Ether Is Regular Weekend Price Winner vs Bitcoin + 6 More Crypto News
Crypto Briefs is your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptocurrency and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
Crypto trading news
- Bloomberg reports that a pattern is emerging in altcoin prices – whereby tokens such as ethereum and Ripple’s XRP outperform bitcoin at weekends. The news agency says that ethereum has outpaced bitcoin growth in eight of the past 12 weekends. The token has also bettered Bitcoin in terms of daily percentage gains, and is on course to end a six-month underperformance streak in relation to BTC.
- The “cleanest” exchanges continue to be Kraken, Poloniex, Coinbase and Upbit, according to Blockchain Transparency Institute (BTI), a group of blockchain data researchers and enthusiasts. They claim that OKEx and Bibox lead the exchanges with the highest percentage of wash trading in their ranking – fake volumes of these exchanges exceed 75%, BTI said. Andy Cheung, Head of Operations of OKEx, replied that they “are NOT involved in and do NOT tolerate any wash trading activities at OKEx, “adding that BTI’s report is “false.” “The methodology used is highly questionable, as there are no details as to how they came to these figures. Block Transparency Institute doesn’t seem very transparent on their website,” Cheung said.
Adoption news
- South Korean observers have offered further analysis on the North’s cryptocurrency intentions. A European group that is promoting the communist nation’s forthcoming crypto conference recently stated that the North is working on a “Bitcoin-like” token, a claim played down by South Korean experts last week. Per News1, many South Korean analysts say a state-run stablecoin is the most likely outcome if the North does develop a token. The report adds that the North’s blockchain software is “advanced,” and states that Pyongyang is “very interested in cryptocurrency.”
- Torrent site The Pirate Bay makes relatively small amounts from cryptocurrency donations, according to a Torrent Freak report. The media outlet says it has looked at The Pirate Bay’s crypto addresses and discovered that litecoin donations account for a mere USD 0.40 per day, with a bitcoin address that has been advertised since 2017 receiving just USD 7.63 a day. Torrent Freak opined,
“Donations certainly can’t keep [The Pirate Bay] afloat. Today, more than six years after the site first accepted cryptocurrency donations, it adds up to little more than a small daily tip.”
Blockchain News
- The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is looking to hire a data scientist, and says “cryptocurrency and blockchain experience” would be “a plus” for interested applicants. The job posting was advertized on LinkedIn on Friday last week, and the successful applicant will be working at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
- The South Korean government is to hold a blockchain and fintech hackathon in November, reports iNews24. The event is being organized by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, which says it wants to foster “real-life business models,” and boost public awareness of blockchain and fintech. Prizes of around USD 16,750 will be handed out to winning teams, and the event will take place over two days (November 29-30).
Investment news
- Social media giant Facebook has bought an Israeli chatbot startup named Servicefriend. Per a report from The Marker, the social network paid an undisclosed figure for the deal, and intends to integrate Servicefriend’s services with its Libra project. The Israeli company has been offering its services on the WhatsApp and Messenger platforms – both operated by Facebook.
