Blockchain has come a long way in eight years, with 2017 signaling the start of a paradigm shift in mainstream understanding of the technology. Blockchain-backed currencies have caught fire over the past nine months, partly in anticipation of major disruptions in the financial industry as a result of the distributed ledger. Blockchain’s appeal has helped […]
One of the biggest hurdles for would-be international bitcoin users is the lack of an easy-to-use, newcomer-friendly and widely trusted service to buy, sell and store bitcoin with. For the last two years, this hasn’t been much of an issue thanks to the existence of popular bitcoin services provider Coinbase. If only there was some […]
In a new post on the BitPay blog, the Atlanta-based bitcoin payment processor gave an inside view of their just-finished Amsterdam digs. The company is currently involved in a major push into the rapidly growing European market, having experienced a massive growth spurt in merchant adoption in the last year. BitPay claims to have seen […]
Even for experienced users, bitcoin wallets can be a headache. Although QR code readers and BIP-70 integrations have helped sand some of the rougher edges off some modern wallet programs, particularly in the mobile market, bitcoin wallets can still be counterintuitive programs for new users to learn. The first company to make a truly user-friendly […]
Here in the U.S., major businesses like Overstock, TigerDirect, Expedia and DISH are happily adopting bitcoin. While it could be argued that this first-wave adoption is more about free publicity than it is about the future of payments, it does beg a question: If bitcoin is a global phenomenon, why are all the major merchant […]
Earlier this year, Swedish bitcoin exchange Safello made headlines for snagging roughly $600,000 in venture capital from some of the heaviest hitters in the bitcoin world: Erik Voorhees, Roger Ver and Blockchain.info CEO Nicolas Cary. Yesterday, Safello announced that it had raised an additional $250,000 in VC funds, this time from Bitcoin Opportunity Corp (BOC), […]
The tiny Channel Island made big noise in the bitcoin world today, as the nation’s Financial Services Commission gave final approval to the Global Advisors Bitcoin Investment Fund (GABI). The fund, created by the commodity-focused Global Advisors hedge fund company, appears to be the first of its kind in Europe. The fund will allow institutional […]
As bitcoin’s current rally heads into its 10th day, prices have skyrocketed up from yesterday’s $570 range to well above $600. Average prices have risen 34% from the previous month’s stagnant $440 range. Bitcoin prices haven’t been above the $600 threshold since March 21, as ongoing downward pressure from Chinese regulators and other factors pushed […]
Online financial-services provider Fidor Bank announced a new partnership with European bitcoin payment processor BIPS, further increasing it’s “peer-to-peer banking” network. Earlier this month, Fidor announced it would be integrating the decentralized, “currency agnostic” trustless exchange system developed by Ripple Labs, but the BIPS partnership is the first true cryptocurrency connection for the Germany-based bank. […]
Holland-based payment service Mollie is a major player in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, with over 10,000 merchants on its roster. The company works with a wide variety of payment providers, including all major credit cards, PayPal and iDeal, allowing customers a huge range of options. Today, Mollie officially added bitcoin support to its list […]