Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
SANP
South Korea’s Largest Underground Mall Adds Bitcoin Payments to 620 Stores
Bitcoin.com Games
The largest underground shopping mall in South Korea, Goto Mall, has partnered with a local cryptocurrency exchange to enable its 620 stores to accept bitcoin. Spanning 880 meters long, about half a million people walk through the mall each day.
Also read: Hong Kong Company Set to Build Crypto Mining Farm and Museum on Russian Island
Goto Mall, a Bitcoin Mecca?
South Korea's Largest Underground Shopping Mall Adds Bitcoin Payments to 620 StoresThe largest underground shopping center in South Korea called Goto Mall recently announced that it will start accepting bitcoin. Beginning mid-December, shoppers can pay with bitcoin at the mall’s 620 stores, according to local publications.
Travel guide website Travel Vui describes:
Goto Mall is Seoul’s largest underground mall. This hidden gem markets everything from clothing to flowers and home decor at mind-blowingly cheap prices.
Goto Mall is also known as Gangnam Terminal Underground Shopping Center. It is connected to one of the major subway transfer stations at which Seoul subway lines 3, 7, and 9 operate. It “currently has an estimated 500,000 visitors per day and is rated as the largest underground shopping mall,” Kyeonggi news outlet reported.
South Korea's Largest Underground Shopping Mall Adds Bitcoin Payments to 620 Stores
A sample of stores in Goto Mall.
The mall’s foot traffic is expected to increase significantly due to its surrounding area being renovated to increase customer base. For example, “when the reconstruction of the nearby apartment complex is completed, the [number of] visitors is expected to increase further,” the publication added.
Furthermore, “about 30 bus routes including ordinary buses and airport buses,” pass through the area, reported the Bridge Economy newspaper. “When the new influential World Duty-Free opens in Gangnam Central City next year, it is expected to further increase foreign customers,” the publication elaborated, adding that:
Goto Mall is expected to turn into a bitcoin mecca.
Partnership with HTS Coin
In order to accept bitcoin, Goto Mall has partnered with a local cryptocurrency exchange HTS Coin. The exchange, which opened last month, has developed a smart payment system using cryptocurrencies and has recently launched a mobile app.
South Korea's Largest Underground Shopping Mall Adds Bitcoin Payments to 620 Stores
The partnership signing event between Goto Mall and HTS Coin.
According to Kyeonggi, the mall had previously tested bitcoin as a payment option where shop owners accepted bitcoin directly. However, it was terminated since store owners “often lost their passwords and could not use the coins,” the publication detailed, noting that this cannot happen with the HTS Coin system installed.
Bitcoin will be offered alongside other payment methods accepted by the mall such as cash, credit card, and Alipay. Goto Mall CEO Chung Gwi Yeon commented:
I think it is very meaningful to be able to settle the bitcoin used by foreigners and young people at Goto Mall.
What do you think of Goto Mall accepting bitcoin? Do you think many shoppers will use bitcoin at Goto Mall? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Goto Mall, and HTS Coin.
Need to calculate your bitcoin
SANP
Bitcoin Continues Running - Now Past $9,500
13403 Total views 433 Total shares
Bitcoin Continues Running - Now Past $9,500
Bitcoin has continued its remarkable bull run over the weekend, with prices exceeding $9,500 on extremely strong volume. The market has been pushed by a number of critical news stories regarding the mainstream adoption of the cryptocurrency.
It seems that the market rise to this point has been the result of increasing adoption among individuals, as well as hopes of institutional increases. The rise in Coinbase user accounts (nearly 125,000 per day), as well as the hope for futures trading from two Chicago-based markets (CME and CBOE), appear to be the driving factors in the recent jump.
The future?
As the market has continued to run, the fears of a bubble in Bitcoin price have continued. Nevertheless, many investors see a substantial future increase coming as institutional markets begin to open.
Additionally, increasing stability within the Bitcoin network will likely produce greater levels of adoption, both as a store of value and as a payment network. New payment platforms and businesses willing to accept Bitcoin will move the market forward as well.
