1. The founder of Ethereum claims that the cryptocurrency may drop to zero at any time;
Original title: Ethereum founder said cryptocurrency may fall to zero at any time? Research report: the first to suffer is necessarily a retail
According to Bloomberg reported on the 19th, bitcoin has risen to 11,000 US dollars for the fourth consecutive day, up 54% since February 6. Bitcoin outperformed other major cryptocurrencies, Ripple, Ethernet Square and Litecoin rose about 2%.
In fact, the value of the cryptocurrency could never be zero, including Goldman Sachs and fund giant Vanguard etc. All warned that the latest warning came from Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, who said that encryption Currency is a nascent asset class, its price may drop sharply at any time.
In fact, as early as December last year, Putin once said that cryptocurrencies are not used to speculation, and he believes that cryptocurrency technology is moving in the wrong direction and people should be aware that promoting positive social changes and simply handling money There is a difference between.
Although cryptocurrencies have recovered in recent days from the earlier slump earlier this month, bitcoin prices have now returned above $ 11,000 after falling below $ 6,000 two weeks ago.
Monday's report from S & P Global Ratings showed that retail investors will bear the brunt of the cryptocurrency crisis and institutional investors will be better protected.
S & P's global rating agency said: 'We think most of those banks with ratings will not be affected because of their limited exposure to cryptocurrencies, either directly or indirectly, and at this stage we think that if there is a cryptocurrency market The collapse of the value of the event, retail investors will bear the brunt of the affected.
Bitcoin prices plunged below $ 6,000 in the global stock market crash in early February, suggesting a possible link between Bitcoin and mature financial assets. However, S & P's global rating agency reported that the value of cryptocurrencies The sharp drop is still unlikely to disrupt the financial markets.
In a statement issued Monday, Mohamed Damak, head of the agency's financial sector, said: 'For now, even if the market value of cryptocurrencies plunges, at best it will only spark a ripple in the financial services sector. It is insignificant, will not break the stability of the market, and will not affect the credit value of the banks we give credit to.
S & P's global rating agency said that the basis for cryptocurrencies - blockchain technology will have "positive" disruptions in financial markets, and blockchain networks are decentralized and maintain the continued growth of cryptocurrencies.
2. China's overseas migration of bitcoin mines: looking for both cold climate and policy easing;
This article comes from Prism (ID: lengjing_qqfinance), Tencent Finance, author Liu Peng.
Review 2017, the hottest words than 'bitcoin' and underlying technology behind the 'blockchain' .But in the hot debate behind, what is bitcoin? How it is produced? And how it works Many people are still confused.
In August 2017, when the price of bitcoin hit the ground, the Tencent Prism took advantage of its multi-year network of resources to make breakthroughs and finally allowed access to the world's largest bitcoin mine in Ordos, Inner Mongolia. Pictures revealing the mystery of bitcoin production to the outside world.We also describe in detail the most exclusive 'miner' community in the Bitcoin world: how they look for cheap electricity, how to follow the power of migrating as migratory birds ...
Benefiting from China's sound power infrastructure and cheap thermal, hydropower and wind power resources, Chinese forces have been monopolizing the bitcoin-producing upstream industry chain, bitcoin mines.
However, with the tightening of China's virtual currency regulation, such a phenomenon will not come back to the end of 2017. The central bank jointly with the ministries and commissions decided to guide the existing virtual currency mines in China to "orderly exit." According to Prism, After the introduction of this opinion, a number of mines located in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia and Sichuan have been interviewed by the local finance offices for withdrawal, while others have not been interviewed yet, but the preferential price for the mine was canceled The cost has risen sharply.
Under pressure, the miner community began looking for shelter overseas, with hot spots of choice being usually Russia, Canada, which have cheap electricity and have a cold climate for cooling.
Chinese monopolize bitcoin production
560 kilometers west of Beijing, Erdos in August, the hot heat waves wrapped in sand .2 pm, the doorman narrowed his eyes, as the "prism" to open the 'mine' door.
