#88: Blockchains can (maybe) help clean up the environment

Glass half full

Chain Letter Blockchains, cryptocurrencies, and why they matter 09.18: Glass half full Welcome to Chain Letter! Great to have you. Here’s what’s new in the world of blockchains and cryptocurrencies.  Heal the world … with blockchains? It’s possible, the World Economic Forum argues in an optimistic new study. The report lays out 65 “existing and emerging use cases” for which blockchains could be used to address environmental problems, from natural disasters to water scarcity and of course, climate change. Concepts like peer-to-peer energy trading could make power grids more efficient and resilient, while decentralized systems would help disseminate critical information in the aftermath of a disaster. As for curbing greenhouse gas emissions? “Tokenized” carbon credits can help with that. The WEF could be right. But let’s be real: as the report admits, most of these use cases are only concepts or pilots. Blockchain networks can also pose an environmental problem in their own right—the most popular ones use as much electricity as a small nation due to the the process, called proof-of-work, that participants use to reach a consensus that the information in their shared ledger is accurate. More energy-efficient consensus mechanisms may emerge and find success at a large scale. But the technical obstacles to that cannot be glossed over. Challenges related to scalability and environmental sustainability might be overcome by turning to blockchain networks that require participants to identify themselves. That cuts the cost of convincing the rest of the network to trust them (though many would argue that such a structure undermines the very idea of a blockchain). Whatever the path forward, blockchain networks must address their own environmental challenges before they can address the planet’s. For Tezos, it’s time to shake and bake. A poster child of the ICO craze has finally taken off the training wheels. Tezos, which raised $232 million in one of the first shockingly large token sales in 2017, has officially launched its “self-amending crypto-ledger” after a short beta period—and to say it has a lot to prove is an understatement. Given all the backroom drama and lawsuits that have beset the project, it’s easy to forget that it set out to realize fundamental innovations in blockchain consensus and governance. Now it will serve as testbed for least two innovative concepts: an emerging consensus mechanism called delegated proof-of-stake, and an approach to blockchain governance that lets investors use their tokens to propose and vote on changes to the protocol. Instead of miners, Tezos’s validators are called “bakers,” or individuals who “stake” their tokens in return for the right to add new blocks to the chain. In theory, the approach can be faster and more efficient than proof-of-work. Another hypothesis is that Tezos governance model will create an incentive for the token holders to participate in making the protocol better, since that should make the value of the tokens rise. Now we’re about to find out whether these theories translate to the real world—and whether Tezos can be anything more than a poster child for irrational exuberance. AI is accessible to any size company, anywhere, and it's within your reach.  Join us at #EmTechDigital. Loose Change Fill your pockets with these newsy tidbits. • FOAM, a much anticipated Ethereum-based alternative to centralized location services that uses radio beacons and smart contracts, has launched. (CoinDesk) • Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, says the ECB has no plan to issue a digital currency, since cash use is still high in the euro zone and blockchains still “require substantial further development.” (Reuters) • Despite the bear market, new crypto hedge funds keep launching and established ones continue to expand. (Bloomberg) • Cryptojacking malware has been found on hundreds of government computers in India. (Crowdfund Insider). • Brave, the maker of a privacy-focused web browser that rewards users with crypto-tokens, is suing Google for allegedly violating the EU’s new online privacy rules. (CoinDesk) The Money Quote “When we saw the market begin to correct, which we all expected, institutions didn't lose interest. It was exactly the opposite.” —Adam White, general manager of Coinbase Institutional, to CoinDesk. Coinbase is planning to hire more than 100 new employees for its division focused on institutional investors like hedge funds and family offices. We hope you enjoyed today's tour of what's new in the world of blockchains and cryptocurrencies. Send us some feedback, or follow me @mike_orcutt. Know someone who might enjoy reading Chain Letter? Was this forwarded to you, and you'd like to see more? Discover where tech, business, and culture converge. Attend EmTech Digital March 25-26, 2019 San Francisco View this in a browser You received this newsletter because you subscribed with the email address: contacto1745.send-mail@blogger.com edit preferences   |   unsubscribe   |   follow us      MIT Technology Review One Main Street Cambridge, MA 02142

