips will be application-specific integrated circuit (Asic). It marks the first official move by Samsung into cryptocurrencies.

Garrick Hileman, a cryptocurrency researcher from the University of Cambridge, said the move indicates that Samsung does not see Bitcoin as a bubble that is about to burst.

Bitcoin may be the biggest and most popular cryptocurrency today. However, it has been joined by many others over the years with new coins being launched regularly. Samsung’s chip manufacturing decision is clearly influenced by more than Bitcoin. The combined market value of cryptocurrencies has gone from less than $20bn to more than $540bn making it impossible to ignore.

The South Korean company’s semiconductor business is booming. It overtook Intel to become the world’s biggest chipmaker last year. Asic chips are designed to carry out a single task, which in this case is mining.

Demand for chips grows with cryptocurrency

The demand for these chips has grown in parallel to the value of cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin is created by solving mathematical problems, with these calculations also maintaining the integrity of the transactions.

As more Bitcoins are mined, these problems become more difficult. Miners who used to use normal integrated graphics cards switched to GPUs designed for gaming. However, they are now turning to specially built ASICs.

Mining is how transactions are verified and added to the blockchain public ledger. Mining is also how new cryptocurrencies are released.

The recent shortage of high-end GPU cards has increased their prices, making Asic technology more appealing.

Samsung believes part of its popularity is down to its memory chips, with high demand from the computer server and mobile device storage markets in particular.

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Bitcoin value can reach $50k this year

Bitcoin value has dropped by almost 45% after hitting a high of almost $20k this month but some experts feel the crypto currency is set to climb again in 2018

Investors who joined late will feel the latest headline about Bitcoin value is a bad joke. Most people who invested in Bitcoin recently are sitting on negative equity or have cashed out losing.

Ethereum and Ripple backers have similar stories to share with their Bitcoin owning counterparts. But for portfolio manager Jeet Sign cryptocurrency volatility isn’t surprising and he envisages Bitcoin’s value hitting $50k this year.

Singh gave his views about cryptocurrencies to RT while attending the Davos Economic Forum in Switzerland. He’s been operating in the cryptocurrency space for the last six years. He’s seen similar volatility time and again. And he’s also experienced fluctuations by more than 80% and above on a regular basis.

Singh drew comparisons between cryptocurrency and the early performance of Microsoft and Apple stock.

“If you look at Microsoft or Apple when they went public their stocks were very volatile because the market wasn’t mature,” he said.

The lack of vendors accepting cryptocurrencies as payment results in cryptocurrencies being used more like as a store of value. However, in countries with high inflation (Indonesia and Thailand) cryptocurrencies are more readily accepted.

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How far will cryptocurrencies go for security?

Zcash go nuclear to generate random numbers to ensure security of digital coin in latest step by cryptocurrencies gain acceptance
The security of cryptocurrencies is an issue for some people. The founders of digital coins know that stories about exchanges being hacked damage their image.

For cryptocurrencies to be commonly used by the general public they must gain trust. The same trust that people have in the bank coins and notes they use to buy goods and services.

The developers of privacy-obsessed digital coin zcash have gone to unique (and extreme) lengths to ensure their digital currency’s security.

Zcash used nuclear waste from the infamous Chernobyl power station to create low-level radiation. This was converted into random numbers to generate zcash’s public cryptography parameters.

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A beginner's guide to trading cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrency trading
Cryptocurrency trading is becoming more and more popular and many investors are jumping on the cryptocurrency bandwagon. However, it is essential to understand that trading cryptocurrencies is not necessarily a ‘Get rich quick scheme’. Before you start investing in cryptocurrencies, it is important to do your research. Read our guide and find out all you need to know about trading cryptocurrencies.

What are cryptocurrencies?
Cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency that uses cryptographic techniques to secure transactions and control the creation of additional units of the currency. Cryptocurrencies are a digital asset and exist only in an electronic form.

What are the most common cryptocurrencies?
The most common cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, Dash, Monero, and Zcash.

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How to buy cryptocurrencies through an exchange: a step-by-step guide

If you are interested in buying cryptocurrencies, there are many crypto exchanges operating all around the world that allow you to buy cryptocurrencies. It is a good idea to register and verify your accounts with multiple exchanges. The reason for this is that the process can take time if there is an increase in registrations every time there is an increase in the price of Bitcoin. Different crypto exchanges have different features, fees, policies and coin listings. Leading brokers usually allow clients to use fiat currencies to buy cryptocurrency. These are traditional currencies such as Euros, Dollars and the British Pound.

A guide for buying cryptocurrencies
Once you have a basic understanding of cryptocurrencies, you can follow the steps below in order to start building your own portfolio.

1) Open an account with a cryptocurrency exchange
The first thing you need is to know where to buy cryptocurrencies. If you want to buy Bitcoin, there is a wide range of exchanges to choose from. Make sure your desired cryptocurrency is listed on the exchange. Always research your chosen cryptocurrency exchange and read reviews.

2) Choose the cryptocurrencies you want to invest in long-term
You can invest in multiple cryptocurrencies. However, it is advisable to start with one currency first. There is a wide range of cryptocurrencies to choose from. There are thousands of cryptocurrencies available on exchanges around the world.

If you want to invest, you should enter initially with small amounts to familiarize yourself with the basic functions of the exchange.

It is also important to get used to the market volatility so that you don’t panic sell. During a rapid fall in prices, price swings can be huge in a very short period of time.

3) What price is your chosen cryptocurrency trading at?
An important thing you need to take into account is the price of your preferred cryptocurrency. For instance, you need to determine if it is cheap, at a high price or a low price. You should never make a purchase based solely on the price, but you should consider other factors as well. These factors are valuation, the available supply of currency, the technology it uses and the targeted market.

In order to maximize your gains, it is essential that you apply the ‘buy low, sell high’ principle. This is a successful cryptocurrency trading strategy.

4) Store your cryptocurrencies in a wallet
A cryptocurrency wallet acts like a bank account for your cryptocurrencies. Bitcoins are stored in a bitcoin wallet and Ethereum coins are stored in an Ethereum wallet. The same applies to all other cryptocurrencies which are stored in the appropriate wallet.

Basically, a wallet is software which communicates with the network. You can tell the blockchain when you want to send or receive transactions.

Cryptocurrencies can be stored both online and offline in a paper wallet or a hardware wallet, and can also be stored on the exchanges where you bought them.

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