Bitcoin Casino News

Bitcoin Price Spikes As Crypto Market Finds Momentum

Posted on July 17, 2018July 16, 2018 by Abe Efe

The past few days have been great for bitcoin as big-money investors have started looking into getting involved in crypto. Bitcoin, which is considered to be the mother of all digital currencies has gained close to four percent in the past day. This follows a week of stability in the $250 billion region which has contributed to a solid momentum that the crypto market has begun to demonstrate – in fact, it is possible the bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash have already initiated the rally that is required to propel the market towards and beyond the $300 billion mark.

Bitcoin’s Steady Rise

Starting from earlier yesterday, bitcoin’s rose by over $200 from an initial $6,300 and clocking in at just over $6,600. Considering its current price level, bitcoin is expected to see one of its most significant price upswings in two weeks, gaining close to 4 percent in value.

June was not a particularly great month for bitcoin, with the digital currency dipping below the $6,000 mark not once but twice thus setting a new all-time low record for 2018. However, things seemed to take a turn for the better at the start of July with bitcoin being on a bit of a resurgence that saw it peak at $6,800 on July 8. This upward trend was unfortunately interrupted by a single but significant pullback that saw it lose nearly all of the price gains it had attained during the first few days of July.

After that, bitcoin came dangerously close to falling below the $6,000 mark but this has since been evaded in the past few weeks. Therefore, amidst the steady growth we have seen since July 13, yesterday’s surge may be just what is needed to push its price higher towards the $6,900 resistance level.

Institutional Investors Trouping In

Bitcoin’s price upsurge has partly been attributed to the fact that the crypto space and bitcoin are beginning to become more and more appealing to investors especially due to the emergence of trading futures. Trading futures contracts is considered to be the safer and more advantageous options by traders since it is an efficient asset to hedge the price of bitcoin as it rises and falls.

“We see continued growth both in terms of the average daily volume and open interest,” said Tim McCourt, group global head of equity products and alternative investments at the Chicago-based CME Group. “The volume has steadily increased compared to when it was first launched in December. This is not a one-sided product because we have both supply and demand. Customer demand is strong because the relationship between the futures and cash market have a tight basis spread.”

A Look into Microgaming’s Robin of Sherwood Online Slot

Posted on July 14, 2018 by Aaron Decker

Microgaming has been in the online gambling scene for quite some time and while it may seem like the age of innovation in regards to online gaming is practically over, the company still often manages to surprise their fans and slot machine enthusiasts with some additional slot games dress in various themes. The most recent addition into their pretty neat portfolio of themed online slots machines is titled “Robin of Sherwood” and it takes players to a forest in England where Robin Hood, the most famous and “noble” criminal lives.

Developed by Rabcat, Microgaming’s Robin of Sherwood online slot sees a band of merry men helping the players to trigger special wild symbols, free spins, and a Gamble Game feature. There are certainly a number of slot machines that are based on the exciting adventures of Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men, but Robin of Sherwood is a total re-imagination of the story laid out in a graphically rich manner with cool features and captivating designs just like all other Microgaming offerings albeit with a touch of an amazing array of extra features.

The forest is vividly depicted and players can even see characters from Robin Hood’s story in the reels. In general, expect nothing less than the ultimate cross-over of exciting adventure and great storytelling.

“Our striking depiction of the legendary Robin of Sherwood delivers a cutting-edge gaming experience packed with thrilling features, flawless character animations, and a volley of winning opportunities. We are delighted to supply Microgaming with exclusive gaming content that hits the mark with players and operators alike,” commented Rabcat founder and chief executive Thomas Schleischitz.

Game Details

Robin of Sherwood is a 5 by 3 slot with 234 pay lines and is filled with cartoon images of the story’s characters, as well as arrows, targets, and flags. The online slot’s playing card symbols are represented in the form of colorful flags with lower-value wins being claimed when 3 or more land in any of the places adjacent reels from the left side. Robin, Friar, the Sheriff, Little John and Maid Marion return higher prizes while the arrows are a wild symbol that can act as any of the previously mentioned symbols and therefore be used to complete combinations.

