Blockchain

[weijian]

hi AQ,
Lets keep this Blockchain thread for the purists and technocrats.

Any comments on crypto currencies and its speculation, it should be in the other bitcoin thread

Moderator

[Sampling]

These are just my own POV on the Pros and Cons of Blockchain, not specifically on Bitcoin but it's uses as a whole. Also when I first looked at the blockchain tech, there are certain industries that had adopted parts of the blockchain concept/tech probably more than 20 years ago, e.g. the lottery and 4D companies.


Pros
-Ease of implementation, the Blockchain tech provides a good base for companies to implement a "fairly secure" platform for processing transactions (not limited to Bitcoin.
-Transaction logging and tracking - automatically built in the Blockchain tech, the detail/level of logging/tracking hard to implement on conventional systems.
-Ease of migration - Data and transactions easily migrated to newer tech (e.g. newer blockchain technology).
There are other benefits the Blockchain have, but I feel the above is perhaps the advantage of Blockchain vs other conventional systems/applications.

Cons
-Security - Decentralising also means decentralising one of the most important control to protect systems/applications, i.e. Access Controls. This means more hackers have a wider attack vector to gain unauthorised access to systems/applications using blockchain.
-As transactions can't be "deleted" off, if the Blockchain system is compromised, it could mean the "death" of the system depending on how bad the compromise is. A compromised from an integrity perspective affects the entire system. A compromised from a confidentiality perspective affects the entire system as well. Very different from the traditional systems whereby things can be "contained under containers" or segregated.
-Taking reference to the above point, Blockchain systems like any other systems built by developers have a certain margin of bugs or errors programmed in the code. Any bugs in the underlining programming language that was used to build the Blockchain system affects the entire transaction/ledger of the Blockchain system.
-The way Blockchain tech works, it makes it difficult to process transactions at an optimised rate. If a Blockchain grows too complex or too big before the infrastructure is ready to support it, it can lead to transaction speed issues.

While enterprise blockchain applications will be a significant step forward (I see it akin to established enterprises in the early 2000s using the internet to make their back-end more streamlined and efficient), I think the biggest return would come from the small startups (today or the near future) that build brand new business models, that will change the world on the inside out.

IMHO, i think blockchain is akin to those days when a client-server environment was first introduced not really something as big like the Internet. Or perhaps when object oriented programming was introduced...the Internet, I see it more akin to the "infra/network" layer e.g. like how Wireless networks was first introduced.. just my humble opinion..

I think while there's a lot of hype on Blockchain, what JB is doing with AWS is really something with foresight and they are slowly "conquering" the market... In the near future, we won't need an "infra" person anymore and organisations can rent the infra from AWS...  really liked what he's doing with AWS.. missed the boat on Amazon as their stock price has always been on the higher side of the 52 week high and I was too chicken to buy it at that price with such high valuations at that time.

[Wildreamz]

Goldman Sachs-backed Circle goes live with currency-linked stablecoin — and anyone can issue it
https://www.marketwatch.com/discover?url...amp_social
By Aaron Hankin
Published: Sep 26, 2018 9:32 am ET

Circle, the Boston-based peer-to-peer payments and technology company, has gone live with its stablecoin, which it calls the USD Coin, or USDC.

The stablecoin, a cryptocurrency that is pegged 1:1 to a fiat currency, in this case, the U.S. dollar, will run on a network called CENTRE, an open sourced consortium, which means there is no single issuer.

“What makes us different is that it is launched on an open sourced framework, meaning other companies can issue it,” said Jeremy Allaire, founder and CEO of Circle.

“Because this is an open standard model there has been industry support out of the gates,” adding that more than 20 companies, including wallets, exchanges and software applications will announce or launch support for USDC.

Stablecoins have become increasingly popular in the digital currency sphere as pundits seek a less volatile and more regulatory-compliant asset to shift value globally.

For Circle, which is backed by Goldman Sachs Group GS-0.09% creating a framework where there is no single issuer is vital in creating openness and interoperability, the company said.

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@Sampling Like AWS that is slowly phasing out traditional IT vendors, Blockchain has the potential to slowly phase out any and all intermediaries for value transactions. The first to go though, is probably remittance fees.

[easyfil2000]

Does anyone know how to invest in blockchain companies besides buying their coins/tokens. I prefer not to touch the cryptocurrencies but i see tremedous potential in the companies creating and selling the tech to banks and businesses. So far i'm always pointed to the currencies.

[Wildreamz]

Smart choice. Tokens are too risky for the trouble (execution risk, regulatory risk, counter party risk), lots of hype, and lots of greed corrupting the ICO scene. I don't see that changing anytime soon. The crypto community (investors, VCs, developers, anarchists etc.) are very active on Twitter, due to its anonymity. I follow many of them. Who is just hyping things up to pump the price of cryptos, and who is actually trying to build something is obvious over time.

For public companies dabbling in blockchain, almost all big techs (IBM, Alibaba, Tencent, Google, Microsoft etc.) are very active, especially Facebook (they have entire blockchain division building secret blockchain products, headed by Messenger ex-chief David Marcus). 

But there is no one company that is obviously going to dominate this new tech platform yet.

