Zimbabwean cryptocurrency Zimbocash (ZASH) is now listed on major crypto exchange Bithumb – a major boost to the project. 

According to the Zimbabwe Independent, the new TRON-based token is part of a project aiming to develop a national decentralised currency network in the hyperinflation-plagued southern African nation. 

With the Zimbabwean dollar in freefall, and the government effectively insolvent, Zimbocash is offering a potential alternative monetary system for struggling businesses and individuals in the country. 

According to Philip Haslam, head of communications at Zimbocash, the COVID-19 pandemic has been catastrophic for Zimbabwe, which was already battling with inflation of around 500% before the crisis. Haslam said that Zimbocash is now “perfectly positioned to solve this problem by fixing the amount of money in the country using blockchain technology.”

He went on to explain the company was developing an easy-to-use peer-to-peer payments platform designed to facilitate everyday transactions and trade. With an online wallet now in place, and the ability to access the currency on Bithumb, Haslam said the project now has the potential to grow “exponentially.”

As we reported in March, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) is thought to be developing a regulatory sandbox for cryptocurrencies, despite the country technically implementing a complete ban on cryptos in 2018. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With Zimbabweans already desperate for financial stability before the COVID-19 crisis hit, Zimbocash could well find enough enthusiasm to gain traction and achieve its goals. 

Of course, the Zimbabwean government is notoriously paranoid, so we wouldn’t be surprised to see some absurd reaction from the authorities. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Ira Kleiman’s legal team has claimed Craig Wright already has the key to the encrypted “Satoshi” file, containing keys to over 820,000 Bitcoin (BTC). 

According to documents filed with the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, Kleiman’s legal team cited the movement of $1.6m worth of BTC from addresses supplied to the court, and Wright’s public threats to tank the BTC market – something that could easily be done with access to over 820K BTC – as proof of their extraordinary claim. 

In total, the “Satoshi” file contains keys to 820,200 BTC, along with blockchain related intellectual property. The BTC would be worth nearly $7 billion at today’s prices.

The Kleiman estate is suing Wright over the Bitcoin that was allegedly mined in partnership with the late Dave Leiman – a partnership that Wright denies ever existed. It is the evidence of that alleged partnership that, according to Kleiman’s team, is motivating Wright to prevent access to the “Satoshi” file. 

Kleiman’s team has also pointed to Wright’s “sustained pattern of perjury, forged evidence, misleading filings, and obstruction,” citing four specific instances when he lied under oath, including gone just last week when he produced forged documents relating to his divorce. 

A jury trial is set to commence for the case on 6 July…

AYO.NEWS says:

If ever there was a movie-worthy legal drama, this is it. Over the past year we’ve seen team Wright file a US copyright registration for the Bitcoin White Paper, ask for a ludicrous 90-year extension to a Fee Motion, and get a ruling ordering him to hand over half his Bitcoins overturned. 

Although the crypto community seems to be mostly anti-Wright, he does still have some supporters, and the value of the BTC at stake means there’s every reason for both parties to fight to the very end – and a clear incentive for people on both sides to “bend the truth,” to say the least!

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Robert Kiyosaki, author of New York Times bestseller Rich Dad Poor Dad, has advised people to buy Bitcoin to save themselves from a coming economic crash.

Despite receiving its fair share of criticism, Rich Dad Poor Dad has sold over 32 million copies since it was first self-published in 1997, and Kiyosaki has become a well-known social media personality, with 1.3m followers on Twitter alone. 

On 19 May, he took to Twitter to denounce the Federal Reserve’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and urging investors to buy gold, silver, and Bitcoin (BTC). 

NEW YORK CITY GOING BROKE. All cities count on INCOME TAX, SALES TAX & REAL ESTATE TAXES, especially COMMERCIAL RE. Add pension contributions for teachers firefighters & police. USA GOING BROZkE. FED PRINTING FAKE $ cannot SAVE YOU. Get gold silver Bitcoin and SAVE YOUR SELF.

— therealkiyosaki (@theRealKiyosaki) May 19, 2020

A few hours earlier, he’d tweeted harsh criticism of Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, accusing him of murdering the economy with “fake pandemic fears.” Kiyosaki also urged people to prepare for more virus alarmism in the autumn. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Though Kiyosaki isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, he does have a lot of influence on social media, and his comments will have been noted by many. And, despite Bitcoin (BTC) still seemingly stuck below $10K, Kiyosaki is just the latest in a growing chorus of notable voices warning that the cryptocurrency is about to come into its own as the traditional economy plummets into a self-inflicted death spiral in the wake of the COVID-19 lockdowns. 

Over the past few weeks former Goldman Sachs hedge fund manager and current Global Macro Investor CEO, Raoul Pal, has speculated about $1m BTC, CEO of Pantera Capital, Dan Morehead, said $500 BTC is possible by summer 2021, crypto analyst PlanB used a modified Stock-and-Flow model to predict $288K BTC by the end of this year, and Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht put his money on $333m BTC within a few years. 

Meanwhile everybody’s favourite crypto eccentric John McAffee is still banking on $1m Bitcoin by the end of this year, and has warned about the imminent collapse of fiat currencies (and advised everyone to “buy peanut butter”). 

