Forwarded from Official VIP Group
8 Ethereum Miners Wield ‘Overwhelming Influence’ Over the Network
The Ethereum (ETH) network is dominated by just over 50 powerful mining pools – with an inner cabal of eight maintaining the lion’s share of the blockchain, according to the findings of a new report.
The ConsenSys-produced “The Ethereum Proof of Work” report concluded that as recently as Q2 of FY2020, just two mining pools had a majority of “just over 51%” of the network’s hashrate – only the second time in history this has occurred on the network.
The two pools in question are Ethermine and Spark Pool.
Last time this occurred was back in Q2 of 2017, when Ethermine and F2Pool accounted for nearly 60% of the network’s total hashrate for the quarter.
However, although the report’s authors believe that the Q2 dominance coincided with “skyrocketing” ethereum (ETH) prices “perhaps suggesting that mining rigs were rushing to contribute,” they seem less certain of what lies behind the latest Ethermine and Spark Pool “centralization” trend.
Instead, the authors noted that the movement “has been the result of a gradual upward trend since Q1 2018,” and is a “gradual increase” that should be “a greater warning signal to the Ethereum community.”
They wrote,
“Gradual power concentration over the last two years (compared to sudden power concentration in Q2 2017) also means that a +51% dominance might be harder to mediate.”
The authors wrote that they identified “notable mining ‘whale’ outliers such as Ethermine, Spark Pool, F2Pool and Nanopool,” but added that “for the last two years, at most 56 mining pools have been responsible for over 90% of the block production and block rewards, and over 80% of the hashrate on Ethereum.”
And they went on to add:
“Since the launch of the network in 2015, through significant on- and off-chain events, we have seen power and influence concentrate in the hands not just of mining pools, but of a very select few mining pools. It can assuredly be said that the majority of activity on the Ethereum blockchain is maintained by at most 56 miners, and is overwhelmingly influenced by fewer than eight.”
However, as Ethereum aims to move from the Proof of Work consensus mechanism to the Proof of Stake (PoS), this might change.
"With reduced barriers to entry and the elimination of concerns about minimizing electricity costs, PoS networks are significantly more decentralized at the node level than PoW networks," ConenSys argued.
The Ethereum network is the closest challenger to the superpower Bitcoin (BTC) network, whose own mining pool stats also make interesting reading.
Although over 36% of miners are unknown in origin, F2Pool is the largest single, identifiable mining pool, with almost 9% of the hasrate, marginally ahead of AntPool’s almost 8%.
From there, it is a significant drop down to two pools on just over 5%: SlushPool and BTC Guild, with nobody else mustering more than just over 3.5%.
The Ethereum (ETH) network is dominated by just over 50 powerful mining pools – with an inner cabal of eight maintaining the lion’s share of the blockchain, according to the findings of a new report.
The ConsenSys-produced “The Ethereum Proof of Work” report concluded that as recently as Q2 of FY2020, just two mining pools had a majority of “just over 51%” of the network’s hashrate – only the second time in history this has occurred on the network.
The two pools in question are Ethermine and Spark Pool.
Last time this occurred was back in Q2 of 2017, when Ethermine and F2Pool accounted for nearly 60% of the network’s total hashrate for the quarter.
However, although the report’s authors believe that the Q2 dominance coincided with “skyrocketing” ethereum (ETH) prices “perhaps suggesting that mining rigs were rushing to contribute,” they seem less certain of what lies behind the latest Ethermine and Spark Pool “centralization” trend.
Instead, the authors noted that the movement “has been the result of a gradual upward trend since Q1 2018,” and is a “gradual increase” that should be “a greater warning signal to the Ethereum community.”
They wrote,
“Gradual power concentration over the last two years (compared to sudden power concentration in Q2 2017) also means that a +51% dominance might be harder to mediate.”
The authors wrote that they identified “notable mining ‘whale’ outliers such as Ethermine, Spark Pool, F2Pool and Nanopool,” but added that “for the last two years, at most 56 mining pools have been responsible for over 90% of the block production and block rewards, and over 80% of the hashrate on Ethereum.”
