Does anyone in the US use a VPN to use exchanges with margin outside the US? From what I see the best exchange with margin in the US is Kraken, and honestly its not that good. My orders keep getting cancelled because the margin pool for BTC/USD is dried up. This is something I'd rather not deal with. Also, the UI is pretty shitty compared to other exchanges outside the US. So my question is do any of you do this? What are the pros / cons? Risks? Do you have issues with the margin pools being used up? I've seen live trading videos on bitfinex and other exchanges and they never seem to have that problem.

Whalepool has created and released an open-source tool for analysing volume on exchanges and to sniff out fake volume. See:

• https://twitter.com/whalepool/status/1251662837031882758
• https://github.com/Whalepool/Bitcoin-Volume-Validato

From the GitHub repository:

Theory
Every trade execution by law of Central Limit Order Book logic has both a "maker" and a "taker" side from orders created.
Every "maker" order has an event pushed to the "OrderBook" websocket stream.
The API documentation in all cases of exchanges used indicates real-time pushing of updated data (we did not use streams where there was indication of 1000ms or so delays).
So the methodology used throughout is to programmatically watch: - The order book best bid/offer - The raw trade feed
Then look for trades which occur inbetween the bid/ask.
This would indicate a trade took place which no one else was able to execute because the trade never appeared on the order book for anyone to be able to see, to then take.
It is known that some exchanges are just not good at reporting the orderbook data and trade data in synch, or they do not provide detailed enough information of event timestamp/id to be able to resolve suspicious data.
The scripts here compute both Fake Trades Count vs Legit Trades Count, as well as Fake Volume vs. Legit Volume.
Feel free to request an exchange you use to be analysed using our methodology and we'll be happy to post it along with results.

Some results (also from the GitHub repository):

Exchange	Volume executed between the spread (_o_) ?	Notes
Binance	30%	Approx 30% of volume executes between the spread
Coinbase	2-3%	Approx 2-3% of volume executes between the spread
Bitstamp	<1%	Tested over a 12h period
FTX	<1%	within margin of error for latency issues
Kraken	0%	PERFECT - Tested and no fake volume identified
Bitfinex	-	Exchange has hidden orders so test is non applicable
"Bilaxy"	YES	Totally fake. See video

It's not always success and glory, like it was in previous peasant militia run.
I went with poachers JHUZTYVSZW seed, triple determined. I found another triple determined through seed mining, but map was nowhere near as good. Poachers are good because you already start with 3 good archers, and those are the hardest things to recruit. Also scouting camp composition ability is great, and a little bit of move speed helps. I went for 6 archers, 5 melee, 1 shieldbro. No bannerbro. Very similar to my peasant militia setup. I know seed extremely well this was my second run on that seed, I know where the camp locations are in the beginning, I know generally quite well where the zones are for them to spawn etc.
Grind is overall great, progression speed is all right. I can take almost any fight really early, so I don’t have to skip camps that i find. Limited loot carry capacity hurts. You can recruit extra trash just to carry stuff in their inventory, but it lowers your speed on the map. Anyway builds you find below are great at normal fights, they let me down in monolith. I don’t know if it’s lack of resolve bro, or bad rng rolls, but even around 50 resolve wasn’t enough to just hang there. I don’t think it’s feasible to have resolve potions in those timings I go for, neither crafted armor resolve attachments are feasible. So for the next run I’ll try to solve the resolve issues with my builds..Yeah nimble i'm looking at you... nimble is amazing everywhere but monolith :(. I left kraken for last because I know it’s a nightmare to do with 12 bros, where 6 are low. matack archers, and 1 is low m.attack shieldbro. But I think I’ve figured out how to do kraken in good time very very safely even on water, so stay tuned for my next run :).
Anyway everything I said in previous guides stands true. Here is a little journal on my progression that I wrote along, here are the builds and some comments. You can see the strategy I use in the vids (i wanted to add commentary, i finished run almost two weeks ago, but i didn't find time). My mistake is focusing on doing well in normal fights, but legendary fights are the problem. So in my next run I’ll downgrade my general combat capabilities in favor of legendary fights. I want to do it all under 60 days. I went veteran economy and medium funds, but I guess that’s for pussies, I’m gonna upgrade it to the max next time around.

ShieldBruh

I utilize footwork on my all frontliners for abusing AI in endless kiting.
Here is the build
Max m.def, stamina. Some resolve and hp. Sadly no end pic, cause ehm reasons :). But you can see progression in videos.

Frontline

Will look wierd to most. It performs as expected. Gonna switch few thing around for better monolith next time.
Here is the build
Max mdef, m.attack, some stamina, hp, sprinkle of resolve.
Footwork for endless kiting. Polearm for swinging for 5 and stamina economy. Swinging for 5 increases dps, you can move two tiles and swing. Once and swing twice with berserk. Swing 2h, move, and swing polearm. Again might look weird, but watch some fights how it performs.

Archer

Basically unchanged, it's just amazing, grows in power every level. Will carry all standard fights.
Here is the build
Some took colossus some took recover, depends on hp rolls. I don't think i'll make any changes here for my next run. Maybe swap 1 perk.
On lvl up, r. attack, m. attack if roll is good, and hp/stamina. I had good archers, which makes polearm attacks unnecessary, throwing stuff is better. But relying on throwing weapons for dps is problematic because of ammunition. We're on the clock so i still use melee often, i don't have luxury of returning to the towns often.

Vids

I tried to record interesting fights, and record cca every 10 days, so progression of lvls and equipment would be seen.
Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcfAhYWhbk8H4YU3il7lX3tHS1-DfD5aa
Interesting ones are: day 7 undead camp with ud hero, chosen ones where they get easier with levels, but doable early first on day 23 , goblin city when they start routing after 5 turns, also on green terrain.

Here are notes as i played the run:

