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  • Crypto Bitcoin Horror Stories to Give You Nightmares

    Crypto Bitcoin Horror Stories to Give You Nightmares

    You’d be surprised at how people, loaded with Bitcoin and other crypto, managed to lose their ticket to retirement.

    One Wrong Click – $120,000 Crypto Gone

    A phishing attack is the oldest play in the book, the bread and butter of web3 scammers.

    They work by tricking victims with fake error messages, wallet pop ups, or flashy hyperlinks. They will then lead you to unofficial websites or extensions that would expose your wallet seed phrase or other sensitive information. 

    You’d think people would be more careful about connecting to shady websites, but the truth is both crypto newbies and veterans still fall victim to these to this day!

    Reddit user PowerofTheGods shared his story of how he lost $120,000 after clicking on a malicious link. While his ledger was unlocked, a Trojan malware took control of his computer and wiped all of his wallets in a matter of minutes. The sight of all his assets being transferred to the hacker’s wallet address still haunts him to this day.

    The story went viral and countless people also shared their unlucky experience. They reported to the authorities, but there was nothing they could do as cryptocurrency is still largely unregulated.

    Always be cautious when encountering suspicious links especially from an unknown source. Also always double-check the link that you are clicking is indeed the right one. Some scammers can even copy the domains of well-known DApps with slight moderations to it, and you won’t even notice the difference.

    Crypto Exchange CEO Died – All Users’ Assets Locked

    This case is the literal sense of the phrase, “taking secrets to the grave.”

    Canadian exchange QuadrigaCX’s CEO Gerald Cotten allegedly passed away in India in 2018. He was the sole custodian of the exchange’s crypto store, which is all held in cold storage.

    No one has ever been able to unlock the digital wallet passwords on his encrypted laptop. As a result, over 115,000 users’ assets are locked indefinitely, including 26,500 Bitcoin, 11,000 Bitcoin Cash, 200,000 Litecoin, and 430,000 Ethereum.

    In fact, in early 2022, Netflix released a documentary, Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King, about Cotten’s life and his death in India.

    The morale of the story is never store your crypto on exchanges, especially if you have large holdings. Consider holding your funds in hardware wallets like Ledger Nano X, Ledger Nano S or Trezor Model T.

    Forgotten Password to 7,002 Hard-Earned Bitcoin

    About 20% of all Bitcoins are lost in circulation. That is a lot of money that is unlikely to be recovered. This happens when users forget their private key or even the password to the hard drive containing the private key.

    German engineer Stefan Thomas was given 7,002 Bitcoin in exchange for creating an animated video in 2011 called “What is Bitcoin?” However, he has forgotten the password to his encrypted hard drive called IronKey, which stores the private key to the Bitcoins.

    IronKey allows users 10 attempts to input their password correctly before the funds are encrypted forever. Thomas only has two attempts left before his Bitcoins are gone forever.

    Always remember to write down your password and seed phrase on a piece of paper and store it securely. Or it would be a lifetime of regret.

    Spring Cleaning Gone Wrong – 8,000 Bitcoins Lost

    Remember when some of your stuff would go missing, only to find out your mom had thrown them away because she thought it was useless? An action figure with sentimental value? No big deal!

    But for James Howells, it was life-changing. He had two identical laptop hard drives — one was blank and the other contained 8,000 Bitcoins. Howells had meant to throw out the blank one when he was clearing out the office, but instead the drive containing the crypto ended up in a landfill in Newport, Wales!

    This unlucky disaster continues to haunt Howells to this day. He has repeatedly petitioned Newport City Council if he can dig up the landfill site, which were all denied.

    10,000 Bitcoins for 2 Pizzas

    May 22 is known as Bitcoin Pizza Day. It is a well-known story in the crypto world. It was the day Laszlo Hanyecz paid 10,000 Bitcoins for two Papa John’s pizzas in 2010, which was worth $30 at the time. Now they are worth nearly $230 million!

    We can’t blame him for not knowing the future. Since Bitcoin did not have that much value back then, it was more like redemption points for pizza. Had he held his Bitcoins, he would not have to work a day in his life again.

    Amazingly, Laszlo said that he had no regrets about it, and was happy to be a part of the early history of Bitcoin. In fact, Hanyecz is the first person to use Bitcoin in a commercial transaction.

  • 3 Ways You’re Losing Crypto Without You Knowing!

    3 Ways You’re Losing Crypto Without You Knowing!

    If you think you are safe on the blockchain, think again! You’re constantly being watched, and malicious actors are getting more creative at stealing your precious crypto. Here’s what might be waiting for you.

    Your Crypto and IP Address Are Exposed Interacting on DApps

    Did you know that your personal data including your crypto and IP address are exposed whenever you connect to a DApp? Here’s how it works.

    Your wallet does not actually interact with the blockchain directly. Instead, it can only do that through nodes. A node is one of the computers that run the blockchain’s software to validate and store the entire history of transactions on the network.

    Each time you connect to a DApp, make a transaction or deposit funds to a protocol, the request is sent to a node, which verifies and executes the transactions. These nodes are usually deployed and run by node providers. But what you do NOT know is that node requests are also packed with sensitive information like your IP address, web browser version, and so on.

    Now, of course, these data remain at the node company. They have strict policies not to share the data with a third party. But what if the company gets hacked or acquired by some other company? That is when your personal information is out in the open. Node providers can also ban you from accessing the blockchain entirely via their nodes.

    Crypto Sandwich Attack on Decentralized Exchanges

    Have you ever wondered why you end up paying more for the tokens you buy on certain decentralized exchanges (DEX), only to find out they are worth less afterwards? The truth is, when you trade on DEXes, you are always losing out to bots. Here’s how it works.

    When you execute a trade, a bot front-runs your trade by buying the tokens right before your transaction is mined. This increases the price, making you buy for a higher price and pushing it even further up. Afterwards, the bot profits by selling the tokens after your purchase transaction is mined. This is called the “sandwich attack” because your pending transaction is “sandwiched” between the bots’ orders.

    Each transaction is sent to a public mempool, which is a queue for the transactions that have not been added to a block and are still unconfirmed. It is visible to everyone, and bots, being quick enough, can exploit that. There is nothing much we can do about it because that is just the public nature of blockchains.

    Getting Doxxed by Your Ethereum Name Service Domain

    Showing off your Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domain is cool, but did you know that people can use that to track down your wallet addresses?

    You can check out Unstoppable Domains: Get ready for a censorship immune future on how domain name services work.

    While ENS is a huge step forward in terms of convenience, it also means several steps backward when it comes to privacy. Since most blockchains are open and transparent, anyone can use your ENS to snoop on your finances. It is the difference between sending someone an email and them being able to look at your entire inbox.

    Here’s how it works. You will need a wallet address to register an ENS domain. As a result, each ENS domain has a wallet address attached to it. Even if you do not use your main wallet address to register your ENS, it is easy to trace this address back to your other addresses.

    Let’s look at an example – neutral.eth. At first glance, there isn’t much going on. At first glance, there isn’t much going on, but when digging a little deeper, the Ethereum address that registered the name held 58,000 Ethereum at one point, worth about $15 million at the time. This address regularly received large payments from the crypto exchange Poloniex’s main wallet. And all activities stopped the same day Circle – who owned the Poloniex exchange at the time, got rid of trading fees. This shows it was a company wallet that created neutral.eth.

    Just from an ENS domain alone, you can watch people’s movements, see insights into business deals and know just how much money people really have – all by observing public blockchain data. If your valuable information falls into the wrong hands, there would be a target on your back.

    Are DApps private?

    Certain DApps are run by node providers who can see your personal information such as IP address and web browser version etc.

    What is a Sandwich Attack?

