Coin News

A long-running effort to boost block propagation times in the bitcoin network is getting an upgrade.

An eerily detailed database containing a list of suspected and convicted criminals and terrorists is reportedly being sold online for 10 bitcoin (about $6,600) and 3.5 bitcoin ($2,300.)

The group who goes by the name Poodlecorp (yes, really) has threatened to take down Pokémon Go servers with a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack on August 1st. If achieved, the attack is certain to rile up gamers who are already inundating its servers due to the game’s sheer popularity.

The post Pokémon Go DDoS Attackers Threaten Wipeout on August 1 appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Coinbase adds Ethereum just a day after a historical and highly successful hardfork. Coinbase customers in 32 countries can now easily directly buy, sell store and send eth from their Coinbase account, making a conversion from btc to eth unnecessary, saving money in conversion fees. The ability to buy eth further extends to a new […]

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Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are growing in importance and rely on supercomputers and lots of electrons for their creation. If they become a truly vital sector of the economy, they will draw substantial amounts of electricity in low-cost power markets across the globe.

Bitcoin price continues declining and we have to ask “why”? Unfavorable news? Bad fundamentals? Truth is: neither – commodities rise and fall due to leveraged speculation in their price charts. This analysis is provided by xbt.social with a 3-hour delay. Read the full analysis here. Not a member? Join now. Bitcoin Price Analysis Time of […]

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 Since Coinbase was founded in 2012, hundreds if not thousands of Bitcoin competitors (typically referred to as alt-coins) were created. But Coinbase ignored the noise and remained focused on supporting just one currency – Bitcoin. But today that changes, as Coinbase is announcing that they are adding site-wide support for Ethereum, a digital currency with a built in programming… Read More

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Discover, one of the four major US card networks, posted ongoing growth in loans, sales, and card spend on credit products.

That could be a response to the firm’s heavy focus on its rewards offerings, which make it simpler and cheaper to attract new customers.  

• The firm has noted plans to push strong rewards offerings, like double rewards for new accounts. It’s clear that the firm is investing in this area — rewards costs increased by 16 basis points year-over-year (YoY) as a result of the double rewards investment. But that investment is helping the firm attract new business — Discover acquired a “post-recession record” number of new customers in Q2 2016, many of whom could have been won over by the rewards offerings for new customers.
• These customers are spending on their cards. Though PULSE — Discover’s debit network — declined in Q2 2016, credit spend on Discover-branded, Diners Club, and Network Partner cards, where Discover’s rewards programs live, rose. And “card growth” is skewing “60/40” between new and existing customers, according to CFO R. Mark Graf, because new accounts are quickly becoming engaged and driving growth. 

But in order to continue posting gains, the company has two hurdles to overcome:

• Stiff competition: Though Discover’s rewards offerings may have been previously innovative, its competitors are acting “aggressively” in pursing potential customers with strong rewards offerings. That’s one factor leading to greater competition in the rewards card space. Discover isn’t willing to match unprofitable offers from other card issuers, which could temper growth moving forward.
• Limited acceptance network: It’s also worth noting that Discover has the smallest acceptance network of the four major card brands in the US, which could push consumers being wooed by multiple competitors with similar rewards offerings to choose the more widely accepted product.

Rewards programs are one piece of the evolving payments ecosystem, which is changing thanks to disruptive technologies and new innovations.

Evan Bakker and John Heggestuen, analysts at BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, have compiled a detailed report on the payments ecosystem that drills into the industry to explain how a broad range of transactions are processed, including prepaid and store cards, as well as revealing which types of companies are in the best and worst position to capitalize on the latest industry trends.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• 2016 will be a watershed year for the payments industry. Payments companies are improving security, expanding their mobile offerings, and building commerce capabilities that will give consumers a more compelling reason to make purchases using digital devices.
• Payments is an extremely complex industry. To understand the next big digital opportunity lies, it's critical to understand how the traditional credit- and debit-processing chain works and what roles acquirers, processors, issuing banks, card networks, independent sales organizations, gateways, and software and hardware providers play.
• Alternative technologies could disrupt the processing ecosystem. Devices ranging from refrigerators to smartwatches now feature payment capabilities, which will spur changes in consumer payment behaviors. Likewise, blockchain technology, the protocol that underlies Bitcoin, could one day change how consumer card payments are verified.

In full, the report:

• Uncovers the key themes and trends affecting the payments industry in 2016 and beyond.
• Gives a detailed description of the stakeholders involved in a payment transaction, along with hardware and software providers.
• Offers diagrams and infographics explaining how card transactions are processed and which players are involved in each step.
• Provides charts on our latest forecasts, key company growth, survey results, and more.
• Analyzes the alternative technologies, including blockchain, which could further disrupt the ecosystem.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

1. Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP
2. Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the payments ecosystem.

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The modern smartphone is a remarkable device. A single device that fits in your pocket can do all the tasks that once required cameras, camcorders, GPS devices, watches, alarm clocks, calculators, and even TVs.    

But the next change might be the most radical of all—it could eliminate the need to carry cash and credit cards.  

