Algorand is a high-performance next-generation blockchain whose goal is to create a transparent system in which everyone can achieve success through decentralized projects and applications. Many have called this project “Blockchain 3.0”, as it solves Bitcoin’s well-known scalability problems whilst maintaining security and decentralization. Algorand has the native token $ALGO, which will be used as a transfer of value on the network. In terms of technology backbone, Algorand uses a Pure Proof of Stake (PPOs) and pseudorandom functions to prevent malicious attackers from colluding on the network.
Algorand stands out from other high-performance blockchains by the credibility of its founder, MIT professor Silvio Micali. Professor Micali has is the recipient of the prestigious Turing Award for computer science and many of his inventions have directly impacted the cryptocurrency scene.
Founder of Algorand: Silvio Micali
Silvio Micali is the recipient of the Turning award (the highest award from computer scientists) with innovations built around his research in cryptography, zero-knowledge, pseudorandom generation, secure protocols and mechanism design. On top of this, Dr. Micali is the co-inventor of probabilistic encryption, Zero-Knowledge Proofs, Verifiable Random Functions and many of the protocols that are the foundations of modern cryptography
Algorand Foundation
The Algorand Foundation makes use of the Algorand protocol and software developed by Silvio Micali and his team. Their aim is to create an ecosystem that everyone can use to build a borderless digital economy on Algorand.
Specifically, the Algorand foundation holds one-quarter of the total supply of ALGO (i.e. 500 million ALGO), and manages the Algorand blockchain.
Algorand attempts to overcome the Blockchain Trilemma
Vitalik Buterin proposed that a Blockchain can only have a maximum of 2 of these properties
Currently, transactions on the blockchain are very slow because of the “Blockchain Trilemma”. This is a term coined by Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum.
According to this idea, a blockchain has three major features: decentralization, scalability and security.
However, the Blockchain Trilemma proposes that it is very hard for a project to have all three features to a satisfactory condition. A network that is decentralized and has a tough security would not be scalable. Similarly, a blockchain that is decentralized and scalable will have little security etc.
Buterin believes at a fundamental level, a blockchain network can only achieve two of the three features at any time. The Blockchain Trilemma could be the source of scalability issues on most cryptocurrency blockchains. Most cryptocurrency projects cannot handle high numbers of transactions while ensuring network decentralization and security.
What is Algorand- Is it really a Next Generation blockchain?
To attempt to overcome this, Algorand opted for a Pure Proof of Stake (Pure PoS) consensus mechanism. Interestingly, the mechanism employs a different approach compared to other alterations of the PoS mechanism.
For instance, instead of requiring 100% consensus from all the validating parties, Algorand is comfortable with a two-thirds majority consensus. This means that in order to attack Algorand, you will need to purchase more than one third of the total supply of Algorand. This will anyway be uneconomical and holding such a large volume of the supply means that you have a large stake and would not want to see it fail.
Algorand’s secret sauce: Cryptographic sortition
Since today’s blockchain platforms require speed as an integral component, Algorand has a fast transaction time by enabling fast transaction finality through cryptographic sortition.
“All transactions are final in Algorand. Once a block appears, users can rely on the transactions it contains immediately, as they can be confident that the block will forever be part of the chain. Even if the Internet is split into multiple pools of users, only one safe and consistent Algorand chain will exist. [Additionally], Neither a few delegated users nor a fixed committee is responsible for proposing blocks in Algorand. Instead, all users are randomly, secretly, and continuously selected to participate in the Algorand consensus protocol.”
The process of confirming blocks on the platform involves two stages; the proposal and voting stage. During the proposal stage, a token is randomly selected, and its owner suggests the next block to be confirmed. At the voting stage, 1000 random token owners are selected to form a committee that approves the proposed block.
How to Stake Algorand?
Anyone can participate in the Algorand platform as a block proposer by merely switching their address from offline to online on the Algoexplorer. Luckily, this option does not depend on the amount of Algo tokens staked. Mining is not required, all you need is to stake its ALGO token and have the nodes online.
The Algorand platform supports two types of nodes; relay and participation. An important point to note is that the relay nodes don’t participate in voting or decision making. Instead, they facilitate communication between participation nodes. Relay nodes are also hardware intensive compared to participant nodes.
Although Algorand is designed around being fully decentralized, the Algorand Foundation holds a lot of ALGO tokens and hence control. However, the platform is anticipated to be more decentralized in coming months as the foundation continues to liquidate its position.
You can also stake Algorand using your Ledger cryptocurrency hardware wallet. Check out our Ledger Nano X review.
Algorand 2.0 Protocol Upgrade
On 22nd of November 2019, the Algorand foundation announced the next huge leap for Algorand – dubbed Algorand 2.0. This release brings about 3 major features: Native token issuance (Algorand Standard Asset), Atomic swaps for interoperability and smart contract support via the TEAL scripting language.
Algorand Standard Asset (ASA) brings about easy token creation and issuance directly on the Algorand main chain. ASA supports a wide range of tokens, such as fungible tokens (similar to Ethereum’s ERC-20, and also non-fungible tokens (used for digital collectibles). Algorand’s implementation of tokenised assets is directly on the protocol layer (“Layer 1”), allowing for direct access to assets with maximum security. This is a significant advantage over Layer 2 Scaling which requires payment channels in order to operate.
“Algorand is delivering that innovation with this new set of features that brings an impressive amount of opportunity to decentralized finance.
Shay Finkelstein (CTO of Securitize)
Algorand listed on Coinbase, price surges over 30% in one day
In a complete surprise to cryptocurrency enthusiasts, Algorand was listed on Coinbase on 17th July 2020. People found out only when they saw the announcement on Coinbase’s blog, whereby the Exchange said that their customers can now buy, sell, convert, send, receive or store $ALGO in all Coinbase supported regions. Be sure to check out our Coinbase exchange review and some hacks and tips to avoid Coinbase fees.
People were completely caught off guard by this announcement since in the few weeks prior Coinbase had talked about 18 other cryptocurrencies they might consider listing. Yet Coinbase was not one of those 18 cryptocurrencies.
This listing created a whole flurry of activity for $ALGO, especially in terms of its prices. Since the listing, prices for $ALGO shot up 30% since the announcement and was even trading at $0.367 at its peak.
Algorand becomes the official blockchain platform of FIFA
FIFA, the world football governing body has announced its partnership with Algorand. This sponsorship and technical partnership will see Algorand becoming the official blockchain platform for FIFA, providing blockchain-supported wallet solutions as well as helping FIFA develop its digital assets strategy.
Algorand will also be a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Regional supporter in North America and Europe, and a FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 official sponsor.
The future of ALGO token: Algorand’s 10-year plan
When the Algorand blockchain was first launched, 10 billion ALGO was minted, which represents the fixed and unchangeable maximum supply of AGLO.
Since then, only 16% of this total supply has been injected into circulation via an auction in June 2019 and subsequent community rewards. Auction proceeds have been used to finance various community, academic, and industry projects which ultimately support the development of economic infrastructure and business opportunities on the Algorand blockchain.
After consideration by the Algoradnd team and based on their analysis and feedback received, the Algorand team have decided that the remainder of the initial 10 billion ALGO tokens would be gradually distributed over a period of 10 years from 2020, i.e. by 2030, the entire supply of ALGO would be distributed. This is much longer than the initial 4 years from 2020 as originally planned by the Algorand team.
In order to implement Founder Silvio Micali’s vision of innovative community governance, the Algorand team are moving towards a new reward system that rewards existing and future participants who are committed to participating in the governance of the Algorand ecosystem and prove their loyalty by locking up their ALGO for the long term. Resources i.e. 3 billion ALGO will be correspondingly distributed to reward long-term holders, and economic and business activity on the Algorand blockchain. The aim of this is to achieve a rate of growth of chain loyalty and economic adoption which would be more than enough to compensate for the gradual release of tokens over 10 years.
Furthermore, the funds initially allocated for sales will now be diverted to other areas such as community incentives, governance participation and ecosystem support.
FAQ
How do you mine Algorand?
It is currently not possible to mine Algorand using computer hardware. Algorand uses a proof-of-stake consensus, so it is possible to earn ALGO rewards by simply staking Algorand in the wallet.
Where is Algorand located?
Algorand is a decentralized project founded by MIT professor Silvio Micali. The foundation responsible for maintaining Algorand, the Algorand Foundation is incorporated in Singapore and is located at 1 George Street, #10-01, One George Street, Singapore (049145).
How do I buy an Algorand?
You can Buy Algorand on popular exchanges such as Binance or Coinbase with the ticker $ALGO
How do you stake algorand
Algorand can be directly staked via the mobile wallet application which can be installed on both Android and iOS devices. To stake the coin, deposit ALGO directly into the wallet. The wallet will automatically accumulate ALGO over time.
What is Algorand’s community governance?
Algorand started its community governance program on 1st October 2020, it gives ALGO holders the power to make decisions regarding the direction and future of Algorand. People can participate in governance i.e. become Governors by committing their ALGO for the duration of the 90 day voting period and then voting on the proposals. After the 90-day voting period, participants can claim their governance rewards.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Radix DLT is a layer 1 distributed system to power the needs of the decentralised finance (DeFi) ecosystem. As DeFi continued to gain traction, the top blockchain networks supporting the market were already overstretched. As it turns out, scalability appears to be a hard nut to crack and hence projects like Radix DLT are formed.
The motivation behind the Radix protocol’s creation is to save the $71 billion lost every year caused by unnecessary friction in the conventional financial system and allow those at the lower and higher levels of finance to make ground by powering a strong DeFi ecosystem.
Check out our video which explains the scaling problems currently faced by Ethereum, and how Radix attempts to solve it.
Taking DeFi to the NEXT LEVEL ? – Radix DLT Protocol overview
Background
The Radix team believes that using distributed ledger technology (DLT) to build a permissionless network will ease the development and accessibility of innovative financial applications. With these applications, we could finally bring down the guarded walls of traditional financial markets.