    When you execute a trade, a bot front-runs your trade by buying the tokens right before your transaction is mined. This increases the price, making you buy for a higher price and pushing it even further up. Afterwards, the bot profits by selling the tokens after your purchase transaction is mined.

    Are ENS domains private?

    Since each ENS domain has a wallet address attached to it, it is easy to trace this address back to your other addresses.

  • 10 Best Smart Contract Security Auditing Firms in 2022

    10 Best Smart Contract Security Auditing Firms in 2022

    We have compiled an updated list of the top performing blockchain security and smart contract auditing companies in 2022, giving you comprehensive data and history of these firms for you to make the best informed decision possible.

    Why Do Smart Contract Auditors Matter?

    A lot has happened since 2020 when we last ranked the best smart contract auditors at the time. As the crypto space is evolving, so are hackers and scammers around the world. Web3 attacks are becoming increasingly frequent, and each day malicious players have found creative ways to exploit smart contract vulnerabilities for quick profit.

    One of the largest crypto hacks in history happened earlier this year when Wormhole, Solana’s cross-chain bridge, was hacked on February 2nd. The attack exploited a signature verification vulnerability in the network that allowed the hacker to freely mint 120,000 wETH, worth $325 million at the time. As a result, security audits are extremely important. According to an article by Hacken, though Solana may be blamed for providing the instrument with security flaws to its projects, Wormhole might have “prevented the incident by auditing the instruments it used.”

    Quality smart contract assurance helps identify potential issues, and ensure that the protocol is ready at all times to address any threat that could put its users’ funds at risk. However, there are no guarantees that a protocol will be 100% secure after an audit, but a good smart contract auditor can still perform thorough reviews to potentially prevent major vulnerabilities after launch. To keep up with the increasing demand in blockchain security, certain auditing firms have also branched out to offer other cybersecurity services such as penetration testing, running bug bounty programs, vulnerability assessments, and threat modelling.

    What Makes a Good Smart Contract Auditor?

    We have compiled our list of the top smart contract auditors this year based on a set of criteria. One of the first steps in finding a reliable smart contract auditor is to check the portfolios of projects they have audited. Doing so allows you to see the size and popularity of the projects they have audited, and more importantly if any of the projects they have worked on have been compromised. Larger projects tend to attract more attention from hackers, and if they have not been exploited for a long period of time, then it is a good sign that their security is up to date thanks to their auditor(s).

    The next factor to consider is the auditor’s expertise in certain blockchains. As of now, most auditors offer only Ethereum contract audits. Only some are specialized in auditing projects on altchains such as BNB, Solana or Polygon. This is because EVM-compatible chains have different architectures, and certain altchains use a completely different programming language, e.g. Rust for Solana. Different firms have different areas of expertise in auditing protocols built on different blockchains, so it is best to assess their level of competency before engaging them for an audit. For example, if you are looking for a Polygon-based contract audit, check the firm’s past audits for Polygon-based projects.

    Finally, it goes without saying but the quality of audit reports is an important consideration to look for in a reliable auditor. Different auditing firms have their own methodology and approach. In many instances, the scope of an audit varies according to the scale and complexity of the project as well as the auditor’s agreement with their clients. It is important to note that a good report should include a comprehensive description of all the problems that were found during the test and inspection, and the findings of the audit have been addressed by the project.

    Hacken

    Website: https://hacken.io/

    Projects Audited: 700+

    Major Clients: FTX, Avalanche, VeChain, Huobi, Kyber, Air Asia

    Chains Supported: Ethereum, EVM Chains, BNB Chain, Solana, Polygon, Avalanche, NEAR, Fantom

    Hacken is a leading cybersecurity consulting company focused on blockchain security. Since its inception in 2017, Hacken has been educating and growing the ethical white hat hacker community to continually nurture and build the blockchain security ecosystem. Who better to identify and address cybersecurity threats than a hacker? (https://www.kambioeyewear.com/)

    Hacken provides a wide range of security services including blockchain security consulting, web/mobile penetration testing, vulnerability assessments, coordination of bug bounty programs and more. The company also encompasses security products such as HackenAI Security Platform, hVPN, and hPass etc. Beyond just blockchain security ecosystem, Hacken has also partnered with non-blockchain giants like Air Asia.

    Over the years, Hacken has built a commendable reputation as a security risk assessment for companies requiring a digital environment to create or enable services for their consumers, which is why Hacken is certified as Web 3.0 security standard by two of the world’s largest cryptocurrency data aggregator Coingecko and Coinmarketcap.

    Quantstamp

    Website: https://quantstamp.com/

    Projects Audited: 200+

    Major Clients: Ethereum 2.0, Solana, BNB Chain, Cardano, Maker, Curve, OpenSea

    Chains Supported: All chains

    Quantstamp is a security validation protocol for smart contracts and is one of the most recognized auditing companies in the blockchain sector. Their security team consists of PhDs and security professionals with experience in top IT companies such as Google, Facebook, Apple, and Ethereum Foundation.

    Quantstamp specializes in auditing services of all programming languages designed for use in blockchain applications. Since its launch in 2017, Quantstamp has audited over 200 projects and helped secure over $200 billion in value. Its services include auditing layer-1 blockchains, smart contract-powered NFT and DeFi protocols, and developing financial frameworks for layer-1 blockchain ecosystems.

    Trail of Bits

    Website: https://www.trailofbits.com/

    Projects Audited: 500+

    Major Clients: 0x Protocol, Compound, MakerDAO, Acala, Balancer, yearn.finance

    Chains Supported: Ethereum, Polkadot, Polygon, Tezos, Arbitrum

    Trail of Bits is a cybersecurity industry giant with a long list of big-name clients such as Microsoft, Adobe, Reddit, Zoom, Airbnb, and Reddit etc. Founded in 2012, before smart contracts were even invented, the company prides itself as a network of developers with the capabilities of identifying and fixing loopholes in software, devices, and code. They have long developed tools that help developers find and fix critical vulnerabilities. Manticore is one of their signature tools, a multi-contract and multi-transaction emulator. Other tools include Cryptic, Slither and Echidna which are also blockchain-focused solutions.

    ConsenSys Diligence

    Website: https://consensys.net/

    Projects Audited: 100+

    Major Clients: 0x Exchange, Aave, Balancer, Uniswap

    Chains Supported: Ethereum

    Consenys is a US-based blockchain technology solutions company and is one of the biggest and prominent blockchain incubators in the industry. Unlike other security firms mentioned on this list, ConsenSys dedicates its resources and technological expertise solely to the development of Ethereum blockchain applications and software, especially financial infrastructures.

    Its signature product, MythX, is one of the most powerful automated scanners for Ethereum smart contracts, providing a solid API which developers can use to access security analytics tools. Over the years, ConsenSys has successfully protected over 100 Ethereum-based projects and uncovered over 200 issues. Apart from security auditing, the company also provides two other services known as Fuzzing, a bug-finding tool for first specifications, and Scribble, a runtime verification tool that translates high-level specifications into Solidity code.

    CertiK

    Website: https://www.certik.com/

    Projects Audited: 1800+

    Major Clients: BNB Chain, Polygon, The Sandbox

    Chains Supported: All chains

    CertiK is a blockchain security company specialized in formal verification and AI technology in collaboration with some of the world’s best cybersecurity experts to create end-to-end audit services. The company has developed “CertiK Chain”, a public blockchain focused on mathematically validating the safety of smart contracts through formal and manual verification. Other services of CertiK include Skynet, Skytrace and Penetration Testing.

    CertiK is an official partner company of Binance, and is also backed by numerous big-name firms such as Golden Sachs, Coinbase, Lightspeed, Matrix Partners, and DHVC.

