Brokers Minutes

Venture Capitalist Tim Draper Wins 30,000 Bitcoins in the auction by the US Govt.

By Forexminute - Deepak Tiwari | Bitcoin | Jul 6, 2014 8:52AM BST


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Though several renowned investors put their bids for 30,000 Bitcoins auctioned by the US government that it took away from Silk Road, the winner came in venture capitalist Tim Draper. He was the single winning bidder for a cache of Bitcoins. This co-founder of investment firm Draper Fisher Jurvetson will now work with startup Vaurum.

Draper will now be working towards providing access to Bitcoins in developing economies and use the about 30,000 Bitcoins his company won in the auction as a source of liquidity. In a statement issued to media he admitted that Bitcoin frees people from trying to operate in a modern market economy with weak currencies.
Therefore, with the help of Vaurum and this newly purchased Bitcoin, he expects to be able to create new services that can provide liquidity and confidence to markets that have been hamstrung by weak currencies. There is still a lot of Bitcoin with the US government as it auctioned only 29,656 Bitcoins out of more than 144,000.

There were 45 bidders which included some renowned entities like New York brokerage SecondMarket Inc. The actual price of the winning bid isn’t known yet; however, the cache sold on June 30 was worth about $19 million at current exchange prices.

What is Vaurum?

Vaurum has come to the news after the win in the bid by Draper Fisher and his statement that he will be working with this firm to promote the digital currency to new regions. It’s a company based in Palo Alto, California. This startup enables companies including banks and brokerages to trade and store Bitcoins on behalf of customers.
Earlier this year, Vaurum raised $4 million in seed funding from investors including Draper, Battery Ventures and America Online Inc. co-founder Steve Case. The company invests in Bitcoin startups and was founded by Tim Draper’s son, Adam Draper who says that all in on Vaurum, Bitcoin, and Bitcoin adding a tremendous amount of value in the developing world.
Vaurum Chief Executive Officer Avish Bhama shares his views with Adam Draper as well when he says that collectively, his company has been brainstorming to come up with new ways to help grow global Bitcoin adoption.

He said that what his company came up with is a way to leverage our exchanges and utilize the auctioned pool of Bitcoins, as well as market making strategies, to help provide liquidity in these underserved markets.


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Last 24 hours in the cryptocurrency market has been strictly average, as only Bitcoin and Peercoin managed to gain some pace, whilst every other top coin, including Litecoin, Nxt, Darkcoin, etc. slipped notably.

Market however was expecting huge falls in Bitcoin prices, owing to the ruling of the European regulators that asks banks to avoid buying, holding and selling virtual currencies. The cryptocurrency communities, on the other hand, was made believe that European regulators are following the footsteps of the Chinese Central Bank that once ordered their nation’s commercial banks to clamp their businesses with virtual currency businesses. However, it was later made clear that EU regulators simply want to execute rules that will prevent fraudulency related to cryptocurrency markets.

Here is the full report:

BTC/USD

The BTC/USD opened yesterday at around $629 and remained steady throughout the following hours. Although right before closing, the pair stumbled a bit and eventually found support at $630. It closed at $631 at the end of the day.

At press time, the BTC/USD has surged 0.5% in last 24 hours and is trading at $634.

LTC/USD

The stability of Bitcoin had somehow impacted Litecoin to rebound during Friday’s trading hours. The LTC/USD stayed on its track as well on yesterday, while opening at the reasonable $7.268. The pair although slipped slightly in the following hours, but recovered simultaneously as well. It eventually closed around 7.305 at the end of the day.

Upon entering today’s trading hours, the LTC/USD remained stable in the initial hours, but fell notably in mid-hours. The reason for this sudden plummeting might be the increasing number of Litecoin getting submitted for sale. The gradual downtrend is also an issue due to which most of the member of the Litecoin community are either leaving or switching from it.

At press time, the LTC/USD is being traded at around $7.06 and has fallen around 2% in last 24 hours.

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Lamassu Brings Rakía, a Brand-spanking-new Open Source Back-end System for their ATMs

By Forexminute - Deepak Tiwari | Bitcoin | Jul 7, 2014 8:42AM BST


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Lamassu which has revolutionized the in-person acquisition of Bitcoin via a streamlined thirty-second process earlier introduced a modular two-Bitcoin ATM system; has now brought in Rakía, a brand-spanking-new open source back-end system for its ATMs. The decision is aimed to continue providing A better experience for its clients.

The New Hampshire-based Bitcoin ATM maker, Lamassu has carved a niche for its product as it is not just reliable but also comes with excellent manufacturer’s warranty. The latest open source back-end system that it has brought in now will redefine how the company’s networks of ATMs in use around the world are utilized by customers.

Thus, the company is often trying to provide cutting-edge and upgraded technology. Now, operators of the Lamassu devices which presently allow consumers to buy Bitcoin with fiat currency in a matter of seconds will be independent nodes, and won’t have to rely on a centralized service.

A source from Lamassu says that now BTC ATM operators will have complete control over setting pricing, commission fees, and background trading operations. He further adds that on top of that, operators will potentially be able to accommodate integration with “any relevant Bitcoin service or software.”

The source also disclosed that when using Lamassu’s Santo Tirso stand, these devices can be transformed
into two-way ATMs i.e. the end user not just can buy the digital currency with fiat but also sell them in exchange for local currency. Thus, it is going to provide complete solution for buyers and sellers of Bitcoin.

To Give Tough Competition to Western Union and Other Similar Companies
Rakia platform according to Lamassu would be to have a two-way machine in two international airport hubs. Lamassu CEO Zach Harvey in his statement said that it’s important to note that the company does not plan to be the next Western Union, MoneyGram or Travelex; rather, it wants to create a platform for thousands of small businesses.

He says that the platform is aimed to provide competency to small businesses compete against the legacy financial institutions like Western Union and others and against each other. According to him these are markets in dire need of fierce competition to bring down transfer and exchange fees.

Nonetheless, as Rakía is open source, developers will be able to make tools that can make these machines even more useful and according to Lamassu CEO this is an evolution of the Bitcoin ATM format and the company has already spoken to several key Bitcoin businesses that are excited about integrating their services with the new Rakía platform.

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The first ever bad publicity stunt for Bitcoin in France, and Europe, came today when the country’s law enforcements dismantled a local Bitcoin exchange, and seized a large amount of digital and fiat currencies as well. Two people were also indicted during the raid.

According to our reliable source, it is found that police have seized a total of 9,000 Euros in fiat and 388 Bitcoins, whose current value at press time is over 200,000 euros. However, sources failed to confirm the identity of the exchange. On the other hand, the arrested duo is the administrator and supplier of the platform, respectively. A third person, the wife of one of the accused, was also arrested in connection with the investigation, but was later released without any charges.

The arrested individuals however are charged for conducting illegal banking practices. The charges against the director although are heavier. Apart from bank frauds, he is also charged with “money laundering.” This person use to ask exorbitant fees – from 30% to 50% – on each transaction on its website, as per the allegation. The prosecutor although is unable to trace the origin of funds, which means the investigators will be going to lose almost half the value that were made by exchanging Bitcoin at excessive prices.

The administrator of the Bitcoin exchange will also be facing a charge of “illegal supply of online games,” as he was going to launch an unauthorized casino on the internet.

Bitcoin Market after the Event

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According to the charts available at CoinMarketCap.com, this incidence seems to have disturbed the steadiness of Bitcoin market. Somewhere around the time when this news was made public, Bitcoin price fell almost $10 within the matter of minutes. As soon as people begin to know of these arrests, the BTC/USD will certainly face some pessimism from the investors’ circle.



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Forex Video Briefing (7/7): USD Paring NFP-Gains

The USD/JPY retreated from last week’s high of 102.25, and is now testing some support factors just under 102. We have a rising trendline support from last week, and a broken trendline that served as resistance before. If the USD/JPY is to remain bullish, price should stay above the 101.80 level, maybe 101.75. A break below 101.70 however should invalidate last week’s bullish breakout and return USD/JPY to consolidation with a bearish bias toward the year 101.25 low, and the 100.75-100.85 lows on the year.

The EUR/USD has been bearish, on the back of a soft euro. The strong NFP report pulled the pair below 1.36 last week, but traders are finding support around 1.3580 to start this week. We are seeing a bullish correction in the 1H chart that is about to test some common resistance factors around 1.3610, which include a falling trendline that has held July’s price action so far. A break above 1.3611 and a subsequent hold above 1.36 can suggest further bullish correction. The 1.3640 level will be a key resistance in the near-term. The 4H chart shows common resistance around this area as well as a broken trendline support. If 1.3640-50 area hold, then the bearish outlook remains and a bearish continuation has the 1.3475-1.3505 lows in sight.

