Uruguayan Energy Company Reduces 30% Its Operating Costs Thanks to Blockchain

Maria Rodríguez
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Automation systems boost energy trading and decision-making to opt for internal sales or export energy.

A company of the energy sector in Uruguay uses blockchain technology to conduct transactions related to renewable energies. This is possible, thanks to blockchain, in a faster way than using traditional platforms for payments.

The name of the company is Ventus. It is an Uruguayan Energy Firm dedicated to developing wind power projects. To make real this plan, Ventus established an alliance with PowerLedgers, a company that offers business solutions through blockchain networks.

Marcelo Bretón, Director and CFO of the energy company, announced the project through the official website, where he explained that they managed to create an automation system in the energy trading. They also reduced the operating costs by 30%, thanks to blockchain technology.

Both companies were looking for a system that allows them to automatically opt for internal sales or even export energy, improving the flow of information between the parts in real-time to optimize the decision-making business world and, in this way, the rest of the process of energy trading.

According to the article, the idea was to create not only an automation system but also a model that could predict the generation and estimate the value of the energy to take decisions itself on the destination of the sale using Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT).

PowerLedgers created for Ventus a software to export 153,960 MWh of renewable energy in 2018, eliminating the margin of human error, and making decisions in real-time.

An Additional Opportunity

Bretón says that after using this technology and the new platform successfully, Ventus began to offer solutions for companies that seek to automate processes which are currently made manually.

This new tool based on blockchain technology will boost efficiency and precision in the decision-making process of different companies.

In 2017, Ventus signed an agreement with the Wholesale Electric Market Management Company (CAMMESA, in Spanish) for the sale of energy from Uruguay to Argentina, something without precedents between those countries.

The sales agreement was implemented through weekly package of energy produced by the 73 power MW installed and operated by Ventus, administered in 8 wind farms.

“The spirit of the agreement sought to optimize the profitability of the wind farms operated by Ventus through an alternative to the sale of energy to the domestic market. Therefore, if the energy price of the spot market in Uruguay had a higher value than initially offered by CAMMESA, the energy was turned over in the local market. Otherwise, the energy was exported”, Bretón explained.

More Use Cases

Blockchain not only is responsible for storing information, but also it is responsible for transferring data safely and quickly without being centralized. Depending on the company, blockchain could be very useful. Many companies use this technology to make their processes more transparent.

Siemens (Spain) and the GNERA Energy Group created a platform based on blockchain technology for energy marketing. Its objective is to facilitate energy transactions between producers and domestic consumers.

Similarly, the National Energy Commission of Chile uses smart contracts to make projects more transparent for all users and the people who want to know more about this work in Chile. There could be more developments, in the near future, based on DLT to make the manual work more efficient.

By María Rodríguez

Greater Number of Bitcoin ATMs, Key Storage Device and Petro Announcement

Willmen Blanco
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Greater Number of Bitcoin ATMs, Key Storage Device and Petro Announcement

After a fall that led to less than USD 8,000, the price of Bitcoin experiences a rebound. The President of China considers that the Communist Party must use blockchains to implement advances.

In recent weeks Bitcoin’s price was quoted below USD 8,000 on October 23rd and 24th, recovering on the 25th with a rebound of 15%, which again exceeded USD 8,000 per unit. The progress continues as Bitcoin’s price is USD 9,704 at the time of writing this article.

With the incorporation of 5 daily cryptocurrency ATMs on average, the increase in their number in the last 12 months has been 53.34%, with 2,014 new Bitcoin ATMs installed. Since 2017, the number of these devices has grown steadily and has exceeded 400% in two years.

Top News

In the last twelve months, more than 2,000 Bitcoin ATMs have been installed worldwide, according to the latest Coin ATM Radar figures. These devices, whose installed base reached the amount of 5,790 on October 22nd, had recorded the figure of 3,776 on October 1st, 2018.

With the announcement of the launch of Cryptosteel Capsule, Sword Ltd explained that the capsule can store important information in a hexadecimal key of up to 123 characters or in a random sequence key (ASCII) of up to 55 characters. The device contains a central column on which the user can manually assemble a sequence of discs on which the characters are recorded.

