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Gambling for a good cause CryptoSlots donates all proceeds from new slot to the fight against coronavirus

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Gambling for a good cause – CryptoSlots donates all proceeds from new slot to the fight against coronavirus

    May 1, 2020   •   in Press Releases

CryptoSlots released their newest slot, Micro Monsters, a game filled with bonus extras to beat the reels’ viral critters. The biggest bonus, though, is that every bet made on the slot will be donated by the crypto casino to Direct Relief, a charity supporting health workers and patients during this pandemic.

Take part now and spin with a 100% match bonus on your deposit: bonus code FIGHTCOVID100, valid until May 15, 2020. *

Direct Relief focuses on providing personal protective equipment to those most at risk around the world. In the U.S., they are coordinating with health organizations and businesses to deliver essential medical items and critical care medications. Follow CryptoSlots on Facebook to track the amount raised by players.

Micro Monsters is one of the Mega Matrix slots, a group of games made notable by being wackier and more unusual than conventional slots games. Wins can start anywhere on a payline in this circular game. There is also an expanded Double Wild on the middle reel and Mystery Multipliers. Bet from $0.60 – $4.80 to spin and your bets (minus wins) will be donated to charity.

‘Hopefully this contribution will make a difference to those on the front line,’ said casino manager Michael Hilary, ‘as well as providing entertainment to those doing their part by staying at home.’

Launched in 2018, CryptoSlots quickly found success as a prime destination for online crypto players. Slots make up the majority of the games at this bitcoin casino, along with video poker and keno. All games are provably fair and mobile friendly. Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash & Monero are all accepted payment methods.

*Valid for deposits of $25 – $250. General terms & conditions apply.

EWN does not endorse, nor is responsible for any material included below and isn’t responsible for any damages or losses connected with any products or services mentioned in the press release. EWN urges readers to conduct their own research with due diligence into the company, product or service mentioned in the press release.

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Original article posted on the EthereumWorldNews.com site, by Adrian S. Mathieu.

Article re-posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Disclaimer:Jeffrey Sloe does not endorse, nor is responsible for any material included in this article and isn’t responsible for any damages or losses connected with any products or services mentioned in the the article. I urge readers to conduct their own research with due diligence into the company, product or service mentioned in the article that I reposted.

CoinMarketCap Partners Gilded To Autopilot Crypto Invoicing And Payments

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CoinMarketCap Partners Gilded To Autopilot Crypto Invoicing And Payments

By RTTNews Staff Writer | Published: 4/24/2020 10:50 AM ET

Cryptoasset data provider CoinMarketCap, recently acquired by Binance, partnered Gilded to automate their digital currency invoicing and payments as well as to offer its global customers faster payment options with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

Gilded's seamless blockchain-powered invoicing, payment and accounting solution will enable CoinMarketCap to get paid faster and more transparently, with lower fees to customers. The end-to-end solution includes invoicing to payments, bookkeeping, accounting, and tax reporting.

Gilded also integrates with popular CRMs and bookkeeping systems to create a seamless workflow from payments to accounting.

The deployment of Gilded's digital currency payment solution will help CoinMarketCap in integrating the sales process with receipt of payment easier, eliminating the need to manage the payment process manually.

Under autopilot mode, invoices are created automatically, and payments are automatically detected and reconciled on blockchain. The auto-managing of the payment process enables CoinMarketCap to focus on delivering value to customers, innovation and growth.

The Gilded-generated invoice offers international wire transfer, credit card and crypto payment options through Bitcoin or Ethereum wallet. Customers can take advantage of the benefits of crypto payments with easier global access, fast settlement, lower fees, etc.

Until now, most companies have had to use banks or money transfer services to make international payments. Compared to international wire transfers, crypto payments are ten times cheaper, faster, and more transparent.

Traditional payment solutions include multiple intermediaries, each introducing additional friction, delays and transaction fees. International payments made with wire transfers can take as long as five days to clear, with no transparency in between.

In early 2020, Gilded announced partnerships with TrustToken, Paxos and Stablecorp to offer B2B payment solution powered by stablecoins.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

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Article written by an RTT News Staff Writer, and posted on the RTT News.com website.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Opera Web Browser Adds Crypto Domain Extension for Its Users

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Opera Web Browser Adds Crypto Domain Extension for Its Users

By Muskan Bagrecha   Posted on 30/03/2020   3 Min read

  • Opera has collaborated with cryptocurrency payments platform Unstoppable Domains to allow usage of decentralized websites.

