Newsflash: Kyber network launches an ERC-20 token fully backed by BTC while Litecoin Core’s latest update makes it “faster” and “cheaper” than Bitcoin Cash
As we soldier through another day of price inactivity, there were a few takeaways from the morning news cycle that we’d like to share with you. In truth, the stories weren’t exactly ground breaking but they did bring us updates regarding some of your favorite coins. There was also talk about the crypto-world’s most popular topic, taxation. Check out these stories below:
- CFTC speaks about the distributed ledgers, mentions CryptoKitties and Dogecoin
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has been an important element in determining the role of cryptocurrencies in modern financial markets.
During a Thursday meeting at the 2018 International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) Annual Japan Conference in Tokyo, CFTC commissioner Rostin Behnam called for “an open mind” when regulating blockchain and cryptocurrencies, at the same time highlighting a number of applications for what we also know as distributed ledger technology (DLT).
He appealed for the government and the regulatory agencies to take their time and understand what DLT is about and how it can impact the modern market.
“Just take a moment to think about all the possible use cases for DLT from agriculture to healthcare, finance to art, CryptoKitties to dogecoin. These innovations are more than just technology: They inspire us to find solutions for every problem or hurdle we encounter,” concluded Behnam.
- Kyber network launches an ERC-20 token fully backed by BTC
The company behind KyberSwap exchange platform has recently added a new piece to its ecosystem.
In cooperation with BitGo and Republic Protocol, a community-driven initiative that brings Bitcoin to Ethereum through the creation of Wrapped Bitcoin Tokens (WBTC) has been announced.
Toutin itself as “transparent, community led and open for participation,” WBTC is an ERC-20 token fully backed by real BTC that can be stored in any ERC-20 compatible wallet.
Kyber will provide the initial liquidity for WBTC tokens through their reserve and WBTC should be tradeable on KyberSwap and Republic Protocol.
Several projects including Gnosis, MakerDAO, Dharma, AirSwap, IDEX, Compound, DDEX, Hydro Protocol, Set Protocol, Radar Relay, Blockfolio, and Prycto have confirmed that they’ll be supporting the launch of this token as well.
- IRS estimates that US crypto traders owe $25 Billion in taxes
The latest IRS’ monthly Information Reporting Advisory Committee Public Report revealed some interesting facts about cryptocurrency owners and their taxes.
The report cited a research done by Fundstrat which claimed that the estimated cryptocurrency-related U.S. tax liabilities currently sit at $25 billion. They add further:
“That (estimate) is based on approximately $92 billion of taxable gains for U.S. cryptocurrency investors, who, according to Fundstrat, comprise around 30 percent of cryptocurrency investors worldwide.”
The report also revealed a worrying pattern with these investors. Apparently, up to 50% of them could attempt to not properly report their cryptocurrency earnings, adding:
“Because transactions in virtual currencies can be difficult to trace and have an inherently pseudoanonymous aspect, some taxpayers may be tempted to hide taxable income from the IRS.”
- Litecoin Core’s latest update makes it “faster” and “cheaper” than Bitcoin Cash
The upcoming Litecoin Core 0.17 will make the currency a faster and cheaper than Bitcoin Cash, revealed Nick Hellmann, crypto trader and VP at LearnCrypto.io.
As a reminder, this upgrade is expected to reduce the Litecoin fees 10 times, lowering them from their current levels of $0.05 to $0.005.
Hellman further added that Litecoin’s market cap currently sits at half of what BCH is worth, implying that this faster and cheaper product definitely has more room to grow.
Finally, he compared the communities of these two projects, calling the one Litecoin has “less contentious”.
