Today on Altcoins This Week we comment on Steve Wozniak’s involvment in a blockchain startup, we discuss South Korea’s new stand on ICOs regulation and more.
Bittorrent Founder Exits Following Tron Takeover
Bittorrent founder Bram Cohen has confirmed that he has left the company now that its acquisition by the Tron Foundation has been finalized. The confirmation comes amid further reports of discontent amongst Bittorrent employees unhappy with the takeover. It has been reported that five more employees have been relieved of their positions in recent days.
Speculation is rife about what Tron founder Justin Sun intends to do with the world’s first and best-known torrent app, with his pronouncements on the issue characteristically mercurial. However, he did confirm that his plan for a fully decentralized internet, of which Bittorrent, he says, is a central component, will take ten to twenty years. This may be a bit long term for most, but those who regularly download torrents will be well practiced in the art of waiting.
VeChain Announces First Token Amidst Price Surge
VeChain Thor is one of the very few altcoins to see its value increase over the past fortnight. This is on foot of a series of partnership announcements that have piqued the attention of investors. In May PwC announced that it had purchased a minority stake in the company, as part of its plan to integrate VeChain’s IOT system.
Add PwC to the list of well known global businesses like Michelin Tyres, Danone and Unilever and VeChain’s growth becomes easier to understand. This week VeChain announced the first token minted on the VeChain Thor mainnet since its launch earlier this summer. The VeChain Foundation tweeted the news that OCE, “a cryptocurrency asset management platform launched by BitOcean Global” would be the first of many tokens to be launched on the blockchain in the coming months.
Apple Founder May Flounder In Lingerie Tycoon’s Folly
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has revealed that he is working with a blockchain startup for the first time, and his choice of ventures has raised eyebrows.
Wozniak told Nulltx that he is “involved with” Equii Capital, a venture capital company co-founded by British lingerie entrepreneur Baroness Michelle Mone. Equii has a less than impressive track record, abandoning its ICO earlier this year after managing to raise only 10% of its hard cap of $75 million, then upsetting bounty participants by reneging on a promise to set aside 2% of all tokens issued for followers who helped promote the project. It would appear that on this occasion, Wozniak may have chosen a bad apple.
South Korea Contemplates Loosening ICO Reins
South Korea may be about to soften its stance on ICO’s. The country banned them last September and the government has since struggled to adopt a formal policy on how best to regulate the industry.
This week, the National Assembly of South Korea commenced an extraordinary general meeting to discuss measures aimed at regulating ICO’s, promoting the blockchain industry and deciding on a proposal to designate Jeju Island as a special blockchain zone. Despite the ICO ban, South Koreans have invested heavily in cryptocurrencies, although a series of well-publicized hacks on leading Korean exchanges have contributed to the declining value of Bitcoin.
Markets: Altcoins Overcome Difficult Tuesday
Altcoins are still struggling to recover from last week’s rout. Ether (ETH) opened on Monday at $301, but has found the $300 resistance difficult to negotiate, falling back to $273 on Tuesday, but recovering to $285 on Wednesday. XRP followed a similar trajectory, opening at $0.3444, but losing ground on Tuesday falling back to $$0.316 before arriving back where it started on Wednesday. Bitcoin Cash (BCH) has struggled more than most in recent weeks. It opened Monday at $570, but a sharp decrease brought it perilously close to $500, bottoming out at $513 before rallying to the mid five hundred on Wednesday. EOS opened on Monday at $5.30 before immediately losing ground, falling to $4.72 on Tuesday. It too showed signs of recovery on Wednesday trading again for over $5. Stellar (XLM) opened on Monday at $0.23 but, like most Altcoins, suffered a setback on Tuesday, closing the day at $0.214, but showing signs of recovery on Wednesday.