When we look at the USD Dollar Index in the 4H chart, we are seeing some correction against last week’s rally. Price is trading at the crossroad after a breakout of June’s falling trendline. A bullish continuation is imminent if the breakout holds. However, if price falls below 80, the bearish continuation scenario comes in play. If price instead holds above 80, and pushes above 80.40, the bullish continuation scenario is in play. This week’s FOMC Minutes on Wednesday should help traders find some direction in the short-term. A bullish outlook has the 81 high on the year in sight, but unlikely has the fuel to break above unless there are affirmation of a Fed rate hike to be in the first half of 2015. To the downside, a break and hold below 80 has the 79.75 low in sight, as well as exposes the 78.90 low on the year. On the daily chart, you see a bearish bias from prevailing price action and the moving averages giving traders USD-bears an idea to trade with the trend.



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The ruble grew by the fastest pace in two weeks after exporters rushed to benefit from the dollar’s three-day advance against the ruble to convert revenue earned from offshore operations.

The ruble grew 0.6 percent to trade at 34.2345 per dollar as of 6 p.m. close in Moscow. The currency has declined 2.1 percent versus the dollar since June 26 on Ukraine tensions. The yield on bonds denominated in ruble that mature on February 2027 fell 3 basis points to 8.56 percent.

The Russian currency rose 0.7 percent to steady at 46.5905 versus the euro and also gained by the same margin against the central bank’s basket of euros and dollars to 39.7865 on Tuesday. Most analysts are of opinion that the declining oil prices have negatively impacted the on the ruble, which extended its losses for the seventh straight day.

The Brent crude prices declined 0.6 percent to trade at $109.58 per barrel in London, the weakest since June 11. Inflation stood at 7.8 percent last month, the most since August 2011, reported Bloomberg News.

In a separate report, the Indian rupee rallied from its lowest level in two weeks on reports that the government intends to invite foreign investors to upgrade the rail network, boosting speculation that the new administration will unveil policies aimed at attracting foreign investments.

“Expectations for a growth-friendly budget are adding to the sentiment and helping the rupee,” Ankur Jhaveri, a Mumbai-based co-chief of currency and rates at Edelweiss Financial Services, told Bloomberg. “The government is likely to allow higher overseas investment in different businesses including railways, and unveil other polices aimed at boosting manufacturing.”

The rupee rallied 0.4 percent to trade to 59.79 per dollar in Mumbai trading. India’s Rail Minister Sadananda Gowda announced on Tuesday that foreign investors will be permitted to invest in railroad infrastructure. The stance may attract investments from infrastructure companies such as Bombardier Inc. and General Electric.

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Today, we are seeing positive risk-appetite. US stock indices are up after a brief dip early in the US session. We are also seeing JPY weakness across the board, which is a sign of risk-on trading. Let’s take a look at the EUR/JPY, and GBP/JPY and CAD/JPY.

The EUR/JPY is staying in a consolidation channel today. The risk-on rally will allow us to see whether traders will challenge last week’s high. If traders instead put in a top below last week’s high, the EUR/JPY is likely to start a bearish continuation. GBP/JPY on the other hand looks ready to continue its bullish trend. The CAD/JPY is also in a bullish continuation scenario after today’s risk-on rally.


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Bitcoin Technical Analysis 10th July

By Forexminute - Yes Option | Bitcoin | Jul 10, 2014 8:35AM BST


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As can be seen from the hourly BTC/USD chart, the price of Bitcoin is now consolidating sideways and has managed to sustain just above support S1. Since the lower-top lower-bottom structure still holds and there is no sign of a reversal as yet, 600 seems to be the next stop for the digital currency. The current value of a Bitcoin stands at $621.

Traders may short the pair on any rise towards 630 for a target of 600 with a stop-loss at 638. A breach below the immediate support level of S1 would be another great opportunity to go short on the pair for the same target of 600 but with a stop-loss revised at 620. However, 600 is a good support level and all short positions are advised to be liquidated at the level. The expected short covering at and around S2 could be used as a buying opportunity for short-term gains. Long positions can be built near S2 for a target of 615 with a strict stop-loss at 595.

This is a welcome correction for medium to long-term investors, as the current price does not seem expensive given that the currency has established a fundamental support near 540-550.

Considering the increasing demand for multisig wallets, owing to the security concerns surrounding the cryptocurrencies, various companies have developed and released such wallets in recent months. Now, BitPay has released an open-source, multi-signature wallet service Copay as a solution to the security vulnerabilities, such as theft, that come attached with a private key. Transaction fees have yet again become the flavor of the discussions with a new study claiming that low Bitcoin transaction fees are unsustainable in the long run as subsidies have to go away some time and that a new system to determine the fee must be considered. It should be noted that the current system features rock-bottom transaction costs because of these subsidies.


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BitPay Launches New Platform
Renowned Bitcoin payment processing service provider BitPay recently launched CoPay – an open source wallet service having multi-signature as a key feature. This new wallet service is to fill the security loopholes that often occur during the safety of private keys. In the past, a large number of Bitcoins have been stolen in absence of such a wallet like CoPay. The industry has thus welcomed the important step taken by BitPay. It although isn’t the first of its kind wallet; previously many notable companies have released multisig wallets.

Bitcoin Foundation Hires a Lobbying Firm
According to a report recently published on The Wall Street Journal, the Bitcoin Foundation has hired a lobbying firm that will act as their political muscle on Capitol Hill, Washington. The firm is called Thorsen French Advocacy, and is owned by two former Congress employees. It will help the Bitcoin Foundation in improving the Bitcoin’s image before the political bigwigs.

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EURUSD chart depict almost the same picture. We are currently tracking minor wave II pullback, and we expect further continuation to the downside. ECB chairmen Draghi in his comments yesterday, insisted on the further improvements in the fiscal policy in EU area countries which will be a great support to his last implemented measures to curb downward inflation spiral and better credit supply to real business sectors in EU area.

EURUSD 1h Elliott Wave Analysis

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Yesterday, BOE left its key policy rate unchanged. GBPUSD is still in the same range, with invalidation levels close to current price levels. We still see the potential of the move to downside from current levels, and are looking for the confirmation signs which will validate current count on this pair.

GBPUSD 1h Elliott Wave Analysis

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This week, the USD was generally weaker, especially after the FOMC meeting minutes were released. Interestingly though, the minutes focused on ending QE, which carries a hawkish tone. At the end of the week, we are seeing USD take back some of those losses. Let’s take a look at the USD/JPY, EUR/USD, GBP/USD.

The USD/JPY might start to find some short-term support as it closes in on 101, and the 100.75 2014-low. However, clues have been building up for a bearish breakout from 2014′s descending triangle. The EUR/USD has already been weak. It consolidated in June, but is looking at bearish continuation signals in different time-frames. The soft USD earlier in the week is now looking strong compared to the ailing euro. GBP/USD has been bullish, but it is also giving way to some USD-strength at the end of the week. Still, there is no bearish signal, and the GBP/USD is poised to continue hammering at the highs on the year around 1.7175.


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After the Bank of Italy, Three More Italian Institutes Question Bitcoin

By Forexminute - Deepak Tiwari | Bitcoin | Jul 13, 2014 10:44AM BST


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Earlier in May this year, ForexMinute reported that the Bank of Italy had questioned Bitcoin and issued a warning to users; now, three Italian institutions have issued several warnings and asked for new legislation to eliminate loopholes and regulatory ambiguity. Like the Bank of Italy, they also believe that there is lack of any mechanism to regulate Bitcoin investments.

Money laundering and anonymity have been the two major issues that the government is worried about. According to a report on the Italian financial information system (FIU), the Bank of Italy believes that Bitcoin poses a potential risk as it can be employed to circumvent money laundering regulations or funnel funds to terrorist organizations.

According to the FIU which has been examining Bitcoin’s potential for illicit activities and looking at complaints involving suspect Bitcoin transactions, the organization believes that while transactions are recorded in an online database, it is hard to identify the parties involved; thus, there cannot be any action against those who are laundering money.

The views from the FIU are shared by Colonel Albert Reda of the Guardia di Finanza, Italy’s financial police authority. Currently, it’s the Guardia di Finanza which is has any authority and resources to deal with Bitcoin; however, it believes that there are some major risks involved in Bitcoin for investors.

Volatility, Anonymity and lack of Regulation are Major Concerns Say Italian Authorities
According to Reda Bitcoin’s volatility poses a risk for investors and that its anonymity allows Italian residents to hold and transfer wealth anonymously. He believes that the Guardia di Finanza which is involved in an ongoing investigation is looking out for the case of Bitcoin and come out with any official views soon.
However, he made it clear that the absence of any form of regulation makes the digital currency a potentially powerful tool for money laundering, drug trafficking and arms trafficking. Apart from the accusation that Bitcoin is being used for contraband activities, the digital currency is also being abused that as it is not regulated it has hefty risk for investors.

