cryptonomics

In my unprofessional opinion, an ICO (Initial Coin Offering) will replace the IPO (Initial Public Offering) just like the Decentralized Exchanges (DEX) will replace current exchanges, and Atomic Swaps will be fluid in our daily transactions. This will take time, as regulation will be made, and our understanding of blockchain deepens. However, we already have had many ICOs, and we already have a few DEXs. An ICO should be looked at as an unregulated way for a firm in the crypto-space to raise money, and fund their project(s). It is a way for crypto-firms to bypass regulation and raise funds quickly, while jumping onto the cryptocurrency hype, so caution must be taken as most crypto-enthusiasts see ~90% of ICOs failing. In the ICO's current state, when you purchase a coin/token, you don't own a share of that firm. The firm isn't required to disclose information as they would after an IPO. However, if there is a lot of buzz around said firm, their token value theoreti...

I have been coming across some interesting readings; from the recent way to breed digital kitties on Ethereum to a pretty interesting piece from Hackernoon, " Bitcoin's Final Boss ". So, the Ethereum network has been congested again. This time it isn't being congested by ICOs, instead, Digital Kittens ( Cryptokitties ) that look... nice(?). Cryptokitties made up 11% of Ethereums traffic (12/05/2017). This is seen as problematic as new users continure to pile into the cryptocurrency space, and the problems of a congested network persist. This is problematic because this isn't just oddly adorable kittens unable to breed, this is people's money on the line. Forgive me of my inability to adequately tell this next story, but know that I tried. The last time that I had an experience with congestion (aside from all the times the coinbase app has crashed on me) I had a margin position open on Poloniex . In which I had gone long Ethereum, as it was ascending ...

For over the last year, Wall Street has been on the verbal attack of Bitcoin. They claim it is a bubble, even as far as saying that it is worse than the tulip bubble, or Enron. "Buy gold, not Bitcoin" they say... Gold suuuuuucks. Bitcoin being somewhat of a decentralized currency has bankers shaking. It removes bankers from the equations. As more and more people adopt Bitcoin and altcoins, bankers edge closer to losing all that they have built. Viewing Bitcoin as more of a commodity, they have tried ushering people into gold instead. It is 2017, why buy gold? If I need to cash my gold it, I have to find someone who buys gold, haul my gold to the person, and probably get ripped off by the guy. If I am holding Bitcoin, I can sell it on an exchange from the comfort of my own home. Regulation. Nobody feels that Bitcoin needs regulation, except Morgan Stanley and other banks lol. Bitcoin doesn't need a central bank, and it doesn't need governmental regulation. China...

Cryptocurrencies will provide a missing piece in the global economy by providing a borderless currency. There is no currency that is accepted globally. If you take a US dollar to a different country, it is hard to use it at any given location. Instead, you need to swap them out for the local currency. As an individual, this can make traveling abroad a little painful; especially after paying currency exchange fees (not to mention having to carry around cash). This is also painful for global business as well. If a firm wants to send a payment outside their home market they need to go through a bank. Which then takes their home market's currency, exchanges it for the accepted currency in the other market, and then lets the payment process. This process can take days, and this is the most painless method of transferring payments. Payments through cryptocurrencies break the barrier, and remove the middle man. Firms can easily find where they need to send the payment, select how ...