    LeastAuthority

    Website: https://leastauthority.com/

    Projects Audited: 80+

    Major Clients: Ethereum Foundation, Chia Network, O(1) Labs, Protocol Labs, cLabs, Tezos Foundation

    Chains Supported: Ethereum, Chia Network, Tezos

    LeastAuthority is a cybersecurity consulting firm with its main focus on privacy. Using privacy-enhancing technologies, it classifies itself as an enabler of private and disruptive storage solutions. The platform offers two major products which are essentially storage architectures. The first, Privatestorage (formerly S4), is a centralized system that provides storage infrastructure to end-users and offers them the autonomy over the collection, processing and distribution of their private data. The second product, Tahoe LAFS, enables a decentralized, distributed and fault-tolerant storage facility.

    Apart from security audits, other services also include penetration testing, network and traffic analysis, and mechanism and incentive design. The company’s consultants work with developers throughout their development cycles to ensure that their projects are not susceptible to security threats.

    ChainSecurity

    Website: https://chainsecurity.com/

    Projects Audited: 85+

    Major Clients: yearn.finance, Maker, Compound, Curve, Rarible, Kyber Network

    Chains Supported: Ethereum

    ChainSecurity is a blockchain security firm led by security experts from the renowned university ETH Zurich. Similar to ConsenSys, the company specializes in Ethereum contract auditing. They have developed an automated audit platform that allows projects to thoroughly analyze smart contract designs, test their viability, and monitor metrics detailing their performances after launch. The company has worked with more than 85 Ethereum-based projects and helped secure more than $17 billion worth of assets.

    OpenZeppelin

    Website: https://openzeppelin.com/

    Projects Audited: 150+

    Major Clients: Ethereum Foundation, Coinbase, Compound, Aave, The Graph

    Chains Supported: Ethereum

    OpenZeppelin is a cybersecurity technology and services company known for its development of Solidity libraries known as “OpenZeppelin Contracts.” These libraries are used in most Solidity projects as a tested and standard template for contracts deployable on DApps. Developers can easily integrate these solutions into their applications through OpenZeppelin’s native SDK.

    OpenZeppelin was the first cybersecurity company to reinvent blockchain security by introducing elements of gamification to identify security vulnerabilities in smart contracts. “Ethernaut” is a web3/Solidity war game which challenges gamers to find and exploit loopholes in smart contracts to progress to the next level. The company also provides free services such as “Defender”, which helps clients automate their smart contract administration, offering a more secure and private transaction infrastructure.

    SlowMist

    Website: https://www.slowmist.com/en/

    Projects Audited: 1000+

    Major Clients: Binance, OKX, Huobi, Pancakeswap, Crypto.com

    Chains Supported: Ethereum, EVM Chains, EOS, Fabric, Solana, VeChain, ONT

    SlowMist is China’s leading blockchain security company founded in 2018. The team at SlowMust has over 10 years of experience in network security, specializing in smart contract audits, blockchain security, wallet security testing, and more. The company constantly tracks and publishes data about security situation on crypto exchanges through their Blockchain Threat Intelligence (BTI) service. Their most notable product MistTrack is a system that tracks the movement of stolen funds. Since its launch, it has helped recover nearly $1 billion in stolen funds.

    The company also offers security-related products such as anti-money laundering software, DarkHandBook (crypto safeguarding handbook), SlowMist Hacked (crypto hack archives), and FireWall.X (firewall for EOS smart contracts).

    Runtime Verification

    Website: https://runtimeverification.com/

    Projects Audited: 100+

    Major Clients: Algorand, Polkadot, Tezos Foundation, Ethereum Community Fund, NASA

    Chains Supported: All Chains

    Runtime Verification is a research and development company focused on verification-based techniques to perform security audits on virtual machines and smart contracts on public blockchains. The platform is a dynamic software analysis approach that analyzes programs as they execute, observing the results of the execution and using those results to find bugs. This solution designs standard models for high-value applications and uses them as templates to develop security-sensitive products.

    Runtime Verification has developed two main smart contract security products. The first, K Semantic Framework, offers smart contract correctness proofs to validate the viability of Ethereum and Cardano’s smart contracts. The second, Firefly, is a test coverage analysis tool for Ethereum smart contracts. The company has also worked with Ethereum Foundation on building a formal framework for Ethereum 2.0 testing.

  • What is Bifrost Finance ($BNC)?

    What is Bifrost Finance ($BNC)?

    Bifrost Finance ($BNC) is a Polkadot-based parachain designed to enhance cross-chain liquidity and provide users with staking service. Bifrost pays vTokens (Staking Derivatives Voucher Tokens) to users who help with liquidity by depositing PoS tokens on the platform. Users can convert a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) token into a vToken (such as ETH to vETH) for cross-chain functionality. 

    Many blockchain networks in the crypto space offer various DeFi services supported by unique native tokens. Although the global DeFi and blockchain sectors are growing, most operate individually and have little to no interoperability with each other. This lack of cohesion between chains created a void that only cross-chain projects could fill.

    Cross-chain infrastructure solutions are slowly gaining popularity. However, these projects still face problems with liquidity across networks and cross-chain reward mechanisms for staked assets. Bifrost Finance aims to address these blockchain limitations, allowing the easy flow of assets and user incentives between blockchain networks. 

    Ecosystem, Technology, and Utility

    The Bifrost project lets users earn incentives for staking assets and providing cross-chain liquidity. The project functions as an intermediary protocol between decentralized applications, and supports these applications via PoS services and liquidity staking.

    Usually, staking crypto assets require users to lock their tokens in smart contracts for a specified period. Staked tokens are generally not accessible until the lock duration expires. However, Bifrost uses its native vTokens to solve this problem through liquid staking. Liquid staking on the Bifrost platform lets users stake crypto assets and receive vTokens in exchange instead of waiting for the specified staking period to expire. Stakers can then use the vTokens to access and fund Bifrost-compatible networks like Kusama and Polkadot. Bifrost Finance uses Polkadot’s GRANDPA consensus algorithm for staking and other functions.

    Components of the Bifrost Finance Network 

    The Bifrost Finance network includes the following components:

    • Cross-chain users, including vToken holders, and BNC miners
    • Voters, who are BNC holders, capable of voting for the governance and management of the Bifrost platform. Voters receive rewards for their service.
    • Node validators who vote on valid transactions. Validators also receive a percentage of the total platform’s rewards.
    • Stake proxy nodes nominated to support PoS chains of other networks associated with Bifrost. These nodes connect with various mining pools, liquidity pools, DApps, and wallets, making it easier for the staking node to interact with other DeFi services and protocols.
    • A vToken DEX that provides liquidity for vToken. Users can also stake or unstake their tokens on this exchange.
    • Community Developers who build applications like wallets and DApps, developing new features on the Bifrost platform.

    Is the Bifrost Finance Network Safe?

    The Bifrost network is a Polkadot parachain project. The network provides security by leveraging Polkadot’s existing infrastructure instead of providing its own. Polkadot also helps provide secure communication between networks with the help of its relay chain, without any additional trust mechanisms through a concept known as “shared security.”

    Bifrost Native Coin ($BNC) Utility

    The BNC token is essential for the governance and operation of the Bifrost network. Some of its main use cases include:

    Trading Fees

    Users performing Bifrost network transactions, including transfers and staking, must pay transaction fees. Bifrost has a flexible fee model that supports multiple asset payment fees such as BNC, DOT, vDOT, KSM, and vKSM. The platform converts these fees into BNC before storing them in the treasury to promote network growth and maintenance.

    Collateral

    Participating nodes have to stake BNC to guarantee good conduct on the Bifrost network. Based on node performance, required collateral may increase or reduce.

    Administration

    To build and establish community governance, BNC holders can recommend and vote on network enhancements, with each vote corresponding to the amount of BNC tokens held.