SANP
SEC Assembly Line? How ICO Enforcement Could Take Shape
Brady Dale
16 hours ago
The Securities and Exchange Commission could be gearing up to drop major actions on issuers of initial coin offerings (ICOs).
According to Nicolas Morgan, a former lawyer for the U.S. government agency tasked with regulating the securities industry, the SEC is likely to roll out a sort of "assembly line" of enforcement actions against the nascent industry in the coming years.
While the SEC has issued guidance to the ICO industry, recently laying out why it classified tokens issued by The DAO (a now-defunct ethereum smart contract that sold its token to investors) as securities, the agency has yet to announce formal rules.
In response, the industry has moved in a different direction. Some, such as Overstock subsidiary tZERO, are deciding to get regulated, while others have moved to create utility for their tokens, thereby establishing it as a resource necessary for software products.
But according to Morgan, and others in the industry, the ever-expanding language and group of terms and techniques the industry uses could still expose entrepreneurs to a time-consuming SEC investigation and litigation.
"You might be right that your ICO is not a security, and some judge, at the end of the day, may agree with you, but is it worth the expense and distraction to get that answer from a judge?" he told CoinDesk, adding:
"It's probably a better course of action if you're anywhere close to being a security, to just assume that it is and go forward with that presumption in mind."
Recently speaking at the ICO Forward Summit in New York City, Morgan, who served about seven years in the SEC's enforcement division, spoke to CoinDesk about what to watch for in terms of SEC enforcement in the coming years.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
CoinDesk: At what point will the SEC and others weigh in more formally on ICOs?
Morgan: You're not going to get a satisfactory answer that [your token is] not a security until the end of the SEC investigation process, in litigation, when you might get a judge that agrees with you that your ICO is not a security.
But it doesn't even necessarily have to be at trial; a trial happens at the end of a legal proceeding. For example, in the Zaslavskiy case – the diamonds and real estate ICO in Brooklyn, New York – the SEC had to go into court, they filed a complaint, they [effectively] said "this token is a security."
Then they got a preliminary ruling from the judge in that case that indicated that it probably was a security. That's as close as we've gotten to a ruling by a judge.
Or take the Tezos class action, as another example: private lawsuit, filed in San Francisco state court. Not the SEC.
The plaintiffs and their lawyers have alleged that [Tezo's ICO] involves a security. I have a feeling the very first line of defense by the defendants will be, "This is not a security. These particular laws don't apply." But no judge has ruled on it.
We don't have judicial rulings on this, and we won't have them for probably several months.
What does a startup need to do if it wants to proceed as if its token is a security, then?
If you're proceeding on the assumption that you have a security and you want to have an ICO, the first thing is to decide whether you're going to offer the tokens on a registered basis or pursuant to an exemption to registration. That's probably the first issue that needs to be confronted.
Then there is: How will your sales and efforts selling ICOs or tokens be judged in hindsight? Use of proceeds is probably the biggest single representation to potential investors that will be scrutinized by regulators or private plaintiffs after the fact.
The use of proceeds has to be accurate. So that's step one.
Step two: If you're going to tout the qualifications of your board of advisors, make sure they actually are advisors and have agreed to be listed as such. And make sure when you're describing either your advisors or your management, that the descriptions are accurate, not exaggerated.
Those things will be scrutinized.
A third thing is how you're describing what it is you're going to do. Not in terms of how the money is going to be spent, but, "We have certain milestones. We are going to launch this platform by January." Well, if you say that, and January comes and goes and no launch has happened, that may be an issue.
Be careful how you characterize what you do operationally.
In your "assembly line" reference – where the SEC assesses tokens and takes some into investigation on a rolling basis – how this would work?
Models that might be a good analogy ... one was a particular model in the PIPES market.
PIPES is an acronym for private investment in public equities, and it was a way for hedge funds and other investors to invest generally in small publicly traded companies through a private offering. It's still around.
