Blockchain

BITCOIN: THE HALVING AND AN OMINOUS MESSAGE

Published

6 years ago

May 12, 2020

Bitcoin’s much anticipated third halving has happened and focused the world’s attention once more on the granddaddy of cryptocurrencies.

Despite the YouTube thought police pulling Cointelegraph’s BTC Halving livestream after six hours and 42 minutes, for being “harmful content,” and a bit of turbulence in terms of price that saw BTC swing from 5-7% in each direction over a few hours, things have gone pretty much as to be expected so far.

An ominous message

Eagle-eyed observers did, however, note that as the 629,000 block was mined, a message was inserted by f2pool, reading:

“NYTimes 09/Apr/2020 With $2.3T Injection, Fed’s Plan Far Exceeds 2008 Rescue.”

This echoes a note left in the Genesis block in 2009, by the enigmatic creator of Bitcoin (BTC) Satoshi Nakamoto. That note read:

“The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks.”

Nakamoto was referencing the then unprecedented rescue package aimed at staving off global economic collapse following the 2008 Financial Crisis. F2pool’s message is referencing the now planned rescue package to try to stave off economic collapse due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis.

Many have noted that Bitcoin was itself born out of the ashes of the Financial Crisis, and that it looks like it may well ‘come of age’ in the now unfolding catastrophe – which many expect to be far worse than any previous crisis in modern history.

Indeed, as we speculated a few weeks ago, with the world on the brink of economic collapse, Bitcoin’s ‘moment of truth’ could well be approaching.

Bitcoin price to rocket in post-halving world rocked by economic chaos?

Of course, some have gone further, with gun toting libertarian, tax fugitive, presidential candidate and outspoken crypto advocate John McAfee warning the “world is collapsing”, fiat currencies will implode within months, and imploring people to “buy peanut butter.”

However, McAfee isn’t the only one expecting chaos in the traditional economy to power Bitcoin to record levels. Last week former Goldman Sachs hedge fund manager, and current Global Macro Investor CEO, Raoul Pal, said the likelihood of $1M BTC was higher than ever.

Just days previously, Dan Morehead, CEO of Pantera Capital, also weighed in with a prediction that there was more than a 50/50 chance of Bitcoin hitting $500K by August 2021. While crypto analyst PlanB also used a modified Stock-to-Flow model to predict prices reaching $288K by the end of 2020.

And, lets not forget, now incarcerated Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht’s recent prediction of $333 million BTC within a few years!

The halving – a ‘non-event’, or is that missing the real point?

Of course, there are plenty of professional crypto analysts and casual observers who consider the latest halving will turn out to be a non-event. And, they could very well be right, in a certain way.

For, though the basic fundamentals seem to dictate that if you halve the supply of something, or make it twice as expensive to mine, scarcity should result in the price rising, anyone who’s been exposed to the world of Bitcoin (BTC) for some time will know that things don’t always follow logic.

However, we can’t help but feel that most of those focusing on arguing how the halving itself is a non-event, are still talking from a pre-COVID-19 crisis point-of-view.

One of the most interesting things about the current COVID-19 crisis is that it is unfolding something like a train crash in super-slow motion. For generations raised on 90-minute Hollywood blockbusters, the apocalypse is expected to be quick and dramatic, meaning the COVID-19 induced economic collapse is still hazy, if not invisible, to most.

With hundreds of millions of workers in developed countries still on subsidised furloughs, and millions of others still employed by companies trying desperately to hang on to staff, plus all activity slowed to a crawl by lockdowns, the true scale of the economic catastrophe approaching has not dawned on the majority of people.

Judging by the scale of the rescue packages being prepared, and the gargantuan economic forces that have already been unleashed and are hurtling down the track towards the unsuspecting train passengers, this crisis could well tip the traditional financial, economic and societal systems into an unrecoverable “death spiral.”

Given its timing, there is simply no way that this halving can be looked at in isolation. It is inextricably linked to the wider global picture. Because, after all is said and done, our civilization is underpinned by confidence and faith in the systems we rely on. If they collapse, then Bitcoin (BTC) could well find itself perfectly placed to become a much-needed rock of stability, then all bets are off, and Ulbricht’s prediction doesn’t seem so far-fetched.

Its physics.

This information does not constitute investment advice and features the opinion of the author only. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Blockchain

VCOIN LAUNCHES DEBIT CARD WITH UPHOLD: IMVU USERS EARN IN-GAME & SPEND IN REAL LIFE

VCOIN has teamed up with Uphold on a debit card that lets IMVU users spend currency earned in-game on real-world purchases.

Published

5 years ago

June 29, 2021

AYO News Staff

Vcoin launches debit card with uphold: imvu users earn in-game & spend in real life

VCOIN, the transferable digital currency used in the social metaverse app IMVU, has launched a debit card in partnership with digital money platform Uphold, allowing users to take value earned inside the virtual world and spend it in real life.

IMVU users can now withdraw VCOIN to an Uphold account and spend it using the Uphold debit card, earning 2% cashback on every purchase, both online and in store.

How the card works

The card is available first to US residents, with international availability to follow. Digital-only cards are free to order and use through the Uphold Card app, while a physical card carries a one-off fee of $9.95. Cashback on purchases is paid into the cardholder’s Uphold account.

