CryptoDigest@Steem Thursday, April 6, 2017

Dear Steemians!

Here is the daily press review for bitcoin and other crypto currencies.

There's more to tech stock photography than hokey gold bitcoins
When developing a stock concept, Bruce Rolff, who lives just outside New York City, said he often thinks in symbols. Rolff said people he understands why people make fun of "crazy, goofy" stock images, but emphasised they perform a valuable service. "However hard I work, I find that there is no better image than the one you'll be shooting tomorrow." She said demand for bitcoin stock, for example, developed about three years ago. Creating a stock image for a technology concept can be an intensely creative process. (mashable.com)

Bitcoin officially recognized as currency in Japan
Japan officially recognized bitcoin and digital currencies as legal money with effect from 1 April 2017. The recognition comes after implementation of a new law amending Banking Act in Japan for legalizing these currencies. The step will facilitate integration of digital currency into legal banking system through regulatory scrutiny.• The law proposes setting financial conditions that virtual currency exchange operators should meet, such as a certain amount of capital, and requiring them to manage customer assets separately from their own corporate assets.• It calls for introducing a mandatory system for exchange operators to undergo external checks by certified public accountants or auditing firms for their asset management conditions and financial statements.• The recognition of cryptocurrency as a legal tender also means the applicability of regulations governing banks and financial institutions to cryptocurrency exchange platforms.• The bank and institutions will be required to comply with strict anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.• Adoption of cryptocurrency is expected to increase among people, which will, in turn, drive demand and price.• Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency and an electronic payment system.• It was invented by an unidentified programmer, or group of programmers, under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto.• It was introduced on 31 October 2008 to a cryptography mailing list, and released as open-source software in 2009.• The system is peer-to-peer, and transactions take place between users directly, without an intermediary. These transactions are verified by network nodes and recorded in a public distributed ledger called the blockchain, which uses bitcoin as its unit of account.• As of February 2015, over 100000 merchants and vendors accept bitcoin as payment. (jagranjosh.com)

Bitcoin Unlimited Futures Used to Extinguish Debt of Leading Bitcoin Public Company
Bitcoin Unlimited Futures is one of the latest cryptographic creations of the company and rides on the rails of the Bitcoin Blockchain. List of Omni protocol coins issued on the Bitcoin Blockchain owned by the Company: http://omnichest.info/lookupadd.aspx?address=1FwADyEvdvaLNxjN1v3q6tNJCgHEBuABrSThe Bitcoin Unlimited (BU) project seeks to provide a voice to all stakeholders in the Bitcoin ecosystem. VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 6, 2017 / First Bitcoin Capital Corp (OTC PINK: BITCF), in a related party transaction paid off approximately $200,000 in debt utilizing Bitcoin Unlimited Futures, making the Company 100% debt free. Bitcoin Unlimited seeks to remove existing practical barriers to stakeholders expressing their views in these ways. Bitcoin Unlimited makes the process easier by providing a configurable option for the accepted and generated block size via a GUI menu. (yahoo.com)

Bitcoin Games' Progressive Roulette Pays Out 154.32 BTC Worth of Prizes in Just One Week
The games on Bitcoin Games are based on the classic, much-loved Slots, and Video Poker machines in Las Vegas. Learn more about Bitcoin Games at - https://games.bitcoin.com/Bitcoin Games is the source of this content. Bitcoin Games is quickly becoming one of the leading and most popular Bitcoin betting platforms around. Bitcoin Games is an online casino that exclusively uses the cryptocurrency Bitcoin while allowing deposits through other cryptocurrencies via ShapeShift. Bitcoin Games have simplified the general processes, allowing for a quick, fluid and enjoyable gambling experience. (prnewswire.co.uk)

More Japanese Retailers Accepting Bitcoin
That would represent a dramatic increase from the 4,500 Japanese shops that accept Bitcoin today. Today’s report revealed that two of Japan’s largest retailer groups are ready to begin accepting Bitcoin, and have partnered with Bitcoin exchanges to facilitate the process. Electronics retail giant Bic Camera is also set to accept Bitcoin payments. A report from Nikkei today suggests that some Japanese retailers are quickly moving to embrace Bitcoin payments in the wake of a new law that recognizes the digital currency as a legal payment option for the nation’s citizens. Customers who use the app will have the Bitcoins deducted from their account and converted into yen by Coincheck. (dcebrief.com)

Bitcoin (BTC/USD) Price Technical Analysis for April 6, 2017
Bitcoin price recently bounced off the 1-hour channel support as expected and is aiming for the resistance around the Fib extension levels. A break past the channel resistance could take bitcoin price up to the full extension close to the $1200 major psychological resistance, which is an area of interest on the longer-term charts. Developers have agreed to merge existing versions of the software by July 4, eliminating potential incompatibility issues with exchanges or payment platforms and assuring that existing bitcoin will not lose their value. The 100 SMA is above the longer-term 200 SMA so the path of least resistance is to the upside. RSI is also approaching the overbought area but has still room to head north so buyers could still have some energy to push bitcoin higher. (fxdailyreport.com)

