‘Forbes’ Launches Blockchain Newsletter Aimed At Potential Crypto Investors

'Forbes' Launches Blockchain Newsletter Aimed At Potential Crypto Investors

by Melynda Fuller , February 13, 2019

Earlier this year, Forbes began to send a new premium-subscription digital newsletter called Forbes CryptoAsset & Blockchain to select Forbes customers with the intent of deepening its blockchain coverage and further establishing itself as a voice in the field.

The newsletter is edited by Jack Tatar, an investor and co-author of “CryptoAssets: The Innovative Investor’s Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond.”

Forbes’ stable of journalists will contribute to the monthly publication, interviewing notables from the field like Ripple’s CTO David Schwartz, cofounder and CEO of Zcash Zooko Wilcox, and Morgan Creek Capital’s Mark Yusko.

The newsletter costs $595 a year or $195 a quarter, and is not supported by advertising.

“This newsletter is geared toward educating potential investors in blockchain and crypto, and the goal is to provide actionable and profitable advice,” Matt Schifrin, vice president and managing editor of Money & Markets at Forbes, told Publishers Daily.

“It builds upon Forbes’ broader coverage that covers news, technology insights, crypto game changers, enterprise blockchain and issues important to crypto traders.”

According to Schifrin, Forbes began to establish itself as a leading voice in crypto and blockchain when it launched its first annual Fintech 50 list in 2015. Last year, the outlet hired enterprise blockchain reporter Michael del Castillo to join its budding group of writers covering the beat.

In the coming months, said Schifrin, the outlet will publish its first-ever Forbes Blockchain 50 list that covers the most important companies in the space.

Schifrin said. “As crypto-mania subsides, we believe many of the biggest advances in blockchain technology will come from enterprises that have been quietly embracing this nascent technology.”

Nina La France, senior vice president of consumer marketing and business development at Forbes, reports that early engagement with the first issue is high and retention among the first batch of subscribers is solid. Soon, Forbes will roll out marketing campaigns across email, social, webinars, Forbes.com and the magazine to attract new newsletter subscribers.

Original article written by Melynda Fuller and posted on the MediaPost.com site.

Article posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

4500 Stores Worldwide Now Accept XRP for Goods And Services

4500 Stores Worldwide Now Accept XRP for Goods And Services

Ripple keeps growing at a dizzying rate, demonstrating that they not only have the blockchain technology preferred by large banks and financial institutions, but they have also developed a token that works perfectly as a cryptocurrency that grows in use and acceptance faster than any other altcoin in the ecosystem.

Despite the skepticism of many, the Ripple team has managed to captivate several investors, with important new partnerships. The last one was revealed a few hours ago when the cryptocurrency payment processor CoinGate announced that it was providing support for XRP in all of its 4500 stores.

Coingate Accepts XRP But Also Wants To Help it Grow

The CoinGate team comments that in addition to having studied the technology, the decision to accept XRP was made considering the high demand for the token in the community.

“We are thrilled to let you know that we are adding yet another payment option for our merchants, and this time it’s a big one! Due to very popular demand by the community, our next cryptocurrency on the list – XRP! As a result, XRP coin owners can now use it as a means of payment at more than 4,500 shops online! Whether you want to purchase a VPN, video game or anything else, you are more than welcome to do that!”

CoinGate emphasized that as a company they have high confidence in Ripple’s trustworthiness and the advanced blockchain technology they develop. CoinGate noted that despite accusations of being extremely centralized, Ripple is carrying out a decentralization strategy in which they stimulate the admission of third-party validators, removing one proprietary node for every two new decentralized nodes.

They also expressed their commitment to Ripple technology. “To further accelerate the decentralization of the XRP network, we are now running our own XRP Ledger validator!” Coingate said in its announcement.

The relationship between Coingate and Ripple is not limited only to supporting XRP as a payment mechanism. Coingate also announced the launch of a token purchase service with several payment modalities:

“Now, you can also buy XRP via CoinGate using one of our supported methods. For example, you are able to purchase it using SEPA bank transfer, mobile balance, and QQPay via CoinGate dashboard. However, if you do not wish to bother with registration, there are alternative methods to achieve the same.
One way is to buy XRP with a credit/debit card. It is a very simple procedure that only requires a quick KYC check-up. Same goes for those who wish to purchase XRP using Neteller or Skrill wallets. Just provide your receiving XRP address, enter your credentials and proceed to checkout!”