Expressing his views on Bitcoin regulation, attorney General of Rome, Luigi Ciampoli, warned that Bitcoin could be abused by criminals engaged in money laundering, financing of terrorism, or mafia activities. According to him Bitcoin regulation would allow authorities to trace and identify all persons involved in digital currency transactions.

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The Federal Reserve officials are currently debating whether to increase the interest rates earlier than planned due to the recent growth in the U.S. labor market.

Most of the regional bank presidents were categorical that interest rates should be increased next year, based on forecasts made just before the Labor Department announced on July 3 that unemployment rate plunged to 6.1 percent in June, reported the Wall Street Journal.

The Fed policymakers hadn’t projected the jobless rate to decline close to 6.1 percent until the final months of this year.

“We have made more progress toward our unemployment goals than we would have thought earlier this year,” said John Williams, the President of the San Francisco Federal Reserve, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. He said that the report indicates that the Fed should begin the process of normalization earlier than expected.

However, he didn’t give the exact date over when the monetary policy tightening will begin, though he has in the past been quoted as saying that he forecasts that to occur in the second half of next year.

Williams’ remarks are noteworthy as he is deemed to belong to a group of Fed policymakers called “doves” who prefer to retain the low interest rates, compared to another camp called “hawks” who favor higher interest rates to check inflationary pressures. Williams still insists that there is still some slack in the U.S. economy that is keeping inflation low.

In the meantime, the Fed hawks are increasingly pushing for the interest rate hikes. Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Charles Plosser was quoted by the Journal as saying that the economy is already better than it previously was, and hence he sees having zero interest rates for so long as unnecessary or risky at this juncture.

The Federal Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard echoed Plosser’s sentiments, saying that the Fed policymakers had earlier expected the unemployment rate to hover around 7 percent by now and that the central bank would have phased out its monthly bond purchase program and mortgage purchases aimed at boosting investment and hiring.

Bullard expects the Fed to increase interest rates in the first quarter of next year, though he projects that to happen earlier should the economy strongly recover from the winter induced-slump in the first quarter of 2014.

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Coin Congress to Be Held on 23-24 July 2014

By Forexminute - Deepak Tiwari | Bitcoin | Jul 14, 2014 10:51AM BST


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The ambitious two-day Coin Congress is going to be held on 23rd and 24th July and expected to bring in some celebrated Bitcoin experts to talk on the issues related to the digital currency. The organizers of the event have tight agenda wherein the speakers are expected to put their views on digital currency, monetization, integration, and user acquisition.

The panelists will also be discussing about the things that are holding Bitcoin back from going mainstream. They will analyze why in five years of existence, the ecosystem has grown tremendously with millions of users worldwide yet it is unable to go mainstream.
To promote the event and reach to maximum people, the organizers Coin Congress entered into partnership with several media organizations as well. Whereas they announced that Coin Telegraph is an official media partner, the Bitcoin Society will be doing live video coverage of all panel discussion to be held during the two-day event.

The announcement also came that Coin Congress is excited to partner with BitGive Foundation, an organization focusing on improving public health and the environment through Bitcoin for the two-day event.

Panelists and Experts to Share Their Valuable Views
To be held at Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco, the event will began with an address by Alan Safahi who will be providing an overview of the state of Bitcoin, past, present and future. He will be discussing the roles and responsibilities of various players and how mass adoption for Bitcoin can be done.
In a tweet the organizers of the event said that they are excited to have Lee Fox, founder of PeerSpring enrich the ‘Battling Perception’ panel with her philanthropic nature. Lee, a youth culture expert focused the seismic shifts of popular culture and the digital revolution, will be putting her views on the digital currency and her experience running PeerSpring.

A self-described youthologist Lee will help the audience talking about what motivates people to give and how young people drive popular culture and mash-up new approaches to just about everything. As she shares the views of hundreds of Bitcoin supporters that emerging social finance vehicles such as Bitcoin will ultimately be used for social good, the organizers hope audience will benefit from listening to her.

Registration Open

For individuals entrance ticket has been kept at $350. Whereas those who get late registration will be charged $400, the persons buying onsite entrance ticket will be paying $450. Apart from credit cards, the event organizers also accepting digital currencies like Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and Litecoin.

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The EUR/JPY started the week rallying, up from a price consolidation that ended last week. However, as we get ready for the 7/15 trading session, we should consider some technical signs that point to an imminent bearish attempt. Even if this theory is wrong, the reward to risk is favorable.

EUR/JPY 1H Chart 7/14

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Here are the reasons based on the 1H chart:
1) The prevailing trend in the short-term in bearish. Price has fallen at*the start of*July from 139.28 to a low of 137.50 last week.
2) There is a falling trendline coming down from July’s high of 139.28 connecting to a resistance pivot from last week at 138.76, and price is tagging that trendline.
3) Price touched the 200-hour SMA and is still trading below it.

Reward to Risk Consideration:

Reward: Since the trend is bearish in July, and before that as we will see later, we can expect a potential downswing to challenge the current low of 137.50, with no reason to believe it won’t break. But this is a short-term trade idea in the 1H chart, and we should deal with short-term expectations. Therefore, to be conservative let’s say 137.50 is the potential target for the short-term. An entry around 138.30 gives us a potential of 80 pips.

Risk: If price moves above 138.50, EUR/JPY will lose its bearish structure formed in July. If the RSI pushes above 70, we are also seeing some near-term bullish momentum that would suggest further consolidation against July’s downswing. With this in mind, for an intra-session trade, a stop might be placed above 138.50, ie. 138.65. Entry from 138.30 would risk a potential loss of 35 pips. We might want to give it some more elbow space because a break above 137.76 might be needed to suggest the end of July’s bearish trend swing. If we put the stop above that 138.76 pivot, let’s say 138.85. The risk would then be 55 pips.

The 80:55 reward to risk is not so attractive, but it does allow more elbow space to stay clear of some near-term volatility risk. We also know that even a break above 138.76 is not a guarantee our bearish continuation idea is dead. A clear-out is possible, but at least we would give that scenario some elbow space too.

The 80:35 reward to risk ratio is favorable as it is better than 2:1, which means, if you are wrong half the time, you will have a profitable trading performance with enough trades. However, given the trade less elbow space means exposing the trade to more near-term volatility risk. It is a trade-off as always between your assumed reward to risk, to assumed probability of the trade working.

Without over thinking it, you can juggle between these two trade-offs.
Now let’s just take a look at the bigger picture to make sure we are not in the middle of a bullish trend planning for a bearish trade.

EUR/JPY 4H Chart 7/14

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The 4H chart shows a market that has been consolidating during a downtrend. Here are some observations:
1) There was a failed rally attempt in June, where price popped up to 139.28, but failed to establish a price bottom against the prevailing bearish trend in the 4H chart. This can be considered a clear-out because the prevailing*trend was bearish, and the price action after the pop made a new low at 137.50.
2) The RSI has tagged 30 many times, but failed to pop up to 70, which suggests bearish but choppy momentum.
3) If we look at the market since the end of June, we are seeing bearish development as the RSI dipped to 30 but has failed to climb back above 60.
4) And price has simply made lower highs and lower lows.
5) Price action also shows a break below a rising trendline, and now a pullback that is still able to confirm the bearish outlook if it comes back down below that line.

Final word: The 4H chart basically shows that this is also a breakout/pullback trade idea. A break below 138.20 can kick start the next bearish swing, so look out for that in the 7/15 session.

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In the wake of the recent theft of millions of VeriCoins from cryptocurrency exchange MintPal, Litecoin creator Charles Lee recently took Reddit to convey his views on the matter. The celebrated developer eventually went against the idea of hardforking the entire VeriCoin network, as proposed and implemented collaboratively by MintPal and VRC developers.

“It is not in our rights to decide which coins belong to whom,” quoted Lee while explaining how such rules are set forth since the genesis block, and should not be changed at any cost. “If a theft happens on top of the network, the developers will not fork the coin to reverse any transactions. It is up to the market to decide on how to handle the theft,” he added later.

Lee meanwhile also proclaimed Litecoin as one such cryptocurrency that will never see such a day, in which it is need to be hard forked under the pressure of some theft. He also took the responsibility of securing the Litecoin network, while ensuring its user-friendliness and efficiency as well.

He also didn’t miss a chance to take a pot-shot at Proof of Stake system, saying that the thief probably had a lot of stakes in the VeriCoin network before he breached MintPal. “So the VeriCoin [developers] almost had to do this to prevent future attacks on the coin,” he added. “This is why I don’t believe PoS [to be] a viable alternative to PoW.”

