IRS back in February.These account records are likely to belong to those who have realized great profits from their original investments, not your run-of-the-mill investor. Brose believes that the average investor probably doesn’t think to report gains since “the practical problem of tracking which cryptos you have spent or sold” becomes too much of a hassle for reporting a modest portfolio. He also finds that “individuals that are spending crypto frequently on relatively small items may think that it doesn’t make a lot of sense to declare a taxable event every time they buy a cup of coffee.”Given that formal guidance is nebulous and the IRS’s ability to enforce their policy is yet to be seen, cryptocurrency investors may be inclined to take calculated risks that have become commonplace in such a volatile market.  But if the IRS wants investors to work with them in the future, things will have to change, Brose argues.  “To ensure greater compliance, the IRS ought to make rules for cryptocurrencies that conform to the way crypto actually works and is used, so that taxpayers can accurately compute their tax liabilities arising from crypto transactions.”Until that time, investors must either navigate their filing themselves, seek help from an accountant or taxation service, or hope their portfolios will fly under the IRS’s radar.



This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/).

Barclays Talking to Clients About Opening a Crypto Trading Desk

https://www.coindesk.com/barclays-talking-clients-opening-crypto-trading-desk/

Insurance Broker Marsh Working With IBM on Blockchain Platform

https://www.coindesk.com/insurance-broker-marsh-working-ibm-blockchain-platform/

What ICO Issuers and Investors Need to Know About Taxes

https://www.coindesk.com/ico-issuers-investors-need-know-taxes/

Why the IRS Should Treat Crypto as a New Asset Class

https://www.coindesk.com/irs-treat-crypto-new-asset-class/

🔥 BITFENCE PRE SALE IS NOW LIVE! 💰 32% discount!
Mission of BitFence Cyber Solution is to reduce the average detection time of zero-day malware as well as adopt and deploy a proactive defensive approach/solution to mitigate other systems from similar cyber threats.

BitFence offers its users with tools required to scale the growth of cyber threat and protects networks proactively, before any harm would have occurred to the network and related assets[.]
BitFence ecosystem consists of following three main parts:

☑ Installation of BitFence designed Distributed Sensor Network (also known as Distributed HoneyPot). BitFence offers the incentives to anyone who runs BitFence designed software and/or hardware “miner”. These miners will automatically detect and reports suspicious cyber related activities. The miners will get rewards through distribution of BitFence ‘HNY’ Tokens.
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🎲 Gamblica Token Sale in a Nutshell 🎲
A crypto token sale is a relatively new wave of opportunity in the world of cryptocurrency, that all investors and crypto-enthusiasts have no doubt heard of already — and if you haven’t, then you are definitely missing out! Let’s get you caught up.

♦ The first cryptocurrency token sales or Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) date back to 2013, but are really starting to gather steam in fundraising for startups right now. They are conducted via trading assets on the blockchain.

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We know that many players are not all that happy with their online casinos. You might get lucky once, but in the long run, you’ll simply end up lining the pockets of casino owners. Even if the market is regulated, it doesn’t mean that a casino is not cheating. Problems of credibility and information asymmetry hinder the process of scaling and make entering foreign markets very difficult for online casinos.

♦ Promoting the brand that does not have any track record or international recognition requires huge investments to compete with well-known online gambling operators. Many countries restrict online gambling and betting due to regulatory and tax-related issues, so banks there retain the right to block the player’s account and confiscate the winnings after the transfer.Today we are here to break new ground with numerous benefits.

♥ Gamblica provides a unique betting opportunity to any gambler regardless of their location and income. The Gamblica platform will be running on a decentralised smart contract system, ensuring fair random number generation, cards distribution, betting slip odds calculations, distribution of funds, and payouts. Our team managed to build a system that guarantees transparency and fairness of every gambling activity, including online casino games, sports betting, and poker.

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So, a whiter-than-white gambling experience with no chance of being screwed over is what Gamblica hopes will make it stand out.

🎯 Gamblica Token Sale is held for two main purposes:
🔸 To put the GMBC token into circulation
🔸 Attracting funds for the development and promotion of the GMBC platform

I invite you to participate in the five stages of the Token Sale: https://gamblica.com/

Crypto Hedge Funds Face Tough Choices on Tax Day

https://www.coindesk.com/crypto-hedge-funds-taxes/

The Seven Pillars of ICO Investing

https://www.coindesk.com/seven-pillars-ico-investing/

Cognizant Teams with 14 Insurers on Blockchain Data-Sharing Platform

https://www.coindesk.com/cognizant-teams-14-insurers-blockchain-data-sharing-platform/

Card Operator Discover Joins Blockchain Trade Group

https://www.coindesk.com/card-operator-discover-joins-blockchain-trade-group/

Sell the News? Verge Token Drops After Porn Partner Reveal

https://www.coindesk.com/sell-news-verge-token-drops-porn-partner-reveal/

Blockchain Taps Former Goldman Exec for Institutional Investor Push

https://www.coindesk.com/blockchain-taps-former-goldman-exec-for-institutional-investor-push/

Pornhub Adds Crypto Payment Option With Verge Token

https://www.coindesk.com/pornhub-adds-crypto-payment-option-verge-token/

Marsh and IBM Collaborate to Put Proof of Insurance on the Blockchain
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/marsh-and-ibm-collaborate-put-proof-insurance-blockchain/