The project was founded by Dan Hughes, who also happens to be its CTO. Hughes’s former work includes the design of T-Mobile’s first mobile internet platform.
Other team members include the organization’s CEO, Piers Ridyard, as well as CPO, Albert Castellana. The project is being supported by the Radix Foundation.
What is Radix DLT?
The team behind Radix DLT defines the project as the “first layer 1 protocol specifically built to serve DeFi.” The protocol seeks to remove the inefficiencies found in open finance (OpFi) both in the current and future settings. Hughes and his team want to achieve this through:
Re-engineering the consensus mechanism used in popular blockchain systems.
Employing decentralized virtual machines.
Activating on-ledger code.
Building DeFi-bound components and applications.
Incentivizing developers who drive the growth of the new-found financial breakthrough.
Having its developers at the core of driving growth for innovative financial products, Radix provides its support by building highly-secure smart contracts, fast and interoperable OpFi decentralized applications (dApps), engaging and rewarding a distributed developer community, and guarding DeFi composability when scaling dApps on public blockchains.
Radix network
The network is made up of Cerberus (a consensus mechanism), Radix Engine (a development environment), Radix Component Catalog, and developer royalties.
Cerberus
At the heart of the protocol is Cerberus, a re-engineered consensus mechanism which uses a sharded Byzantine fault-tolerant (BFT) solution. This approach enables the system to be parallelized across multiple nodes without losing message complexity and responsiveness.
The sharding concepts allows unlimited network splits or shards. Each shard can represent anything on the platform. By allowing unlimited shards, Cerberus shifts focus from global ordering to partial ordering.
With global ordering, transactions are stored in a predefined chronological order. Partial ordering, at a very basic level, is the opposite of agreed chronological ordering. However, partial ordering has to differentiate between related and unrelated events or transactions when recording them on the blockchain.
Using a “braiding” mechanism, Cerberus uses a new BFT-style system to sign interactions between nodes handling different shards before committing transactions.
Radix Engine
This is Radix’s specialized application layer that powers the interaction between a smart contract’s code with the actual blockchain. The layer powers the project’s virtual machine (VM), which in turn, powers the partial ordering system.
Furthermore, the Radix VM handles concurrency to drive DeFi applications further.
Radix Component Catalog
In other blockchain systems, a developer’s work becomes an active smart contract after being pushed to the system’s users. For Radix, the component catalog handles apps before being registered as “active” on the platform.
In other words, the catalog contains templates ready for use to create additional active components. The new template-based products are called instantiated components.
Developer Royalties
The Radix system uses developer royalties to encourage developers to contribute. However, the project takes a different approach by employing distributed self-incentives such as those found in proof-of-work systems called mining rewards.
Radix Token ($XRD)
The platform has a native token, XRD, which is used to pay for transaction fees. Note that these fees are paid to node runners.
A transaction fee is charged for token creation, messaging, and anything else that requires a change of the ledger state. The fee is burnt upon validation of the operation.
Furthermore, the platform’s tokens have a controlled unlocking mechanism that spans 365 days. With each unlocking, the Radix Foundation’s amount of XRD reduces while those in the public domain increases.
E-Radix (eXRD) Token Sale and tokenomics
Radix Token Sale began on 8th October 2020 and a total of 642mil E-RADIX tokens were available to purchase at $0.039 per token.
There will be an Initial Supply of 4.41 billion E-RADIX as both locked and unlocked tokens. The following chart shows the proposed distribution of the Initial Supply tokens.
Radix proposed distribution
The unlocking mechanism for E-RADIX tokens will start on 17th November 2020. Of the Initial Supply of 4.41 billion E-RADIX tokens, 4.2 Billion tokens will be distributed and of which 99% will be locked and 1% unlocked.
These locked tokens are subject to a price-based unlocking schedule which will allow holders to withdraw the tokens at certain price milestones as follows:
This E-RADIX token is an ERC-20 token. When the RADIX ledger is instantiated, this E-RADIX token will be exchangeable 1:1 for RADIX (XRD) tokens. As mentioned in their key milestones article, the Team are on track for the Radix main net to go live in Q2 2021.
On the mainnet, Radix will create a further 5.19 billion RADIX tokens which will also follow the same unlocking schedule as the E-RADIX tokens mentioned above.
How to withdraw your unlocked E-RADIX (eXRD) and RADIX (XRD) tokens
As mentioned in the previous section, E-RADIX and RADIX tokens are subject to a price-based unlocking schedule. However, to claim these tokens you will need to withdraw them from the unlocking smart contract.
This involves visiting their Radix tokens unlocking website and connecting the wallet that you used to purchase the E-RADIX tokens. If that wallet address has an allocation of EXRD in the unlocking smart contract, you will see details of your total allocation together with the amount which is unlocked and can be withdrawn. Then all that is required is to click the “withdraw” button and follow the steps to withdraw the eXRD.
Make sure to check back when an unlocking event occurs because it will mean you can withdraw more tokens!
For a detailed walkthrough on how to claim your unlocked tokens, click here.
Staking Radix Token
With OpFi, staking, yield farming, and liquidity mining are common occurrences. Radix powers this DeFi subset by allowing users to lock their XRD to earn network emissions and be involved in decision making.
Network emissions are periodically generated tokens that are spread across active staking nodes while considering the amount of staked tokens. Emissions make up for 2.5% of the yearly inflation rate.
There are two approaches to locking tokens:
A user can lock XRD and become a node runner on the network; or
a user can lock Radix tokens and delegate his stake to another node runner, also called a staking node. A staking node has the power to validate transactions.
Radix’s consensus mechanism limits the stake weight per node to 33% to prevent node runners from having absolute power over the transaction validation process.
Network Subsidy
The network subsidy is an additional amount of tokens distributed to transaction validators. The tokens are unlocked by the Radix Foundation every 24 hours and are expected to run for 10 years. However, to earn the subsidy tokens, a staking node has to consistently meet specific factors on responsiveness, bandwidth, and computing power.
Other Radix token categories are the public token grant to support community contributors, the Radix team token grant to support the team, and the stable token reserve that supports stable coins on the network.
Conclusion
The projected growth of the DeFi market requires creating new distributed systems that, if possible, have unlimited scalability. Radix is one such project. With a key focus in leading the migration from centralized finance (CeFi), the project provides hope to the future of OpFi.
From a re-designed consensus mechanism to decentralized self-incentives for developers, the project is keen on ensuring that DeFi overshadows CeFi.
The Radix token supply approach is another key component of the network that shifts from the traditional approach of major blockchain-based systems that power OpFi protocols.
Decentralised Finance (DeFi) series: tutorials, guides and more
With content for both beginners and more advanced users, check out our YouTube DeFi series containing tutorials on the ESSENTIAL TOOLS you need for trading in the DeFi space e.g. MetaMask and Uniswap. As well as a deep dive into popular DeFi topics such as decentralized exchanges, borrowing-lending platforms and NFT marketplaces
More videos and articles are coming soon as part of our DeFi series, so be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our Youtube channel so you can be notified as soon as they come out!
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Polkastarter ($POLS) is a cross-chain decentralised protocol, powered by Polkadot, that allows start-ups to raise funds in a decentralised and interoperable environment.
In 2020, the decentralized finance ecosystem (DeFi) recorded encouraging figures in the number of DeFi protocols, as well as the number of funds locked in these platforms. On the number of protocols, the platforms addressed different spheres such as lending, trading, and insurance.
Unfortunately, not many protocols touched on revolutionizing conventional fundraising models such as initial coin offerings (ICOs), initial decentralized exchange offerings (IDOs), and initial exchange offerings (IEOs).
However, projects like Polkastarter are on their way to bring a sigh of relief to startups looking for innovative ways to attract funding. Before we dig deeper into the project and what it brings to startups, let’s take a look at the group behind it.
Background
Daniel Stockhaus and Tiago Martins are the top brains behind Polkastarter. As project co-founders, Stockhaus is the CEO, while Martins is the CTO. Notably, the two have vast experience spanning from tech entrepreneurship to software development.
Other members of the team include Danilo Carlucci and Matthew Dibb. Carlucci is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor, while Dibb is a strategic advisor.
What is Polkastarter?
Polkastarter is a decentralized platform enabling startups and other projects to attract capital through token auctions and inter-blockchain token pools. As you would have guessed from its name, the project is built on the Polkadot network that sits on Ethereum.
Polkadaot Network
Stockhaus settled on Polkadot because of the network’s major strengths in scalability, speed, interoperability, upgradeability, and governance. To elaborate, Polkadot surpasses Ethereum and Bitcoin transaction speed thanks to its use of parachains, which power horizontal scalability, and Grandpa consensus mechanism, which drives vertical scalability.
Polkastarter taps into these strengths to enable governance through community voting and staking. The network also relies on Polkadot to drive liquidity mining.
Using these features, the project scores better than existing decentralized exchanges and swap protocols such as Uniswap, Bounce, and Primablock. For instance, these networks don’t support cross-chain pools, while Bounce and Primablock support a limited array of virtual assets.
Polkastarter’s Use Cases and Major Features
Polkastarter expands outside the fundraising space to crowdfunding and allows participants to benefit from discounted sales. Additionally, the protocol can increase privacy to over the counter deals by enabling password protection during such trades.
The network differs from other similar projects since it allows:
Inter-chain swaps
Fixed and dynamic swaps
Community voting on critical governance issues
Decentralized and permissionless token listing
Comprehensive Know your customer (KYC) procedures
Users to spot scams from a distance through a built-in anti-scam feature
Notably, combining these features brings low-cost transactions, fast cross-chain token swaps, the ability to move virtual assets across decentralized platforms, and a user-friendly design.
How Polkastarter Handles Fixed Swaps?
Fixed swaps pools are significant components of the network. Unlike with automated market making, fixed swap counteracts price volatility. Also, fixed swaps provide a greater level of transparency on the amount raised during fundraising.
