'Clock is Ticking' on Bitcoin Privacy: Edward Snowden

The CIA whistleblower took to Twitter to issue a "final warning" on Bitcoin privacy, amid a U.S. crackdown on privacy projects.

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Electric Coin Company distances from direct funding of Zcash

Electric Coin Company appears to be shifting its Zcash funding approach, calling for decentralization. The Electric Coin Company (ECC), a firm behind the Zcash cryptocurrency, has announced a shift in its funding approach for the token, signaling a departure from…

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Electric Coin Company distances from direct funding of Zcash

Electric Coin Company appears to be shifting its Zcash funding approach, calling for decentralization. The Electric Coin Company (ECC), a firm behind the Zcash cryptocurrency, has announced a shift in its funding approach for the token, signaling a departure from…

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Ethereum Co-Founder Vitalik Buterin Mentioned a New Altcoin: There was Movement in Price!

Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who mobilized the market with his shares, recently talked about the altcoin called Zcash (ZEC). Continue Reading: Ethereum Co-Founder Vitalik Buterin Mentioned a New Altcoin: There was Movement in Price!

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Vitalik Buterin Advocates for Innovative Funding Approach for ZCash

Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin provided insights about privacy-oriented ZCash, suggesting a different approach to development funding. He imagined a fusion where ZCash remains “Conservative on technology, insistent on privacy, experimental on economics.” A New Governance Model Buterin’s idea centers around off-chain-governed RPGF rounds, possibly integrating a yearly issuance or an anonymous voting system for decision-making. … Continue reading "Vitalik Buterin Advocates for Innovative Funding Approach for ZCash" The post Vitalik Buterin Advocates for Innovative Funding Approach for ZCash appeared first on Cryptoknowmics-Crypto News and Media Platform .

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Vitalik Buterin Reveals His Views on Privacy-Orientated ZCash Project

Vitalik Buterin provides interesting solution to ZCash funding

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Kraken set to delist Monero in Ireland and Belgium, convert remaining balances to bitcoin

The decision follows similar moves to delist privacy coins, including Monero and Zcash, by crypto exchanges Binance and OKX.

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ECC introduces Zashi, a mobile wallet for Zcash

ECC has launched Zashi, a mobile wallet that enables its users to transact Zcash or ZEC. Additionally, it empowers users to undertake other functions as well, like shielding digital assets and collateralizing the token. Zashi is available on iOS at the moment. The launch on Android is slated to happen at the end of April …

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Dogecoin Is Still Silly, But It May Go Higher Anyway