And the man indeed pointed out a strong void in the securities of PoS based cryptocurrencies. PoS only coins are unsecured because they choose energy efficiency over security. The coins’ developers should make this their duty to educate people about the pros and cons of PoS coins. Otherwise, we would definitely be seeing a lot of such incidences in future, embarked first with VeriCoin.

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KCG Announces Trading Results for June, ITG Releases Liquidity Estimation App

By Forexminute - Yashu Gola | Forex Industry News | Jul 15, 2014 11:09PM BST


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KCG Holdings Inc. published trade volumes for the month of June on Tuesday.In terms of market making, KCG posted an average of $23.5 billion in transaction volumes, which is 8.2 billion shares and 3.4 million transactions per day in US stocks, a notable decline from the volumes recorded in May.

The company recorded $0.6 billion more, totalling $24.1 billion, singling out KCG as one of the few companies that posted poor results contrary to its peers in the institutional and retail electronic trading who posted higher transaction volumes in June.

KCG BondPoint on average stood at $129.4 million daily in fixed income par value, much lower than May’s reading of $130.7 million daily. In June as a whole, the consolidated U.S. stock volume on average stood at $227.3 billion and 5.8 billion stocks traded each day.

In the meantime, leading research and execution brokerage ITG launched its ITG FX Trading Cost Index Application on Tuesday. The app, which is targeted at portfolio managers and forex traders, is updated on a daily basis. The ITG FX Trading Cost Index approximates the cost of liquidity for twenty currency pairs, considering the notional trade value and the intended trading time.

“The ITG FX Trading Cost Index Application is the first of its kind in the foreign exchange space, leveraging the power of ITG’s industry-leading FX transaction cost database,” Ian Domowitz, ITG Managing Director and Head of Analytics, said in a press release. “The app is a free and easily accessible reference tool for investors who want to quickly check estimated FX trading costs.”

The index will also provide users with dealer and ECN estimates using historical costs and smoothened out for implied volatility and recent trends in costs.

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A North Texas city council on Wednesday refused to enact a ban on hydraulic fracturing in the city after holding an eight-hour public hearing.

The Denton City Council voted 5-2 against the proposal, sending it to the November ballot that now leaves its fate on voters.

Fracking or hydraulic fracturing is a method of oil and natural gas extraction that involves pumping a mixture of sand, water and chemicals deep into the underground rocks at high pressure in order to free the trapped resource. Environmentalists have been up in arms against the technique, saying that it pollutes underground water supplies as well as air quality, reported Fox News.

Since Denton City sits on top of a huge underground natural gas reservoir, state regulators and energy firms said the ban will be opposed in courts and also massively affect Denton’s economy. Denton sits atop the Barnett Shale, which is estimated to have one of the largest natural gas deposits in the United States.

Tom Phillips, a former Texas Supreme Court chief justice, who spoke on behalf of the influential Texas Oil and Gas Association, said that its members will file lawsuits if the ban is approved.

Barry Smitherman, the Chair of Railroad Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry in Texas, said in a letter sent to Denton’s city council and mayor last week that the ban will make America more reliant on foreign oil and natural gas imports.

The threats of lawsuits seemed to affect the voting pattern, with Councilman Greg Johnson expressing concern that the litigation from mineral holders and the state may send Denton City into bankruptcy. About 500 people showed up at Denton City Hall for the hearing.

The environmental group Earthworks, which had mobilized 1,900 signatures from locals to force the council to vote on the ban on Wednesday, said that it had proposed a ban as a last resort after energy firms disobeyed city rules such as the one on flaring.


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AUD/JPY Forex Support at Rising Channel Holding – July 17, 2014

By Forexminute - Samuel Rae | Technical Outlook | Jul 17, 2014 11:24AM BST


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AUD/JPY looks ready to make a stronger bounce off forex support at the rising channel on its long-term time frame. Price is bottoming out on the weekly time frame and appears to have made a complex double bottom pattern, with price currently testing the neckline.

The bottom of the rising range is in line with the 100 SMA (simple moving average), which is still moving above the 200 SMA and reflecting an uptrend. However, stochastic is already indicating overbought conditions, which means that price could head back down to the channel support.

Going long at current levels with a wide stop below the channel and the 200 SMA could yield a high return on risk if one aims for the top of the channel at the 106.00 area. However, it would be prudent to adjust the stop to entry once price
tests the 100.00 major psychological level.

Forex Support Bounce or Break?

Data from Australia has somewhat improved, but what’s really lifting the Aussie for now is the pickup in China’s manufacturing sector. Bear in mind that Australia is China’s number one trade partner, so any improvement in the world’s second largest economy could also be positive for the Australian economy.

If this keeps up, AUD/JPY might be able to climb from its current levels until the 100.00 area, with further rallies dependent on risk sentiment. The recent news on the US sanctions and Russia’s plans for counter action might weigh on risk taking in the coming days though.

In that case, AUD/JPY could make another test of the channel support at the 93.00-94.00 levels. Another bounce could lead to a more prolonged rally but there could still be a chance of a breakdown. After all, the BOJ has recently emphasized that the economy doesn’t need additional stimulus since it is recovering moderately.

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Last week bitcoin was in a falling wedge pattern. As we started this week, there was a strong bullish breakout. However, the rally stalled at the 640 support/resistance pivot and fell, invalidating the bullish breakout, and suggesting further consolidation.

BTCUSD 4H Chart 7/17

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Today, price at first continued to consolidate but ended with a strong upward*push that engulfed the previous session’s price action, as you can see in the 4H chart. This push can be a sign that bulls are indeed taking over, albeit not enough yet to break out of the overall consolidation that has been evolving throughout the month.

Although price is still stuck between the moving averages in the 4H chart, as well as a the consolidation channel, there are a few signs the market is ready to take off.
1) Today’s low respected the 200-period SMA in the 4H chart and stayed above last week’s low. This suggests that bears are no longer confident.
2) At the first half of consolidation, the bearish you saw some strong bearish 4H candles with mostly indecisive bullish ones. This week, there have been stronger bullish candles than bearish ones. This suggests bulls are starting to enter the market with force, and this might break BTCUSD to the upside.
3) The RSI has tagged 70, and has held up above 40 for the most part in July. This reflects the fact that bullish momentum is still in play.

We might still need one more push to gather more confidence in the BTC-bulls. A break above 631 should clear the falling channel resistance as well as the 100-period SMA in the 4H chart.
Failure to push above 631 would maintain the current consolidation mode. In this consolidation mode, there is downside risk towards 600. Even then, the overall trend since June would be valid, so watch out for buyers if BTCUSD does approach 600.

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The AUD/USD has been consolidating since reaching 0.9504 high of the year.After a sharp retreat, price held above the 0.9321 level and continued to consolidate sideways. This consolidation structure is turning up the bearish bias in July. It looks like traders are rounding out a price top.

AUD/USD 4H Chart 7/18

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Looking at the 4H chart, here are some observations and outlooks:
1) There is a common resistance around 0.9440. It was the ascending triangle resistance on the left side of the*“rounded top”. The rejection showed bears are in charge.
2) After falling from 0.9440, price action has been generally bearish, with lower highs and lower lows.
3) Price this week has fallen*below the 200-, 100-, and 50- simple moving averages.
4) The RSI has tagged 30 in July, but has not returned to 70. This shows slight bearish bias.
5) If price can hold south of 0.94, the pressure is going to be on the 0.9320 neckline of the rounded top.
6) If price can break below 0.9320, the lows and support area in April through May in the*0.92-0.9210 area will be exposed.
7) If price however pushes above 0.94, the bearish bias developed this week will be gone.
8) Above 0.94, we should consider the bullish continuation scenario because when you look at the daily chart, you can see that the bullish trend in 2014, might be slowing down, but has not reversed.
9) The break below 0.9320 could be the first major bearish signal for the short-term, and should shift the bullish outlook to a neutral one.
10) Only a break below 0.92 should open up a bearish outlook outside of the short-term.

AUD/USD Daily Chart 7/18

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Traders should consider shorting only after there is a break below 0.9320, then the target could open up to 0.9210. After a break below 0.9320, considering shorting a pull back to 0.9250.

Reward to Risk:

After a breakout and a pullback, we should expect the market to hold below 0.94 if indeed it is turning bearish toward 0.92. Let’s look at the reward to risk for an entry planned at 0.9350. A stop at 0.9415 for example offers a risk at stop-loss of 65 pips. On the reward side, a target of 0.9210 offers a potential reward of 140 pips.

The trade set up described above offers a reward to risk ratio of 2.15 : 1.