Opera is now allowing users to access decentralized web pages in a partnership with Unstoppable Domains, a tech firm backed by bitcoin advocate Tim draper, in an announcement shared with Cointelegraph. The collaboration between the two involves the integration of Unstoppable Domains' .crypto domain extension to such web pages which will allow users to access decentralized websites. In addition, the users will also be allowed to execute cryptocurrency payments.

The announcement further states that the decentralized websites would be stored in a peer to peer network rather than cloud services, thereby allowing transaction to be executed without the need of a middleman and that the websites cannot be censored. Moreover, due to the strong and robust distributed network, the speed of the internet connection is also enhanced. Unstoppable Domains stated:

"Decentralized websites solve a user's ability to publish — it's on the publishing side rather than on the viewing side. Right now, you can't publish using a traditional domain registrar if you're in a place that is limiting free speech. Whereas, with decentralized website tools, you could. So it's about the publishing and not the viewing.”

There is however one disadvantage in the fact that people who reside in countries with internet censorship and other surveillance issues cannot reap the benefits of a decentralized web sit without using a VPN or any other tool.

BitcoinNews.com is committed to unbiased news and upholding journalistic codes of ethics. For more information please read our Editorial Policy here.

Image Courtesy: Pixabay

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The original article written by Muskan Bagrecha and posted on BitcoinNews.com.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Report Shows San Francisco Home to Highest Crypto Owners in US

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Report Shows San Francisco Home to Highest Crypto Owners in US

By MUSKAN BAGRECHA   Posted on 28/03/2020   2 Min read

  • A report by CoinTracker revealed that San Francisco has the highest number of crypto owners and it is home to investors with highest average crypto wealth.

A report published by CoinTracker revealed the statistics of cryptocurrency ownership in the United States. The findings have been derived from a cumulative data collection since 2013. As per the report, San Francisco has transcended all the other major cities in the US in terms of crypto ownership with an average portfolio value of USD 55,000. San Francisco is followed by Palo Alto, Oakland and San Mateo with average portfolio size of USD 39,000, USD 35,000 and USD 30,000 respectively. New York ranked sixth with average crypto holdings of USD 23,000.

In terms of concentration of crypto investors, San Francisco topped the list with a user index of 100, followed by New York with 92, Los Angeles with 57.2 and Chicago with 48.8. Ashburn recorded the highest crypto investors on per capita basis.

The report also showed that in the US, as much as 50.3% of the crypto wealth of the investors comprised of Bitcoin (BTC), followed by Ether (ETH) at 28.7% and Tether (USDT) at 4.1%. However, certain cities like San Diego, Nashville, Seattle and Boston, among others, showed that people had a greater capital held in ether as compared to bitcoin.

BitcoinNews.com is committed to unbiased news and upholding journalistic codes of ethics. For more information please read our Editorial Policy here.

Image Courtesy: Pixabay

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The original article written by MUSKAN BAGRECHA and posted on BitcoinNews.com.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Russia’s Central Bank Seeks to Ban Crypto Issuance and Circulation

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Russia's Central Bank Seeks to Ban Crypto Issuance and Circulation


Image courtesy of CoinTelegraph

            MARCH 16, 2020

After years of uncertainty about its cryptocurrency regulation, Russia is further confusing its proposed crypto law as the country's central bank made yet another statement on the issue.

According to a legal executive at the Bank of Russia, the country's major but still unfinalized cryptocurrency legislation — a bill "On Digital Financial Assets" — will ban the issuance and circulation of cryptocurrencies.

Alexey Guznov, head of the legal department at Russia's central bank, revealed the news in an interview with local news agency Interfax on March 16.

Issuance and circulation of crypto in the country poses an "unjustified risk"

Although the original bill "On Digital Financial Assets" stipulated that cryptocurrency trading would be allowed in Russia, the amended document will apparently prohibit nearly everything about crypto except holding, according to Guznov's latest remarks.

The official said that the upcoming law will explicitly prohibit the issuance and circulation of cryptocurrency and would introduce penalties for violating this law. Guznov argued:

"In terms of the functioning of the financial system and consumer protection system, legalization of the issuance and facilitating the circulation of cryptocurrencies is an unjustified risk. As such, the bill explicitly prohibits emission and organization of cryptocurrency circulation, introducing legal liability for violating these rules."

Russia's central bank would unlikely be able to regulate Bitcoin transactions

Besides claiming that the crypto bill would ban Russian financial institutions from issuing digital assets, Guznov provided little clarity about the upcoming bill. When asked whether the Bank of Russia wants to ban residents from converting crypto into local fiat currency, the Russian ruble, or a foreign currency, Guznov did not provide a direct answer.

