Story of ProgPoW in Ethereum amid Disagreements and Controversies

Alexander Salazar
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Story of ProgPoW in Ethereum amid Disagreements and Controversies

There have been several changes in decisions around ProgPoW in the past 2 years. The new mining algorithm emerged in response to the advantages of ASICs.

After Ethereum developers dismissed the inclusion of Programmatic Proof of Work (ProgPoW) in an upcoming fork, one of the longest-running controversies in that network environment seems to have ended. However, it is not the first time that the inclusion of the new mining algorithm has been stopped, only to resume the controversy later.

In May 2018, a group of Ethereum miners decided to develop a proposal to combat the advantages of dedicated mining equipment (ASIC) over those that work with graphics cards (GPU). That gave way to the birth of ProgPoW, an algorithm intended as a solution that would ensure decentralization in the network.

Behind the ProgPoW Proposal

This mechanism seeks to “close the efficiency gap available to specialized ASICs”, according to its developers.  They explained the intention behind this proposal through the introduction of ProgPoW, or Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 1057.

By referring to EIP 1057, it is possible to see that, to achieve its goal, ProgPoW uses almost all parts of the basic hardware (GPU). Besides, it is tuned for the most common hardware used in the Ethereum network.

The text of the introduction highlights that the new algorithm does not seek to prevent ASICs from making profits in the network mining environment. It rather aims to reduce the superiority that these devices have over the rest. Therefore, the advantage would be just 1.1 or 1.2 compared to GPUs, according to the developers’ calculations.

In summary, the application of ProgPoW to ASICs should allow little opportunity for increased efficiency, compared to that of a GPU. The design of the algorithm focuses on adapting the processing requirements to the resources available on the GPU.

Behind the introduction of the proposal into Ethereum’s development plans are Kristy-Leigh Minehan and Greg Colvin. The former is the CEO of the company Mineority, which specializes in mining with GPU, whilst the latter is a developer recently involved in the Algorand project.

Accusations and Rejection of ProgPoW

The controversy started shortly after the developers made the proposal. The positions against ProgPoW, which existed from the very beginning, were becoming increasingly strong as the months elapsed.

Even Nvidia, one of the leading GPU manufacturing companies worldwide, faced accusations for allegedly financing the proposal. One of the first criticisms that the ProgPoW project received was against Minehan, for her supposed links to Nvidia.

According to the accusation, the new algorithm responded to the corporate interests of Minehan and the manufacturer, rather than to the decentralization principles that its developers had stated.

Alexander Levin, who opposed the proposal since it emerged, was in charge of accusing Minehan. According to him, whilst he was working on the Ethos project with Minehan, the CEO of Mineority herself flaunted her relationship with Nvidia. Levin claimed that Minehan even said that Nvidia and its engineers were working closely with her to optimize the hash rate of Nvidia GPUs.

Some other members of the Ethereum community allege that ProgPoW is the real threat to the decentralization of the network. Others have simply stated that they are against forking Ethereum to include a new mining algorithm. Meanwhile, Levin himself stated that implementing ProgPoW could compromise the network in the face of 51% attacks.

By Alexander Salazar

Analysts Explain How Coronavirus Crisis Could Strengthen Bitcoin Price

Maria Rodríguez
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Analysts Explain How Coronavirus Crisis Could Strengthen Bitcoin Price

Experts from Fundstrat, eToro and the blockchain technology company Blockstream consider Bitcoin could recover its path to be worth more than USD 10,000.

The price of Bitcoin could increase during the next months, despite the ongoing crisis that the coronavirus pandemic caused. Last February 8th, miners sold each bitcoin (BTC) for USD 10,139. However, on March 13th Bitcoin’s price fell below USD 5,000 for the first time since April 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared coronavirus as a pandemic on March 11th. The announcement caused the fall of the most important stock markets in the world. The price of Bitcoin was not far behind from this situation. The fall of this cryptocurrency comes after the US stock markets plummeted. All of this happened in a day now compared with the ‘Black Monday’ of 1987.

But the Chief Strategy Officer of Blockstream, Samson Mow, predicts that Bitcoin’s price will be above five figures for halving this May. “Bitcoin at least 10k by the halving”, the expert commented last March 19th on his Twitter account.