Here is one of the world's largest bitcoin 'mine.' The gate is a demarcation line that separates the two worlds, the landscape of a typical four-city urban development in China, and the sci-fi scene of a hacker empire in the door .
Eight large blue-roofed factories are juxtaposed, and tens of thousands of 'mine machines' flash with red and green light roaring in the factory building the digital currency bitcoin around the clock for this 'mine.' This once largest The mine, which holds about 4% of the computing power (production capacity) in the bitcoin world, excavated more than 100,000 bitcoin a year in peak times and a maximum of 30,000 yuan in August 2017 Price calculation, the value of more than 3 billion yuan.
Bitcoins, invented by Nakamoto in 2009, exploit the computational power of chips based on the models it builds to continuously 'hash collide' in the blocks generated by the bitcoin system and win the bookkeeping The right to receive bitcoin for systems rewards.
This boring and repetitive process is vividly called 'mining' in the bitter industry, and the professional staff involved in this work is called 'miners'.
In the first few years of Bitcoin operation, an ordinary laptop could play the role of 'mining', but the entry of Chinese miners broke the balance of the situation completely. With their designs in China, Chinese-made professional mining machine staged another bitter arms race in the bitcoin world, lifting the threshold of 'mining' thousands of times.
Ordinary computers have become the history, the price of 10,000 yuan a Taiwan-based integrated circuit mining machine was put on the stage.China's 'bit from the mainland' and 'Jia Nan Yunzhi' two companies to produce the mining machine, the global marketing, the latter Even once wanted to shell A-share companies, landing the capital market.
After grasping the productivity of the bitcoin world, Chinese miners monopolized the most upstream bitcoin chain, bitcoin, with cheap electricity costs in Inner Mongolia, Sichuan and Xinjiang.
Erdos is the typical representative of a large number of bitcoin mines hidden in the beneficiary of abundant reserves of Ordos energy and low-cost electricity costs based on this.As magical realism, tradition and future, in the Ordos magically intertwined together.
The same is true of Sichuan, where abundant hydropower supplies electricity at much lower prices than coal-fired thermal power, and many mines are simply built next to hydroelectric power stations to facilitate mining, but subject to climatic conditions, Rivers in the dry season each year in October, which also means that mining the most important material base needed - the depletion of electricity.
Like migratory birds, these mines began to migrate in the autumn, and hot areas such as Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, where thermal power prices are cheaper, are their hot choices. Of course, there are more extreme and simply transfer of mines to places like Cambodia and the Philippines where rivers Continuous flow throughout the year, eliminating the pain of migration, but accordingly, they need to assume different institutional and cultural risks.
Chinese miners' stories have been magically staged for four years, digging in virtual currency Bitcoin using real-world power in deep forests, ghost towns and deserts, during which time bitcoin has cost hundreds of yuan The price of each piece, after huge fluctuations, rose to nearly 3 million today.
The bottom of the bitcoin technology blockchain, attracting more and more attention and application; Bitcoin-based new financing ICO, has created a new round of wealth myths; Ethereum, Zcash and other competitive digital currency horizontal Empty was born, the miners who followed, it is triggered a global video out of stock ... ...
This is a crazy world, a magical world that is free from reality.
Erdos' Secret
One early morning in mid-August 2017, Prism flew from Beijing to Baotou on a morning flight and two hours' drive to Erdos from Baotou Airport, a day where digital bitcoin insiders, including the prism, won Special approval, mostly from the United States, Israel and the United Kingdom, was allowed to visit one of the largest bitcoin mines in the world.
Ordos, Mongolian means "numerous palaces," with one-sixth of the country's coal reserves, one-third of the country's natural gas reserves, and half of the reserves of rare earth kaolin, an energy capital that once created a myth of economics, once in GDP Catch up with Hong Kong.