Instead, the exec reiterated his stance that the central bank opposes institutions issuing cryptocurrencies, adding that the bank would be unable to impose certain limits on transactions in Bitcoin (BTC):

"If a person who owns, for example, Bitcoins, completes a transaction in a jurisdiction that does not prohibit this, we are unlikely to be able to regulate that."

Russia's crypto law was first introduced in January 2018

The latest remarks about Russia's upcoming cryptocurrency regulation come after years of uncertainty as well as multiple delays in providing any regulatory clarity. First introduced in January 2018, President Vladimir Putin has ordered the adoption of the bill "On Digital Financial Assets" twice, but the legislation is still unfinalized to date.

While Russia's Ministry of Finance has been trying to legalize cryptocurrencies in the country, the central bank has apparently been fighting to ban Russians from legally using crypto at all. 

In February 2020, the Bank of Russia issued a whole set of rules for suspicious transactions, categorizing any crypto-related transaction as a potential money laundering risk.

While prohibiting local entities from issuing their own digital assets, the central bank has been considering the emission of its own digital currency. In December 2019, the bank's head Elvira Nabiullina said that the institution was exploring the possibility of issuing a digital ruble.

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Original article posted on the CoinTelegraph.com site, by Helen Partz.

Article re-posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Why More Governments will Embrace Bitcoin BTC and Crypto in the Future

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Why More Governments will Embrace Bitcoin (BTC) and Crypto in the Future

In the past week, four countries have embraced Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies as legal tender and/or financial instruments.

In summary:

  • South Korea's financial regulators passed new legislation governing Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto trading in the country

  • Commercial Court of Nanterre, France, ruled that Bitcoin is a legal form of money

  • India's Supreme Court overturned the Crypto ban by the Reserve Bank of India that was issued in 2018

  • In the past week, Germany also classified Bitcoin as a financial instrument

  • The above developments provide an avenue for other countries to draft and pass crypto-friendly legislation for they now have templates and known procedures to follow

The first week of March 2020, has been a positive one in terms of Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto regulation around the globe. To begin with, we saw the Supreme Court of India overturn the ban on Bitcoin and Crypto-related activities by Reserve Bank of India that had stood for almost two years. Secondly, South Korea passed legislation that clarified cryptocurrency trading in the country. Thirdly, we saw the Commercial Court of Nanterre, France, rule that Bitcoin is a legal form of money. Fourthly, German regulators classified Bitcoin as a financial instrument and corresponding crypto exchanges as financial service institutions.

More Governments Will Embrace Bitcoin and Crypto

With the above major developments happening in a span of one week, we can predict that other governments that had been considering Bitcoin and crypto regulation will provide similar regulatory frameworks for their respective jurisdictions. They now have templates to draft their own individual crypto regulations. Also, Crypto enthusiasts now have a case study in India in situations where their individual governments decide to ban BTC and crypto trading in their respective jurisdictions.

In the case of Germany and France, both countries are considered as financial 'heavyweights' in the European Union. Their influence in the financial bloc of countries that make up the Union might persuade other member states to take up similar regulatory frameworks when it comes to Bitcoin and crypto trading.

Briefly analyzing South Korea, the country joins its Asian-Pacific partners of Japan and Australia in recognizing the potential of BTC and other cryptocurrencies as forms of investments.

Further taking a look at India, its citizens and crypto industry leaders challenged in Court and succeeded in overturning the April 2018 ruling by the RBI that banned all crypto-related activities in the country. This sets precedent for other crypto enthusiasts and stakeholders to legally challenge bans and restrictions in their respective countries.

What are your thoughts on the progress of crypto regulation around the globe? Do you see a future where Bitcoin and Crypto will be accepted by governments worldwide? Please let us know in the comment section below.

(Feature image courtesy of Unsplash)

Disclaimer: This article is not meant to give financial advice. Any additional opinion herein is purely the author's and does not represent the opinion of Ethereum World News or any of its other writers. Please carry out your own research before investing in any of the numerous cryptocurrencies available. Thank you.

Original article posted on the EthereumWorldNews.com site, by John P. Njui.

Article re-posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Two Chinese Nationals Charged With Cryptocurrency Laundering

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Two Chinese Nationals Charged With Cryptocurrency Laundering

By RTTNews Staff Writer | Published: 3/3/2020 9:54 AM ET

Two Chinese nationals have been charged with laundering cryptocurrency from a hack of a cryptocurrency exchange and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, according to a statement by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ).