These positive predictions would help boost Bitcoin’s price as well. But one of the factors that could be driving the price hike is the injections of liquidity that some central banks of the United States of America and Europe already execute.

“Within less than a day of the two largest central banks in the world printing a combined $2 trillion of their paper money, Bitcoin’s price surges +20 %. Bitcoin is working as designed”, a crypto user commented on Twitter.

Fundstrat and eToro Predictions

David Grider, Fundstrat’s Chief Digital Strategist, and Simon Peters, eToro’s Platinum Account Manager, discuss how the coronavirus disease and the financial crisis may affect Bitcoin halving and Bitcoin prices shortly.

Unlike Chainalysis, David Grider believes that professional traders and investors are not solely responsible for recent major price movements. “I think we have seen an addition in 2016/2017 of a class of traditional funds, probably institutional, to some extent but not very big, right. But before that, this was a very small market and I think it’s still dominated by the first largest cryptocurrency whales”, he explained.

On the other hand, Simon Peters highlighted that the liquidation of the professional participants’ positions generated a fall in Bitcoin prices, especially during the last two weeks. Besides, he explained that this activity could allow Bitcoin to become a hedge asset.

“We have seen this conversion of assets into cash, regardless of the market it is in, but there will come a time when, due to this increasing amount injected into the system, cash will lose its value”, he explained.

Peters added: “Given that the virus is shrinking and the number of new cases are decreasing, the question for investors is, what do I do with all this money I have? And then they can look for other assets that can cover that, possibly taking cryptocurrencies as one of them”.

Bitcoin’s volatility increased due to the uncertainty that the coronavirus outbreak generated in international markets, but its price could become more stable when the pandemic ends and that is what crypto experts are predicting right now.

By María Rodríguez

Bitcoin’s Price Enjoys Bullish Momentum While Stock Market Remains Bearish

Alexander Salazar
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Bitcoin’s Price Enjoys Bullish Momentum While Stock Market Remains Bearish

In the last few days, the price of Bitcoin has grown by about 22%. Investors might be using the cryptocurrency as a safeguard of value.

After experiencing a steep drop in recent days, the price of Bitcoin recovered and continues to rise. Those investors who currently see the cryptocurrency as a haven of value might have driven this sudden increase.

Since last March 18th, Bitcoin has been enjoying new bullish momentum that has led its price from around USD 5,000 to around USD 6,650. As has happened on previous occasions, the catalyst for this new price rise could be the fact that Bitcoin can become a good refuge to safeguard the value of money.

The current global economic situation could be encouraging various investors to seek ways to avoid losses like those experienced in traditional financial markets, as well as to prepare for probable future inflation. Similarly, the printing of USD 1 trillion and the cut of interest rates to 0% by the US Federal Reserve could become a cause for concern for a large number of holders of the US fiat currency.

In this sense, the printing of such a large amount of fiat money, which is not backed by any other asset, could be the necessary factor to encourage various investors to buy Bitcoin. This situation also has the potential to decouple the observed relationship between Bitcoin and the stock market, which caused both markets to plummet simultaneously.

Bullish Momentum Indicating Recovery

After doing a quick analysis of the Bitcoin candlestick chart, in periods of one hour, it is possible to observe interesting data. At 10:30 a.m. UTC, on March 18th, the price of the first cryptocurrency was USD 5,050. However, starting at 1:30 p.m., a candlestick recorded that Bitcoin went from being worth USD 5,100 to USD 5,400 in less than an hour.

The rest of that day, the market was testing supports in the USD 5,200 range, whilst maintaining resistance at USD 5,400. This would not last long as more noticeable bullish momentum began on March 19th. On this date, the price went from USD 5,280 to USD 6,200, which represents an increase of 14.8% in a period not longer than 12 hours.

During the other half of March 19th, the price of Bitcoin maintained some stability. However, on March 20th the cryptocurrency registered another considerable increase in its price. At 1:30 p.m., on that day, Bitcoin climbed to be worth around USD 6,900 for a short period. Currently, it is possible to appreciate that the market is testing new supports in the range of USD 6,500.

Taking into account the lowest price of Bitcoin on March 18th, and comparing it with its current price, there has been an increase of about 22% in the last few days. The increase in the daily trading volume of Bitcoin has supported that rise in its price. According to data provided by CoinMarketCap, it is about USD 57 billion at the time of writing this article.