But the SEC latched on to a particular model, where the hedge funds would sometimes short the company's stock simultaneously with purchasing in the PIPE.
The enforcement folks saw this going on. They didn't like it; they thought it was a violation of law. And they sent these subpoenas out by the dozens.
The SEC developed a model where they saw the same fact pattern over and over again, where they would send out the subpoenas, check to see that fact pattern existed and then very quickly brought a lawsuit against companies. And so I can see that happening here.
We see an ICO, it pretty obviously falls into the realm of a security, in that they put out a white paper, they didn't have a registration statement, they didn't fit into an exemption to the registration requirements. So, let's send out a subpoena.
And if the fact patterns recur over and over again, it makes it pretty easy for the SEC, that's why I described it as an assembly line. Something that's not automated, but it's easily replicated on their side.
Do you think the SEC will come out with more formal guidance soon?
So, you see it a couple of different ways. You see it in something like the DAO report. That's called a 21(a) report, because the report is issued under a certain section of the law.
The other way the SEC communicates is through speeches, public comments. We're also going to see No Action letters, so you can go and basically ask a very specific question: "If we do this, will you agree not to recommend an action be brought against us?"
And then the absolute least effective way the SEC speaks is by bringing lawsuits. We're going to see more of those.
You can tell what the SEC's thinking because they allege it in a complaint they file in federal court or bring in an administrative proceeding. That's a tough way to regulate, by litigation, but that's going to happen too.
There are those in the ICO space who would prefer the SEC promulgate some regulations. I think that's likely to happen also. They've got a lot on their plate that has nothing to do with ICOs, and the rulemaking process is a slow process.
So that's why we may see the so-called regulation by litigation happen more immediately.
If rules came along, would the SEC grandfather in projects operating before those rules were formalized?
No. I don't think they would.
Will all the fumbling with language, such as companies using "token" versus "coin" in their marketing, be effective?
The economic reality matters far more than the label. Tezos may be the test case on that, because they tried to call it a "donation."
But it's the economic reality, not the label, that's the most critical issue.
How is the SEC doing, in your mind, investigating and regulating the industry? Does anything about the way regulation will be laid down worry you?
The DAO was a pretty obvious call as far as whether it was a security or not. I think that was good that the SEC did that, but it doesn't go far enough.
They should put out pronouncements about tokens that are a closer call. And they will. They'll get there. It will be in the form of No Action letters and rule-making.
I don't disagree with the SEC's approach.
What I'm anticipating disagreeing with is that I think the enforcement division is going to bring some cases where they just assume it's a security, but where the defense may have a legitimate argument that it's not a security.
I fear that the SEC will, in an effort to really make a point, bring cases where the existence of a security does not get the consideration that it really deserves, because there will be other bad factors in these cases. Fraud, theft of money, whatever it is.
So we won't get the development of the law that we should. There won't be the nuanced thinking about whether a security exists, because there will be other facts that overshadow that issue.
SANP
Bitcoin Will Be Safe Haven During Next Stock Market Crash, Says Expert
17717 Total views 640 Total shares
Bitcoin Will Be Safe Haven During Next Stock Market Crash, Says Expert ANALYSIS
As Bitcoin powered ahead to a new high for a second week in a row, some have speculated that institutional investors could seek safe haven in the virtual currency in the future. The prevailing rhetoric over the past month has been more affirming than damning of cryptocurrencies, with the likes of Ronnie Moas and Max Keiser predicting new highs in 2018. Speaking to RT, eToro analyst Mikhail Mashchenko says financial institutions could look to Bitcoin if a major financial crash hits global markets.
“The demand for Bitcoin is growing as the crypto market has become less volatile, and an increasing number of professional investors see it as insurance.”
Second-oldest bull market
The current bull market in stocks is the second-longest in history, according to Fortune, having lasted 104 months so far. The longest bull market in history ended in 2000 after an impressive 113 month run. With the current rally getting a bit long in the tooth, many on Wall Street are making contingency plans for the stock market’s inevitable turn. If Mashchenko is right, Bitcoin will have a role in some of these plans.