The game’s Wild Turning feature is also one of the game’s best highlights – when it is triggered, players will see Robin Hood ordering his men to fire arrows into selected reels and when the arrows hit the reels they turn into Wilds. These Wilds will increase a player’s chances of winning great prizes significantly.

Furthermore, landing three or more scatter symbols will trigger the extra spins feature. This earns a player ten additional free spins.

Another special feature that players should look out for is the Gamble Game which allows players to gamble their loot and double its size – you could also lose it all, so be careful with this one. With the Gamble Game, the player gets to choose a green or red target and Robin will then try to hit either of them. If he hits the one you selected, your loot is doubled, otherwise, you lose it all. It is that simple!

New Paper Affirms Belief That Bitcoin Will Replace Fiat

Posted on July 10, 2018July 9, 2018 by Abe Efe

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have always had a massive backing which about to grow even bigger thanks to a recent study is carried out by researchers at Imperial College London. According to a paper by the researchers titled “Cryptocurrencies: Overcoming Barriers to Trust and Adoption”, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will be subject to massive adoption as means of paying for goods and services in the coming decade.

The study which was sponsored by eToro focused on various barriers to trust and mainstream adoption of crypto within the current setting. It further listed three main criteria that would propel bitcoin and other digital currencies towards mainstream adoption, that is, ability to act as a store of value, a medium of exchange and a unit of account. While cryptocurrencies have already fulfilled one of the criteria as they are used by millions of people around the world as a store of value, the researchers said they will have to overcome setbacks such as regulation and scalability if they are to fulfill the other two criteria.

“The world of cryptocurrency is evolving as rapidly as the considerable collection of confusing terminology that accompanies it. These decentralized technologies have the potential to upend everything we thought we knew about the nature of financial systems and financial assets,” said Professor William Knottenbelt from Imperial College London. “There’s a lot of skepticism over cryptocurrencies and how they could ever become a day-to-day payment system used by the man on the street. In this research, we show that cryptocurrencies have already made significant headway towards fulfilling the criteria for becoming a widely accepted method of payment.”

eToro, the brokerage firm that facilitated the research believes that bitcoin already exhibits all the important characteristics of money and all that is left is advocacy for mainstream use.

“The first ever bitcoin transaction took place a little over eight years ago, and today we are already seeing it begin to meet the requirements of everyday money. Given the speed of adoption, we believe that we could see Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on the high street within the decade. There are of course barriers to mainstream adoption, but they are far from insurmountable,” Iqbal Gandham, the managing director of EToro UK commented on the research.

Regulation Is the Final Step

Many experts agree that even though bitcoin has already evolved well enough to be considered as a standard means of performing transactions, regulation is the only thing holding it back. If bitcoin and other digital currencies are to become the medium of exchange we are all hoping they will become, then favorable regulations are more than necessary. This is particularly of grave importance since some governments have taken negative stances towards cryptocurrencies especially because they have been used to facilitate criminal activities in the past. With regulation, though, this should not be much of a problem.

Could It Be the End of the Cryptocurrency Era in India?

Posted on July 7, 2018July 7, 2018 by Aaron Decker

This year has not been particularly great for cryptocurrency users in India. This began about three months ago when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made an announcement that it would no longer deal with or provide services to any business entities or individuals dealing with digital currencies. While some of the cryptocurrency exchanges in the country – like BTCXIndia – chose to comply with the RBI’s new regulations, a decent number of the remaining exchanges as well as the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) chose to file a petition regarding the decree at the Supreme Court.

Unfortunately, the petitions did not bear any fruit for the petitioners as, at the end of the hearing, the Supreme Court chose to back the RBI’s stance despite its flaws while at the same time declining to give the exchanges in interim relief. Many proponents of the crypto industry have pointed out that the apex court’s verdict indeed paints a bleak picture of the future of crypto in the country. This sentiment is further amplified by the fact the while the country is seemingly cracking down on the industry, its global counterparts “are currently observing the crypto space more closely and implementing better, more conducive regulation.”

