Archive for the ‘Crypto News’ Category

More Bitcoin Companies Endorse Bigger Blocks and BIP101

24, Aug 2015

blockchain-logo

Blockchain, along with other big names in the Bitcoin industry have just released a public letter in support the implementation of BIP101 and larger Bitcoin blocks. Other companies that have signed the document include BitPay, Circle, Kncminer, Bitnet, Xapo and Bitgo and other companies are encouraged to join. Below is the document quoted and you can also find a link to the contents and signatures of the presidents and CEOs of the companies that have signed it:

Our community stands at a crossroads. The debate about which path to take has, by and large, been a healthy one, and we have not interposed our own positions or interfered in the discourse. Until today, our involvement has consisted of listening, researching and testing. We believe that work is complete, and it is time to communicate our view in a clear and transparent manner.

After lengthy conversations with core developers, miners, our own technical teams, and other industry participants, we believe it is imperative that we plan for success by raising the maximum block size.

We support the implementation of BIP101. We have found Gavin’s arguments on both the need for larger blocks and the feasibility of their implementation – while safeguarding Bitcoin’s decentralization – to be convincing. BIP101 and 8MB blocks are already supported by a majority of the miners and we feel it is time for the industry to unite behind this proposal.

Our companies will be ready for larger blocks by December 2015 and we will run code that supports this.

As our community grows, it is essential – now more than ever that we seek strong consensus to ensure network reliability. We pledge to support BIP101 in our software and systems by December 2015, and we encourage others to join us.

Note that the companies that have signed the letter are pledging that they will be ready for larger blocks by December 2015. Some of the large Bitcoin mining pools have already implemented support for larger Bitcoin blocks, but there is still no consensus among all players in the Bitcoin ecosystem about the matter. We too believe that Bitcoin needs to start using larger blocks in the future in order to be able to scale up with the increased usage, but as to how this should be implement is a different story however.

– To see the signed copy of the letter in support of bigger blocks and BIP101 in PDF format…

More Bitcoin Companies Not Applying for BitLicense

13, Aug 2015

ny-bitlicense

Some more Bitcoin and crypto currency oriented businesses have announced that they will not be applying for BitLicense and thus will stop offering their services to residents of the state of New York. These companies include the Bitcoin cloud mining service Genesis Mining:

Genesis Mining will not be able to comply with the regulations set forth by the proposed BitLicense and as such, we will no longer be able to accept customers from the state of New York. All current customers will be able to continue their services, but going forward, no one with an IP address from the state of New York will be able to purchase hashpower contracts with us.

Then there is also the LocalBitcoins, a service that connects people willing to sell and buy Bitcoins all over the world. Interestingly enough at the same time one of the biggest online Bitcoin wallet providers and payment processor service Coinbase has announced they will be applying for BitLicense. Applying for a BitLicense has two sides, one regarding the process itself that seems to be long and costly endeavor for the companies, and the other is the concern regarding the customer’s privacy and how it will be affected after a company complies with the BitLicense regulations.

More Bitcoin Exchanges React to the BitLicense

9, Aug 2015

ny-bitlicense

New York’s controversial BitLicense has driven away two more Bitcoin exchanges away from NY, these are Kraken and Bitfinex who are not going to be applying for the BitLicense at this time. Both exchanges will stop servicing clients living in the state of New York in order to avoid complications due to the financial regulation change. Another large Bitcoin exchange, namely BitStamp, apparently has plans for applying for a BitLicense in order to be able to continue to operate in New York. The biggest concerns that people have with the BitLicense regulations is regarding their privacy and since Bitcoin and crypto currencies are more privacy oriented it is no wonder that crypto currency businesses decide to get out of NY instead of applying for BitLicense.


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