According to the two-count indictment in the District of Columbia, Tian Yinyin and Li Jiadong have been charged with laundering over $100 million worth of stolen cryptocurrency for the benefit of North Korea-based actors. The funds were stolen by North Korean actors in 2018.

The two defendants allegedly laundered over $100 million worth of virtual currency between December 2017 and April 2019. They operated through independent as well as linked accounts and provided virtual currency transmission services for a fee.

The defendants conducted business in the United States but did not register with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

The DoJ also alleges that the North Korean co-conspirators are linked to the theft of approximately $48.5 million worth of virtual currency from a South Korea-based virtual currency exchange in November 2019. They also laundered the stolen funds through hundreds of automated transactions. They used the infrastructure in North Korea as part of this campaign.

This illegal activity is seen as part of North Korea’s attempt to use the global virtual currency ecosystem to bypass the sanctions imposed on it by the United States and the United Nations Security Council.

In 2018, North Korean co-conspirators hacked into a virtual currency exchange and stole nearly $250 million worth of virtual currency. The funds were then laundered through hundreds of automated cryptocurrency transactions aimed at preventing law enforcement from tracing the funds.

A portion of the laundered funds was then used to pay for infrastructure used in North Korean hacking campaigns against the financial industry.

The forfeiture complaint seeks to recover the funds, a portion of which has already been seized. About 113 virtual currency accounts and addresses that were used by the defendants and unnamed co-conspirators to launder funds have been identified.

Separately, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also imposed sanctions on Yinyin, Liadong, and others involved in activities facilitating North Korean sanctions evasion.

The investigation was led by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The Korean National Police of the Republic of Korea also provided assistance and coordinated with their parallel investigation.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

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Article written by an RTT News Staff Writer, and posted on the RTT News.com website.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Crypto Taxes a ‘Nightmare’ – Congress Hears the Latest on Blockchain for Small Business

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Crypto Taxes a 'Nightmare' — Congress Hears the Latest on Blockchain for Small Business


Image courtesy of CoinTelegraph

            MARCH 04, 2020

In a United States congressional meeting titled “Building Blocks of Change: The Benefits of Blockchain Technology for Small Businesses,” one of the testifying witnesses called out current cryptocurrency taxation expectations for their overbearing complexity.

“Doing your taxes for crypto is the worst nightmare,” Protocol Labs General Council member Marvin Ammori said, fielding a question from U.S. Representative Steve Chabot on blockchain’s status in terms of whether or not the tech is ready for mass adoption.

A gathering on blockchain’s potential and application

On March 4, parties gathered for a hearing on blockchain’s impact on small businesses.

Four witnesses sat in front of a panel of government officials, discussing various aspects of blockchain, the technology made famous for underpinning Bitcoin, crypto’s largest asset. Cryptocurrency itself also headlined various conversations.

A stab at the U.S. crypto tax scene

Although Ammori said blockchain is ready for mass adoption, he stated the need for a few technical changes, including enhanced user interfacing.

Moving on to the legal scene, Ammori mentioned tax difficulties with the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS. “The tax treatment is very complicated,” Ammori pointed out.

Using an example, Ammori said:

“If you wanted to spend Bitcoin on a coffee this morning, you’d have to keep track of what you paid for the Bitcoin and how much it was worth the moment you spent it, and pay the capital gain or loss on every single transaction.”

Describing a solution, Ammori proposed a form of exemption. “If we could have a de minimis tax exemption, which has been proposed — the Virtual Currency Tax Fairness Act — I think all of you should support that,” he said.

Ammori also petitioned for additional clarity surrounding guidelines from the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or CFTC.

Prior to Ammori’s comments, witness Jim Harper of the American Enterprise Institute also expressed a need for clarity from government agencies — for taxes as well as overall regulation in the crypto and blockchain space.

Today’s hearing follows a March 3 crypto summit at the IRS in Washington, D.C. that similarly aimed to bring regulators up to speed on the latest developments in the industry.

In late 2019, the IRS released several new guidelines on cryptocurrency tax reporting, although the guidelines were met with mixed reviews. Adoption in the form of daily crypto transactions might sit on the sidelines until the IRS addresses the situation.

Original article posted on the CoinTelegraph.com site, by Benjamin Pirus.

Article re-posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

CFTC Charges Denver Resident With Running Fraudulent Crypto Scheme

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CFTC Charges Denver Resident With Running Fraudulent Crypto Scheme

By RTTNews Staff Writer | Published: 2/17/2020 9:10 AM ET

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has charged Denver resident Breonna Clark and Colorado-based Venture Capital Investments Ltd. with running a fraudulent scheme.