Even though many disagree with the decision that was made by India’s Supreme Court, some stakeholders in the crypto industry still believe that they have a fighting chance – the general idea is that the stance is a temporary one. All the remaining petitions are scheduled to be heard on July 20 and hopefully, more conducive verdicts will be given then.

More Input from the Government May Be Necessary

The government of India has been quite enthusiastic about blockchain technology, the technology that digital currencies are based on, but the same cannot be said when it comes to where they stand as far as the actual digital currencies go. Now, it seems that one of the ways of securing the crypto industry in India would be to rally for clarity in government policy relating to cryptocurrencies.

“By laying a patchwork of laws without an overarching framework or policy, the crypto-industry today is in a uniquely uncomfortable position where it is taxed without being accorded legitimacy as an industry by the parliament. One would hope that the government attempts to take measures to accord legitimacy by legislation that attempts to balance its need for transparency, with the inherent anonymity associated with cryptocurrency trading,” Akash Karmakar, an expert from Veritas Legal said to Entrepreneur India.

Mr. Karmakar called for the government to formulate a policy that “could set out overarching principles accordingly giving legitimacy to the industry, rather than legislating for problems as they occur, and have the law trail the technology.”

There are many other options that cryptocurrency investors can use to trade but it is advisable not to panic yet. Perhaps all that is needed is for some patience as the industry recovers from this setback.

NetEnt Releases Jumanji Online Video Slot

Posted on July 3, 2018July 2, 2018 by Aaron Decker

NetEnt has announced the release of its latest slot game that brings the beloved Sony Entertainment’s classic film Jumanji to slots lovers. Jumanji, the video slot game, combines the classic board game with video slots and triggers an escape of rhinos, wild monkeys, monsoons and sticky vines. Even though the 2017 reboot of the film was hugely successful, NetENt opted to base the video slot game on the original 1995 movie that starred Robin Williams and told the story of a man trapped in a board game that comes to life as you play.

“The Jumanji movie was a great success and we know it has fans all over the world. Making a slot game true to the fantastic features of the movie has been challenging but most of all great fun. We found a way of incorporating both board game features and all the excitement into a slot game and the game has already been well received by players!” Henrik Fagerlund, NetEnt’s chief product officer at said.

What to Expect

NetEnt has outdone itself with this particular offering by bringing its own innovative twist to the universe by transforming by delivering the calamities that befell Alan Parrish (Robin Williams’ character in the movie) to the world of online slots. The five-reel slot game manages to deliver the same excitement that the movie offers and even if you have not watched the movie you will certainly notice this.

The video slot game has 4 random features, these are, a Board Game with four different Free Spins, extra dice rolls, coin wins and a Mystery Feature. The base game’s reels are set up in a 3-4-5-4-3 formation with 36 different fixed pay lines. Also included is an Auto Play feature that allows players to keep spinning with minimal effort. Jumanji starts with traditional slots, lining up J, Q, K, A or pictures of lions, crocodiles, pelicans, and rhinoceros – these are arranged in ascending order with animals being more valuable than letters. In addition to this, there are also wild slots and pictures of the board game that inspired the video slot game.

Fans of the 1995 film will instantly notice four of the slot game’s best features that include: Wild Stampede where Rhinos stampede across the screen as the reels spin, Monkey Mayhem which awards potential wins when the reels stop spinning, Sticky Vines where all symbols that are part of a win and all the Wilds from the initial spin stick to the reels while all other symbols spin again, and Monsoon Winds where a maximum of two reels are completely covered in wilds while the reels spin.

Jumanji joins many other of NetEnt’s branded games that feature in its neat portfolio of movie-themed games like Planet of the Apes, Scarface, and Aliens. Like most of NetEnt’s games, Jumanji is available for both mobile devices and computers.

Facebook Reverses Ban on Some Cryptocurrency Advertisements

Posted on June 30, 2018June 30, 2018 by Abe Efe

Amid the bitcoin frenzy of January this year, social media giant Facebook Inc. made a decision to ban all cryptocurrency advertisements citing the concern that many of the companies in the crypto space at the time were not “operation in good faith.” Since then, it has been a considerably interesting time for Facebook as it struggles with coming to terms with the rapidly growing cryptocurrency market.