In addition to individual predictions, we’re also starting to see some interesting signs in crypto trading and activity. For example, last week we reported that open interest on Chicago Mercantile Exchange Bitcoin options had exploded, surging over 1,000%, while two weeks ago Silvergate Bank said it had seen BTC transaction volumes surge during the first quarter of 2020. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has said it will be transitioning to a permanent “remote-first” future after the COVID-19 crisis has passed. 

Who needs offices and commutes anyway?

The company, which quickly pivoted to a work-from-home model as the crisis emerged, says the move will help it mitigate potential location-centric risks and embrace decentralisation. 

Coinbase CEO, Brian Armstrong, sent an open letter to all employees saying that the vast majority of employees would be given the option of working remotely after COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. It is estimated that between 20% and 60% of the company’s staff will take up the offer. 

Explaining the decision, which is being spun as “extending the values of crypto”, Armstrong said that the switch to remote work during the crisis had gone smoother than expected, and enforcing the required social distancing at Coinbase’s San Francisco headquarters would be impractical.

Cosmos staking launched

Coinbase has also launched staking rewards for Cosmos asset holders, in a move that the company says removes risks associated with token staking. As Coinbase Product Manager Bryce Ferguson explained:

“Assets staked to a PoS network traditionally are exposed to the risk of a “slashing” event… Coinbase Custody will cover this risk and clients will not be impacted by any potential slashing event.”

AYO.NEWS says:

The COVID-19 lockdowns have revealed one thing very clearly – that in 2020 many workers don’t actually need to spend hours commuting to and from offices every day. As someone who has been working from home for years, I find it surprising it’s taken this long for companies to cotton on to the revelation!

For companies it’s a win-win. They can have smaller, or even no dedicated office space, instantly slashing operating costs. It also means they can recruit the best team members from anywhere in the world, rather than just a commutable distance. 

For employees it’s a double-edged sword for sure. On the one hand, those with jobs can cut the commute, which not only saves time and money, but also cuts stress and helps the environment. However, it does mean they will be competing in a truly global jobs market. 

Of course, it’s extremely bad news for commercial landlords and property developers, and for governments that have, until now, been able to charge obscene commercial property taxes (especially places like the UK, with its extortionate “business rates”). 

My prediction: expect to see a lot of office buildings being converted into residential properties… and hey, that will help drive down residential rents and property costs too. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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In another sign that China is serious about the blockchain revolution, the ruling Communist Party has added cryptocurrency training to its curriculum for trainee officials. 

Preparing officials for disruptive tech

According to local media, the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, aka ‘the Central Party School’, has published a new textbook covering cryptocurrency, as part of a series about disruptive technologies, which also includes books about AI and blockchain. 

Apparently, the new textbook had input from central bank and commercial bank executives, plus regulators, and it is fairly comprehensive – covering the history and evolution of fiat currencies, the current global credit system, and the birth of Bitcoin (BTC) and the cryptocurrency movement. 

It also contains an entire chapter covering Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), including the digital Yuan project, and features analysis of Facebook’s Libra and stablecoins.

China now front-runner in digital currency race 

As we’ve been reporting over the past year, China is well advanced with preparations to launch its digital Yan CBDC, having taken full advantage of US and European political dithering. 

In January China introduced a password law, providing the clarity and conformity which is essential for the country to introduce a central bank digital currency and become the leading blockchain-based economy. While in April, the country launched a national Blockchain-based Service Network to encourage the development of new blockchain projects, smart cities and the digital economy, by providing a trusted and scalable infrastructure and reducing costs. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With the west distracted by the unprecedented self-inflicted economic catastrophe caused by a massive overreaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, China is powering ahead, embracing emerging technologies at a national level and ensuring those in charge at least have a basic understanding of them. 

The more cynical among us could be forgiven for wondering if this wasn’t all part of some grand Chinese plan to sink the west and dominate the world…

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

More investors in block.one’s EOS initial coin offering have launched legal action in an attempt to recover $200 million that was allegedly raised illegally. 

According to the plaintiffs, EOS’s ICO, which raised a record-breaking $4 billion, constituted an unregistered security offering by block.one – the development company that led the ICO. 

Despite the terms of the purchase agreements specifically prohibiting US investors from participating in the ICO, some US-based investors did participate, leading the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to get involved. 

Block.one, which has offices in Hong Kong and Virginia, did not register the ICO in the US, either as a security or under the available exemptions, and denies it targeted US-based investors. 

However, the plaintiffs disagree, alleging the firm actively courted US investors – pointing to the fact that block.one announced itself at a May 2017 conference in New York City, and even purchased expensive ad space on a billboard in Times Square. 

In April, law firm Roche Cyrulnik Freedman also filed a number of class-action lawsuits against several crypto firms, including block.one. 

AYO.NEWS says:

The US is becoming a real problem for many crypto firms, with an avalanche of class action lawsuits from investors and plenty of heat from regulators like the SEC. Though they are unlikely to sink projects, their expense, time and negative press generated by long-drawn out legal actions is going to be a massive distraction from driving innovation and adoption.

Only yesterday we reported that Seychelles-based cryptocurrency derivatives exchange BitMEX, and its executives, are facing a lawsuit in California, for alleged racketeering, money laundering, wire fraud, and unlicensed money transmission. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020