Shifting opinions
Mashchenko’s statements come on the back of changing sentiment in the mainstream financial sector. Last week, JP Morgan Chase announced plans to offer Bitcoin futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange - an important move by one of the biggest banking and financial services providers in America. Even more satisfying, this moves comes only months after Chase CEO Jamie Dimon condemned Bitcoin as a scam.
Online banking service providers and exchange operators LedgerX and Revolut are also adopting Bitcoin support. The former was recently cleared to offer Bitcoin derivatives as people look to do more than just trade the cryptocurrency.
“LedgerX launched its first long-term options for Bitcoin, with an expiration date of December 28, 2018. In the coming months, we will continue to see the ‘domestication’ of Bitcoin: the Chicago Board Options Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange are planning to launch tools based on the cryptocurrency in the near future.”
Big money
If and when a stream of institutional investors start investing large amounts of capital into cryptocurrencies, some of the stunning predictions made by Bitcoin bulls could well be realised. However, Mashchenko’s prediction was quite conservative, suggesting that Bitcoin reaching a $10,000 high by the end of 2017 would be driven by emotion rather than fundamentals:
“We could see a Bitcoin at $10,000 in a month or so. However, such a surge will be based on emotions, not on fundamental factors. So, further growth of the cryptocurrency will require something more than euphoria.”
Having hit the $8,000 mark last week, Bitcoin surged another $1,000 dollars in just a few days, breaching the $9,000 level during the Thanksgiving weekend. At press time, the price of Bitcoin sits at $9,500, just $500 below Mashcenko’s predicted level.
SANP
Xapo Touts Former Military Bunker in Alps As Bitcoin Vault
392 Total shares
Xapo Touts Former Military Bunker in Alps As Bitcoin Vault
Bitcoin wallet Xapo has allowed a journalist to visit a secret former military bunker in the Swiss Alps that the company uses to store Bitcoin for its private clients. The bunker, which was constructed in 1947, is claimed to be a secret headquarters of the Swiss army during the Cold War.
In his recent article for Quartz and the World Economic Forum, reporter Joon Ian Wong discussed in detail his trip to the secret military bunker located in a granite mountain in the Swiss Alps. As of late November 2017, the 10,000 square-foot bunker is being operated by the firm Deltalis as a data center.
Detailed features of the Bitcoin vault
In his account, Wong revealed that the first barrier toward the bunker is a 10-foot-high gate. At the entrance, visitors are required to be photographed and fingerprinted after entering the lobby. After which, a visitor is required to enter a “man trap,” which is a bullet-proof glass cylinder that shuts an individual in until an operator opens the door on the opposite side toward the bunker’s main spaces.
The bunker also has a pair of steel revolving doors that require identification (ID) cards to allow access. The doors lead to a 100-meter long corridor. Two red-colored steel doors that can withstand a nuclear blast are located at the end of the corridor.
Behind the doors is another “man trap” leading to a white door where a room the size of a closet is located. The room contains a cooling unit and another door. The door leads to two more rooms, namely, the operator’s room and the “cold room” where the Bitcoin wallet keys are kept. To maintain the security of the keys, the cold room is enclosed with steel slabs to form a Faraday cage to prevent even an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack.
According to Xapo’s head of security, they are guarding the vault 24/7 because they are under constant assault by both hackers and terrorists, so they need to implement very tight security precautions to thwart the threats.
“We are under attack 24/7. This is not a race. It is a chess game. You have to think about the opponent’s next movement. You can never relax.”
Awesome Post. Haha!
SANP $$$$$$$$$
Lighten Speed.
$SANP. $$$$$$
10k next. Haha!
SANP $$$$$$$
This is a wonderful time we are in today.
SANP $$$$$$$$$
You are absolutely correct.
SANP $$$$$$$$
T/A confirmed. Haha! Bitcoin breaking out.
SANP $$$$$$$
Bitcoin pushing to $10k. Haha!
SANP $$$$$$$$$$
Haha!