All things considered, while the ban may have been a genuine gesture of goodwill by the company to protect its users, the cryptocurrency space has proven time and time again that the potential it has as far as ad revenue goes is too significant to ignore. To this effect, Facebook made yet another big decision on Monday, June 26 when it announced that it was going to reverse the cryptocurrency ad ban immediately.

As expected, the period between the initial announcement of the ban on January and its eventual reversal on June 26 gave the social media platform a lot of time to review a great number of things the most important being how they would ensure that only legitimate crypto businesses get to market their products. Seen as more of caveats, the new ad policies says that the company will only allow advertisements and related content from “pre-approved advisers.” Ads promoting binary options and initial coin offerings (ICOs), on the other hand, will still remain on the not so favorable end of the company’s new crypto ad policy – they will not be allowed.

How It Is Going to Work

Facebook’s plans to only allow the so-called “pre-approved advisers” mentioned earlier by putting interested advertisers through an application that is tailored to determine whether or not they are eligible to advertise on the platform. As part of the application process, the advertisers will be asked to include the licenses they have obtained, whether they are public traded companies as well as other relevant background information regarding their businesses.

As the reversal of the crypto ad ban is still in its earlier stages, the company is yet to make it clear how thoroughly they will fact-check the information that will be provided by the advertisers. However, the company made it clear during the announcement that they would still be relying on users to pinpoint some of the content they do not allow. In essence, this implies that at least a few of the restricted crypto ads are going to make it through the screening process.

“We’ll listen to feedback, look at how well this policy works and continue to study this technology so that, if necessary, we can revise it over time,” Rob Leathern, Product Management Director wrote in Facebook’s announcement.

While many cryptocurrency users have lauded the development, the reversal of the crypto ad ban has also been subjected to some level of skepticism especially because the company has previously announced plans to venture into the cryptocurrency market.

“The reasons for Facebook reversing its decision to ban crypto ads are not clear, but the motivation could have something to do with its own strategy regarding the evolving crypto space. The cryptocurrency ecosystem is expanding rapidly and is growing its footprint in mainstream society, introducing new economic opportunities. We are also seeing regulatory authorities taking steps to provide security to the ecosystem that will, in turn, give strength to the global economy,” says Olyseum CEO, Carlos Grenoir.

Choosing a Crypto Bookmaker for the FIFA World Cup 2018

Posted on June 26, 2018June 25, 2018 by Aaron Decker

We are over a week into the 2018 FIFA World Cup that is currently taking place in Russia and being watched by an audience of more than 3 billion people from all corners of the globe. Like many other sporting events, the World Cup has also been a great opportunity for a little more excitement and side action in the form of sports betting which is enjoyed by a vast number of soccer fans.

Sports betting has been on the rise and even crypto has caught on to the trend. While betting on the previous World Cup was nearly unheard of, specifically because it was still at its infancy, this year’s World Cup is proof that crypto is here to stay – not just as an asset for gambling but also as a mainstream currency.

The debate about the viability of crypto aside, it is quite obvious that crypto sports betting has evolved tremendously in the past four years. As such, instead of worrying about the scarcity of crypto-powered bookmakers, this time around we will only need to stress (just a little) about finding the best one. So, how do you find one?

The Currency You Want to Deal in Matters

Bitcoin is still, without a doubt, the king (or queen) of digital currencies. However, we cannot ignore how important other altcoins are in the crypto ecosystem especially when it comes to betting. Bitcoin betting is still offered in most of the bookmakers but in sites like BetOnline, the punters can bet using Dash Litecoin and Ethereum while other like Bovada and Cloudbet accept bets in Bitcoin Cash. Whichever site you choose, just make sure it supports the digital currency you hold or wish to bet with.

Still, on the digital currencies, we all know how crazily the prices of cryptocurrencies fluctuate. Many gamblers, therefore, prefer to have their digital currencies converted to fiat currencies like the dollar, British Pound or euro once they are deposited. It is advisable to look for bookmakers like Bovada and Pinnacle that allow you to do this.

