Aaron Decker | Bitcoin Slots.us

IMF Director Urges Central Banks to Compete With Crypto

Posted on June 2, 2018June 2, 2018 by Aaron Decker

While the role of cryptocurrencies in the evolution of currency remains a valid debate, one of the key concerns, especially for traditional financial institutions, has been the uncertainty associated with how these digital assets will affect the existing fiat monetary system that is under the control of central banks.

Dong He, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Deputy Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department (MCM) recently published a report to address the challenges that the central banks have faced since the emergence of digital currencies. In the report, He elaborated his belief that someday when they achieve wider adoption, cryptocurrencies and other crypto assets may reduce the demand for money from the central banks.

“As a medium of exchange, crypto assets have certain advantages. They offer much of the anonymity of cash while also allowing transactions at long distances, and the unit of transaction can potentially be more divisible. These properties make crypto assets especially attractive for micropayments in the new sharing and service-based digital economy,” he wrote.

At the moment, most, if not all, existing cryptocurrencies are plagued by criticisms pertaining to their capacity to be a dependable medium of exchange. Therefore, it is safe to say that, for the time being, digital currencies are too volatile and too risky to pose much a threat to fiat currencies. In addition to this, digital currencies still lack the same degree of trust that is enjoyed by fiat currencies owing to the numerous cases of fraud, security breaches and operational failures that are characteristic of the crypto world.

However, this safe zone may not last too long – crypto assets and currencies are technological innovations and thus, over time, continuous development will certainly improve on some of these pressing issues and eventually make crypto just as appealing as fiat currencies.

Banks Advised to Step Up

A future where crypto assets are just as acceptable as fiat, or even more appealing than central bank money, is very possible and perhaps Mr. He has already seen its inevitability. In fact, he did mention that the only factor keeping crypto assets from rapid adoption is their volatility.

According to the IMF Deputy Director, central banks have the opportunity to effectively adapt with the times by addressing some of the shortcomings of the traditional global banking ecosystem in order to compete well with the emerging and rapidly growing digital currency technology.

“That means rigorously applying measures to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism, strengthening consumer protection, and effectively taxing crypto transactions,” he explained. “The best response by central banks is to continue running effective monetary policy while being open to fresh ideas and new demands, as economies evolve.”

The sentiment that crypto will eventually grow to be a formidable opponent in the mainstream financial industry is shared by many including Christine Lagarde, the IMF Chief who during an event in March proposed that regulators should deploy similar technological mechanisms in order to “fight fire with fire.”

Lightning Box Ventures into Portuguese Market with 9 Slots

Posted on May 29, 2018May 29, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Sydney-based independent video slots developer and multi-channel supplier, Lightning Box Games has been given the go-ahead to enter the Portuguese market. The venture will be facilitated through the SG Digital platform which will see to it that Lightning Box’s brand of fun and exciting slots titles are accessible to Portugal-based slots lovers.

Lightning Box’s efforts to the penetrate the Portuguese market paid off when the company was granted a license by the Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos (SIRJ), Portugal’s leading regulatory body. The license was a green light for the slot developer to go ahead with a planned release of nine new games that are certainly bound to catch the attention of the Portuguese gambling market.

The rollout of the slots developer’s games will happen in phases with the first wave of releases across the market being the: Silver Lion, Stellar Jackpots-Chilli Gold x2, Stellar Jackpots-Serengeti Lions, Stellar Jackpots-More Monkeys, Respin Rhino, Dolphin Gold, Redroo, Mild Rockers and Blazing Goddess.

As it stands, having been allowed to pursue its operation in the country, Lightning Box has been in a number of related distribution-related talks with some of the most notable operators in the country.

“We are thrilled to be given the opportunity to expand our footprint into Portugal, an online market that could present a number of new operator partnerships for us. We look forward to announcing those partnerships and the release of more games to the Portuguese market in due course,” said Peter Causley, Lightning Box’s co-founder and Managing Director.

The Lightning Box brand was founded in 2004 by David Little and Peter Causley and since then it has managed to produce a series of some of the most highly commercially successful games like Dragon Palace, Astro Car, Five Pirates and Frogs ‘n Flies. All these games still remain to be some of the most popular titles in many places and they continue to be regularly updated in order to give the customers the best possible experience.

This move could just the beginning for the Portuguese gambling market as they might soon be able to enjoy the slot maker’s entire portfolio of games. SG Digital – mentioned earlier – is one of the Lightning Box’s partners and a major games aggregator whose platform will be used by Lightning Box to offer Portuguese player the thrills of the nine new slots. Also, by acquiring the license from Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos Lightning Box will be operating in accordance to the law and in addition to the fact that its games are regularly checked for fairness by independent auditors, the platform offers the best possible slot experience one can find anywhere in the world.