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WTI Crude Oil – Likely Setting up New Consolidation Range

By Forexminute - Fan Yang | Commodities News | Jul 18, 2014 6:24PM BST


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Oil Prices have fallen since late June. The previous rally was based on anticipation that the Iraq crisis could disturb oil supply, but this has not happened. This week, when WTI Crude price hit 99.00, traders bought it back up. The bullish correction accelerated after the news about a Malaysian passenger airplane shot down in Ukraine, from the skies where there has been recent airstrikes that downed other transport planes. Essentially heightened geopolitical risk globally is keeping oil prices buoyed this week, but I don’t think its enough to give oil prices another bullish leg.

WTI Crude 4H Chart 7/18

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- Looking at the 4H Chart, we see that price has retraced back near 104.
- As you can see, price has held below the 200-period SMA in the 4H chart.
- WTI Crude*found a resistance pivot between the 50% retracement and 61.8% retracement of the 107.56-99.02 dip.
- There is a falling trendline that held up.
- The RSI is falling from 70.

These observations point to a market setting up a consolidation range between 99 and 104 for next week. Look for price to gravitate toward the central area of this range around 101.50. If price is around 104.50-105 and teh 4H RSI shows a bearish divergence, watch out for sellers. With price under the trendline form June, oil would be consolidating with bearish bias, or we can say it is in a neutral-bearish mode. This outlook suggests selling on the current rally, with downside risk below the 99.00 low of the week.

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In his speech at The North American Conference in Chicago, Litecoin creator Charlie Lee confidently predicted the death of Dogecoin, citing its downgrading hashrate as one of the major factors in providing the event. However, Lee once again proposed Dogecoin developers to merge with Litecoin in order to ensure their survival.

He also spoke to CryptoCoinsNews.COM in person and elaborated his views on Dogecoin in details. “The Dogecoin development team needs to do something,” he said.

“Most people in the community actually don’t understand the problem. The hashrate is so low that it’s getting dangerous. It’s getting to the point where anyone with a small ASIC farm can attack it.”

Lee considers himself as one of the most concerned well-wishers of Dogecoin. He once offered Dogecoin founders the same choice of merge-mining, which the latter respectfully rejected. Lee thinks it is their “pride” that resists them from joining hands with Litecoin.

But whether Dogecoin community accepts or denies it, their hashrate and constantly depleting block reward is really a matter of concern for now. They must understand how a low block reward will simply force Dogecoin miners to move towards other profitable cryptocurrencies. As all should know, the Dogecoin block reward has been halved recently due to its blockchain halvening. (Read here for more)

The real trouble arises then is a 51% attack, as expressed by Lee as well. “I talked to the lead developer and I made it obvious that he really needs to make a decision to do something before it’s too late. Once you get attacked, people lose confidence,” he told CCN while expressing his concerns on the dropping hashrate of Dogecoin.

The Shibes however thinks that the merging will put some serious downward pressure on Dogecoin price. They also don’t wish to be termed as a by-product of Litecoin. Some Dogecoin supporters also think changing algorithm to be a better option than merging. But on the whole, nobody was seen denying the issues raised by Lee, which seems genuine enough to take an immediate action. To the moon to the pits, let Shibes decide.


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Litecoin in for Another Leg of Bearish Correction

By Forexminute - Fan Yang | Litecoin | Jul 21, 2014 3:16AM BST


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LTCUSD is likely extending a recent consolidation with some near-term downside risk.

LTCUSD 1H Chart 7/21
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Looking at the 1H chart, you can see that price has been consolidating since it tagged 9.15 a couple of weeks ago. It came down to 8.20 and then rallied above a near-term trendline resistance.

However, price was unable to clear above a support/resistance pivot at 8.85. This suggests that bulls are not committed yet, and LTCUSD could be in for a longer period of consolidation.

During*the weekend, price action signaled further bearish correction.
1) Price is fell below the near-term rising*trendline from July 16.
2) Price fell below the short-term rising trendline from July 5.
3) Price fell below the 200-, 100-, and 50-hour SMAs.
4) The RSI was not able to stay above 40 after it almost tagged 70, which shows lack of bullish momentum.

Looking at the 1H chart, and projecting the 9.15-8.20 swing from the 8.85 area, we get a projection to roughly the 7.95 level, which is a previous resistance during July 9-12. This scenario would be an ABC-correction scenario, and the medium-term outlook remains bullish after the correction. Look out for price to rebound after this C-leg of bearish correction, especially if the RSI shows bullish divergence with price in the oversold area (around 30).
For the bullish outlook to re-emerge, price will have to at least push back above the 200-, 100-, and 50-hour simple moving averages, and push the RSI back above 60 to show lost of bearish momentum.


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The EUR/GBP has been persistently bearish in 2014, since the high on the year at 0.84.
On the daily chart there are some bearish signs to go along with the obvious lower highs and lower lows.
1) Price has been trading within a falling channel.
2) The RSI has tagged 30, and has held below 60, even below 50. This reflects maintenance of bearish momentum.
3) The moving averages are in bearish alignment, with the 200-day above the 100-day, which is above the 50-day. The MAs are all sloping down and are spreading apart. Based on the moving averages, there are NO signs of a let up in the bearish trend.

EUR/GBP Daily Chart 7/21

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Negative Reversal:
Let’s get into the RSI again. Last week, when price made a high at 0.7980, it was lower than the the 0.8033 high. However, the RSI high after coming up from oversold conditions, was higher. Based on RSI guru, Andrew Cardwell’s observations, this is call a negative reversal signal, which suggests another bearish swing. We got that additional bearish swing last week, and we are now faced with an extended bullish divergence.

Extended Bullish Divergence:
Looking at the daily chart again, we can see that the RSI lows are higher, as price makes lower lows. While the negative reversal set up points to further decline, the build up of the extended bullish divergence suggests pending consolidation/bullish correction.

Simple Observation: It won’t be difficult to judge a shift away from the persistently bearish trend EUR/GBP has been in since March.
1) If price breaks above 0.7980 it will be breaking the pattern of lower highs and lower lows.
2) If price breaks above the falling channel resistance, which should happen if price breaks above the 0.7980 high, then the bearish pattern is broken, and the market is more likely in consolidation.

38.2% Retracement:
Although I am still bearish on the EUR/GBP, I would air on caution and wait for a consolidation larger than the brief ones we have seen within the falling channel. In fact I would monitor the 0.8033 level up to the 0.8084 level for sellers. The 0.8033 level is a previous resistance and where the 50-day SMA resides. The 0.8084 level is 38.2% retracement and near a previous support pivot. If the RSI reading approaches 60, holds, and turns back down, I would also be ready for another bearish continuation swing to test the 0.7888 low on the year so far.

If the market does continue the bearish trend, with or without a significant correction, the next key support will be the 2012-low around 0.7765. The weekly chart shows that there is no established trend in the past 4-years, so if price pushes away from the mean price action reflected by the moving averages, the more likely it will revert back. The weekly RSI being at 30 therefore would suggest some bullish correction at least in the short-term.

EUR/GBP Weekly Chart 7/21

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Bitcoin – Triangle Pattern with Bullish Bias

By Forexminute - Fan Yang | Bitcoin | Jul 22, 2014 3:44AM BST


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Bitcoin continues to trade in a triangle pattern as seen in the daily chart.

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In the daily chart, there are some bullish clues:
1) Price is trading above the 200- 100-, 50-day simple moving averages.
2) The RSI has pushed above 80, and has since held above 40, which reflects maintenance of the bullish momentum.
3) Price is holding above a rising trendline from April.

The 4H chart shows a directionless market in July, but there is some bullish bias here too:

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1) price is holding above 610, which is the “central pivot” of the triangle. This suggests bulls are in charge even though the cryptocurrency is consolidating.
2) The RSI has tagged above 70. Then even though it has cracked 40, it has not tagged 30. This shows some bullish bias in momentum, although we have to acknowledge the loss of bullish momentum.
3) While price trades below between the moving averages, it is sideways. However, it if pops up above 630 for example then treats the cluster of moving averages as support, we should get ready for a bullish attempt to break above the triangle seen in the daily chart.

If price falls below 610, we are probably going to see further consolidation and a test of triangle support which could be in the 590-600 area. Otherwise, with price staying above 610 in July, there is bullish bias within consolidation.

To the upside, the first target will be the July high around 658. Being able to reach the July high suggests further upside especially if the market sees that the last week or two of consolidation become support. In this scenario, the upside above 660 will be the March 2014 high at 710. We should then look at a bullish outlook toward the 700-710 area if BTCUSD*can push above 660.

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Bitcoin Technical Analysis 22nd July

By Forexminute - Yes Option | Bitcoin | Jul 22, 2014 4:00PM BST


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A close look at daily charts of BTC/USD shows that the digital currency is trading in a very narrow range on back of low volumes but has taken strong support at $609 which is also the monthly pivot level for the digital currency. Aggressive traders are watching the aforementioned level as any close below the above level would lead to reversals of many long trades. BTC/USD in yesterday’s trading session touched made an intraday low of $611.5 but saw some buying at lower levels and closed towards the higher point of the day. The momentum indicators for the digital currency are in flat trajectory which confirms the current sideways movement in BTC/USD.

