chainalysis

The crypto lending industry — a ticking time bomb, rather than a shortcut to mainstream adoption

In his book “Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds”, Charles Mackay says that men think in herds and go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, and one by one. That was written in 1841. Today, it is even more relevant.The most illustrious collective obsession in the past decade is cryptocurrencies. For the last couple of years, we witnessed industry-specific shocks with varying implications, be it exchange hacks, scam schemes, or else. Although covered in controversies, in the long-term, the rise of cryptocurrencies should be

Remaining Anonymous: Which Crypto Privacy Solution Works Best?

The cryptocurrency industry was initially headlined as anonymous digital cash. While experts were keen to point out that this was not exactly the case, Bitcoin (BTC) found initial popularity in darknet markets such as Silk Road, where merchants sold illegal goods ranging from light drugs to, allegedly, hitman services. Founded in 2011, Silk Road thrived for the next two years until the Federal Bureau of Investigation shut it down in 2013. Authorities later revealed that completely free blockchain explorers aided their investigative efforts.Bitcoin’s transaction ledger is completely open for the

Pandemic Is Changing Bitcoin Usage in ‘Unexpected Ways,’ Says Chainalysis

Leading blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis has found that the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic contraction is affecting Bitcoin (BTC) consumer habits in surprising ways.In a new report published on March 30, Chainalysis details how Bitcoin spending trends in three areas — merchant services, gambling and darknet marketplaces — have changed, or even reversed. Weakening correlation could be a boon for Bitcoin merchant services, says reportChainalysis reported that one such change in trend shows resilience among Bitcoin merchant services in the current economic crisis. For example, the firm’s data for Bitcoin spending using