Betsoft Gaming Gets into More Content Partnerships

Posted on May 22, 2018June 11, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Renowned game developer Betsoft has been quite busy inking a number of lucrative partnership deals with both rapidly growing and established gaming brands. One of the most recent developments for the casino game developer is a new partnership agreement with Superlines, a popular and rapidly growing brand casino – Betsoft will provide a selection of slot titles to the casino.

The Betsoft-Superlines agreement covers an extensive range of RNG titles all of which have been approved for key regulated casino markets. This will also include a decent number of titles from the very popular Slots3 series.

Superlines was launched in April last year with a generous bonus arrangement and 24/7 access to multilingual customer support in mind. Despite being just 12 months old, the casino has already grown into a popular destination for gamblers in Europe and Nordic countries. It joins its sister casinos, Africasino, Spintropolis, and Nordicasino, that have also been benefitting from Betsoft’s outstanding casino game titles.

“With the promise of VIP support, the biggest names in slots, and a strong promotional calendar, Superlines has attracted an extremely loyal and varied audience in a very short time,” Miguel Micallef, Betsoft’s account manager said. “To keep all kinds of players engaged, and to offer something new to everyone, every visit, Superlines now needs to acquire and promote a portfolio of high-quality games from industry-leading brands. Betsoft is pleased to be able to offer the right mix of quality and variety to meet the needs of their discerning player base.”

Superlines will now be the only one reaping huge perks from this new partnership – the arrangement will allow Betsoft’s new games to quickly and easily get integrates with Superlines casino’s platform. According to Arik Weiss, Superlines’ chief marketing officer, key Betsoft titles will still be featured prominently in advertisements as part of the platform’s customer acquisition strategy.

“Casino Superlines is a successful new brand: it has achieved wide exposure and attracted a lot of loyal players since its launch. Those players see the Betsoft logo as a seal of quality, so by promoting Betsoft games in premium positions, we will be able to attract more of them to the best new titles, as well ensuring that we deliver a top-class gaming experience at every turn,” Weiss explained.

Betsoft’s “Games of Fortune” Slots to Feature in $1,000 Slots Tournament

Intertops Poker and Juicy Stakes Casino customers will this week be given the opportunity to earn points for the $1,000 tournament by playing three of Betsoft’s popular Games of Fortune slots. They are Reels of Wealth, Treasure Room, and Royal Reels. The Betsoft games were picked specifically because of their unique bonus features. However, players will also get to pick from a wide selection of unique online slots and table games from other reputable game developers such as Worldmatch and Lucktap.

So, if you want to get in on the action you have between May 21 and Sunday 27 to do so. Players earn a single point for every spin worth $0.10 or more any of the games that will be featured on the $1000 slots tournament.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Venturing into the Cryptocurrency Space

Posted on May 19, 2018 by Aaron Decker

In September last year, JPMorgan Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon referred to bitcoin as a “stupid” and “dangerous” thing and that he would fire in a second anyone caught selling or buying the decentralized digital currency. Like many of his prominent counterparts in the global finance industry, his sentiments about crypto carried a lot of weight. The perceived threat that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies pose to the financial world has been a knee jack reaction that can mostly be attributed to the rapid growth and subsequent widespread adoption of crypto.

However, Dimon’s stance appears to have changed. JPMorgan is now looking into the applications of cryptocurrencies despite their purported threat to the financial industry’s business model. The move begun with a high-level reshuffling that involved the shifting of Oliver Harris to a cryptocurrency strategy position within the investment bank – Oliver Harris is a former Fintech and In-Residence initiative head. In his new role, Harris will be looking into the risks and rewards that are associated with digital assets and blockchain technology.

Just recently, Goldman Sachs got into crypto by setting up a bitcoin trading desk and hiring Justin Schmidt, a trader specializing in exchanging cryptocurrencies. To many, this seems to be the motivation behind JPMorgan’s surprising change of heart, especially when putting into consideration its CEO’s harsh remarks towards bitcoin just a few months ago.

“The Bitcoin to me was always what the governments are gonna feel about Bitcoin as it gets really big, and I just have a different opinion than other people. I’m not interested that much in the subject at all. The blockchain is real. You can have crypto yen and dollars and stuff like that. ICO’s you have to look at individually,” Jamie Dimon recanted his previous statements during an interview with Fox in January 2018.

JPMorgan ranks as the world’s 10th largest financial services company by revenue which makes it one of the financial industry’s biggest names alongside the likes of Goldman Sachs. As such, their entry into crypto will certainly have a profound avalanche effect as far as the adoption of crypto among Wall Street companies goes.

Huawei to Offer BTC.com Bitcoin Wallets to Users in China

Posted on May 12, 2018May 12, 2018 by Aaron Decker

According to a report by Bloomberg, Huawei, the third largest phone maker in the world will be installing bitcoin wallets on its phones in a bid to tap China’s brisling cryptocurrency market. Regardless of the stringent rules imposed by the Chinese government to crack down on crypto trading and Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), the cryptocurrency market continues to thrive since owning the digital currencies has not been deemed illegal.