Erdos people clutching a lot of money in the hands of the funds continue to invest in real estate, the peak period, 'per capita three suites' dreams that reality is that after the stir-fried house prices greatly catch up with the 'broad north' trend. Unreal bubble with Coal prices began to burst down, the debt crisis led to a large number of stoppage workers and buildings failed, no longer prosperous, barren development zone inaccessible, ridiculed as the 'ghost town'.
The bitter miners' attention was drawn to the deserted development zone of Erdos until 2013. Large amounts of land, low thermal power prices, made this once prosperous city the first intersection with the bitcoin world.
Andy, who is in charge of hosting the visit, told Prism that the two largest expenditures in the bitcoin mine are the mining machine and the factory building, and the second is the power needed for the operation of the mine. Compared with the former, More important, the price and sustainability of electricity determine the profitability of the mine.
In order to obtain reliable and stable electricity support, this bitcoin mine was established at the beginning of service contracts with local governments and power grid companies, which are very popular with the latter. After signing the contract, the annual electricity bill In billions of dollars, the construction and maintenance of factories can also bring in huge tax revenues and some employment problems.
Hou Jie, a Chinese who is in charge of maintaining mining machines here, is a native of Inner Mongolia where he first heard about the need for 'big data processing' talent and therefore came to apply.
Came to know that it was a bitcoin mine. "Although he had never heard of it, good earnings and simple job content kept him in. He told Prism that miners only needed to do one thing Mine mining machine to ensure the normal operation, so his work 'main test temperature and humidity are suitable to see the grid is enough to adapt, the other is the timely delivery of the mine machine maintenance problems.
"If the voltage is not stable or temporary power outage, the loss of the mine a day may be millions of dollars." Similarly, the ventilation and temperature inside the mine warehouse will also affect the efficiency of mine operation, although these things trivial, But it will directly affect the mine's final revenue, it can not be ignored.
The same responsibilities as Hou Jie, there are another 20 people, they were divided into three groups, each working eight hours to ensure that 365 days a day, 24 hours a day was on the mine and mine maintenance.
Mine 7 × 24 hours of operation, will inevitably have damage to the mining machine in the summer, due to voltage instability may occur, the damage rate of the mine machine to be higher.Therefore, the mine is equipped with a group of repair workers , Damaged mine machine removed from the mine, repaired quickly after being put into mining.
Detecting, Maintaining, Repairing, Miners in the desolate city corner day after day, monotonous and boring work, for the outside world transporting one after another the price of nearly 30,000 yuan per virtual currency bitcoin .
Bitcoin save 'abandoned'
Compared to the world-class mines in Ordos, more small mines with less bargaining power with grid companies are hiding in Sichuan.
It is located at Aba, Sichuan Province 1,200 kilometers away from Erdos, the mine of Chen Young, a youth of China, and close to the hydropower station on the tributaries of Dadu River.
Nearly a century ago, the Red Army marched from here on its long march to open the gap smoothly and smoothly northward. Nowadays, with its huge landfall, abundant water and narrow Dadu River, due to its abundant and exploitable electricity , Is considered by many miners as a great site for mining.
Chen was the miners who earlier noticed here. 'Sichuan has the largest water resources in the country. There are thousands of large and small hydropower stations with ample electricity. Even in times of electricity supply, some of the water that should have been used to generate electricity Can be let go, we call it 'abandoned electricity'.
Bitcoin saved these 'discards.' Originally water streams that needed to be released from hydropower stations were used to generate power for bitcoin mines, which made huge gains, and miners got the coveted low-cost electricity.
'I can not say the price here too fine, but generally not to two hair (once the electricity)' Chen revealed.
Whether power grid connection or not is also a key factor that miners need to consider for the site selection of the mine, a miners contacted by "Prism" said that he had invested and built factories shortly after finding a cheap 'abandoned electricity' in Yunnan. However, in less than a year, all the hydropower stations in the entire region were merged by China Southern Power Grid. Electricity originally sent directly to the mine was forced to go through the grid and the grid-connected electricity was delivered again. The price rose more than 50% Address again.
