Tag: crypto

What’s happening in technology in 2019?

On By mehranmuslimiblogIn Bitcoin, Blockchain, FintechLeave a comment

What do you think are going to be the major advances or innovations in technology during 2019? In 2018 artificial intelligence (Ai) was one of the big stories, as were self-driving cars. I notice that as we start 2019, we have already gone beyond self-driving as cars with legs and flying cars are already set to launch at the various motor shows. Robotics was also hotly debated in 2018 as was cyber security, due to the number of hacks that happened. We also witnessed online retailers killing off the shops in the high streets, with Amazon being a leader in the destruction.

But that was 2018. Is tech going to be much different this year?

One of the areas where we can expect to see quite a lot of activity and forward movement is blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. 2018 may have been a rocky year for bitcoin and other altcoins, but we are seeing less volatility in the market, which has its benefits. I also believe we will see some major changes in the use of blockchain and crypto in banking, with more new digital-only neobanks appearing.

2018 may be remembered as the year that Facebook skidded on a banana skin and fell flat on its back. All social media use is coming under more scrutiny, largely because we have over-indulged in its use and now it is time to go on a ‘social media diet’. It is likely that apps will appear that will track the time we spend on various SM channels and will reward us for spending less time online; perhaps with some tokens.

There will be more regulations. These won’t just be aimed at the cryptocurrency sector, they will also cover privacy, due to last year’s discovery that Facebook had basically sold its members’ data to the highest bidder. Europe already has the General Data Protection Regulation in place, and America is likely to follow with something similar.

There will be more self-driving cars and the possibility of legislation to deal with what this technology brings. The Tesla 3 will probably see more competition, and possibly by the end of the year, the introduction of self-driving-only lanes on some roads.

There will be more advances in robotics and more debates around facial recognition technology, especially regarding its potential to be open to abuse. Augmented reality is also likely to make a breakout in 2019, and somewhere in the world, technology needs to emerge that deals with the amount of waste we all generate. There will be plenty of other innovations as well, but without a crystal ball it’s hard to predict them all!

What’s going to happen to the blockchain in 2019?

On By mehranmuslimiblogIn Bitcoin, BlockchainLeave a comment

The coming year promises to be quite an exciting one for blockchain technology, so what are some of the experts predicting will take place in 2019?

Brent Jaciow, Head of Blockchain Affairs at Utopia Music, a blockchain based music streaming platform says:

“Throughout 2019, we will continue to see an increased use of AI and machine learning to improve customer experiences, whether it is the use of enhanced chatbots to facilitate quicker client assistance, or the use of imaging recognition software to provide hyper-targeted marketing based on age, sex, and even temperament.”

Robertas Visinskis, Founder of Mysterium Network, says:

“As 2018 draws to a close, a highlight for blockchain is how the wider space succeeded in differentiating itself from strictly being associated with cryptocurrency. In 2019, we will see privacy and personal data protection trends continuing to grow in importance. “

Nicolas Gilot, Co-CEO of Ultra, a blockchain-based, game publishing platform, says:

Looking ahead to 2019, I believe we will reap the rewards of work put in by industry players, teams, and communities over the past two years. Blockchain technology has a bright future but the road to get there will be full of twists and turns. As with any new and emerging technology, there will be plenty of ups and downs before we see mainstream adoption of the tech, but I believe blockchain will change industries as we know them — everything from finance and banking, to retail, education, healthcare, and entertainment.”

Gabriele Giancola, CEO and Co-founder of qiibee, the Swiss loyalty token protocol helping brands around the world run their loyalty programs on the blockchain, says:

“Moving into 2019, and further down the line, I believe we will begin to see a separation between hype and reality. We are slowly but surely beginning to witness the gradual disruption of other industries such as retail, education, healthcare, loyalty, banking, and finance. Companies are experimenting with new functions of the technology on a daily basis, and the wide range of applications for blockchain is beginning to emerge.”

Vladislav Dramaliev, Head of Digital Marketing at æternity, the open-source smart contracts blockchain protocol, says:

“In 2019, I expect we will see the first commercial (i.e., consumer-facing) applications of public blockchains go live next year, and the general public will finally experience the benefits that blockchain can bring.”

Casey Kuhlman, CEO and Co-founder of Monax, says:

“My prediction for 2019 is that the industry will shift its focus more toward the problems that blockchain technology can solve. Taking just one example, the advent of smart contracts offer a technical basis on which scalable, technically enabled legal products can be built and delivered. In 2019, my hope is that we apply the technology not only to the legal sector but to the myriad of industries that can and should benefit from its transparency, speed, efficiency, and reliability.”