Summary Dogecoin has seen a significant increase in price, reaching 11 cents, leading me to upgrade my recommendation from sell to hold. I previously criticized DOGE for lacking economic purpose and primarily serving as a joke, but network usage and fees are showing signs of improvement. However, there are still risks to consider, such as the lack of a supply cap and a centralized holder base. The last time I covered Dogecoin ( DOGE-USD ) for Seeking Alpha was late December 2022. I called it my top crypto bear pick for 2023. It was 8 cents at the time. While the coin did eventually trade down to under 6 cents last summer, DOGE is at 11 cents as of article submission. As we learned with MakerDAO ( MKR-USD ) last year, I do occasionally get these crypto calls wrong. Data by YCharts I'm now of the opinion that DOGE may go higher. I still don't think it's a great long-term investment. But I'm willing to upgrade from sell to hold. In this update, I'm going to again reiterate some of the logic from my last article and provide updates to some key network metrics that are surprisingly encouraging. My Previous Bearish Arguments In the closing summary of my bearish view from late 2022, I couldn't justify the existence of a cryptocurrency that was created as a joke having such a significant market capitalization. My view at the time was that the Dogecoin "meme" was getting stale, and the coin would underperform going forward: Dogecoin is an important cryptocurrency for many of the wrong reasons. It was never meant to be taken seriously but it road a massive wave from a fraction of a penny in January of 2021 to over 73 cents just a few months later. In the time since, it has sold off more than 90% but it still could have much lower to go. The coin surged because of Robinhood buyers who now appear to be selling. But beyond just my own personal opinion about what I think a cryptocurrency network should aim to provide its user base, the reality in December 2022 was that DOGE wasn't widely being used for any economic purpose and the coin's holder base was highly centralized with Robinhood ( HOOD ) users holding about a quarter of the coin's total supply. DOGE Holder Concentration (IntoTheBlock) To be clear, with 65% of the coins controlled by "whales" and "investors," the centralization issue is still a major concern of mine. And it's one of the big reasons I still can't bring myself to calling DOGE a buy, as there is quite a bit of supply that could be motivated to sell on any rip. However, the usage of the network does appear to be improving, in part, because of Bitcoin's ( BTC-USD ) failure to be an inexpensive medium of exchange for smaller transactions. Network Data Dogecoin originally came about in 2013 and with 10 years now in the wild, DOGE is considered to be one of the "OG" proof-of-work coins that includes other payment-focused cryptocurrency networks like Litecoin ( LTC-USD ), Bitcoin Cash ( BCH-USD ), ZCash ( ZEC-USD ) and Dash ( DASH-USD ). I like to compare DOGE with these coins when it pertains to network data because they're similar attempts at cryptocurrencies and are often forks of (or forks of forks of) Bitcoin. One of the key ways to compare them is with Daily Active Users: PoW Coin DAUs: 1 Year ( Coin Metrics ) I would encourage readers to enlarge the chart above, so the trends are easier to see. But my general takeaway is that after Litecoin initially enjoyed the DAU spike when Bitcoin's on-chain transaction fees mooned in November and December, it is now Dogecoin that is showing the strongest uptrend in average DAUs. Consider the month-over-month changes in DAUs between January and February in the table below: November December January February* MoM Bitcoin 944,824 858,542 870,251 871,792 0.18% Dogecoin 45,926 133,761 96,332 218,808 127.14% Dash 54,467 72,688 51,930 56,312 8.44% Litecoin 223,099 772,862 690,742 354,397 -48.69% Bitcoin Cash 104,966 79,768 73,936 80,472 8.84% ZCash 9,257 8,209 10,600 8,876 -16.27% Source: Coin Metrics, Author's calculations. *As of 2/27/24 Going back to the Bitcoin fee spike, Dogecoin has gone from just 46k average DAUs in November to nearly 219k in February. The DOGE DAU trend is admittedly highly volatile, but the network has had more DAUs than Dash, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and ZCash each of the last 3 months. This usage is leading to an increase in fees: Dogecoin (Token Terminal) While Dogecoin's monthly fees are minimal compared to networks like Bitcoin or Ethereum, the growth in both fees and DAUs is a clear indication that there is growth in network usage. Most Profitable To Mine (CoinWarz) What also may help justify the continuation of the Dogecoin network for longer than I've expected is the fact that DOGE is historically a highly profitable coin to mine. As of article submission, it's more profitable to mine Dogecoin than Bitcoin Cash. Risks Still, there are plenty of risks in longing DOGE even at these levels. There are 143.2 billion dogecoins in existence and there is no supply cap on this coin. DOGE Supply Growth (TokenUnlocks) There will be 172 billion by the end of the decade as miners are paid out by new coins issuance. This isn't the worst level of coin supply inflation that will happen by 2030, but it is still a fairly significant level of coin dilution. If the joke is still funny by then, perhaps there will be new buyers to soak up that supply. I certainly have no plan to be one of those buyers. Also, utility doesn't necessarily equate to value in public blockchains. Case in point, Litecoin is used far more for payments than Dogecoin is and still has more DAUs, yet LTC's market capitalization is about a third of Dogecoin's. The other risk to consider is the possibility that this time really is different. We're quickly approaching a Bitcoin halving in April. The front-running demand for BTC is coming through ETF products rather than through on-chain retail investors. It's possible, if not likely, that the "altcoin season" many in crypto have come to expect near big Bitcoin rallies won't be nearly as widespread as we've seen during previous manias. Time will tell on that. Summary My view has been that Dogecoin is a meme and nothing more. Turns out that may not be true. For better or worse, Dogecoin has more DAUs than other "OG" proof-of-work coins that I believe offer better functionality and better utility. We can't rule out the possibility that buyers will once again flock to DOGE at some point during 2024. While I'm still staying away, swing trading DOGE may bear some fruit as Bitcoin quickly approaches a new all-time high.

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Zcash Jumps 20% After Grayscale’s Privacy-Based ETF Move

Zcash’s unique privacy focus, zk-SNARKs, and Grayscale’s Privacy-based ETF 20% impact highlight a revolution in cryptocurrency-based investments. Grayscale’s strategic Privacy ETF entry, with Zcash Trust, bridges traditional and digital assets, The post Zcash Jumps 20% After Grayscale’s Privacy-Based ETF Move appeared first on BitcoinWorld .

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