By Alexander Salazar

What Might Occur with Bitcoin Prices, according to Market Analysts

Willmen Blanco
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What Might Occur with Bitcoin Prices, according to Market Analysts

The fluctuations in the cryptocurrency market have set the tone since the spread of the coronavirus. Bitcoin is put to test amid the first international crisis since it was created in 2009.

The COVID-19 pandemic came at a time when the trade, price and political “wars” in many countries were threatening the stability of the global economy. The spread of this disease has led to economic closings, air restrictions, paralyzed companies, and general quarantines, which make the rest of 2020 uncertain.

This situation is affecting all markets, including those of securities, raw materials, foreign fiat currencies, and even that of cryptocurrencies, where Bitcoin is at the top. Analysts consider the main cryptocurrency a risky asset that it is facing its first major international crisis.

Market analyst Alberto Cárdenas believes that this situation resulted from the current winds of recession and the significantly negative impact on the demand for products and services. This deflationary stage has caused cryptocurrencies not to perform well since their prices have been falling to reach support levels, an area of long-term purchase.

Regarding these support levels, the analyst considers that Bitcoin’s new floor could fluctuate between USD 3,600 and USD 4,300. Cárdenas had already said on March 10th that the price of Bitcoin could fall to around USD 5,000, which occurred two days later when it went from USD 7,508 to USD 4,184.

Factors Favoring Bitcoin

Despite these setbacks, Bitcoin’s price has recovered in the last few days and already exceeds USD 6,300, with rises that have reached 20%. It has recently maintained a bullish trend to decouple from the stock market.

Cárdenas said that, when central banks reduce their printing of money and generate more inflation, there will be a real impact on the economy. He considers that a loss of credibility in fiat money would allow a favorable wind regarding the inflation issue, which would favor the cryptocurrency market.

Bitcoin and World Situation

Spanish trader @inmortalcrypto, who refers to himself by this pseudonym, considers that the recent drop in Bitcoin’s prices during this global crisis was normal as all the economy was falling.

He explained that, although Bitcoin is not directly related to traditional exchanges, its drop is related to the world situation. In other words, in a bad global situation, people do not have enough money to afford to invest in a risky asset.

The cryptocurrency trader stated that people with financial problems, who are experiencing this crisis closely, will not invest in an asset that has recently dropped from USD 8,000 to USD 4,000 within a day. Undoubtedly, an economic situation in which people have a surplus of money favors Bitcoin’s growth and adoption.

According to @inmortalcrypto, fear has been the main trigger for the fall in Bitcoin’s prices, since people have learned from bad economic times that all assets suffer. He explains that an extension of the quarantine would lead to keep companies closed, which led Bitcoin to separate from the rest of the traditional markets and resume its long-term bullish trend.

In this regard, economist and bitcoiner Daniel Arráez said that there is currently a general fear that combines the spread of the coronavirus and the upcoming Bitcoin halving.  He added that markets will remain erratic until the global situation improves.

By Willmen Blanco

Brazil Will Use a Blockchain ​​Platform to Track Cattle

Josselyn Avila
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Brazil Will Use a Blockchain ​​Platform to Track Cattle

Ranchers who provide information about their livestock could receive financial support from the state.

Brazil is developing a blockchain platform that would help local livestock providers to track livestock across the state. This is the result of an alliance between the city council of Pará, Brazil, and the British Partnerships for Forests (P4F).

This project proposes that blockchain technology stores the information and data of each link in the production chain. This is something that would help those involved in meat production in that country.

The initiative seeks to collect vital information among the sectors involved in the livestock industry. One of the main objectives is to compare the records of the ranchers with those of the Animal Transit Guide (Legal document for animal trafficking in Brazil) and the Rural Environmental Registry. This would help ranchers get some benefits from the state.

According to what platform developers estimate, the registry could cover more than 300 rural properties, averaging around 1,400 livestock producers across the state of Pará. This would help organize and involve more than 1 million head of cattle per year. The initiative hopes to finalize the complete registration by May of this year.

Government Investment for Livestock

The government of Pará approved the investment of more than 92 million Brazilian reals (equivalent to 18 million US dollars), to begin with, inspection and regularization processes to boost the sector. This is part of the so-called Operation Lava-jato and is a government action to counteract some registration problems with indirect suppliers.