The bitcoin wallet will debut on Huawei’s newly launched app store known as the Huawei AppGallery – it will, however, come pre-installed in all the new smartphones that the company will release. It is anticipated bitcoin wallet app will have the most impact in China where Huawei happens to be the leading smartphone seller.

People in China have little to no access to apps from other parts of the world because the country’s government has blocked access to the Google Play Store and parts of Apple’s App Store, a move that has limited access to a vast array of crypto-related services. Well, not anymore.

“BTC.com is democratizing Bitcoin by breaking down barriers to entry and ensuring new users can access Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash in a simple, secure and trusted environment,” said Alejandro de la Torre, VP of Business Operations at BTC.com. “China is almost a ‘cashless economy’ today, accounting for almost 62% of all global mobile transactions. This dwarfs the estimated $49.3 billion in total mobile payment transactions in the United States in 2017, which highlights the amazing opportunity cryptocurrencies have in replacing fiat currency as the currency of choice for mobile payments. Huawei is leading the way in terms of adoption of blockchain technologies, and we’re excited to bring BTC.com to Huawei’s user base for the first time.”

BTC.com is a platform that allows users to safely store their private keys thus granting them full control of their cryptocurrencies. A huge chunk of the world’s population uses mobile devices to access the internet, something that has propelled the popularity of cryptocurrencies and mobile payment services.

In China, for instance, 95 percent of the internet users access online services on mobile smartphones. This new partnership between Huawei and BTC.com is a well-timed move that will get more internet and crypto users on board. The bitcoin wallet both companies will be bringing to the users will allow users to easily and securely send and receive Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.

“Cryptocurrencies have recently expanded the human understanding of digital economy at a large scale. From our leadership position in China, the tip of the spear of mobile payments, we expect to see massive growth in global cryptocurrency adoption habits in the near future. That is the reason why Huawei selected BTC.com as our recommended quality app to manage digital currencies. In addition to being simple and secure to use, BTC.com offers an exclusive reward to all AppGallery users by gifting a starting amount of cryptocurrency,” Dr. Jaime Gonzalo, VP of Huawei Mobile Services said about the partnership.

Penn National Partners with Lightning Box for Online Slots

Posted on May 5, 2018June 6, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Renowned US-based gaming operator, Penn Interactive Ventures (PIV), has recently announced that it has inked a long-term deal with Lightning Box, an Australian-based slots developer. The partnership deal which was struck through Penn National Gaming (PNG), Penn Interactive Ventures’ digital subsidiary, will see to the launch of a number of new titles on PNG online casinos and this will begin as early as this year.

During the initial stages of the rollout of the new titles, they will be limited to social casino platforms. However, the ultimate goal for both companies is to penetrate the real-money space which they will gradually migrate to. Penn Interactive Ventures has been quite busy in the past couple of years – this particular deal represents a small but relevant piece of a larger expansion that has involved partnerships and major deals with a number of land-based and digital operators.

Lightning Box has also been extending its reach to the American space with Penn being among its growing list of partners. The company has already accrued a ton of experience in both the free-to-play and paid platforms and this makes it a perfect partner for Penn.

“Lightning Box’s gaming content is proven across real-money and social gaming platforms. And with its already established U.S. credentials, we look forward to working together for the foreseeable future,” said Penn Interactive Ventures’ Managing Director, Chris Sheffield.

As far as what the deal has in store for customers goes, a decent number of Lightning Box’s titles will be availed on Penn National Gaming online library sometime this year. The first and one of the most popular Lightning Box games titled Chilli Gold will be going live on Penn’s online casino library in the third quarter of 2018. Chilli Gold will then be followed by Respin Rhinos, Dolphin Gold, Silver Lion and many other titles from the slots developer’s 50-title library.

All the titles mentioned above will launch on three of Penn Interactive Venture’s social casino platforms namely: Viva Slots, Big Bonus Slots, and Hollywood Casino. As mentioned earlier, all these will be free-to-play products.

Bitcoin Gambling: Why Online Gamblers are Moving to Bitcoin

Posted on May 3, 2018June 5, 2018 by Aaron Decker

If you’re an active member of the online gambling community, you may have noticed an increase in the number of bitcoin gamblers and casinos offering bitcoin of late. Why is bitcoin gambling suddenly all the rage, and will it continue to grow? Should you be involved in bitcoin gaming? You may have asked yourself those very questions. Fortunately, we have answers to those questions and the future of bitcoin gambling as a whole.

While trying to answer why online gamblers are suddenly moving to bitcoin technology, we’re going to have to look at several different aspects of bitcoin gambling. We need to see how it has improved since it debuted, what makes it appealing, and where it is going. To begin with, let’s start by looking at bitcoin accessibility.