From virtual economy to real wallet

VCOIN was first introduced inside IMVU, the friend-discovery and social metaverse app operated by Together Labs. IMVU runs one of the larger virtual economies of any social platform, with around 27 million transactions and 14 billion credits changing hands each month, according to the company.

The debit card closes the loop between that in-app economy and everyday spending. Creators and users who earn VCOIN by selling virtual goods or participating in the community can now convert those earnings into money they can use at ordinary merchants, rather than keeping the value locked inside the app.

A test case for the creator economy

The launch reflects a wider effort across gaming and virtual worlds to let users earn real income from in-game activity. It also highlights the regulatory hurdles involved: by routing withdrawals and spending through Uphold, an established and regulated money platform, VCOIN relies on a partner already set up to handle compliance, identity checks and card issuing.

How widely users adopt the card will be watched closely by other platforms considering whether to let virtual currencies flow out into the real economy.

Blockchain

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE’S WOLVES ENTER ROCKET LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

Published

6 years ago

November 5, 2020

AYO News Staff

English Premier League football club Wolverhampton Wanderers (Wolves) has entered the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS).

Wolves already fields rosters in FIFA 21, FIFA Online 4, PUBG, Identity V, and Pop Kart Racing, and is the first Premier League club to enter the RLCS.

Discussing the news Wolves General Manager for Marketing and Commercial Growth, Russell Jones, said:

“Gaming and esports remain a crucial part of our brand growth strategy and signing such talented and ambitious players to represent our Rocket League esports team is another step forward in our journey to build stories outside of football and widen the appeal of the Wolves brand across the world.

“We have spent the last six months scouting teams and players and are delighted to welcome Rix, Luis and Ole, who will become Wolves Esports for the remainder of the current RLCS season X and beyond. We will be offering the team our full support as they compete in the winter split.

“I’d also like to thank the University of Wolverhampton who continue to be an exceptionally supportive partner of the Wolves Esports programme.”

While Team Captain of Wolves Esports Rocket League, Rix Ronday, added:

“It is a real honour to captain the first-ever Wolves Esports Rocket League team. I’m confident that we have recruited two of Rocket League’s most exciting talents in Ole and Luis and we are working hard behind the scenes to prepare for the RLCSX Winter Split kick-off.”

AYO.NEWS says:

Wolves have already demonstrated their enthusiasm for esports, using it to strengthen what is now a powerful global brand – for example, way back in February 2019, it became the first Premier League club to enter Chinese esports, through a partnership with Weibo eSports Club.

And, given the very real possibility of COVID-19 causing further disruption to football, diversifying the brand into multiple esports seems like a smart way to ensure fan engagement can continue, come what may.

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Blockchain

FIFA 21 CHALLENGE IS MOST WATCHED EA ESPORTS EVENT YET

Published

6 years ago

November 4, 2020

AYO News Staff

The EA SPORTS™ FIFA 21 Challenge has smashed the viewership record, with an Average Minute Audience of over 250K.

A one-day esports tournament that paired top global professional footballers with the world’s best FIFA players, the EA SPORTS™ FIFA 21 Challenge drew an average minute audience (AMA) of 254,057 with a total watch time of 1,024,696 hours, making the event the most-watched EA operated esports broadcast in history.

In fact, the broadcast more than doubled the viewership metric set by the next most-watched EA operated FIFA event, the FIFA Global Series FUT Champions Cup: Barcelona, which took place over multiple days in January 2018 and registered an AMA of 92,678.

During the competition, four esports players paired with four professional footballers from international clubs Liverpool, West Ham United, Inter Milan, and Borussia Dortmund, clashed on October 29 for the EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Challenge.

Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold and Fnatic’s Tekkz took home the trophy and won $20,000 on behalf of their selected charities

In addition to incorporating celebrity participation to reach non-traditional gaming audiences, the EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Challenge was the first event to utilize FIFA Global Series Viewership Rewards, creating an interactive broadcast for viewers with in-game benefits for watching to further drive engagement and subsequent play time.

Reflecting on the event EA SPORTS FIFA Commissioner, Brent Koning, said:

“EA SPORTS FIFA is woven into the fabric of football culture. Bringing professional footballers and our esports pros together creates entertainment that sets our tournaments apart.

“The success of the FIFA 21 Challenge reinforces our strategy and vision for broadening the esports audience, creating content for our fans, and underscores the value of entertainment-driven events that branch outside of traditional esports.”

The FIFA 21 Challenge was a part of a series of EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Global Series pre-season invitationals, featuring notable influencers, footballers, and FIFA pros, in partnership with the interactive entertainment world’s biggest video streaming and content platforms.

It’s a nod to EA’s renewed competitive gaming strategy, which leverages the convergence of traditional sports, competitive gaming, and pop culture to create new, engaging, and accessible broadcasts for diverse audiences.

AYO.NEWS says:

Viewership figures like this illustrate just how integrated esports, especially FIFA, is becoming in mainstream football culture, and the growth looks set to continue, and reflects well on EA’s competitive gaming strategy. Last month, EA announced improvements and a bigger prize pool for the upcoming esports season.