Ripple is Growing… And You Can Be a Part of It

Ripple’s growth is a fact. Its marketing strategy and a solid technological development have allowed it to rise to number 2 in the global market cap, surpassed only by Bitcoin, which remains the undisputed king of cryptocurrencies.

Currently, unlike other projects that have had to dismiss several members due to economic losses, Ripple has initiated a campaign to acquire talent. At the moment there are 36 open positions listed on Ripple’s job site, for various departments in countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, China, Dubai, Singapore, and India.

Original article written by Jose Antonio Lanz and posted on the EthereumWorldNews.com site.

Article posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Trader’s Reprieve: Turbo Tax Now has a I sold or Traded Cryptocurrency Option

Trader’s Reprieve: Turbo Tax Now has a “I sold or Traded Cryptocurrency” Option

It’s around that time of the year and as government workers resume after one of the longest shut-down in US history, the IRS will soon be ready to knock on your doors. Like everywhere else, filing for taxes is a mandatory and crypto traders, investors and holders must comply. Everything else constant, filling will be hectic for crypto day traders. These are individuals who actively trade—and it doesn’t matter the pair. Both crypto-to-crypto and crypto-fiat or vice versa are deductible events and the US government expect taxes from these properties whenever you buy or sell. Luckily and as reported by Ethereum World News, CoinBase did integrate with Turbo Tax to simplify filling.

Turbo Tax Simplification

But, here’s some good news for those who transact at alternative on-ramps—fiat to crypto or crypto to crypto. Turbo Tax now has a “I sold or Traded Cryptocurrency” option. No doubt, this will be a massive boost for traders seeking to cut down the tedious process of counter-checking and filling taxes online. Aside from this new option, note that users won’t be charged a cent and all they have to do is create an account.

Furthermore, the site provides and easy way to track trades. The only problem is that Turbo Tax can only accept 100 trades and they have been reducing this from 1,000 to 500 and now 100 trades which is quite disappointing especially for active traders. However, users can get around this by filtering their CSV files to exclude zero gains.

Before you move on and download your CSV, take a few minutes and note this:

  • Make sure you fill and submit Form 8949 on time.
  • Crypto-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat (or vice versa) trading is a taxable event
  • Spending your crypto, like buying stuff online, is a taxable event.
  • Gifting someone in crypto is a non-taxable event—but must have supporting documents.
  • Making crypto donations to IRS certified charities is not a taxable event.

And

Hiding your assets—let’s buy Monero guys—is tax evasion and a federal offense. CoinBase was forced to give away traders that had transacted more than 20k. There is no hiding.

Original article written by Daimas Ngetich and posted on the EthereumWorldNews.com site.

Article posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Blockchain Investor Claims Bitcoin BTC Will Plunge To 0

Blockchain Investor Claims Bitcoin (BTC) Will Plunge To $0

Economists Bash Bitcoin In The Swiss Alps

Bashing Bitcoin (BTC) has apparently become a popular trend at Davos’ recent World Economic Forum event. More specifically, the cryptocurrency has become a punching bag. Just yesterday, per previous reports from Ethereum World News, Huw Van Steenis, the senior advisor to Bank of England’s governor, Mark Carney, bashed this nascent asset class.

Speaking to Bloomberg in a candid interview, Steenis, who purportedly is compiling a report about the future of finance, surprisingly claimed that cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin aren’t on his radar, or list of concerns for that matter. The former Morgan Stanley economist then remarked that blockchain-based assets “fail” the basic tests that financial services are de-facto run through. Steenis explained that BTC, along with other digital assets, is slow, fail to hold their value over time, and aren’t a viable, bonafide Medium of Exchange (MoE).

Tech Investor Claims BTC Will Fall To $0

Just one day later, BTC fell victim to another attack, as a technology investor and entrepreneur took to a CNBC-hosted panel to bash the blockchain-based digital asset. According to CNBC post-mortem on the manner, Jeff Schumacher, the founder of BCG Digital Ventures, a corporate investment and tech incubator group, claimed that the flagship cryptocurrency could capitulate to a value of zilch eventually.

Speaking to a crowd of economists, global leaders, notable investors, and corporate C-suiters, Schumacher explained that he “believes it will go to zero,” adding that he thinks that it (or the technology underlying Bitcoin) is a “great technology.” However, the BCG founder made it clear that he doesn’t think that blockchain technologies should be applied to currencies, accentuating that its underlying value isn’t based on anything. Like many traditionalists with a vested interest in the centralized system, Schumacher fails to see the value of a decentralized, immutable, cross-border, rapid, uncensorable current that transcends the boundaries imposed by financial incumbents.