    Bifrost ($BNC) Unique Features?

    • Bifrost provides PoS networks with much-need liquidity by letting users convert assets to vTokens with the option to receive passive income from staked tokens.
    • vTokens can help optimize transaction speed and improve transaction efficiency across various protocols and platforms, including decentralized applications (DApps), decentralized exchanges, and centralized exchanges.
    • Bifrost Finance guarantees genuine democratic governance by ensuring all processes on its parachain are transparent.

    Conclusion

    Cross-chain liquidity allows users to use and enjoy various blockchain protocols and maximize the many opportunities in the DeFi space. By providing quick and cost-effective cross-chain liquidity, Bifrost Finance has made a significant leap in DeFi advancement.

    Official Channels

    Website — https://bifrost.finance/ 
    Twitter — https://twitter.com/bifrost_finance  
    Telegram — https://t.me/bifrost_finance 
    Medium — https://medium.com/bifrost-finance 
    Github — https://github.com/bifrost-finance

  • Metaversal Truths: A Look Into holoride and Its Foray Into Cryptocurrency

    Metaversal Truths: A Look Into holoride and Its Foray Into Cryptocurrency

    Originally an initiative by the Autonomous Driving and Digital Business units in Audi to provide VR-like entertainment for passengers in cars in 2015, holoride had since spun off into its own in-car entertainment start-up in 2019. Their brand-new take on environmentally adaptive VR experiences, demonstrated in a moving car, made its debut at the famous Consumer Electronics Show of January that year.

    Their inspiration comes from a huge market for in-car entertainment, which traditionally is focused only on the drivers’ experience in the form of audio media, such as music and podcasts. Anything more would be patently dangerous. There were occasionally allowances for AV devices built into dashboards and seats, but with the advent of mobile devices, the need for such in-built gadgets has become somewhat passé, and the focus is oriented ideally towards social interaction within the vehicle itself. 

    However, with the presence of ride-shares, public transport and even autonomous vehicles, the core philosophies behind the in-car entertainment market will need to evolve, there will come a greater need for distraction from the boring commute or the monotonous long-distance highway trip. What’s more, some might not be able to read, watch or play media while in a moving vehicle due to the onset of carsickness. 

    Holoride virtual reality
    Holoride virtual reality

    What is Holoride ($RIDE)?

    Holoride aims to ‘turn vehicles into moving theme parks’ by combining the immersive technologies of Virtual Reality with the situational adaptability of Augmented Reality, users can experience what Co-founder and CEO of holoride Nils Wollny describes a ‘blended’ experience that moves and adapts according to the forces and movement of the vehicle, as well as terrain, weather and landmark data pulled from online maps. What the viewer experiences are then sights and sounds unique to every ride. It creates what it calls ‘elastic entertainment’ via Extended Reality.

    Holoride has now brought the capabilities of the Elrond blockchain to add even more value to its potential to entertain, enthrall and elate. It seeks to use the Elrond network to ensure the integrity and transparency of usage data, a potential fair usage-time-based compensation model for all ecosystem partners, increased security and compliance with automotive standards as well as improved experience quality and personalization and rewards. Elrond’s main selling point for holoride is that compared to the Ethereum blockchain, it’s infrastructure eliminates computational waste, and therefore reduces, “gas prices” or computational energy expenditure and costs.  

    holorider
    Holorider

    What is $RIDE?

    And with the Elrond blockchain comes RIDE – holoride’s token released December 2021. RIDE forms the transactional basis of its NFT (non-fungible token)-based content ecosystem on Elrond. RIDE is designed to provide incentives for using holoride by providing additional benefits and enhanced user engagement. As Wollny stated in a press statement: 

    “As we look to expand across global markets, blockchain technology and NFTs help us scale while securing the integrity of our developer-centric and car manufacturer-agnostic approach.” 

    Holoride seeks to use RIDE to build a sustainable economy on its ecosystem, allowing manufacturers, content creators, brands and passengers to trade transparently with each other and participate in the governance of the holoride platform and its content.

    As mentioned in its Litepaper, holoride seeks to use similar content strategies to the rest of the gaming industry. RIDE token holders will be able to purchase user subscriptions, digital items, upgrades, customisations and brand placements from holoride at a discount from their non-crypto price as well as access to special events and early access to content and rare collectables. 

    holoride platform
    Holoride platform

    Holoride also says that content creators will be able to mint unique NFTs based on their experiences, which can then be traded within the network’s marketplace. Fundamentally, this creates a token out of the social trading aspect of holoride’s experiences. Essentially, it makes RIDE a form of literal social currency. 

    “As players get more involved, these purchases generate additional revenue. In addition, unique in-game currencies are often created for these purchases to add value through enhanced functionalities, enable a universally and globally accepted in-game payment standard, or enable special discounts if players pre-purchase a specific credit – just to name a few.

    The Litepaper goes on to say that holoride’s mission “is to make transit time more valuable for everyone. Through NFTs, we envision the highest level of personalization for users while offering a one-of-a-kind XR experience with compelling monetisation opportunities for our partners.”

    Content creators and car manufacturers could also possibly receive RIDE as part of user engagement with NFTs via transaction fees. For example, in their Litepaper, a 5% split might be equally done between the original content creator, the car manufacturer the NFT was minted on and holoride itself. Holoride can also ensure via Elrond that balances can also be settled by burning RIDE and paying out the partners with Fiat currency.

    Finally, a certain percentage of holoride’s income from revenue, Fiat purchases, smart contract royalties and many more will be used each month to purchase RIDE tokens from the open market and deposit them in the holoride treasury to fund the sustainable development of the ecosystem via grants and other incentives.

    holoride experience
    Holoride experience

    According to TechCrunch, Ride is currently being sold on Elrond’s Maiar Launchpad, currently the only way to get it. Holoride will initially circulate 130 million tokens, and there is a max supply of 1 billion. Two hundred million tokens were sold at $0.02 at a private sale to raise funds and another 50 million were sold publicly before the launch of the crypto, which constitutes only 5% of the total RIDE tokens. Still, this would have brought holoride US million. (https://experience.afrotech.com/)  

    To learn more about Maiar Exchange ($MEX) and how to use it, check out our tutorial.

    The rest are reserved for members of the Ecosystem – developers, content creators, automotive manufacturers, mobility providers, operational supporters, or advisors and ambassadors, etc; the Community – early contributors to the project; a Treasury – for unexpected issues and finally the Team – who are holoride workers themselves. 

    holoride universe
    Holoride universe

    Holoride’s technology is still some time away from launch, ostensibly within 2022. Even so, it’ll require a huge amount of capital locked in to sustain its rather expansive application of the Elrond blockchain to make business sense. 

    But whatever the outcome, valuable lessons might be learnt from how it combines decentralised, socially-motivated commerce with their take on the metaverse. Wollny is optimistic about how holoride can enable its users to create value out of it. As he tells TechCrunch:

    “Now that everyone is all over the metaverse, cryptocurrencies and NFTs, the puzzle pieces might fit a little better. However, many things are still unsolved and the best is yet to come.”