Polkastarter employs fixed swap pools instead of AMM swap pools. This approach solves, among other challenges, the risk of private investors artificially inflating the price and dumping their holdings and the cost of token offerings.
Additionally, fixed swap pools ensure a fair distribution of tokens while eliminating the risk of rug pulls in a liquidity pool.
Note that instead of using a bonding curve approach to determine token prices in a pool, Polkastarter sets a fixed price when swapping tokens. As such, it’s possible to add other parameters, such as how much a single user can contribute to a project. Additionally, it’s easier to set more parameters to ensure transparency and fairness on new token holders.
Immediate advantages of using fixed swaps are:
The amount raised and tokens sold can easily be calculated.
It attracts investors distributed both demographically and geographically.
Token holders are given a chance to acquire tokens at a standard price.
Polkastarter’s Native Token ($POLS)
Tokenomics
The network has a native token called $POLS, which it uses for various sections on the platform. POLS’s total supply is 100 million tokens. Exactly 42.5 percent of the tokens were sold during the seed sale, private sale, and Uniswap listing. Other tokens went to the marketing fund, team, advisors, and foundational reserve.
Funds raised during the sales periods went into legal/accountancy (5%), ecosystem growth (20%), liquidity/exchanges (30%), and product development (45%).
POLS is used on the Polkastarter ecosystem as a utility token. Among its major uses are governance and fees.
As a governance token, its holders can vote on crucial matters such as protocol features and tokens to be displayed on the network. On fees, transactions on the platform are paid using the native currency.
Other Utilities
Staking – The token can be staked to earn staking rewards on various fronts. For example, it can be staked to receive pool rewards or for pool access. Note that the option to stake POL for pool access is solely upon pool creators. However, the choice is ideal for giving top liquidity providers private access to high-end pools.
Liquidity mining – Additionally, Polkastarter’s native currency can be staked to participate in liquidity mining. Rewards are distributed to entities providing liquidity on the secondary markets, among other subsections.
Two Key Partnerships With Polkastarter
Although Stockhaus and the team have inked many partnerships with reputable decentralized platforms, two stand out.
Polkastarter and Covalent
Covalent is a platform capable of fetching intricate details about a crypto wallet. As such, it allows Polkastarter and its users to check the trustworthiness of a token contract. The users have access to the token contract age, verification, transaction volume, among other details.
Polkastarter and DIA
Decentralized Information Asset (DIA) is a platform that provides distributed oracles on Polkastarter. Thanks to the exceptional qualities of its oracles, DIA helps Polkastarter provide warnings against massive price slippage.
Other partnerships involve Moonbean, Shyft, and Orion Protocol.
Conclusion
By using fixed price swaps instead of AMM, Polkastarter sets the bar higher in decentralized funding. It adds the transparency and fairness aspect that has been missing on similar platforms. The projectl’s partnerships with Covalent and DIA gives its users peace of mind knowing that they can pick a suspicious project from the crowd and avoid price slippage.
Furthermore, Polkastarter’s native token opens the door to distributed governance while giving its holders an extra way to earn rewards through staking.
Decentralised Finance (DeFi) series: tutorials, guides and more
With content for both beginners and more advanced users, check out our YouTube DeFi series containing tutorials on the ESSENTIAL TOOLS you need for trading in the DeFi space e.g. MetaMask and Uniswap. As well as a deep dive into popular DeFi topics such as decentralized exchanges, borrowing-lending platforms and NFT marketplaces
More videos and articles are coming soon as part of our DeFi series, so be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our Youtube channel so you can be notified as soon as they come out!
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Shadows Network ($DOWS) aims to be a hub for people to issue, trade, lend and borrow synthetic assets. The protocol is built using the Substrate blockchain network and is compatible with the Polkadot ecosystem.
Background
Iror Chen and Bruce Lin lead the Shadows project. Apart from being the co-founders, they double as the CEO and CTO, respectively. The two have extensive experience in diverse fields. To elaborate, Chen previously worked for Amphenol Group while Lin worked for Baidu.
Other Shadows team members include Ted Shao (co-founder and COO), Claire Cai (co-founder and CMO), Sue Xia (overseas CMO), and Liang Li (risk control).
Shadows’ list of partners includes Consensys Lab, NGC Capital, Polka Fund, Blocksync, DuckDAO, OneMax Capital, Oasis Capital, among others.
What is Shadows?
Shadows is a distributed platform focusing on the issuance, borrowing, lending, and trading of synthetic assets. The project leverages the Substrate framework that powers other popular DeFi networks like Polkadot.
Note that synthetics are derivatives or clones of real-world assets. Derived assets can be of anything from cryptocurrencies, stocks, indices, fiat, and commodities. Also called synths, they enable holders to share in the profits and losses of an asset without necessarily having such asset in their portfolio. Doing so opens the DeFi scene to a global audience who would be locked out of the space.
The platform sits on the Polkadot network as a parallel thread. As such, it has inter-chain compatibility with other platforms leveraging EOS and Ethereum to focus on synthetic assets. Cross-chain support opens the network to more blockchain-based assets. For instance, users can use Ethereum (ETH) or Bitcoin (BTC) to create synths.
Shadows integrates an off-chain worker to help capture the system outside the blockchain. Note that the platform uses the worker to replicate trusted oracles. Furthermore, the oracles receive data from external decentralized platforms to trigger activities inside the blockchain. Unfortunately, traditional oracles suffer from security, efficiency, and scalability.
The worker employs Substrate allowing it to perform non-deterministic tasks such as encryption and web requests, and other long-running tasks. The Shadows network achieves the above features through a layered system, focusing on different aspects of synthesizing the assets.
Critical Areas on the Synthetic Network
Synthetic Asset Issuance Agreement
The platform secures the synths using its native asset, DOWS (more on this later). Users deposit the token into a smart contract for them to gain a right to create synthetics on the network.
Consequently, the created tokens are DOWS backed. To reclaim back their tokens, users have to burn their synths. Note that the platform needs a collateralization ratio of 800 percent.
Synthetic Asset Transaction Agreement
The agreements support the trading of synths. These agreements minimize slippage and insufficient liquidity. Also, they ease and provide efficient trading.
Debt Collateral Lending Agreement
The platform employs lending pools that hold users’ debt into the pool to facilitate lending activities. How this works is simple. To elaborate, the borrowers access the pool to place a synth debt.
Next, they pay interest and receive the loan in synthesized USD (xUSD). The need for xUSD funding is to provide flexible financing. This funding option offers a balance between demand, supply interest, and rates.
What Drives the Shadows Network?
Four significant aspects power the platform.
Rewards system – Users are rewarded when they use the native token to create synths. However, the rewards only apply to those who have reached the needed collateralization ratio.
Governance – In the DeFi scene, governance is everything. On Shadows, the native token gives holders a voice when making governance decisions. Some areas falling under community governance include upgrading.
Staking – The base asset does more than just governance, the token can be staked as collateral and at the same time benefit from staking rewards.
Trading bonus – This goes to DOWS holders and is generated by those trading on the platform.
How Does Shadows Work?
First, note that the platform is compatible and connects to Polkadot.
How Shadows Network works
It works as an off-chain enterprise that connects to various parts such as inflationary supply, fee pool, and external services. It connects to Polkadot as a single service.
The Protocol Offers Three Types of Incentives.
The first type of incentive is where a user is charged 0.3% as the trading fee. How is this an incentive? It’s because they can send it to a fee pool and receive a mortgage in terms of DOWS.
However, the trading fee incentive’s applicability varies between users because it’s dependent on the amount of debt that the user has and the amount in the debt pool.
The second type of incentive goes to mortgagors who benefit from holding the base asset on a weekly basis. Notably, the amount of bonus received depends on how much debt the mortgagor has in the debt pool.
Third comes rewards for lenders in the lending pool. These incentives have a weekly timeline.
The Shadow Token ($DOWS) tokenomics
DOWS is the backbone of the Shadows network. Apart from governance, casting synths, lending, and distributing rewards, the token can also be used to power the token destruction mechanism.
The destruction part utilizes the transactions and debit pool fee. And, it follows a fixed ratio of 30% per week. Note that the token’s destruction is automatically driven by a smart contract. Observe that this makes the native token a deflationary base asset.
Shadows did a double Initial DEX Offering (IDO) on Ignition and DuckSTARTER. The allocation of tokens were as follows:
Ecological Incentives: 63% — 63,000,000
Early Investors: 20% — 20,000,000
Foundation: 10% — 10,000,000
Advisors: 5% —5,000,000
Liquidity Provision: 2% — 2,000,000
The vesting periods for various allocations are as follows:
Shadows ($DOWS) vesting period
Is Shadows Network safe?
Recently the Shadows project faced some accusations because they are allegedly connected to another project that recently suffered an alleged “hack” of their smart contract.
On 6th March 2021, the Team Tweeted to address the concerns, saying that their smart contract codes were audited twice by Certik. And on both occasions the contracts were found to be secure and met the highest security standards.
The Team in their Tweet on 7th March 2021 also said that Shadows Network uses a proxy contract to upgrade its smart contract and deliver key functions such as issuing, trading, borrowing or lending synthetic assets on the network. Most notably, the proxy contract will deploy incentive DApps for users such as LP staking and DAO governance etc. From these Apps, 63 million $DOWS (representing 63% of the total supply of $DOWS) will be minted as a reward to the community. Once all 63 million $DOWS have been released, the Team will permanently remove the mint function from the Shadows smart contract. This has the effect of stopping the Team from producing any more $DOWS and most importantly, to potentially prevent the price of $DOWS from being diluted.
Further, this proxy contract and ERC20 contract are kept secure through multisig and is on Openzeppelin- an open-sourced protocol. The Team also notes that other popular names in the cryptocurrency scene i.e. Compound and Coinbase also use Openzeppelin.
