crypto-gambling-chips

Crypto Casinos Becoming a Norm in the United Kingdom

It goes without saying that the United Kingdom is one of the most lucrative gaming markets in the world.  The country has spawned some of the most recognizable gambling businesses and brands on the planet – that was just the beginning through.

Thanks to technology, the UK’s gambling industry has been able to reach greater heights – this was likely expected especially considering the high demand for gaming offerings in the country. Gamblers in the country have access to some of the best gaming options on the planet thanks to the adoption of the latest gambling technologies, something that has fostered even more growth.

Just when you would think that the industry has reached its peak, there are even more technological trends cropping up as the gaming operators strive to stay competitive and appease their customers. One of the things that are growing significantly is the integration of cryptocurrencies and blockchain. There are now a good number of crypto casinos and an equally large number of operators are adding digital tokens such as bitcoin and Ethereum to their platforms. Some have even gone as far as designing their own digital tokens.

Thankfully, this massive shift can be attributed to more and better awareness of crypto-related concepts. There is a ton of readily available information that details the benefits of crypto, how it works as well as some of its drawbacks. With all that, in mind, gamblers can bow make informed decisions about whether crypto is worth it or not, and considering the current situation, very many of them are quite impressed.

Why Crypto is Growing So Popular in the UK

Cryptocurrencies and digital currencies have been at the forefront of a financial revolution for quite some time. In the world of gambling, the technology presents a whole lot of benefits that could certainly not go unnoticed.

Many gamblers in the United Kingdom have been sold on the idea due to the speed and safety that is associated with digital currencies. Making payments is a breeze and players never have to worry about having their funds withheld.

Moreover, considering the tight regulations in the United Kingdom, some players see crypto as the ultimate option when it comes to enjoying their favorite games while maintaining their anonymity. There could be drawbacks as a result of this but operators are working around the clock to fix some of those issues while retaining all of the best features. So far it is going great.

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How COVID-19 Has Impacted the Global Crypto Market

The whole world is currently feeling the pinch of the coronavirus pandemic that has resulted in major economic disruptions. That said, regardless of where you are in the world, you will certainly be affected by this in one way or the other. Both individuals and several industries are reeling from the effects of the economic slow down brought about by the virus and it gets even worse due to the uncertainty that is it is associated with.

The cryptocurrency sector has not been left behind. Just like many other industries including travel, hospitality, gambling, manufacturing, and tourism, the crypto industry has had to deal with several issues. There are lots of implications that have to be put into consideration.

The Bad

After the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic, there was a significant drop in risk assets with the stock market reporting some of the worst stats in over 10 years. A lot of these risk assets took a hit and crypto was one of them. This can be seen by price drops that were reported for several digital currencies including Bitcoin.

Fortunately, the assets have managed to recover some of their losses the biggest casualties have thus far been the smaller projects. While more popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum might get to recover and even see upticks in their usage, the smaller crypto projects will certainly get the short end of the stick.

To make things even worse, due to the cancellation of most social events and closure of several markets, raising capital is now much harder than it has ever been. Not only are there any meetings to discuss possible investments but the investors are also much warier about what they invest in again due to the uncertainty about the future.

The Good

All is not lost though. While the pandemic is definitely not something to be taken lightly, it has allowed for a number of stablecoins to shine. Currencies like Bitcoin are being pulled off exchanges as more people are considering them as vital stores of value that can help them get through these tough times.

Besides that, we have seen significant contributions from the cryptocurrency community towards efforts to fight and contain the coronavirus outbreak. Companies in the sector like Binance have donated funds amounting to millions of dollars towards such efforts and these contributions are bound to make a huge difference in both the long and short terms.

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Faster Payouts Coming with Blockchain for Online Casinos

 

The global online gambling industry has been on the rise over the past several years and its upward trend is expected to last a few more years. As much as the industry is on a roll and is growing at a very fast pace, it has still been plagued by a number of challenges. Both the online gamers and the gaming operators have felt the pinch of these shortcomings. One of the most notable ones is the noticeably slow payouts that have left gamblers frustrated and the gaming operators without customers.