Day 1: Rush town with hunter's cabin. Restart until you get at least 1 good ranged bro. I got me one hunter on the second try. No contracts until some frontline is hired, and then only contract for thugs.
Day 2: Rushing golden goose to the south. Got some frontline but only beast and fetch contracts on the way. Got ambition to get us to 12 men.
Day 3: Got to the city, no ambushed trade routes :(, sold everything 4.1 gold. Accept a contract then fill up frontline with trash !. Another decent hunter, weak caravan hand, that hopefully survives to lvl 6 for an event and some other meat to the front. Ambition complete, and finally first battle.
Day 4: 6 batles. 3 dead, 1 downed 2 times. Only 1 contract. Run out of ammo, made it to the harbor city. Sold stuff around 4.2k before recruiting. Contemplaiting camping for a while to fullfill 2k gold ambition, yeah probably right call.
Day 5: Don't fight wolfriders early on. "It's just 4 of them, i'll be carefull".. One dead and a lot of hp + tools in the drain, also injuries. Wasn't worse by sheer luck.
Day 6: Got a whip. Leaders and gheists are on the menu boys!. Gonna go swing by kraken location to pick up the quest.
Day 11: I want to farm barb throwing weapons. To farm them i need lvls and better bows. Sometimes those barb camps come with chosens, to fight those i need barb throwing weapons. Why do i need to farm barb throwing weapons? To farm orcs ofc. Why orcs? Cause they usually have plenty of big camps with warlords called sea of tents, that give a lot of xp and loot.
Day 11: So after i recorded a fight with necro and zombies, i had another, samish one. Except few more zombies. Anyway one of my frontliners went fleeing because "oouueee" sounds or smth.. i guess. That lead to a bit of collapse because i don't have underdog yet. Two bros died, one of them caravan hand that was almost 6 lvl. And then he came from the dead with that shitty undead grin on his face just to taunt me... Bastard. He was there for all 24 battles RIP.
Day 12: Got myself decent hedge knight with sure footing. Rolled an ambition, i have to visit every town (or get friendly with one which is even worse time wise), so that's a little time waster. I need ambitions to raise renown, to get the noble contract ambition. Not for noble contracts, but to start rolling for undead/goblin ambitions which are crucial to the run and you can't get those until you have noble contracts.
Day 13: Another one bites the dust. Running 11 men, one of witch could be ok but has dastard trait, so far i have no brave bros. Who am i kidding he's gonna die before i get rid of dastard anyway found named 330/28 armor guarded by 15 thralls, ezy.
Day 15: Trying to progress visiting all cities ambition while farming goblins in the south. Hit a rough patch some deaths, low hp, low resources, injuries. Missing good % hits. At least i got spiked impaler csbow it rarely drops, because you kill overseers in melee, it's a slight upgrade from a shortbow dps :). I spent everything on recruits, except 3 whips i bought, following logic that i can sort of win with what i have. And frontliners.. i want foowork, i want underdog, i want nimble, but which is more valuable, in what order do i get them? I guess underdog is least important, i tend to get surrounded by lesser dangers, and if i do it's almost exclusively just +5 to hit.
Day 16: I keep getting marginally better archers. I fire one and hire another, he gets to like level 4. Then i hire even better one, 3 star hunter this time. I keep getting a lot of thiefs which is lucky, even 10-12 base m.def but no stars, i still don't have essential shieldbro for monolith.
Day 18: Interesting 4necrosavants + auxilury fight, i didn't even lose a dog here, and got two named shields in the loot. I previously played this seed and this must be randomly generated raid location. One shield is even better than the kraken crafted one in terms of m. def.
Day 19: Sold full stack of loot 17k worth. I increase my capacity to carry by having some cheap guys in reserve to carry more loot. Anyway i spent it all on recruits, there is no other way around it, you buy almost all of them, so they can refresh. The plan is to spend some time in the north fighting and trying to buy me some good shieldbro from the 2citadels and a keep up north. Well i lied i also bought 1 war bow, more like a guilty pleasure than necessity. Ambition to visit cities is done.
Day 22: Another selling loot recruiting session finished, no suitable bros. Have an ambition for a sargent perk guy, usually i have one trashy bro ready with perk point just for that. But i don't have him this time. I recruited lvl 3 retired soldier and gave him sparring session in training hall, hopefully he'll be lvl 4 soon. Other option was to use my archer emergency replacement who needs like 100xp to next level, and waste him by putting rally troops perk on him. Archers may die to some shitty rng so i decided to play it safe and keep him. Another trip to the port north, to get south to farm and recruit some more, if i don't have a shield bro by day 30, i guess it's gg.
Day 25: First post noble contracts ambition roll. No undead, goblin, or orc one in the pool. Took the cart one. I took bags and belts on my archer on lvl 6 just so i can carry more loot, so i get more money, so i can gamble it away recruiting. And all i want at this point, is the same thing i wanted from the beginning one bro with base m.def around 10+ with three stars. And hopefully enough stamina to wear armor and spam indom adrenaline recovery.
Day 26: We got an adequate shield bro. Base m.def 7, 3 stars militia guy. He's not good, but he'll do. The thing is i've been recruiting all game long, and basically almost any background can be good shield bro. There are 3 traits, tiny, paranoid, footwork, that each give +5 m. def. So any of those two and you have 10 base, everything in excess of it is just a bonus. And you need 3 stars. One last requirement is to have enough stamina. You don't need stars you just need not to be gimped, like retired soldier, or swordmaster that gets old trait to further diminish him.
Day 28: Risky fight with necrosavants, cost me couple of dogs for expensive loot. Made a mistake at the end, almost lost an archer. I guess that's why i put so much hp on my archers. Cause i suck. But otherwise unelss disaster happens, it's on a good track. I will no longer spent money on recruits, so my equipment will go up, making it all even safer. Need bows, need more barb throwing weapons. Need good body armor x 12 for kraken. X6 for goblin city. Need more weapons, especially polearms. Grind grind grind, but alteast no more rng frustration at recruitment part of the run.
Day 37: A lot of farming mobs, no undead ambition, got the goblin one. In the process of finding goblins i was attacked by 4 lindwurms and goblin camp got in the battle also. That was a weird one. Didn't get lindwurm blood for the acid flask on kraken, i doubt i'll encounter any more lindwurms, finding one stack is rare enough.
Day 38: Sold a lot of stuff got 32k gold. But no tools and ammo in the south, and i still need to find 1 goblin camp for ambition. Bad RNG, usually there are plenty of them in the south on this seed. This is just going to cost me like +3 days in total.
Day 39: One bro got a drunken trait by an event. I guess i'll have to keep spare equipment just for him now. Finished goblin ambition. Now i have orc ambition.
Day 42: Made it to northern keeps again. Spent a lot of doe. And ironically there is Fletcher in one keep. 3 Hvy csbows no war bows, he always had those, and when i got the cash, he doesn't. This game...
Day 47: Finally undead ambition. Also after visiting orc peninsula, around half way i was out of ammunition, so i fought like 7 battles without using a single arrow, including sea of tents.
Day 49: Undead ambition almost done!. Time to start tying up loose ends. Iljork barb - > Iljork -> Witch hut. Than map wise it would be goblin city -> Kraken -> Mill -> Monolith.
Day 55: Made it to the g. city. They routed after 5 turns. It's always sad that there no better loot in the g city.
Day 60: Well it's a good time, resolve failed me. I feel like farming orc camps slows me down, a lot of swamp, i wonder if it's even worth it. And i need better builds next time.

Alright, so I've been working on a new build, and in researching GPU's recently, I found something a bit odd. The 2080 Super, to me, looks like a perfect middle ground between mid-range cards and the 2080 ti, which is still a ridiculously bad value that I can't see it as a worthwhile investment. However, the 2080 Super seems to be getting a ton of hate from reviewers and I don't get it. Sure, it's only marginally better than the 1080 ti that launched at the same price, and barely an improvement on the original 2080, so I can see why it's a disappointing upgrade from either of those cards. But why should that justify the stupidly expensive upgrade to a 2080 ti? There's gotta be something that I'm missing here- The reason I ask is on my build, the trade off is between either a 2080 Supe 2080 ti and the monitor, I can never find a good balance between the two. Here's the current outline (suggestions would be greatly appreciated)
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8 GHz 12-Core Processor	$499.00 @ B&H
CPU Cooler	NZXT Kraken X62 Rev 2 98.17 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler	$139.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Gigabyte X570 AORUS ELITE ATX AM4 Motherboard	$199.99 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Trident Z RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory	$184.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Corsair MP510 960 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	$129.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Seagate Barracuda 3 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	$79.89 @ OutletPC
Video Card	Asus GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB DUAL EVO OC Video Card	$729.99 @ Amazon
Case	NZXT H500i ATX Mid Tower Case	$92.99 @ B&H
Power Supply	EVGA SuperNOVA G1+ 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$96.98 @ Newegg
Monitor	LG 34GK950F-B 34.0" 3440x1440 144 Hz Monitor	$865.00 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$3038.81
	Mail-in rebates	-$20.00
	Total	$3018.81
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-07-30 22:12 EDT-0400

Hello. Noob here.
I am experimenting with shorting and longing on Kraken. Here’s the scenario.
I watched this Kraken video on margin trading.https://support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/202967016-How-to-trade-on-leverage-and-margin.
I then placed a 5:1 long position of 1 BTC @ $8217.90. I entered 1 BTC in the data field, assuming that I would be trading with 5. When BTC hit $8230.80, I closed the trade. I was expecting to receive the listed profit ($12.90) from the Kraken site x 5 minus the related fees. Instead, I only received the 1 x $12.90 (no 5x leverage).
I don’t think I opened or closed the order improperly. I fear that my mistake was that I only entered 1 BTC into the order request. Should I have entered 5 BTC with a Leverage of 5 which would result in only 1 of my BTC being held as collateral? Is THAT what I did wrong?
You may not be able to help me, and I have placed a help ticket into Kraken, but it may take a long time to hear back. Meanwhile, I have searched online, watched lots of videos, and cannot determine where I went wrong. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks kindly! :)

Last year, the website became completely unresponsive during a major Eth move, and I was unable to set a stop. I lost a ridiculous amount of money. I decided not to pursue legal action purely due to added costs, that I did not have available at the time. It was a margin trade. The way they handled my case was pretty simple. They worked around me until the legal time frame to serve them a legal notice expired, as per Terms and Conditions. Now, I know that.
I bought myself a huge pacifier and sucked on it for ages.
A year later I decide to liquidate some Eth I still had somewhere else. A simple liquidation at market price, no fancy nothing - doesn't work !!
Limit orders? Don't register either.

• Invalid response from server
• service busy
• Your order may have failed. Please refresh the page and check your orders. Contact support if necessary. ex: https://imgur.com/a/9b2jl
  
• Same thing through API. Error 809 and 820 https://imgur.com/a/orF1x
  
• Once in every 100 tries, one goes through, but... it just sits there doing nothing, and a few good "sync" clicks, noting, minutes later .... https://imgur.com/a/uj7OK - superb lag, but hey, at least I got this one to go through ...
  