    REFERENCES: 

    Holoride Official Website. Get Ride. (https://www.holoride.com/ride-token)

    Holoride Litepaper. Adding Thrill To Every Ride. (https://a.storyblok.com/f/113424/x/334861532d/holoride_litepaper_v2-1_nov21.pdf)

    Bobby Carlton. 24 May 2021. VRScout. In-Car XR Platform ‘Holoride’ Announces Blockchain Ecosystem. (https://vrscout.com/news/holoride-announces-blockchain-ecosystem/)

    Rebecca Bellan. 30 Nov 2021. TechCrunch+. Holoride debuts Ride crypto, the currency of its in-car metaverse. (https://techcrunch.com/2021/11/30/holoride-debuts-ride-crypto-the-currency-of-its-in-car-metaverse/)

    Rebecca Bellan. 20 May 2021. TechCrunch+. Holoride deploys Elrond blockchain and NFTs in prep for 2022 market launch. (https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/20/holoride-deploys-elrond-blockchain-and-nfts-in-prep-for-2022-market-launch/)

    Hashoshi. 8 Nov 2021. YouTube. holoride is bringing in-car entertainment to the metaverse! (1st Elrond Launchpad Project!) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMk9YcRAnn8)

    Anifowoshe Ibrahim. May 2021. Bitcoinist. Holoride To Integrate NFTs and Blockchain For Its In-Vehicle Entertainment Experience (https://bitcoinist.com/holoride-to-integrate-nfts-and-blockchain-for-its-in-vehicle-entertainment-experience/)

    Jon Joehnig. 21 June 2021. Holoride Talks Convergence, Content Creators, NFTs, and 5G. (https://arpost.co/2021/06/21/holoride-convergence-content-creators-nfts-5g/)

    FAQ

    What is holoride?

    holoride is a VR-entertainment start-up firm that has created a VR platform that creates experiences  combining Augmented Reality tech and is able to change and adapt along with the passenger’s ride or commute, how the vehicle moves and available terrain and weather data. The visuals moving with the vehicle’s forces actually reduces the usual motion sickness associated with VR

    What does a VR company need blockchain and cryptocurrencies for?

    platform through the sale of extra content and upgrades. But it also wants transparency and for content creators to make, share and be compensated for content for the holoride platform too. So allowing itself and others to create NFTs and trading them using its online RIDE tokens is a fairly reasonable way to create a socially-driven, traceable economy around online content. 

    Where can RIDE tokens be bought?

    Via the Elrond blockchain’s Maiar platform. It currently accepts stablecoins. There will be a maximum supply of a billion tokens. 250 millions have already been sold, and 130 million more will be sold again in the near future. Learn how to use Maiar Exchange with our tutorial- Maiar Exchange Tutorial ($MEX)- Guide to Elronds’ ($EGLD) official DEX.

  • What is Cardano ($ADA)?

    What is Cardano ($ADA)?

    Cardano is a decentralized smart contract platform which would be driven by peer reviewed academic research and capable of running both financial applications and decentralised applications. Established by a former co-founder of Ethereum, Cardano aims to improve on Ethereum by offering low-cost, secure and scalable transactions. To improve smart contract security, Cardano uses the programming language Haskell which has been proven to be easier to audit and formally verify. In addition, Cardano openly addresses the need for regulatory oversight whilst maintaining consumer privacy and protections through an innovative software architecture.

    Check out our explainer video on Cardano ($ADA)

    What is the ADA token and its uses?

    ADA is Cardano’s native cryptocurrency. It was launched on 1st January 2018 through an initial coin offering as a utility token and will have 45 billion total supply. It is currently the 8th most popular cryptocurrency based on market capitalisation according to CoinGecko.

    Upon the opening of the Shelley Public testnet on 9th June 2020, and any operator can set up a Cardano stake pool in anticipation for staking and delegation on the mainnet to be released in Summer 2020.

    Eventually, ADA will allow users to send value between two parties, pay for goods or services, deposit funds on an exchange, or enter an application. ADA will also be used to power the transactions on the Cardano network.

    Founder: Charles Hoskinson

    Charles Hoskinson is a co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Ethereum Classic, with extensive experience working with smart contracts and the programming language Haskell. He is an outspoken critic of Ethereum and parted ways with the Ethereum team in 2016. This was likely due to ideological differences arising from the team’s response to the DAO hack of 2016. Hoskinson is now the CEO of Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK), and they have devoted a large team of expert engineers and researchers to build Cardano from the ground up.

    Cardano – development of the blockchain protocol

    Cardano aims to become the third generation blockchain, overcoming issues with previous generations of blockchains namely lack of scalability, interoperability and sustainability. Cardano aims to develop its platform upon these 2 guiding principles:

    • Peer-review: any science guiding the solutions to these issues goes through peer review.
    • High assurance code: Cardano aims to bring the same level of scientific rigour for mission critical systems such as aerospace to the development of their project.

    Cardano’s platform has the following key features:

    • Cardano will be built in Haskell code. Haskell uses a math based approach that results in a much more secure and reliable protocol.
    • A formally verified Proof of Stake consensus called Ouroboros. It is the first provably secure blockchain protocol developed by the IOHK team and peer reviewed. It has advantages over the traditional proof of work blockchains (e.g. as used by Bitcoin) by requiring less computation resources (there will be no mining) and is thus cheaper to run, yet being just as secure as the more popular Proof of Work algorithm. It also comes with a novel reward mechanism to prevent attacks like block withholding and selfish-mining.
    • Recursive InterNetwork Architecture (RINA): Cardano is looking towards building RINA in order to reduce the bandwidth which is required for communicating and disseminating data. The idea is that RINA has fewer protocols but is able to work faster, yet still providing transparency, privacy and scalability.
    • The protocol is geared towards protecting users’ privacy rights while taking into account the needs of regulators. In doing so, Cardano is the first protocol to balance these requirements in a nuanced and effective way, pioneering a new approach for cryptocurrencies.
    • Cardano will also be completely open source and patent-free.

    Cardano’s platform is being constructed in 2 layers- a settlement layer and a computational layer. This gives the system flexibility during maintenance and allow for upgrades by way of soft forks.

    After completion of the settlement layer that will run ADA, the separate computing layer will be built to handle smart contracts. Cardano will also run decentralised applications, or dapps, services not controlled by any single party but instead operate on a blockchain.

    Advantages and Disadvantages of Cardano?

    Advantages of Cardano

    Many smart contract users believe that Cardano holds the key for long term secure development. This because of the numerous hacks and vulnerabilities in platforms such as Ethereum. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has criticized Ethereum as a “rushed product” with vulnerabilities which led to famous hacks such as The DAO. This could be viewed as a symptom of the flaws in Ethereum’s programming language, Solidity. Cardano improves on this by allowing for development using Haskell which can be formally verified.

    Cardano’s use of the proof of stake model in itself brings lots of advantages such as less susceptibility to interference because the nodes will be responsible for throughput and thus eliminating the need for extra machines. In turn less energy will be consumed which is better for the environment.

    Rewards are given out based on the number of tokens held rather than the amount of computational power contributed, which is fairer.

    The platform’s 2 layered system allows for each layer to be responsible for a complete set of tasks. This means more potential for interoperability with different cryptocurrency platforms and is therefore more scalable compared to Ethereum.

    Disadvantages of Cardano

    Critics of Cardano have pointed to the slow development and overly ideal goals of the project. This can be risky for Cardano because it could be overtaken by more aggressive competitors, or the regulatory environment can change meanwhile.

    Many features promised by the Cardano team are still not yet available. So a lot of what is said about how its cryptocurrency ADA would work is still theoretical.

    What is the Daedalus wallet?

    In order to store and use ADA, you must install Cardano’s Daedalus wallet. With the wallet you can send and receive ADA as well as view your transaction history.

    The Daedalus wallet will also offer the following features:

    • Unlimited Accounting – Manage any number of wallets with Cardano’s innovative hierarchical deterministic wallet implementation. This will give you more control over how your funds are organised. It also has powerful backup features to help recover your funds anytime.
    • Advanced Security – Cardano will not hold your keys. They use the most advanced cryptography in the world to ensure safety from attack and offer spending passwords and seeds for all your accounts.
    • Export to paper certificates- Wallets can be exported to paper certificates giving users the option of placing funds in cold storage.
    • Built with Web Technologies – Daedalus is built on top of Electron, a battle-proven open source development platform to build cross-platform desktop apps using Javascript, HTML and CSS.