Go for the Best Promotions

Compared to the traditional online bookmakers, crypto-powered bookmakers usually have rather disappointing promotions especially when it comes to crypto-only sports betting platforms where the users can create multiple accounts. Fortunately, the World Cup has allowed for the creation of an exception – sites like CloudeBet and Nitrogen Sports are currently running World Cup free bet offers and promotions. You are certainly bound to come across more of such sites if you look hard enough.

In conclusion, there are a number of other things that you may need to consider before you settle on a specific crypto bookmaker – these include; how high the betting limits should be, withdrawal speeds and the legality of crypto gambling in your jurisdiction. All these are enough pointers to get you started on your way towards some exciting side action as you enjoy the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

The Best New Online Slot Games in 2018, So Far

Posted on June 23, 2018June 23, 2018 by Abe Efe

As it has always been, there is yet to be a casino game that can beat the sheer variety and range of slots games. There are always more and more online slots games of different varieties and themes being introduced each and every month. While there are always some disappointing variations of the games that disguise themselves in well-worn themes, you will always find a decent number of great online slot games if you look hard enough. The online space has made it very easy for these gems to be accessed from anywhere and therefore all that slot machine enthusiast have to do is to pick a reputable site to play on.

Naturally, considering how vast the online space is, it is something of a challenge in itself to find a great game as well as a great site to play on. Alongside the new slot games that are launched every month, there is also a plethora of online casinos that go live as the online casino market continues its meteoric rise.

Still, slot games are becoming more and more varied and engaging which implies that you are guaranteed of all the perks that you would get to enjoy when playing at a land-based casino. So, today I am going to give you pointers to some of the newest and the best online slot games of the year. This may, of course, change as the year progresses and more innovative and technological improvements are made – but for now, you will not go wrong with these ones.

Wrecking Ball

At first glance, this will not look like a slots game to you. The reels are arranged in four columns, with each column spotting different symbols. Perhaps the biggest highlight of the game is the eponymous wrecking ball that swings across the screen leaving behind a trail of destruction which, fortunately for the player, unravels symbols that usually amount to some huge bonuses.

In addition to this, Wrecking Ball also features a bonus game in which a player can navigate a crane and directing the wrecking ball to different buildings and uncovering more hidden goodies.

Monopoly Hot Shot

There have been several different slot versions of the popular Monopoly board game, for years but this particular variant offers something much different. Monopoly Hot Shot gives you a hybrid package of monopoly and slots while still remaining true to the conventional slots gameplay that we all know and love – it features three reels, nine pay lines as well as “hot shot” mini reels.

Beat Square

This is arguably the best slots game in 2018 – in fact, the skill-based game slots game has already scooped a number of awards including the Best Slot Product for 2018 in the Global Gaming Business magazine-sponsored Gaming and Technology Awards.

It is also the most unique game I have seen so far. This is because it does not even have reals, at least not the traditional ones that we have grown accustomed to. In place of the reels, Beat Square has 16 buttons arranged in a four by four grid that light up to music. The player’s task is to get with the rhythm of the music that will be playing in the course of the game. Hitting the right buttons results in a big payout.

Two Major Russian Banks Piloting Bitcoin & Crypto Portfolios

Posted on June 19, 2018June 18, 2018 by Aaron Decker

According to June 15 Kommersant newspaper report, two of the largest banks in Russia are piloting cryptocurrency portfolios for their private clients and retail investors. The initiative that will be conducted under the watch if the Bank of Russia will involve the Alfa Bank and Sberbank, both of which will be offering the aforementioned private clients shares in a special fund that will be trading the six most popular digital currencies on some of the major cryptocurrency exchanges including Bitstamp and Kraken.

“We’d like to offer our clients an absolutely transparent way to invest in digital assets with a full compliance with regulations that will let them invest in the product they are interested in Russia,” Sberbank Private Banking deputy chair Ana Ivanchuk said.