Throughout these past 4 hours, I have only managed to go through one trade. But the books are happily rolling. Same as when the website froze on me for about 2 hours while major dumpage was happening last year - books just kept going fine.
HOW is it possible for me to try for 3 or 4 hours CONSTANTLY and just get 1 trade in - but service is declared to be up and running without incidents?
https://status.kraken.io - No incidents reported - Everything up and working 100%, they say. API and Web Interface 100% working. I just posted clear evidence stating the contrary. https://imgur.com/Q65oezu
How is this possible?
It is now perfectly clear that Kraken is not transparent. No matter how many Mt.Gox cases they are handling. There are clearly privileged whales with (I'm sure) special privileged API's and accounts. Then, general users are throttled, if not manipulated into losses. Trade-bots have preference or hogging? I don't know, what I do know, is something is clearly not right here.
It seems as if Kraken are indirectly stealing from the hands of lower income folk, who do not have the legal, technical or funds weight to be treated equally.
Support? A joke. If it were any slower, they would break world records.
I am now compiling screenshots and screen recordings. All I wanted was to sell now, and they are simply not letting me.
Thumbs down Kraken.
EDIT: I have now a perfectly recorded a real-time video of all my claims above

hello all,
i am having a heck of a time trying to understand how shorting works on Kraken.
please do not comment on your opinion about kraken, the exchange. i am personally only interested in the mechanics of how it works.
my question does not imply i will be using or margin trading at all.
i only want to understand in exact detail the process as kraken is the ONLY exchange i am aware of that even allows this process.
can anyone help me understand what is going on and how to actually trade a short position?
i saw their video that does more to confuse than clarify.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeKbltL3kCw
lets start with an example.
if i have in my kraken account $1,000 USD. let's say bitcoin is at $10,000 USD.
i expect it to go to $9,000 USD.
if i understand correctly, if i want to short it, then i need to borrow the bitcoin and sell it at $10,000, and then buy it back if it hits my lower target.
but here is where i start to get very confused.
lets say i have no bitcoin and only usd in my account. so to short, i place a sell order for .1 bitcoin ($1,000 USD) at 2x leverage
what does this actually mean?
i understand that i will be borrowing the full .1 bitcoin to be able to sell it, but what does the leverage imply at that moment?
and how do i close the position?
i would have to buy back the bitcoin, but do i have to buy back at the same 2x leverage level?
what happens and how does that affect my example if i choose a different leverage amount?
i am hoping someone can break down my example with how everything affects the numbers at specific moments during the trade.
this is all so very confusing and much more so than i think it needs to be.
really hoping someone can help me clarify whats actually going on.
i appreciate it.

Some of the most notable news and events over the past year:
Jan 3:

• Bitcoin passes $1000 USD for the first time in three years. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/02/bitcoin-breaks-1000-level-highest-in-more-than-3-years.html

Jan 10:

• Lightning Network Daemon v0.1-alpha released http://lightning.community/release/software/lnd/lightning/2017/01/10/lightning-network-daemon-alpha-release/

Jan 17:

• Coinbase granted first NYDFS BitLicence https://www.marketwatch.com/story/bitcoin-exchange-receives-license-to-operate-in-new-york-2017-01-17

Jan 19:

• Chinese exchanges halt margin trading https://www.coindesk.com/chinas-largest-bitcoin-exchanges-halt-margin-trading-questions-remain/

Feb 8:

• Philippine central bank approves new exchange. https://calvinayre.com/2017/02/08/bitcoin/central-bank-rolls-new-rules-philippine-bitcoin-exchanges/

Feb 9:

• Chinese Bitcoin exchanges halt withdrawals https://www.ft.com/content/415bf86c-ef67-11e6-930f-061b01e23655

Feb 24:

• Bitcoin passes 2013 all-time-high of $1165 https://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/24/bitcoin-hits-record-high-above-1200-on-talk-of-etf-approval.html

Mar 1:

• Kraken acquires charting and trading website Cryptowat.ch - https://blog.kraken.com/post/211/kraken-acquires-cryptowatch-and-launches-new-trade/

Mar 2:

• Bitcoin price tops 1oz gold http://www.bbc.com/news/business-39149475

Mar 10:

• SEC rejects Winklevoss Bitcoin ETF - https://finance.yahoo.com/news/sec-rejects-winklevoss-bitcoin-etf-212356197.html
  
• BitClub performs transaction malleability attack. https://medium.com/@bithernet/bitclub-why-are-you-doing-malleability-attack-now-6faa194b2146
  

Mar 12:

• shaolinfry proposes BIP 148 user activated soft-fork (UASF) https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/mastebip-0148.mediawiki

Mar 14:

• Bitcoin Unlmited bug takes nodes offline https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/security-researcher-found-bug-knocked-out-bitcoin-unlimited/

Mar 15:

• US Federal Reserve raises rate from 0.75% to 1.0% https://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/15/fed-raises-rates-at-Mar-meeting.html

Mar 23:

• Storj Labs announces migration from Counterparty to Ethereum. https://www.coindesk.com/storj-migrate-decentralized-storage-service-ethereum-blockchain/

Mar 28:

• SEC rejects SolidX Bitcoin ETF - https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bitcoin-etp/sec-denies-a-second-application-to-list-bitcoin-product-idUSKBN16Z2HH
  
• Reserve Bank of India issues warning https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/use-of-bitcoin-illegal-can-attract-anti-money-laundering-law/articleshow/57874230.cms
  

Apr 1:

• Japan declares Bitcoin legal tender. http://www.businessinsider.com/bitcoin-price-spikes-as-japan-recognizes-it-as-a-legal-payment-method-2017-4?op=1

Apr 5:

• Greg Maxwell proposes ASICBOOST ban https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/bitcoin-dev/2017-April/013996.html

Apr 6:

• Lightning dev Joseph Poon exposes Core Dragon's Den https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/63q68x/joseph_poon_to_greg_maxwel_i_was_especially/dfwebqk/

Apr 12:

• Blockstream names Samson Mow Chief Strategy Officer - https://twitter.com/Blockstream/status/852162114701504512
  
• nChain acquired by SICAV plc for undisclosed sum - https://finance.yahoo.com/news/blockchain-pioneer-nchain-acquired-high-225900375.html
  

Apr 20:

• Spells of Genesis, first blockchain trading card game launched http://toucharcade.com/2017/04/20/spells-of-genesis-a-tcg-that-uses-bitcoin-blockchain-is-out-now/

Apr 26:

• Bitmain 'Antbleed' backdoor code revealed https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/bitmain-can-remotely-shut-down-your-antminer-and-everyone-elses/

May 2:

• nChain names Jon Matonis Vice President of Corporate Strategy https://nchain.com/en/media/jon-matonis-joins-blockchain-pioneer-nchain-vice-president-corporate-strategy/

May 9:

• /BitcoinABC subreddit created by awemany https://np.reddit.com/BitcoinABC/

May 10:

• Litecoin activates SegWit https://www.coindesk.com/litecoin-successfully-activates-long-debated-segwit-upgrade/

May 21:

• Ross W. Ulbricht loses appeal, life sentence upheld. https://www.wired.com/2017/05/silk-road-creator-ross-ulbricht-loses-life-sentence-appeal/

May 22:

• MGT Capital announces $1.35M Bitcoin mining expansion. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mgt-capital-announces-major-expansion-of-bitcoin-mining-300461251.html

May 23:

• The New York Agreement (Segwit2x) signed at Consensus 2017 https://medium.com/@DCGco/bitcoin-scaling-agreement-at-consensus-2017-133521fe9a77

May 31:

• BitPay discontinues CAD settlements. Newegg.ca stops accepting BTC. https://cointelegraph.com/news/newegg-canada-drops-bitcoin-payments-bitpay-in-spotlight

Jun 2:

• Quadriga CX loses 67k ETH to code contract bug. https://www.ethnews.com/quadrigacx-provides-explanation-for-costly-code-error

Jun 14:

• Bitmain (Jihan Wu) publishes UAHF contingency plan. https://blog.bitmain.com/en/uahf-contingency-plan-uasf-bip148/
  
• US Fed raises rate from 1.0% to 1.25% https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/14/interest-rates-addressed-at-fed-meeting-with-janet-yellen.html
  

Jun 29 - Jul 1:

• The Future of Bitcoin Conference 2017, Arnhem, Netherlands. https://www.thefutureofbitcoin.com/
  
• Amaury Sechet presents 'Back to the Basics', introduces Bitcoin ABC based on Bitmain UAHF proposal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By0w43NQdiY
  

Jun 30:

• Bitcoin ABC (Adjustable Blocksize Capacity) v0.14.1 released. https://github.com/Bitcoin-ABC/bitcoin-abc/releases/tag/v0.14.1

Jul 12:

• Bank of Canada raises overnight lending rate to 0.75% from 0.5%. First hike in seven years. http://www.bankofcanada.ca/2017/07/fad-press-release-2017-07-12/

Jul 16:

• ViaBTC announces BitcoinABC fork support. Designates it 'Bitcoin Cash' (BCC) https://medium.com/@ViaBTC/statement-on-bitcoin-user-activated-hard-fork-6e7aebb67e67

Jul 17:

• Bitcoin Unlimited announces ABC support https://twitter.com/BitcoinUnlimit/status/887120218304249856

Jul 22:

• Bitcoin Cash thread is opened on bitcointalk.org https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2040221.0
  
• ViaBTC begins offering BCH mining, adds BCH/BTC trading pair to their exchange https://twitter.com/viabtc/status/888958580774154242?lang=en
  

Jul 23:

