🔴 Trump's Crypto Secret | This Week In Crypto – Aug 21, 2023

AI in Finance: Automating Processes and Enhancing Decision-Making in the Financial Sector

Introduction: 

In today’s rapidly evolving world, technology continues to reshape various industries, and the financial sector is no exception. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a game-changer, revolutionizing the way financial institutions operate and make critical decisions. By automating processes and providing valuable insights, AI is transforming the financial landscape, enabling greater efficiency, accuracy, and customer satisfaction.

AI Applications in Finance:

Automation of Routine Tasks: Financial institutions deal with massive amounts of data on a daily basis. AI-driven automation tools can streamline tasks such as data entry, processing, and reconciliation, reducing manual errors and increasing operational efficiency. Additionally, AI-powered bots can handle customer inquiries and support, freeing up human agents to focus on more complex issues.

Fraud Detection and Security: Cybersecurity is a top priority for financial institutions. AI algorithms can analyze vast datasets in real-time to detect unusual patterns and anomalies, flagging potential fraudulent activities before they escalate. This proactive approach enhances security measures and safeguards customer assets.

Personalized Customer Experience: AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants offer personalized interactions with customers, providing quick responses to queries and offering tailored financial solutions based on individual preferences and behavior. This level of personalization enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty.

AI for Risk Assessment and Management:

Credit Scoring and Underwriting: AI-powered credit risk models can assess an individual’s creditworthiness more accurately, incorporating a wide range of factors to make data-driven decisions. This expedites loan underwriting processes, allowing financial institutions to serve customers faster while managing risk effectively.

Market Analysis and Predictions: AI algorithms can analyze market trends, historical data, and other influencing factors to predict market fluctuations with higher accuracy. By leveraging AI-driven insights, investment professionals can make more informed decisions, optimizing investment strategies and portfolios.

Improving Financial Decision-Making:

Algorithmic Trading: AI-driven algorithmic trading systems can execute trades based on predefined criteria, eliminating emotional biases and executing trades with greater precision and speed. This technology has the potential to outperform traditional trading methods, benefiting both investors and institutions.

Portfolio Management: AI can optimize portfolio performance by considering various risk factors, asset correlations, and individual investment goals. Through data-driven portfolio management, investors can achieve a balanced risk-return profile, aligning with their specific financial objectives.

Ethical and Regulatory Considerations:

As AI becomes more prevalent in the financial sector, it’s crucial to address ethical concerns and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. Financial institutions must be vigilant in identifying and mitigating biases present in AI algorithms to maintain fairness and transparency in decision-making processes. Additionally, adhering to data privacy laws is essential to protect customer information and build trust with clients.

Real-world Examples of AI Adoption in Finance:

JPMorgan Chase: The multinational bank utilizes AI to streamline customer interactions through their virtual assistant, providing personalized financial advice and support.

BlackRock: The investment management firm employs AI-powered algorithms to enhance its portfolio management and make data-driven investment decisions.

Challenges and Future Outlook:

While AI offers tremendous benefits to the financial sector, challenges remain, including data privacy concerns, algorithmic biases, and potential job displacement. Addressing these challenges is vital to maximizing the potential of AI in finance. Looking ahead, the future of AI in finance is promising, with advancements in Natural Language Processing (NLP), predictive analytics, and machine learning expected to reshape the industry further.

Conclusion:

AI is revolutionizing the financial sector by automating processes, improving decision-making, and enhancing customer experiences. Financial institutions embracing AI can gain a competitive edge, providing better services, reducing operational costs, and managing risks more effectively. However, ethical considerations and regulatory compliance must remain at the forefront of AI adoption to ensure a sustainable and equitable financial landscape for the future. With responsible implementation, AI is set to continue transforming finance, empowering institutions to thrive in the digital age.

The beloved board game, Monopoly, is getting a digital twist. The World of Women (WoW) NFT project is collaborating with WS Game Company, backed by a license from Hasbro, to launch the Monopoly: WoW Galaxy Edition. Set to be released on October 17,

#Blockchain #Crypto

Edward Snowden on the anonymity of cryptocurrencies

Edward Snowden, a former CIA and National Security Agency analyst, has addressed the Bitcoin Conference in Amsterdam.

