Researchers at the Bank for International Settlements say the future of payments may be peer-to-peer, but a number of considerations must be satisfied before distributed ledger-based systems can go mainstream.
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Sunday, March 1, 2020
Tether CTO to Tell the Story of USDT Stablecoin At Upcoming Conference
Tether’s CTO Paolo Ardoino plans to tell the story of Tether (USDT) stablecoin on March 10 at CryptoCompare’s Digital Asset Summit.
Amid ongoing lawsuits surrounding controversial stablecoin Tether (USDT), the company’s CTO plans to detail the asset’s background at an upcoming conference.
Bitfinex and Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino is slated to recount “the story of Tether’s inception and success” in a keynote speech at the CryptoCompare Digital Asset Summit in London on March 10, a statement from CryptoCompare said on Feb. 28.
The firm’s CTO appears confident
Although Tether still sits entangled in a complicated legal battle, the firm’s CTO thinks the stablecoin is at its best. “Through continuous innovation, Tether is stronger than ever,” Ardoino said in a statement, adding:
“I am excited to share an overview of our story so far and provide a glimpse into our exciting plans for the future."
Tether still faces legal action
Over the past several years, Tether and associated exchange Bitfinex have felt the brunt of countless claims of foul play. Current lawsuits encompass concerns that have loomed for quite some time.
Tether currently finds itself in the midst of pressing legal matters, standing up against a class-action lawsuit that has seen substantial media coverage over the past several months. The lawsuit wagers that Tether manipulated the crypto market in 2017, playing a part in the massive bull run the industry saw that year.
Most recently, iFinex, the company behind Tether, called the current market manipulation allegations “reckless and false,” according to a statement Cointelegraph received.
Cointelegraph reached out to Tether and Bitfinex for additional details, but received no response as of press time. This article will be updated accordingly should a response come in.
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Top 5 Cryptos This Week (March 1): LEO, HT, LINK, HEDG, Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency markets are witnessing profit booking at higher levels and buying on sharp falls, pointing to consolidation over the next few days.
The last week of February saw a blood bath across various asset classes on fears that the coronavirus outbreak is turning into a pandemic. This led investors to dump their positions in the equity markets, which wiped off about $3.8 trillion of value in U.S. stocks. Gold, which has acted as a traditional safe haven was not spared. The yellow metal plunged about 4.6% on Feb. 28, which took the weekly loss to about 5% for the week.
This shows that the investors did not differentiate between asset classes and sold everything in a state of panic. Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies were also not spared in the selloff as investors might have booked profits in them to cover their losses in the equity markets. Bitcoin fell about 14% in February, dragging the whole crypto space lower.
Crypto market data weekly view. Source: Coin360
Just a few days back, the crypto traders were all excited when Bitcoin rallied above $10,000 levels. However, within a few days, the traders are now worrying whether the bull phase in Bitcoin is over and will the crypto markets again slump into a bear phase. While it is necessary to gauge the sentiment of the markets, it is worthwhile to stick with the trend.
Let’s study the top five performers of the past seven days to find out whether the trend has turned down or if this is only a minor blip in a long bull market that still has legs to run.
LEO/USD
UNUS SED LEO (LEO) was the best performer of the past seven days with a marginal gain of over 1%. Bitfinex suffered a distributed denial-of-service attack on Feb. 28 for about an hour during which the exchange’s activity was severely crippled.
Bitfinex CTO Paolo Ardoino said that though the attack was “very sophisticated,” the team had completely annihilated it in a short period of time and such attacks would not work again against Bitfinex.
LEO USD weekly chart. Source: Tradingview
The LEO/USD pair is attempting a recovery from its lows at $0.80512 but the bears are defending the overhead resistance at $1.025 aggressively. However, the positive thing is that the bulls are holding ground and have not allowed the pair to slip towards the lows.
We expect the bulls to make another attempt to push the price above $1.025. If successful, the pair will start a new uptrend that can reach $1.36. We anticipate the bulls to again hit a roadblock at this level but if crossed the up move can reach $2.
Our bullish view will be invalidated if the pair turns down from the current levels and dips below the lifetime lows.