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BTC/USD on hourly charts has support at levels of $611.94, but has been trading in a very narrow trading range, finding it difficult to cross the resistance levels of $616.94. The MACD for the BTC/USD has provided a fresh buy signal on low volumes. For long term traders, a an entry point should be initiated above $617 with a strict stop loss at $611. Meanwhile, short trades should be initiated once the BTC/USD closes below $611 with a stop loss set at $617.

In other news Latvia based airline, airBaltic has become the first airline to accept Bitcoins as a mode of payment, announcing through twitter rather than releasing an official press release.However, the airline made it clear that the Bitcoin payment is applicable on basic class fares to select countries, and travellers will have to pay a handling fee of €5.99 on each of the transaction. The use of cryptocurrency is gaining traction in the travel sector with Expedia, a key travel player, embracing the virtual currency for hotel bookings last month and reporting that the response turned out better than expected.

The increasing number of businesses accepting the digital currency only bodes well for the future despite the current narrow trading range and may provide strong buy opportunity for medium and long term trades.


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Today’s big fundamental release for Australia was the CPI data, released quarterly. The headline CPI reading on the quarter was 0.5%, which was in-line with expectations and slightly lower than the 0.6% in Q1.
However, the trimmed mean CPI, which excludes 30% of the most volatile items jumped to 0.8% on the quarter, up from 0.5% in Q1. This was also in-line with expectations.

Click to enlarge: AUS CPI breakdown for Q2 2014
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The key data point from today’s inflation report should be the 3.0% year-to-year reading. We have seen the CPI inflation rate*rising*from an annual rate of*1.2% low in Q2 of 2012. The Q1 reading was 2.9%, which was already elevated. The “target rate” is 2.0%. The elevated inflation data puts pressure on the RBA to raise rates, although it can’t do that unless the economy picks up steam as well. Still, faster inflation greases the wheel towards a rate cut and the AUD rallied accordingly.

The AUD/USD broke above July’s falling trendline. The 4H chart also shows that price is surging above a cluster of moving*averages. This suggests the market has been sideways, but is now giving us a bullish signal. The RSI is pushing toward 70, which would establish bullish momentum, or at least a loss of the bearish momentum.

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Given that the pair is bullish in the daily chart, the bullish breakout today suggests a test of the 2014-high around 0.95 with a strong likelihood to break higher and continue the prevailing*trend, which was bullish.

As price nears the 0.9440-0.9450 area, it will face some common resistance from June, which caused a failed bullish attempt during the*July 9 session. We can expect some near-term pullback especially if the 4H RSI shows a bearish divergence. Then we should monitor the 0.94 area for support. If price can hold above 0.94 after a pullback, and the 4H RSI can hold above 40 after poking through 70, then we have an even stronger case for the bullish continuation scenario.


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Nxt is indeed working towards becoming the next best cryptocurrency in the market. The next generation coin, which was already famous for its unique source code and dozen other built-in features, is further catching eyeballs with its increasing influence in mainstream market. This gets further proved by the recent announcement of renowned Danish cryptocurrency exchange CCEDK, which has added two new Nxt trading instruments.
The newly introduced trading instruments are NXT/USD and NXT/EUR, making Nxt directly exchangeable with US Dollar and Euro. Earlier, users were required to first exchange NXT with BTC, in order to receive the outcome in USD. CCEDK has thus eliminated an unrequired step to ease its services for Nxt users.

CCEDK although is still the second cryptocurrency exchange to offer Nxt-to-fiat-currency exchange services. The first one was China-based Bitcoin exchange BTER, which allowed users to exchange Nxt with USD and CNY. However, the Chinese territory has lately become a danger zone for cryptocurrency businesses due to which Nxt couldn’t take much benefit from it.
According to CoinMarketCap.com, the value of Nxt has increased substantially since the announcement. The coin’s current market cap is over $51 million and is the third wealthiest one among over 300 cryptocurrencies. It also holds around 20,000 active customers, which will eventually be going to benefit CCEDK.


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UK Financial Regulator Launches Criminal Proceedings against Bogus FX Trader

By Forexminute - Yashu Gola | Forex Industry News | Jul 24, 2014 3:00AM BST


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The UK financial regulator has commenced criminal charge proceedings against Philip Harold Boakes, a 54-year old broker from Stratford-Upon-Avon in Warwickshire after he swindled investors of their monies through his company Currencytrader Ltd.
Boakes, who is accused of 13 offences such as fraud, theft, forgery and running an unauthorized forex trading business, may face a stiff penalty as the Financial Conduct Authority looks to reinforce its reputation as one of the world’s strictest financial regulators.

The FCA disclosed that all the offences are related to the unregistered investment vehicle that Boakes ran from Oct. 1, 2004 to June 4, 2013, though his company’s website currency-trader.co.uk is still operational and looking for new clients.

The simple one-paged website says that anybody who registers for the weekly email newsletter will master the “Tricks of the Institutional Dealers and Traders”. Boakes first appeared in the City of London Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday this week before the case was transferred to the Southwark Crown Court where the first hearing will be conducted on Aug. 5, 2014. The British law gives the Crown Court greater powers to review criminal cases than Magistrates’ Court hence Boakes is likely to face a criminal sentence.

Meanwhile, the Financial Conduct Authority is also accelerating negotiations with a group of banks such as Barclays Bank Plc, UBS AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Citigroup Inc. to reach a settlement on the forex benchmark rigging investigation, reported Bloomberg News. Other banks thought to be included in the negotiations include Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and HSBC Holdings Plc.


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Coinsetter Soon to become a full-featured, institutional-class Bitcoin exchange

By Forexminute - Deepak Tiwari | Bitcoin | Jul 24, 2014 3:17PM BST


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The New York-based, low latency Bitcoin exchange and ECN, Coinsetter is yearning to become a full-features and institutional-class Bitcoin exchange and in that pursuit it has launched a Beta version. According to the press release from the company with its completed launch, Coinsetter will become a full-featured, institutional-class Bitcoin exchange.

The company wrote a blog about the announcement and showed the happiness. The blog says, “Today, we’re pleased to announce that our full-featured Bitcoin exchange is officially out of beta. The Bitcoin space has matured rapidly over the past two years of our company’s history, and the platform we offer has grown along with it.”

Now, professionally tested to execute Bitcoin trades in as low as 40 milliseconds, Coinsetter is all set to cater the requirements from the customers who want fast and better trading experience. According to the company it has expanded functionality which gives its users access to a variety of account funding options.

For instance, customers can now fund through compliance-approved bank transfers and highly secure Bitcoin transfers as well. The company says that as it has already been providing unequaled customer support to traders with both email and live phone support from its New York City headquarters, there won’t be any trouble for customers.

The announcement says that the company has reduced trade fees to industry-leading levels, with the commission charged on trades now extending to as low as 0.10% for the most active users. Thus, it has tried not just to lure customers with the rich features but also attractive offers for the traders who want to initiate trading with it.

Existing and New Traders Going to Get New Accounting Funding Options

In his statement CEO Jaron Lukasiewicz admitted that Coinsetter’s early focus was to support active traders with a best-in-class trading platform. He also expressed his opinion about the expansion and said that his company succeeded in building a trading platform with outstanding technology and services.

The CEO believes that over the past few months his company has extended the scope of the development to support the growing group of Bitcoin users and companies that demand access to a reliable API and deep Bitcoin liquidity. According to him by expanding the platform’s capabilities, he now offers an institutional-class, plug-and-play package for Bitcoin ATMs.

This is also helping out bringing up Bitcoin payment processors, brokerages and other businesses that need to connect to a Bitcoin exchange for liquidity. He says that the transformation into a full exchange benefits active traders as well as they too can now avail new account funding options that make it easier than ever to deposit and withdraw.


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The US dollar showed signs of strength in recent forex trading, despite mixed data from the US economy. Initial jobless claims was stronger than expected at 284K versus the estimated 310K reading and the previous 303K figure, indicating a pickup in hiring. The US flash manufacturing PMI fell short of expectations and showed a drop from 57.3 to 56.3 instead of improving to the estimated 57.5 figure. New home sales was also weaker than expected at 406K instead of 485K while the previous month’s reading was downgraded to 442K. For today, US headline and core durable goods orders data are up for release. The headline figure might show a 0.4% rebound while the core figure could print a 0.6% gain.

