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XRP’s Market Cap Hits $75 Billion, 3% of Total Crypto Market Cap

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The fourth-largest cryptocurrency has hit a new high, with a market cap of $75 billion. This is around 3.2% of the total market cap for cryptocurrencies.

Ripple’s XRP has risen by over 40% in the past week. The crypto has been doing well in its price recovery by trading above $1.6, with the market cap remaining above $70 billion.

Bitcoin retains its dominance in the market. However, this has fallen to around 48%. Other currencies such as Ethereum have been doing quite well to cover the gap, with ETH’s market dominance standing at 15.7% while that of Binance coin stands at 4.1%.

XRP’s price growth

Since the beginning of the year, XRP has increased by over 500%. In January, the token was trading for $0.23. The price change started towards the end of March and peaked in April when the token reached $1.95, the highest price in three years. The market dominance for the currency has surged since the beginning of April.

The latest growth of other currencies such as ETH, BNB, and XRP has negatively affected the market dominance for Bitcoin. Furthermore, XRP has also been doing well in terms of institutional adoption. In the second week of April, the token recorded around $33 million in institutional use.

Increased interest in XRP

Whale Alert, a blockchain analytics platform, pointed out the large number of transactions taking place on XRP over the weekend. These transactions were reported on the Escrow wallet for Ripple. Data from the wallet show that around $1 billion worth of the crypto was transferred in three days.

In addition, the Whale Report also shows there were around 7 million XRP coins that were transferred from a digital wallet to the Huobi exchange. Before that, 15 million XRP was transferred from a crypto.com exchange to an unknown digital wallet. These two instances show an increased interest in crypto.

XRP is also edging closer to Binance Coin (BNB), with the market cap for BNB is around $90 billion. The total market cap for cryptocurrencies in the market currently reached about $2.2 trillion, which is the most significant record in the market’s history. Bitcoin still holds the largest share of the market cap, standing at approximately $1.08 trillion.

XRP’s progress in the market can be attributed to Ripple’s progress in a lawsuit against the SEC. Winning that lawsuit pushed XRP’s prices to an all-time high price after their prices crashed late last year.

XRP’s Market Cap Hits $75 Billion, 3% of Total Crypto Market Cap

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Top 5 Uses of Cryptocurrencies

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Top 5 Exceptional Uses of Cryptocurrencies

If you are wondering what are the uses of cryptocurrencies across various domains, you have landed on the right page. Let’s explore some of the exceptional use cases of cryptocurrencies.  

Table of Contents

  • Overview 
  • Incredible Uses of Cryptocurrencies
  • Money Transfer 
  • Luxury Hotels that Accept Cryptocurrencies 
  • Alternative Store of Wealth
  • De-Corrupting Charities
  • Gaming 
  • Wrapping Up

Overview

Cryptocurrency has risen exponentially over the past few years due to its attraction to individuals seeking to use this digital asset as an alternate capital. It all started back in 2009 by an unknown person using the alias Satoshi Nakamoto, and since then, cryptocurrencies have been surrounded by a buzz because of their high potential.

Despite such fame, crypto assets are thought of as high-risk investments for millennials. But those who have realized its potential know that they have the potential to revolutionize the world.

So let’s delve deep and explore some of the incredible use of cryptocurrencies across various domains that you probably haven’t thought of.

Incredible Uses of Cryptocurrencies

It’s no surprise that cryptocurrencies are exciting. Let’s enlist top uses that will surprise you.

  • Money Transfer

Sending and accepting payments at low cost and high speed is one of the most well-known applications of cryptocurrency that almost everyone is aware of. The increased interest is shown by retail banking clients, fintech, venture capital funds, and institutional investors in this financial vehicle and distributed ledger technology. 

This is because the cryptocurrency payment system is Peer-to-Peer(P2P), meaning users can instantly send and receive payments all across the globe without requiring approval from any external source. Moreover, there is no banking fee, no overdraft charges, no returned deposit fees, etc.

Can you afford to ignore this opportunity?

  • Luxury Hotels that Accept Cryptocurrencies 

Yes, you read that right. Various lavish hotels around the globe have started accepting digital payments like cryptocurrencies. The five-star Dolder Grand Hotel located in Zurich now accepts Bitcoin as payment for various purposes such as overnight visits, food, and beverages, etc. Also, the Sandman group has opted for modern upgrades in their hotels, such as accepting cryptocurrencies as a form of payment to offer a high-end experience.

Last month, Airbnb declared an interest in tokenization, cryptocurrencies, and Blockchain technology. Moreover, a Blockchain-based travel booking platform named Travala announced that it allows its users to book holiday homes using more than 30 kinds of cryptocurrencies.

  • Alternative Store of Wealth

This is another exciting application of cryptocurrency. Although you certainly don’t imagine that your bank account and assets will be frozen, the fact is that this happens more frequently than people know. People will find themselves with little or no access to cash when that happens, even though they have done nothing wrong. Unlike cash, digital payments like cryptocurrencies behave like a secured alternative store of wealth, which is censorship-resistant. This means only the authorized people with the private keys can access wallets, unlike traditional banks that are vulnerable to hacks, thefts, and malpractices. Hence, no personal digital wallet can ever be frozen by authorities.

  • De-Corrupting Charities

Who says that cryptocurrencies are meant for gaining profits? Cryptocurrencies are powerful for non-profits as well, for instance, donating to charities. Donations based on crypto assets are faster, transparent, and, most importantly, cost-effective than conventional currencies. This is because of its underlying technology, Blockchain, which enables the flow of information to be transparent. Donations carried out with cryptocurrencies can reduce costs, both in terms of fees and time, and can avoid corruption in charitable organizations and fund leaks. Apart from this, another major benefit is that cryptocurrency donations get more money in the hands of the non-profit. Moreover, it facilitates anonymous donations, as well.

Due to its high potential, the World Food Programme (WFP) is using Blockchain technology to distribute cash support to needy people.

There is good news for all game-lovers as well. Nowadays, the rise of the gaming industry in combination with Blockchain and cryptocurrency games has created a new trend that was never experienced before. Cryptocurrency-based games tend to become more popular, and there are various reasons in support of their popularity.

They are responsible for solving some of the transactions and fraud problems that game developers and players encounter. Crypto-based games can bring benefits in terms of streamlined and decentralized payments, providing real ownership to players, and incentivizing more purchases by making things easily transferable from one game to the other.

Apart from online games, casinos are no more an exception. Various casinos have started using cryptocurrency as a part of their operations, allowing players to earn tokens as an extra reward for playing. 

Wrapping Up

Hope this article has introduced numerous uses for cryptocurrencies that will help you with reasons to own them beyond just their potential increase in value.

If you want to gain an in-depth understanding of how cryptocurrency works and become a Certified Cryptocurrency Expert, we are here to assist you. 

To get instant updates about Blockchain Technology and to learn more about online Blockchain Certifications, check out Blockchain Council.

Top 5 Uses of Cryptocurrencies

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Prepare Yourself With These Top 30 Blockchain Interview Questions 2021

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Prepare Yourself With These Top 30 Blockchain Interview Questions 2021

Want to have a career in the Blockchain space? This article talks about the top 30 interview questions to get you ready for a big interview. Excited? Let’s get started.

Table of Contents 

  • Top Interview Questions You Should be Prepared for
  • Wrapping Up: How to Learn Blockchain?

Top Interview Questions You Should Know

In this section, let’s discuss the top 30 blockchain questions and answers.

1. What is the difference between Bitcoin Blockchain and Ethereum Blockchain?

Both Bitcoin and Ethereum have decentralized distributed databases of immutable records. But Bitcoin and Ethereum differ in purpose in a way that Bitcoin is considered as an alternative digital currency that offers various advantages, whereas Ethereum is regarded as the king of smart contracts that facilitates Peer-to-Peer contracts and applications via its own currency known as ETH. Ethereum was introduced with an intent to complement rather than compete with bitcoin.

2. How is Blockchain different from traditional databases?

A database is a kind of central ledger, whereas Blockchain has a distributed ledger, which means unlike the traditional databases, it is not governed by any central server. Due to this, Blockchain is a fully confidential and robust technology.

3. What is double-spending, and how can it be stopped?

It is the process of spending a balance of that cryptocurrency more than once. It is done by fooling the network to think that the original amount is never spent, thus making it available to be used for multiple transactions. 

However, this problem can be prevented in blockchain-based cryptocurrencies by utilizing a consensus mechanism known as Proof-of-Work (PoW).

Bitcoin’s solution to deal with this crucial problem is that if the majority of the nodes agree on which transaction was first to be received, later tries to double-spend are pointless.

4. Out of the three types of Blockchain, which is the best one?

Out of public, private, and consortium Blockchain, to state which one is the best would not be right because each of has its own features, usage, and requirements. If you want to design and implement your own enterprise blockchain, a private blockchain is a one-stop solution. Consortium blockchain, on the other hand, is likely to interest organizations who want to efficiently streamline communication among one another.

Features  Public  Private  Consortium 
Accessibility  Anyone  Single Person/ Central Incharge  More than one central in-charge.
Who can join? Anyone  Permissioned and known identities Permissioned and known identities
Consensus Mechanism PoS/PoW Voting or multi-party consensus algorithm Voting or multi-party consensus algorithm
Transaction Speed  Slow  Lighter & Faster  Lighter & Faster 
Decentralization Completed Decentralized  Less Decentralized  Less Decentralized 

5 How ICO differs from IPO?

ICO stands for Initial Coin Offering, whereas IPO stands for Initial Public Offering. The first difference between an ICO and an IPO is that ICO is generally for the young and risky, whereas IPO is mainly for well-settled companies. The process of issuing also differs in both. An IPO is an extensive process that requires underwriters and lengthy evaluations to determine the market price of each share. Moreover, for an IPO, you need lawyers, banks, and patience, whereas, for ICO, one needs programmers and the Internet. 

6 Name a few popular platforms for developing Blockchain-based applications?

There are multiple platforms available but before deciding on one, understand what type of Blockchain do you need, how popular is the chosen platform, what kind of scalability does your solution need, and ensure whether your preferred blockchain platform supports smart contract functionality or not. 

Blockchain platforms enable the development of blockchain-based applications that are in great demand and useful for businesses and enterprises. A few of the top platforms for developing Blockchain-based apps are Hyperledger Fabric, Ethereum, R3 Cords, Quorum, and Ripple.

7 What do you know about the lightning network?

It is an off-chain, micropayment system designed to make transaction processing faster in the Blockchain. In Lightning Network, the members can directly interact with each other without offering anything to the miners, and members can engage in numerous microtransactions with each other. And finally, when the payment channel is locked, the concluding transaction set is added to the Blockchain.

Lightning network not only helps in scalability but also makes payments instantaneous, and transactions are not dependent on miners. The network is micropayment and multi-signature friendly and, moreover, reduces the load of the main chain and decreases waiting time.

8 Distinguish between Fungible and Non-Fungible.

  • Fungible are Interchangeable: Fungible tokens are interchangeable and can be exchanged with any other token of the equivalent kind. 
  • Non-Fungible are Non-Interchangeable: Unlike Fungible tokens, such tokens are non-interchangeable as they cannot be replaced with the non-fungible token of the same type.
  • Fungible Tokens are Uniform: Each token is different from all other tokens of the same type. 
  • Non-Fungible Ones are Unique: All tokens of each type are identical in specification, and each token is identical to the other. 
  • Fungible Tokens are Divisible: These tokens can be divisible into smaller units, and one can get any number of units, and it does not matter to holders as long as the value remains the same.
  • Non-Fungible Tokens are Non-Divisible: These tokens cannot be divided in any sense.  

9 What is Blockchain Wallet?

A blockchain wallet can be defined as a digital wallet or E-wallet that allows individuals to store, manage, and transfer their cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin(BTC), Ethereum(ETH), and many more. With such wallets, users can manage their balances of these two cryptocurrencies by paying transaction fees that depend on various factors such as transaction size. Since digital assets or cryptocurrencies are just a number, that is why the wallet keeps the private key of any particular individual, and the private key fetches the balance of that individual from the Blockchain.

10 Explain the features of DeFi.

  • Autonomy — DeFi platforms ensure that your assets are all yours, and no one has control over them.
  • Enables affordable and faster cross border payments
  • Tradability — You can trade more efficiently as they aren’t prone to an entire high-value investment at once.
  • Accessibility: DeFi has a financial system that is accessible to everyone regardless of their location.
  • Interoperability: DeFi apps and protocols are built to integrate and complement one another.
  • Transparency — In the DeFi environment, data is available publicly, which helps keep service providers impartial.
  1. Question: What are the requirements for implementing Blockchain technology for enterprise usage?

Answer: Here are the most basic ones:

  • Is the network peer-to-peer? 
  • Does the system offer smart contract functionality for the execution of decentralized applications or not? 
  • Can data be stored permanently without compromising the security measures?
  • Does it offer decentralized data storage?
  • What are its data privacy aspects? 
  • Is the immutability ensured?

12 Question: What is blockchain mining? 

Answer: Blockchain mining is a process by which transactions of a blockchain are verified without involving any third-party. Every time a transaction is sent from a Bitcoin wallet, it is sent to the transaction pool. Miners then pick hundreds of transactions and combine them to form a block with other overheads like Merkel Root, SHA-256 Hash, Nonce, etc. 

13 List some of the top blockchain development tools. 

  • Solidity
  • Remix
  • Geth 
  • Meta Mask
  • Truffle Framework

14 What, according to you, are the key Challenges for Blockchain Adoption

  • Scalability 
  • Interoperability 
  • Energy Consumption 
  • Lack of Talent 
  • Lack of standardization 

15 What are the drawbacks of Blockchain?

It is a complex technology that is hard to understand and implement. Scalability is another issue related to Blockchain. Moreover, network speed and transaction costs vary, and human errors still persist. 

16  Is it possible in Blockchain to remove one or more blocks from the networks?

No, it is not possible to manually remove a block. However, blocks can be removed with the help of default options and filters. Deleted blocks can be re-downloaded again whenever needed.

17 Enlist key features of Blockchain technology.

Transparency– Transparency is one of the significant issues in the current industry. Although to improve it, organizations have attempted to implement more rules and regulations, but there is one thing that doesn’t make any system completely transparent,i.e., centralization. But with the help of Blockchain, organizations can go for a complete decentralized network where there is no need for a centralized authority, improving the transparency of the system.

Immutability– Blockchain is immutable, meaning nobody can modify the data over a blockchain. This feature enables companies to ensure that there is no hamper of data, making their system more functional in a highly competitive market. 

High Availability– As we already defined Blockchain as a decentralized system of peer to peer network, thus it is highly available due to the concept of decentralization. It offers decentralized services that provide unique access to the options that are otherwise unavailable.

Security– Unlike traditional databases, Blockchain provides a high level of security to its users. High security is due to the cryptographic algorithms which are being run behind the Blockchain. Rather than trusting any individual or third party, in the Blockchain, one needs to trust only cryptographic algorithms.

Fast Dealing- Traditional banking organization takes a lot of time in initiating and processing the transactions and is prone to human error and often requires a third-party intermediary. Blockchain can streamline and automate the entire process without any human intervention and with complete accuracy.

Reduced Transaction Fees- As Blockchain removes the involvement of the third party, it eliminates the overhead cost of exchanging the assets; thus, it leads to reduced transaction fees. 

18 Mention types of Consensus Algorithms?

  • Proof-of-Work (PoW)
  • Proof-of-Stake (PoS)
  • Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS)
  • Proof-of-Authority (PoA)
  • Proof-of-Elapsed Time (PoET)
  • Byzantine Fault Tolerance

19 Explain how PoW consensus works.

The central principle behind PoW consensus is to solve complex mathematical problems and make the largest number of guesses as quickly as possible. Such requires a lot of computational power, and by using a more efficient mining machine to run calculations, a miner can maximize profitability in terms of crypto rewards. 

In this type of consensus mechanism, miners compete to be the first one to find a hash regarding a particular block, which can only be solved using sheer computing power to make the largest number of guesses. When a miner finds the right solution, they advertise it to the whole network, receiving a reward in cryptocurrency provided by the protocol. 

20 Explain the Concept of PoS

Proof-of-Stake is a consensus algorithm that deals with the main drawbacks of PoW. In this mechanism, every block gets validated before the network adds another block to the blockchain ledger. Unlike PoW, where miners have to solve complex puzzles, in PoS, miners can join the mining process using their coins to stake. It allows users to mine for rewards using very minimal hardware and software resources. Here, the mining capacity of a particular miner depends on how many coins they already have; thus, the more coins one has, the better chances are, which indicates only the richest can have control of the consensus. 

21 Define the term CBDC

CBDC stands for Central Bank Digital Currency, which is controlled directly by the country’s central bank and is backed by national credit and government power. 

In other words, CBDC is an electronic form of central bank money that can be used to store value and make digital payments seamlessly.

22 What is DeFi technology? Explain the term, DeFi Pulse 

Decentralized Finance can be defined as financial services using smart contracts that don’t need any central authority and uses decentralized, distributed ledger technology, Blockchain. Most of the DeFi protocols are based on the Ethereum Blockchain network. 

DeFi Pulse is a data site that lets individuals find the latest analytics and rankings of all DeFi protocols. Pulse rankings track the total value that is locked into the smart contracts of DeFi protocols so that individuals can stay up to date on the latest trends.

23 What is Hyperledger Fabric? 

Hyperledger Fabric is a distributed ledger platform that comes with versatility, modularity, and performance specially crafted to provide enterprise-grade solutions. It is an open-source enterprise-grade permissioned DLT platform known to provide modularity and versatility for a broad set of industry use cases, including banking, insurance, healthcare, supply chain, human resources, etc.

24 What are Smart Contracts? What are its benefits?

A smart contract is used to describe computer code that can facilitate the exchange of money, content, shares, or anything of value. When running on the Blockchain, smart contracts becomes like a self-operating computer program that executes automatically when desired conditions are met. Since such contracts run on the Blockchain, they run exactly as programmed, without any possibility of censorship, downtime, fraud, or any third-party interference. 

  • No intermediaries ensure a quick transaction process
  • Secure and Efficient
  • No Middleman, more savings 
  • Works with accuracy and precision 
  • Establish confidence
  • Automation saves time and effort. 

25 What are dApps? Mention some of the popular dApps.

Decentralized applications (dApps) are digital applications that exist and run on a peer to peer network of computers instead of a single computer. 

Some of the dApps that are popular, innovative, and feature-rich are:

  • Cipher
  • Chainlink 
  • EOS Dynasty
  • TraceDonate 
  • Brave  

26 Explain the role of Blockchain in Governance

Due to increased decentralization, data integrity, and transparency, along with better efficiency and reduced operational costs, blockchains are becoming popular in governance. From improving transparency to streamlining the tax collection mechanism, Blockchain distributed networks can help governments to operate more efficiently and build higher levels of trust among their citizens. 

27 Mention some of the myths related to Blockchain. 

  • Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies are the same. 
  • All blockchains are public blockchains.
  • Technology only targets the finance domain. 
  • Blockchain is just a database.
  • Blockchain is free and highly accessible. 

28 Are there any restrictions for putting records in Blockchain?

No, there is no such restriction. One can store any kind of record, depending upon their requirements. The most common type of records that are recorded in Blockchain are records of transaction processing, identity management, business transactions, health management data, and all other crucial documentation.

29 Is Blockchain a trusted approach?

Blockchain is undoubtedly a trustable technology that helps participating parties to share their valuable data in a secure and tamper-proof manner. It makes use of cryptography for securing crucial information, thus making it extremely hard for attackers to play with stored data. Due to its high potential to provide security, it is widely adopted and implemented by various organizations and businesses for their operations.

30 What do you know about the future of Blockchain?

Blockchain is likely to discover a whole new way of economic transactions and contribute to global economic development immensely. Although its mainstream adoption is yet to be achieved, once it is done, it will change the way businesses operate and transform the landscape of the technology sector forever.

Wrapping Up: How to Learn Blockchain?

We hope all the questions mentioned above will help you get ready for your interview.

If you are a beginner and want to get started with Blockchain, Blockchain Council can assist you. Whether you want to become a Blockchain Developer or an Expert, or an Architect, Blockchain Council can be your one-stop solution. Blockchain Council is a globally renowned organization with an authoritative group of subject experts and enthusiasts who are evangelizing Blockchain research and development, use cases and products and knowledge for a better world. 

All Blockchain certifications offered by Blockchain Council are meant for a duration of roughly 6-8 hours and to be completed as self-paced training. 

Getting certified will help you gain an in-depth understanding of Blockchain & its implementation and prove your Blockchain skills & understanding.

To get instant updates about Blockchain Technology and to learn more about online Blockchain Certifications, check out Blockchain Council.

Prepare Yourself With These Top 30 Blockchain Interview Questions 2021

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Tokenized art: NFTs paint bright future for artists, blockchain tech

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On Sept. 23, auction-house giant Christie’s announced plans to sell its first nonfungible token, or NFT, at an auction. This was just one week after the record-setting $100,000 sale at auction of a digital art piece that also used a blockchain-based token to vest the collector’s new ownership rights.

Meanwhile, Anthony Pompliano, Morgan Creek Digital co-founder and partner, wrote on Sept. 21: “I personally believe that the digital art market cap will grow to become larger than the physical art market cap. This may sound ridiculous today.” 

Clearly, the digital art market is heating up. Duncan Cock Foster, co-founder at digital gallery Nifty Gateway, told Cointelegraph: “The digital art movement is growing at an incredibly rapid pace. The amount of growth we are seeing has surprised everyone involved I think.” 

Much of this can probably be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic that has curtailed travel and shut down art museums. “Digital art allows people to engage with art from their homes, on their computers, on their phones, and send images/videos back and forth easily, which makes digital art especially suited to this time in history,” Blake Finucane, co-author of a position paper on NFT-based art titled “Crypto art: A decentralized view,” told Cointelegraph. But something else may be going on. One of the historic issues with digital art has been that it is “essentially impossible to monetize,” said Finucane, adding:

“If something exists only in digital form — i.e. a gif, a meme, a digital image, a digital video — it is easy to simply screen shot, copy or paste it, or replicate it. A digital artwork’s value is diminished when it comes to selling it commercially because it is so easy to copy — and difficult to track what is, in fact, the original artwork.”

But on the other hand, if a digital artwork is tokenized, the original can always be traced back via token, “making it much easier to garner commercial value because someone can actually ‘own’ the original,” she said.

“It is extremely important for digital art,” Giovanni Colavizza, assistant professor of digital humanities at the University of Amsterdam, told Cointelegraph, adding that tokenization “allows us to exchange and create value from forms of art which previously were problematic.”

On Sept. 18, NonFungible.com, a website that tracks NFT sales data, reported a record high in art-related NFT volume ($162,385), and that was followed on Sept. 22 by the second-highest daily total ever achieved ($123,205). The uptick since June in U.S.-dollar sales of blockchain-based digital art has been notable.

Digital art + blockchain = crypto art

Digital art has been around for decades. Artists began experimenting with computers back in the 1950s and 1960s, but it’s only recently that digital art has been tokenized on a blockchain platform. For instance, Ethereum’s nonfungible token, ERC-721 — which is used by many digital galleries — wasn’t developed and rolled out until early 2018.

The traditional art world often dismisses electronic art, asking: Why bring out digital art when copies can be made from it? — explained Vladislav Ginzburg, CEO at Blockparty. However, “I can use [NFT] technology to prove that I have the original digital asset.” Ginzburg compared digital art to eBooks, which, like digital art, existed for decades without much interest until reading devices such as the Kindle and iPad emerged. “Digital art is having its Kindle and iPad moment right now,” he said while speaking at art festival CADAF Online.

“The art world has been craving a way to collect digital art and NFTs are a picture perfect solution to this problem,” said Cock Foster, adding that everyone should distinguish between digital art and crypto art, the latter being the tokenized or blockchain-enabled version of the former. According to the aforementioned “Crypto art” position paper, which Colavizza also co-authored, the theory goes something like this:

“When a digital asset made by an artist is added to a digital gallery, a token is generated by a smart contract and deposited in the artist’s wallet. The token is permanently linked to the artwork, and is a unique, one-of-a-kind asset that represents ownership and authenticity of the underlying artwork. Once created, the artwork starts its life on the given blockchain, where a fan or collector can purchase it, and where it can be subsequently exchanged, traded or held by collectors like any other rare artifact.”

Will artists embrace the cryptoverse?

Surely enough, obstacles remain. Persuading mainstream artists to use NFTs, an esoteric technology, could be a challenge, arguably. Cock Foster opined: “We had a lot more trouble recruiting mainstream artists to the space six months ago. It is not that difficult anymore.” 

Meanwhile, artists see a market that seems to be bubbling over — like with the $100,000 paid for “Right Place & Right Time,” a digital art piece based on Bitcoin’s (BTC) fluctuating price action, or the $55,555 paid on Nifty Gateway in July for artist Trevor Jones’ digital artwork “Picasso’s Bull.”

Moreover, “NFTs are an incredible new creative medium,” said Cock Foster. “Artists are able to do things in the NFT medium that are unable to do with physical art. This is the primary reason that they are interested.”

Secondary sales are an enticement, too. If a collector purchases a digital artwork on Asynchronous Art, the artist is paid a commission on that sale (e.g., 10%). But if the collector sells the artwork two years later, the artist also earns a 20% commission for that secondary sale. This happens automatically — it is written into the software — and is one of the “revolutionary” aspects of blockchain-enabled digital art, Conlan Rios, founder and CEO of Async Art, told Cointelegraph. Such sales were “impossible before blockchain technology came along,” confirmed Finucane.

Another novelty with digital art is the sale of layers, said Rios, whereby collectors can separately purchase “layers” — derivative works made from the masterwork that often offer an owner programming options such as changing the artwork’s colors, rotation or even its “state.” This represents an entirely new revenue stream.

A counterintuitive concept 

“The biggest barrier to growth is that people have difficulty understanding what an NFT is,” Cock Foster told Cointelegraph. It’s a counterintuitive concept that people have trouble getting their minds around, but “Once people understand what an NFT is and why the concept is so powerful, they quickly become obsessed.”

Still, Rios told Cointelegraph that “You can’t just plug in your credit card” when you purchase a tokenized artwork. You first must create a digital wallet to hold the NFT, and you should know something about gas fees and the like: “That’s probably the biggest hurdle.” Colavizza agreed: “You need to put a lot of time and effort into knowing how to navigate crypto art. This creates a barrier to entry.”

“Many people are still intimidated by blockchain technology,” said Finucane, telling Cointelegraph that the main challenges center “around the authentication/validation of works before they are entered on to the blockchain.” She added:

“NFTs are particularly useful for artists working in purely digital form, many artists may not be sure how it fits into their practice if they are working in physical mediums like painting, sculpture, etc.” 

Elena Zavelev, founder and CEO of CADAF and New Art Academy, told Cointelegraph that “The global digitization that happened during COVID created opportunities for the digital artists that weren’t available before.” Moreover, the popularity of blockchain technology has brought hope that once it becomes more widely accepted within the traditional art community, it will increase monetizing opportunities for digital art. But so far:

“Its adoption remains anecdotal. I wouldn’t be surprised if, in some time, new technology will be easier to utilize than blockchain for the mainstream art community and replace it as a better tool.”

Crypto art still needs to develop an ecosystem more like that found in traditional art, too, with museums, exhibitions, curators, auction houses and fairs, added Colavizza. “The social mechanics which create recognition, prestige and thus value are not there yet, which is both an opportunity and a challenge for collectors and artists.”

Then there’s the question of scalability: Can blockchains really handle all that data flowing their way? Rios runs the gallery business on Ethereum now, using ERC-721 tokens, but he is “blockchain agnostic.” Ethereum is “durable, but expensive and slow,” he told Cointelegraph. The platform’s shortcomings, like high gas prices, might be justifiable for artists creating works for the ages — the platform will be around for decades, presumably — but newer artists might prefer to try out nonfungible tokens on less-expensive platforms that work passably well. 

As big as physical art?

Could blockchain-enabled digital art surpass physical art in market value one day, as Pompliano suggested? Not many are prepared to go that far — yet. Finucane told Cointelegraph: “I wouldn’t say that it will ever ‘be as big’ as traditional art but I believe it will have a prominent place in art galleries and art history classes alongside traditional art.” 

Cock Foster added: “I don’t see this eating into physical art sales in the short term.” Art is not a zero-sum game. “NFTs are growing by increasing the amount of art sold in the world, not by stealing buyers from the physical art world,” he said, adding:

“The biggest beneficiaries of this are digital artists who could never sell their artwork prior to the invention of NFT technology. One of the artists on our platform just bought a house using the proceeds from his Nifty Gateway sales. Blockchain technology is allowing more artists than ever the chance to live through their art.”

Pompliano, too, noted that there are things that can be done with digital art that can’t be achieved in the physical art realm: “Each piece can incorporate complex movement and motion. […] A single screen on a wall can periodically cycle through different pieces of art at the predetermined direction of the homeowner or art collector.” Digital art is also immune to physical damage because it lives in the ether. Expensive art-insurance coverage may become a thing of the past. 

Colavizza told Cointelegraph that digital art interest is surely accelerating in 2020, but this may just be the beginning. “As soon as the Tate [museum] or a similar venue holds an exhibition of digital/crypto art — something that could happen quite soon — things will really happen.”

In brief, digital art generally, and blockchain-based art specifically, have surely gained traction in the time of COVID. Museums are closed — how else can one view art? But for digital art to burst forth over the long term, it has to find a way to reward artists, gallerists and others. They need to make money from their toil.

This is where blockchain technology and NFTs change the game: They furnish enduring proof of an artwork’s uniqueness, enabling it to be sold and resold again and again. And each time that happens, the artist profits. It’s written in the code.

Tokenized art: NFTs paint bright future for artists, blockchain tech

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Ethereum wallet imToken raises $10M Series A from IDG to expand in the US, Asia and Africa

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imToken, which claims to be the world’s largest Ethereum wallet, will focus on expanding in Asia and the United States after raising a $10 million Series A from IDG Capital, it announced today. The capital will also be used to add new features, including support for Bitcoin, EOS and other blockchains.

imToken is the latest addition to IDG Capital’s cryptocurrency investments, which include Coinbase and Circle. In a press statement, IDG Capital partner Young Guo said “imToken has developed its product into one of the top crypto asset wallets in the world with such a sound reputation. We believe it will become a significant infrastructure for the tokenization manifesto, benefitting both the crypto economy and blockchain technology. We’re excited to back imToken.”

Founded in 2016 by chief executive officer Ben He and based in Hangzhou, imToken’s core market is currently China. The company supports 30,000 tokens, claims more than 4 million monthly active users and says it handled $35 million in pass-through transactions last year.