HT/USD
Huobi Token (HT) was the second-best performer of the past seven days. It has just about managed to stay in the green. The Huobi group announced the public testnet launch of Huobi Chain on Feb. 29. The exchange also started margin trading on the Huobi Token with a leverage of 2x.
HT USD weekly chart. Source: Tradingview
The HT/USD pair had a very volatile week. Along with other cryptocurrencies, it also fell in the early part of the week but reversed direction from a low of $3.8890 on Feb. 27. Thereafter, it surged and broke above the overhead resistance at $5.3506 but the bulls could not sustain the higher levels.
We expect the bears to offer stiff resistance in the $5.3506-$6.10 resistance zone. However, if bulls can push the price above this zone, the ascending triangle pattern will complete. This bullish setup has a target objective of $9.8212.
However, if the bulls fail to push the price above the overhead resistance zone, the pair might remain range-bound between $3.8 and $5.3506. The first sign of weakness will be a break below the 20-week EMA and the trend will turn negative on a break below the trendline of the ascending triangle.
LINK/USD
Though Chainlink (LINK) declined about 7% in the past seven days, it turned out to be the third-best performer. During the week, Ethereum Classic announced a collaboration with Chainlink to bring decentralized oracles to Ethereum Classic. Polkadot announced that Chainlink had “completed an initial integration with a Substrate-based blockchain, marking a major milestone in the mission to bring Chainlink's market-leading network of decentralized oracles to the Substrate chain ecosystem and Polkadot.”
These partnerships and a few more announced during the week helped LINK recover from the sharp losses during the week. Let’s study its chart to see whether we find any reliable buy setups on it.
LINK USD daily chart. Source: Tradingview
The LINK/USD pair also succumbed to selling pressure during the week, which dragged its price to the trendline. However, the positive thing is that the bulls purchased close to the trendline, which resulted in a sharp recovery. This shows that the sentiment remains to buy on dips.
We now expect the bulls to make another attempt to push the price above the overhead resistance at $4.8671. If successful, the pair will resume the up move that can carry it to $5.6934 and above it to $7.3101.
Contrary to our assumption, if the bulls fail to push LINK to new highs, the pair might remain range-bound for a few days. A break below the trendline will be the first sign that the up move is weakening. The trend will turn in favor of the bears on a break below $3.
HEDG/USD
Hedge Trade (HEDG) lost about 13% in the past seven days but still was the fourth-best performer among major cryptocurrencies. This shows that the crypto markets are under pressure. Can HEDG stage a turnaround? Let’s analyze its chart.
HEDG USD daily chart. Source: Tradingview
After consolidating for four weeks between $2.37987231 and $2.98063936, the HEDG/USD pair has succumbed to profit booking. It can now correct to $2.05233281, which is the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement of the most recent rally.
If the pair bounces off this support, we anticipate the bulls to make another attempt to carry the price above $3 as it will signal strong buying on dips. After the price sustains above $3, the next level to watch on the upside is $4.
However, if the bulls fail to defend the support at $2.05233281, the price can slip to $1.76557843 and below it $1.47882405, which are 50% and 61.8% Fibonacci retracement levels of the most recent rally. It is better to wait for the price to stop falling and signal a turn around before initiating long positions.
BTC/USD
The SEC rejected the proposed Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposal filed by the New York-based firm Wilshire Phoenix. This move found dissent in Commissioner Hester “crypto mom” Peirce who said that the Commission continues to shift its standards to deny investors an opportunity to buy Bitcoin.
Several popular personalities projected strong short-term and long-term targets for Bitcoin and suggested investors to at least have some Bitcoin in their portfolio.
However, it was not all support for Bitcoin as Berkshire Hathaway CEO and chairman Warren Buffet and gold bug Peter Schiff continued with their anti-Bitcoin views.
BTC USD daily chart. Source: Tradingview
The BTC/USD pair has formed a long-term symmetrical triangle. The price recently turned down from $10,500, which is just below the resistance line of the triangle. There is support at $7,856.76 and below that at $6,435. If both these supports crack, the pair can drop to the support line of the symmetrical triangle.
Conversely, if the pair reverses direction from the current levels or from $7,856.76, the bulls will make another attempt to push the price above $10,500. We anticipate the bears to mount a strong defense between $10,500 and the resistance line of the triangle.