Instead of lauding blockchain technologies for their potential revolutionary use cases in finance, Schumacher instead touched on the innovation’s ability to facilitate “open decentralized ecosystems,” which would be the global protocols and infrastructure that businesses could run on.

Yet, some weren’t in agreement with Schumacher’s inflammatory quip. Glenn Hutchins, the chairman of Virtu-affiliated North Island, a financial technology services company, claimed that BTC will likely grow to have a notable role as a Store of Value (SoV). Hutchins noted that BTC’s role “in the system” could be as pseudo-gold in a digital economy, rife with arrays of tokens that serve every use case imaginable.

Hutchins isn’t the only notable investor to think of Bitcoin as a digital semblance of the orange-esque precious metal. As reported by Ethereum World News multiple times previously, a number of pundits have overtly claimed that BTC’s foremost use case is as digital gold.

Alistair Milne, the CIO of Digital Currency Fund, claimed that Bitcoin has seen its Store of Value (SoV) proposition become more apparent. More specifically, he noted that Bitcoin’s investors are now “very aware that BTC is like trading gold with 100x leverage,” along with the fact that the flagship cryptocurrency’s inflation rate will be lower than that of the precious metal. And, as “no one appears to doubt the usefulness of gold,”

The Winklevoss Twins, the co-founders of the Gemini Exchange, recently claimed that Bitcoin “better at being gold than gold itself.” Twin Tyler noted that as this industry continues to develop, BTC will continue eating up bits of gold’s market capitalization, until the newfangled cryptocurrency passes its (arguably worse) physical counterpart.

Lou Kerner has also recently chimed in on the matter. Kerner, the founding partner at CryptoOracle, divulged that the cryptocurrency’s portability, ease-of-use, divisibility, and scarcity, make it a viable alternative to precious metals, and will allow BTC to eventually surmount its quintuple-digit cell.

Original article written by Nick Chong and posted on the EthereumWorldNews.com site.

Article posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Marshall Island Hires Malta’s Strategic Advisor to Assist in the Issue of an Official Cryptocurrency

Marshall Island Hires Malta’s Strategic Advisor to Assist in the Issue of an Official Cryptocurrency

The government of the Marshall Islands, headed by Hilda Heine, stands firm in its efforts to issue an official cryptocurrency as a mechanism for optimizing financial services and avoiding an exclusive dependence on US Dollars to ensure the proper functioning of banking operations.

“Sovereign” (SOV) is the token that the government of the island created by presidential decree and will circulate together with the U.S Dollar as the official currency of the nation.

 

After the presidential decree was approved, continued pressure from the United States and the International Monetary Fund led a group of congressmen to issue a no-confidence motion against the president in an attempt to make the U.S. currency the only legal tender accepted in the country.

However, the project is still underway, and to ensure fulfillment of the objectives, the government has contracted the services of none other than Mr. Steve Tendon, Managing Director of TameFlow Consulting / ChainStrategies, a firm that provides technical advice and development strategies designed to promote the use of blockchain technologies.

The Marshall Islands Rely on Tendon’s Successful Experience With Malta

According to a Press Release, Dr. Peter Dittus, former Secretary General of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), Mr. Tendon’s support may be crucial for the Marshall Islands to meet the goal of having an official crypto that meets all the requirements needed for massive adoption:

“With Steve working alongside Neema, we are growing closer every day to support the Marshall Islands with issuing the first digital legal tender and launching a financial services economy around it."

Steve Tendon’s participation and experience were crucial for the Maltese government to become a Blockchain Island. In 2016 he was a strategic adviser for the Ministry of Economy, Investment and Small Business (MEIB) of the Maltese Government, developing Malta’s National Blockchain Strategy which would then be approved by the cabinet of ministers the following year. He then advised the Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation (FSDEI) Office of the Prime Minister on matters related to the implementation of Malta’s Blockchain Strategy.

The government of the Marshall Islands, aware of the results obtained from Malta’s experience, gave Tendon some critical responsibilities:

“Steve is one of the foremost experts in blockchain technology and regulations … (He) will assist with the drafting and designing of regulations to develop a blockchain financial services economy out of the Marshall Islands."