And they went on to add:
“Since the launch of the network in 2015, through significant on- and off-chain events, we have seen power and influence concentrate in the hands not just of mining pools, but of a very select few mining pools. It can assuredly be said that the majority of activity on the Ethereum blockchain is maintained by at most 56 miners, and is overwhelmingly influenced by fewer than eight.”
However, as Ethereum aims to move from the Proof of Work consensus mechanism to the Proof of Stake (PoS), this might change.
"With reduced barriers to entry and the elimination of concerns about minimizing electricity costs, PoS networks are significantly more decentralized at the node level than PoW networks," ConenSys argued.
The Ethereum network is the closest challenger to the superpower Bitcoin (BTC) network, whose own mining pool stats also make interesting reading.
Although over 36% of miners are unknown in origin, F2Pool is the largest single, identifiable mining pool, with almost 9% of the hasrate, marginally ahead of AntPool’s almost 8%.
From there, it is a significant drop down to two pools on just over 5%: SlushPool and BTC Guild, with nobody else mustering more than just over 3.5%.
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Major Bitcoin Exchange Coinbase Prepares For Stock Market Listing - Report
US-based major crypto exchange Coinbase could list its shares on a stock exchange this year or early next year, Reuters reported, citing "three people familiar with the matter."
The company has already been in talks to hire investment banks and law firms, the report said, adding that Coinbase is exploring going public via a direct listing. In this case, a company does not sell new shares as it does in an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Also, existing investors are not bound by lock-up restrictions on when they can divest their holdings following the market debut.
The listing would need the US Securities and Exchange Commission's blessing, Reuters said, adding that "it would represent a landmark victory for cryptocurrency advocates vying for mainstream endorsement."
According to Reuters, Coinbase and the SEC declined to comment.
As reported in May, Coinbase, together with another US-based crypto exchange, Gemini, became the first crypto clients of the major investment bank JPMorgan Chase. Back then, Kelvin Koh, Co-founder and Partner at Spartan Capital, opined that the bank made this move "to position its IB investment banking for Coinbase’s and Gemini’s IPO in the not too distant future."
In 2018, Coinbase was valued at USD 8bn following a mega funding round.
Now the company claims it has more than 35 million users worldwide.
Meanwhile, Changpeng Zhao, CEO of another major crypto exchange, Binance, congratulated Coinbase as it's "pushing/paving the way for other crypto businesses."
US-based major crypto exchange Coinbase could list its shares on a stock exchange this year or early next year, Reuters reported, citing "three people familiar with the matter."
The company has already been in talks to hire investment banks and law firms, the report said, adding that Coinbase is exploring going public via a direct listing. In this case, a company does not sell new shares as it does in an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Also, existing investors are not bound by lock-up restrictions on when they can divest their holdings following the market debut.
The listing would need the US Securities and Exchange Commission's blessing, Reuters said, adding that "it would represent a landmark victory for cryptocurrency advocates vying for mainstream endorsement."
According to Reuters, Coinbase and the SEC declined to comment.
As reported in May, Coinbase, together with another US-based crypto exchange, Gemini, became the first crypto clients of the major investment bank JPMorgan Chase. Back then, Kelvin Koh, Co-founder and Partner at Spartan Capital, opined that the bank made this move "to position its IB investment banking for Coinbase’s and Gemini’s IPO in the not too distant future."
In 2018, Coinbase was valued at USD 8bn following a mega funding round.
Now the company claims it has more than 35 million users worldwide.
Meanwhile, Changpeng Zhao, CEO of another major crypto exchange, Binance, congratulated Coinbase as it's "pushing/paving the way for other crypto businesses."
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
#COTI
This coin is doing great since our call was published. The top profit is 13%, the first target was hit. We closed 1/5 of the position and moved the stop loss into break even zone.
@CryptoWorldTina
This coin is doing great since our call was published. The top profit is 13%, the first target was hit. We closed 1/5 of the position and moved the stop loss into break even zone.