The 20-week EMA is flattening out and the RSI is close to the midpoint, which suggests a few weeks of range-bound trading. However, if the bulls can push the price above the triangle, the pair is likely to pick up momentum. The pattern target of a breakout of the triangle is 29,882 but it might not be a straight dash to these levels.
We expect the up move to face stiff resistance at $14,000 and above it at the lifetime highs. Until BTC breaks out of the triangle, it might remain volatile. Our bullish view will be invalidated if the bears sink the price below the support line of the triangle.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.
The market data is provided by the HitBTC exchange.
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Kraken Donates 17.5 Bitcoin to Collaborative Hackerspace Noisebridge
Kraken donated 17.5 Bitcoin to San Francisco’s anarchist hackerspace Noisebridge to keep the space running.
On Feb. 27 Noisebridge advocate and attendee John Backus woke up to see that approximately 17.513 Bitcoin (BTC) – equivalent to about $156,000 at the time – had been deposited into Noisebridge’s cryptocurrency wallet.
The unexpected deposit came from U.S. based cryptocurrency exchange Kraken. The exchange sent the Bitcoin as a donation in response to a tweet that Backus had put out the day before asking for funds to help keep Noisebridge running.
Source Twitter
In an interview with Cointelegraph on Feb. 27 at Noisebridge, Backus said that he was shocked to see that 17.5 Bitcoin had been deposited into the Noisebridge wallet. He said:
“I sent my tweet asking for donations the afternoon of Feb. 26. By the end of the night, I was excited to see that we had raised $200. I woke up the next morning and checked Twitter and then saw the tweet from the Kraken account.”
Backus said that initially he didn’t know how to interpret the tweet Kraken had sent, which read:
Source Twitter
Backus then noticed a link to a transaction following the text. He said:
“There were about thirty imputs and fifty outputs associated with the link, so I couldn’t tell how much money there was at first. I then saw the Noisebridge address with 17.5 Bitcoin in it. I wasn’t sure if this was real at first. I went on the Noisebridge Slack channel and another member confirmed that it was indeed real.”
Caption: Image from inside Noisebridge; Photo Credit: Steve D’Agostino for Cointelegraph
“Crypto Twitter” saved Noisebridge
Backus, who has been visiting Noisebridge since 2013, explained that the anarchist hacking space located in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District relies entirely on funds from donors. He said:
“No one in particular runs Noisebridge. The space has been around for twelve years now and our funding has always come from donations. Anyone is welcome to come in and work here. But there have been many times in the past where we’ve almost run out of money. In this case, it was true – we were out of money, so I turned to crypto twitter for help.”
According to Noisebridge donor and treasurer Tyler Maran, Noisebridge’s sprinkler system inside the building was not up to San Francisco’s city code. He told Cointelegraph that about $150,000 was needed to fix the building’s sprinkler system alone.
A San Francisco Examiner article published April 2019 also discussed required improvements and funding needed by Noisebridge to keep the space operating. Noisebridge member Victoria Fierce then told the Examiner:
“Noisebridge is facing a $30,000 fine for code violations and was cited by The City for unpermitted construction. According to the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection, the violations include two bathrooms that were semi-constructed without permits, unpermitted partitions and the addition of an industrial laser cutter.”
Maran further noted that Noisebridge contains of the oldest elevators in San Francisco, which is close to 100-years old and hasn’t run in over a year. He said that this has regrettably limited the space’s accessibility
“Noisebridge needs improvements that will start at about $150,000 minuim,” said Maran.
What’s in store for Noisebridge?
Maran told Cointelegraph that open source and decentralization are values Noisebridge advocates take pride in. He said that many people who work from Noisebridge are involved in the cryptocurrency and blockchain community:
“Building hardware wallets is a big focus here and touch to pay lightening payment systems are also being built here.”
Maran also said that Kraken’s donation of 17.5 Bitcoin is the largest donation Noisebridge has ever recieved. He explained:
“We are run purely by the community. Anyone can come in and work here. No one is ever turned away for a lack of funds. Most people will donate $5 a month and those contributions have kept us paying rent for twelve years.”
When asked what Noisebridge will do now that a donation of $156,000 has been made, Maran explained that he isn’t sure yet.