Snowden fundamentally took the position of the crypto enthusiast, advocating the freedom of crypto business. Since he is intimately familiar with digital surveillance and control technologies, his opinion is that of a professional.

First, and in my opinion, the most important thing is his valuation of Bitcoin as an asset with no anonymity. It’s a bit sudden, isn’t it? Now, a CIA analyst claims that Bitcoin anonymity no longer exists today, that governments and intelligence agencies can uniquely identify crypto wallet users.

The second statement is a consequence of the first. Snowden encouraged developers to focus on increasing Bitcoin anonymity, as privacy was one of the pillars on which Nakomoto’s work was based.

In this regard, the position of the American regulator looks interesting. Recall that the head of the SEC Gary Gensler fundamentally singled out Bitcoin among other cryptocurrencies. According to Gensler, Bitcoin is the only full-fledged cryptocurrency, and all the rest are securities or investment contracts.

There is a certain logic in this judgment: Bitcoin is already under control. Both the transactions and their participants, who habitually believe that they have hidden behind the blockchain, are controlled. Bitcoin ETF, which actively promoted by grands if the fiat economies like the BlackRock investment fund, will only strengthen the level of control.

Another thing is that Bitcoin anonymity is directly related to the overall security of IT systems. Today, states and intelligence agencies have the technical ability to look at almost any computer, except for a few specially protected. So, unfortunately, the world that Nakamoto intended to build, is still a long way from us.

Understanding the Impact of Bitcoin Halving on Investors

The upcoming Bitcoin halving: the event where the rewards for Bitcoin miners will be cut in half. It’s an important event for miners and holds significance for investors as well. After the halving, miners will be rewarded with 3.125 BTC for each block processed instead of the current rate of 6.25 BTC. The purpose of this halving is to control Bitcoin inflation. While the exact date is uncertain, previous halvings have led to price increases and it is expected that retail investors should pay attention to this event. 🪙

The Bitcoin halving has gained a lot of attention due to increased interest in the cryptocurrency industry, especially from institutions. Since the last halving, Bitcoin’s price has risen significantly and it has become more mainstream. Historically, halvings have been followed by price surges. Analysts predict that a potential approval of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) combined with the halving could lead to a “craziest bull run of all time.” 💰

However, it’s important to note that Bitcoin is a volatile asset and the relatively illiquid market may deter traditional investors. The recent crash in Bitcoin’s price, along with increased scrutiny from regulators, might make some investors hesitant to enter the market. Nevertheless, there are alternative ways for investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin, such as investing in publicly traded mining companies. Some experts believe that the halving has a bullish effect on Bitcoin’s price, while others argue that there is no concrete proof of this. Overall, the halving primarily impacts miners, who will closely monitor the event. 📉

To read the original article, click here.

#Bitcoin #cryptocurrency #investment #Bitcoin-halving

5 March 2023, Sunday.

I practiced more questions from taxation today. I'm a little behind on my unit test schedule, but I think I'll be able to bring it back on track by this weekend.

It's interesting to attempt questions from tax, and I have pretty decent conceptual clarity, but making sense of the madness and not missing out on any calculation is such tedious work.

-G

Bitcoin Surges 150% This Year, Hits $42,000 As Spot ETF Excitement Builds

Bitcoin has experienced a 150% surge in value throughout the year, reaching over $42,000 early Monday morning. This explosive growth comes amidst mounting anticipation surrounding the potential launch of a Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States. The main contributing factor to Bitcoin’s recent surge, in addition to the halving event approaching amongst other bullish…

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Research develops a model of trust in Ethereum token ‘Ether’ payments (TRUSTEP)

My new research developed a model of trust in making payments with the Ethereum (Zarifis, 2023). I published the first peer reviewed research on trust in payments with Bitcoin in 2014 (Zarifis et al. 2014), and I wanted to apply my experience from that to understanding the consumer’s perspective to making Ethereum payments.

