Crypto Exchange Losses Access to $2.3 Billion in BTC | This Week in Crypto – Oct 19, 2020

Popular trading platform OKEX is suspending all customer withdrawals, meaning consumers cannot remove digital assets from their online accounts. OKEX was “out of touch” with a private key holder employed by the company. This individual is presently working with security bureau investigations, though OKEX has not explained which nation’s bureaus are involved.

China has taken its digital yuan to the next level. Approximately $1.5 million has been shelled out to 50,000 randomly selected customers throughout the nation for a new cycle of testing. Each participant has received about $30 worth of the asset to be spent at approximately 3,000 participating retailers.

Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis has entered a contract with the Internal Revenue Service to track Monero-related crypto activity. The privacy-based digital coin has garnered the attention of the IRS after an increasing number of crypto jackers and other cybercriminals have started to use it over the past several years. 

A new report by e-Toro suggests that cryptocurrency prices are not driven by FOMO and FUD, but rather by specific unique factors. High-scale business partnerships, acquisitions and funding rounds all contribute to price appreciation. In addition, the report states that token burns often lead to the largest bumps in an asset’s price.

Gaming company, Atari announced a new console that will incorporate blockchain and cryptocurrency. Atari VCS is set for a November release and will permit players to engage in in-game purchases with the company’s new Atari Tokens. Roughly $1 million of tokens will be sold at a price of $0.25 each beginning on October 29. 

And now, this week’s Bitcoin Quick Question is: What are Bitcoin futures? 

Bitcoin futures are contracts between two parties to buy or sell Bitcoin at a predetermined price sometime in the future. 

Futures trading is available on derivatives exchanges and is considered highly risky.

If, for example, a bitcoin futures contract is traded at $12,000 today and I believe it’ll be higher by the contract’s expiry date – I can “go long” by acquiring the contract. If I went “long” and on the expiry date, Bitcoin’s price is indeed higher than my acquisition price, then I will have won the difference, and if it was lower – I will have lost it. Either way, the futures contract is settled on the date without exceptions.

Futures are mostly used by traders for speculation purposes. But it is also often used by Bitcoin miners who wish to hedge their current Bitcoin holdings and their future expected Bitcoin income in a sophisticated manner.

If you want to learn more about Bitcoin Futures, visit the link in the description below.

Have a question you want us to answer? Just leave it in the comment section below.

And a huge thanks to eToro for supporting us in putting this video together.

That’s what’s happened this week in crypto. See you next week.