Category Archive: smart contract

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Wallet Maker: MKR token is available on HolyTransaction

As of today, you can instantly purchase MKR on HolyTransaction, transfer them to any HolyTransaction’s customer for free, and do crypto-to-crypto swaps between your Wallet MKR and more than other 30 cryptocurrencies.

MakerDAO it’s a prime example of Ethereum’s smart contract platform.

Maker is a decentralized autonomous organization on which the MKR token and DAI operate, and it is built on Ethereum. Essentially, it exists to reduce the price volatility of the Dai against the US Dollar. MakerDAO’s native cryptocurrency token is MKR, which can be stored on HolyTransaction now.

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Dai and MKR are dependent on each other to operate, Dai offers stability, while MKR offers involvement and potential on MakerDAO.

As the technology and methodology behind MakerDAO continues to progress the future of stablecoins and DAO are certain to bring interesting evolution to the cryptocurrency economy.

All HolyTransaction customers can create a new address for MKR and use the simple HolyTransaction Web Wallet to send and receive transactions or to instantly convert them to any other cryptocurrency.

Just like with Bitcoin, you can:

  • Send MKR to any address, even to addresses of other cryptocurrencies with instant conversion on the fly;
  • Receive transactions;
  • Exchange MKR with any supported coins;
  • Make instant transactions between HT users;
  • Get real time exchange rates on the website;
  • Set OTP for additional protection.

To add Wallet Storj just click on the “plus” button you find at the top right of the balance page, once you successfully enter into your wallet.

You can find the “plus” button to select the wallets you want to see in the main page like shown in the picture below:

Add new cryptocurrency

 

We’re excited to be part of the STORJ community!

NOTE: Our multicurrency wallet can store more than 30 cryptocurrencies, including: BitcoinDash, Ethereum, DogecoinLitecoin, DecredZcash, Dai Stablecoin, DigixDao, Augur, 0x Project, Gamecredits, Enjin CoinBlackcoin, Gridcoin, Aidcoin, PeercoinSyscoin, Groestlcoin, Power Ledger, BAT, BlockVPIVXTrueUSD, Cardano, STORJ, Monero and MakerDAO among the others.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Satoshi

Allianz Test the Blockchain for swaps and bonds

allianz_test_the_blockchain

Allianz test the Blockchain

The insurance company Allianz announced today its use of blockchain smart contracts to manage catastrophe swaps and bonds, which allow users to prevent losses in front of large -scale disasters.
Anyway it could also happen that insurers and investors money could drag on for a few months after the catastrophe.
But thanks to smart contracts the time could be reduced in a few hours, according to an Allianz spokeperson.
In fact, this test – done thanks to a partnership with Nephila company – showed that transactions can be “significantly accelerated and simplified”; it also demonstrated that it could help the increase of marketability for swaps and the growth of opportunities where it is possibile to use blockchain-based smart contracts.
Chief underwriting officer Richard Boyd explained to Coindesk:
“Blockchain technology will increase reliability, controllability and speed for both cat swaps and cat bonds because less manual processing, authentication and verification is needed through intermediaries to confirm the legitimacy of payments and transactions to and from the investors.”
He added:
 
“By replacing manual operations, which are currently embedded across the entire process, delays and the risks of human error are ruled out”.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Amelia Tomasicchio

Smart Contracts through Rootstock, Ethereum and Bitcoin thanks to RSK Labs

smart contracts bitcoin ethereum blockchain
Some days ago Rootstock received $1m in seed funding for its own blockchain startup called RSK Labs who provides smart contracts through the bitcoin distributed ledger and compatible with the Ethereum platform.
The funding came from the bitcoin mining company Bitmain Technology and from the bitcoin companies Coinsilium and Digital Currency Group (DCG).
During a recent interview, Diego Gutierrez Zaldivar, CEO at RSK Labs, commented they aim at building a blockchain platform for bitcoin miners and for developers.
Zaldivar said to CoinDesk:
“Our idea is to leverage everything that has been built by the community so far. Not only on the network effect of bitcoin, because the miners will have an additional revenue stream by merge-mining Rootstock, but by providing Ethereum developers a place to build their applications.”
Probably RSK Labs will launch its platform within the end of 2016. 


Smart contracts with the Blockchain

Even if the RSK Labs is very good news, the most important thing we can learn from this event is the interesting development of contracts managed through the blockchain. 
Smart contracts were originally proposed 20 years ago by the famous cryptographer Nick Szabo
A decentralized blockchain with smart contract applications can allow a global financial inclusion, new democratic political systems and the improve of the Internet of things. 
In fact, smart contracts are technology protocols that verify and ease the stipulation of a contract. 
This way smart contracts can provide a better security compared to a traditional contract and allow a significant reduction in transaction fees. Also, smart contracts can provide a service with less risks and without central counterparties. 
To know more about smart contracts and RSK, read this article.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Amelia Tomasicchio
CarChargingviaEthereum

Ethereum used for Car Charging in Germany

A German power company, RWE, started a partnership with the Ethereum-based startup Slock.it, to develop proofs-of-concepts (POCs) using the Eth blockchain.