• BIP91 mandatory SegWit signalling soft fork occurs at block #477800 https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/mastebip-0091.mediawiki

Jul 24:

• Ledger announces BCH support https://www.ledger.f2017/07/24/securing-your-free-bitcoin-cash-stash/

Jul 25:

• Bitcoin ABC 0.14.5 released (strong replay protection added) https://blog.bitmain.com/en/regarding-bitcoin-cash-viabtc-bitcoin-abc/

Jul 27:

• US Department of Justice seize BTC-e domain, Alexander Vinnik arrested in Greece https://www.theverge.com/2017/7/29/16060344/btce-bitcoin-exchange-takedown-mt-gox-theft-law-enforcement

Jul 28:

• Bitcoin Classic v1.3.0 UAHF released https://bitcoinclassic.com/news/release130uahf.html

Jul 31:

• Electron Cash wallet released. https://twitter.com/electroncash/status/891900411849965569

Aug 1:

• 'The Exodus Block' Bitcoin Cash hard fork occurs at block #478559 with a 1.9MB block created by ViaBTC https://blockchair.com/bitcoin-cash/block/478559
  
• BIP148 soft fork on BTC chain occurs at block 478479. https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/mastebip-0148.mediawiki
  
• OKCoin, Kraken, Bittrex, Bter begin BCH trading https://news.bitcoin.com/exchanges-trading-bitcoin-cash/
  

Aug 2:

• Huobi starts BCH trading https://twitter.com/huobicom/status/892568496323690496

Aug 3:

• Trezor adds BCH support https://blog.trezor.io/bitcoin-cash-bcash-integration-report-review-372f9eefcf09

Aug 10:

• Bitcoin Unlimited Cash v1.1.0.0 released https://github.com/BitcoinUnlimited/BitcoinUnlimited/blob/BitcoinCash/doc/release-notes/release-notes-bucash1.1.0.0.md

Aug 12:

• BTC exceeds $4000USD https://techcrunch.com/2017/08/12/bitcoin-just-passed-4000/

Aug 15:

• Blockstream announces Blockstream Satellite https://www.coindesk.com/blockstream-using-satellites-beam-bitcoin-earth/

Aug 17:

• First 8MB block on BCH mined by BitClub at #479469. https://blockchair.com/bitcoin-cash/block/479469

Aug 21:

• Visa suspends Bitcoin debit cards for non-european residents https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-debit-cards-non-european-residents-visas-new-rules/

Aug 22:

• Eric Lombrozo threatens legal action against upcoming Segwit2x hard fork https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/bitcoin-segwit2x/2017-August/000259.html

Aug 24:

• SegWit soft fork occurs activating BIPS 141, 143, 147 at BTC block #481824. https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/mastebip-0141.mediawiki

Aug 25:

• First BTC block >1MB created by BitFury #481947 https://blockchair.com/bitcoin/block/481947
  
• BitcoinXT Release G - Bitcoin Cash released https://github.com/bitcoinxt/bitcoinxt/releases/tag/v0.11G2
  
• Category 4 hurricane Harvey makes landfall in Texas http://www.weather.gov/crp/hurricane_harvey
  

Aug 28:

• BUIP065: Gigablock Testnet Initative announced. https://github.com/BitcoinUnlimited/BUIP/blob/maste065.mediawiki

Aug 29:

• Coinify announces BCH support https://news.coinify.com/coinify-merchants-accept-bitcoin-cash/

Aug 30:

• BitGo announces BCH support https://blog.bitgo.com/bch-availability-c252727ea1be

Aug 31:

• tippr Bitcoin Cash tipbot goes live https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/6x9oj2/tippr_rocketrs_bitcoin_cash_tipbot_is_now_active/
  
• SEC names Dalia Blass (Ropes & Gray LLP) Director of the Division of Investment Management. https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-153
  

Sep 1:

• Coinplug (RoK) launches CPDAX https://news.bitcoin.com/south-koreas-coinplug-launches-new-exchange-trading-bitcoin-cash/

Sep 2:

• China halts Beijing 2017 DACA Blockchain International Summit. https://news.bitcoin.com/chinese-blockchain-conferences-cancelled-in-fear-of-ico-crackdown/

Sep 3:

• Coinbase reaches 10M users https://cointelegraph.com/news/coinbase-bitcoin-mcdonalds-passes-10mln-users-trading-keeps-rising
  
• Sequoia and IDG invest $50M in Bitmain for AI expansion https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-04/sequoia-idg-are-said-to-invest-in-china-bitcoin-mining-giant
  

Sep 4:

• China bans ICOs, exchanges in doubt. https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/04/chinas-central-bank-has-banned-icos/
  
• blockexplorer.com adds support for Bitcoin Cash https://bitcoincash.blockexplorer.com/
  

Sep 5:

• Bitcoin Unlimited releases Bitcoin Cash edition 1.1.1.1 https://github.com/BitcoinUnlimited/BitcoinUnlimited/blob/BitcoinCash/doc/release-notes/release-notes-bucash1.1.1.1.md

Sep 6:

• BC Securities Commision approves First Block Capital Inc. Bitcoin fund. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investofunds-and-etfs/canadas-first-bitcoin-fund-manager-gets-regulator-approval/article36191928/
  
• Bank of Canada raises interest rates 25 basis points to 1.0% https://globalnews.ca/news/3721332/bank-of-canada-interest-rate-hike/
  

Sep 7:

• Equifax reports hack https://globalnews.ca/news/3726259/equifax-data-breach-143-million-americans-hack/

Sep 8:

• GMO (JP) announces plans for mining operation https://www.coindesk.com/japans-gmo-internet-reveals-cryptocurrency-mining-plan/
  
• Chiasso, Switzerland accepts tax payments in Bitcoin https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/business/swiss-fintech_chiasso-accepts-tax-payments-in-bitcoin/43503464
  
• Russia to regulate cryptocurrencies https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-bitcoin/russia-to-regulate-bitcoin-market-finance-minister-idUSKCN1BJ1WB
  

Sep 9:

• South Korean court rules bitcoin not subject to confiscation. https://news.bitcoin.com/korean-court-rules-bitcoin-cannot-confiscated/
  
• Ledger sponsored Breaking Bitcoin conference held in Paris. https://breaking-bitcoin.com/
  
• Yours.org launches beta on Bitcoin Cash https://news.bitcoin.com/network-launches-bitcoin-cash-beta/
  
• Openbazaar 2.0 Beta released https://www.openbazaar.org/blog/openbazaar-2-0-beta-released/
  

Sep 10:

• Mobile bitcoin wallet Jaxx to include BCH support https://blog.jaxx.io/update-bch-jaxx/
  
• Cat 3 Hurricane Irma makes landfall in the Florida Keys. https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/sep/10/hurricane-irma-millions-brace-for-impact-as-superstorm-reaches-florida-live
  

Sep 12:

• JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon calls Bitcoin a fraud https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/12/cnbc-exclusive-cnbcs-andrew-ross-sorkin-interviews-jpmorgan-chases-jamie-dimon-from-cnbc-institutional-investor-delivering-alpha-conference.html
  
• BCH coin mixer Coinmix.to launched https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/6zmudg/the_first_bitcoin_cash_coin_mixer_coinmixto_has/
  

Sep 13:

• Dr. Craig Wright presents 'What is true Bitcoin and its future potential' at ESILV, Paris https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPO4BLw5OXc

Sep 14:

• BTC China announces trading halt on 9/30/2017 https://twitter.com/YourBTCC/status/908285586368167936
  
• Venezuela no longer accepts USD for oil. https://www.wsj.com/articles/venezuela-stops-accepting-dollars-for-oil-payments-following-u-s-sanctions-1505343161
  

Sep 15:

• ViaBTC announces exchange closing. https://www.coindesk.com/chinese-bitcoin-exchange-viabtc-to-close-amid-regulatory-crackdown/
  
• BitPay announces beta BCH support on Copay wallet, https://blog.bitpay.com/bitcoin-cash-wallet-beta/
  

Sep 17:

• Pirate Bay found using vistors' machines to mine Monero. https://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-website-runs-a-cryptocurrency-miner-170916/

Sep 19:

• Bitcoin Core v0.15.0 Final released https://bitcoin.org/bin/bitcoin-core-0.15.0/
  
• Magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits Mexico City http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/19/americas/mexico-earthquake/index.html
  

Sep 20:

• Bitkan Shape the Future Blockchain conference held in HK https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzWO6U7oZ8s
  
• Olivier Janssens and Roger Ver announce Free Society https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/freesocietycom-to-form-the-worlds-first-libertarian-country-646060023.html
  
• Alex Bergeron aka brg444 apparently fired from Blockstream https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/71f1qj/alex_bergeron_fired_from_blockstream/
  
• Cat 4 Hurricane Maria makes landfall in Puerto Rico http://www.weather.gov/sju/maria2017
  