Bitcoin Accessibility

Bitcoin gambling was initially a niche field. Why? Well, bitcoins were niche themselves. Initially, people heard the words “blockchain” and “mining” and realised that they were way out of their depth. Few of us had any idea how to obtain bitcoins, and nobody we knew had access to them. That has all changed now, though.

Bitcoin exchanges are currently all the rage and present players with a simple and easy way to get hold of bitcoins. Since you no longer need to mine bitcoins to possess them, more and more of us are starting to get involved in the bitcoin craze. Buying cryptocurrencies from marketplaces has triggered a frenzy with many players now snapping up bitcoins left, right and centre. The more accessible bitcoins become via markets, the more people are going to acquire them. With more people purchasing bitcoins, they are going to need something to invest them on, and many online casinos have locked on to that idea and are now starting to offer bitcoin gaming, with some even developing in-site exchanges.

Geographical Restrictions Become Null and Void

The gambling world is not as free and liberal as you might like to think. In fact, people in many countries are still not entitled to gamble online. Because of harsh gambling laws, many gamblers must play at dodgy, often blacklisted casino sites which are not adequately regulated (if at all), as they are the only online casinos which accept them.

Bitcoin casinos provide a certain degree of anonymity, and this itself allows players to find ways around geographical restrictions and national gambling laws. Since there is that degree of anonymity, most major bitcoin casinos and betting sites will accept players irrespective of where they reside. As you can imagine, this has turned many players in countries where geographical gambling restrictions are in place to lean towards bitcoin sites.

What happens if the authorities start blacklisting bitcoin sites, so you can’t access them? A handy VPN (virtual private network) should bypass those blacklists, ensuring that you will continue to be able to play at any bitcoin site and that there is precious little any authority can do to stop you.

Changing the Way Deposits and Withdrawals Work

Online casinos offering instant deposit times is not a new concept. In fact, most deposit options at an online casino provide instantaneous deposit times. It is the withdrawal times that tend to be a pain for many players. Fortunately, bitcoin transactions have found a way around that, and that makes bitcoin betting very agreeable to players.

You can often skip verification processes (bitcoin casino gaming can be anonymous, remember) and since that pending period is not required, and KYC (know your customer) protocols are practically non-existent, your withdrawals will be instant. Allowing for a time margin of a few hours to land in your bitcoin wallet, these represent the quickest ways to get hold of your winnings, further boosting the appeal of bitcoin gambling.

Improved Security and Fair Play

When they first started, bitcoin betting sites were unlicensed and not entirely secure. The list of complaints about rigged games was seemingly endless. In a little over two years, we’ve seen a radical turnaround. Surprisingly, many bitcoin sites are not only regulated, but some carry a seal of approval. This seal of approval is known as “Provably Fair”.

This Provably Fair “organisation” for lack of a better word, keeps track on bitcoin casinos and ensures that they are adhering to a predefined set of rules and regulations. In short, they essentially promise that any bitcoin betting site bearing this seal of approval offers transparent and fair gaming. They achieve this by examining the games, and how they work in a process known as cryptography. Analysing the blockchain for transaction histories also allows experts to gauge whether anybody wins and whether betting sites process many withdrawal transactions.

It may not be the same as a bona fide license, but the Provably Fair mark reassures players that the bitcoin betting site they are choosing is safe, secure and adheres to fair play.

Licensed Bitcoin Casinos May Become a Reality

The holy grail for bitcoin betting is to find a bitcoin casino which carries a proper gambling license from a world-renowned and internationally recognised licensing jurisdiction. That is becoming closer to reality. Over the last year, the Maltese Government has been considering making digital currencies legal. As you can imagine, this potentially opens a realm of possibilities for casinos licensed by the MGA (Maltese Gaming Authority).

If this does indeed happen, it will create a whole new angle for bitcoin casino gaming from a legal perspective. We would likely see many more established online casinos with Maltese gambling licenses start to offer bitcoin currency options, provided there were no national restrictions in their operational countries to prohibit this. More importantly, we would see legitimate and well-supported bitcoin betting sites obtain one of the internet world’s most respected licenses to add to their Provably Fair mark. Such a move would undoubtedly convince many gamblers who were sitting on the fence that bitcoin betting is the real deal.

Bitcoin Gambling is More Accessible for Start-Ups

Bitcoin gambling is certainly not limited to the big boys. In the online casino world, most of the more popular betting sites are those casinos and sportsbooks which have high-street outlets, television advertisement campaigns, billboards or a long history. They are the sites which carry the best games from the most prominent names.

