Although it has since grown into its own asset class, Bitcoin was initially conceived as an alternate currency to fiat. Merchant adoption and ease of access are generally seen as the two biggest hurdles on the path to true mainstream acceptance. Yet several recent announcements suggest that these obstacles could soon be surmounted, allowing Bitcoin…
Ever since their inception, cryptocurrencies and blockchain ledgers have been associated with decentralization. This feature remains one of the fundamental pillars of nearly every token, true to the original intent of Bitcoin’s creator. And while banks and other large enterprises have been relatively lukewarm towards the idea of integrating Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as part…
The recent rebound in Bitcoin prices coincided with a 180-degree policy shift by three of the world’s most influential central banks. Under pressure from the political arena, the Federal Reserve went from touting a hawkish position to quickly abandoning plans for additional rate hikes and also suggesting that we might enter a period of prolonged…
After months of being stuck in a bearish rut, Bitcoin has finally bounced back up this week, and in a major way. Following numerous dips and an apparent bottom at around the $3,500 level, the world’s primary cryptocurrency reversed course in February and has risen since then, breaching the $5,000 level on April 3. Many…
Emily Hunt is the Director of Byte Academy, an international FinTech education company. We talk with her about the promise that she saw early on in blockchain tech and why Byte Academy launched one of the first blockchain coding bootcamps. BitIRA: How did Byte Academy come about, and how has its mission evolved or…
Crypto Custody Is Booming Many large financial institutions are entering the crypto custody space as Fidelity rolled out its Fidelity Digital Asset Services this Q1. In addition, IBM announced that its cloud platform will be used to develop a crypto custody solution using a hardware security module (HSM). Ledger, a popular hardware wallet manufacturer, also…
Apple’s ceaseless expansion has been making news recently. Despite declining iPhone sales, the tech giant shows no sign of slowing down as it prepares to launch a suite of new products. To cryptocurrency enthusiasts, the most interesting among those is likely the newly-revealed Apple Card. Although the card will resemble the bank-issued variety, the focus…
Cryptocurrency security is an increasing concern in the industry. Some common ways that digital assets may be lost include when private keys are lost (or forgotten) and when digital currency exchanges are hacked. Custodians can help with the important task of safely storing cryptocurrency, along with other services. Some analysts suggest that crypto custody may…
Image by FLYERDIARIES.COM / CC BY 2.0 / Cropped When it comes to freshly-minted altcoins, Coinbase’s approval clearly goes a long way. Last Wednesday, the major U.S.-based crypto exchange announced that it would be adding Stellar Lumens (XLM) to its list of available tokens, Bitcoinist reports. Although Coinbase greenlighted XLM right after the announcement, the…
In this week’s interview, we talk to Adam Efrima, who is the Co-Founder of Blox, which specializes in crypto asset tracking and accounting software. Read the full interview below to find out why finance professionals shouldn’t “rely on outdated spreadsheets for labor-intensive manual [crypto] tracking”. BitIRA: What is your background, and how did you…