Ethereum is being utilised in various ways, including smart contracts and payments. Despite some similarities with Bitcoin, Ethereum is a different technology, with different governance and support.

Ethereum payments require digital wallets and the process is different to paying in traditional fiat currencies like the Euro. When a person wants to take an action without controlling all the parameters, and some risk is unavoidable, trust is necessary.

Figure 1. Model of trust in making Ethereum payments, TRUSTEP

The model demystifies how trust is built in consumer payments with Ethereum. The model starts with the individual’s predisposition and then covers the factors from the specific context of Ethereum payments. From the person’s individual characteristics, their willingness to innovate in finance and technology have a role. There are then five variables from the contexts: Adoption and reputation, stable value and low transaction fees, effective regulation, payment intermediaries and trust in the seller. The personal and contextual factors together influence trust in the Ethereum payment process and making a payment with Ether.

While the model has similarities to previous models of trust, such as the role of each individual’s psychological predisposition and the role of reputation, the role of institutions such as regulators and the importance of trust in the retailer, the distinct characteristics of Ethereum also play a role. In fact, the factors related to the distinct characteristics of Ethereum have the strongest support based on the average of the responses. This research can be added to a growing body of research in trust that illustrates how users’ beliefs in each cryptocurrency need to be explored separately.

Furthermore, the role of the organizations involved in the payment process are shown. While trust in the retailer is usually a factor in retail payments, the regulators and payment intermediaries are not always a significant factor, so it is a useful contribution to show that this is the case here.

That is what I want to share with you here. If you have experiences related to what I am talking about, please let me know, I would love to hear from you.

Reference

Zarifis A. (2023) ‘A Model of Trust in Ethereum Token ‘Ether’ Payments, TRUSTEP’ Businesses, vol.3, no. 4: pp.534-547. Available from (open access): https://doi.org/10.3390/businesses3040033

Zarifis A., Efthymiou L., Cheng X. & Demetriou S. (2014) ‘Consumer trust in digital currency enabled transactions’, Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing-Springer, vol.183, pp.241-254. Available from: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-11460-6_21#

vice.com

Bitcoin Sellers Lose Historic $7.3 Billion In Three Days of Pain

Everyone from short-term holders to mining companies have locked in huge losses as Bitcoin's price struggles to stay afloat.

It’s not clear if Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market have bottomed out at this point. While Bitcoin's price has risen above the $20,000 level that many analysts warned as a key price support, there are growing concerns that many key institutional players in the wider crypto ecosystem are illiquid and teetering on the edge of insolvency. 

In the aftermath of crypto lender Celsius Network freezing withdrawals on its platform, as well as other firms either facing insolvency or liquidity concerns, two major crypto lenders have been offered credit lifelines to prevent meltdowns that might further spark crypto panics. Crypto lender Voyager Digital announced a deal with Alameda Research last week, a trading firm created by crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, that would provide credit "intended to be used to safeguard customer assets in light of current market volatility and only if such use is needed." On Tuesday, Crypto lender BlockFi chief executive Zac Prince revealed the company secured "a $250M revolving credit facility providing us with access to capital that further bolsters our balance sheet and platform strength” with FTX—Bankman-Fried’s crypto exchange.

Digifinex Labs: Bitcoin Bulls Eye $45K, Potentially Boosting UNI, OP, TIA, and STX

The S&P 500 Index (SPX) achieved its highest close of the year last week, and Bitcoin (BTC) also hit a new 52-week high, indicating that risky assets remain strong going into the final few days of the year.

Usually, the first leg of the rally of a new bull market is driven by the leaders, but after a significant move, profit-booking sets in and traders start to look at alternative opportunities. Although Bitcoin has not rolled over, several altcoins have started to move higher, signaling a potential shift in interest.

Bitcoin Price Analysis

Bitcoin has been consolidating in a tight range near the minor resistance at $44,700, indicating that the bulls are not rushing to the exit as they anticipate another leg higher.

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