The case for a blockchain Universal ID

On By mehranmuslimiblogIn BlockchainLeave a comment

Governments have been floating the idea of a universal ID around for a while, but haven’t come to any conclusions. The case for having such a thing as a universal ID is that it would increase national security, help with counter terrorism and prevent, or at least deter, identity theft. This would all make people’s lives easier it is argued.

Naturally there are problems with the concept. There are countries like the United Kingdom that don’t believe in a national ID, and in countries that do have ID databases, like the USA, the information is held in a centralised national database, which may not be as secure as they should be.

To give you an example: in the first six months of 2018 there were 668 data breaches in the USA in sectors including banking, business, education, government/military and health care. There are weaknesses in the databases that leave them exposed to cyber attacks. And, as the cyber criminals become more sophisticated, the national ID database’s security systems simply don’t seem to be able to keep up with them. So, imagine how fortunate the cybercriminals would feel if there were a universal ID database set up on a centralised system — it would be the biggest gift they ever received.

Blockchain solves the data breach problem

The most obvious solution is the use of blockchain technology. By using a distributed ledger, each person’s ID information could be held in a decentralised system that is more secure, because it uses cryptography. For example, a wide range of identity documents could be stored on the blockchain in a single place — let’s call it an identity wallet — and each wallet could have its own form of encryption. The information would be decentralised on the distributed ledger, which makes it far harder for cybercriminals to get access to it.; it would certainly make it much harder for them to undertake the kind of mass scale identity theft attacks that they are capable of right now, because they would have to hack into each individual wallet.

Using the blockchain would also give us a s citizens more control over our data, because we would have the ability to update out data in a single space and decide what data we share with certain individuals.

Companies are already working on identity blockchain technology, however it is still in early stages and will have to be proved before presenting it to governments. Of course, even these projects raise questions, such as who is developing it, how will they monetise it and how will they maintain it. Legally, there is also an issue about who owns the information once it is uploaded to the blockchain; each individual or a government?

Although we’re not quite there yet, it is to be hoped that blockchain technology will make data breaches a thing of the past, although whether we ever see a universal ID system emerge is another matter altogether.

How to hold an ICO in 2019

On By mehranmuslimiblogIn Blockchain, ICOLeave a comment

Once upon a time, people holding ICOs didn’t give too much thought to regulations, because there weren’t really any to follow, but in 2018 and beyond, they need to keep rules and regulations at the front of their minds.

ICOs started in 2013 with Mastercoin, swiftly followed by the Ethereum ICO promising smart contracts and the ERC20 token standard, both of which encouraged investors. Things were fine it seemed until 2016 and the DAO ICO, which raised $50 million, but then had its funds hacked. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that DAO should have been considered a security and it wasn’t long after that that China banned ICOs, calling them illegal. However, what happened in China wasn’t followed elsewhere and ICOs continued to flourish, reaching their zenith in January 2018.

However, as 2018 passed by, we saw ICOs decrease, and a more regulated environment is one of the most likely reasons for that. We also saw a shift to a different type of ICO investor. Whereas in previous years, ICOs appealed to the man or woman in the street who would take a punt on a new project, this group dropped away and the institutional investors started to take their place. Old venture capital also made way for new crypto and blockchain-related VC firms that were focused on projects using the emerging technology. One report by

Autonomous Next indicates that VC funds invested $1.6 billion in blockchain projects in August 2018 alone. Meanwhile, funds raised by ICOs has been falling throughout 2018 and in Q3 the number of ICOs raising over $1 million had halved compared with the end of Q2.

Where is the best place to hold an ICO?

Places where there are clear guidelines for ICOs and favourable regulations are obviously the ones to choose if you’re planning a new coin offering. The two most important things to consider first are:

1. How can we safely conduct an ICO?

2. Can the project operate legally after the ICO and will licences etc be needed?

Europe is one of the regions most favourable to ICOs as it isn’t rushing to impose regulations. As long as projects follow KYC and AML rules –until some other rules come along –these are the most important regulations in Europe. Switzerland is one of the more friendly environments in Europe and in February 2018, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority, FINMA,issued a set of guidelines for ICO projects, which stated, “Each case should be decided on its individual merits.” Gibraltar is also high on the list and the UK has not really made a decision about firm ICO regulations yet, and looks at ICOs on a case by case basis.

To put it in a nutshell: if you’re planning an ICO, look for a favourable jurisdiction, make sure you comply with its regulations plus KYC and AML, and if you need a special licence because you’re in the fintech space, make sure you put yourself in a good position to get one.