International insurance broker Marsh (https://www.marsh.com/us/home.html) is working with IBM to develop a commercial blockchain solution that will allow businesses to certify that the contractor they are about to hire has the proper, up-to-date insurance coverage necessary to begin work.
The solution will be built on Hyperledger Fabric, an open-source permissioned blockchain framework, using IBM Blockchain Platform, a cloud-based blockchain application development solution, Marsh said in a statement yesterday, April 16, 2018. Insurance standards organization ACORD (https://www.acord.org/standards-architecture/why-standards) will provide input on the project, and Dallas-based ISN Software Corporation (https://www.isnetworld.com/), which supplies contractor and supplier management services, will be the first client to use the new solution. Marsh is aiming to solve an important problem. Businesses often hire contractors, vendors and other third parties to work for them or provide services, but before doing so, they need to know that the vendor has proper liability insurance, so the business is covered in the event something goes wrong or a vendor performs substandard work. Typically, a client will request a certificate of insurance (https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/certificate_of_insurance.asp) (COI), also known as an ACORD certificate, which is a document that has all the information on it to show a client has up-to-date insurance coverage. The problem with PDFs or paper documents is they can be faked (http://www.hayesbrokers.com/fake-insurance-certificates-what-can-you-do/). Documents can can also get misplaced, lost or damaged. Blockchains, on the other hand, are nearly impossible to tamper with. By putting proof of insurance on the blockchain, parties that need evidence of insurance can ideally trust the coverage is up to date and historically correct. Marsh said it expects its blockchain solution to allow clients to speed up necessary business functions such as hiring contractors and transferring risk, while increasing coverage certainty.“Marsh sees great opportunity in leveraging blockchain technology to better serve our clients by maximizing efficiency and creating new opportunities in the insurance value chain,” said Sastry Durvasula, chief digital officer at Marsh. Sandip Patel, general manager, insurance industry, at IBM, believes that simplifying the insurance verification process is a key business enabler. “This is an ideal example of how blockchain can be used on a much broader scale to drive real business results,” he said.Currently in the pilot stage, Marsh’s new blockchain network is expected to go into production later this year. ISN will be the first Marsh client to try out the solution, putting its contactors’ policies on the ledger for hiring businesses to check.“The insurance industry has been dependent on paper certificates of insurance, manually populated by an insurance agent,” said Brett Parker, technical insurance lead, at ISN. “By digitizing the policy information, we can streamline the process saving our customers time to focus on their core competencies.”



This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/).

Binance, Bitfinex and More: New York Launches 'Inquiry' Into 13 Crypto Exchanges

https://www.coindesk.com/binance-bitfinex-new-york-launches-inquiry-13-crypto-exchanges/

Telegram's CEO Is Using Bitcoin to Bypass Russia's App Ban

https://www.coindesk.com/telegrams-ceo-using-bitcoin-help-bypass-russian-ban/

New York Attorney General Launches Inquiry Into Cryptocurrency Exchanges
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/new-york-attorney-general-launches-inquiry-cryptocurrency-exchanges/

As part of an effort to protect cryptocurrency investors and bring greater transparency into how cryptocurrency exchanges operate, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has sent letters to 13 virtual currency exchanges requesting they disclose key information about their operations.
“With cryptocurrency on the rise, consumers in New York and across the country have a right to transparency and accountability when they invest their money,” the attorney general said in a statement (https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/ag-schneiderman-launches-inquiry-cryptocurrency-exchanges) today, April 16, 2018. “Yet too often, consumers don’t have the basic facts they need to assess the fairness, integrity and security of these trading platforms.” The letter was part of a “Virtual Markets Integrity Initiative” launched by Schneiderman to shine a light on the policies and practices of platforms used by consumers to trade virtual currencies and initial coin offering (ICO) tokens. A Slew of QuestionsIn addition to the letter, the attorney general sent a three-page questionnaire (https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/virtual_markets_integrity_initiative_questionnaire.pdf) to New York-based Gemini and itBit, as well as GDAX, BitFlyer and nine other exchanges asking them to disclose, among other things, information such as what banks they use, how they hold customer funds, what fees they charge, how they come up with those fees, how they move funds around, who has access to the order books, and the scope of third-party audits. Gemini, an exchange operated by the Winklevoss twins, told Bitcoin Magazine, it “applauds” the attorney general’s initiative and looks forward to submitting its responses to the questionnaire. Coinbase, itBit and BitFlyer were not immediately available for comment. As the price of bitcoin crossed $10,000 for the first time (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/bitcoin-crosses-10k-first-time-global-validation-or-speculative-bubble/) in November 2017, reaching a peak of over $19,700 a few weeks later, a rush of new traders began entering the market. But, as many have learned the hard way, putting funds on exchanges comes with its own set of risks. Outside of the U.S., this year alone, Coincheck in Japan lost $530 million (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/following-massive-cryptocurrency-hack-coincheck-pledges-improve-operations-refund-losses/) worth of NEM (XEM) in a hack; BitGrail, an Italian exchange, lost $170 million (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/cryptocurrency-exchanges-170-million-nano-coin-loss-sparks-outrage/) worth of Nano (XRB); and Coinsecure, an exchange in India lost $3.5 million (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/35-million-bitcoin-missing-indias-coinsecure-exchange/) in bitcoin (BTC). Tough Times AheadIn the U.S., cryptocurrency regulation is becoming a tough web to untangle for companies trying to do business in the space. Not only do cryptocurrency businesses and virtual exchanges have to deal with federal regulators like the Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, but they also have to contend with regulators in each of the 50 states.Stephen Palley, a lawyer in Washington D.C., known for his work in the crypto space, says he is not surprised to learn of the New York attorney general’s initiative. At the same time, he views it as a grim sign of what is to come. “This is just the start. There will be a major onslaught. It will shut down or shut out a bunch of exchanges from the U.S.,” he told Bitcoin Magazine. In a tweet (https://twitter.com/stephendpalley/status/986293837755764736), Palley referred to Schneiderman as an “activist” and noted,“Being in his crosshairs isn't a great thing.”



This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine (https://bitcoinmagazine.com/).