Thankfully, several solutions are being considered for these challenges and the blockchain is perhaps one of the most popular ones. This is simply because the technology has bee marketed as the best possible solution for challenges pertaining to quick payouts and greater transparency.

The credibility of many online casinos has been questioned despite the growing number of users and online gambling platforms.  In essence, this means that both the customers and the operators are not able to fully capitalize on the growth. Features such as Trustless gaming are increasingly becoming important buzzwords in the world of online gambling and with time, they might just define how every gaming operator works in the future.

Cost Reduction

Hidden fees are still one of the biggest challenges that customers face when making withdrawals from their online casino accounts. These extortionate charges are often not justifiable and may dig deep into the players’ winnings. No one wants that.

Aside from the fact that blockchain transactions are meant to be superfast, there is also a lot of optimism that it will play a big role in reducing the fees gamblers are charged by a fairly huge margin. Digital currencies are increasingly becoming viable payment options in both the world of gambling as well as in other sectors and this perhaps the first step towards affordable transactions.

Revolutionizing Online Gambling

Online gambling has indeed come a long way since it was conceptualized and the first online gambling platforms launched. Now, it seems like the industry is ready for yet another revolution as the sector goes through massive evolution especially with regards to the operation of the gaming sites. Blockchain and crypto are becoming an integral part of our online gaming experiences and even though they are just beginning to take off, their potential impact can already be felt. Fair, transparent and affordable online gambling is making a comeback like never before.

crypto-gaming

Is It Time to Fully Upgrade to Cryptocurrency Casinos?

What a time to be alive. 2020 is finally here and it is quite amazing that we can ask these kinds of questions. Cryptocurrencies and associated technologies have finally gained enough popularity and are mature enough to be integrated across a number of industries. However, does this necessarily mean that it is time to fully replace traditional online casinos with crypto-based options? Maybe.

A Decade of Massive Developments

The emergence and growth of digital currencies over the past decade was quite bizarre even though crypto enthusiasts have been preaching about the digital currency revolution for years. The gambling industry’s adoption of digital currencies and blockchain was, on the other hand, quite unexpected. Even so, the development was welcomed with open arms especially considering the huge benefits that are associated with them.

Digital currencies have been improved in a number of ways in order to ensure that they deliver on the promises of better security as well as affordability with regards to the transaction fees. They now offer tremendous advantages over tradition fiat currency.

Moreover, the integration of the provably fair gaming systems has been a huge boost for gaming operators. Needless to say, online gamers are always looking for the best ways to maximize their gaming experiences. Provably fair systems not only ensure that they are able to enjoy fair games but also assures them that their winnings will be paid out.

As you may have already discerned, all the developments and improvements have been specifically designed in order to lead the world to mainstream crypto adoption. The technology is already used widely but it certainly has not caught up with traditional financial systems. This is perhaps an issue that is related to lack of trust or simply skepticism from parties that are of the opinion that ten years might be a little too short for the technology to fully mature.

The Verdict

As mentioned earlier, switching to a crypto-only casino is totally justifiable but that is a decision that only the gamers can make at this point. That is, so long as they are familiar with how the digital currencies work. For online gaming operators, things might not be quite as simple. While a number of online casinos have already integrated digital currencies, only small chunks of their customer bases utilize them, at least at the moment.

We cannot deny the fact that digital currencies like bitcoin are cheaper to use for transactions thanks to their decentralized nature. Still, using these currencies as the only form of payment on the sites is a very risky bet for the gaming operators. Even so, it is quite commendable that it is something that can be discussed at length unlike the case a few years back. So, yes. 2020 can be the year you fully upgrade to crypto gambling. It is all up to you.

telegram-ton

Concerns Raised Over Telegram’s Upcoming Crypto Platform

Recent reports have implied that Telegram messenger is set to begin testing TON (Telegram Open Network) its blockchain network in September. The company’s owners raised a whopping $1.7 billion in March in an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) that is one of the most successful ones of all time. Part of the proceeds from the ICO have been used to develop the platforms blockchain network which is aimed at building a universal blockchain infrastructure based on its speed as well as the inclusion of smart contracts. It is therefore very easy to see why many people are so excited about this.