The regulator has filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against Clark and Venture Capital, charging them of soliciting U.S. residents to trade foreign currency contracts as well as Bitcoin and other digital assets through a commodity pool operated by the defendants.

The two defendants are also charged for fraudulently soliciting prospective pool participants by misleading customers about their experience, expertise, and investment track record, the complaint alleges. They promised future profitability trading forex and digital assets.

They are alleged to have collected $534,829 from about seventy-two individuals. Out of this, at least $418,000 is believed to have been used for personal expenses, including buying a BMW vehicle and to make Ponzi-type payments to other pool participants.

Further, the complaint alleges that the defendants sent pool participants false account statements, which purported to show trading gains, to conceal their misappropriation. They also failed to appropriately register with the Commission pursuant to the Commodity Exchange Act and regulations.

The CFTC seeks “restitution to defrauded customers, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, permanent registration and trading bans, and a permanent injunction against future violations of the Commodity Exchange Act.”

The agency was assisted in its investigations by the Financial Supervision Commission of Bulgaria, Financial Markets Authority of New Zealand, Seychelles Financial Services Authority, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Financial Services Authority, and the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority.

The CFTC strongly urges the public to verify a company’s registration with the Commission before committing funds.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Article written by an RTT News Staff Writer, and posted on the RTT News.com website.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

Binance Cloud to Allow Users to Launch a Crypto Exchange Within 5 Days

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Binance Cloud to Allow Users to Launch a Crypto Exchange Within 5 Days


Image courtesy of CoinTelegraph

            FEB 17, 2020

Binance's newly released Binance Cloud platform might be somewhat different from what the crypto industry expects the new feature to be.

After Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) first hinted at the introduction of Binance Cloud on Feb. 8, the new service has been officially released on Feb. 17, targeting users willing to set up crypto exchanges, according to a blog post by Binance.

All-in-one infrastructure for launching a crypto exchange

According to the announcement, Binance Cloud will serve as an all-in-one infrastructure platform for customers and partners to launch digital asset exchanges based on Binance's industry-leading technology, security, liquidity as well as custodial services. The solution also supports dashboard for managing funds, multilingual functionality, as well as a range of trading pairs and coin listings.

The Binance's new exchange-specific cloud solution will provide users with a method of setting up a crypto platform in their local markets. Binance Cloud's features include crypto spot market and futures trading as well as local bank API integrations and peer-to-peer exchange services from fiat to crypto, the announcement notes. In the future, Binance Cloud plans to add more features like staking, over-the-counter trading services as well as token issuance with initial exchange offering platform.

CZ says that Binance Cloud will allow users to launch an exchange within three to five days

Speaking about Binance Cloud in an interview with Cointelegraph, CZ outlined that the new service will particularly target people in regions that are not yet covered by Binance. CZ said that Binance Cloud will allow those people to run their own exchanges in local markets that are far from Binance “both fiscally and also culturally or just knowledge-wise” to date.

The Binance CEO also told Cointelegraph that Binance Cloud would allow any partner to launch an exchange within three to five days in case if “other preparations are in order.” According to the original announcement, the first major digital asset exchange fully powered by Binance Cloud will launch in early March 2020.

Binance Cloud comes in line with Binance's mission to unlock crypto for everyone

CZ also pointed out that Binance Cloud is the first initiative of its kind, claiming:

“Binance Cloud is a product suite previously missing from the market […] We are eager to share the quality experience of Binance through different brands, communities, and markets globally.”

Speaking to Cointelegraph, CZ was unsure of who had initially conceived the idea of Binance Cloud, beyond the fact that it was not him. The Binance CEO added that the origin of the idea is not as important as execution. CZ stressed that Binance Cloud aims to enable everyone to access crypto and contribute to global adoption. CZ said:

“We want to enable more of our partners to access crypto, so that other people can do this together with us in enabling people to access crypto. So the concept behind Binance Cloud is that we want to provide a platform where other people can help us enable access to crypto. So that's really the idea behind it.”

The news comes amid a recent report claiming that Binance has applied for a license to operate in Singapore. Originally based in Malta, Binance will now purportedly expand its regulatory compliance by acquiring a license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

On Feb. 16, Cointelegraph published an interview with CZ, in conjunction with the CEO winning the top position in the Cointelegraph's first-ever Top 100 list.

Original article posted on the CoinTelegraph.com site, by Helen Partz.

Article re-posted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe