Autor Cointelegraph By Joseph Hall

Busking on Bitcoin: How Lightning Network outperforms Ethereum for tipping

Busking on Bitcoin: How Lightning Network outperforms Ethereum for tipping

Uverejnil používateľ | júl 19, 2022 |

The Canadian band The Carbons got a little more than just a tip during a live performance in Kelowna, British Columbia. When passerby Ben from BTCSessions, a Youtuber and Bitcoin (BTC) educator, saw that the band accepted Bitcoin, he had to send some magic internet money their way.The Carbons’ guitar case. Source: Tomy, the frontmanTomy (frontman for The Carbons) had been into crypto since 2017, but like many people new to crypto, he thought he’d “missed the boat.” The price per BTC was around $2500. He told Cointelegraph that he began research in earnest when he:“Realized that it was basically an insurance policy for the current monetary system. At that point, it was around $8000. It’s been a wild ride since then, but I am playing the long game :)”Fast forward to his live performance in Kelowna this weekend, and Tomy advertised he accepted crypto as payment. Unfortunately, his phone was out of juice at the time that Ben walked by, so the pair linked up on Instagram later on. As per the screenshots of the Instagram conversation, Tomy shared an Ethereum (ETH) address to receive a donation and become The Carbon’s first crypto donor.Short story: saw a dude in Kelowna playing guitar with a sign asking for Bitcoin tips. His phone was dead but we linked up later online so I could tip. He offered an ETH address because he still thought bitcoin was slow/expensive.Here’s our convo.1/2 pic.twitter.com/Fx2Hu1mCyx— BTC Sessions (@BTCsessions) July 18, 2022However, as Ben is a Bitcoin maximalist, he said he’d be happy to send some Bitcoin–not Ethereum–his way. Ben told Cointelegraph that, among other things, it’s “The foundational rules that govern the network, and the ease (or lack thereof) with which they can be changed,” that guide his Bitcoin conviction.Ben pointed Tomy towards downloading a Bitcoin Lightning wallet, and moments later, they were sending each other Bitcoin instantly over the Lightning Network (LN). Transaction costs are near free on the LN, and microtransactions are easy, which prompted Tomy’s response, “that’s fucking awesome.” By comparison, sending money over Ethereum–even at its lowest levels in two years–costs well over $1.Tomy busking at sunset with the crypto sign in view. Source: TomyTomy told Cointelegraph that it was his first experience using the LN, and it took “an hour of research on YouTube to decide on a wallet and then another few minutes to figure out how to use it.”“I hadn’t heard about the Lightning Network until last week! It makes me want to trade all my Litecoin and ETH for Bitcoin!”The Carbons have since received three BTC donations, adding that “all the tips help,” but it probably hasn’t moved the needle on their Spotify revenues just yet. Bitcoin expert Ben told Cointelegraph that he’s been using the Lightning Network since 2018, back when it was “clunky and difficult, but it worked.” LN has since become a part of his daily routine:Undoubtedly, LN is well-known to the Bitcoin community and has spread roots across the globe. From settling up lunch in the United Kingdom to sorting out sim cards in Mozambique to paying for parties in Portland, United States, it’s gained traction.Related: The UK ‘Bitcoin Adventure’ shows BTC is a family affairHowever, awareness of the LN is weak among the crypto and broader community. Ben explains why this might be the case:“There will be SOME who are incentivized to remain unaware because they are deeply invested into coins whose value is contingent on Bitcoin not being able to scale. However, most people likely just haven’t tried it!”Ben encourages users to try out the LN, which he compares to “magic.” During the IG conversation with Tomy, he recommends using the Muun Wallet, a free self-custodial wallet for Android and iOS:Just a little throwback here. I continue to really love @MuunWallet and its seamless singular balance, enabling to you send to on-chain and lightning without any additional hassles. Kudos.MUUN BITCOIN WALLET – On Chain and Lightning Combined! https://t.co/jUSLhuj6IB— BTC Sessions (@BTCsessions) February 18, 2022

As for Tomy, he told Cointelegraph he is now seriously considering selling all of his altcoins for Bitcoin. He then joked on Twitter that he might change the band’s name to “The Bitcoin Buskers.”On a heartfelt note, and in light of the disastrous impact that the Covid-19 Pandemic has had on performing arts, Tomy told Cointelegraph, “It’s been a tough couple years for musicians,” adding that the support and community are greatly appreciated.

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Bitcoin is for billions: Fedimint on scaling BTC in the global south

Bitcoin is for billions: Fedimint on scaling BTC in the global south

Uverejnil používateľ | júl 19, 2022 |

“Bitcoin is for billions, not billionaires,” a phrase first coined by investment researcher Lyn Alden, could soon become a reality, according to Fedimint. The protocol that aims to scale Bitcoin (BTC) while making it more private, has been buoyed by a $4.2 million seed round for the Fedi application.Cointelegraph spoke to Obi Nwosu, co-founder and CEO of Fedi, about the “incredible group of inspiring people who we are working with to support their activities to increase the freedoms of some of the most oppressed regions of the world,” and why the mobile app Fedi could solve issues related to scaling, custody and privacy. Lyudmyla Kozlovska, head of the Open Dialogue Foundation — which focuses on supporting people in post-soviet Europe — Farida Bemba Nabourema, a Togolese human rights activist, and Fadi Elsalameen, president of the Palestinian Security Project and a fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, support the Fedi app’s development and its impact in the global south and emerging economies.In brief, the Fedi wallet app connects users to Fedimint “federations.”  The Fedimint protocol (which takes its name from “federated” and “mint”) uses multi-signature (multisig) technology and trusted community members called “guardians.” How Fedimint “federations” combine. Source: Twitter Nwosu told Cointelegraph that Fedi hopes to have the biggest impact on those located in the global south, and that the firm is “uniquely placed to help which is why we will put special focus on deploying into these communities.”Farid Nabourema, a Togolese human rights activist, explained to Cointelegraph that in “poor parts of the world,” acquiring a hardware wallet is near impossible. Hardware wallet distributors including Ledger, ColdCard and Trezor are not present on the continent of Africa, despite the fact that “Africa has the fastest growing adoption rate and Togo, for example, was listed among the top 10 countries having the fastest adoption per capita based on the 2021 Chainalysis report.”The Fedi app may go some way in resolving these issues, allowing for greater exposure to Bitcoin in Africa, Nabourema continued:“Fedimint solves a lot of our problems in one system. It offers us an extra layer of security to keep bitcoin purchase and ownership totally decentralized, anonymous and offers an extra layer of ownership.”Nabourema details that the “federated wallet method” takes inspiration from the traditional savings methods used across Africa and emerging markets in the Caribbean and Latin America. Known as a “tontine” in francophone West Africa, a “sousou” in Nigeria, or a “zu-zu” in Trinidad and Tobago, these community savings tools help thousands of people to plan for their future. It’s among the oldest peer-to-peer savings technologies: “This model has helped millions of people, especially women who were traditionally excluded from the banking system to fund their businesses, their children’s education, to acquire properties among others.”Fedimint uses this community-backed approach to finance but uses a decentralized, immutable currency i.e. Bitcoin. “In addition, Fedimint adds an extra layer of security and more importantly privacy as the custodians can keep the amount they own totally private from others,” Nabourema highlights. Nourou, the founder of Bitcoin Senegal — a grassroots Bitcoin adoption campaign located in the populous West African city of Dakar — told Cointelegraph that Fedimint’s community-backed approach is a reflection of how certain Bitcoin enthusiasts run nodes. Related: Bitcoin in Zimbabwe: Importing cars and sending money to familyNonetheless, the way in which the groups of trusted community members called “guardians“ interact with Bitcoin using Fedi remains unclear at this stage and could pose risks, he explained:“In this instance, guardians would have more powers than others on the network, which could create centralization challenges. Plus, there could be a risk of certain people abusing their elevated responsibilities.”Nwosu explained that “Fedimint is a federated custody protocol that complements the Bitcoin monetary protocol and Lightning payments protocol to provide a complete solution to holding, using, and securing Bitcoin at global scale.” Community custody is a brand new development in the Bitcoin protocol while multisig, (in which two or more signatories are required to move Bitcoin), has existed for almost a decade. Although Africa is a clear candidate for Bitcoin scaling and community-backed advancements, Nwosu told Cointelegraph that Leopoldo Lopez, the Venezuelan opposition leader who co-founded the political party Primero Justicia in the year 2000, has also shown interest. Reportedly, the solution that Fedi poses could “meet the needs of the people in Latin America at scale.” Nabourema concluded that Fedimint will be “a lifesaver for millions of citizens living in developing worlds and most importantly those that face brutal authoritarianism at the hands of their government which tends to control their money and how they use it.”

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Crypto recaptures $1 trillion market cap: BTC hits $22K, ETH 'giga mooning'

Crypto recaptures $1 trillion market cap: BTC hits $22K, ETH 'giga mooning'

Uverejnil používateľ | júl 18, 2022 |

Bye bye Monday blues, hello bullish news – the total crypto market capitalization has retaken the $1 trillion level. The crypto market cap is now almost as valuable as all the silver on the planet.A price pump for Bitcoin (BTC) brought the world’s most decentralized cryptocurrency into the $22,500 range, while Ethereum (ETH) enjoyed a double-digit “giga pump” to kiss the $1,500 mark. Their combined efforts have culminated in a 4.8% pump to the entire crypto market, lifting it to a recent high of $1.02 trillion.The crypto market cap is back over the 1 trillion mark! Is it too early to start getting bullish? — Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) July 18, 2022 Bitcoin reclaimed the meme-worthy target of $420 billion in market cap, while Ethereum is sitting pretty at a total market cap of $180 billion, having added more than $20 billion in the past 24 hours. As per the below graph, the last time that the crypto market crossed the $1 trillion level was on June 13.Total crypto market cap for the past 3 months according to coinmarketcap.com/chartsA reminder on market capitalizations; in the case of Bitcoin and most mined cryptocurrencies, the “market cap” refers to the total value of all mined coins. For Bitcoin, it’s simple: multiply the total number of Bitcoin mined since January 3rd, 2009, (a little over 19,096,775) by the current price per Bitcoin, circa $22,000.The trillion dollar mark was welcome news to crypto advocates on Twitter. They were quick to celebrate the momentous milestone, while some, such as DonAlt, queried whether the new price levels could indicate a bullish reversal: So now that BTC is up and ETH is giga mooningAt what price level would a new bull market be confirmed for you guys— DonAlt (@CryptoDonAlt) July 18, 2022

Indeed, the beaten-down market is eager to bask in bullish news, given that the fear and greed index has sat at “extreme fear” or “fear” for months on end. Caution, fear and greed index still sits in extreme fear. Source: alternative.meNonetheless, before reaching for the champagne, spare a thought for the previous crypto market cap all-time high. It tipped the $3 trillion mark in quarter four of 2021, meaning $2 trillion has been lost. Related: Bitcoin hodling activity resembles previous market bottoms: GlassnodeThe crypto market cap reached the same value as Apple’s stock in April 2021 before surpassing $3 trillion. However, Apple is currently valued at $2.4 trillion, while crypto sits at $1 trillion. Consequently, there are some ways to go for crypto to match one of the world’s biggest, and certainly among the most well-known, companies.

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Bitty Kitty: Cat spoils Bitcoin node during price crash with ‘dirty protest’

Bitty Kitty: Cat spoils Bitcoin node during price crash with ‘dirty protest’

Uverejnil používateľ | júl 17, 2022 |

A Bitcoin node is a pivotal piece of the Bitcoin (BTC) protocol. For bad actors, attacking nodes and bringing them offline is a sound strategy to undermine the network’s resilience. For one British Bitcoiner, such an attack took place, as the actions of his feline friend rendered his Bitcoin node “unreachable.”Bodl_hodler (who wishes to remain anonymous) told Cointelegraph that he “started running Raspberry Pi as Umbrel node January 2021,” as he wished to contribute to the overall decentralization of the Bitcoin network.Below is a picture of node in question before the attack. Notice the air vents on the node —a crucial element of the saga.Bodl’s Bitcoin node. Source: @Bodl_HodlThe node ran smoothly since connection, confirming Bitcoin blocks on average every 10 minutes as per the difficulty adjustment. However, in late May 2022, when the price began to tumble under $30,000, Bodl “Went to log into the node for the first time in a while and it couldn’t be found on the network.” “So I pulled it out from behind the sofa only to discover it was covered with a crusty layer of baked on cat sick.”To his horror, Bodl discovered that his large black cat, Pablo, had vomited on the Bitcoin node. The “dirty protest” had affected the node’s ability to connect to the internet and run. Bodl explains, “The vomit got through the vent slots and took the node offline.”Pablo the Bitcoin node attacker and cat. Source: BodlIndeed, if a Bitcoin node goes offline, it no longer contributes to the security of the network, potentially jeopardizing the Bitcoin protocol. Bodl jokes that “Maybe he [Pablo] mistakenly thought it was running a dog-themed shitcoin,” and “couldn’t stomach the volatility.” Bodl is a Bitcoin maximalist who has no time for the likes of Dogecoin (DOGE).Related: Brazil beams Bitcoin from space: A case for BTC satellite nodesFortunately, it is also very easy to turn the node back on and to catch on the missing blocks. Bodl said he “removed the power, plugged it back in again, luckily it powered on fine and took a few minutes to re-sync to add all the blocks that it had missed.”The node was immediately brought back to life, confirming transactions and securing the network. “Tick tock, next block,” has become a popular catchphrase among node runners due to the regularity of the Bitcoin blocks.Incidentally, running a BTC node is increasingly easy and allows Bitcoin users to easily verify their transactions. Bitcoin hobbyists can now run Lightning nodes while some hope to earn passive income along the way. As for Pablo, he now has the company of a new kitten called Lottie who has recently joined the Bodl family.

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Andorra green lights Bitcoin and Blockchain with Digital Assets Act

Andorra green lights Bitcoin and Blockchain with Digital Assets Act

Uverejnil používateľ | júl 16, 2022 |

A small light of progress shines from Andorra, a tiny European country nestled between France and Spain. The country’s government, the General Council of Andorra, recently approved the Digital Assets Act, a regulatory framework for digital currencies and blockchain technology. The act is split into two parts. The first regards the creation of digital money, or “programmable digital sovereign money,” which can be exchanged in a closed system. In effect, this would allow the Andorran state to create its own token.The second half of the act refers to digital assets as financial instruments and intends to create an environment in which blockchain and distributed ledger technologies can be regulated. For Paul (who withheld his surname), CEO of local Bitcoin business 21Million, the new law could attract new business. He told Cointelegraph:“The outcome they’re trying to achieve is to actually attract new businesses to locate in the country by offering some legal clarification making it easier and more transparent. They see this as a way to attract talents and entrepreneurs to the new economy.”Note that cryptocurrencies and digital currencies are not legal tender in Andorra, and the Digital Assets Act makes no proposals surrounding means of exchange. That privilege is exclusively reserved for the preferred currency of the European Central Bank, the euro. It hasn’t stopped Paul, an avid Bitcoiner, from making the case for Bitcoin (BTC) adoption in Andorra: I’ve been working on this one for a while but I’ve finally decided to share it ! Here’s the case I make for a bitcoin adoption in Andorra ! https://t.co/xHxl78YChO— Paul ADW (@PaulADW) July 14, 2022In a blog post, Paul highlighted that Andorra could adopt a Bitcoin standard, mining Bitcoin with renewable energy, taking on Bitcoin as a reserve asset, and welcoming Bitcoin-centric companies from all around the world. National newspaper Diari d’Andorra reported that the Digital Assets Act is a step toward “making cryptocurrencies a day-to-day reality.” From a business perspective, Paul said that the level of “crypto-friendliness” depends on the activity.“I have a friend who runs a mining operation here — no problem —and electricity is cheap. If you do financial consulting, then the same: pretty friendly with a low tax rate. If you wanted to run an exchange, it could be a bit hard to find a bank that works with you; the government itself wouldn’t mind.”In an interview in May, Andorran Minister of Economy and Enterprise Jordi Gallardo mentioned that blockchain was one of the top areas of investment for the tiny country. However, it is not clear if the minister referred to Bitcoin (the world’s foremost blockchain) or research into distributed ledger technologies that underpin blockchains. There is some confusion regarding Bitcoin, blockchain and crypto in Andorra. Source: ShutterstockJosselin Tonnellier, co-founder of StackinSat, told Cointelegraph that there is confusion regarding crypto, blockchain, nonfungible tokens and Bitcoin. StackinSat hosts a major European Bitcoin conference, Surfin’ Bitcoin, in Biarritz, France just outside Andorra where the group’s headquarters are also located. Paul, who is a regular attendee of Surfin’ Bitcoin, confirms that in Andorra, the sentiment and confusion remain similar: “The regulator doesn’t make a differentiation between ‘crypto’ and Bitcoin. They haven’t been ‘orange-pilled’ yet.” To take the orange pill is Bitcoin parlance for when a novice to Bitcoin begins to understand the principles of the seminal cryptocurrency.If you like surfing and Bitcoin, we have the perfect event for you : @SurfinBitcoin pic.twitter.com/zGHrhZIie6— Joss Tonn (@Joss_do_it_BTC) June 18, 2022

Tonnellier emphasized that awareness of digital currencies and technologies is on the rise, but there’s a risk of scams and losses without the right educational tools or frameworks in place: “According to a recent report by KPMG, there are more French people exposed to ‘crypto’ than to the stock market […] France is known to be a hotbed of ‘shitcoinery.’”Although there is no “shitcoin” classification chart, such coins are tokens other than Bitcoin, which, according to the latter’s proponents, are at risk of plummeting to zero. Squid Game Token was one of the most newsworthy shitcoins of 2021. Back in Andorra, Tonnellier explained that the country is best placed to run with technologies such as Bitcoin. “Andorra is one of the few European countries outside the jurisdiction of the European Parliament.” Indeed, in many ways, it could be comparable to Switzerland on a smaller scale:“Andorra is very attractive for entrepreneurs thanks to its low tax, but Switzerland has a great head start in promoting the development of activities around Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general. This could change in the coming years thanks to this text of laws which frames Bitcoin and blockchain activities.”Related: French central bank head announces Phase 2 of wholesale digital euro projectAt under 500 square kilometers of land, Andorra is among Europe’s smallest countries. Contrary to popular belief, Andorra is not a tax haven; the micro-state renounced banking secrecy in 2018. Nonetheless, taxes are considerably lower than in neighboring France or Spain, while financial services comprise up to 20% of the economy. Andorra or Switzerland? Source: Kokono.comWhile it’s unclear which digital assets the government intends to regulate with the Digital Assets Act, the economically motivated movement may help to diversify the Andorran economy and welcome blockchain- and crypto-based companies. For Paul, it’s a step closer to Andorra adopting Bitcoin.

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