“I want to make sure the money is spent in the best interest of the community,” he said. “I am not sure what we will do with the funding yet, but it will go towards bettering the ecosystem.”
He said that moving is a possibility, though it would be rough to change locations, saying:
“We might put the money towards sprinkler upgrades or maybe we will move the space somewhere else. We’ve been here for twelve years now and there are lots of attachments to the space. But, there are also limitations.”
Caption: Cointelegraph Reporter Rachel Wolfson pictured with Noisebridge treasurer and advocate Tyler Maran; Photo Credit: Steve D’Agostino
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Coronavirus Impacts on Bitcoin (And the IRS’s Dumb Singularity)
Andreas M. Antonopoulos, Stephanie Murphy and Adam B. Levine discuss coronavirus and its potential impacts or disruptions to the decentralized world of bitcoin. Plus a humorous look at the IRS's challenges as it lumps together bitcoin and... Ro-Bux?
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Blockchain Storage Offers Security, but Leaves Data Transparent
Do blockchain and data security have a mutual relationship or is it not as secure to use blockchain when it comes to storing data?
In November 2019, security firm Risk Based Security called last year the “worst year on record” for breaches, with almost 8 billion records affected. Third-party control over personal data makes privacy something that is no longer a given.
The advent of blockchain technology seems to have heralded a new era in data security. However, as the technology has become more common on the internet, questions have arisen concerning its ability to securely store data. The reason lies in complete transparency that may not be good for confidentiality, as recently claimed by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.
Once upon a privacy
As people’s lives become increasingly digitized, the issues of data protection and privacy become paramount. Any action made online is a speck of gold dust for some companies. Data is gleaned and compiled into databases to be sold or auctioned off to the highest bidder by browsers and social media giants. Johnny Ryan, chief policy and industry relations officer of Brave browser, said in an interview with Cointelegraph on Feb. 21:
“RTB [Real-time-bidding, an auction for online ads] is the biggest data breach in the world. Personal data are being broadcasted to thousands of companies.”
Ryan’s words resounded with the growing number of data breaches, highlighting the fact that most modern business models are based on the collection and sales of users’ personal data, as browsers like Chrome and social networks like Facebook sell the data to those who pay for it.
Facebook and multimedia design platform Canva are among the most eminent data breachers, with data of 540 million and 139 million users affected in 2019, respectively. Top entrepreneurs and billionaires have also been affected, for example, Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, was hacked in 2018 while using WhatsApp.
Because it’s centralized
Statistics show that centralized companies leak user information more often than one may think. Data security is often disregarded for the sake of convenience, as companies resort to third-party resources like Dropbox and Google Docs, the security of which has been regularly questioned.
Most data collected by third-party companies is in centralized databases characterized by a domino effect single point failure capability. Even worse, data breaches either go unnoticed or are not divulged.
The simplest way to check is by entering an email on the website Have I Been Pwned, which provides statistics on how many times a user’s personally identifiable information has been found online. The total number of breached accounts has reached almost 9.5 billion according to the site’s statistics.
Is blockchain the user privacy panacea?
Blockchain is generally considered to be confidentiality-oriented and, therefore, can become an ideal solution for the problems that arise with traditional storage systems. For example, private blockchains can provide strictly enforced access to data based on permissions.
There are many solutions offered, such as homomorphic encryption, which allows computations to be carried out with encrypted data without preliminary decryption. This method was initially used on MIT’s Enigma network, which divides data into pieces, encrypts it, and randomly distributes it over the network in little portions. None of the network nodes can read this data, but users can decrypt it.
Security and privacy are thus preserved, and only users with matching decryption keys and proper credentials are granted access. Cryptographic techniques such as zero-knowledge proofs and zk-SNARKs already use homomorphic encryption — and Zcash (ZEC) is one example that applies such techniques.
The quintessence of blockchain technology is that it negates the need for third-parties, thus ensuring a higher degree of safety. The introduction of features like decentralized identity control prophesies a significant reduction in identity theft.
For instance, in May 2019, Microsoft announced its intention to use distributed registry technology to create a decentralized identification system called Decentralized ID, or DID, based on the Microsoft Authenticator application. Developers believe that blockchain technology is perfect for storing personal information since it eliminates the need to give consent to use private data. As a result, users’ identities will not be duplicated and distributed among different service providers like social media companies or online stores.