 

Germany supports green power

On May 2011 the German Environment Minister Norbert Rottgen announced the government’s decision to close all the nuclear power plants within 2022.
During an interview conducted by the BBC, in fact, Mr Rottgen commented:
 
It’s definite. The latest end for the last three nuclear power plants is 2022. There will be no clause for revision.”
So, RWE, company who provides coal and nuclear energy infrastructures in Germany, has now decided to invest money in a new sustainable energy and in an Ethereum project to reduce expenses.
To do so, RWE created a working team to test the blockchain technology to aim at trim costs by lowering expenses related to energy transmission.

Car Charging with Smart Contracts

 

In a recent interview conducted by CoinDesk, RWE Carsten Stöcker commented on a possible application of the blockchain: electric car charging stations that use smart contracts to authenticate users and manage the billing process.
“We would like to solve the problems and really push electric vehicle deployment forward by looking into establishing a seamless and affordable electrical charging infrastructure.”
This project debuted at the Lift 2016 conference in Geneva, Switzerland and it will play out within 2017.
According the RWE project, customers will use charging stations by accepting a smart contract programmed on the Ethereum blockchain.
Through this system users will save money thanks to a payment that is connected to the consuption of electricity during the charging, instead of paying according to the time connected to the station.

 

 

“What’s really exciting here is that people are going to be able to use smart contracts to contract with a machine directly, rather than contracting with a human being or a corporation,” he said to CoinDesk.

 

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Amelia Tomasicchio

Microsoft Opens to Bitcoin

Since the end of 2014 Microsoft Corporation has started to test the blockchain technology.

In fact, Microsoft wants to create its own blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) product and since they have opened their Azure cloud computing platform, the American company has added a growing number of partners to its BaaS solution including ConsenSys, Emercoin and MultiChain.
With Azure and BaaS people will be able to use different technologies (from smart contracts to blockchain-based tax reporting services) in a safer and easier way than in the past.
We can’t wait to see the finished product and Marley Gray, Microsoft‘s director of technology strategy, promises that this “certified blockchain marketplace” will be ready within this spring.
The Importance of the Blockchain
Although blockchain is revolutioning the whole payments system, the real revolution are the bitcoins behind it.
The Blockchain is a secure ledger that records and stores every transaction in the network. Thanks to that there is no need for “trusted” third parties such as banks and this is why the Blockchain is a great game changer.
Its implications extend not only to bitcoin transactions, but it can be useful in various fields: from real estate to copyrights, from music to cinema, etc. In fact nowadays there is an increasing number of new startups that are working on innovative projects based on the blockchain with multipurpose uses and aims.
And one thing is certain: if anything was not invented yet, it is just temporary, because the blockchain allows all kinds of experimentation.

About the author: Amelia Tomasicchio is a writer and a journalist of Bitcoin-related news and articles. She started writing about Bitcoin in 2014 and she graduated in Rome with an essay about movie industry related to Bitcoin.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Amelia Tomasicchio