SANP $$$$$$$
Yup. The invisible hand. Man. We will have a long time to accumulate our desired shares. No worries. My funds will be in before the market closes. Buy the freaking dip.
SANP $$$$$$$
It might be a different approach, but I’m hoping to catch some 2s&3s all week. I think news next week we’ll soar.
SANP $$$$
SANTOCASH
SANP $$$$$!!!!&$$$$$$$$$$&$$$&&$&$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SANTOCASH
SANP $$$$$$!!!!!!
Moving through the Galaxy with SANTOCASH
T/A is good: Golden Cross confirmed
SANP $$$$$$$$$$$
Golden Cross is in affected. Confirmed by a reliable source. The Noble Chartmaster:
1. GOLDEN CROSS THIS WEEK
2. DOJI WEEK BOUNCE OFF SUPPORT
3. 100 WEEK MA UP TICK
4. 50 WEEK MA UP TICK LAST WEEK
5. WEEKLY STOCHASTICS OVERSOLD
6. And I heard they're doing something with BITCOINS!!!! Lol!!!
Golden Cross
SANP $$$$$$$$
SANP has been honored with the Golden Cross. We move forward in upward trend this week. Chartmaster’s T/A is the truth. Statistical data is on point.
SANP $$$$$$!
Maybe it’s the invisible hand. Man.
SANP $$$$$$$$
Hi Chartmaster, they are going to hate us now. Visa Launches First Phase of Blockchain B2B Payments
Nikhilesh De
3 hours ago
Global credit card giant Visa has rolled out the first, pilot phase of its blockchain-based business-to-business payments service, B2B Connect.
First announced last year, Visa plans to use the platform to ease cross-border payments by facilitating direct payments between institutions, cutting out the middleman the industry currently relies on. The platform – developed with the assistance of blockchain startup Chain – is also designed to ensure secure, yet transparent payments between enterprises.
Already working with Visa on the project are U.S.-based Commerce Bank, South Korea's Shinhan Bank, the Union Bank of Philippines and the United Overseas Bank, based in Singapore.
Visa's global head of solutions, Kevin Phalen, told CoinDesk that the banks are trialing live bank-to-bank transactions over the platform.
Following this first phase of the project, phase two will see the project move to a commercial launch, slated to occur in the middle of 2018, he added.
Phalen explained:
"This week's announcement is just the first step as we work towards a commercial launch of Visa B2B Connect. We are beginning to process bank-to-bank test transactions with select clients. Additional banks, including corporates, will follow soon."
Visa's existing partners, as well as future ones, can utilize the company's application programming interface (API) to create their own platforms, according to a press release.
Disclosure: CoinDesk is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which has an SANP
Money money money money hold on..... please read
Nasdaq Explores Storing Asset Data on Blockchain
Nikhilesh De
8 hours ago
Global stock exchange operator Nasdaq is looking into storing asset ownership data on a blockchain.
In a patent application recently released by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the company outlines how it could use a distributed ledger to record who owns an asset, as well as use digital wallets to allow owners to access these assets.
According to the application:
“Information regarding the ownership of particular assets (e.g., shares in a company, etc.) are stored in a blockchain, and various data processing operations (referred to below as "application processing") are performed using this ownership information.”
The application notes each block’s cryptographic hash value as an attractive feature, stating that the fact that a blockchain cannot be modified by malicious actors acts as an effective security function in protecting asset ownership data.
The fact that users can maintain privacy even with a public blockchain only adds to the technology’s attractiveness, according to the application.
Nasdaq would commit to a distributed network where each node would contain a copy of of the blockchain’s information, according to the application.
Nasdaq is looking into distributed ledgers to store ownership information, but are not necessarily committing to the technology.
The application states that “while distributed ledger technologies such as blockchain show great potential, further improvements in the performance, efficiency, and capabilities of such technologies are needed.”
The stock exchange has expressed concerns about blockchain technology before. Earlier this month, Gustaf von Boisman, Nasdaq Clearing’s head of product development, said the technology cannot be immediately implemented into their existing systems.