Luiz de Almeida, representative of P4F, explained that the developers of the project will prepare the previous conditions to begin the tests. He added that the places where the pilot test will work are Sân Félix do Xingu and a town southwest of Pará. They also expect the test has a broader scope or be “statewide”.

When the preparations are made, the tests will begin, explained Luiz de Almeida, representative of P4F. He added that the places where the pilot will work are Sân Félix do Xingu and a town southwest of Pará. The test is also expected to have a broader scope or be “statewide”.

In another sense, Francisco Fonseca, Coordinator of Sustainable Livestock of TNC, recognized that carrying out this type of project can be a great challenge. This is because most of these producers are in places far from any contact with technology. However, they hope to coordinate efforts to improve channels and production.

Fonseca also referred to the mechanism that they would use to track livestock since it can be something very difficult. “We even managed to track animals using earrings or boluses (technological equipment placed in the ox rumen), but without success due to the cost-benefit and the vast areas of the Amazon”, Fonseca commented.

To conclude, Fonseca emphasized the need to create an ideal regulatory system for small producers dedicated to this sector, which helps to avoid discrimination or exclusion of their work from the economy. 

“Having a database and setting up a dirty list without producer adherence was never the solution. It is necessary to fight for the reintegration of the producer in the chain”, he said.

By María Rodríguez

During Coronavirus Crisis, Activity in Latin American Exchanges Has Grown

Willmen Blanco
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During Coronavirus Crisis, Activity in Latin American Exchanges Has Grown

In 2gether, the trade volume went from EUR 226,000 per day to more than EUR 760,000. In Panda, inactive users resumed activities on the platform in recent days.

During the fall in international markets, cryptocurrency exchanges have begun to experience an increase in their users’ activity. Not only have there been higher trading volumes, but the incorporation of new users has also increased, as reported by Buda, Panda, and 2gether, among other platforms.

The exchange website 2gether saw an increase in its exchange volumes between March 5th and March 13th. A chart shows that the Spanish platform registered a volume of around EUR 226,000 on March 5th, and one higher than EUR 760,000 on March 13th.

There was a drop on March 7th, but the platform recorded volumes above EUR 300,000 for three days. On March 12th, the users of the platform even traded up to EUR 483,791.

During the days recorded in the chart, there was a greater increase in purchasing volumes than in selling volumes. In total, 75% of the exchange operations on the platform are those for the purchase of cryptocurrencies. The high volumes particularly correspond to operations with Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), which dominate 90% of purchasing operations.

Inactive Panda Users Resume Operations

Panda, a Colombian exchange site, has also experienced an increase in its activity in recent days. Panda CTO Typson Sánchez confirmed that they have recently seen a rise of up to 15% in new registrations.

Additionally, they realized that 30% of inactive registered users have resumed their operations on the platform. In this regard, Sánchez explained that an inactive user is that who does not execute at least two exchange operations weekly.

It results curious to the representative of Panda that the trust towards cryptocurrencies has arrived amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This serious health situation is affecting all countries worldwide.

Buda, the Chilean exchange that also operates in Argentina, Colombia, and Peru, said that this activity contradicts the common behavior in bearish moments. Its founder and CEO, Guillermo Torrealba, stated that they were experiencing the opening of many new accounts every day.

Bitcoin Shows Signs of Recovery

In recent weeks, the price of Bitcoin accompanied the collapse of stock markets, oil and other traditional indices. At its lowest point, the price of Bitcoin fell to levels below USD 4,000.

However, certain signs allowed analysts to maintain their optimism regarding the main cryptocurrency. The firm Coin Metrics concluded that speculators and cryptocurrency traders drove the selling behavior, which did not correspond to a massive flight of investors.

Analyst Willy Woo, one of the most recognized in the ecosystem, noted that Bitcoin was showing signs of decoupling from traditional markets. He highlighted the case of the Standard&Poor’s 500 index, with which it had reached its all-time high correlation.

In his assessment, Woo claimed to maintain his bullish sentiment for Bitcoin. Last March 19th, the price of Bitcoin rose by more than 12% within 24 hours to approach USD 6,000. Then, it managed to surpass that level. At the time of writing this article, Bitcoin’s market value is USD 6,205, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

By Willmen Blanco

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