Conclusion
Shadows helps bring traditional assets onto the blockchain. In doing so, the platform opens the conventional assets to more users. For instance, it brings these assets to DeFi users and those who don’t want to hold real crypto assets.
Notably, the platform takes on a layered-approach to bring these possibilities to life-enhancing functionalities. Furthermore, the DOWS token helps power different aspects of the Shadows network.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
TotemFi is a blockchain-based prediction platform that operates on both the Ethereum and BSC networks, interfacing the prediction markets world with the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
In the predictions market, it’s either you agree with the system or leave the space. The ecosystem exists as a closed cave without a way to know whether you’ll get to enjoy the rewards even if you make a correct prediction. Blockchain technology came to the forefront to offer multiple solutions to the problems of traditional markets, and the predictions market should not be left out. Unfortunately, decentralized projects in the prediction world are yet to solve critical issues such as counterparty risks, accessibility, and bias.
Fortunately, TotemFi is among the few reliable blockchain-based prediction platforms that aim to solve significant problems in traditional prediction markets through the use of, for instance, audited smart contracts. Additionally, it guards against cases where an individual’s prediction gets influenced by another. In this guide, we shall take a comprehensive tour of this project.
Table of Contents
Background
Jolyon Layard leads the team as the CEO. He has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics. Before joining TotemFi, he was a corporate tax associate at Grant Thornton LLP, CFO at Happy Space UK, and worked at One Young World in different capacities.
Other key members include Harry Horsfall (CMO), Henry (CBO), and Dan (PR & Community). Note that the team members’ backgrounds cut across various industries such as cryptocurrency, brand management, and communications.
DuckDao incubates the project in collaboration with Trustology, Ferrum Network, BlockPass, Certik, Lauchpool, among others. Its list of strategic partners includes Bluenode Capital, Alphabit, MoonWhale, and Nabais Capital.
What Is TotemFi?
TotemFi is a blockchain-based prediction platform operating on both the Ethereum network and Binance Smart Chain (BSC). Notably, the protocol interfaces the prediction markets world with the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. TotemFi offers solutions to five major ills in the prediction markets world.
Financial risk – The platform guarantees that stakers will receive their incentives. As such, there is no way a staker will lose their input in the protocol.
Incentivization – The conventional prediction market fails to form a clear incentivization route for individual and group participants. TotemFi breaks this hurdle by rewarding both parties for logical predictions.
Accessibility – TotemFi uses decentralized applications (Dapps) to reduce and hopefully eradicate friction during the prediction process. It does this using a professional but easy-to-use user interface. The protocol take’s it a level higher by not penalizing inaccurate projections.
Echoed influence – This happens when the market is influenced by factors such as partial media highlights and politics. The effect is largely felt on centralized prediction networks. To counter the impact, the project employs decentralization. Consequently, it distributes viewpoints and media sources.
Counterparty risk – Verified and audited staking smart contracts help in building a trustless prediction platform. In return, it boosts user confidence and ensures that participants maintain ownership and control of their stake.
How does TotemFi Work?
The protocol works by interacting with various critical sections. Some of the areas include staking pools, prediction ranges, as well as results and tie breakers. (brownshvac.net)
Staking Pools
TotemFi staking pools provide a safe place for users to deposit their coins while waiting for the prediction of the price of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. These pools have varying maturity durations between 15 and 60 days. However, a pool only takes to the skies if it either reaches the maximum time limit or the pool’s allocation becomes full.
Furthermore, the maturity date marks the end of the prediction date. For instance, a pool with a maturity length of sixty days means participants must predict the price of Bitcoin (BTC) in the next two months.
Notably, TotemFi uses a single data source such as an oracle to check the prices of the assets, which enhances consistency and trust.
TotemFi automatically births another pool with similar specifications to provide timeliness once a pool hits its allocation threshold.
Prediction Range
The range determines how far a participant can go with their price forecast. The number of the protocol’s native tokens, TOTM, held by a participant determines their projection range. More tokens mean a higher range and vice versa.
However, TotemFi’s step function determines the range. The function gives the correlation between the TOTM stake size, the step size, and the range increase.
Results and Tie Breaker
In a prediction, the possibilities of a tie are very high. In case of a tie, the first person to provide the correct prediction becomes the winner. Also, this process applies in case a tie situation involves more than one participant. In such a scenario, users ranking is done in a chronological format.
Staking Rewards and Price Pools
Stakers receive guaranteed incentives. However, the rewards depend on the pool’s maturity time, staked amount, and staking time. Assuming that a staker lets their stake run peacefully for their entire pool maturity time, they’re likely to receive a tentative annual percentage rate (APR) of 60%, 65%, and 75% for pools with a maturity time of 15, 30, and 60 days, respectively.
On the other hand, the prize pool contains both BTC and TOTM tokens. For example, in the case of a correct prediction, the winner takes home 0.03375 BTC and 1,687 TOTM coins, while the third in the winning queue gets 0.0110 BTC and 495 TOTM tokens.
TotemFi Tokens (TOTM)
TOTM has a fixed supply of 10 million tokens. This entire amount was excavated during the token generation event (TGE).
The tokens go to advisors (8.5%), community development (10%), team (15%), seed (4.5%), and public sale (4.5%). Additionally, staking rewards get 16.5%, while strategic development, liquidity pool, and private sale get 15%, 6%, and 20%, respectively.
Notably, the allocated coins are locked for varying months. For example, TOTM issued to staking have a lockup period of 48 months, while those meant for private sale have a five-month lockup period.
Apart from rewarding predictions, TotemFi’s native asset acts as a governance token. Therefore, its holders are capable of taking part in critical decisions such as pool mechanics.
Conclusion
TotemFi is set to revolutionize an industry that is relatively underserved. Fortunately, a decentralized approach allows participants to blame themselves for not getting the forecasts right. Additionally, its use of blockchain increases participants’ confidence.
Moreover, guaranteed incentives for stakers, as well as not penalizing incorrect predictions, allows everyone to participate, opening the door to broader adoption. Most importantly, the experience of the TotemFi core team, incubators, and advisors sets the project apart from other blockchain-based prediction networks targeting.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Fees are an unavoidable part of cryptocurrency trading- or are they? Charged by cryptocurrency exchanges on each trade or transaction on their platform, these fees can add up to quite a substantial amount, especially during the bull market when people are actively trading. Therefore, people are eager to find any way to save money on cryptocurrency trading fees, and to maintain competitiveness, many exchanges do offer discounts or perks for their loyal customers. In this article, we take a look at some of the ways in which you can lower or even have no trading fees, and the discounts offered by some cryptocurrency exchanges.
What are crypto exchange fees?
Cryptocurrency exchanges charge customers fees for transactions or trades done on their exchange. Some types of crypto exchange fees include:
Deposit/withdrawal fees
Exchanges are basically a platform for customers to trade cryptocurrencies, so they would need to deposit or withdraw cryptocurrency to the exchange platform in order to use it. Exchanges charge a fee when customers deposit or withdraw cryptocurrencies onto or from their platform.
Trading fees
This is charged by exchanges whenever cryptocurrencies are converted to other cryptocurrencies or fiat, and vice versa.
Most popular exchanges such as Binance charge trading fees based on a maker/taker structure with taker fees being higher than maker fees. Takers are when the user places an order that is able to trade immediately (whether partially or fully) before it enters the order books. They are known as “takers” because they “take” volume from the order books. On the other hand, maker fees are charged when the user places an order that goes onto the order book (whether fully or partially) i.e. “making” the market.
Interest/Borrowing/Liquidation Fees
These fees are charged when users are involved in margin trading i.e. borrowing funds to increase your position. The amount of these fees usually depends on the amount borrowed on margin together with an interest rate. Margin trading however is very risky, and one of the reasons for this is because if the trade does not go your way you would become liquidated. When this happens exchanges also charge a liquidation fee.
VIP programs
Exchanges usually offer exchange fee discounts for their frequent users. This is usually based on a VIP tier structure where frequent users (based on their trading volume over 30 days) can qualify for higher VIP tiers which entitle them to cheaper fees. The requirements for the VIP tiers and discounts offered differ between exchanges.
Binance’s VIP program requires users to have a certain trade volume over 30 days and have a specified balance of their native token known as Binance Coin (BNB). For the first VIP tier, users must have a trading volume of 50 BTC or more and hold 50 BNB or more. Check here for more details.
Coinbase does not have a VIP program. However, Coinbase charges a fee for withdrawing from their platform and for transactions. The fees are calculated based on several factors such as the payment method, size of order and market conditions etc. The amount of such fees will be disclosed at the time of the transaction. Learn more about Coinbase fees and how you can avoid them.
Many exchanges have their own native token, and holding their token entitles users to discounts.
Binance Token (BNB) is Binance’s native token. Binance allows users to pay for trading fees using BNB, and by doing so users can get 25% off both trading and margin trading fees, and 10% off futures trading fees.
Woo Xfor instance also has their native WOO token. Users can enjoy discounts on maker/taker fees by holding as little as 300 WOO tokens, and only 1,800 WOO tokens are required to reach 0% maker and taker fees. The WOO token can also be used for yield farming and as collateral for borrowing and lending on various DeFi platforms. Click here for more details.
Both Coinbase and Kraken do not have their own native token.
Discounts for staking exchange tokens
Some exchanges allow users to stake the native token i.e. to lock the token up for a specified period in return for additional rewards. Some rewards include fee discounts, additional tokens (i.e. yields), increased airdrop rewards and the ability to participate in the exchange’s initial exchange offerings (IEOs).
Binance also allows users to stake their BNB in their Vault in return for BNB yields. Whilst there are no direct perks for staking BNB, as mentioned previously Binance users get 25% off trading fees when they pay with BNB.
WOO X users are required to stake their WOO tokens in order to enjoy the trading fee discounts mentioned in the previous section. Other rewards for staking include eligibility for airdrops.
Neither Coinbase or Kraken offers staking in their exchange token.