Similarly, SDS, the internet technology division of Samsung, has recently integrated QEDIT’s zero-knowledge proof in its enterprise-oriented Nexledger blockchain. The SDS team believes that the integration will allow it to provide parties employing corporate blockchains to record and validate transactions on a shared ledger without disclosing confidential data.
The principle of storing personal information to protect user data was introduced by Jeff Pulver, the American who pioneered VoIP. The Pulver Order was passed by the Federal Communications Commission on Feb. 12, 2004, and made it possible for people to freely use communication apps like WhatsApp.
In 2018, Pulver offered to use a blockchain-enabled communication network based on new authentication layers and decentralized solutions. The new solution, called Debrief, is said to be the most secure business communication network available for peer-to-peer audio and video calling, messaging and decentralized file storage. The technology aims not to expose users’ confidential information unlike services such as Facebook or Zoom.
The secret lies in a decentralized storage system and secure blockchain authentication protocol that are impervious to hackers. Pulver claims that Debrief’s data encryption algorithms do not allow the data to be edited or tampered with once it is placed on the network.
Each recipient on the network receives the same piece of information as it is entered in real-time. Therefore, for a hacker to tamper with or edit the information on one recipient’s computer, the other computers on the network would have to validate the change, which they would never do. Pulver explained at the time that: “By refraining from centralized control, we will be removing the weak link from the equation — the third-parties.”
MedRec, a project launched by MIT, pursues a similar goal but in the health care industry. The project uses blockchain technology to enable the secure exchange of health care information between patients and service providers. As a result, the patients can retain full control of their personal data and grant access to the service providers rather than the other way around.
MedRec has already run a series of pilot tests with research partners and is currently working on fine-tuning the system. The use of MedRec can reduce health care data breaches and foster the development of new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant Electronic Health Record solutions.
General Motors also supports blockchain technology. In 2018, the company filed a patent on self-driving cars that store data on a distributed ledger and can share it with other vehicles and entities connected to the system, ensuring traffic safety and compliance with the multiple regulations of the transportation industry.
Data privacy does not agree with blockchain
Speaking with Cointelegraph about blockchain technology and data security, Vijay Rathour, a partner at the digital forensics and investigations group of Grant Thornton, compared the technology to bank vaults made of glass: “They're very secure. They're one-way vaults — i.e., you can put precious things in them but not take it out. The contents can be seen by the world.”
However, according to Rathour, even after acknowledging all of these qualities, bank vaults can be used to hold blood money or stolen assets. Simply put, the effectiveness of the vaults doesn't mean that what's inside them is also good. Rathour further explained:
“Is it [data stored on blockchain] suitably anonymised? Would I want my passport visible to the world in a glass bank vault for the world to see? No. But I would probably enjoy the benefits of an encrypted version of my passport being held on the 'cloud' securely in this blockchain.”
Blockchain has many inherent advantages that make it a perfect match when it comes to privacy, and it offers useful data protection features that allow it to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation. Meanwhile, there are other aspects that make it inapplicable.
Though immutability is good for data privacy, there are two stumbling stones: First, immutability comes into conflict with information storage laws. Second, errors or inaccuracies on a blockchain cannot be corrected. In a conversation with Cointelegraph, Thomas Stubbings, chairman of the Cybersecurity Platform of the Austrian Government, suggested:
“Indeed, the key feature of a blockchain is protecting the integrity of data by rendering it immutable. However, exactly that feature can become a problem if the data is not required, wanted or correct anymore. It is virtually impossible to remove it. This creates a new sort of privacy problem.”
Jonathan Levin, co-founder and chief strategy officer of cryptoanalytics firm Chainalysis, has recently stated that full transparency is not entirely a godsend either, as blockchain technology can be used to trace individuals and link personal information to them. Levin told Cointelegraph:
“The two extremes of total anonymity and complete transparency are bad. Complete anonymity opens the door to illicit activity... On the other hand, complete transparency means no privacy at all.”