In my portfolio, Square is doing something very interesting by building out cypto wallets and building the Lightning Network on top of it. That would solve the scalability issue of Bitcoins. What's interesting is that they have one of the fastest growing, consumer facing Fintech platform: the Cash App. Do a Google Trend search for "Cash App" and "Venmo"; astounding growth in recent years. That, with Facebook, is a great way to indirectly bet on blockchain tech.

IMO, there is no need to feel the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) yet. Blockchain tech is too early, the final winners may not even be incorporated yet.

(vested in Square and most other big tech mentions; ymmv)

[Luke]

Why is Blockchain a game changer? Everything and anything can be securitized: real estate, private companies, services etc. Exactly the same as before, but instead of paper (certificate of ownership), will be digital (recorded on a Blockchain).

Titles of ownership on paper as much as in electronic form can be falsified.
As far as I understand it, that’s impossible when those titles are on the blockchain.

We can barely imagine today the potential benefits of the blockchain technology in this regard, e.g. in avoiding litigations, limiting insurance costs etc.
On the other hand, think about the boost for commerce and economy given the increase in confidence that one won’t be cheated.

[Luke]

The ideal cryptocurrency (if the world ever needs one) would probably need the following characteristic:
1. "Regulated" or at least recognised by all major governmental institution.
2. "Limited" supply, or at least hard-coded in a way that no one entity could unilaterally increase or decrease the supply significantly.
3. Freely exchangeable to any fiat currency (point 2 and 3 may be paradoxical) at low to no cost.
4. Do not disproportionally benefit any one entity (including founders, early adopters).
5. Good economics (secure, infinitely scalable and energy efficient etc.).
6. Decentralised.

7. Be a store of value
(this is probably implied in 2.)

That said, I'm on the camp that there is absolutely no objective way to value cryptocurrencies.

I agree, even if a crypto has a price, there is no way to know what its real value is, so that there is no way to know if it is over- or undervalued.

Here is my (conceptual) problem: if the price, as the meeting point between demand and offer at a given time expressed as a currency quantity, of x is not objective, what should be considered an objective way to value x?

[Wildreamz]

A First For Manhattan: $30M Real Estate Property Tokenized With Blockchain
https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelwolfs...a276674895

A luxury Manhattan condo development is getting a new digital home on the worldwide Ethereum blockchain.  The building, a completed 12 unit construction with 1700 sq ft units located on 436 & 442 E 13th St in the East Village, is the first major asset in Manhattan to be tokenized on Ethereum. The property has recently been appraised at more than $30M.

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You can now own $1 of this real estate property, no banks involved.

[Wildreamz]

https://www.ledgerinsights.com/china-dig...dcep-cbdc/

China’s central bank digital currency wallet is revealed
8 hours agoby Ledger Insights

Yesterday a screenshot emerged showing an online wallet used in testing China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC). The wallet referred to the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), one of China’s big four state banks, which is known to be involved in piloting the digital Yuan, also referred to as DCEP (digital currency / electronic payment).

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https://boxmining.com/dcep/

DCEP: China’s National Digital Currency Overview

What is DCEP

Digital Currency DCEP (Digital Currency Electronic Payment, DC/EP) is a national digital currency of the China built with Blockchain and Cryptographic technology. The currency is pegged 1:1 to the Chinese National Currency – the RenMinBi (RMB).

The overall objective of the currency is to increase the circulation of the RMB and international reach – with eventual hopes that the RMB will the a global currency like the US Dollar.

China has recently established an initiative to push forward Blockchain adoption, with the goal of beating competitors like Facebook Libra – a currency which Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg claims will become the next big FinTech innovation. China has made explicit that Facebook Libra poses a threat to the sovereignty of China, insisting that digital currencies should only be issued by governments and central banks. DCEP is not listed on cryptocurrency exchanges and will not be for speculation of value.

[Wildreamz]

China to test digital currency transactions with Thailand, UAE
https://technode.com/2021/02/24/china-te...iland-uae/

Why it matters: The collaboration between the four countries is a milestone in the digital yuan’s development. Nailing down cross-border payments is a key step in achieving a long-term strategic goal of using the digital RMB to internationalize China’s currency.

The digital yuan is the closest of the four countries’ digital currencies to launch, making it likely to take center stage in the trials.

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Fed Chair Powell Says Digital Dollar Is A ‘High Priority Project’
https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen...7fea0b7e4c

Digital central bank currencies are forms of money issued by a country’s central bank that exist entirely electronically, without any connection to physical bank notes or coins.

They’re different from decentralized cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, which aren’t controlled by one central player, though some of the underlying technology is the same.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed that same view on Monday: “Too many Americans don’t have access to easy payments systems and banking accounts, and I think this is something that a digital dollar, a central bank digital currency, could help with,” she said.

Yellen also suggested that a digital central currency could help make payments faster, safer and cheaper (that’s because proponents of the technology say it will help simplify complicated, often days-long settlement processes).

Powell said Tuesday that since the U.S. dollar serves as the world’s reserve currency, it’s more important to get the project right than it is for the United States central bank to be first to unveil a digital version of its currency. 

CRUCIAL QUOTE
“We are looking carefully, very carefully, at the question of whether we should issue a digital dollar,” Powell said Tuesday.

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Bitcoin plunges, and could there be a new challenger ("Digital Dollar") on the way?
* Working with MIT on "Digital Dollar"
* Easier "money-printing"
* Speculation: "Disappearing dollar" can be used to spur consumer spending