Conclusion
Cryptocurrency exchange fees can add up especially when you are a heavy user. With the many exchanges out there, competition is fierce to attract users since they make money on each transaction you do. One of the major ways to do this is to offer discounts on fees for using the exchange. Most, if not all cryptocurrency exchanges offer discounts simply for frequent or high volume users with tiered VIP programs. Exchanges such as Binance are more creative, utilising their native token or having staking programs which boost users’ rewards. At the end of the day, the rewards offered are only one aspect to consider when deciding which exchange to choose, other factors include the number of cryptocurrencies supported and security etc. Intended users, especially those from the US, should also check carefully as some exchanges may have features that are not available to US citizens.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Trade cryptocurrencies and traditional financial instruments such as Forex, S&P 500, and Nasdaq composite indices, as commodities like crude oil and natural gas, all from one account with Prime XBT, the Multi-asset Crypto-based derivatives trading exchange. You’ve come to the right place if you’re seeking to figure out if Prime XBT is legitimate or want to learn more about the Prime XBT costs because we’ll go over all the important details of the platform below.
Prime XBT is a multi-asset crypto-based derivatives trading exchange that allows traders to access a wide range of financial instruments, including cryptocurrencies, Forex, S&P 500, and Nasdaq indices, commodities, and more. With up to 200x crypto leverage and 1000x leverage for Forex trades, traders from more than 150 countries can open an account and start trading in minutes. Prime XBT is easy to use, even for beginners, and provides a secure and reliable platform for trading a variety of assets.
It has become a popular choice for traders due to its leverage options and low fees. However, some users have complained about the limited number of coins supported by the platform. Prime XBT is constantly expanding its list of supported coins, so traders can expect more options in the future. The platform also offers a user-friendly interface, making it easy for beginners to get started. With its competitive fees and great usability, Prime XBT is a great choice for traders looking for a reliable and secure trading platform.
Key Features of Prime XBT
The platform’s other standout features include:
Crypto-based platform with multiple assets: You can fund and use numerous trading accounts simultaneously with Prime XBT. Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), USD Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), and Covesting are included in this (COV). Each specific trading account’s base currency is used to settle profits and equity.
Ability to Margin Trade popular cryptocurrency and traditional assets: Trade popular global stock market indices, commodities, and forex with leverage up to 1000x, as well as Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, DogeCoin, XRP, and more. More than 100 asset pairs from the traditional and cryptocurrency sectors are supported by the platform.
A strong, beautifully designed platform with widgets you can customize: It has more than 12 integrated liquidity sources and can process up to 12,000 orders per second, ensuring that the average order is completed in less than 7.12 milliseconds on average.
Covesting module: Prime XBT seamlessly interacts with Covesting, a different cryptocurrency social trading platform that enables you to follow and automatically imitate the trades of experienced traders.
Cheap platform: When it comes to pricing, Prime XBT is incredibly open and promises some of the lowest rates available.
Privacy: Since Prime XBT is a pro-privacy platform, no KYC (know your customer) checks are necessary before you can begin trading. The platform nevertheless has affiliations with numerous anti-money laundering (AML) service providers.
Key Advantages of Prime XBT
Some of the Highest Leverage Options in Crypto Trading
Prime XBT is a cryptocurrency trading platform that offers users a range of features and services, including high leverage limits, low fees, and a wide range of trading options. Prime XBT reviews found online are generally positive, with users praising the platform for its user-friendly interface, low fees, and high leverage limits. The highest leverage limit available on Prime XBT is 100x, which can be used to increase profits significantly. Prime XBT also offers a range of risk management tools, making it a great choice for both experienced and novice traders.
One That Is Very Secure
Prime XBT is a cryptocurrency trading platform that offers users a secure and reliable trading experience. It utilizes AWS web servers to ensure smooth operations and employs a cold storage system to protect user assets. This means that the majority of crypto assets are stored in offline devices, making them much less vulnerable to hacking and other malicious activities. Prime XBT also offers a variety of trading tools and features, such as margin trading, leverage, and more, to help users maximize their profits. With its advanced security measures and comprehensive trading features, Prime XBT is a great choice for those looking to trade cryptocurrencies safely and securely.
Easy to Use
Prime XBT is a cryptocurrency trading platform that offers a user-friendly interface and a wide range of trading options. It is a secure and reliable platform that allows users to trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and other cryptocurrencies. The platform also offers margin trading with up to 100x leverage, and a variety of order types, including limit, market, and stop orders. Prime XBT also provides a range of educational resources to help traders understand the markets and make informed trading decisions. With its competitive fees and low minimum deposits, Prime XBT is an ideal choice for both beginner and experienced traders.
Fiat Currency / Cryptocurrency Trading Pairs + Fiat Deposits
Prime XBT is a trading platform that allows users to make fiat deposits and trade fiat currencies for crypto ones. This is a big deal, as many exchanges do not offer this option. Prime XBT offers a wide range of trading pairs, including fiat/crypto trading, and users can also make fiat currency deposits to their Prime wallet. This makes it an ideal platform for those looking for an easy entry into the cryptocurrency market, as it offers direct fiat deposits and fiat/crypto trading pairs. Prime XBT reviews are generally positive, with users praising the platform for its ease of use, security, and customer service.
Key Disadvantages of Prime XBT
Despite the many positive Prime XBT reviews, it is important to consider some of the common concerns that users have with the platform.
Only Works with the Most Popular Cryptocurrencies
Prime XBT is a cryptocurrency trading platform that supports only the most popular and mainstream coins. Specifically, the platform offers support for Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Ripple (XRP), and EOS (EOS). This is a relatively small number of coins, but it should be more than enough for entry-level crypto traders who are just getting started. With Bitcoin and Ethereum being the two most popular coins, beginner traders should have no problem finding the coins they need to start trading.
Services That Are Limited on a Regional Basis
Prime XBT is a popular cryptocurrency trading platform that operates in more than 150 countries. Unfortunately, it is not available in the US or Canada due to financial laws in those regions. This is a major con of the platform, as it restricts access to those living in the two countries. Despite this, Prime XBT is still considered a legitimate platform, offering a wide range of features and services to its users. It is a great option for those looking to trade cryptocurrencies, but those in the US or Canada will have to look elsewhere.
How to Register on and Use Prime XBT?
All that’s left to do is tell you how to register on it, and use the basic features!
2. Enter your email address, contact information, and password.
3. A PIN code will be sent to you, which you must input on the website and press Enter to confirm your email address.
4. Next, you’ll be prompted to select the nation in which you now reside.
You’re in! The registration is quick and straightforward!
How to Add Bitcoins to Your Wallet?
Go to the Account tab on your Prime XBT account.
There will be a huge blue button that reads, “Deposit to wallet.” Toggle it.
Your unique Bitcoin wallet code is located here. You must transmit Bitcoin to this address, which is your public wallet code. As an alternative, you may even buy Bitcoin with a credit or debit card – it’s that easy!
Conclusion
Prime XBT is a great asset trading platform for cryptocurrency traders. It offers a comparatively simple user interface and the ability to trade fiat/crypto pairs and purchase cryptocurrencies with a credit or debit card. The fees are lower than those of Coinbase, but the latter is available in the US and provides top-tier security for crypto assets. Prime XBT offers a wide range of cryptocurrencies, but US-based traders may need to look for alternatives such as Kucoin. All in all, Prime XBT is a great choice for beginner and entry-level traders.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
China’s national digital currency DCEP (Digital Currency Electronic Payment, DC/EP) will be built with Blockchain and Cryptographic technology. This revolutionary cryptocurrency could become the world’s first Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) as it is issued by the state bank People’s Bank of China (PBoC). The goal and objectives of the currency are to increase the circulation of the RMB and its international reach – with eventual hopes that the RMB will a global currency like the US Dollar. China has recently established an initiative to push forward Blockchain adoption, with the goal of beating competitors like Facebook Libra – a currency that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg claims will become the next big FinTech innovation. China has made explicit that Facebook Libra poses a threat to the sovereignty of China, insisting that digital currencies should only be issued by governments and central banks. DCEP is not listed on cryptocurrency exchanges and will not be for speculation of value.
The significance of DCEP is that it’s designed as a replacement for the Reserve Money (M0) system, cutting back the cost and friction of bank transfers. It is suggested that DCEP will alleviate the risks of offline paper money transactions such as anonymous counterfeiting, money laundering and illegal financing. This is because regulators can better monitor digital currency transactions, which some consider will greatly improve financial and monetary supervision. DCEP can also reduce the costs involved in maintaining and recycling banknotes and coins.
Basically, DCEP is poised to become a digital version of the RMB.
Furthermore, the issuance of DCEP is conducive to promoting the internationalization of the RMB and reshaping the current cross-border payment system. This is because prior to the RMB Cross-Border Inter-Bank Payments System (CIPS) going live in early October 2015, RMB cross-border clearing and settlement was mainly done through CHIPS (Clearing House Interbank Payments System) or SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication). However, some consider that both the CHIPS and SWIFT systems have fatal flaws. Firstly, CHIPS is a US company. Whilst SWIFT, in particular, is seen as a cause for concern to the Chinese because due to its foothold in the international banking system, it is almost essential to use SWIFT for inter-bank transfers across countries. Thus whoever controls SWIFT’s data center will have access to information on almost every cross-border remittance, which some in China posit is the US. This is because whilst SWIFT claims to be a neutral international organization, 12 of the 25 directors are either from the US and her allies. Also, its transactional data were found to have been supplied to the US. Hence it is thought that China is being held back by the US via the SWIFT system, and so, in internationalizing the RMB- China requires its own worldwide banking system- i.e. DCEP.
Hence the Chinese consider that it is a requirement to form a new currency clearing network.
According to Chinese media, DCEP is seen as the “3rd Wave” aimed at the US.