The testing phase of the crypto platform is set to kick off in September and the blockchain nodes will be available as open-source alongside other blockchain database management tools like consensus and shards – these will allow a test-run of TON.

TON is slated to process transactions faster and more efficiently than both Bitcoin and Ethereum while at the same time rivaling widely accepted payment options like MasterCard and Visa. To make it even better, the platform will also be compatible with Ethereum (ETH) when it launches and hopefully, other cryptocurrencies will get support along the way. Very promising, right?

The Concerns

While the TON platform may seem like a solution to a ton of problems, not everyone is convinced that it is what it claims to be. According to a report detailing how terrorists have been using digital currencies, there has been speculation that the release of TON and the associated Gram token pose a significant security threat to the United States’ government.

Telegram seems to be aware of such concerns and has even gone as far as singling out people they believe are terrorists through their privacy policy which reads:

“If Telegram receives a court order that confirms you’re a terror suspect, we may disclose your IP address and phone number to the relevant authorities. So far, this has never happened. When it does, we will include it in a semiannual transparency report…”

Telegram’s chief executive officer, Pavel Durov, has been very adamant when it comes to compromising the security of the messaging platform. However, he has cooperated with governments after terrorist attacks were reportedly coordinated using the app. Now, there is even more scrutiny being directed at the company because of its TONPayments – there is a considerable amount of certainty that this will make it very easy for terrorists to raise funds for their operations all without a trace.

Tron Bet Crypto Gambling Expansion Set for August 8

TronBet, one of the world’s leading blockchain-based platforms, has done a great job in its effort to bring blockchain technologies inherent anonymity, security, and transparency to the online gambling space. The company’s goal has always been to democratize an industry where the users have often raised concerns pertaining to arbitrary behavior from service providers.

The team behind the disruptive company has recently published details of its newly rebranded business model. This planned migration from platform’s native cryptocurrency ANTE to its new cryptocurrency WIN. The plans have already begun to materialize with 5 percent of the newly minted WIN token set to be released on August 8 on Binance. This move is part of the projects Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) which, in the world of blockchain startups, is the equivalent of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs).

WIN, the new cryptocurrency, has been designed to allocate winnings from TronBet’s house-edge along with profits from its advertising revenues to token holder. This is one of the world’s very first distributed earnings model that leverages blockchain technology. As expected, from now henceforth, the platform will be rebranded as WINk and the platform’s broad range of crypto gambling products and services will enjoy formal trading licenses from the government of Curacao and Costa Rica.

New Strategy

TronBet arguably only comes second to Bitcoin when it comes to being one of the world most successful blockchain-powered products. However, the TronBet is setting some very ambitious goals with the major rebrand that is currently on the way. Their plan is to take the platform to a wider user-base as it leverages strategic partnerships with both Binance and BitTorrent. The latter was just recently acquired by Tron for a whopping $126 million.

Now, as far as its strategies are concerned, the project has plans to expand its development so that it can accommodate payment for its services through the more traditional banking methods like credit cards and eWallets. In essence, TronBet’s transition from ANTE to WIN is set to change a number of aspects in the company’s business model over the long-term. In addition to that, the transition is also set to allow for a greater chance for the token’s price to rise fundamentally over time instead of relying on the same speculative movements that define price in the broader crypto environment.

It goes without saying that blockchain technology seems to be one of the leading ways of bringing much-needed improvements to the online gambling industry. In fact, some analysts believe that crypto and blockchain are going to completely redefine the space. TronBet clearly knows about this and it is working quite hard to ensure that it is a part of this revolution.

litecoin

Litecoin Gambling on the Rise

Digital currencies have been around for quite some time now and therefore it is safe to say that at least every single person will be familiar with at least one of them. In most cases, it is bitcoin, which is considered to be the mother of all cryptocurrencies having been around for the longest time. People and businesses have used these digital currencies in different capacities as they offer an alternative to cash and cards while at the same time offering transparency and anonymity, both of which are not really readily offered by fiat currency.