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Sponsored by   September 18, 2018 TRANSFERS WITHOUT BORDERS: Next time some know-it-all confidently tells you there is no legitimate use case for bitcoin, send them this story about how Palestinians are using the cryptocurrency to connect to the global economy. With no service from PayPal or equivalent (except a lackluster knockoff called PalPay, no kidding), bitcoin's permissionless and censorship-resistant properties have empowered a small community of users in the blockaded Gaza Strip and the West Bank to send and receive value abroad and shop online.    But that doesn't mean they're using it in everyday transactions, and even the Palestinian-born author of "The Bitcoin Standard," Saifdean Ammous, believes it will be a long time before that happens. Full Story IT'S RAINING STABLECOINS: In another addition to the ever growing list of stablecoins, Xiong'An (Grandshores) Blockchain Fund announced that it will be releasing a Yen-pegged cryptocurrency. The $1 billion blockchain fund, with backing from the Chinese city of Hangzhou, plans to launch the stablecoin late this year or early 2019. It claims to be in talks with a Japanese bank reagrding the same. Full Story TOKENS ACCEPTED HERE: Back in the day, a New York City subway token would buy you a train ride, but it couldn't buy you a hot dog. Now, imagine if there were also hot dog tokens, Statue of Liberty tokens, panhandler and mugger tokens and so on. That's a lot of value that would have been rendered illiquid. The multiverse of ERC-20 tokens is arguably in a similar situation today. Loi Luu, CEO and co-founder of Kyber Network, laments that these ethereum tokens are unable to meet a practical use case.  "Our main goal is to make tokens usable anywhere," Luu said.   So Kyber, a decentralized exchange, has secured partnerships with Etheremon, Coinbase Wallet and Peepeth for a project to make tokens usable for payments to businesses. Luu believes that this integration will further technological advancement and will be useful for dapps. Full Story Twelve percent. That's the increase in XRP's price in the past 24 hours, while the prices of bitcoin and ethereum remain in the red. Why the uniqueness? This was most likely caused by the announcement that xRapid (Ripple's commercial payment platform that incorporates XRP) will be launching in about a month. Ripple has been making strides in working with industry players from crypto exchanges like Bittrex to traditional financial institutions like American Express.   For more research insights check out the CoinDesk Research section here. SPONSOR SECTION   MBAex is SE Asia's biggest blockchain assets trading platform powered by blockchain technology which allows all merchants and consumers to conduct trading of popular blockchain assets and digital currencies. MBAex launched the world's first multi-tiered affiliates' program to enable everyone to grow their wealth with the Company.  ​Learn More Here   REVERSAL OF FORTUNE: The near-term outlook for bitcoin has turned bearish again, technical analysis indicates. Full Story BEST OF THE BEST SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST: Some cities in China are becoming completely cashless. And despite the government's strict stance on cryptocurrencies, you can get by just with bitcoin — though barely. The SCMP reports that a documentary by a girl known only by her online name "He Youbing" covers her attempt to live using only bitcoin in Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Shanghai.  Her 21-day experiment was not all rosy as she went to the hospital for low blood sugar levels one day, unable to buy food using cryptocurrency.   THE REST THE NEXT WEB: Electronic currency sounds great, you say, but what if the power goes out? Well, a group of developers claim to have completed a crypto transaction using shortwave radios and a solar panel.​ It is not all that easy to transition to radio transmission, though, as a special license is required for that, the article notes. HOUSTON CHRONICLE: In a profile, the Houston Chronicle explores how blockchain has been helpful to a small real estate company. Boxer Property, the company out of Houston, is using blockchain to maintain records and contracts. “This is real accountability because we’re able to keep track of and verify things,” said the president of the company, Justin Segal. The article quotes one of Boxer's contractors, who candidly admits he doesn't know how any of this works, but vouches from experience that the tech does in fact solve a problem.   We've launched our first-ever podcast, "Late Confirmation," a digest of top stories in the blockchain world, delivered daily from the team at CoinDesk and sponsored by the Oxford Blockchain Programme. Listen to Latest Episode and Subscribe   WHO WON #CRYPTOTWITTER   ConsenSys Jobs Blockchain Jobs Circle Jobs BitGo Jobs Copyright © 2018 CoinDesk. All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: 250 Park Avenue South New York, NY, 10003, US Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Bitcoin's ultimate use case

September 18, 2018

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Bitcoin will do to banks what email did to the postal industry.”

- Rick Falkvinge

MARKET

COIN	PRICE	24H
BTC	$6,380.315283	-1.04%
ETH	$210.858952	-3.09%
XRP	$0.305819	+9.51%
BCH	$440.840739	+0.03%
EOS	$5.083675	-4.21%

*Information as of 9:30 AM EST

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INTERNATIONAL

Palestinians Are Using Bitcoin to Transact Across Borders During Conflict

BITCOIN'S REAL USE CASE

• According to CoinDesk, there is a handful of Palestinians utilizing Bitcoin to transact outside of the country's borders amid conflict
• Ahmed Ismail, a financial analyst in Gaza, estimated 20 unofficial Bitcoin dealers, including himself, who help clients purchase Bitcoin to send money abroad, purchase investments abroad, or shop abroad
• One of the Bitcoin dealers has helped up to 50 different families over the last four years to purchase an average of $500 worth of Bitcoin each month so they can transact freely

The dealer expressed his support for Bitcoin use in Palestine:

"Bitcoin, in their opinion, is cheaper, safer, and quicker. Nothing works with Palestinian banks. Bitcoin wallets are alternative banks."