A mandate to adopt Blockchain
China has established a countrywide initiative to push forward Blockchain Adoption. President Xi Jinping has mandated that the ‘country’s development of blockchain technology should be sped up ‘ on Oct 24th in front of the Political Bureau. This speech has also been echoed by Li Wei, head of the People’s Bank of China. In April of 2020, China launched the Blockchain Service Network to unify all the Blockchain related projects in the Nation.
China has adopted the “Blockchain, not Cryptocurrency”, whereby the benefits of Blockchain is highlighted. On the other hand, cryptocurrencies that are native to Blockchain are suppressed as Cryptocurrency Exchanges and ICOs are banned in the country.
History and development of DCEP
Development of DCEP started in 2014 with the establishment of a research institute dedicated to digital currencies and looking at how to improve the Chinese Yuan system with blockchain technology. However during 2014 to 2018, the development process slowed down, probably because the decentralised nature of Bitcoin or blockchain is incompatible with the nature of the Renminbi as a legal national currency. Things rapidly picked up towards the end of 2019 however and this was directly attributable to Facebook preparing to launch Libra, particularly as partner members of the Libra Association and the currencies which Libra was to be backed by had consciously rejected China. Hence, feeling the heat of the competition, China’s central bank felt immense pressure to urgently speed up in the global competition towards a digital currency.
Former Vice-chair of the PBoC’s National Council for Social Security Fund announced on 22nd June 2020 that China had already completed the backend infrastructure of DCEP.
Uses for DCEP
DCEP will be the only legal digital currency in China
DCEP is a currency created and sanctioned by the Chinese Government. It is not a 3rd party stable coin such as Tether’s cryptocurrency token “CNHT” which is also pegged to the RMB in a 1:1 ratio. DCEP is the only legal digital currency in China (cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are not legal tender in China).
Huang Qifan (Chairman of the China International Economic Exchange Center) said they have been working on DCEP for five to six years now and is fully confident it can be introduced as the country’s financial system. It’s currently being rolled out, with the People’s Bank of China issuing the currency. According to a speech by Huang at the China Finance 40 Forum, “DCEP can achieve real-time collection of data related to money creation, bookkeeping, etc, providing useful reference for the provision of money and the implementation of monetary policies.”
DCEP is not for speculation
China has made it explicitly clear that its National Digital Currency is not for speculation. Mu Changchun, Head of the People’s Bank of China digital currency institute made it as “a digital form of the yuan” and that “The currency is not for speculation. It is different to Bitcoin or stable tokens”. This is to the disappointment of the online community in China, where some netizens commented “So there will be no fun in it” on Sina.com.
It is also not possible to mine DCEP or stake on the DCEP network.
Cross-border payments with m-CBDC Bridge
China has joined forces to explore cross-border payments for digital currencies alongside Hong Kong, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the Bank of International Settlements (BIS).
According to a joint statement in February 2021, the People’s Bank of China and the UAE’s central bank are taking part in the Multiple Central Bank Digital Currency (m-CBDC) Bridge project initiated by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Bank of Thailand in 2019.
The m-CBDC Bridge project will explore the capabilities of distributed ledger technology, through the development of a proof-of-concept prototype. The project ultimately aims to facilitate cross-border, multi-currency, real-time transactions around the clock.
This move aligns with China’s long-term ambition to use DCEP to boost the use of RMB in international payments. While the project is currently an alliance between just Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok, and Abu Dhabi, it is strongly supported by the BIS, an organisation owned by 63 central banks.
The announcement also comes mere weeks after China’s joint venture with SWIFT, the dominant network facilitating international payments between banks. The new entity, Finance Gateway Information Service, was registered in Beijing on January 16 with €10 million (US$12 million) as incorporation capital, according to the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, the Chinese government’s enterprise credit information agency.
Special features of DCEP
DCEP is a Centralized Currency
DCEP is a digital currency that is run on a centralized private network – the Central Bank of China has complete access and control of the currency. This is a huge contrast to Bitcoin, which has an open decentralized network where there is no centralized leader. In the case with DCEP, the Central bank of China has the ability to create or destroy DCEP.
NFC Contact based payment
According to Official Sina Blockchain, DCEP will have NFC based payment options that don’t require devices to be online during the transfer. This will be poised as a direct replacement of paper money, as DCEP will be usable in areas without internet coverage. In addition, DCEP doesn’t require the mobile device to be bound to a bank account – meaning the unbanked population will also have access to the digital currency.
With DCEP’s tap payment feature people can transfer money simply by tapping two phones together, without the use of the Internet. So DCEP is not exactly like blockchain either, rather it is their own variant.
China Construction Bank launches DCEP wallet
On 29th August 2020, China Construction Bank (CCB) had a soft launch of the DCEP wallet. Users of one of China’s big four state-owned commercial banks found a DCEP wallet feature was available inside their mobile app. Users were even able to navigate to the digital yuan wallet and activate it through registering their mobile phone numbers.
Finally, users can send/receive digital currency to others by inputting their unique wallet ID or the phone number associated with the bank account.
CCB DCEP wallet
However, CCB has disabled the DCEP wallet feature from public access, but not before it gained huge attention. Users searching for this wallet now will only get an error message saying that the function is not yet officially available to the public.
Tencent to be a major partner of DCEP
Tencent’s Meituan Dianping has been in talks with the research wing of the PBoC on real-world uses for DCEP. Meituan Dianping boasts billions of dollars in daily transactions on their mobile app platform offering services such as food delivery (similar to UberEats), B&B bookings (similar to AirBnb), ride hailing services, bike sharing, grocery shopping and more. Basically for those in China, all your daily necessities can be met on the Meituan ecosystem.
The PBoC’s research wing is also in talks with another Tencent-backed company, Bilibili Inc. which provides video streaming services. So whilst the specifics of the partnership are yet to be finalised, it is likely that such cooperation is going to be huge for the mass use of DCEP in China.
According to Caijing magazine, the pilot institutions for DCEP will be the 4 major state-owned banks i.e. China Construction Bank, the Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. This initial deployment will serve as an official production test for the currency system, where the network and security will be validated. In the second phase, DCEP will be distributed to large fintech companies such as Tencent and Alibaba to be used in WeChat Pay and AliPay respectively.
DCEP will operate on a two-tiered system
The issuance and distribution of DCEP will be based on a two-tiered system.
The first tier would be transactions between the PBoC and intermediaries. These intermediaries would be financial institutions (e.g. the 4 major state-owned banks i.e. China Construction Bank, the Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China) and non-financial institutions such as Alibaba, Tencent and UnionPay. Here, the PBoC would issue DCEP to the intermediaries.
The second tier would be between the above-mentioned intermediaries and participants in the retail market such as companies (e.g. retail stores) and individuals. In this tier, the intermediaries that have received DCEP will distribute it to retail participants so that it would circulate through the market e.g. through people purchasing items at stores etc.
The main difference in the issuance and distribution of DCEP compared to traditional cash however is the fact that DCEP would be transferred through electronic wallets, rather than bank accounts.
The central government has mandated that all merchants who accepted digital payments (such as Apple Pay, AliPay and WeChat) pay must accept DCEP. This will give DCEP a large nationwide acceptance in China, with every merchant obligated to participate or face a potential loss of their business license. This will make DCEP the most accepted digital currency in the world.
DCEP red packets to be launched for Chinese New Year
China’s DCEP app has launched a red packet gifting feature in time for the Chinese New Year on 22nd January 2023. The app will allow users to send the red packets i.e. “hongbao” containing DCEP to others. This is based on the Chinese New Year tradition of gifting lucky money during the annual festival. In fact, WeChat Pay and Alipay already have this feature for gifting CNY. However, it is the first time that e-CNY will be gifted in such a way, with hopes that this will further pave the way for the mass adoption of DCEP.
DCEP can be used to pay expressway tolls
On 28th December 2022, Chongqing Expressway Group announced it has completed the installation of equipment to accept DCEP for expressway tolls. From 30th December 2022, DCEP can be accepted as payment for tolls on the Chongqing Expressway. Users will need to download the e-CNY app and then simply present the payment QR code at the toll booth.
PBoC’s financial statistics reports now include DCEP/e-CNY
On 10th January 2023, the PBoC released its annual Financial Statistics Report for 2022. What is worth noting is that for the first time, the PBoC included statistics on DCEP/e-CNY. The Report states that as of the end of December 2022, the amount of digital currency in circulation was 13.61 billion yuan. This equates to around 0.13% of the total balance of yuan (13.61 trillion yuan) in circulation at the end of 2022.
Are people in China using DCEP?
According to a report on 28th December 2022, there has been over US$14 billion worth of DCEP transactions since its launch in 2020. Meanwhile, 261 million users have already set up an e-CNY wallet. However, this is considered low adoption since around 903.6 million people use mobile payments in China, according to a 2021 UnionPay report.
DCEP scams
Mere hours after DCEP has been announced, various (potentially scam) Chinese exchanges have listed IOUs or knock-offs clones of DCEP. It’s important to know that DCEP is currently only distributed to banks working with the PBoC and will not be available for the public. If you want to find out what are reputable exchanges, check out our top cryptocurrency exchanges guide. It is strongly recommended NOT to trade DCEP until it is officially released as there is no guarantee exchanges have access to the digital currency.
Knock-off clones of DCEP are already trading in (potentially) scam exchanges.
How to buy DCEP?
Currently, DCEP is only available to other banks working with the People’s Bank of China. This will eventually open up to the general public in 2020. There are currently no cryptocurrency exchanges that trade DCEP.
Implications of DCEP?
Is DCEP a challenge to the US monetary system?
The overwhelming view appears to be yes, both from the Chinese and the US perspective. According to statistics from the World Bank, 1.7 billion adults around the world use cash because they don’t have bank accounts. However, two-thirds of this population own a mobile phone, which can be used to make monetary transactions. This is what’s been happening in China, where mobile payments such as Alipay or WeChat Pay have more than 1.7 billion customers across China. Currently, the two online payment companies handle more payments monthly than Paypal did in the whole of 2017 (i.e. USD $451 billion). It’s very common in China to see street vendors accepting Alipay or WeChat pay.