At the time, Boisman said the issues revolved around integrating blockchain-based systems with other financial systems.
Bitcoin Cash ATM’s get it, now.
Buying bitcoin just keeps getting easier, with vendors of all kinds adding support for the cryptocurrency. Just days ago, Square revealed they were adding the ability to buy BTC within their app. Now Hyosung have gotten in on the act by launching bitcoin ATM support. Soon, customers of the firm’s ATM machines will be able to buy bitcoin at the push of a button.
Also read: Square Cash App Users Trial New Buy and Sell Bitcoin Feature
Bitcoin On Demand
Hyosung have announced they will add bitcoin transaction support with the aid of Just Cash. Once activated, the bitcoin ATM service will operate very similarly to a conventional One of the World’s Largest ATM Manufacturers Announces Bitcoin Supporttransaction. Instead of withdrawing fiat currency, digital currency will be despatched to the recipient’s wallet using a QR scan. While bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency to be added, there is talk of other coins being added in due course.
Hyosung are one of South Korea’s largest industrial companies, boasting over 25,000 employees and revenue of U.S. $17 billion in 2015. ATM manufacture is just a small part of their operations; the company also dabble in construction and chemicals among other things. Within South Korea however they are best known for their ATMs which can be found up and down the country.
First Korea, Tomorrow the World
South Korea’s love of all things bitcoin is well-documented, but Hyosung’s operations aren’t limited to their home turf; the corporation have a global presence, including a huge number of ATMs in the U.S. Hyosung don’t partner with banks to supply ATMs in America: instead, their machines can be found in convenience stores and gas stations, whose owners derive income from the fees generated.
In announcing news of bitcoin ATM integration, Hyosung touted a number of benefits that vendors can expect to enjoy. These include easy implementation, no hardware required, a new revenue stream, and the ability to attract new and repeat customers. Because the feature will be added to ATMs as a software upgrade, bitcoin compatibility should be rolled out quickly. Interestingly, it looks like there will also be the ability to exchange cryptocurrency for cash, although there is no word on how this reverse feature will work.
Bitcoin Cash is the new world currency, get it now.
SANP $$$$$!!!
I apologize this was directed at the invisible hand. It’s trying to sink the ship. And I’m smacking that Ask.
SANP $$$$$$&&&$$$
Hello!!!!!
SANP $$$$$&&
If it’s going to 1s why can’t I get 200,000,000
It’s a conspiracy Bra. Keep buying. The invisible hand doesn’t won’t us to be filthy rich. Oh well. I’ll keep trying.
SANP $$$$$!
Ya I don’t now how much clarification investors need. Oh well. I’m just adding more every day.
SANP $$$$$$!!
I don’t know but I’m buying up everything, I can afford. Can’t wait.
SANP $$$$!!!
Hi Chartmaster, much respect. This is going to run fast and unexpectedly. This is the last stage of SANP manipulation. It is a GIMMICK created by greedy white collar criminals. They buy, short, and bash penny stocks. But this is the last stage before any can get rich off of these low prices.
SANP $$$$$$$
Thanks will do
SANP $$$$$$$$
That’s cool too. I got too many sharers anyway.
SANP $$$$$$$
Exactly my point. As for myself I work three jobs and my money doesn’t go the church. It goes in SANP. I budget $200 into SANP. Been doing this four months. Once these entities drop their shares. I might have chance to be on the board of directors, when my settlement comes in next week, from a car accident.
SANP $$))))
No one is selling, it a stage front. Everything is set up like an opera. Money is being made off of operatives bashers, and big stock manipulation that short stock. Everyone who is holding SANP, is either dumb or has done their DD. I’m the later.
SANP $$$$$$$
So what your saying is they are eventually going to sell or dilute there shares. Cool I’ve been looking for a Crytocurrency shell company.
SANP
Unfortunately. Until then I might be on the board of directors of SANP because I’m not stopping buys at this level.
Most people don’t understand.
SANP $$$$$$