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
🎤 Significant Volume Change
🍀 Symbol: LINK/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 535%
🔹 Price: 0.0006914
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
🍀 Symbol: WAVES/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 941%
🔹 Price: 0.0001303
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
🍀 Symbol: DATA/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 1502%
🔹 Price: 0.00000567
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
🍀 Symbol: LINK/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 535%
🔹 Price: 0.0006914
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
🍀 Symbol: WAVES/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 941%
🔹 Price: 0.0001303
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
🍀 Symbol: DATA/BTC
🧨 Hourly Volume Increase: 1502%
🔹 Price: 0.00000567
🚀 Trend: UPTREND
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
#LSK
Day chart look nice. Bounced from trendline and support - could be breaking out soon.
@CryptoWorldTina
Day chart look nice. Bounced from trendline and support - could be breaking out soon.
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
#BNB
What a pump! Reached two targets and made an amazing 19% profit in ten days of holding. Those people who opened leveraged position could do up to 190% profit. My congratulations, we continue holding the position
@CryptoWorldTina
What a pump! Reached two targets and made an amazing 19% profit in ten days of holding. Those people who opened leveraged position could do up to 190% profit. My congratulations, we continue holding the position
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Bought some $XTZ here. Be preparing for a new cycle when its weekly bullish candle about to close. Stop-loss below 2600 level.
@CryptoWorldTina
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Coinbase CEO Defends Licensing of Analytics Platform to Gov’t Agencies
Coinbase CEO says analytics platform is important to comply with AML rules and that only privacy coins can offer true privacy.
Coinbase CEO says analytics platform is important to comply with AML rules and that only privacy coins can offer true privacy.
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
$XZC - interesting altcoin. There is scheduled halving on September 2020. The price has already pumped for a bit, but found a great support at 5630 sats. If the resistance of 6340 is broken, the growth promises to be astonishing.
As long as the price is stuck inside the horizontal channel, the strategy is buying at 5630 and selling at 6340 sats.
@CryptoWorldTina
As long as the price is stuck inside the horizontal channel, the strategy is buying at 5630 and selling at 6340 sats.
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Price Analysis 7/13: BTC, ETH, XRP, BCH, ADA, BSV, BNB, LTC, CRO, LINK
Equities markets are surging and many altcoins continue to push higher as Bitcoin price consolidates into a tight trading range.
Equities markets are surging and many altcoins continue to push higher as Bitcoin price consolidates into a tight trading range.
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
📈 And the last thing I want to mention in this trilogy is the mining difficulty. Recently it has reached a new ATH thanks to an increase of 10%.
What does it mean? Miners with not the best conditions will be forced to turn off their machines cause their break even point is now located above the $10000.
Not sure that the dump somewhere to $6000 - $7000 can be a good idea for now.
@CryptoWorldTina
What does it mean? Miners with not the best conditions will be forced to turn off their machines cause their break even point is now located above the $10000.
Not sure that the dump somewhere to $6000 - $7000 can be a good idea for now.
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Singapore & JPMorgan to Rollout Blockchain-powered Payments Platform
Singapore’s central bank says its prototype blockchain-powered cross-border payments network is now ready for commercial rollout.
As previously reported, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) began “industry testing" for its new solution with JPMorgan and the state-operated Singaporean holding company and investor Temasek late last year.
And it seems the pilots have proven successful. Per Reuters, MAS now says it is “ready” to commercialize the “multi-currency payments network.”
The media outlet quotes MAS and Temasek as stating,
“An international settlement network, modeled after the new payments network prototype, could enable faster and cheaper transactions than conventional cross-border payments channels.”
The organizations appear keen to speed up adoption for their new platform by making “some of the technical specifications for the prototype network” publically available.
The MAS has previously spoken about the potential wide-ranging uses for its new solution, which could be used for faster foreign currency exchange, “cross-border payments in multiple currencies” and foreign currency-denominated securities transactions.
The MAS hopes that other central banks will also turn to blockchain-powered solutions – and help avoid state-run cross-border finance-related matters falling behind the private sector. The MAS underlined the importance of central banks “making cross-border transactions faster, cheaper and safer."
The MAS stated, back in November,
"We hope this development will encourage other central banks to conduct similar trials. We will make the technical specifications publicly accessible to accelerate these efforts."
@CryptoWorldTina
Singapore’s central bank says its prototype blockchain-powered cross-border payments network is now ready for commercial rollout.