Sep 21:

• Bitpay adds Bitcoin Cash to Insight Block Explorer https://blog.bitpay.com/bitcoin-cash-insight/
  
• First cross-chain atomic swap executed. https://themerkle.com/developers-complete-first-ever-atomic-swap-between-litecoin-and-decred/
  

Sep 23:

• Satoshi Dice migrates to Bitcoin Cash https://satoshidice.com/

Sep 24:

• Angela Merkel wins German elections. https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/sep/24/german-elections-2017-angela-merkel-cdu-spd-afd-live-updates

Sep 25:

• LocalBitcoins sells BCH credits customers with BTC https://localbitcoins.com/blog/bitcoin-bcash/
  
• SEC launches cyber unit https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-176
  

Sep 26:

• Nexon (RoK) acquires Korbit for $80M https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/28/nxc-corp-acquires-korbit/
  
• Equifax CEO Richard Smith retires. http://fortune.com/2017/09/26/equifax-ceo-richard-smith-net-worth/
  

Sep 27:

• ViaBTC open sources its trading engine https://github.com/viabtc/viabtc_exchange_server
  
• Xapo enables BCH withdrawals https://blog.xapo.com/time-to-convert-your-bitcoin-cash-bch/
  
• Bitstamp enables BCH withdrawals https://www.bitstamp.net/article/bitcoin-cash-withdrawals-now-available/
  
• SEC approves Overstock.com digital token exchange. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/27/overstock-com-says-its-entering-digital-coin-trading-business.html
  

Sep 28:

• nChain and Bitcoin Unlimited announce Gigablock Testnet Initiative http://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/nchain-and-bitcoin-unlimited-launch-gigablock-testnet-for-larger-bitcoin-block-sizes-648426453.html
  
• Grayscale Investments (GBTC) withdraws ETF application. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/grayscale-investments-llc-announces-withdrawal-of-rule-19b4-application-for-bitcoin-investment-trust-300527140.html
  
• Fidelity CEO Abigail Johnson reveals crypto mining operation https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/28/fidelity-ceo-abigail-johnson-says-the-company-is-mining-cryptocurrencies/
  

Sep 29:

• Japan Financial Services Agency approves 11 exchanges https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/29/reuters-america-update-2-japans-fsa-gives-official-endorsement-to-11-cryptocurrency-exchanges.html
  
• IMF's Christine Lagarde makes public remarks about Bitcoin http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/imf-chief-tells-central-bankers-ignore-bitcoin-50176592
  
• GMO Coin (JP) enables BCH and ETH. https://news.bitcoin.com/gmo-bitcoin-cash-ether-trading-promotional-discounts/
  

Sep 30:

• Tether releases transparency report. https://tether.to/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Final-Tether-Consulting-Report-9-15-17_Redacted.pdf
  
• Bitmain now only accepts BCH for S9 rigs. http://www.trustnodes.com/2017/10/01/bitmain-now-accepts-bitcoin-cash-latest-mining-hardware
  

Oct 4:

• Greek court OK's US extradition of Alexander Vinnik. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-greece-russia-cyber-extradition/greek-court-clears-u-s-extradition-of-russian-bitcoin-fraud-suspect-idUSKCN1C90QR

Oct 7:

• Gemini begins BCH withdrawals. https://twitter.com/geminidotcom/status/916676395576758273?lang=en
  
• BitFlyer (JP) launches Bitcoin Prepaid Visa Card. https://news.bitcoin.com/japans-bitcoin-exchange-bitflyer-bitcoin-visa-prepaid-card/
  

Oct 9:

• Vanuatu accepts BTC for citizenship. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-12/bitcoin-can-buy-you-citizenship-in-one-of-the-happiest-countries

Oct 10:

• Mastercard bans prepaid BTC debit cards outside the EEA https://themerkle.com/mastercard-joins-visa-in-removing-cryptocurrency-debit-card-availability-outside-of-the-eea/

Oct 11:

• Bitspark drops BTC due to rising fees. https://news.bitcoin.com/remittance-startup-bitspark-drops-bitcoin-over-network-fees/

Oct 12:

• Blockchain.info wallet supports BCH. https://blog.blockchain.com/2017/10/11/bitcoin-cash-bch/
  
• MGT Capital announces purchase of 2000 Bitmain S9 Rigs https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mgt-capital-announces-purchase-of-2000-additional-bitmain-s9-antminer-rigs-300535993.html
  

Oct 13:

• Gigabyte testnet successfully propagates first 1GB block http://www.trustnodes.com/2017/10/14/first-1gb-bitcoin-block-mined-testnet
  
• IMF director Christine Lagarde acknowledges crypto threat https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/13/bitcoin-get-serious-about-digital-currency-imf-christine-lagarde-says.html
  
• Coinbase launches instant purchases https://blog.coinbase.com/announcing-instant-bitcoin-ethereum-and-litecoin-purchases-on-coinbase-c29d8a94e152
  

Oct 14:

• LocalBitcoinCash launches beta https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/76ased/localbitcoincash_beta_launch/
  
• Julian Assange trolls US govt with Bitcoin tweet. https://twitter.com/julianassange/status/919247873648283653
  
• Amaury Sechet proposes [D601] improved DAA https://reviews.bitcoinabc.org/D601
  
• Sheep Marketplace owner Tomas Jirikovsky sentenced to nine years. https://www.deepdotweb.com/2017/10/14/sheep-marketplace-owner-gets-nine-years-prison/
  

Oct 16:

• ETH Byzantium hard fork successful. https://blog.ethereum.org/2017/10/12/byzantium-hf-announcement/

Oct 27:

• SBI Holdings (JP) to mine Bitcoin https://www.coindesk.com/japans-sbi-holdings-reveals-wider-push-into-cryptocurrency-industry/
  
• Catalan government declares independence http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/27/europe/gallery/catalonia-independence/index.html
  

Oct 30:

• Blockstream announces Simplicity smart contract language https://blockstream.com/2017/10/30/simplicity.html
  
• Bitcoin Market Cap exceeds $100B USD https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-30/bitcoin-passes-more-milestones-as-market-cap-tops-100-billion
  

Nov 1:

• OpenBazaar 2.0 goes live https://www.openbazaar.org/blog/openbazaar-2-0-live/
  
• Wikileaks Shop accepts BCH https://twitter.com/wikileaksshop/status/925567726935998464?lang=en
  
• Trezor model T pre-order begins https://blog.trezor.io/pre-order-your-new-trezor-model-t-cf2a3426cf03
  

Nov 2:

• Tom Zander proposes Roadmap for scaling Bitcoin Cash https://www.yours.org/content/a-roadmap-for-scaling-bitcoin-cash-b11efae5ef9d

Nov 3:

• Crypto market cap exceeds $200B USD https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-markets-cryptocurrencies/cryptocurrencies-market-cap-hits-record-200-billion-as-bitcoin-soars-idUSKBN1D31I6

Nov 4:

• Peter Rizun and Andrew Stone present initial Gigablock Testnet results at Scaling Bitcoin Stanford. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3993&v=LDF8bOEqXt4
  
• Brian Neil Levine presents Graphene: A New Protocol for Block Propagation at Scaling Bitcoin Stanford. https://youtu.be/BPNs9EVxWrA?t=10572
  

Nov 7:

• Major vulnerability in ETH Parity multisig wallet freezes $300M. https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/07/a-major-vulnerability-has-frozen-hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars-of-ethereum/

Nov 8:

• Segwit2X fork called off. https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/bitcoin-segwit2x/2017-Novembe000685.html

Nov 9:

• Tom Zander announces the end of Bitcoin Classic https://bitcoinclassic.com/news/closing.html

Nov 10:

• Bovada adds BCH support https://www.bovada.lv/promotions/bitcoin-cash-bonus-help

Nov 12:

• Rick Falkvinge publishes Bitcoin Cash Manifesto https://www.wired.com/beyond-the-beyond/2017/11/rick-falkvinge-bitcoin-cash-manifesto/

Nov 13:

• Bitcoin Cash successfully hard forks for improved difficulty adjustment algorithm at block #504031 https://www.bitcoinabc.org/november
  
• /bitcoin adds 9 new moderators https://np.reddit.com/Bitcoin/about/moderators
  

Nov 20:

• Tether hacked $31M USD stolen https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/21/16684296/tether-cryptocurrency-stolen-30-million-hack

Nov 21:

• Evidence of /Bitcoin false flag operation published to /btc https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/7eil12/evidence_that_the_mods_of_rbitcoin_may_have_been/
  
• Ripple appoints BitLicense creator Ben Lawsky to its board of directors. https://ripple.com/insights/ripple-welcomes-new-board-member-benjamin-lawsky/
  

Nov 27:

• Roger Ver rage quits hostile interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX9sNPMQEyg
  