    The Daedalus wallet is still a work in progress, features which are expected to be coming soon include:

    • Support for Bitcoin and Ethereum Classic.
    • Staking features which allow ADA holders to earn more ADA tokens.
    • A mobile wallet for both iOS and Android.

    What is the Goguen Era of Smart Contracts?

    On 12 September 2021, Cardano’s Alonzo hard fork upgrade went live on mainnet. Therefore, users can now create and deploy smart contracts on the Cardano blockchain.

    To learn more about what the Gouguen Era and Alonzo Hard Fork means for the development of Cardano, check out our detailed article here.

    Cardano enters DeFi with Occam Finance ($OCC)

    Occam Finance ($OCC) is a suite of DeFi (Decentralized Finance) solutions tailored for Cardano and managed and maintained by the Occam Association, a blockchain entity based in Switzerland. Currently, Occam offers 3 major products: OccamRazer, OccamX and OccamDAO.

    Resources:

    Website https://cardanofoundation.org/
    IOHK website https://iohk.io/
    Ouroboros whitepaper https://iohk.io/research/papers/#9BKRHCSI
    Blog https://cardanofoundation.org/blog/

  • Boba Network: Is it an improvement on Ethereum?

    Boba Network: Is it an improvement on Ethereum?

    Introduction of Boba

    Boba Network is an Ethereum Layer 2 Solution that is designed to drastically improve the speed and efficiency of ethereum. Boba uses Optimistic Rollup technology that combines outstanding open-source work with the research and development of swaps based on onramps, rapid exits, and cross-chain bridging. Boba was created because it is essentially a modified version of Ethereum, making it relatively easy to ensure Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Solidity compatibility in minimizing the efforts required to migrate smart contracts from Layer 1 (L1) to Layer 2 (L2).

    What is BOBA’s vision?

    BOBA’s vision is to gain more accessibility to the market with a larger audience by providing a more cost-effective, fast migrating process and more capacity by delivering more layers to the user. Hence, BOBA takes the benefit of Ethereum by using it as an active transaction and settlement layer to encourage more transactions in BOBA. Plus, by using Ethereum as the settlement layer will make the transactions in BOBA much faster and cheaper. 

    Therefore, together with other developers such as oolong swap, senpai swap, and others, BOBA has provided more exciting opportunities for the users to farm and trade Non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

    How to bridge to Boba on the Network?

    Currently, the developer is working on user experience to a point where they even subsidise some of the costs for bridging to Boba to reduce a couple of clicks in the process.

    This is how to bridge to Boba using $OMG 

    1. Ensure that you holding $OMG in your own private wallet, not an exchange wallet and connect your wallet to Metamask. (https://metamask.io) 
    2. Go to boba.gateway.network to connect to Boba Network using your Metamask
    connect to Boba Network using Metamask
    1. Scroll down to where it shows OMG and click Bridge
    Bridging to OMG
    1. Select “Fast Bridge to L2”
    Fast bridge to L2
    1. Enter the amount of OMG you like to bridge. Choose “Use all” to bridge them all. Then click the “Bridge”button.
    enter amount of OMG to bridge
    1. Metamask will pop up. Confirm the transaction by clicking “Confirm”. First check you happy with the gas fee, which is paid with Ethereum.
    Confirm transaction using Metamask
    1. Once the transaction is confirm, the Metamask will show confirmation of the first transaction and pop up again for the second transaction confirmation. Click “Confirm”.
    transaction confirmation

    What is the Boba currency of transaction?

    Currently, Ethereum has been used as a currency of transactions on the Boba network because most users have Ethereum. The developer doesn’t want first-time users to experience acquiring Boba token before they do any transactions. The user only has access to the bridge over Ethereum; however, if they have any other access, it would be great for Boba as there will be many different pools that the users can join in and farm. 

    What is the BOBA token used for?

    The BOBA token serves two purposes. One is to join a network where there will be rolling out the boba dial. The Boba developers will invite the whole community or token holders to participate in proposing changes in the network by voting on proposals to improve Boba.

    The second purpose is staking, where the Boba developers will be sharing a portion of the network profits with token holders who stick the tokens on the mobile network. The reason for doing this is to build an engaged community of boba token holders around the network since they need strong communities to attract more people to join Boba and achieve the vision, which is to gain more access to the large market with a large audience.  

    Where do the profits come from? 

    The profits come from the transactions that happen on the networks, which any transactions that the users do will need to burn some layer 2 gas. As a result, the network itself will need to pay Ethereum to store cryptographic proofs on the main chain to prove that the user has done the transactions correctly. 

    However, the user must reach a certain break-even point in order to earn a profit. The user must reach a minimum level of transactions that needs to happen before the network starts generating profits. For example, just like the airline or bus, if they have too few passengers, they will begin to lose money, so they must reach a certain point of passengers to generate profit.

    How many transactions and profits can be made?

    As for now, Boba Network can handle 54 transactions in one block. However, how much profit can be made depends on the variable since the developer will tweak the pricing structure to ensure the network is price competitive. The more volume the network processes, the more ability they can lower the cost per transaction.

    The mechanism behind Boba

    The developers have used optimistic roll-up as a mechanism for BOBA. It is a very modular system that lets the developer easily switch up and update different pieces of the optimistic roll-up system. Hence, the developer of BOBA can keep updating and adding more functionality to the BOBA system. Aside from that, by using optimistic roll-up, the developer can easily change the existing solidity code without affecting the major barrier and re-audit the smart contract since they want to make sure that BOBA is compatible with virtually all smart contracts. 

    What is optimistic rollup?

    BOBA has been called “optimistic rollup” because its system gives the users the benefit of the doubt. The BOBA system has provided the users with a community fraud detector. The community fraud detectors can allow the users to compute whether the operator is honest or fraudulent by checking every single one of the BOBA states routes and transactions that they submit to L1.

    Why not a centralised platform?

    The system is set up in which all the funds that are on L2 are on Ethereum mainstream bridges or in volts that are positioned on a theory main chain. Everything that is going on in the L2 represents tokens and Ethereum that live on the L1. When you bridge funds on the L2, BOBA will represent those funds on the L2, and when you leave, L2 will burn them. However, the actual tokens reside on the L1 permanently, so that it gives people a little bit extra security on what would happen if BOBA went down. Aside from that BOBA is an open-source project in which the code used has been audited once and is now being reaudited for a second time. 

    What is the difference between all the L-2 solutions?

    There are two main categories that Boba considers using, which is the Zero-Knowledge (ZK) roll-up and the Optimistic roll up. However, the developer has decided to use the Optimistic roll-up to run immediately and easily arbitrary solidity smart contracts compared to the ZK roll-up which cannot take arbitrary smart contracts and run on ZK layer 2. Aside from that, the cost for Optimistic roll-up is lesser compared to ZK roll up

    Conclusion

    In conclusion, people should try BOBA since many new dApps are launching and lots of farming opportunities that many robot users have enjoyed. Plus, there will be an NFT series launching, which will be a good opportunity to try BOBA.

  • Ethereum Savings Wallet

    Ethereum Savings Wallet

    Holding Ethereum has been very profitable for many crypto enthusiasts. But did you know that you can also multiply your holdings by earning interest on your Ethereum deposits through an Ethereum savings wallet? 

    When you open an Ethereum savings wallet, you can deposit your Ethereum holdings into the savings wallet. The savings wallet provider will then loan out your ETH to borrowers, providing you with a percentage of interest in exchange. It is more profitable than only relying on the price appreciation of Ethereum. You can earn interest as high as 8% for your holdings, which is far higher than what many traditional banks and other financial institutions offer on fiat currencies. 