Original article posted on Ethereum World News and written by Jose Antonio Lanz

Posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Cryptocurrency in 2019: Things to Expect

Cryptocurrency in 2019: Things to Expect


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Cryptocurrencies continue to surprise us with their behavior through the years. Amidst all the instability and unpredictability in terms of performance, trading, litigation, regulation, and taxation, miners and investors brave the odds and explore what these cryptocurrencies have to offer. Pessimists and optimists alike have much to say about the future of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin – such as bitcoin’s supposed nearing end because of the consistent drop in bitcoin price after reaching its peak. But it’s more viable to focus on observable trends in order to have an idea on what to expect as far as these cryptocurrencies are concerned. Here are some of them.

The Market

The word “bubble” is thrown around in the finance world, and if you’re wondering what it means, it is simply the cycle created by the fast escalation of asset prices followed by a contraction. The bubble deflates when investors cease to buy at elevated prices and massive sell-offs occur. As for bitcoin, yes it is a bubble, and it indeed popped. The market is expected to calm down a bit after the bubble and cryptocurrency trading will remain profitable.

Cryptocurrency as Payment

Retailers are starting to accept cryptocurrency as payment. At this point in time, including cryptocurrency in the list of payment methods can potentially boost income, in the same way that establishments that accept credit cards do have a wider reach than those who do not. Now you can book flights, purchase household goods, get web domains, buy computer products, and so much more with bitcoin. As of December 2018, more travel services, web services, food, and general merchandise have started to accept bitcoin payments. Those with a Microsoft account, for example, have the “Redeem Bitcoin” option upon checkout and can add up to $100 at a time via Bitpay.

Cybersecurity

In the recent years, crypto traders and holders have seen security threats such as phishing and mining malware. Cryptocurrencies, in theory, are secure; however, we expect that new crypto exchanges and platforms will bring about new cybersecurity threats and challenges.

Blockchain

The blockchain industry has always been associated with cryptocurrency, and in 2019, it is expected to work on its image as an industry that has a lot more to offer. If the industry wants to operate on a larger scale, it needs to be communicated that the blockchain technology has a lot of uses that are unrelated to cryptocurrency.

Taxation and Regulation

2019 is set to be the year of more widespread, formal, and international crypto regulation. In cryptocurrency news this year, Malta became the first country to have a clear regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies. Countries such as Russia and India have also begun to draft national legislation for cryptocurrencies; and we expect other countries to follow suit – giving way for cryptocurrency to become more legitimate. Preventing money laundering, fraud, and terrorist funding is a prime motivation in putting these regulations in place. If cryptocurrencies are safely policed, more and more people will be confident to use and adopt them.

Contact us at Hogan Injury for expert legal advice.

None of the content on Hoganinjury.com is legal advice nor is it a replacement for advice from a certified lawyer. Please consult a legal professional for further information.

Original article posted on Hogan Injury website

Syndicated article, by permission, posted on Markethive, by Jeffrey Sloe

Bitcoin Scams and How to Avoid Them

Bitcoin Scams and How to Avoid Them


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Bitcoin has taken the world by storm, and since its introduction in 2008, it has inevitably faced several controversies. Scammers found a gold mine in the digital currency for many reasons. One of them is the fact that only a few people understand it, which makes it easier to make them believe false promises. Another reason is anonymity – cryptocurrency gives scammers relative ease to cover their tracks. Lastly, a major reason is that it is largely unregulated. Bitcoin chiefly operates outside of the conventions of a financial system; and this worries regulators as it has the potential to be linked to money laundering, tax evasion, fraud, and terrorist funding.

What are the most common bitcoin scams and how do you spot them?

Fake Bitcoin Exchanges. One popular example for these would be South Korea's BitKRX, which posed to be a branch of the country's Korean Exchange (KRX) and claimed to be a platform to exchange and trade bitcoin. Ultimately, it turned out to be fraudulent. There are also those that pretend to be connected with well-known exchanges using apps or fake websites; users are scammed when they log in and their account details are given away. When you are directed to a website, make sure that the URL has “HTTPS” rather than just “HTTP.” Without the letter S, it means that the web traffic has no security and encryption.