He tells TechCrunch the company will use its new capital to study local regulations and launch imToken 2.0 international in new markets. It will focus first on Southeast Asia before looking toward other Asian countries, like Korea, Japan and India, where “regulations are maturing quickly and as a result we’re doing our due diligence amid increasing scrutiny from local governments,” He says.

Then imToken will concentrate on countries in Africa, including Nigeria, where they already have a user base. Its expansion into the U.S. will happen at the same time as the rest of its international roll out.

In addition to the imToken wallet, the company’s services also include Tokenlon, an in-app decentralized exchange in partnership with Kyber Network and 0x, and DApp store, a marketplace for decentralized mobile apps.

In its new markets, especially the U.S., imToken will face several established competitors, including digital services MyEtherWallet, Coinbase and Ledger Nano, as well as a host of hardware wallets. He is sanguine about the competition, saying the goal of all blockchain companies is to move the technology forward and that imToken has built positive relationships with its rivals.

He adds that imToken’s advantage, however, is “taking a step further than our competitors, as we’re focused on building an ecosystem within imToken for all our users.” The company wants to “move toward a blockchain-agnostic stage,” which means users will be able to store different assets in one of imToken wallets. Then it wants to lower the barrier for entry into blockchain tech by making it easier to manage assets across different platforms, including peer-to-peer transactions and merchant payments, with imToken 2.0 International.

Read more: https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/31/ethereum-wallet-imtoken-raises-10m-series-a-from-idg-to-expand-in-the-u-s-asia-and-africa/

Bancor takes on Crypto exchanges with wallet that converts across tokens

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With the number of cryptocurrencies passing 1,000, and the craze continuing, things are getting pretty wild out there to say the least. And these crypto asssets can vary from the tokens issued by some no-name startup all the way up to Ether and the venerable Bitcoin. The trouble is, converting those coins into other currencies which you might actually use, or perhaps into the more fiat-friendly Bitcoin and Ether, has been hard. Users have to use exchanges to convert their cryptocurrencies via exchanges where prices can fluctuate wildly. Since cryptocurrency is the main “application” for blockchain technologies right now, that would mean wallets where they are held effectively becoming a new type of ‘browser’.

This is the thinking behind the launch today of Bancor’s wallet. Bancor was already an open-source protocol for automated token conversions, and had raised approximately $153 million in ICO last year. Its new wallet will offer built-in conversion between 75 cryptocurrencies, with more being added each day. This means users will not need to send their cryptocurrencies to exchanges if they wish to acquire other forms of crypto-assets and can instead convert cryptocurrencies directly inside the Bancor Wallet. The wallet is not a native smartphone app, but is optimised for mobile use.

Problems at the major crypto exchanges have been mounting, putting many off joining the crypto world. So it’s likely that many Crypto holders will be tempted by the relative stability of in-wallet conversion, even if they can’t play the arbitrage game so easily.

Instead of converting the currencies by matching buyers and sellers as an exchange does, Bancor’s in-wallet conversions are made against smart contracts. In theory, this gives users transparent and efficient pricing without the spreads and fees associated with exchanges. Users are always in control of their keys and Bancor neither holds nor has access to users funds.

In addition, the Bancor Wallet allows users to purchase tokens with any major credit or debit card and instantly convert them to any token in the Bancor Network, including heavily-traded coins like Ether and EOS.

Galia Benartzi, co-founder of Bancor said in statement: “In the new Internet of value, where anyone can create a currency, digital wallets are becoming the browsers which allow users to navigate the emerging world of decentralized apps. To be useful, users need seamless and secure interfaces to blockchain-based products as well as on-demand conversion between the tokens that power them.

“Money is changing, and digital wallets must be as dynamic as the currencies they hold. Imagine if your coffee shop loyalty points were accepted at any cash register in the world, or your airline miles could buy cellular minutes with the click of a button… Bancor’s new wallet aims to deliver on that promise by offering continuous access to crypto tokens and instant convertibility between virtual assets, unlocking enormous purchasing power for consumers,” she added.

Bancor Wallet users can open accounts using an email address, Telegram, WeChat, or Facebook Messenger.

The Bancor Wallet will only likely to get uptake if it can continue to add integration with tokens and maintain a live status and instant conversions. If it can do that then it may well attract users away from many buggy and controversial exchanges.

Read more: https://techcrunch.com/2018/04/03/bancor-takes-on-crypto-exchanges-with-wallet-that-converts-across-tokens/