Alipay and WeChat being accepted at an ATV rental shop
With the mobile wallet payment infrastructure in place, their cooperation with the PBoC could be the answer to distributing DCEP overseas. This would fit China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”, the aim of which is to build a new trade route connecting Asia with Europe and Africa. The idea is that with DCEP being used by mobile wallets, populations along the Belt and Road can be connected, bypassing existing financial infrastructures completely and giving an opportunity for the unbanked to pay for online purchases and build their savings.
In the US, the government does not see a demand for digital currencies. In a letter from the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, he took the view that many of the challenges a digital currency intends to solve do not apply to the US. In his view, the US payments landscape is already highly competitive and innovative, with plenty of digital payments options for consumers. Powell also commented, echoing the sentiments of those US lawmakers opposing Libra, that a digital payment where you would know and be able to track each and every payment would be unattractive for the US.
Whilst the House Committee on Financial Services also sees Libra as potentially raising national security concerns, observers consider the challenge from China is not being taken seriously. Because on the other hand, China is worried that Libra will reinforce the dominance of the US Dollar and is therefore working on fast-tracking the launch of DCEP. And it is likely that China will outrun the threat from Libra.
From a wider perspective, some take the view that DCEP can be used as a weapon against the US in an economic war. This is because as DCEP becomes accepted across the Belt and Road, China will have the power of total surveillance and control over the economic activity of potentially half the world’s population. DCEP will allow China to track everyone’s spending and transactions, and can seize or lock customers’ digital assets in their mobile wallets. We’ve already seen this in China, where together with its “social credit system”, millions of individuals have already been barred from purchasing airline tickets using their mobile wallets.
Appearance on Chinese television debate show “Tiger Talk”
On 29th August 2020, I appeared on China’s Phoenix Television show “Tiger Talk” (一虎一席談). Tiger Talk is one of Phoenix TV’s longest-running shows, each week they feature a debate on a major societal issue or event, and would invite experts, academics and guests to participate in the discussion. I was invited by Phoenix Television as an overseas analyst to discuss the topic of the week, namely, “DC/EP: China’s release of digital currency, will it shake the US Dollar’s hegemony?”. You can watch the episode here.
Guest appearance on Tiger Talk
Implications of DCEP on Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies
In the first instance, it should always be borne in mind that DCEP and Bitcoin/cryptocurrencies are vastly different. Key differences are that DCEP does not necessarily use blockchain technology and that it is a centralised currency under the control of a centralised authority. Learn more about the differences between DCEP, Libra, Bitcoin and Cash.
However, the large scale promotion of DCEP on national television in August 2020 is certainly bracing and preparing Chinese citizens for a digital version of the RMB. The gradual rollout of DCEP will also get the average citizen accustomed to the actual usage of digital currencies.
As a result, many people are excitedly speculating on the possibility of a bridge between DCEP and various existing blockchain projects- with some projects proclaiming they will be the first project to launch on DCEP. However it must be borne in mind that we do not know the full technical details of DCEP, so we do not know how this bridge between blockchain and DCEP will work, if at all. Also, the fact is that China is currently very hostile towards cryptocurrencies, this is mostly due to a number of cryptocurrency scams- such as Plus Token. As a result, the Chinese government have closed several bank accounts found to be involved in cryptocurrency transfers and banned all ICOs, several major cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance and OKEx and some Over the Counter desks. Hence a lot of cryptocurrency circles and discussions occur underground, such as in private WeChat groups.
In a confusing twist, however, the CCP’s official media outlets 参考消息, Xinhua and CCTV have been pushing out headlines that crypto assets are the best-performing asset year to date. Dovey Wan, Founding Partner of Primitive Ventures has observed that the real intent behind this media push is difficult to interpret, but so far the Chinese cryptocurrency community see this as a signal that crypto has reached its top. Meanwhile, on the Western front on Twitter, people have been seeing this as a bull signal. Currently, without any further moves or news in China about DCEP or on the cryptocurrency front, we can only wait and see what China’s next move will be.
Hmm this is an interesting propaganda vibe from CCP’s official media outlets as “参考消息”, Xinhua and CCTV2
the headline “cryptoasset is the best performing asset YTD” was featured on all avenues, news paper, online media and TV
Will DeFi push governments to finally adopt CBDCs?
Decentralised Finance (DeFi) can be considered the cryptocurrency and blockchain star of 2020, having revived the cryptocurrency market and bringing some much-needed revival and positivity. But what is DeFi? In short, DeFi attempts to bring traditional banking to developing industries, but with a twist: it would be open-source, decentralised, cheap and will cut out the middlemen. (Xanax)
So what can central banks and government do to maintain their dominant status quo whilst benefitting from the technology that DeFi can bring? An answer could be to create a CBDC. In a Forbes article, the author suggests that CBDC would be a positive move for governments since it tokenises money whilst allowing users to enjoy the advantages of cheaper, faster transactions.
The article also touches upon our coverage of DCEP and discusses China’s progress in testing DCEP contrasted with the progress of introducing a CBDC in the US. It suggests that governments and institutions, however, will need to be quick to catch up as new DeFi solutions in payments, mortgage, insurance etc. are being created weekly, and this legion of fintech innovators are growing. These innovators challenge the status quo, and with the mounting advantages of DeFi, there may soon be a real contender vying for the attention of citizen-consumers.
FAQs
Is DCEP backed by Gold?
The simple answer is u0022Nou0022. On a recent episode of Kitco News, journalist Max Kaiser claimed that China will launch a gold-backed cryptocurrency, with the intention of destroying the USD as a reserve currency. He added that China has already amassed as much as 20,000 tons of gold. However this is mere speculation – China has no plans to return to the Gold Standard nor issue gold-backed cryptocurrencies.
Will DCEP be interoperable with other Cryptocurrencies
There are many plans to build gateways that allow the swapping of DCEP to other cryptocurrencies. Projects such as Algorand have stated they want to support DCEP and build possible bridges to swap these currencies. However, as the technical details of DCEP have not been fully revealed, such bridges have not been built yet.
Who can issue e-CNY?
There are 7 Chinese commercial banks that can provide e-CNY. They are: ICBC, Agricultural Bank of China, Postal Savings Bank of China China Construction Bank, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, and China Merchant’s Bank. There are also 2 online banks that can provide e-CNY i.e. WeBank (WeChat Pay) and MyBank (Alipay).
Which Chinese Cities can sign up and use the e-CNY app?
Currently, there are 12 cities and areas in China which can sign up and use the e-CNY app. They are Shenzhen, Suzhou, Beijing Xiong’an, Chengdu, Shanghai, Hainan, Xi’an, Changsha, Dalian, Qingdao, and Zhangjiakou.
Can tourists or non- Chinese locals use DCEP?
No, DCEP is not fully rolled out yet and is only available in select cities in China.
Is China using DCEP?
According to a report on 28th December 2022, there have been over US$14 billion in transactions since the launch of DCEP in 2020 and October 2022. Meanwhile, 261 million users have already set up an e-CNY wallet. However, this is considered low adoption since, according to a 2021 UnionPay report, around 903.6 million people use mobile payments in China.
When will China officially launch DCEP e-CNY?
Whilst there is ongoing DCEP/e-CNY testing on in increasing scale, there is no official announcement as to when and how China will fully roll out DCEP/e-CNY.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Cryptocurrency Exchanges are facing additional regulation and scrutiny around the world. Two key exchanges – OKEX and Huobi are under regulatory scrutiny in China. One of the reasons for the scrutiny is that both these exchanges had a huge footprint in China prior to the 2017 Exchange ban. To find out about top cryptocurrency exchanges, check out our Exchange Tier List. Here are the major changes to the exchange scene in November 2020.
OKEx Exchange withdraws suspended
It has been almost a month since Okex Exchange suspended all withdrawals from the platform. This was due to one of their private key holders (Star Xu) being detained for investigation by a “public security bureau”. OKEx has always claimed that Xu is not detained but only actively cooperating with the relevant authorities for something unrelated to the Exchange back in 2019.
No withdrawal has happened since 16 October 2020; in OKEx’s last Twitter post, dated 9 November 2020, they claim that the function is not yet active but funds are safe and unaffected.
Withdrawals reopened!
After more than a month since their suspension announcement, Okex exchange has finally reopened unrestricted withdrawals on November 27. In addition, there will be rewards for active users. Read all the details in our developing article.
KuCoin recovers around 84% of funds in hack
As covered in our previous Newsletter, KuCoin had confirmed on 26th September 2020 that they had been hacked, resulting in around USD $236m worth of funds being lost.
On 11th November 2020, CEO and Co-founder Johnny Lyu confirmed that around 84% of affected assets have been recovered. Several means were utilised to do this, for example on-chain tracking, contract upgrade and through the judicial system.
Currently, 176 of their listed tokens have resumed full services, and it is expected that the remaining listed tokens will all be re-opened before 22nd November 2020.
(1/3) Latest updates about #KuCoin Security Incident: So far, 84% of the affected assets have been recovered via approaches like on-chain tracking, contract upgrade and judicial recovery. As asked by the law enforcements, we will publish all the details once the case is closed.
Update from CEO and Co-founder Johnny Lyu on the KuCoin hack situation
Huobi Rumors go wild
On 2 November 2020 a few big transactions worth hundreds of millions into Huobi Exchange have been spotted; although this could be routine for a big Exchange like this, users were worried since the issues with OKEx exchange were still ongoing.
There were also rumours that, similar to OKEx, key executives of Huobi were detained for investigations.
This created an escalated FUD that ended up with a massive drop in value for $HT (Huobi Token), as well as worried users quickly withdrawing their cryptocurrencies from the Exchange.
Huobi official account subsequently tweeted denying all rumours and classifying them as false.
For now, everything seems to be back to normal and no more news have emerged since.