Teemu Alexander Puutio, an expert in compliance and an adjunct instructor at the New York University School of Professional Services, told Cointelegraph that there are several ways data can leak out from cryptographically secured ledgers. He reiterated that Bitcoin (BTC) is pseudonymous, and, thus, its users can be tracked down and identified, adding:
“For example, network traffic analysis has been recently used to attain 95% accuracy of identification and theoretically simple methods of observation and Bayesian probabilistic analysis have allowed researchers to identify thousands of accounts in a few months. These worries are further compounded by the fact that data stored on blockchains are typically immutable and fully public — at least to the verifier network.”
Puutio also referred to a survey published in January 2019 that found that only a small portion of blockchain platforms are able to achieve high levels of data security.
One of the basic features of blockchain — the inability to selectively delete information — may be a double-edged sword. One of its negative aspects relates to the fact that a 51% majority of the nodes is needed to edit data, greatly complicating the implementation of the provisions of Article 17 of the GDRP, which gives the “right to be forgotten.”
Stubbings told Cointelegraph that there is a new threat called “blockchain poisoning,” which takes advantage of rendering blockchains incompliant with GDPR by inserting personally identifiable information that can never be removed. He said:
“This can result in the worst case in a blockchain which becomes unusable… The problem is quite new and even EU privacy experts are not clear about how to deal with that, especially as no one owns public blockchains, it is just a number of nodes. So, who is liable? No one? Everyone who holds a node? It is a tricky issue, and it might hamper the — otherwise very promising — evolvement of blockchain as a valuable security instrument.”
In the end, data consistency turns out to be the main barrier that must be overcome in order for blockchain technology to become a viable solution from the GDPR standpoint.
Blockchain technology is good, but...
The world is still centralized, and data can be lost while in the control of a handful of operators. Governments are stepping up with regulations, but they are insufficient at ensuring the safety and security of user data. Summing up the role of blockchain technology in data security, Rathour told Cointelegraph:
“Blockchains are good, but there is still art and science in putting and holding and curating data held in them. Just like databases, cloud computers and many other mechanical options available to those responsible for holding our data.”
Though a critical mass of users demanding decentralized data storage would make blockchain technology the de facto storage medium, the immutability factor does not allow it to comply with the GDPR requirements. Blockchain technology still has a way to go before becoming the all-in-one data storage solution. Full immutability and transparency are two sides of the same coin, and the coin is still spinning.
In the end, “developing light-weight cryptographic algorithms, as well as other practical security and privacy methods, will be a key enabling technology in the future development of blockchain and its applications,” as suggested by the authors of the Security and Privacy on Blockchain survey.
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Saturday, February 29, 2020
Blockchain a Home-Run in the Sports World — Use Cases Climbing in 2020
The use of blockchain technology to improve a variety of offerings has become a reality in the world of sports in 2020.
The new decade has kicked off with blockchain technology finally being utilized in real case scenarios in the world of sports. Many blockchain proponents are enthusiastic about the wide variety of potential use cases, but real-life working examples are often hard to come by.
The potential of the technology to underpin a variety of systems within the sports sector has long been discussed, but just two months into the new year, there have already been several prominent use cases where blockchain technology is being used to improve offerings to fans.
From the football-mad continent of Europe to the world of the NFL and Major League Baseball, blockchain-based applications are being used to improve ticketing, merchandising and interactions between audiences and sports teams and organizations.
Tickets to the UEFA EURO on blockchain
Every four years, the best international football teams in Europe battle it out in the UEFA European Championship, more commonly known as the Euros to football fans. The 16th edition of the tournament will be hosted by 12 cities across the continent between June and July. The best 24 teams that progress through the qualifiers will battle it out to be crowned the kings of European football.
Ticketing is one of the most challenging aspects for the tournament’s organizers, with over 28 million ticket requests for the 2020 showpiece across 200 countries.
For the first time ever, UEFA has turned to a blockchain-powered mobile app to provide a contemporary ticketing solution for fans. UEFA aims to supply and deliver 1 million tickets through the Euro 2020 app.
There are some benefits to the app-based ticketing system. Firstly, it will rule out the possibility of replicating tickets. Fans won’t need to visit ticketing offices either, they’ll simply have to turn on WiFi on their smartphones when they arrive at the stadium, which will then activate their ticket QR codes and allow entry. The move also eliminates paper waste.