The bitcoin betting world doesn’t have to be that way, though. In fact, many bitcoin casino sites are small-scale operations, started by private individuals. Yes, you always run the risk that these are going to turn out to be “shifty”, but many authentic start-up casinos can appear, especially since, at present, they do not need to pay vast sums of money to obtain gambling licenses. This flurry of small-scale bitcoin betting sites has tweaked the interest of many casino enthusiasts and represents something new for the industry. Many players are growing tired of the same old games at the same sites, and the originality that small start-up bitcoin casinos (and their homebrew games) offer has proven very appealing.

If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them

When threatened by an emerging market such as the bitcoin gambling world, many of the internet’s top software providers and casinos have panicked. We’ve already seen several online casinos ditch their conventional currency options and setup, opting to thoroughly and radically transform into bitcoin casinos instead. By becoming a bitcoin site, doing away with licenses drops their expenses, and with companies such as BetSoft offering quality bitcoin-friendly games to those sites, some of the most prominent casinos have jumped ship and made the transition rather quickly.

By doing this, these casinos have enhanced the competition, giving potential bitcoin gamblers more choice. What began as a niche concept has now spread, and the more casinos with big reputations which make the change, the quicker online casino players will follow. Don’t be surprised if this trend continues, as we see more and more casinos swayed into offering bitcoin gambling to stave off the threat of this emerging market. As the old saying goes, “if you can’t beat them, join them”.

Bitcoin Promotions are on the Rise

The very first bitcoin casinos couldn’t offer players promotions and bonuses like non-cryptocurrency casinos could. Gradually, those that did couldn’t offer players much mileage with their promos, either. That, too, has started to change.

The introduction of “faucet systems” has undoubtedly helped. These promos provide a minimal sum of cryptocurrency cash for players at bitcoin betting sites on a daily basis. More importantly, they often come free of any entanglements, such as wagering requirements and playthrough rates. That has been a significant selling point to anybody thinking of joining bitcoin sites.

If that wasn’t enough, the advent of proper welcome bonuses has pushed the bitcoin casino agenda further. Considering that sizeable new player deals are often one of the main reasons why people choose one casino over another, being able to bag a welcome bonus encourages players to join bitcoin gambling sites.

Other Cryptocurrencies Create Competition

Bitcoin is just one cryptocurrency. If you were a user of another form of cryptocurrency (and there are many), it is unlikely that you’re going to be considering shifting over to bitcoin just to bet at a particular site. Most likely, players would continue to use USD, EUR, GBP or other currencies at standard online casinos. Bitcoin gambling sites have got around this issue by starting to add other cryptocurrencies to their list of accepted payment methods. It is not uncommon to find newer bitcoin casinos and betting sites which also accept:

– Ethereum

– Bitcoin Cash

– Litecoin

– Dogecoin

– and others

There aren’t too many casinos dedicated explicitly to those other less popular cryptocurrencies. However, by not forcing players to choose one cryptocurrency method over another, it is entirely possible that bitcoin gambling sites have encouraged more players to play with them instead of regular online casino sites.

Kinks That Require Ironing Out

Bitcoin betting sites still aren’t perfect, and they don’t have everything their way right now. There are a few kinks which need ironing out if bitcoin gambling sites are to blossom.

Firstly, there is the possibility of delays with withdrawal transactions. If you want your withdrawal processed rapidly, you’ll often need to pay a fee to a miner (his cut, if you will) to get the transaction going. Cashouts which offer little or nothing for a miner will often just end up pending, possibly indefinitely. Most bitcoin casinos get around this by taking a cut of your withdrawal (a withdrawal fee) and having their team process the transaction. If they don’t, you may end up losing a sizeable chunk of your winnings to pay miners to handle your cashout.

Bitcoin is also a volatile currency. The market fluctuated substantially in the latter part of 2017. We saw bitcoin’s value soar before it dropped rapidly around Christmas. When this happens, the bitcoin betting industry suffers just like any other industry. However, with so many countries fiercely opposed to bitcoin, if the market crashes, the entire industry goes down with it. When it soars, more and more players are tempted to get involved in bitcoin betting.

Lastly, there are no player protection policies at casinos or with bitcoin in general. If your wallet becomes hijacked or you “misplace” your bitcoins, then you’ve lost the lot. No bitcoin casinos guarantee players their purse, so, errors can prove costly. At least with online casinos, the sites can safeguard your wallet.

Bitcoin Gambling Will Continue to Grow

Will the bottom fall out of the bitcoin gambling industry? That seems most unlikely. Bitcoin gambling is rapidly on the rise, as you can see from all the points mentioned above. Many are likening bitcoin gambling to the growth of the mobile gaming industry. Sure, it took ten years for mobile gaming to cement its spot, but it is now on-par with online gaming. Some even believe it has already surpassed it. Do not be surprised if bitcoin gambling continues to grow and outpace them both. Better yet, based on the growth of both bitcoin and mobile gaming, we could be faced with the prospect of mobile bitcoin gambling reigning supreme in the future. Now, wouldn’t that be something?