In contrast, Sichuan has obvious advantages, with more than 4,000 hydropower stations scattered throughout the territory, many of which are small-scale hydropower stations that do not require grid interconnection, and miners are flocking to the area, some of which support the stability of power supply and even directly purchase hydropower stations.
As one of the earliest miner workers to enter Sichuan, one of Chen's sidelines is looking for hydropower for investors, but found that finding the right hydropower station was an extremely difficult task as more and more mines entered. But this is also hard to miners who, if you can not buy hydropower, why not build one?
In September 2016, along with a piece of paper issued by the Sichuan provincial government, this route was completely blocked off. The document entitled "Opinions on Further Strengthening and Regulating the Management of Hydropower Construction" clearly states that during the "13th Five-Year Plan" Sichuan will strictly control the approval of medium-sized hydropower projects, stop the development of small-scale hydropower projects in an all-round manner, and the completed small and medium-sized hydropower stations will no longer expand.
The appropriate hydropower station, you need to look at two indicators, one installed capacity, the second is the length of time available for power generation, the former determines the hydropower generating capacity, which determines the hydropower generating capacity. 'If the generating capacity and generating capacity is not large, No way to operate for a sufficient number of days, to put it plainly is to extend the cycle or make money slower. "Chen Zheng explained that the business model of the mine is simple and crude: site selection - purchase of mining machine - installation and operation of mine Machine is a fixed investment, electricity is a routine expense, digging in the bitcoin value exceeds mine and electricity costs, the mine can begin to profit.
However, this model does not account for the depletion of miners, and Moore's Law remains relevant in the mining industry, where the computing power in the bitcoin world is increasing every day as new miners join. After reaching a revenue balance, race against time and earn more bitcoin before mine replacement. In 2015, Mr. Chen witnessed multiple mines making ends meet, dug coins or even Not enough to pay the high electricity bills, as well as replace the more advanced mining machine, eventually had to abandon mine leave.
Migration of migratory birds in mind
Hydropower is cheap in western China's provinces, but its disadvantages are equally pronounced: in October each year, the rivers flow into the dry season, meaning depletion of the hydropower stations that sustain the operations of the mine.
Like migratory birds, the mines here follow the cheaper electricity price and migrate to the north of Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia.
Miners need to race against time, in the shortest possible time to complete the demolition, delivery and construction of mining machine time is their enemy, the day was delayed, the loss is millions of profits.
Entered in August, Chen is about to prepare for the upcoming migration of mines.He needs to be located in Inner Mongolia winter mine inspection, to ensure that the site is intact, to ensure the supply of electricity.In addition, he also had to contact the fleet in advance, each car equipped with Three drivers, turns replaced until the miners arrived.
Although frustrated, Chen, who has been in business for two years, already had sufficient experience and was familiar with the stable power supply in winter mines.
In contrast, the new entrants to the industry, Wang Wei, bad luck a lot of dry season is approaching, he and partners in Yunnan investment in the mine, there is no suitable winter migration site .He tried to visit Inner Mongolia, many cities, but either the price is too expensive, or thermal power plants do not agree to sign a power supply agreement with him.
'Electricity leadership, because they are not familiar with, they do not understand what I want to do so much power, not easily give.' Wang Wei some distress.
But he is still trying, and several of his partners are also trying to find power in places like Xinjiang and Shaanxi.
There are also tired of the miners, another way, looking toward the Southeast Asia where there is more abundant hydropower resources, lower latitude means that the dry season greatly reduced the time, but unfamiliar with the local policy, culture, but also to some extent On the manufacture of new troubles.
Graphics out of stock: Miner turned to competitive currency
'Miners' world is cruel fight.
That car, bitcoin miners fighting in the power battle, begging; this car, the new influx of miners to avoid the Mans without controversy, dug up competition currency.
Since the birth of bitcoin, its strong vitality and high prices for millions of miners rush, but the calculation of the million times soaring, the professional mine machine on the price of 10,000 yuan per unit, stable and cheap electricity, access threshold hundreds of easily Million or even ten million yuan.