Ponzi Scams. Someone promises an incredible return of investment using bitcoin and a lot of people buy in it. Before you know it, someone runs off with all of your money. That's basically how Ponzi schemes work. At first, victims will be made to believe that it actually works – say, the digits in their bank account are increasing. This will also make them talk about its “success” and convince others to join in. Eventually, calls to the customer service are unanswered, there are technical problems with the website, or the money will be remitted late – among several excuses while your money disappears for good. If you see ads that sound like, “double your bitcoin overnight,” they're probably scams. How it usually works is you have to send them your money first before they can double it.

Pyramid Schemes. Scammers use bitcoin as a product in pyramid scams. In these schemes, your low initial investment will be multiplied if you invite more people to sign up. After a lot of people have invested their money, the original scammer walks away with all the money.

Malware. Hackers have long been using malware in order to get a hold of other people's login credentials and account details. Now, it's being used to drain Bitcoin wallets that are connected to the Internet.

How do you avoid falling into these scams?

  • If the offer is too good to be true, stay away from it.
  • Be vigilant on social media – legitimate bitcoin traders and brokers can be victims of poser accounts or impersonators.
  • Never conduct financial transactions via direct messages on social media platforms.
  • Do your homework and research on services you encounter and the best trading platforms; verify their claims and check their legitimacy or whether they are a registered corporation or not.

Contact us at Hogan Injury for expert legal advice.

None of the content on Hoganinjury.com is legal advice nor is it a replacement for advice from a certified lawyer. Please consult a legal professional for further information.

Original article posted on Hogan Injury website

Syndicated article, by permission, posted on Markethive, by Jeffrey Sloe

Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Litigation

Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Litigation

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Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are gaining more attention as days pass. Aside from the advantages that cryptocurrencies have like anonymity and easy international transactions, people are enticed by the fact that it can become a good investment. Apart from trading bitcoins for cash, you can also use bitcoins to buy gift cards, book flights, and hotels, buy furniture, or even buy real estate properties. Bitcoin purchases are not taxed at the moment since there is no way for third parties to identify, track, or intercept transactions that use bitcoins. Transaction fees are considerably lower as well compared to credit card transactions or services like Paypal.

Although there are many advantages in using bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, just like any other investments, you should always be careful with your transactions. Since cryptocurrency is not regulated, many unscrupulous people have taken advantage of this and incidents of fraudulent cryptocurrencies, and other types of scam related to cryptocurrency have happened. One example of this is Prodeum, a cryptocurrency start-up that scammed its investors in just one weekend.

Because of these scams, law firms have now been involved in helping the victims. Cryptocurrency litigation has now become something that some lawyers specialize in. There are a lot of factors to consider when a cryptocurrency dispute arises. Aside from fraudulent Initial Coin Offering (ICO), lawyers could get involved if the cryptocurrency was used to launder money or hide assets; they could also get involved when there is an issue with the company, commercial, or intellectual property laws being violated in relation to cryptocurrency.

Here are some things that you can do as a cryptocurrency user to avoid being scammed:

1. Research. – Just like with any other investments that you will make, research is essential. When investing in an ICO, make sure to read and dissect their white papers to ensure that you’re working with reliable people. Take time to research the people behind the ICO, their whole team, board members, and other investors. It’s vital for you to learn as much as you can about the company before investing so that there will be no unpleasant surprises.

2. Be vigilant. – Cryptocurrency is still primarily bought and sold at exchanges. Because cryptocurrency is something new and the fuss around it is its value, many people get scammed by the promise of unrealistic prices. If an exchange promises incredible discounts or offers that seem too good to be true, it probably is. Another thing that you can do to avoid bitcoin exchange scams is to check the exchange’s URL. If a website’s address starts with HTTPS instead of just HTTP, that means that the traffic is encrypted and therefore has more protection.

3. Only use trusted sources. – Hardware wallet is a physical device that stores your private keys. Hardware wallets offer more protection from hacking since there is no way for hackers to access them when you’re not online. However, hackers have now found a way around that. Some hackers sell hardware wallets that have a backdoor for them to access all your cryptocurrency and the best way to avoid this is only to accept hardware wallets from trusted sources.

In need of expert legal advice? Contact us at Hogan Injury.

None of the content on Hoganinjury.com is legal advice nor is it a replacement for advice from a certified lawyer. Please consult a legal professional for further information.

Original article posted on the Hogan Injury Website

Syndicated article, by permission, posted on Markethive, by Jeffrey Sloe

Ukraine: Economic Development and Trade Ministry Launches State Policy to Legalize Crypto

Ukraine: Economic Development and Trade Ministry Launches State Policy to Legalize Crypto

The Economic Development and Trade Ministry of Ukraine has initiated a “state policy” for the classification and legalization of crypto-related activities, Ukrainian state information and news agency Ukrinform reported Oct. 26.