    Thanks to the efficiencies of blockchain technology and lending markets, cryptocurrency users are able to earn high interest rates on their digital assets. And thanks to platforms like FTX Exchange, Nexo and BlockFi, it’s easier than ever to earn passive income from your cryptocurrencies. If you are interested in long-term investing, an Ethereum savings wallet can help you accrue interest while keeping your Ethereum safe.

    Why Earn Interest Using An Ethereum Savings Wallet?

    Easy Process

    You can start earning interest on your Ethereum deposits after completing a few easy steps. All you need to do is sign up for an Ethereum savings wallet, complete the KYC process, and deposit Ethereum to your savings account. That’s it! Your interest accruals will begin automatically as soon as your savings account receives Ethereum deposits. Some savings wallet providers even provide you bonuses for signing up. 

    Low Risk

    Compared to the products offering similar high interest rates, earning on your Ethereum deposits is a low-risk option. Such high returns are possible as savings wallet holders lend cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies to borrowers at very high-interest rates and share their earnings with other savings wallet holders in the form of interest. Most savings wallet providers manage the risk by making over-collateralization mandatory to borrow from them.

    Passive Income

    Passive income is income that requires minimal labor to earn and maintain. Automatic payouts by savings wallet providers means your earnings are paid directly into your savings wallet. You can either choose to withdraw them straight away, or leave your earnings in your savings wallet to compound and grow exponentially. Who doesn’t want to earn money for their Ethereum holdings even while asleep?

    24/7 Access to Funds

    Unlike traditional banks, your Ethereum savings wallet will be open 24/7. You will always have complete access to ETH in your savings wallet. Some providers even allow you to buy and sell Ethereum instantly from your savings wallet.

    Which Ethereum Savings Wallet Should I Choose?

    When it comes to Ethereum savings wallet providers, there is no shortage of options available for you to choose from. Let’s explore some of the best Ethereum savings wallets.

    FTX Earn

    ethereum savings wallet

    FTX Exchange is a cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform built by professional traders Alameda Research. FTX will deposit interest earnings calculated hourly. Interest will be compounded on principal and yield you have already earned. It is really easy to get started and you can earn interest immediately after you have opted into the program.

    The FTX Earn interest rate for Ethereum is 5 – 8% APY. 

    FTX Earn tiers their interest rate differently than any other platform, in which the first $10,000 USD of deposited funds earns 8% APY regardless of coin/token. All funds beyond that earn 5% APY. There are no lockup terms for your deposits but it is worth noting that withdrawal fees do apply for ETH.

    Nexo

    earn interest from ethereum savings

    Nexo is a unique lending platform based in Switzerland. It allows you to take out loans based on the amount of cryptocurrency in your account without selling your coins and buying them back. Though you cannot currently buy or sell Ethereum through the Nexo platform, the Nexo savings wallet offers a high-yield method for investors to earn money on idle ETH.

    With Nexo, you can earn up to 8% APR for your Ethereum savings.

    Opting for the Nexo FLEX offering will give you an additional 1% interest on your ETH, as well as compounded daily payouts. Nexo also offers zero fees and top-tier security and insurance to protect your funds.

    BlockFi

    blockfi crypto savings

    BlockFi is one of the most competitive and well-known cryptocurrency savings account providers for a reason. BlockFi was founded in 2017 and is a fully regulated and licensed bank-like provider of cryptocurrency savings wallets, loans, and exchange services.

    BlockFi uses a tiered interest structure that can go up to 5% APY for Ethereum holders.

    The BlockFi platform is easy to use and gives you full transparency and control of your assets. They even have a mobile app so you can manage your savings wallet from any smart device. BlockFi is also one of the safest savings wallet providers with trusted crypto asset manager, Gemini as its custodian.

    YouHodler

    youhodler crypto savings

    Launched in 2019, YouHodler is an EU and Swiss-based cryptocurrency platform with both a web interface and mobile app. Ilya Volkov, the CEO and co-founder of YouHodler, has more than 15 years of experience in the FinTech industry, making the platform a serious competitor among savings wallet providers.

    Ethereum holders can earn 5.5% APR plus daily compounding interest on YouHodler.

    Payouts are made every week and you can start earning interest immediately after depositing ETH into your savings wallet. There is, however, a minimum deposit of $500 worth of ETH at market price to begin. Some fees may also apply.

    Celsius Network

    celcius crypto savings

    Celsius Network adopts a strategy based on the mobile market. As a result, they offer a great mobile-based solution for earning interest on your Ethereum. Built on the belief that financial services should only do what is in the best interests of the community, Celsius is a modern platform that aims to empower the unbanked. 

    Celsius offers 5.35% APY for holdings up to 100 ETH and 3.52% APY for holding above 100 ETH.

    Celsius is secured with multi-factor authentication, private key double vaults, encryption, and third-party solutions. Their assets are distributed amongst cold wallets and exchanges for additional security.

    Conclusion

    They say nothing in life is free, but clearly these people are wrong. By putting your idle ETH to work, you can significantly grow your holdings over time. With an ever-increasing number of savings wallet providers, Ethereum holders now have many different options and flexibilities to earn interest for their Ethereum. These platforms provide a great investment opportunity to generate passive income while providing holders peace of mind over the safety of their holdings.

    If the crypto economy continues to go mainstream at its current rate, it is not too far-fetched to envision more and more individuals around the globe choosing crypto savings wallets over traditional savings accounts from banks. It will definitely be exciting to see what crypto banking can accomplish next.

  • Ask a question to Leo Wang, Co-Founder of Crust Network

    Ask a question to Leo Wang, Co-Founder of Crust Network

    I’ll be interviewing Leo Wang, Co-founder of Crust Network LIVE on 17th September 2020 at 3:00am (UTC)!

    In the interview we will be discussing:

    • Decentralised storage- what is it and why is it better than the traditional cloud network?
    • Their role in the Polkadot ecosystem.
    • Upcoming $CRU Bounce auction.
    • What can we expect from Crust Network?

    What is Crust Network? Crust Network implements the incentive layer protocol for decentralized storage. It is adaptable to multiple storage layer protocols such as IPFS, and provides support for the application layer. Crust’s architecture also has the capability of supporting a decentralized computing layer and building a decentralized cloud ecosystem. At present, public testnet Maxwell CC2 is live, and everyone is welcome to participate in the testnet. Crust Network successively joined Substrate Builders Program and Web3.0 Bootcamp, and also obtained a Web3 Foundation Grant.

    Who is Leo Wang? Leo is the Co-Founder of Crust Network, leading products and technologies. Leo is experienced in distributed storage, cloud computing and blockchain areas. Leo worked in Microsoft and Cisco as their Development Lead. In Cisco Leo also led a blockchain-based project to store and exchange manufacturing data in different geo-locations.

    This video is aimed at all levels of cryptocurrency enthusiasts so feel free to ask Leo your burning questions about Crust Network and this space in general.

    I will personally be giving out prizes for the best 3 questions. To ask a question, leave a comment in this post below!

    Event Time: 17th September 2020 at 3:00am (UTC)!

    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. (Clonazepam) 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.

  • Ethereum Mining Guide (2021)

    Ethereum Mining Guide (2021)

    What is Ethereum Mining?

    Ethereum is one of the easiest cryptocurrencies to mine, using idle computer resources to earn daily revenue in Ethereum (ETH). This is especially true if you have a high end computer, as they usually have the necessary hardware to mine Ethereum. This guide will cover the basics of Ethereum mining and will get you started in less than 5 minutes. In order to get mining, you’ll need a Graphics Processing Unit(GPU). GPUs are usually in gaming computers and high-end computers (eg MacBook Pro or Dell XPS). Miners frequently sell mined Ethereum on top cryptocurrency exchanges or Over-the-Counter to generate passive income.