Several economists warn that the measure of the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, indicating that Petro holders will be able to convert the cryptocurrency into other currencies, will fail due to inconsistency, financial unfeasibility and inability to correct the current economic distortion in the country.

An enthusiastic Bitcoin developer and the Lightning Network payment network showed how to build a point of sale with less than USD 8, to process transactions with the main cryptocurrency in the market through the micropayment network. Known as The Quickening, the equipment is functional and is a cheaper version of the M5StackSats point of sale, which operates on the same platform.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, answered many questions that reflected skepticism and reservations about the Libra project and its possible implications for the financial system, at a hearing held on October 23rd before the Financial Services Committee of the United States Congress. During the meeting, Congressman Brad Sherman attacked Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies, noting that such technology is useful only for criminals. In addition, he warned that these assets have the potential to threaten US dollar dominance over the global financial system.

Other News

The president of China, Xi Jinping, suggested that the Communist Party should consider some blockchains as central technologies for important and innovative advances. In addition, he pledged to accelerate development in that direction at a meeting with the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee.

On October 25th, Bitcoin’s price had a rebound of more than 15% compared to the previous day. In a matter of hours, the value of the cryptocurrency with the highest market capitalization went from being slightly below USD 7,500 to over USD 8,680. One the events that might have some influence on the price is the fact that Bakkt’s Bitcoin futures achieved a new record.

Caracas, capital of Venezuela, already has its second cryptocurrency ATM (BATM). This is another device installed by the Venezuelan Exchange company Veinte Venezuela. On this occasion, the BATM was activated at the Eurobuilding hotel, in the eastern part of the Venezuelan city.

By Willmen Blanco

How and why China Will Certify Digital Payments through Blockchain Technology

Maria Rodríguez
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How and why China Will Certify Digital Payments through Blockchain Technology

The Central Bank of China will certificate those companies that offer payment services through blockchain technology and meet some requirements necessary for this.

The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) will use a new system to certify 11 types of financial technology hardware and software used for digital payment and blockchain services.

Recently, the PBoC alongside China’s market regulator, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), released a set of documents for the new nationwide Certification of Fintech Products (CFP) system.

In this way, China advances in its intention to adopt blockchain technology in different industries of the country. This system will help ensure that product’s manufacturers are following the mandated standards imposed by the country.

Currently, there are 11 products on the list that will receive the official certification if they managed to pass the prototype examination and on-site review.

The certificate will be valid for three years and officials of China will conduct more tests to check if the product meets the standard, so the certificate will be reviewed or renewed every three years.

The idea is that these products can be used in both front-end and bank-end development for digital payment services.

How Will it Work?

The certification system covers all the products that could be involved in digital payment technologies, including point-of-sale mobile terminals as well as security carriers and chips. The documents include definitions of fintech products that require certification and rules for its proceedings.

According to local media, authorities related with the crypto industry in China would conduct random inspections on any step of the production process. The idea is to ensure compliance whilst the certificate is valid.

Institution will have permission to stamp the certificate on their logo when they obtain this document. But the certification cannot be used to directly promote products or services.

The process has important steps and specific items. One of those items included on the list of 11 products is called Trusted Execution Environment (TEE). This is a technology that can assist in the establishment of a consortium blockchain network and also verify blockchain transactions in financial transactions use cases.

This is not the first time that an entity is trying to use blockchain to execute payments. The US technology giant company Microsoft asked for two patents in August 2018. Its intention was to use similar types of technologies (like the ones used by China) in order to improve the security and capacity of the blockchain services it offers to users.

The announcement comes just a month after the People’s Bank of China publicly denied reports about the launch of its central bank digital currency (CBDC). In this sense, last September 24th, the PBoC claimed that the financial institution needs time for research. It said there is not a specific date for the launch of CBDC.

Since October, China is accelerating the development of new financial infrastructures. Also, the President of the country, Xi Jinping, called on citizens to adopt blockchain technology faster.