The Ministry has reportedly issued an official press release stating that its purpose is to “create understandable conditions for conducting activities in the field of virtual assets and virtual currencies," and to usher in “adoption of the concept of a state policy” for crypto.

To this end, it has proposed establishing legal definitions for key terms, including “virtual currency” (“cryptocurrency,”) “virtual assets,” Initial Coin (or Token) Offerings (ICOs or ITOs), cryptocurrency mining, “smart contracts,” and “tokens.”

Ukrinform reports the concept is expected to be implemented in two stages, and will be completed in 2021.

Although Ukraine has not until now regulated crypto, the first signs the country was on track to its legalization surfaced in mid-May, when a member of the parliament, Alexei Mushak, attached a copy of an apparent draft legislation document for crypto to his public Facebook page.

The document outlined that the legislation aims to create a “free and transparent” digital asset market, outlining rules for storing, using, and exchanging crypto, digital tokens, and smart contracts at a state, entity, and individual level.

In mid-September, the country’s parliament proposed a draft bill that, if signed into law, would levy a five percent tax on individuals’ and entities’ crypto holdings. For businesses’ crypto-related profits, it proposed the basic corporate and personal income tax rate of 18 percent.

An alternative bill proposing specific crypto tax exemptions and a slightly different definition of various types of crypto assets was put forward by a Ukrainian legislator in early October.

As of mid-October, a dedicated working group within the Ministry of Finance has reportedly been working to elaborate the framework for crypto taxation.

In parallel, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) is considering a state digital currency tied to the local fiat currency, the hryvnia, which would be centralized and remain under government control.

Original article posted on Cointelegraph

Article written by Marie Huillet

Posted on this site by Jeffrey Sloe

There’s A Giant White Sewer Rat In Wall Street And It’s Preaching Bitcoin

There’s A Giant White Sewer Rat In Wall Street And It’s Preaching Bitcoin

There’s a really interesting piece of art down in Wall Street that has captured the people’s attention for some time now. It’s a rat, and a really huge one for that matter.

Nelson Saiers And The Rat

This new phenomenon sits across the street right opposite the Federal Reserve building. However, it’s not the giant white inflatable rat that’s been stirring up Wall Street, but rather what it actually represents. The man responsible for the huge rat’s existence on America’s most popular street is one Nelson Saiers. Nelson spent the better part of his life as a hedge fund manager in Wall Street until he stopped trading in 2014. Since then, Nelson has dedicated his time to revealing the ills of the traditional financial system that he believes is way too broken to survive in the long run.

To better put his point across, this man has opted to use art. In fact, he’s not alone in this line of thinking. There have been numerous cases of people using art to speak to the public about the broken system. Often, they leave spectacular pieces of art or paintings on buildings all across cities. Such art has been spotted in a number of the world’s most popular cities – including France’s Paris.

The Federal Reserve Vs Bitcoin

In precise terms, the huge inflatable sewer rat bearing down on the US Federal Reserve building has its body covered with art depicting Bitcoin code, a spectacle that symbolizes Nelson’s perception of a better financial system as opposed to the mainstream centralized system. In his view, a decentralized crypto ecosystem would do much better than the current system that operates under the tight grip of the authorities.

Indeed, the last two decades have seen various artists come out to use their talents to depict the apparent financial inequalities in the current system. One of the most prominent artists in this school of thought is Banksy. In Banksy’s opinion, a rat is a symbol of resilience and freedom, saying that rats exist without permission and have zero attachment to conservative societal standards. Back in 2016, Andreas Antonopoulous referred to Bitcoin as the “sewer rat of currencies.” Andreas is computer scientist. He went on to give the imagery of an injured but dynamic and robust financial system represented by the sewer rat.

Nicknamed “The Warhol of Wall Street,” Nelson’s ambition doesn’t start or end with the giant white inflatable sewer rat bearing down on the Federal Reserve building. This isn’t his first such project. In fact, he plans to remove the rat once its point is home. With such things happening, Bitcoin seems to be gaining more traction in terms of popularity and credibility as the valid alternative to the restrictive traditional financial system. Could such acts cause a Bitcoin bull run?

Article written by Nick James

Article posted on Ethereum World News

Jeffrey Sloe