As you can see, cryptocurrency gambling is at an all-time high. Long gone are the days of minuscule, untrustworthy, private websites offering you nothing but a few lacklustre dice games. Major software developers, licensing jurisdictions and casinos are now looking at bitcoin gambling as their future. For all the reasons we’ve mentioned above, you might very well decide to get involved, too.

Bitcoin Casinos: Things You Need to Know Before Investing in.

Posted on May 3, 2018June 5, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Bitcoin casino gaming is on the rise, and many adventurous players are starting to take the plunge. Of course, many of the players who decide to try their hand at bitcoin casinos are doing so because they cannot play online in their own country. Various national gambling laws and geo-restrictions may inhibit their ability to gamble online. Bitcoin casinos, with the anonymity that they provide, offer a way around that.

It isn’t just players in restricted gambling countries who play at bitcoin casinos, though. Anybody who fancies a different way to play, an arguably freer and more private way to play, can get involved in bitcoin online casino gambling. There are things you need to know before investing in bitcoin casinos, though. Let’s look at some of the more important ones.

How to Get Hold of Bitcoins

One of the most common questions bitcoin newbies will ask is, where do I find bitcoins? Since bitcoin gambling has become more mainstream, the number of places you can snap up bitcoins have increased. Initially, you had to mine to bag bitcoins – and that was a challenging process in and of itself – but no more.

One of the more straightforward ways to obtain bitcoins is to use a marketplace. Websites such as Coinbase allow you to snap up bitcoins from sellers using a digital wallet. You can buy and sell most major cryptocurrencies there, so it isn’t just limited to bitcoins. Getting a free digital wallet with them may be the way to go, mainly since over 8.5 million people use this option to trade bitcoins. Other exchanges and marketplaces exist, too, if Coinbase doesn’t tickle your fancy.

Exchanges also exist at select bitcoin casinos. Although they are not found at all bitcoin casinos, some sites allow players to purchase bitcoins directly through them, and players can then use those bitcoins to play at the casino in question. All you need is your bank card, a bitcoin wallet and an account with the said casino.

Alternatively, some ATMs also sell bitcoin. That is a lot rarer since many countries have actively banned bitcoins. However, you can always check if your state has ATMs which offer bitcoin. If they do, they can be bought using your bank card and then transferred to your bitcoin e-wallet.

There are ample ways you can sort yourself out with bitcoins. Once you’ve got your bitcoins, you’re almost ready to start playing. Before that, though, you need to learn a bit of the lingo.

Bitcoin Terminology

The last thing you want is to start betting at a bitcoin casino and have no idea what people are talking about, especially when it comes to terms and conditions. There are a few little things you need to know when it comes to bitcoin jargon and terminology.

Bitcoin glossaries exist across the net, but most go far too in-depth for your average bitcoin casino user. You don’t need to know the ins and outs of bitcoin terminology to start playing at casinos, just the basics will do, such as:

Bit: The denomination of bitcoins equal to 100 satoshis (one-millionth of a bitcoin)
BTC: This stands for bitcoin. When you see something such as 3BTC, it means three bitcoins. One bitcoin equals 100,000,000 satoshis.
Blockchain: The public ledger containing all bitcoin transactions.
Miners: Individuals who process bitcoin transactions and add them to the blockchain, often in exchange for a small predetermined cut of the total transaction.
Mining: The process by which a miner “obtains” bitcoins by processing transactions and adding them to the blockchain.
Satoshi: The smallest bitcoin unit, with each bitcoin being worth 1 million satoshis.
Satoshi Nakamoto: The founder of bitcoin, or at least a pseudonym, but nobody knows for sure whom (or how many people) was involved in its creation.
Transaction Fee: Miners will typically require a “fee” for processing your transaction and adding it to the blockchain. Most bitcoin users will usually add a little extra to their transaction, as miners are more likely to handle transactions faster if there is something in it for them.

Of course, it isn’t going to hurt to get a little more in-depth with bitcoin terminology if you want to learn about cryptocurrencies in detail, but you shouldn’t need anything more than the above to go about gambling at a bitcoin casino.

Cryptocurrency Markets Are Volatile

Of course, it is worth noting that cryptocurrency markets are incredibly volatile. That is mostly because (like the stock exchange) the market is speculative. The more places and merchants which accept bitcoin, the more stable it will become. However, for now, being a risky investment, bitcoin markets are likely to rise and fall with uncertainty. Casino players need to be aware of this before they get involved in bitcoin casino gambling.

There is beauty in the idea of a free currency which is not beholden to any bank or government, and that makes many people interested in the concept. However, you always take the risk that the bottom will fall out eventually. We got a taste of this in late 2017, when the value of bitcoin rose dramatically, only before sharply falling. It has since levelled out again, bringing relief to bitcoin casino gamblers across the net.