As previously reported, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) began “industry testing" for its new solution with JPMorgan and the state-operated Singaporean holding company and investor Temasek late last year.
And it seems the pilots have proven successful. Per Reuters, MAS now says it is “ready” to commercialize the “multi-currency payments network.”
The media outlet quotes MAS and Temasek as stating,
“An international settlement network, modeled after the new payments network prototype, could enable faster and cheaper transactions than conventional cross-border payments channels.”
The organizations appear keen to speed up adoption for their new platform by making “some of the technical specifications for the prototype network” publically available.
The MAS has previously spoken about the potential wide-ranging uses for its new solution, which could be used for faster foreign currency exchange, “cross-border payments in multiple currencies” and foreign currency-denominated securities transactions.
The MAS hopes that other central banks will also turn to blockchain-powered solutions – and help avoid state-run cross-border finance-related matters falling behind the private sector. The MAS underlined the importance of central banks “making cross-border transactions faster, cheaper and safer."
The MAS stated, back in November,
"We hope this development will encourage other central banks to conduct similar trials. We will make the technical specifications publicly accessible to accelerate these efforts."
@CryptoWorldTina
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
China to Test Digital Yuan on Food Delivery Platform With 435 Million Users
China’s central bank may test digital yuan on Meituan Dianping’s food delivery platform with 435 million users.
China’s central bank may test digital yuan on Meituan Dianping’s food delivery platform with 435 million users.
Forwarded from Official VIP Group
Village in El Salvador Turns its Back on Fiat in Favor of Bitcoin
Foundering fiats, a global pandemic and an anonymous donor’s generosity have led to the creation of a bitcoin (BTC)-powered economy in a village in El Salvador, the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America.
Per an article written by a Forbes contributor, a village named El Zonte – population 3,000 – has “developed a proposal for a bitcoin circular economy which factored in remittances, tourism, public service and small business” as a response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The outbreak has hit tourism, the village’s main economic driver, particularly hard, but the village has responded with a bitcoin-powered alternative to conventional financial solutions.
The project was kickstarted by an anonymous donor who found a “forgotten thumb drive loaded with bitcoin” purchased when BTC 1 could be snapped up for around USD 5-10. The donor has since “allocated a multi-year six-figure donation to El Zonte.”
The donor teamed up with Michael Peterson, a San Diego resident who “spends up to nine months of the year volunteering in El Zonte.”
Bitcoin funds were also “injected into another beach community three hours away” named Punta Mango.
The article author states that all-comers can now use BTC and the Lightning Network to “buy anything from tacos to hardware supplies,” and can even pay their utility bills using the token.
The project has also seen young people paid in BTC for cleaning trash, as well as bitcoin grants for promising students – and even bitcoin-funded school buses.
El Salvador all but abandoned its national currency, the colon, back in 2001, when it adopted the USD as an official national fiat.
@CryptoWorldTina
Foundering fiats, a global pandemic and an anonymous donor’s generosity have led to the creation of a bitcoin (BTC)-powered economy in a village in El Salvador, the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America.
Per an article written by a Forbes contributor, a village named El Zonte – population 3,000 – has “developed a proposal for a bitcoin circular economy which factored in remittances, tourism, public service and small business” as a response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The outbreak has hit tourism, the village’s main economic driver, particularly hard, but the village has responded with a bitcoin-powered alternative to conventional financial solutions.
The project was kickstarted by an anonymous donor who found a “forgotten thumb drive loaded with bitcoin” purchased when BTC 1 could be snapped up for around USD 5-10. The donor has since “allocated a multi-year six-figure donation to El Zonte.”
The donor teamed up with Michael Peterson, a San Diego resident who “spends up to nine months of the year volunteering in El Zonte.”
Bitcoin funds were also “injected into another beach community three hours away” named Punta Mango.
The article author states that all-comers can now use BTC and the Lightning Network to “buy anything from tacos to hardware supplies,” and can even pay their utility bills using the token.
The project has also seen young people paid in BTC for cleaning trash, as well as bitcoin grants for promising students – and even bitcoin-funded school buses.
El Salvador all but abandoned its national currency, the colon, back in 2001, when it adopted the USD as an official national fiat.
@CryptoWorldTina