A Thinking Person's Guide to the Latest Bitcoin Drama
Here's my quick response to this turn of events:You can stop reading here. On the offchance that Antpool is actively utilizing ASICBOOST, there's still quite a lot to be said about the claims:You can stop reading here as well. Empty blocks indicate ASICBOOST usage, though they can also arise out of datacenter connectivity issues or from headers-first mining. Let's do our due diligence first, and dispassionately find a coherent strategy that represents the best path forward for all. If #1, #2 and #3 are false, then there's absolutely nothing but baseless accusations flying around. (hackingdistributed.com)

Is a Mining Manufacturer Blocking SegWit to Benefit from ASICBOOST?
According to Maxwell, the covert method of mining with ASICBOOST is no longer possible if Segregated Witness activates on the Bitcoin network. Moreover, this could explain why Segregated Witness (SegWit), the Bitcoin protocol upgrade proposed by the Bitcoin Core development team, is blocked by some miners. Many therefore suspect the hardware manufacturer in question is Bitmain, whose CEO Jihan Wu is a staunch opponent of SegWit. Maxwell writes that an ASIC mining device from a “major manufacturer” has been reverse engineered, which revealed that it contains undisclosed, covert use of ASICBOOST functionality. The second option is described as a WTXID commitment, which simply makes the covert method of ASICBOOST impossible even without activation of Segregated Witness. (bitcoinmagazine.com)

Japanese Electronics Retailer Bic Camera to Accept Bitcoin (News)
Tokyo, April 5 (Jiji Press)—Major Japanese electronics retailer Bic Camera Inc. said Wednesday it will start accepting payments by bitcoin at some stores, mainly to attract foreign visitors who use the virtual currency. Shoppers will become able to pay in bitcoins when their smartphones read two-dimensional barcodes to be shown on displays at Bic Camera stores. Bic Camera will use a payment system developed by the bitcoin exchange operator bitFlyer Inc. It is thought to be the first large Japanese retailer to allow customers to pay with bitcoins.[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd. Customers can pay a maximum of ¥100,000 in bitcoins per transaction, but they need to pay commissions. (nippon.com)

Paybis Makes Buying Bitcoin a Lot Easier With Credit Cards
If you are affiliated with this page and would like it removed please contact [email protected] UK-based cryptocurrency platform, Paybis now allows users to buy Bitcoin with credit card. EDINBURGH, Scotland, April 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Users on the leading digital and cryptocurrency exchange platform Paybis can now buy Bitcoin instantly with their credit card. The feature-packed Paybis cryptocurrency platform, with its attention to detail and an easy-to-use interface, provides a 24/7 live customer support for its users. Paybis accepts credit cards issued by major providers like Visa, MasterCard, etc. on its secure platform. Buying Bitcoin with Credit Card is a convenient process where users can simply create an account on PayBis.com and sign in with either Facebook or Google for speed and convenience. (crossroadstoday.com)

Litecoin Moves Within 5% of its SegWit Activation Threshold
With increasing support, litecoin is now just 5% shy away from achieving the 75% network consensus threshold required for activation. The litecoin network appears to be on the cusp of enacting a technical upgrade that would boost the capacity of its network. LTC1BTC and BW.com comprised nearly 22% of the litecoin network hashrate (12.2% and 9.8%, respectively), at time of writing. This means there could exist a situation in which the activation threshold is met, but isn't maintained for the required duration to implement changes to the protocol. Amid the uptick in miner support, litecoin traders pushed the price 24.7% higher to $11.17. (coindesk.com)

Bitcoin Exchange Bitfinex Completes Reimbursing Customers For 2016 Hack Losses
Negative balances could be temporarily created in some cases.• Closing of active BFX loans and returning BFX to lenders.• Replacement of negative BFX balances with the same negative quantity of USD.• Redemption of any positive BFX balances for $1 per BFX token. The reimbursement included the issuance of Bitfinex tokens (BFX) that served as a form of equity obligation to customers. Prior to the Bitfinex hack, one could get a 15 to 20% return on USD rates to finance margin positions. After Bitfinex, bitcoin deposits dropped by 1.5% to 2%. Bitfinex recently completed reimbursing customers who had suffered losses in its August 2016 hack and 119,756 bitcoins (approx $65 million at the time) looks forward to a stronger future. (cryptocoinsnews.com)

First Bitcoin Capital Has Big Visions for the Future of Blockchain Technology
As for First Bitcoin, the company is developing a project that would allow cannabis growers to track their strains using a blockchain. Japan’s decision will have major implications for the cryptocurrency market, as First Bitcoin explains in it statement:“With the new law's implementation, Bitcoin exchanges will also come under additional regulatory scrutiny. You can attach to blockchain any digital documents.”He added that the way in which the data is encrypted also eliminates privacy risks. So, we opened an office in Shanghai to market the exchange.”The company is also engaged in developing its own digital currencies and proprietary Blockchain technologies. Rubin pointed to examples in the oil and gas industry in which production data can be tracked on a blockchain. (equities.com)

Kim Dotcom Announces New Bitcoin Venture For Content Uploaders To Earn Money - Slashdot
Infamous New Zealand-based internet mogul Kim Dotcom plans to launch a Bitcoin payments system for users to sell files and video streaming as he fights extradition to the United States for criminal copyright charges. From a report on Reuters: (slashdot.org)

More details on these and other related news can be found at http://zentrade.online/bitcoin-news-digest-thursday-april-6-2017/