Smart Contracts as new laws? Better handle with care

(Sole24Ore) “A contract is an agreement”, this was the mandatory phrase for starting a private law exam test after which we would discuss the conditions for its validity. Today, university memories are coming back as contracts are revised in technological form; indeed they’re called Smart Contracts. This brilliant intuition came from Nick Szabo who proposed them in 1994, even before Bitcoin and the diffusion of the Internet.
Let’s start with the definition:
“Smart Contracts are computer protocols that facilitate, verify, or enforce the negotiation or performance of a contract, or that obviate the need for a contractual clause. Smart contracts aim to provide security superior to traditional contract law and to reduce other transaction costs associated with contracting.”
The words in bold about automatic performance of the clauses is a source of opportunities and risks, questions and doubts. One thing is certain: A Smart Contract isn’t a contract, but only the part related to agreements performance.
Until now, when one of the contracting parties feels the other party didn’t respect a clause of the contract then a third party need to be called in order to settle the conflict. This neutral authority has always been a human one. Now, we rely increasingly on technology to facilitate relationships between humans, even if this could seem an oxymoron. Maths (or should we say cryptography) intends regulating any operation between each one of us, close or far, a known or unknown stakeholder.
How do technology and economy meet at this point?
If a contract represents the formalization of an agreement, how can we make it secure between parties that remotely agree and maybe don’t even know each other? The answer is
Smart Contracts based on Blockchain technology.
The contract then becomes an instructions set. If it can be codified, it can also be “computed”, i.e. if the conditions are satisfied, it ensures that performance is automatic.
It sounds like a futuristic scenario, but in reality the Internet of Things (IoT) includes this form of contracts for new services. All is fine, in the end “equal justice for all”, not only for those who possess the power. Eliminating all excess of human discretion which leads to long and inconclusive civil lawsuits is actually one step forward.
But in which direction?
If we choose the one that leads to no human discretion at all, the risk may be even greater. These systems are fascinating, they open up incredible scenarios, but they also are autonomous and immutable. This isn’t good, machines must remain instruments. They mustn’t have the last word. Otherwise this will be the first step on a slope in which decision power is given to machines. Instead, we would like machines that assist us in the decision-making process. We must leverage them but not be ruled by them. The variability of emotions remains a human factor that we shouldn’t give up.
The third party, not human, to which we entrust the performance of contract can’t always be mathematics. We hope for a coexistence with the practitioners: the new generation lawyer will have to know how to write a Smart Contract, for example translating the clauses into computer code as shown in the figure.
All this to emphasize the fact that Smart Contracts should be used to control the performance, and never to judge. New technologies require for behavioral models to adapt. . We must use them according to their usefulness, without extremisms. We will use these instruments but wisely, because we don’t live in a deterministic world. Not yet.
Author: Massimo Chiriatti, technologist and member of Assob.it

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Satoshi
Imogen Heap feature 009

Imogen Heap Releases New Single Using Ethereum

In a recent event at Guardian live!, popular music artist Imogen Heap talked about the release of her new song, Tiny Human, on the Ethereum blockchain. By working with BitTunes, Ethereum Developers recently demonstrated smart contract functionality by purchasing the song using Ether. Imogen started with just a thought:
And I thought, wouldn’t it be nice if I could decide what I wanted to do with my music, who I wanted to have it for free, or not have it for free?

She eventually found her way to the bleeding edge of technology and has now officially brought her music to the digital age with blockchain smart contracts.

Music Is Finally Entering the Digital Age

Since the days of Napster, LimeWire, and even iTunes, music has come a long way in the digital age. Before physical mediums for music storage and music playing were developed, the only way to purchase music was to buy a single listen in the form of (likely) an orchestra or choral concert. With physical medium such as vinyl, cassettes, CDs, and now MP3s, the business model changed to allow consumers to buy “unlimited” listens by having the music file. Newer services such as Spotify, Pandora, and 8Tracks have created a newer business model that returns to using the “listen” as the basic unit of measurement. Music ownership has progressed and regressed; however, the connection between artist and music buyer has only continually grown wider and wider. Imogen commented:

“…now, you get a download, but often it’s not connected to the artist in any way.”

Blockchain Technology Allows for New Possibilities

After talking about blockchain technology with her friend Zoë, Imogen realized that technology had finally reached a point where users could get a download that is connected to artists in a financial way. Imogen described her realization:“I realized there is actually a way that you can connect a file with its payment attached into a digital wallet. And so when somebody listens to a track — the technology is very close to being there — it immediately recompenses me, and then I can split it off to my choreographer, to Zoë for thanking her, to whatever, it can immediately go into their bank accounts. Instead of having to wait two years, sometimes, even more, for money to come back to me, it can be instant.”

It turns out that technology can benefit the fans, who can receive provable special attention from their favorite artist, and the artists, who can receive payments sooner and with less middle men in between. Imogen Heap’s decision to use Ethereum and blockchain technology now that she is free of the shackles of contracts made by record labels tells us something about the future. This same move toward smart contracts will be emulated in other industries. Ethereum, and by extension Bitcoin and blockchain technology as a whole, will change the world.

 About the author: Caleb Chen is a cryptocurrency advocate and research assistant at the Chamber of Digital Commerce.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Satoshi

Infographic: Do the capabilities of the Blockchain end with Bitcoin?

Capabilities of Blockchain Bitcoin Infographic HolyTransaction

Do the capabilities of the Blockchain end with Bitcoin?