The primary benefit of an app-based ticketing system is the ease of distribution across the sheer number of countries. Ultimately, UEFA’s move to use blockchain technology to power its ticketing operation is a major boon for the industry. Given that football is the most popular sport in the world, the adoption of the technology could set a trend for other service providers to follow.
Vote on club matters with Socios
Blockchain-powered fan engagement platform Socios seems to be setting the tone for adoption in the sporting world. As previously reported, the Socios platform allows sports organizations and teams to launch their own tokens that can be used for a variety of activities on the platform. Users can participate in votes for club decisions as well as use tokens to access content and memorabilia.
The platform has collaborated with a number of the world’s biggest football clubs over the last few years — such as Barcelona, Juventus, Paris-Saint Germain, Galatasaray, Atletico Madrid and A.S. Roma among others.
Related: Chiliz CEO Alex Dreyfus Explains the Relationship Between Sports and Crypto
Socios welcomed Barcelona to its platform in February 2020, just a week before announcing its move into the American sports market. Chiliz, the fintech platform that created Socios, has also teamed up with marketing agency Lagardere Sports and Entertainment.
The agency has a major foothold in the United States, and Chiliz is hoping to onboard a number of new teams and organizations to the Socios platforms through Lagardere. Teams involved in the NFL and Major League Baseball are obvious targets.
Fantasy football powered by digital trading cards
A number of football teams have also been licensed in the digital collectibles space in a partnership with blockchain platform Sorare, which was announced in February 2020. The platform offers fans blockchain-based player trading cards that are used to play a five-card fantasy football game. The player cards earn points in relation to their actual player’s performance in real-life games.
Cards are tiered, with the rarest cards guaranteed digital scarcity through blockchain technology. Cards can also be transferred to the Ethereum blockchain. According to the platform’s website, over 38 clubs have been officially licensed.
The Sacramento Kings lead the way in blockchain-based offerings
A couple of NBA teams have welcomed the cryptocurrency sector by accepting payments in Bitcoin (BTC) over the past few years.
The Sacramento Kings and the Dallas Mavericks have allowed fans to purchase tickets and merchandise using Bitcoin. The Kings have done so since 2014, while the Mavericks began accepting the cryptocurrency in 2019.
The Sacramento Kings are likely the most innovative blockchain adopters in the sporting world. The organization claims to be one of the world’s most technologically advanced sporting brands. The Golden 1 Center stadium’s roof is covered in solar panels, boasts ridiculously fast WiFi for fans, and has a cryptocurrency mining operation running in its data center — the proceedings from which are donated to local charities.
If that is not impressive enough, the Kings also offer fans exclusive memorabilia and other items on a couple of blockchain-based platforms. In 2019, they launched crypto-collectibles powered by the Ethereum-based platform CryptoKaiju.
Following that, the Kings unveiled a new offering in January 2020 in collaboration with Consensys that allows fans to bid for in-game sports gear worn by Kings players during live games through a mobile-based app.
There’s a massive market for authentic, in-game items, but the authenticity of auctioned items has always been a pitfall. The app provides a solution to this problem by opening an auction marketplace that provides authentic game-worn items in real-time.
Lancashire Cricket Club looks to blockchain for tech-savvy ticketing
Following in the footsteps of UEFA, English county cricket club Lancashire announced that it would begin selling tickets through blockchain-based ticketing platform TIXnGO at the beginning of 2020.
The club will sell tickets to both local and international matches at Old Trafford cricket ground after testing out the platform in 2019. As more supporters have started to buy tickets online, the club is using the blockchain-based platform to combat ticket fraud and improve data on ticket distribution.
The technology also makes it far easier for people to resell or transfer tickets to other supporters. Lancashire’s move is thought to be a first in the world of cricket and can be counted as another sports organization beginning to harness the advantages of blockchain-powered technology.
Actual use cases speak volumes for adoption
It is encouraging to see a number of organizations actively using blockchain technology to improve their offerings to sports fans. Whether it’s having access to exclusive content and memorabilia or knowing that the purchased tickets are authentically validated, sport enthusiasts are slowly being introduced to blockchain-based solutions even if they are not aware of it.
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