Sberbank is the main state-owned bank, and thus, it is the Russian government’s primary employee paycheck processor. Alfa Bank, on the other hand, is the country’s largest private bank. Both plan to venture into cryptocurrency trading with the help of AddCapital investment fund, Group IB, and the National Settlement Depository. Add Capital is one of the entities that will be immensely helpful to the venture – the investment fund previously participated in the recent pre-sale of Telegram tokens and in this case, it will be in charge of the technical solutions for the banks’ project.

“Digital financial assets will sooner or later become a large part of the global economy and cannot be ignored. Our goal is to speed-up the recognition of the digital assets as legitimate financial assets as soon as possible,” the manager of Alfa Bank’s private banking branch, Anton Rakhmanov pointed out.

Among the six most popular cryptocurrencies that will be offered are Ethereum, bitcoin cash, Litecoin, and bitcoin. The remaining digital currencies will be confirmed at a later date. However, in a year or so, the combination of digital currencies will be revised and their proportions balanced by trading algorithms at least four times. These trading algorithms will be self-adapting depending on prevailing market situations.

According to AddCapital investment fund’s chief executive officer, Alexey Prokofyev, the investment process will allow investors to purchase a share of the fund. These shares are liquid and the clients can, therefore, send them for fiat currencies any time.

The custodian of this arrangement will be the National Settlement Depository, an entity which is part of the Moscow Exchange Group – the portfolio process will take about 45 days for testing but the specific dates for this are yet to be disclosed.

The degree of willingness that these two banks have shown is certainly bound to pilot cryptocurrency investments products to greater heights. We can now expect more and more institutional investors and financial institutions to venture into the cryptocurrency space.

Reserve Bank of India Admits That Crypto Ban Was Uninformed

Posted on June 16, 2018June 16, 2018 by Abe Efe

On April 5 this year, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a controversial decree requiring all of the country’s regulated financial institutions to stop providing services to business dealing in crypto within a three month period. According to the bank, the move was formally meant to protect consumers and prevent money laundering – going forward, the bank would be forming a working group was going to be tasked with studying the feasibility of issuing a state-backed cryptocurrency.

As it turns out, evidence has surfaced pointing out that the RBI has not made any serious effort towards studying the principles, the nature and the usage of cryptocurrencies. Prior to the crypto ban, no internal committee had been formed to investigate the purported risks associated with crypto trading and, as such, the ban was not backed by a substantiated decision from experts.

Naturally, the decision to ban the cryptocurrencies did not sit well with Indian cryptocurrency traders and exchanges. While some of the cryptocurrency trading platforms have decided to shift their operations to other crypto-friendly jurisdictions, many others opted to challenge the ban in the Supreme Court.

“The foremost reason we are fighting is because we know that banning is next to impossible and it will make things worse for everyone – for the Reserve Bank, for the government, for the tax department, and for the user. In addition, it will push India back in reference to blockchain adoption across the world. We always have an option to relocate to another country to carry our business, but that’s not the solution. If we cannot convince our own government, we cannot expect other governments to support us,” said Mr. Kunal Barchha, the co-founder of Coinrecoil, an Indian-based digital asset trading platform.

The proponents of crypto India have based their argument on the fact that Central banks do not have the authority to restrict or bank regulated commercial banks from dealing with any industry unless the said industry is declared as completely illegal.

RBI Eyeing Its Own Cryptocurrency

The government of India has not yet declared cryptocurrencies as illegal, and this makes the case for the entire crypto industry in the country. Furthermore, the RBI has been reportedly considering the idea of launching its own cryptocurrency and this is a sign of a possible reversal of the crypto ban. If this is true, the bank and the government can certainly not ban cryptocurrencies simply because they also intend to move into the space.

According to Ripple’s Global head of infrastructure, Dilip Rao, the RBI’s plans to launch a digital currency will definitely reshape the country’s financial landscape in case it comes to pass.

“There is a great regulatory comfort with Ripple Net, particularly in the light of the Bank for International Settlements’ policy requiring central banks to have a backup for payment systems having non-similar technology,” Mr. Rao said in a June 15 report that was published in the Times of India.