• Bitcoin ABC team announces BCH roadmap. Planning scheduled hard forks https://www.bitcoinabc.org/bitcoin-abc-medium-term-development
  

Nov 28:

• BTC passes $10,000 USD https://www.ft.com/content/cc422666-d4b0-11e7-8c9a-d9c0a5c8d5c9
  
• US Senate introduces Bill S.1241 Anti Money Laundering Act https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/1241
  

Dec 2:

• Blockstream CEO Adam Back suggests using tabs to avoid congested blockchain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHc81OL_hk4&t=21143s

Dec 5:

• Bitstamp begins BCH trading https://www.bitstamp.net/article/bitcoin-cash-trading/
  
• /btc reaches 100k subscribers https://news.bitcoin.com/reddits-rbtc-reaches-100000-subscribers-victory-censorship-resistance/
  
• nChain names Jimmy Nguyen as CEO - https://nchain.com/en/media/nchain-group-appoints-jimmy-nguyen-chief-executive-office
  

Dec 6

• Steam stops accepting Bitcoin. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-42264622
  
• NiceHash hacked, 4700 BTC stolen https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/07/bitcoin-stolen-in-hack-on-nicehash-cryptocurrency-mining-marketplace.html
  

Dec 7

• /Bitcoin reaches 500k subscribers https://np.reddit.com/Bitcoin/comments/7i96u07dec2017_rbitcoin_reaches_500000_subscribers/
  
• Craigslist adds crypto support https://gizmodo.com/you-can-now-click-cryptocurrency-ok-on-craigslist-be-1821164380
  
• Andreas Antonopolous gets rich. https://blockchain.info/address/1andreas3batLhQa2FawWjeyjCqyBzypd
  

Dec 9

• Bulgarian government have seized over 213k BTC worth $3B https://venturebeat.com/2017/12/08/bitcoin-seized-by-bulgarias-government-now-worth-3-billion/

Dec 10

• CBOE Bitcoin futures begin trading. http://www.cboe.com/blogs/options-hub/2017/12/11/hedging-bitcoin-with-xbt-bitcoin-futures

Dec 11

• Roger Ver appears on CNBC Fast Money https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nihzliIDWpY

Dec 12

• Dream Market adds BCH support https://themerkle.com/dream-market-makes-surprising-return-integrates-bitcoin-cash/
  
• Bitcoin Unlimited AMA on /btc https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/7jci1m/ama_we_are_the_developers_and_officers_of_bitcoin/
  
• GBTC completes liquidation of 172k BCH. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/grayscale-investments-llc-announces-remittance-of-proceeds-from-bitcoin-cash-sales-300569759.html
  
• Crypto market cap exceeds $500B USD https://www.forbes.com/sites/cbovaird/2017/12/12/crypto-market-value-surpasses-500-billion-as-interest-surges/#6847f93067a0
  

Dec 13

• Pineapple fund launched. Donating 5057 BTC to charity. https://pineapplefund.org/
  
• 'Bitcoin' appears on Google 2017 top search terms http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2017/12/13/bitcoin-mania-googles-top-searches-2017-dominated-digital-currency/
  
• US Fed raises rate from 1.25% to 1.5% http://www.businessinsider.com/federal-reserve-statement-on-interest-rates-Dec-2017-12
  
• Greek supreme court rejects Alexander Vinnik's appeal against extradition https://www.cbsnews.com/news/russian-bitcoin-fraud-alexander-vinnik-extradition-us-greece-supreme-court/
  

Dec 14

• Tether market cap surpasses $1B USD https://news.bitcoin.com/93194-2/
  
• Bank of Canada governor Stephen S. Poloz addresses Bitcoin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Akx7g_NQCUE
  

Dec 15

• Bitpay announces multiple blockchain support starting with BCH https://blog.bitpay.com/multiple-blockchains/
  
• Chris Ellis of Bitfinex removes warrant canaries from twitter. https://twitter.com/Bitfinexed/status/941694580956811264
  

Dec 16

• Bitstamp CEO tweets 100k new signups daily https://twitter.com/nejc_kodric/status/941956310341423104

Dec 17

• CME Bitcoin futures begin trading https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/17/worlds-largest-futures-exchange-set-to-launch-bitcoin-futures-sunday-night.html

Dec 19

• Coinbase adds full support for BCH https://blog.coinbase.com/buy-sell-send-and-receive-bitcoin-cash-on-coinbase-65f1b2c7214b

Dec 20

• Litecoin creator Charlie Lee announces LTC sell off https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/20/litecoin-charlie-lee-conflict-of-interest/
  
• Roger Ver appears on CNBCs Fast Money https://youtu.be/L7s7-09-oms
  
• /btc mod todu hacked, /btc defaced. https://www.reddit.com/btc/comments/7l3pcw/someone_hacked_the_account_utodu_which_was_a_mod/
  

Dec 21

• BTC average fees exceed 1000 satoshis/byte https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2629211.0
  
• NYSE files for SEC approval for two Bitcoin ETFs http://uk.businessinsider.com/new-york-stock-exchange-looking-to-dive-into-bitcoin-with-2-new-etfs-2017-12?r=US&IR=T
  
• Lightning exec Elizabeth Stark appears on Bloomberg TV. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2017-12-21/how-lightning-labs-is-building-on-top-of-bitcoin-video
  

Dec 22

• BitPay increases minimum payment amount to $100 https://blog.bitpay.com/minimum-invoice-update/
  
• CoinEx launches first BCH based exchange https://twitter.com/BITCOlNCASH/status/944288834799386624
  

Dec 23

• TeamLiquid.net removes BTC support https://twitter.com/R1CH_TL/status/944601396002873344

Dec 25

• $4,602 gifted via tippr on Christmas Day. https://tsbw.io/tipp

Dec 27

• Pineapple Fund donates $5M USD to GiveDirectly https://np.reddit.com/BasicIncome/comments/7mepo7/hi_we_just_donated_5_million_to_givedirectly_to/

Dec 29

• Khan academy accepts BCH donations. https://twitter.com/khanacademy/status/946536347799392256

Dec 30

• Bitmex completes BCH liquidation. https://blog.bitmex.com/bitcoin-cash-sale-summary/

Dec 31

• Multiple tippr users report accounts hacked, reddit exploit suspected. https://np.reddit.com/btc/comments/7n84og/new_attack_on_tippr_users_potential_reddit_exploit/

Introductory video
In the past few weeks, interest in the online cryptocurrency called Bitcoin has increased dramatically, largely due to its rapidly rising price. While it is relatively simple to use once everything is understood, the initial set-up is admittedly daunting and fairly complex. Given that Bitcoin is remarkably useful as an online transaction tool, I hope to clear up some misunderstandings and outline how to quickly and safely start trading with Bitcoins.
How do Bitcoins help me?
Before explaining how to get started, I’ll briefly summarize why Bitcoin is so attractive for traders:

• anonymous: don’t need to share your personal information to receive money
  
• extremely low transaction fees: it is by far the cheapest way to send large sums of money instantly across borders
  
• payments sent cannot be canceled, reversed, or charged back after they have been confirmed (takes a few minutes, verify by searching for your transaction at https://blockchain.info)
  
• Bitcoins are deflationary: their value tends to increase over time (whether or not they are a wise investment can be debated, but so far price has risen on average over time)
  
• Quick overview, by bitcoin.org
  

Alright, cool. I’m on board. So what do I do now?
If you’ve decided to buy Bitcoins, the first step is to choose a wallet. A number of options are available, each with their own advantages. I personally recommend blockchain.info’s wallet, since is easy to create and for the most part hassle-free, while also providing additional security and advanced use features. If you intend to store a large quantity of Bitcoins, however, it may not be ideal for you. If you live in the United States, Coinbase may be your best bet--though you'll need to provide personal information in order to fully utilize its features.
Note that if you are buying a significant amount of Bitcoin, you should not use an online wallet: look into downloading a desktop wallet client to store your bitcoins. They are much more difficult to set up safely, but are the most secure storage method if the proper steps are taken.
Now that I have a wallet, how do I buy Bitcoins?
Unfortunately, here’s where things get a tad complicated, and many people shy away after experiencing difficulties. The primary reason why it is hard to buy is that it is almost impossible to buy Bitcoins using credit cards, PayPal, or any other method that can be charged back. In addition, nearly all exchanges and vendors require some form of identity verification prior to selling; depending on the website, this process may take up to several days. If you anticipate that you will need Bitcoins for a trade in the future, start buying them in advance! Below are a few of the more popular sites to buy Bitcoins internationally; please keep in mind that they all have different verification and funding processes, so you should research which one best meets your needs.

• Bitfinex: arguably the best site for those with extensive market knowledge, given that it allows for margin trades and lending
  
• Bitstamp: great site for trading, and usually has decent prices
  
• Coinbase: fully verified accounts can purchase Bitcoins instantly (I believe this is only possible for US users)
  
• Kraken: I am not sure how easy it is to use, but it should be one of the better European exchanges other than Bitstamp
  
• Look for more places to buy in your part of the world here!
  