The growing importance of the smartphone as the go-to computing device for every digital activity is having a profound effect everywhere you look, but it’s only the biggest story among many exciting developments in the world of payments:   

• Apple Pay was first out of the gate, but now mobile wallets are everywhere you look—Android Pay, Google Pay, Chase Pay and even Walmart Pay are making smartphones a real alternative to carrying credit cards. And the potential for mobile wallets to limit a merchant’s fraud liability could help them really take off in acceptance for small businesses.   
• As consumers move more purchasing online, gateway vendors that can act as a front-end processor for online businesses are seeing explosive growth.   PayPal-owned Braintree grew 111% YoY in the number of cards on file in Q4 2015, while Stripe and Klarna now have multi-billion dollar valuations.
• Mobile Point-Of-Sale (mPOS) startups like Square and ShopKeep have pioneered a whole new payments niche—accepting payments via tablets and smartphones.   Coupling their transactions capabilities with new apps can revolutionize a small business’ inventory management, marketing, loyalty and even payroll.   
• Mobile Peer-to-Peer payments in the U.S. are forecast to grow from $5.6 billion in 2014 to nearly $175 billion by 2019 as consumers increasingly skip the hassle of writing a check or going to an ATM.   But smartphone vendors like Apple could cripple the dominant player of 2016 (Venmo) if they make a serious push to own the space.   

If your job or your company is involved in payment processing in any way, you know how complex this industry is. And you know that you simply can’t understand where the next big digital opportunities are unless you know the key players and roles in each step of the payments “supply chain:”   

• Acquirers
• Processors
• Issuers
• Card Networks
• Independent sales organizations and merchant service providers
• Gateways
• Hardware and software providers

Fortunately, managing analyst John Heggestuen and research analyst Evan Bakker of BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, have compiled a detailed report that breaks down everything you need to know—whether you’re a payments industry veteran or a newcomer who is still getting a basic knowledge of this complex world.

Among the big picture insights you’ll get from this new report, titled The Payments Ecosystem Report: Everything You Need to Know About The Next Era of Payment Processing:

• The 5 key events of 2015 that have set up 2016 as a watershed year for the entire payments ecosystem. 
• The basics of traditional card processing from the start of the process through to the very end.    
• Why new players and innovations like prepaid cards, store cards, and PIN debit transactions are gaining market share and creating new opportunities.   
• The effects—good and bad—of the transition to new mobile payment methods.   New players and old have surprising threats and opportunities in areas as varied as carrier billing, remittances, wearables, and more.   

This exclusive report takes you inside these big issues to explore:

• The critical steps in credit card transactions and how they are changing.
• The six major types of organizations involved in the payments ecosystem.
• The significant differences for industry players who operate closed-loop networks and offer prepaid cards.
• The challenges and opportunities facing hardware and software providers for the payments sector.   
• The 8 reasons why mobile wallets are growing so fast and how they will disrupt all aspects of the mobile ecosystem.    
• The exciting possibilities ahead in fast-growing payments subsectors like remittances, connected devices and mobile P2P payments.   
• And much more.

The Payments Ecosystem Report: Everything You Need to Know About The Next Era of Payment Processing is the only place you can get the full story on the rapidly-evolving world of payments.      

Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:

1. Subscribe to BI Intelligence's Ultimate Payments Research Bundle and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP
2. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

Join the conversation about this story »

While most miners supported the Ethereum hard fork to prevent future breaches, Claude Lecomte, CEO at MinerGate, opposed the plan and posted a statement shortly before the hard fork took effect yesterday, claiming it will jeopardize Ethereum on legal, business and philosophical levels.   Ethereum holders previously voted for a hard fork to deprive the DAO […]

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Bitcoin Press Release: Started since February 2016, Dicewallet has already gained the trust of many cryptocurrencies users. Different sponsorship was held as simple appreciation to those who downloaded the application. Headed by the Japanese CEO, Takuya Hashiyada, they were able to manage the everyday huge increase of users accordingly. Through the great leadership of their […]

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Press Release: With Ethereum growing in marketcap and popularity, still more people are seeking for the possibilities to trade Ethers with fiat currencies. As a result of that, SpaceBTC came up with a reaction and has launched ETH/EUR trading pair. Traders are from now on able to apply advanced trading features on their Ethers trading. […]

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Bitcoin miners in Chelan County, Washington, will have to pay more for electricity due to the approval of a new electric rate for customers with energy intends loads. Public Utility District (PUD) commissioners in Chelan County, Washington have approved a new electricity tariff for customers with an appetite for high energy. The new “high-density load […]

The post Bitcoin Miners in Washington State Face Higher Power Tarrifs appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Bitwala, a crypto-to-SEPA service that allows fiat currency transfers towards settlements from users who pay in cryptocurrency, now offers the least expensive way to use altcoins for international transfers, providing an economical option for the unbanked who wish to send money across borders, the company announced on its website. Users can make SWIFT or SEPA […]

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Bitwala, a crypto-to-SEPA service that allows fiat currency transfers towards settlements from users who pay in cryptocurrency, now offers the least expensive way to use altcoins for international transfers, providing an economical option for the unbanked who wish to send money across borders, the company announced on its website. Users can make SWIFT or SEPA […]

The post Bitwala Announces Global Transfers For Ether, Litecoin, Dogecoin And Dash appeared first on CCN: Financial Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

Bitwala, a crypto-to-SEPA service that allows fiat currency transfers towards settlements from users who pay in cryptocurrency, now offers the least expensive way to use altcoins for international transfers, providing an economical option for the unbanked who wish to send money across borders, the company announced on its website. Users can make SWIFT or SEPA […]

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Ubitquity, the blockchain-powered real estate has undertaken the first real estate property ownership transfer using the cryptocurrency technology. According to the company they conducted the transaction through the Colu Coloured Coins protocol. In 2015, the company tasked themselves with creating a platform as a proof of concept using the blockchain, and by the beginning of […]

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A staff working paper written for the Bank of England postulates that central bank issued digital currency (CBDC) of 30% of GDP could permanently raise GDP by as much as 3% from lower real interest rates, taxes and monetary transaction costs, according to a recently published paper. The CBDC would be issued against government bonds. […]

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