Bitcoin Casino Legality, Safety and Security

Bitcoin casinos fit into all sorts of grey zones when it comes to legality, safety and security. On the one hand, most are open to accepting everyone and anyone, on the basis that they are not tied down by licensing jurisdictions and that they offer relatively anonymous gameplay. The downside to this is that if they are not licensed, they probably aren’t properly regulated, either.

If you are going to play at a bitcoin casino which doesn’t showcase properly licensing information, you should look for another mark of certification. One such way to go about this is to look for the Provably Fair accreditation. This organization has taken it upon themselves to establish a set of ground rules that all bitcoin casinos bearing its mark must adhere to. That essentially means that they must showcase that they are audited, that they offer fair play gaming, and that they are committed to paying out winnings to players.

In lieu of other safety and security hallmarks, such as valid gambling licenses and certifications from other guarantors of secure and safe gaming, we would always advise all players to play at a Provably Fair bitcoin casino. Fortunately, it is relatively easy to check out if your chosen bitcoin casino bears this hallmark. Look at their lobby/homepage. Any bitcoin casino which is certified by Provably Fair will display their certificate as a way of easing any players’ qualms about security and safety at the site.

Judging Worthy Bitcoin Casino Sites

Even if you can identify the Provably Fair mark at a bitcoin casino, you may wish to check out alternative sources to ensure that you are playing at a top-notch bitcoin casino. Knowing a little bit about where you are playing before you decide to invest in bitcoin casinos is essential to avoid any nasty surprises.

One of your first ports of call should be to casino review sites, particularly unbiased ones that review bitcoin casinos fairly. A good bitcoin casino review will not only highlight the positive features of a casino, but they will also detail the negative aspects of it, too. They will go into detail about what kinds of features the gambling site carries, the games they offer, the promos they can deliver, and their reputation as compared to other places.

A number of these sites will also offer free play bitcoin games, allowing you to get a taste of the selection of games a site carries before you invest your bitcoins there. They will also offer you “seals of approval” which is a review site’s way of ensuring players that they have done their homework and their due diligence to ensure that a casino they are promoting is safe and secure.

There are countless sites out there which allow players to provide feedback (in the form of complaints) against bitcoin casinos, too. It is worth checking to make sure that any casino you may decide to play at doesn’t have a lengthy selection of bad reports, negative complaints or issues of mistrust. That is mostly the same procedure we would advise players to do before they signed up at any casino site, although since most bitcoin casinos are unlicensed, this goes double for these domains.

Some Casinos are “Bitcoin Also” Instead of “Bitcoin-Only”

There are two types of bitcoin casino sites out there. There are ones which we can call “bitcoin only”, and those which we prefer to call “bitcoin also”. As you can imagine, the former only accepts bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies as their currency and banking options. You cannot use any other form of currency at these sites.

It may be easier for you to start out with bitcoin casino gambling by joining the latter, though. What we call “bitcoin also” sites. These offer bitcoin as one of several accepted currency options and banking options. By choosing these sites, you can make the change to bitcoin casino gaming gradually, allowing yourself an acclimatization period, if you will.

Bitcoin Casinos Can Still See You Play with US Dollars

A good number of bitcoin casinos don’t just accept bitcoin, as we’ve said. Some, although advertised as bitcoin casinos, don’t allow players to use bitcoins to make their bets. Sure, players will deposit using bitcoins, but those bitcoins are then converted into a more conventional gaming currency, such as US dollars, when you want to play the games. When it comes time to withdraw, the casino will convert the US dollar currency back into bitcoins for you. That is a very common practice amongst many bitcoin casinos. So, if you were concerned about how betting on slots with satoshis works, there is an extreme likelihood that you’ll still be betting in US dollars or other more straightforward currencies if this makes things easier for you.

There Are Other Cryptocurrencies You Can Play With

Bitcoins may not be for you; perchance you favour another cryptocurrency? Just because a casino advertises itself as a bitcoin casino, doesn’t mean that they don’t carry other cryptocurrency methods. In fact, most of the more prominent bitcoin casinos will also permit players to deposit using Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Dogecoins and others. If you are more comfortable using another cryptocurrency, there are ample bitcoin casinos out there that will let you do that.

Bitcoin Casino Gaming Is Not Perfect…Yet

Bitcoin gaming is on the rise, but it is not, however, perfect. There are still a few things that the industry needs to work on. Although the Provably Fair system has done a lot of groundwork in ensuring that bitcoin casinos are somewhat audited and certified, there are still kinks there. Until bitcoin casinos become fully licensed (and they may do), there is still that air of insecurity surrounding them. Moreover, until the market becomes more stable (it will if more merchants and shops allow users to pay in bitcoins), there is a degree of volatility which you may find troubling.