The emergence of competing currencies opened the door to low hurdles for miners, best known for 'Zcash', 'Ethereum' and 'Etheric Classic'.
Ethereum, crypto currency born in 2014, is considered the most powerful contender for bitcoin and has system-specific smart-contract capabilities that make it superior to bitcoin in data processing.
Based on this capability, the most popular ICO in the world since 2017 is based on the blockchain of Ethereum, which has driven the price escalation of Ethereum and the Ether classics.
Unlike bitcoin, Ethereum and other competitive currencies, computing power requirements of small, good at computing computer graphics GPU can do.
As a result, the dramatic scene has emerged.Calculation of the original output is relatively constant, the miners were bought in batches, the entire market in the basic graphics card doubled, the sale is still out of stock.
E-commerce platforms and physical stores are out of stock, the original target customers such as gamers and Internet cafe owners completely foolish eyes. Occasionally used second-hand graphics market, the price is even more expensive than the new, the supply and demand completely imbalance.
'A mine disaster is fast happening, so we can buy a video card.' A game player begged on social networks.
'Do not mine hard, bitcoin all thirty thousand! First buy a second-hand use of it, maybe next year can not buy second-hand.' Another player persuaded.
(At the request of respondents, Chen Zheng, Wang Wei as a pseudonym)
3. Chinese mining hackers transfer attack targets to Jenkins server;
Hackers exploit the JenkinsMiner mining exploit with the CVE-2017-1000353 security flaw on Jenkins, an anti-serialization vulnerability that affects Altoros Jenkins for PCF v10.2 and hackers that have been using remote access Trojan horses for months RAT) and the XMRig mining program to exploit this vulnerability affecting worldwide Jenkins users.
Checkweigher Check Point said last week that mining miners from China were shifting their targets from the Windows platform to Jenkins servers and could be one of the world's largest malicious mining operations.
According to Check Point's tracking analysis, the hacker executed the XMRig mining program on different versions of Windows a year and a half ago, reckoning Monero, which has so far earned more than $ 3 million, but hackers obviously Not satisfied because he is now extending his attack to Jenkins, the world's most popular Continuous Integration (CI) open source tool.
Hackers exploit the so-called JenkinsMiner attack on the CVE-2017-1000353 security vulnerability on Jenkins, an anti-serialization vulnerability affecting Altoros Jenkins for PCF earlier 10.2 and hackers have been using remote access for months Trojan horse (RAT) and XMRig mining program to exploit the loopholes, affecting the global Jenkins users.
Check Point pointed out that JenkinsMiner will cause the Jenkins server to load slower, and aggressive attacks could block the service.
It is estimated that there are currently about 25,000 Jenkins servers exposed on the network, and not only Jenkins, Oracle WebLogic, Ruby on Rails, PHP and IIS and other servers also have become more hackers because of the more computing resources, Attack target. Ithome
4.ofo Rumor: not into the block chain is purely non-existent
Recently, some media broke the news that Ethereum block browser, there was a contract named 'ofo China', is likely to be a sign of the blockbuster OFO into the block, also said that the contract network Ethereum issue, Token total 1000000000, and there is a transaction test.
Ofo public relations response to this matter is: 'purely non-existent.' This matter has nothing to do with theo, is fraudulent use ofo brand rubbing hot spots, hurting the brand image ofo.Consider this behavior to condemn the company will be Regulators report, take legal measures to safeguard their own reputation '.
Although OFO denied the move, sharing a bicycle embrace blockchain technology has begun.It is reported that Singapore's current shared bicycle brand 'oBike' claimed to launch its own encrypted currency oCoins this year on the blockchain platform Tron, and Private institutions open.
For now, the number of shared bicycles has been too much in the past year, while in CASC statistics, the highest complaint rates are in such cases, with users and businesses facing a credit crisis. After the advent of technology, many people are optimistic about its role in business.It is also predicted that the future sharing of bicycles is likely to embrace blockchain technology in order to solve the shared credit crisis in cycling operations.