A few weeks after Binance Jersey announced that the Exchange, launched in January 2019, will be fully closed by 30th November 2020 (no explanation was given but it’s presumed that it wasn’t necessary anymore, after deposits in EUR and GBP have been enabled directly on Binance.com), Binance Uganda will cease to exist as well.
Binance Uganda was launched in June 2018 and has been the first fiat-to-crypto Binance platform, even though it had been stated more than once that it was a separate entity capable of independent decisions.
An explanation was provided by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Changpeng Zhao:
“All the features that Binance Uganda provides [are] now covered by Binance.com together with our fiat channel partners. There’s a very minimal number of users on there, so it doesn’t make sense for us to maintain two platforms”.
The process will consist of three different phases: Closure of Deposits and New Registrations; Closure of all Trading Services, and final Hard Shutdown on the 28 November 2020.
Users are strongly recommended to transfer their funds out of the Exchange before 00:00 UTC on 28/11/2020.
Is Binance blocking US-based users?
Reports are emerging that Binance has started to block users based in the US from accessing the Exchange. According to The Block, emails were circulated to US-based users who were told to withdraw their funds within 90 days.
This is in any event in line with their announcement back in September 2019 that they will no longer serve customers from the US. They are also likely doing this now considering the ongoing legal actions against BitMEX and its key personnel.
Binance.com is now giving a 14 days notice to US customers
As a consequence to what we reported a few weeks ago, it appears that some US customers who are still using the “.com” version of the exchange are receiving a 14 days notice letter. In the email, as they reported, Binance is informing that due to their “periodic sweeps”, US residents are being asked to withdraw all their funds within 14 days or their funds will be blocked.
It is not clear whether the identification process is only based on KYCs or on IP addresses as well; in the first case, it could be possible that US customers who skip the KYC process accepting lower deposits/withdrawals limits could still use the platform.
Binance.com has been trying to remove its US customers for a while as the exchange doesn’t have any regulatory standing in America. US customers can use Binance.US, an exchange with far less pairs that is therefore not as attractive to traders as the classic “.com” version.
Coinbase Pro is disabling Margin Trading
In a blog post on Nov 24, the Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal announced that customers wouldn’t have been able to place margin trades after November 25, 2PM PT time. The existing positions will remain effective until the last one will have expired; at that moment the product will go offline.
The decision comes as a consequence to the finalized “Interpretive guidance on actual delivery of Digital Assets” by the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) in March. You can read more here. In the letter we can read:
“We believe clear, common sense regulations for margin lending products are needed to protect and provide peace of mind to U.S customers. We look forward to working closely with regulators to achieve this goal”.
Australian Exchange BTC Markets exposed users’ data
On December 1st during a routine marketing round of emails to their users, Australian exchange BTC Markets, one of the most famous in the continent, accidentally exposed their users’ data. Names and emails where all together displayed in the “to” field and sent in batches of 1000 at a time, exposing each personal user’s data to 99 other email addresses.
Caroline Bowler, the CEO, immediately confirmed the data exposure adding that nothing more than names and emails were exposed, while funds and passwords remained safe. Nonetheless, we know this type of exposure can (and probably will) lead to unwanted campaigns or phishing emails, therefore users should always doublecheck the sender of the emails before clicking anything suspicious.
The exchange is now working on additional measures and has advised their clients to change email passwords and set up 2 factor authentication on their accounts.
Thanks for this Chloe. We are working on additional security measures to bolster what is currently in place. In the meantime, we advise our clients to change their email password; set-up 2FA on their account; and be vigilant to email phishing attacks. https://t.co/0x56Kc2xEv
Centralised cryptocurrency exchanges do have custody of the cryptocurrencies in your account trading wallets. Therefore if anything happens to the exchanges, your funds can be affected!
So don’t keep more funds in exchanges than you need for day to day use or trading! Keep your cryptocurrencies safe and under your OWN custody, ideally in a hardware wallet.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
Poolz.finance ($POOLZ) aims to be the bridge between cryptocurrency projects and early investors.
Poolz.finance has already integrated Ethereum, Polkadot and Tomochain. Projects can simply sign up with a simple Google form on the Poolz official site and they would help launch token sales on the Poolz platform.
In addition to launching token sales, Poolz can also help projects fundraise flexibly by allowing them to specify lock-in periods whereby only after the specified period expires can investors receive tokens for their swapped amount. On the other hand, pools of tokens camn also be created for a project’s token so investors can get immediate access to the project’s tokens.
To catch up with the yield-farming craze, Poolz also provides staking-as-a-service, allowing projects to set up staking for their token. And with that of course also brings concerns for security, which Poolz does recognise and therefore can allow projects to request token audits.
Check out our interview with CEO and Co-founder Guy Oren.
Poolz is also capitalizing on the popularity of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) by allowing cryptocurrency projects to auction their NFTs on the Poolz auction house. Poolz has integrated the ERC-721 standard, which allows developers to code the owners’ identity and address into the NFT- making each token unique and ensuring that each NFT only has one owner.
During this initial phase, projects can sell their NFTs for ETH and DAI. However, it is expected that more payment methods will be accepted in the future, such as the project’s native cryptocurrency or other stablecoins.
$POOLZ token holders get exclusive benefits on Poolz’ NFT auction house such as price benefits and special access to the “last call” feature. Poolz’ “LastCall” feature comes after the conclusion of the “open” auction phase. Once the “open” auction for the NFTs are closed to the public, the “LastCall” phase opens whereby the NFT pool is exclusively open for POOLZ token holders to make their bids- thus increasing their chances of getting a winning bid before the auction finishes.
What is the $POOLZ token and its uses?
$POOLZ is Poolz Finance’s native ERC-20 token. $POOLZ token is mainly used as user incentives, governance, staking, token burns and project development.
Incentives. include exclusive benefits in the NFT auction house and better swap ratios for pools running on their platform.
Governance. The Poolz platform will implement the Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanism. This allows POOLZ holders to have voting rights when they stake their tokens in specific wallets.
Staking. According to the Team, POOLZ token holders can get passive income from staking them in particular ERC-20 wallets. In return, these token holders will get staking rewards.
Token burn. Poolz will use 16.67% of its daily earnings to buy $POOLZ tokens from the market and burn the same, subject to an upper limit of 20% of the POOLZ supply. This keeps the supply of tokens low.
Project development. Poolz has reserve tokens that are allocated for future development such as marketing, exchange fees for listings, and long-term liquidity.
$POOLZ tokenomics
1/3 of the total $POOLZ token supply is locked and will be released over a period of 10 years. The Poolz team believes this model will ensure a low supply and keep prices high, and to show that they intend to stay with this project for the long haul.
The allocation of $POOLZ is as follows:
2.2M POOLZ (44%): Public and private sale
800,000 POOLZ (16%): Staking rewards. This will be circulated in the form of average annual yields to those who stake their tokens in a compatible wallet. 80,000 POOLZ will be released each year for 10 years (i.e. 1,539 tokens per week).
800,000 POOLZ (16%): Swapping rewards. These will be rewarded to liquidity providers on the participating pools on the platform. 80,000 POOLZ will be released each year for 10 years (i.e. 1,539 tokens per week). This may be subject to change via governance decisions.
600,000 POOLZ (12%): Reserve. This will be for future initiatives and to support the community.
375,000 POOLZ (7.5%): Team. For incentivizing the Poolz team and will be distributed over 6 months of equal vesting after a lock-in period of 1 year.
125,000 POOLZ (2.5%): Advisors. Given to advisors as incentives over 1 year of monthly vesting.
100,000 POOLZ (2%): Liquidity fund. This is for providing liquidity on Uniswap and other exchanges.
$POOLZ token sale
Total Supply: 5,000,000 POOLZ
Initial Market Cap: USD $423,500
Fully Diluted Valuation: USD $3.5M
Private and public sale: 2.2M POOLZ (44% of total supply) will be allocated for private and public sales.
Pre Seed: 100,000 POOLZ at USD $0.35: 3 months initial lockup, then 8.33% released monthly.
Strategic Round: 400,000 POOLZ, at USD $0.455: 10% released upon Token Generation Event (TGE), then 9% released monthly over a period of 10 months.
Private Sale 1: 700,000 POOLZ, at USD$0.47775: 20% released upon TGE 20%, then 20% released monthly.
Private Sale 2: 900,000 POOLZ at USD $0.50050: 25% released on TGE, then 25% released monthly.
Auction Pools: 100,000 POOLZ at USD $0.7: no lockup period.
On 15th January 2021, $POOLZ will do a public sale by way of an Initial DEX Offering (IDO) and Uniswap listing.
The IDO will be held on the Poolz platform itself so that after it goes live, you can directly buy $POOLZ from their own platform. Afterwards, $POOLZ will be available on Uniswap. There is no minimum purchase amount for this IDO.
Note the IDO has sold out in 18 seconds
How to buy $POOLZ on Uniswap
The $POOLZ token will be listed on Uniswap from 15th January 2021 onwards, meaning that users will be able to buy $POOLZ on Uniswap. Buying $POOLZ can be done in 4 easy steps:
Step 1:On Uniswap, select which cryptocurrency you want to trade $POOLZ with in the “From” row. Note that Ethereum is set as the default.
Step 2: Set to swap for $POOLZ tokens. In the “To” row, enter the correct Poolz address. Be very sure that the address is correct or else you could risk losing your funds.
Step 3: Enter the amount of $POOLZ token you want to obtain. Once you’ve entered the amount of $POOLZ token you want to buy, double-check the swap details and click “Confirm swap”.
Step 4: Confirm purchase on MetaMask. After confirming on Uniswap, you will be taken to MetaMask to confirm the payment. Click “confirm”. Once the payment is processed you will receive $POOLZ tokens in your MetaMask wallet.
Is Poolz safe?
Poolz Finance engaged Arcadia for an independent security audit of its smart contracts. Poolz reports that Arcadia did not find any issues with their smart contracts.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