The euro regained ground in yesterday’s London forex trading session as German and French PMIs came in mostly stronger than expected. The German flash manufacturing PMI climbed from 52.0 to 52.9 while the flash services PMI improved from 54.6 to 56.6. French flash services PMI increased from 48.2 to 50.4 yet the manufacturing PMI slipped from 48.2 to 47.6. Overall, the euro zone flash manufacturing PMI came in at 51.9 while the services PMI landed at 54.4, reflecting stronger expansion in the industries. GfK German consumer climate and German IFO business climate data are up for release today, and another round of improvements could lead to more gains for the euro.

Fundamentals Forex Review

The pound retreated again in yesterday’s forex trading sessions, as the UK retail sales fell short of expectations. The report showed a mere 0.1% uptick instead of the projected 0.2% gain, barely enough to rebound from the previous 0.5% decline. This added support to the BOE’s less upbeat outlook for the economy, convincing more traders that the central bank might not hike rates this year. UK preliminary GDP data is due today and it might show another 0.8% reading.

The franc consolidated for the most part as it drew a bit of support from the euro zone PMI readings yet had no data from Switzerland to give it an extra boost. There are still no reports due from Switzerland today, which suggests that the franc might be in for a bit of consolidation or might be vulnerable to euro movements once more.

The yen had a mixed performance recently, as it functioned more as a counter currency. It lost ground to the dollar and euro then gained against the Kiwi and the pound, as Japan’s flash manufacturing PMI came in weaker than expected at 50.8. Earlier today, the Tokyo core CPI release showed a stronger than expected increase of 2.8% versus the estimated 2.7% rise while the national core CPI came in line with expectations of a 3.3% gain.

The Kiwi suffered a sharp selloff in recent forex trading, as the RBNZ signaled that it is pausing from its rate hikes to assess the impact on the economy. Wheeler also jawboned the currency in saying that its exchange rate levels are unjustified and unsustainable. Earlier today, the ANZ business confidence index marked a drop from 42.8 to 39.7, reflecting a downturn in sentiment. No other reports are due from the comdoll economies for the rest of the day.



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Wall Street plunged, after the Standard $ Poor’s 500 Index expanded a record, as Amazon.com Inc. and Visa Inc. reported earnings that missed projections and durable goods data propelled fears that corporate investment still is volatile.

Amazon declined 9.9% after missing analysts’ outlook for the second quarter in a row. Visa lost 4% after lowering its revenue projection for the full year. Pandora Media Inc. was down 12% after the number of active listeners to the most popular online radio platform was lower than some analysts had forecast. Baidu Inc. advanced 10% after its earnings beat estimates.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.5% to 1,977.48 as of 1:50 pm in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 141.92 points or 0.8% to 16,941.88 on Friday. The volume of shares changing hands in the S&P 500 was lower than the average for the past 30 days by 7.6% at the particular time of the day.

“The market is really looking at micro level numbers on a lot of these companies. There is skepticism going into the weekend. We have a lot of important numbers coming out next week with GDP, inflation and jobs, so we might see some profit-taking today,” Ian Kerrigan of Seattle-based JP Morgan Private Bank told Bloomberg.

The S&P 500 has seen little change this week. The index added 0.5% over the past 5 days as firms’ earnings reports bolstered confidence in the economy and inflation data indicated that the Federal Reserve will not have to hike rates in the foreseeable future. The Fed will reveal its next policy position after the conclusion of a two-day convention on July 30.

According to Reuters, Starbucks slid 2.1% to $78.76, despite its quarterly sales at established shops in its Americas market soared 6%, a rate that surpassed expectations.

El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc stock surged 52% to $22.77 in its IPO.


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Last week the USD strengthened in anticipation of this week’s FOMC meeting. The market has replaced concerns that stemmed from poor Q1 GDP with USD-positive reactions to Q2 data, which have been in-line or better than expectations. The euro was a big loser last week as data continues to suggest the ECB might need further stimulus (QE). This week will be full of key US fundamentals. Let’s be prepared by taking a look at this week’s key fundamental releases for the majors.

Monday (7/28)

US Pending Home Sales for June, is forecast to have contracted at -0.2%. Pending home sales have been volatile and just came off a 6.1% gain in May. A slide in June is not the end of the world. We had 3 straight months of gains, which is something we have not seen since 2010. On the other hand, a positive reading could be USD-positive in the near-term, given it has not already rallied sharply before the housing data.

Tuesday (7/29)

US Conference Board Consumer Confidence for July is expected to edge up to 85.5 from 85.2. This reading would reflect the strongest reading since January 2008. It has risen sharply since the Jan. 2013 low of 58.6 and bodes well for the USD. A reading in line with forecast or better should keep the USD-buoyed. A reading below 85.0 might weigh slightly on the USD, but we should keep the implications in the intra-session time-frame.

Wednesday (7/30)

German Preliminary CPI for July is forecast to be 0.2% on the month, after a 0.3% reading in June. The annual reading in June was 1.0%. If the annual CPI reading for Germany falls below 1.0%, we might see some more pressure on the EUR. A ready above 1.0% on the year could help EUR consolidate, but should not be able to help EUR reverse its recent downtrend.

US ADP Non-Farm Employment Change for July is a precursor to Friday’s Non-Farm Payroll, which was hot last month. The ADP report was hot last month too, and came in at 281K, which was the strongest reading since December 2011, and was the 3rd strongest reading since the financial crisis. Economists are expecting July’s job market to have leveled off, and to have added 234K jobs, which is still a strong reading.

US Advanced GDP for Q2 will probably trump the jobs data in terms of importance. Q1 GDP was -2.9% at an annualized rate. This seems distant memory now. We can’t blame the weather anymore in the second quarter, and manufacturing, sales, and other economic data points for Q2 have not disappointed. Economists forecast a 3.1% advanced reading. Ability to show 3.0% and above should help the USD maintain its recent strength. A reading below 3.0% could be seen as disappointing, and might urge traders to pare USD’s recent gains.

The Federal Open Market Committee will conclude its monetary policy meeting and make a statement. It will have the GDP data to talk about. This is important because after Q1′s dismal growth data, the Fed showed concern about Q2 data. The market will be on top of the Fed’s reaction to the Q2 GDP and how it may affect the rate hike time-line, which is current projected to mid-2015.

Australian Building Approvals for June is forecast to have grown 0.2%, after a strong 9.9% reading in May.The AUD has regained some strength after seeing Australia’s annual CPI inflation grow from 2.9% to 3.0% in Q2. The housing data should have limited impact on the Aussie.

Thursday (7/31)

Eurozone CPI Flash Estimate for July is forecast to be 0.5% on the year. It has been stuck at 0.5% since May. ECB president Mario Draghi had predicted that inflation was at the bottom when it was 0.5% in February. So far, his prediction has neither materialized or been invalidated because the annual CPI inflation is still 0.5%. A drop below 0.5% will very likely weigh on the EUR because the ECB’s inaction is based on inflation not dropping further. a drop in inflation will be further impetus for the ECB to apply more monetary stimulus.

Eurozone’s unemployment rate is expected to stay at 11.6% for the month of July. There is more room for disappointment because the prevailing trend has been a steady improvement, and if the reading is 11.5% for example, it would not be such a big surprise. A reading of 11.7% however will buck the trend and provide the ECB with more reason to loosen monetary policy further.

Canadian GDP for the month of May is forecast to be 0.3%, which would be the strongest month since January when it was 0.5%. The monthly GDP was 0.1% for April and March. There has not been any negative readings so far this year. If we can keep that up, the CAD should maintain its recent strength (though it consolidated for a couple of weeks). A negative reading might be needed to hold CAD back and keep it in consolidation or bearish correction. A reading above 0.5% can definitely revive CAD-strength.

US Jobless claims was at a 10-year low this week, at 284K. Next week’s reading is expected to rise back to 306K which would still be at the lower range of 2014-data. A reading below 300K should be positive for the USD in the near-term. A reading above 320K might be needed to hold USD, but only in the intra-session time-frame. This assessment is assuming that the FOMC did not shake things up and put the USD in a medium term bearish outlook. We are assuming the USD continues to be bullish.

Chinese Manufacturing PMI for July provided by the government, is expected to improve to 51.4 from 51.0. This would reflect 5 straight months of steady improvement in manufacturing, and also reflects the quick recovery after we saw Chinese data slump in 2013. The final version of HSBC’s Chinese Manufacturing PMI is expected to be 52.0, which would also reflect the recovery in China’s economy.

Australia’s Producer Price Index is forecast to show inflation of 0.7% in Q2, down from 0.9% in Q1. Q1 PPI inflation compared to Q1 2013 was 2.5%. If this reading increases, we might see some AUD-strength, and if it declines we should see AUD consolidate. It is still too early to anticipate any economic data point to be able to put AUD into reversal, into a bearish market.