While digital currencies are yet to fully replace fiat in most areas, they have grown to become very useful forms of exchange and one of the most notable applications is in gambling. Still, bitcoin is by far one of the most widely accepted cryptocurrencies on online gaming platforms. However, things are changing rapidly in this regard and even though it will be almost impossible for bitcoin to be dethroned as the king of cryptocurrencies, other digital coins are beginning to at least match up to the threshold that bitcoin has reached. One of the cryptocurrencies that are headed in that direction is Litecoin.

The Perks of Litecoin

Just like bitcoin, Litecoin relies on a specific encrypted protocol that creates and transfers the Litecoin with no central authority overseeing or managing the transactions. However, unlike bitcoin, Litecoin processes a block of the ledger every 2.5 minutes as opposed to the just a little less than 10 minutes that bitcoin takes to produce a block – in essence, this implies that Litecoin confirms transactions faster than bitcoin and this great for gamblers who prefer to have their transactions to be processed as quickly as possible.

Litecoin also utilizes a memory-based algorithm which implies that there is more memory in the Litecoin system than there is in the bitcoin system. With all these goodies that are offered by the Litecoin technology, there is bound to be a catch which, in this case, happens to be that the faster and larger memory that the digital currency boasts of are much more expensive to operate.

Even so, Litecoin has managed to offer a plethora of exclusive features that have kept users streaming in for the same. Not only did the digital currency adapt very well to new technologies, but it also introduced such features as transaction canceling which is something that other cryptocurrencies are lacking. Furthermore, player safety and security are always guaranteed but as always this may depend on whether you are playing at a reputable and recommended online gaming platform that accepts Litecoin as a form of payment.

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A Look at the Crypto-Mining Smartphone Trend

Smartphone innovation has been at the very top of technological trends for over a decade now and just when we thought we had seen it all, we have once again come to see that there is still more to come. From the folding phones to the 5G phones that were showcased at the recent Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona Spain, tech enthusiasts were treated to bizarre and incredibly unique takes on the gadgets that have nowadays become a part of our day-to-day lives.

That said, one of the standout presentations at the MWC this year was the world’s first ever crypto mining smartphone. There have, of course, been other crypto-related smartphone innovations in the recent past but all of them mainly involved phones that could support blockchain technology. Great examples of these included the HTC Exodus 1 which was launched at a fairly reasonable starting price and could be purchased using either fiat currency or digital currency. The company hoped the new innovation would help them to steer the mobile and crypto industries to the new era of the next internet but it remains to be seen how this will all play out – the company’s mobile division has been on the rocks for quite some time now.

Wings Mobile, an Italian company headed by Antonio Milio, an Italian entrepreneur, has however chosen to take a totally different approach with by unveiling a smartphone with crypto-mining capabilities. Dubbed the Minephone WX (Wings WX), the smartphone will reward its user with a “prize” amounting to up to 2 ETH (Ethereum) on a monthly basis. This is some serious value, especially because Ethereum (ETH) and bitcoin (BTC) remain to be the top most valuable digital currencies on the planet.

How It Works

The limited-edition Minephone WX is basically a regular smartphone that uses glasses and steel to deliver on both durability and great visual appeal. At its core is a high-performance MediaTek Helio P60 oct-core SoC that powers the phones operating system and its “mining operations”.  It also has 128 GB of internal storage, 8 GB RAM and two high resolution (24 + 16 MP) rear cameras.

Obviously, there is no specialized mining equipment that can fit it into existing smartphones in order to allow mining on the Minephone WX more efficient. As such, the actual mining occurs in a third-party mining pool which the phone is connected to through a Smart Contract. The phone then receives a daily reward based on the mining power contracted.

Now, this is definitely innovation at its best but it is still hard to see how it will all play – maybe it will be a success among crypto and tech enthusiasts, or maybe not.

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Binance Now Allowing Bitcoin Purchase Using Credit Cards

On January 31, Binance, which is the largest cryptocurrency exchange on the planet announced that users of the platform will now be able to buy digital currencies using debit and credit cards. This will facilitate through a partnership that the exchange has recently inked with Simplex, a fully-licensed financial institution that is known for its fraud-protected payment processing services.

With this new system, the crypto exchange’s users will be able to buy Ethereum, bitcoin, and Litecoin among other currencies using Visa and MasterCard credit and debit cards with the process taking an average minimum of 10 minutes and a maximum of 30 minutes. There will also be a transaction fee of $10 or 3.5 percent of the transaction.