Bitcoin casinos are an investment which can pay off, but only if you pay attention to how cryptocurrencies work, and you understand what you’re getting yourself in for. Provided you do your homework, though, and pay attention to what you’ve learned; you can find bitcoin casinos one of the most exciting and accessible online casino gambling experiences you can have.

Over 600 Bitcoin Users File Lawsuit Against Bitcoin.com

Posted on April 28, 2018May 16, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Bitcoin.com is without a doubt one of the most prized domains in the cryptocurrency space especially because it is the go-to website for anyone who is interested in learning about bitcoin. The first result that people get when they google “buy bitcoin” is buy.bitcoin.com. On clicking the link, the users are then navigated to a page with two logos which at first glance are quite similar – one logo shows the user the option to buy Bitcoin Cash while the other is for Bitcoin Core. Bicoin.com is the only site that uses the Bitcoin Core moniker for bitcoin (BTC) and this is where the problem is.

In just two days, a “community movement” has amassed over 600 members in an effort to pursue legal action against Bitcoin.com and Roger Ver, its owner and CEO. The movement is accusing the website and its owner for deliberately misleading new cryptocurrency users into buying Bitcoin Cash (BCH) instead of regular bitcoin (BTC).

So far, the group has not disclosed the law firm they have contacted to help with the lawsuit but they did reveal that it is based in St. Kitts, a Caribbean island where, apparently, the Bitcoin.com is also registered. Already the movement has seen to the creation of an official website called bitcoincomlawsuit.info which launched on Friday. People who have complaints or have lost money from Bitcoin.com can submit their evidence and be part of the lawsuit in the newly launched website.

“A group of 600+ participants from influential industry leaders to community volunteers & contributors who devote to protect users from fraudulent businesses and help victims recover lost funds,” reads the website’s description.

The Takeaway

One thing that is clear as far as this lawsuit and other associated issues go is the fact that determining the digital currency that can hold the title of ‘Bitcoin’ is more challenging than expected. Experts will, of course, see it as an obvious thing but it will certainly be harder for newcomers to separate what is real and what is not.

Bitcoin Cash’s has been quite successful, to say the least – despite not being the behemoth that bitcoin is, the digital currency that was forked from bitcoin itself has had a huge impact on the cryptocurrency community as a whole. Nonetheless, there is only one bitcoin and that is the currency with the highest market cap as well as the most overall community and mainstream support. So, while it is possible, the idea that an altcoin like Bitcoin Cash will dethrone bitcoin is an over-ambitious one.

Mt. Gox Ex-CEO Mark Karpeles Lands New CTO Job

Posted on April 21, 2018 by Aaron Decker

The crypto world has had its fair share of drama in the past couple of years but one of the most significant events is the theft of 850,000 bitcoins from Mt. Gox which was once the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. As the Chief Executive of the exchange at the time, Mark Karpeles was held responsible for the loss of the bitcoins as well as the exchange’s bankruptcy. While the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange recovered 200,000 bitcoins, it did not help the situation with Karpeles facing criminal charges and being jailed for nearly a year. An ongoing investigation linked a United Kingdom-based company to the theft of the remaining 650,000 bitcoins.

Karpeles is still facing criminal charges in Japan and thus he is not allowed to leave the country. Regardless, the infamous ex-CEO has been trying to start over with a clean slate.

“I have no way to be sure that I’ll still be able to work in one year, two years. So I cannot really get a normal full-time job”, he said in March in an interview with Fortune.

He has previously confirmed that he has been juggling a number of IT-related jobs that revolve mostly around cryptocurrency and networking. However, his most recent revelation is by far the most interesting. Karpeles has been appointed to a C-level position as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for London Trust Media, the world’s leading virtual private network (VPN) service provider.

London Trust Media doubles up as an investment company, particularly in cryptocurrency – it was an early investor in Zcash, a privacy-focused digital coin, and also backs Purse, a startup that allows its users to purchase items on Amazon using bitcoin.

“Mark fought and fell. And although he fell, his skills, experience, and know-how unarguably continue to exist. And so, bringing in a seasoned warrior makes perfect sense to me. I am more than willing to give a second chance to Mark in this fight’s critical hour. I wouldn’t dare say that the person who architected the Titanic should never again architect another ship,” said London Trust Media co-founder and former head of Mt. Gox’s North American operations, Andrew Lee.

Karpeles will be working remotely from Japan since, as mentioned earlier, he is still facing criminal charges and thus he cannot legally leave the country. Also, even though his role as London Trust Media CTO will involve oversight over the companies cryptocurrency-related interests, Karpeles has made it clear that he has lost faith in bitcoin and wants very little to do with the cryptocurrency industry.

“The only thing I’m touching related to cryptocurrency is how to solve this bankruptcy – Nothing more,” Karpeles stated.
“Bitcoin right now is, I believe, doomed. Its original promise of being the future of currency is clearly out of reach.”

Author: Aaron Decker