    [wp-compear id=”5148″]

    Ethereum (ETH) is the cryptocurrency used on the Ethereum network – decentralized smart platform for running decentralized applications (dApps) and decentralized finance (DeFi). To learn more about Ethereum check out our Ethereum Guide.

    Note: If you don’t have a GPU, check the bottom section of this guide and we’ll teach you how to buy and install one.

    Note 2: In 2021, Ethereum will deploy a new consensus mechanism called Proof of Stake that no longer requires mining. This will eventually phase out mining on Ethereum all together. Read more about Proof of Stake.

    How Profitable is Ethereum Mining?

    Daily Revenue from mining rewards differ everyday – this is because mining difficulty changes and hence the daily reward. Revenue is dependent on the power of the Graphics Processor Unit (GPU) involved, with higher Hashrates being faster and more profitable. There are two major manufacturers of GPUs: Nvidia and AMD. Generally speaking, the more powerful (and expensive) the GPU higher the Hashrate for mining Ethereum. For example, the expensive Nvidia RTX 2080 mines at 36.90 MH/s whilst the less expensive Nvidia GTX 1660 mines at 20.50 MH/s. Check out the latest up-to-date daily revenue for different hardware on https://whattomine.com.

    Daily Revenue Yearly Revenue
    Nvidia RTX 2080 $0.50 $182
    Nvidia GTX 1060 $0.30 $109
    AMD Vega64 $0.54 $197
    AMD RX480 $0.40 $146

    Potential Revenue mining Ethereum (Calculated on Oct 29 2019)

    We calculated the costs and profits for mining Ethereum, and how does it compare to Ethereum staking? Which one is better?

    Ethereum mining vs staking: Which one is more profitable

    Easiest way to mine Ethereum (Honeyminer)

    Honeyminer is an all-in-one mining solution that automatically mines on your computer without any technical knowledge. Honeyminer automatically joins a mining pool, so you can get daily payouts of the revenue you generate from mining.

    Once installed, the software will automatically mine the best cryptocurrency (including ethereum) using all available hardware – both CPU and GPUs available on the machine. To see the daily revenue, open up the “see full activity panel” to get a breakdown of the hardware being used.

    When Honeyminer is running, the computer’s hardware will get 100% utilized. It’s still run simple tasks on the computer, like web-browsing or composing emails. However, running video games or editing photos/videos will become slower. It is advised to turn-off honeyminer when doing resource intensive tasks.

    It is important to note that Honeymoney will mine the most profitable cryptocurrency at the time (including ethereum) and convert the revenue into Bitcoin (displayed in Sats, satoshi). If you want to specifically mine ethereum and earn ethereum, check the advanced guide below.

    One disadavantage of Honeyminer is the platform fees. Currently, Honeyminer takes 8% fee for the 1st GPU and 2.5% for additional GPUs. This means a portion of the revenue will go to Honeyminer. If you don’t want to pay platform fees, you can try the advanced Ethereum Mining option

    To install Honeyminer, download it here: https://honeyminer.com/

    Operating System Requirements

    To mine Ethereum, you can easily use any modern operating system: Windows 10, MacOS and Linux. For beginners, it’s suggested to try out HoneyMiner on either Windows 10 or MacOS to get the feel of mining. This is because it’s the easiest to setup up and can work alongside regular tasks on the computer. For higher mining performance, a dedicated linux based operating system is recommended – this allows for optimisation of the caching properties and remote management. Currently popular custom mining OS include: HiveOS, NicehashOS and ethOS.

    How to Mine Ethereum (Advanced)

    Claymore’s Dual GPU Miner

    There are 3 main software miners for mining Ethereum. For each of the Ethereum mining software, there are advanced settings possible such as customization for the memory usage, caching and efficiency. For example, Claymore’s Dual Ethereum miner have advanced options such as optimized memory timings (increase performance by ~10-20%) and support for mining pools. Top 3 Ethereum miners are:

    To setup Ethereum, you need to have an Ethereum address. In order to get an address, you can look at our Enjin Wallet for a free software wallet or Ledger Nano X – a secure hardware wallet.

    Ethereum Pool Mining

    There are two main ways to mine ethereum – solo mining or pool mining.

    Pool Mining (working together)

    • Work with others to mine and share rewards
    • Get paid per share, on a hourly or daily basis
    • Less random / dependent on luck
    • Pools take some fees (0.5-3% depending on pool)

    Solo Mining

    • You mine the entire block reward (3 ETH per block) – no pool fees
    • Random Chance and probability – you can go days or months without rewards
    • Not viable if Hashrate is low – single GPU will take years to mine a block

    Top Ethereum Mining Pools

    There are 2 factors to consider when picking a Ethereum mining pool – the location of the pool and it’s market share. The top priority would be location – the closer the pool is to you geographically the better. This is because sometimes due to network latency, shares that are mined could be “stale” – as new blocks are created rendering older blocks obsolete. It’s also important to know that Chinese servers are behind the Great Firewall of China, meaning that connections could periodically break. This means that choosing a server with low latency and close geographical location would give the highest yield.

    The second factor is the market share of the pool. The larger the market share, the more consistent the rewards. This is because blocks are continuously mined by the pool, and hence they can pay out at a consistent rate. This reduces the impact of the randomness of block creation.

    We recommend finding a pool close to your location with a high market share.

    Is it possible to solo mine Ethereum in 2020

    Currently it’s not feasible to solo mine Ethereum in 2020. It would take 67 years to solo mine a block (assuming 30 MHash/s and current total hashrate of 181 THash/s). This would mean it would likely take an entire lifetime before the solo miner finds a block with a single GPU.

    How long will Ethereum be able to be mined

    With the upcoming changes coming to Ethereum 2.0, Ethereum mining will eventually be phased out. Mining will be deprecated in phase 3 of the ETH2 roadmap, expected to come sometime in 2022 at the earliest. At this point, there will no longer be any rewards for mining Ethereum as the network will full be proof of stake.

    Ethereum Cloud Mining

    In 2020, Ethereum Cloud mining contracts are not profitable. This is because mining has become more competitive with lower margins – forcing miners to reduce costs. Cloud mining is hit the hardest because of they have large overheads like advertising spends and legal costs. In our latest research, we found that cloud mining providers were charging 184% for the same hashrate than home-made solutions.

    What is Ethereum ProgPoW and how does it impact mining

    ProgPow is a proposed extension to the mining algorithm of Ethereum, designed to resist centralization of miners via ASICs (specialized mining equipment). The ProgPoW upgrade is meant to help Graphics Cards become more competitive by using more RAM and features unique to the GPU. Overall this will help Ethereum mining be more accessible and viable with commercial off-the-shelf hardware. Currently ProgPoW is in an ‘audit’ phase, and if passed will be included in Ethereum’s next hard fork.

    Ethereum Mining Difficulty Bomb

    Ethereum network has a built in mechanic to decrease the effectiveness of mining over time called the “Ethereum Difficulty Bomb“. This is designed as a hard mechanic to ensure that Ethereum eventually moves to proof of stake, an eco-friendly consensus mechanism that doesn’t require mining. Proof of stake will be part of Ethereum 2.0 which is stated to release in 2020, at which point mining on Ethereum will slowly be phased out. However, the Ethereum team is known to delay the deployment of proof of stake and consequently the difficulty bomb. On the 6th of January 2020, the difficulty bomb was delayed once again via the “Muir Glacier” update, which effectively delayed the difficulty bomb for another ~600 days.

    Update 9th Jan: Fixed typos and included extra information about Ethereum Hashrate

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