According to Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of Binance, the move to integrate credit and debit cards onto the platform was mainly motivated by efforts by the company to give the traders faster, easier and more accessible methods of trading digital currencies. The partnership with Simple was therefore well thought-out since it will effectively assist in bridging mainstream payments and crypto for traders all over the world.

The use of credit cards and debit cards in crypto trading is very rare since most exchanges usually refuse them altogether or charge very high transaction processing fees in order to discourage traders from using them. This is quite justifiable due to the risk of chargebacks. These occur when fraudsters gain unauthorized access to a credit or debit card then use it to buy crypto – usually, once the owner of the card regains control of their banking accounts, the credit/debit companies will issue a chargeback and the cost may then be passed on the merchant which, in this case, is the cryptocurrency exchange. Simplex is the perfect partners for Binance since it not only solves the risk problem through what they are calling a “guaranteed fraud-less payment processing” system but also because they are one of the very few companies that will absorb chargeback-related costs.

Is This the Key to Mainstream Adoption?

Binance’s long term goal has been to avail its services available to the wider public and the integration of card payments is certainly going to help with this. As parts of its global expansion plans, the company recently launched two fiat-to-crypto exchanges; Binance.je supports trading in British Pounds and Euros with crypto while Binance Uganda is supporting trading crypto with Ugandan Shillings.

“The crypto industry is still in its early stages and most of the world’s money is still in fiat. Building fiat gateways is what we need now to grow the ecosystem, increase adoption and introduce crypto to more users,” the company’s CEO pointed out.

If crypto is going to go mainstream in the near future, there is no company that is better suited to lead the industry than Binance. The fact that it remains to be the leading crypto exchange will help a lot in pushing this agenda.

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WHIRL Debuts Karma Driven Blockchain Crowdfunding Platform

Over the past couple of years, some of the most mind-blowing innovations have been those that are related to crypto and blockchain technology, both of which are still are making waves in a number of different sectors. One of the latest and most polished developments is the launch of WHIRL, a socially driven crowdfunding platform that operates on the blockchain. Created by an all-star team of accomplished crowdfunding veterans, blockchain gurus, and non-profit experts, the platform will give the world a new way of financing dreams and obligations, while simultaneously introducing a truly revolutionary incentive system that is designed to encourage giving. It is also expected to significantly maximize campaign success.

WHIRL, which is currently powered by a team of 20, launches following years of research and after one and half years of development – this involved, among other things, legal vetting of the platform as the global market’s very first credible blockchain-powered consumer crowdfunding platform.

How It Works

According to the WHIRL team, the platform can be used to finance almost anything, albeit within reason. These may range from personal goals to medical bills, business ventures, and even scientific endeavors. In essence, WHIRL gives individuals, groups or organizations the ability to fund any relevant venture by simply being charitable as opposed to having them take out loans or begging for handouts.

As mentioned earlier, WHIRL is backed by the blockchain which means that it is open to everyone on the planet. The platform also guarantees an exceptional 100 percent success rate to all of the projects that are listed under its campaign – this is to be achieved using a fair and transparent queue system which limits the number that each campaign has listed at any given time. Only those that have a history of contribution on the platform are allowed to create fundraising projects.

WHIRL’s blockchain is powered by WRL tokens that are further supported by the concept of Karma, a reward system that supports the giving economy within the platform. Karma points are issued to contributors with every dollar spent on another person’s campaign earning the contributor between 7 and 20 Karma points. Moreover, in order to launch one’s own crowdfunding campaign, a threshold number of Karma points as to be attained with the size and duration of any given campaign being determined by the number of Karma points accumulated.

Reshaping Crowdfunding

Over the last decade or so, crowdfunding has stagnated significantly primarily due to fraud, oversaturation as well as very frustrating declining success rates. Keeping this in mind, WHIRL aims to solve all of these problems by simply having a limited number of campaigns running at any given time and incentivizing backers with its fair and a transparent Karma points system. This is essentially a classic embodiment of the saying “What goes around comes back around.”