Finally bought my Bitcoins! How do I spend them?
Once you have your wallet set up, but you want to transfer your Bitcoins to another account, simply ask the other person for their Bitcoin Address (it should look like a string of random characters; here is mine, for example: 1GEKaHGoauYSoEHzGj3TRL9tFqrtNA9oUt). The Bitcoins should arrive in the new wallet immediately; as the seller, however, it is important to remember to check that the transaction was confirmed on Blockchain.info (a transaction that can still be reversed will say "Unconfirmed Transaction!" in red).
Of course, use a middleman when buying or selling virtual items for Bitcoins. There is no dispute process: once you send the Bitcoins, they are gone. There is an escrow (middleman) service called BTCrow, which could be cool if someone wants to experiment with it, but I have personally never tried it, and cannot recommend it as I do not know how their dispute process works.
Closing notes:
There's quite a bit more information out there, and I highly recommend researching extensively before committing any money to something this new and potentially unstable.

From our latest blog post (also going out via email to all clients):

Kraken will re-enable the ability to open new long and short margin positions at 18:00 UTC on Thursday January 25 (10am PT). This means that clients can once again use leverage to amplify trading profits and gain in both up and down markets. Kraken temporarily disabled the creation of new margin positions as a precaution following a major system upgrade that was completed on January 13 2018. The system upgrade included a new and more scalable trade engine. Note that margin will only be re-enabled for areas it was recently available prior to the system upgrade (as of January 10th).
Margin trading works exactly as it did before, only with the system upgrade the experience will now be even smoother. Clients unfamiliar with margin trading who want to get started can begin with our video tutorial and check out our support center for more detailed information on margin trading.
Also, free trading and reduced margin fees continue until January 31!

• All unleveraged trades will be charged zero fees until January 31, 2018 (UTC)
• Margin position, open, and rollover fees are reduced to 0.005% until January 31, 2018 (UTC)

Please follow our status page, Twitter and blog for updates:

• https://status.kraken.com
• https://twitter.com/krakenfx
• https://blog.kraken.com

Period: 364.61 days

	Submissions	Comments
Total	1000	56097
Rate (per day)	2.74	152.85
Unique Redditors	394	3829
Combined Score	75281	255219

Top Submitters' Top Submissions

1. 2341 points, 31 submissions: twigwam
   
   1. Coinbase granted N.Y. approval to offer Ether trades (199 points, 48 comments)
   2. Forget Bitcoin. The Blockchain Could Reveal What'€™s True Today and Tomorrow [Wired] (147 points, 17 comments)
   3. [CNBC] Alternative cryptocurrency Ether has done something only Bitcoin has manage to do (143 points, 27 comments)
   4. Enterprise Ethereum Alliance Releases Vision Paper (124 points, 17 comments)
   5. To be clear, the proposed 'hard fork' will NOT roll any "blocks back, or to undo any transactions that have nothing to do with the DAO." (121 points, 47 comments)
   6. Business Giants to Announce Creation of a Computing System Based on Ethereum [New York Times] (114 points, 41 comments)
   7. Ethereum Price Rises as Corporations Move In (97 points, 18 comments)
   8. The Birth of Enterprise Ethereum in 2017 (86 points, 44 comments)
   9. Meanwhile in r / Economics :) ... (84 points, 15 comments)
   10. Microsoft, Big Banks Unite to form Massive Ethereum Consortium - Investopedia (83 points, 0 comments)
2. 1916 points, 26 submissions: Mr_Yukon_C
   
   1. Me watching the ETH price rebound today! (203 points, 27 comments)
   2. Is it time for this yet? LOL (184 points, 22 comments)
   3. Vitalik on PoS/Casper -- "our current approach...is actually going quite well." (122 points, 23 comments)
   4. Vitalik addresses Vlad's tweet about reducing the block reward by a factor of 4 (114 points, 28 comments)
   5. Devcon3: venue will be in Cancun in November! (81 points, 36 comments)
   6. MarketWatch - Bitcoin rival Ethereum is making a comeback (81 points, 14 comments)
   7. Daily Discussion thread is starting to get a little out of hand and unprofessional... (73 points, 35 comments)
   8. Ethereum hashrate back at all time highs -- a good leading indicator of strength and confidence. (73 points, 43 comments)
   9. Must be getting close to the bottom -- extreme negative sentiment. (71 points, 105 comments)
   10. In case you missed it--we now have 9,000+ subscribers! (70 points, 8 comments)
3. 1655 points, 20 submissions: -bawb405-
   
   1. AlphaBay Market adding Ethereum for payments (159 points, 37 comments)
   2. $20 felt good, but we're still in early adoption by a long shot (122 points, 143 comments)
   3. Tools and technologies in the Ethereum ecosystem (117 points, 7 comments)
   4. If it's anything like last year, remember to be thoughtful and helpful to noobs (110 points, 36 comments)
   5. Remember to be thoughtful and helpful to noobs (108 points, 25 comments)
   6. Enterprise Ethereum (includes JP Morgan, CME Group, BNY Mellon, Banco Santander, Microsoft, Red Hat, Cisco, Wipro and British Petroleum) is "looking to build scalable, secure implementations of the private ethereum blockchain with an eye to also help improve the public version of the technology" (101 points, 20 comments)
   7. Been posting on this community for a year+. Bought my first Ledger S Nano this week. Why the hell didn't I do this earlier? This is the simplest way to cold store ETH with total peace of mind that I've seen. I feel dumb for not doing it earlier. (97 points, 109 comments)
   8. Ethereum a Viable Alternative to Bitcoin as a Payment Network (94 points, 18 comments)
   9. Finally, fucking finally, I can instant purchase ETH! Thank you Coinbase! (88 points, 29 comments)
   10. United Nation's World Food Programme is utilizing the Ethereum blockchain to distribute cash assistance to the world’s hungriest families (83 points, 6 comments)
4. 1472 points, 19 submissions: Nooku
   
   1. A hard fork is the best thing for the Ethereum network; credibility and ideology is bullshit. Ethereum simply has to execute programs, the rest comes later. (234 points, 326 comments)
   2. How it is to be an early adoptor (173 points, 41 comments)
   3. We were not joking. (92 points, 10 comments)
   4. Thank you MEW ( MyEtherWallet ) (89 points, 32 comments)
   5. The #2 reason to be invested in Ethereum (87 points, 26 comments)
   6. Which burden do you want to carry: Going to PoS with an anti-Ethereum hacker holding (1)5 % of the Ethers? Or having an anti-principle fork in the history of the network which prevented exactly that? (81 points, 95 comments)
   7. A new Bitcoin crisis: Bitcoin is suffering from a brain drain, accelerating Ethereum's brain gain (71 points, 22 comments)
   8. The truth about Ethereum (71 points, 25 comments)
   9. ETH keeps dropping so let's see who the winners are (68 points, 71 comments)
   10. PSA: Today, ETC has reached its all-time low against ETH. Don't forget to secure your dividends. (64 points, 69 comments)
5. 1456 points, 20 submissions: econoar
   
   1. Santander Vies to Become First Bank to Issue Cash on Blockchain using Public Ethereum Chain (175 points, 68 comments)
   2. DAO hard fork proposal by Gavin Wood (121 points, 76 comments)
   3. DAO rescue hotfix (soft fork) released. (121 points, 67 comments)
   4. Coinbase VP Tells Forbes that Ethereum will be available for purchase on its retail site Coinbase.com this month. (117 points, 46 comments)
   5. Never forget (79 points, 28 comments)
   6. RBS testing Ethereum as a Clearing and Settlement Mechanism, willing to use public chain if transaction speeds and some other criteria are met (77 points, 13 comments)
   7. 50% of today's ETH volume is on fiat pairs. Keep it up! (75 points, 5 comments)
   8. Ethpool and Ethermine voting for soft fork is live (68 points, 59 comments)
   9. JP Morgan looking to use Ethereum for data privacy (66 points, 3 comments)
   10. Fortune: Why J.P. Morgan Chase Is Building a Blockchain on Ethereum (64 points, 18 comments)
6. 1448 points, 19 submissions: hodlor
   
   1. Petition Steam to accept Ether as payment! (228 points, 42 comments)
   2. Don't troll bitcoinmarkets (135 points, 39 comments)
   3. Light client syncs in 3 minutes, uses 30MB. (123 points, 44 comments)
   4. Ethereum is not an altcoin. (104 points, 49 comments)
   5. Ethereum kills two birds with one stone using Raiden: Anonymizing with Microtransactions (87 points, 33 comments)
   6. Why I just went 20% into DigixDAO (72 points, 181 comments)
   7. A blast from the past (70 points, 27 comments)
   8. I changed my mind about EtherDelta. I am impressed now. (70 points, 20 comments)
   9. Explain the Hardfork like I'm a one-legged pirate being chased by an English frigate (69 points, 16 comments)
   10. Ethereum is the most resilient thing I've ever seen. (62 points, 30 comments)
7. 1360 points, 21 submissions: sandakersmann
   