Friday (8/1)

UK Manufacturing PMI for July is forecast to be 57.2, slightly lower than the 57.5 reading in June. This is a second tier data point and shouldn’t have much impact on the GDP other than in the very near-term. The market is focused on whether the Bank of England can raise rates in 2014. Right now lack of wage growth is the concern, so even a strong improvement in manufacturing will not ease that concern, nor should a singular worse-than-expected reading add to that concern.

US Non-Farm Payroll report for July will be the key data point to wrap up the week. The 288K reading for June revived USD strength. Economists expect about a 230K reading, which is still decent. A reading above 200K is decent, and if it is above 250K, the Fed should have more reason to raise rates earlier than mid-2015 rather than after. A reading below 200K however might bring USD back into at least some short-term consolidation, especially if it has been gaining throughout the week.



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AUD/USD has been making higher lows and finding resistance at the .9460 area, creating a forex trade signal on the ascending triangle on its 4-hour time frame. The pair just found resistance at the top of the triangle and is on its way to test the bottom, which might continue to hold as support.

Stochastic is already in the oversold area, indicating that selling pressure is already exhausted. Price might bounce off the .9375 levels before resuming its climb back to the top of the triangle later on.

If you plan on going long on the forex trade signal at the triangle support, make sure you stet a tight stop below the .9350 area to exit the trade if a breakdown takes place. Aiming for the top of the triangle could yield a 2:1 return on risk for a short-term trade.

AUDUSD Forex Trade Signal

Recall that sentiment has shifted to a more bullish one on the Australian dollar after the Australian economy reported a strong CPI reading. The quarterly figure marked a 0.8% gain in price levels, enough to bring annual inflation to the top of the central bank’s 2-3% target range. This eased fears that the RBA might cut interest rates later on.

Strong data from the US fueled dollar demand on Friday though, along with profit-taking on most trades before the end of the week. After all, there are plenty of geopolitical risks worldwide and this weighs on market sentiment.
Despite that, AUD/USD might bounce off triangle support pretty soon if risk appetite returns to the markets. Also up for release later on this week are the official Chinese manufacturing PMI data and the HSBC PMI, which might both print improvements and spell better prospects for Australia’s export sector.


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Twitter Shares to Resume Upside Momentum? – July 29, 2014

By Forexminute - Jonathan Millet | Stock Tips | Jul 29, 2014 4:14AM BST


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Twitter shares have recently made a strong upside break from a key resistance level or the 50 simple moving average. Price had been respecting this indicator as a ceiling for pullbacks before revving up for a strong rally until the $42.50/share level.

From there, price retreated back to the 50 SMA, which appears to be holding as support for now. MACD is in middle ground but is moving down, indicating that price could continue to dip lower. However, if the indicator starts resuming its climb sooner or later, Twitter shares could also gain buying momentum.

Twitter Shares Outlook

Stocks of the social media company have regained traction in the past few months, yet it appears that buying pressure is fading and that traders are looking for more support before pushing the pair to new highs. A bounce off the current levels of Twitter shares could lead to a rally back to $42.50/share and higher.

On the other hand, a break below the 50 SMA could be a sign that the rally was just a fakeout and that the longer-term selloff is still valid. This could lead to a drop back to the stock’s previous lows near $32.50/share.
RSI is also on middle ground on its way down, barely providing any clues on whether buyers or sellers are in control at the moment. A move below the 50.0 level for the RSI could be a sign that more sellers are jumping in and that Twitter shares are in for more weakness.

Twitter is set to release its latest earnings report in Tuesday’s US trading session and this could be a crucial move for the stock price. In their previous earnings release, Twitter reported a loss of earnings per share, leading to more than a 20% decline in its stock price. A rebound for the second quarter of the year could pave the way for more gains in Twitter shares.

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EBAY Stock Testing Key Resistance Zone – July 28, 2014

By Forexminute - Jonathan Millet | Stock Tips | Jul 28, 2014 7:21AM BST


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EBAY stock has been in a steady downtrend for quite some time, yet it has managed a strong rally for the past couple of months. All this could prove to be a market correction though, as the pullback is encountering resistance at the 200 simple moving average, which has acted as a dynamic inflection point for the stock price.
It appears to be holding as resistance at the moment, as it lines up with a broken support area, which has held in February and April, before price gapped down in early May this year.

EBAY Stock Forecast

A selloff from the current levels might last until the potential support at the 50 SMA, which has also acted as short-term support or resistance for EBAY stock. MACD is still moving higher, indicating that buying pressure is still present. If it’s strong enough, it might lead to an upside break from the $53/share levels.

A strong selloff might lead to a drop below the 50 SMA and all the way down to the previous lows at $49/share. Near-term support is also located at the $50/share psychological level.

News of the first Superman comic going on sale on Ebay could lead to gains for EBAY stock, as this could potentially drive interest and higher revenue for the online marketplace. Bear in mind that sentiment has shifted for this stock earlier in the year when a security risk plagued the site.

In other news, the company is offering $3.5 billion in debt to help fund general operating activities. This bond sale will close today, yet company executives clarified that the company is not undergoing cash flow problems. In fact, company profits are up $676 million in the second quarter of the year, leading to strong gains for EBAY stock when the earnings report was released earlier this month.


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U.S. home mortgage applications fell last week, lead by a decline in refinancing requests, reported the Mortgage Bankers Association on Wednesday.

The MBA announced that its seasonally-adjusted measure of mortgage applications, which covers both new home purchases and refinancing, plunged 2.2 percent in the week through July 25. Its gauge of refinancing applications declined 4.0 percent, while an index of home purchase loan applications retreated 0.2 percent.
The survey, which involves 75 percent of all retail mortgage requests in the US, also found that the fixed 30-year mortgage rates remained unchanged at 4.33 percent on average last week, reported Reuters.

Meanwhile, the euro area economic sentiment surprisingly rose in July amid the escalating tensions between Russia and the West over the former’s involvement in Ukraine crisis. Morale among consumers increased in 3 out of the 5 biggest economies in the bloc, with Italy, France and Netherlands taking the lead. Spain and Netherlands reported weaker sentiment.

The economic sentiment gauge for 18 nations comprising the euro area increased to 102.2 this month, compared with June’s revised reading of 102.1. A Reuters survey of analysts had projected the measure to decline to 101.8 in July.

Europe rolled out sanctions on Tuesday that are aimed at Russia’s banking, energy and defense sectors in retaliation for what it terms as open support for rebels in Ukraine’s eastern region.

“It is highly likely that events in the Ukraine and heightened global geopolitical tensions are taking an increasing toll on confidence in some countries. This is clearly the case, for example, with business confidence in Germany,” Howard Archer, a chief European economist at IHS spoke to Reuters. Archer expects the new sanctions to affect the sentiment.

The European Central Bank announced various measures aimed at boosting economic growth and combating the threat of deflation in the euro area such as negative deposit rates and injecting further liquidity into the bloc’s banking system.


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Market Correction for Blackberry Shares – July 31, 2014

By Forexminute - Jonathan Millet | Stock Tips | Jul 31, 2014 6:12AM BST


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After trading at the $11.50/share levels earlier in the month, Blackberry shares have retreated off its highs and is finding support at the $9.50/share area of interest. Technical indicators show that there’s still some buying pressure left, which might pave the way for a larger pullback.

MACD is still moving down and hasn’t quite reached the oversold area yet, which means that sellers*are pushing Blackberry shares lower for now. RSI is also reflecting a buildup in selling momentum, which might take the price to $9.00/share or lower.

The 50 simple moving average appears to be the next potential support zone, as it also lines up with another area of interest. Traders could be waiting with their orders in that region and spur a bounce for Blackberry shares.

Blackberry Shares Forecast

A larger correction could take price down to the 200 simple moving average, which has acted as a longer-term dynamic inflection point for price action. Currently, the indicator is hovering below the $8.50/share mark.

Just recently, Blackberry has announced its plans to buy Secusmart, a company which offers high-security voice and data encryption. Prior to this, the company cut a deal with Amazon and Android that allows BlackBerry users to have access to more than 200,000 Android applications, including thousands of popular apps and games.

However, investors don’t seem to be too impressed for now as price action is slowly retreating after the recent rallies. Some stock analysts say that the potential Secusmart acquisition would be a vain attempt in staying relevant and would not be enough to keep Blackberry shares supported in the longer-run.

Both companies have confirmed though that Secusuite-enabled Blackberry phones are being used by German Chancellor Angela Merkel as it already meets NATO regulations.


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The disappointing NFP report for July has led the dollar to give up its gains against gold. However, don’t get too excited in selling the dollar just yet. A quick look at the hourly time frame reveals a series of candlesticks which have formed just below the 100 SMA and the 50% Fibonacci retracement level. Stochastic also shows a bearish divergence, making higher highs while price is making lower highs.

This may mean that the dollar rally would soon resume. But be wary of a strong close above 1,300.00 as this could mean that XAU/USD is on its way up the charts!


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