FIGHTING CENSORSHIP RESISTANCE

• Though Palestine does not have the burden of hyperinflation unlike Iran, Turkey, and Venezuela, the citizens need Bitcoin to fight censorship
• With the country's population restricted from the global economy during its ongoing fight with Israel, citizens are struggling to find payment gateways in and out of the country through regulated banks
• In some cases, bank accounts have been shut down if the user attempted to send money to family across borders
• However, though an illiquid, decentralized, digital asset is not the most convenient in a cash-focused economy, it is a glimmer of hope for Palestinians wishing to operate free of government intervention

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OPINION

Blockchain is 'Meaningless' Unless it Builds Greener Future, Says Alibaba Founder Jack Ma

JACK MA

• Jack Ma is a Chinese business magnate who is the co-founder of the e-commerce behemoth Alibaba
• Ma recently shared plans for his retirement from Alibaba to focus on philanthropy
• Retirement is well deserved for Ma, Forbes estimates his net worth just shy of $37 billion

MEANINGLESS

• Ma recently gave a keynote at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference
• The focus of his speech was artificial intelligence, but Ma took some time to speak about blockchain also

The Alibaba founder said that technologies like blockchain are meaningless if they don’t do good:

“The data age is major opportunity for manufacturers to reform the industry. But blockchain and IoT will be meaningless tech unless they can promote the transformation of the manufacturing industry, and the evolution of the society towards a greener and more inclusive direction.”

HISTORY WITH CRYPTO

• Although Ma did say that blockchain May become meaningless, he has a long positive history with the technology
• Ma has critiqued the bubble argument in the past and stated that he has studied blockchain for years and believes in its potential
• Alibaba holds more crypto and blockchain related patents than any other business entity in the world

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NEWS

Dogecoin Creator Rescues Elon Musk from ETH Scam Bots on Twitter

ELON vs SCAMMERS

• Twitter ETH scammers do not only go after crypto related accounts, Elon Musk's Twitter is one of the most targeted accounts for these sort of scams
• The tech poster boy has taken to Twitter in the past to voice his displeasure with scammers impersonating his image

DOGE TO THE RESCUE

• On Monday, Elon reached out to the founder of Dogecoin, Jackson Palmer, for his assistance to hush the bots
• Palmer who has developed a script that blocks all scammers that reply to a users' tweet responded to Elon telling him to slide into his direct messages
• Palmer later gave an update to his followers that Elon is now equipped with the script and shared that the two spoke about how Twitter should fix this problem

Here is Musk and Palmer's back and forth on Twitter:

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LAUNCH

Ripple Hints xRapid Will Go Live Within 'Next Month or So'

xRapid is coming…

It’s crunch time for the 3rd largest cryptocurrency in the world as Ripple gears up to possibly launch its flagship product xRapid within the next month. So far, the San Fran-based startup says they have already racked up more than 120 different partnerships with banks who are using their xCurrent product.

But if banks are already using xCurrent then why do they need xRapid?

What is that xCurrent thing?

Well, the two products provide different perks. xCurrent is used by banks to communicate and facilitate distributed ledger transactions and it can also transact any currency, not just cryptocurrencies.

XRP hodlers can thank xRapid later

As for XRP’s baby xRapid, it needs the cryptocurrency to provide liquidity for banks. With xRapid, Ripple imagines banks swapping assets for XRP to move payments even faster through the xCurrent ecosystem.

That means for you hodlers out there, this will create demand for XRP on the public market.

Pushing on regulators

So how does Ripple stack up against regulations? According to an interview yesterday with Sagar Sarbhai, Ripple’s head of regulatory relations for Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, things are beginning to come together as regulators begin to see a “strong benefit” to digital assets.

If he’s right, Ripple may soon see regulatory doors open. However, as of right now, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has yet to confirm XRP is not a security.

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BITS

• Bancor, one of the most popular and valuable decentralized applications on ethereum, is expanding to the EOS blockchain.
• Founding partners of the $1 billion blockchain fund backed by the government of the Chinese city of Hangzhou are planning to roll out a Japanese yen-pegged stablecoin.
• In a $190 million all-cash deal, the world’s second largest exchange is acquiring the Sweden-based trading solution provider, Cinnober.

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COIN OF THE DAY

Request Network (REQ)

A decentralized network built on top of Ethereum, which allows anyone, anywhere to request a payment. The request can be detected and paid in a secure way, without the need to involve a third party. The request is saved on an immutable, authentic ledger, which acts as a unique source of truth for accounting and auditing processes.

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