Cryptocurrencies are the next big thing. Bitcoin might go the way of MySpace and Friendster, if you catch my drift.
source: Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced plans to dump the traditional banking system in Russia in favor of cryptocurrency
Anyone suffering from sanctions would want to take up crytocurrencies.
Yes - guess what:
https://www.rt.com/business/393741-ethereum-russia-blockchain-buterin/
Bitcoin rival ethereum can make Russia global hub for blockchain technology
Published time: 22 Jun, 2017 09:00 Edited time: 23 Jun, 2017 14:14
Russia can become a world leader in blockchain, a technology that could revolutionize the financial sector. RT interviewed ethereum founder
Vitalik Buterin and the currency's representative in Russia Vladislav Martynov.
World leadership could be achieved with the assistance of ethereum, a decentralized computing platform, and its limitless applications, according to Buterin.
Ethereum has become such a popular cryptocurrency it is now the world’s second-largest after bitcoin, with a capitalization of $32 billion.
According to the founder, blockchain is not just about cryptocurrencies, but the technology has wider applications. While cryptocurrencies have earned a questionable reputation, the blockchain ledger behind them has tremendous potential to simplify transactions in a variety of industries.
Buterin, who met President Putin on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in June, told RT that ethereum has huge expansion plans for Russia.
The company's representative in Russia Martynov added that “in five years Russia could become a global center for blockchain expertise. The country plans to attract and teach programmers blockchain technology and then offer the world expertise.”
Ethereum intends to expand in Russia, he added.
“For example, ministries use a centralized IT system which is very expensive to maintain. The blockchain is decentralized and lets the government save money,” said Martynov.
“Second, there is little human factor in blockchain technology. The level of red tape and corruption will fall, because with people there’s always a risk for that.”
Buterin added that “such technology allows you to send money from South Korea to Kyrgyzstan, Crimea or Guatemala as if there were next door to you.”
When asked whether blockchain can hurt the global financial sector, Buterin pointed out that "people have switched from using gold to paper as money. Then they started using another kind of paper as money. Even if blockchain transforms the shape of the global economy, humanity will certainly live through it.”
The Russian-born inventor stressed that any new technology could be misused. However the positive will outweigh the negative in its long-term applications.
Buterin’s cryptocurrency ethereum
has more than $32 billion in market capitalization.
Over the last twelve months, one ethereum has grown
from $10 to about $350, a 3,500 percent surge in value.
Born in Kolomna in the Moscow region, Buterin emigrated with his parents to Canada,
relocating to Singapore this year.
Now read this:
http://www.mas.gov.sg/Singapore-Financial-Centre/Smart-Financial-Centre/Project-Ubin.aspx
Project Ubin: Central Bank Digital Money using Distributed Ledger Technology
Project Ubin is a collaborative project with the industry to explore the use of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) for clearing and settlement of payments and securities. DLT has shown potential in making financial transactions and processes more transparent, resilient and at lower cost. The project aims to help MAS and the industry better understand the technology and the potential benefits it may bring through practical experimentation. This is with the eventual goal of developing simpler to use and more efficient alternatives to today’s systems based on digital central bank issued tokens.
Phase 1: Domestic inter-bank payments using a central bank issued SGD equivalent
MAS announced on 16 November 2016 that it is partnering R3, a Distributed Ledger Technology company, and a consortium of financial institutions on a proof-of-concept project to conduct inter-bank payments using Blockchain technology. The consortium includes Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse, DBS Bank, The Hongkong And Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, J.P. Morgan, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, OCBC Bank, R3, Singapore Exchange, UOB Bank, and BCS Information Systems as a technology provider to the project.
The successful conclusion of Phase 1 was announced on 9 March 2017. Deloitte was commissioned to produce a report that covers the aspects of DLT that are most suited to settlement systems and details the design principles used for the prototype. The report “Project Ubin: SGD on Distributed Ledger” will serve as an introduction to Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), and provide an understanding of the prototype developed.
Phase 2 and beyond
MAS and its partners will be conducting research and development on queuing and gridlock resolution mechanism.
MAS plans to make available the prototypes developed, and provide opportunities for students and working professionals to gain practical experience in developing real-world applications on DLT. This could be through Hackathons organised in collaboration with Tertiary Institutions.
There will also be two spin-off projects that will leverage the lessons of the Phase 1 domestic inter-bank payments project. The first project, driven by the Singapore Exchange (SGX), focuses on making the fixed income securities trading and settlement cycle more efficient through DLT. The second project focuses on new methods to conduct cross border payments using central bank digital currency.
Instead of aspiring to drive for Uber or Grab maybe singkies are better off learning how to mine....
https://www.facebook.com/ethereumSG/
https://www.ethnews.com/gdax-exchange-sees-flash-crash-of-ether--market-immediately-rebounds
GDAX Exchange Sees Flash Crash Of Ether – Market Immediately Rebounds
A crash on the GDAX exchange temporarily rocks the Ether market and margin positions.
Within the past day, the price of Ether fluctuated wildly on the GDAX exchange during an event being called a "flash crash" by market spectators and traders alike.
Official statements from GDAX indicate the crash was the result of a multimillion dollar sell position posted to the exchange on June 21, 2017 at 12:30 p.m. PST. According to GDAX, "This resulted in orders being filled
from $317.81 to $224.48, translating into a book slippage of 29.4%" – a slippage which initiated a cascade of around 800 stop loss orders and margin fund liquidations.
The resulting impact on the price of Ether was staggering; for a split second, Ether was trading at $0.10.
An image of the exchange during the crash was posted on twitter:
GDAX maintained in its announcement that the price drop was the result of automated trading and that "initial investigations show no indication of wrongdoing or account takeovers." Although GDAX stated it understood its customers' frustrations, the exchange said its matchmaking engine operated as intended during the event and that margin trading carries an inherent risk.
GDAX also indicated in the announcement that, while a continuing investigation is being conducted, all trades are final. Investors who had positions liquidated and who are hoping to be made whole will not be, at least not by the exchange. GDAX drives this point home by referring to section 3.1 of the its Trading Rules, which says that all fills are final and will not be reversed unless it is compelled to do so or there is a serious technical error.
GDAX temporarily halted trading between ETH and USD until it "confirmed all systems were operating correctly." Trading was then restored in accordance with the "Downtime Process" (Section 5 of the Trading Rules).
GDAX users expressed mixed feelings about the events which took place during the flash crash. On twitter, several investors demanded to be reimbursed.
On reddit, at least one user took responsibility for their own inability to properly predict the market, admitting that margin positions are a gamble, and that the exchange need not be held accountable.
This isn't the first time the ecosystem has seen large fluctuations that liquidated margin positions. In May 2017, the Kraken exchange saw a large sell order effectively tank the price of Ether, and speculation continues to revolve around another sell-off in April 2017.
https://www.ethnews.com/gdax-exchange-sees-flash-crash-of-ether--market-immediately-rebounds