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

jorge
mastercoin logo

HolyTransaction opens it’s doors to the world of crypto 2.0 with new Mastercoin WebWallet

November 24, 2014 – SANTA MONICA – HolyTransaction announced today that they have extended support on their platform to the Mastercoin Protocol and all of Mastercoin’s Smart Properties which allow their users to host digital tokens recorded on the blockchain.
Since the introduction of Bitcoin in 2009, Decentralized Applications have been creating waves in almost all sectors of the world, especially in finance. HolyTransaction is positioning itself to support any and all developments in this space.
Mastercoin uses the Bitcoin Blockchain to store records/data. It has highly useful feature which allows a party to create their own digital tokens, thereby creating smart properties that can enable online exchange of assets (i.e. stocks, bonds, real estate and various finance and security features) with the security and cost-savings of Bitcoin protocol.
We believe that digital asset transfer protocols will replace outdated bureaucratic rituals in the near future and are extremely happy to push towards this direction,“ said Andrey Zamovskiy.
HolyTransaction is a transparent, accessible universal cryptocurrency wallet that allows users to store multiple digital assets in one location. HolyTransaction comes with a one-of-a-kind currency exchange feature that allows users to easily convert one asset to another. Francesco Simonetti, co-founder of HolyTransaction, says: “The Mastercoin Protocol can be used for things such as decentralized crowdfunding, asset management, and user currencies all by creating tokens built on top of the Bitcoin Blockchain”.
About HolyTransaction:

 

Typically if you want to hold 10 different cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Peercoin, etc.) you need to have 10 different wallets, which makes cryptocurrency security hard to manage. HolyTransaction, your personal multi cryptocurrency wallet, solves this problem, plus it comes with currency exchange features so that you can easily convert one cryptocurrency to another.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Satoshi
Alex Grey Cosmic Christ CROP1 1000x288

Smart contracts may depend on Smart Oracles, said CTO of Ripple Labs

Smart contracts may depend on Smart Oracles to inform contracts about the state of the outside world, said CTO of Ripple Labs
(BitcoinMagazine) Stefan Thomas is one of the more talented and respected developers in
the space. An old hat at this young technology, he has been making
waves as the CTO of Ripple labs. In a recent effort he has set his
sights on smart contracts technology. The designs and implementation he
and his team have come up with are interesting, to say the least.
In a white paper entitled Smart Oracles, we see described a novel, simple, and flexible approach to smart contracts.
In such a system, rules can be written in any programming language,
and contracts can interact with any service that accepts
cryptographically signed commands. The paper also includes an
implementation of smart oracles, called Codius (based on the Latin “ius” meaning “law”).
Smart contracts are an exciting new frontier for technology,
business, and law that have the potential to usher in a wave of
innovation and serve as a building block for a next chapter of the
internet.
The concept of a smart contract is to formally encode the conditions
and outcomes of a legal agreement into a computer program. Rather than
rely on another party to enforce the terms of the arrangement, the
obligations of a smart contract are settled automatically and
autonomously through the execution of its code.
As such, math-based currency networks like Bitcoin and Ripple
provide an important building block for smart contracts by allowing the
transfer of digital assets with a cryptographic signature. The benefits
of using smart contracts instead of traditional contracts are increased
speed, efficiency, and trust that the contract will be executed exactly
as agreed.
Uatu, The Watcher
Most proposals for smart contracts depend on independent entities to
inform contracts about the state of the outside world. Bitcoin contracts
rely on “oracles
to attest to facts from the outside world by introducing signatures
into the network if and only if specific conditions are met.
For instance, the smart contract for a will would need to know
whether or not someone had died. Such a system typically requires the
smart contract code to be executed on the consensus network itself. But
encoding advanced logic and executing untrusted code is complicated to
integrate. Until now, this has been one of the primary obstacles for
creating a viable smart contract system.
Smart oracles take the concept of oracles a step further by placing
the untrusted code execution in the oracles’ hands. Smart oracles, then,
are trusted or semi-trusted entities that can both provide information
about the outside world and execute the code to which the contracting
parties agreed.
By decoupling the execution of untrusted code from the consensus
databases and other services that track and transfer asset ownership,
smart contracts can be achieved without increasing the complexity of
existing consensus networks like Bitcoin and Ripple.
Algolon, The Observer
Without being tied to any single consensus network, contracts created
using smart oracles can interact with multiple networks at once as well
as virtually any type of online service. This means that a single smart
contract could interact with Bitcoin and Ripple, web-based services
like PayPal, Google, Ebay, etc. or even other Internet protocols, such
as SSH, LDAP, SMTP and XMPP.
The Codius implementation of smart oracles is designed to provide
developers with a robust and familiar platform to build smart contracts
and hit the ground running. Because Codius uses Google’s Native Client to sandbox untrusted code, developers can write contracts in any programming language.
Codius and smart oracles in general open up new possibilities for
developers, entrepreneurs, and enterprising legal and financial
professionals. Agreements that previously required lengthy legal
contracts can be translated into code and run automatically by smart
oracles.
Smart contracts hold the potential to empower people to build a
fairer, more affordable and more efficient legal system and smart
oracles are one of the simplest ways to realize that dream. Potential
use cases include bridges between value networks, escrow, cryptocurrency
wallet controls, auctions for digital assets, derivatives, debt and
equity, smart property and voting.
Since the system is extensible, the functionality will continue to expand as the ecosystem develops.

Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.

Satoshi