This information was also reported by local media. As a consequence of the President’s statements, last October 28th, China recorded a sharp growth of interest in blockchain technology. this behavior could continue growing thanks to the recent interest of Xi Jinping in adopting this kind of technology in different projects for the country.

By María Rodríguez 

Exchange Companies Offer 42% of Employments in the Cryptography Industry

Maria Rodríguez
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Exchange Companies Offer 42% of Employments in the Cryptography Industry

According to research data, 42 % of jobs in the crypto industry are granted by exchange houses.

In a recent publication on employment rates in the cryptocurrency industry, researchers focused on knowing these aspects were released. The results of the investigation indicate that around 40%, which is almost half, of crypto employment is granted by companies dedicated to the exchange of assets.

According to local news, data analyzed and investigated from 158 crypto companies; indicate that about 42% of the employees are dedicated to working for exchange houses. To be more specific, more than 7,700 people are working in the area of ​​crypto exchanges, assuming, in addition, management of about 30 different types of cryptocurrencies.

According to research data, the second place in crypto employment is occupied by the mining industry; this is, classifying mining equipment producers with 11% of jobs. Then, the next place is occupied by workers who work in government functions related to cryptocurrencies, with 10 % of jobs in the industry, even putting as examples companies like TRON and Ripple.

With respect to the companies analyzed and their data about the personnel working for these companies, it was known that the leaders among the most employers are Bitmain with 1,500 employees, Huboi with 1,300, Coinbase with 1,000, and OKEx with 950 workers.

According to comments from these companies, they ensure that the growth of the companies will depend on their large volume of people who make quality work possible, and not just quantity. Occupying that kind of place is Binance with a total of 650 employees and Ripple with 450 people on the payroll.

It is worth mentioning that a few weeks ago, Coinbase and Ripple came off the list of the 10 most popular companies for job search on Linkedin. These results are part of a classification that is made during a certain time by the social network. In this way, Binance and Ripple leave the top 10, in a list that covers the 50 best companies to work for in the United States of America.

Despite this news, Ripple is considered one of the companies that offer the best jobs to the people around its headquarters, in San Francisco, the United States of America. In addition to being one of the best technology companies in the area.

According to a survey made with Ripple employees, it was found that 95% of respondents like to say they are happy to work in that company, as well as 91% say that Ripple is a very good company to work for.

It is also important to note that according to the social network to search for jobs, Linkedin, the classification of skills related to the management and use of blockchain technology is in its top 10 of the most important and requested ones in certain regions of Asia.

The expansion of the crypto industry is generating a major change at the market level in the world. More and more technology companies are making their efforts in the blockchain industry and in creating new products with it. For this reason, it is important to hire qualified human resources that contribute their knowledge and generate positive changes for the world since blockchain technology also helps verify the origin of products, and preserve quality and security in a different types of processes.

By María Rodríguez

It Is Not True that Google and it’s Quantum Computer Will Soon Eradicate Bitcoin

Willmen Blanco
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It Is Not True that Google and it’s Quantum Computer Will Soon Eradicate Bitcoin

If the claim is disclosed, it would have a great impact on medicine, engineering, and artificial intelligence. Its real-world application may still be decades away.

Google claimed “quantum supremacy” through an article published in the respected magazine Nature. In other words, the company says that it’s quantum chip Sycamore could perform a calculation that would be virtually impossible to surpass for a conventional supercomputer in a reasonable amount of time.

If the announcement is confirmed, it will have potentially profound implications in the long term due to the exponential leap in computing power, which would allow great advances in areas ranging from medicine to engineering and artificial intelligence.

However, it might also put a powerful new tool in the hands of hackers and criminals, so some fear that Bitcoin and the rest of cryptocurrencies may be easy targets. In that sense, Billy Bambrough wrote that a machine as powerful as Google’s quantum computer might solve these classic equations fast enough to decipher not only Bitcoin but also the encryption on which the Internet is based.

Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin plummeted last week to its lowest lows in the last five months. It is not clear if this is linked to the dissemination of information on Google’s quantum computer, which was first leaked last month, or to the United States Congress hearing of Mark Zuckerberg regarding the cryptocurrency project Facebook Libra.