   1. Vitalik Buterin on Twitter: "I am working 100% on ETH." (161 points, 21 comments)
   2. The 1 Reason Why These Entrepreneurs Are All In on Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin’s Competitor (93 points, 11 comments)
   3. Gavin Andresen: "Ethereum has more nodes today than Bitcoin. Prediction: it's lead will grow even as its blockchain size exceeds bitcoin's." (85 points, 22 comments)
   4. Geth 1.4.12: From Shanghai With Love, hotfix for recent DoS issues. Please update! (81 points, 13 comments)
   5. I'm anti-HF, but now I run a node supporting the HF (80 points, 31 comments)
   6. Ethereum Surpasses All-Time High, Reaches $2 Billion Market Cap (66 points, 5 comments)
   7. New Blog post: An Update on Integrating Zcash on Ethereum (ZoE) (63 points, 14 comments)
   8. Transaction spam attack: Next Steps - Ethereum Blog (59 points, 4 comments)
   9. Announcing Parity 1.5: Multisig wallets, contract deployment, auto-updating, PoA/dev chains, badges & more (58 points, 11 comments)
   10. Vitalik Buterin: DAO Lessons, Casper and Blockchain Interoperability (Episode 171) (58 points, 2 comments)
8. 1203 points, 19 submissions: Jackieknows
   
   1. Time for another Week in Ethereum News - Evan Van Ness (120 points, 8 comments)
   2. Vitalik Buterin: State clearing 100% complete. (105 points, 10 comments)
   3. Erik Voorhees on Twitter: I'm finding myself holding some extra ETH to use as payments, since Bitcoin is becoming too expensive/delayed (83 points, 33 comments)
   4. Ethereum ETF will be next (79 points, 54 comments)
   5. NY regulator approves Winklevoss bid to trade digital currency ether (79 points, 18 comments)
   6. "ETHEREUM: THE WORLD COMPUTER" Release: DEC. 16, 2016 (72 points, 13 comments)
   7. The Week in Ethereum - Evan Van Ness (65 points, 16 comments)
   8. Week in Ethereum -Evan Van Ness (65 points, 8 comments)
   9. This Week in Ethereum - Evan Van Ness (63 points, 7 comments)
   10. Kraken adds support for the Ethereum Standard DAO Framework (59 points, 4 comments)
9. 1078 points, 12 submissions: heliumcraft
   
   1. Vitalik Buterin: Casper PoC3 backbone simulations: 3s block time, 1.25s avg latency + 2s avg clock offset: 1% stale rate (184 points, 44 comments)
   2. twitter: "There are more devs working on Ethereum & its ecosystem than Bitcoin. Discuss." (138 points, 24 comments)
   3. MetaMask public developer beta begins! Extension turns Chrome into an Ethereum Web3 browser! (132 points, 18 comments)
   4. Welcome to EthTrader ! (115 points, 13 comments)
   5. twitter: "Back when the price of ETH was $4 It was stated the Ethereum foundation had enough money for 4 years of operations. It's $40 now. (106 points, 20 comments)
   6. Reminder: There is a ethtrader telegram channel (78 points, 26 comments)
   7. Jack Peterson: "if anyone's curious why REP and ETH prices are tanking today, some shithead hacked Bob Shen and dumped his ETH+REP" (77 points, 71 comments)
   8. Light Client ready to test later this week (64 points, 14 comments)
   9. Light Client ready to test later this week (53 points, 0 comments)
   10. Status - a mobile Browser & Messenger for Ethereum (45 points, 8 comments)
10. 1063 points, 18 submissions: BeerBellyFatAss
    
    1. This video should be stickied on Ethtrader as it gives new investors/traders a synopsis of what Ethereum is about. Upvote or downvote if you agree/disagree. (113 points, 11 comments)
    2. New to Ethereum - Please check out this 20 Min TED Talk - a high level overview by Don Tapscott: How the blockchain is changing money and business (79 points, 3 comments)
    3. Big Business Giants From Microsoft to J.P. Morgan Are Getting Behind Ethereum (68 points, 0 comments)
    4. Digital Currencies Show Potential To Be New Asset Class As Demand For Bitcoin Rival Ethereum Rises (68 points, 21 comments)
    5. Ethereum Research Update (59 points, 2 comments)
    6. Tech Giant Siemens is Now Working on Blockchain Microgrids with LO3-Ethereum (59 points, 10 comments)
    7. JPMorgan, Microsoft, Intel and others form new blockchain alliance (58 points, 3 comments)
    8. New to Ethereum? - I believe this is one of the best (high level) speeches that best describes Ethereum and blockchain in general. (55 points, 4 comments)
    9. Proof of Work Flaws: Ethereum Lays Out Proof of Stake Philosophy (55 points, 5 comments)
    10. Ethereum's Amazing Day Is Somehow A "Painful Lesson"? (54 points, 19 comments)

Top Commenters

1. hodlor (5652 points, 905 comments)
2. jtnichol (5250 points, 983 comments)
3. Mr_Yukon_C (4897 points, 749 comments)
4. ethacct (3287 points, 462 comments)
5. econoar (3269 points, 348 comments)
6. oldskool47 (2910 points, 483 comments)
7. HandyNumber (2857 points, 586 comments)
8. IRefuseToGiveAName (2757 points, 442 comments)
9. etheraddict77 (2249 points, 526 comments)
10. Dunning_Krugerrands (2173 points, 337 comments)
11. huntingisland (2142 points, 515 comments)
12. textrapperr (2110 points, 427 comments)
13. Savage_X (1998 points, 463 comments)
14. etheryum (1957 points, 347 comments)
15. -o-o-o (1950 points, 434 comments)
16. Hiphopsince1988 (1793 points, 316 comments)
17. laughncow (1766 points, 387 comments)
18. Joloffe (1709 points, 326 comments)
19. Nooku (1611 points, 227 comments)
20. CommodoreHodlor (1464 points, 300 comments)
21. Empiricalgamer (1432 points, 315 comments)
22. manimoa (1347 points, 224 comments)
23. antiprosynthesis (1320 points, 783 comments)
24. myownman (1311 points, 183 comments)
25. BullBearBabyWhale (1291 points, 195 comments)

Top Submissions

1. Fellow Etherians: when you wish you had purchased more, remember this... by mrcarner (429 points, 158 comments)
2. Hivemind trading: For every upvote, I will long 1 ETH. For every downvotes, I will short 1 ETH. Let's do this. by Ignatius_G_Reilly (391 points, 32 comments)
3. This sub for the last few days by pekkapekkanen (346 points, 68 comments)
4. My final margin call by revcback (309 points, 248 comments)
5. HIGH ROAD GENTS (AND GALS) by laughncow (288 points, 73 comments)
6. Don't Trade Your ETH by carlslarson (287 points, 133 comments)
7. Investopedia's word of the day: Ethereum! by barecoin (282 points, 16 comments)
8. Welcome Bitcoin people! by tr4nsatlantic (272 points, 98 comments)
9. President of Coinbase Fred Ehrsam on why Ethereum represents the future of crypto by soforth (254 points, 105 comments)
10. PSA Hackers scan this forum looking for victims by dirtybitsxxx (246 points, 96 comments)

Top Comments

1. 243 points: insomniasexx's comment in My final margin call
2. 130 points: ProtectYourMind's comment in Monster support wall on GDAX
3. 128 points: Trencheel303's comment in Fellow Etherians: when you wish you had purchased more, remember this...
4. 123 points: stanf's comment in [Daily Discussion] - 16/Ma2017
5. 121 points: Xanesghost's comment in [Daily Discussion] - 18/Ma2017
6. 117 points: Bingbongfly's comment in My final margin call
7. 108 points: Fuyuki_Wataru's comment in This sub for the last few days
8. 108 points: HowRiskyIsDatClick's comment in [Daily Discussion] - 13/Ma2017
9. 106 points: Empiricalgamer's comment in [Daily Discussion] - 15/Ma2017
10. 99 points: nbr1bonehead's comment in Welcome Bitcoin people!

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Hey all, last night marked our 15th podcast with Brian Beamish aka The Rational Investor.
Last night we focused solely on discussing Bitcoin's latest run up with technical analysis and theories in terms of the recent price action.
Video: Bitcoin & Altcoin Trading Talk 15
Feedback is definitely appreciated, and thanks for watching.
As a side note, Kraken spot trading was just introduced on Coinigy, and we are hard at work on including margin trading on the exchanges that support it. Stay tuned!
William @ Coinigy