In any case, the concerns that quantum computers will soon destroy Bitcoin, the Internet and everything worth loving in the world may not be justified, at least in the short term.

It should be noted that the title “quantum supremacy” brings some warnings to be considered. First, IBM quickly rejected Google’s claim that a classical supercomputer would take 10,000 years to make the same calculations that Sycamore did in just a few minutes. The American multinational technology and consulting company said that it might be done with conventional supercomputers in less than three days.

Anyway, it is still a great computational advantage, but it might be very far from Google’s hallucinating statement on supremacy.

Second, the calculations made by Sycamore were customized to claim the alleged quantum supremacy. Some believe that it is a type of problem that quantum computers might solve, but without much practical application.

Its real-world application is still probably decades away, something that was even indicated in a Nature article that accompanied the publication of the article about Google.

Scott Aaronson, a theoretical computer scientist from the University of Texas that helped in the peer review process for the Nature article about Google, says that the experiment used to demonstrate quantum supremacy might be useful for cryptography and cryptocurrencies.

Even so, most cryptocurrency enthusiasts are more concerned than interested in the advent of quantum computing. In recent years, money has been invested in initiatives such as those conducted by the National Research Council of Canada and the United Kingdom government, which might eventually help develop the technologies of a secure quantum blockchain.

On the other hand, developers are working to create new blockchains that are resistant to quantum technology, as well as adaptations and updates for existing ones.

By Willmen Blanco

Bitex and Argentina’s Ministry of Security Will Fight Against Cybercrimes, Using Blockchain

Maria Rodríguez
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Bitex and Argentina’s Ministry of Security Will Fight Against Cybercrimes, Using Blockchain

The agreement between Bitex and the Ministry of Security of Argentina will seek to investigate the use of cryptoactives in illegal activities, as well as they will seek solutions.

In recent publications issued by the Ministry of Security of Argentina, it was announced that the public body has signed an important agreement with the renowned Fintech Company Bitex, which proposes using blockchain technology as a resource to combat electronic crimes in all its variations, including the doubtful uses of crypto assets such as Bitcoin (BTC).

According to local news, the alliance between the public institution and the technology company will have as its central axis to conduct training activities and studies. The objective is to boost investigations about the correct and incorrect use of cryptoactive among other things, as well as how to create projects to extend the security on the Internet and prevent cybercrime.

According to the review published in local media, this agreement will help the government institution establish a method to expand knowledge about the pros and cons of cryptocurrencies. It will be also about how people, institutions and private companies use these digital assets. In addition, they plan to conduct an informative scheme of each crypto asset in order to conduct a working method for when this asset is used in irregular events.

In another sense, it is also considered to study the behavior of the new cybercrime methods that are being used at present. This is in order to counteract them in the best possible fashion. Investigating all the uses that a cryptocurrency can have could ensure the best ways to prevent crimes of this type with cryptocurrencies. That is what both institutions want to do.

It will also establish the best ways to keep crypto assets safe, as well as to investigate transactions made with them. The intention is to protect users too and know how these assets can operate without problems.

Pablo Lázaro, who is Director of Cybercrime Investigations of the National Directorate of Investigations, at the Ministry of Security in Argentina, said that cooperation between the institution and the private company is the best opportunity to demonstrate the skills to fight cybercrime.

“We celebrate the agreement between the Ministry of Security and Bitex since it is another demonstration that public-private cooperation is necessary to combat cybercrime and to strengthen the protection of citizens and businesses that are often victims of organized crime”, Lázaro said.

Bitex is known for being a Fintech company that was created in mid-2014, and since its inception is responsible for providing services related to cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. Currently, this company has operations in some Latin American countries such as Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, and, of course, Argentina.

This agreement means for Bitex greater growth for the industry. This is explained by some spokesmen of the company: “With this agreement we seek that the growing adoption of Bitcoin be beneficial to society and occur in a secure cyberspace”, they commented.

By María Rodríguez

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