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Blockchain Entrepreneurship Financial Services Software

CoinTracking's success: real-time cryptocurrency tracking and reporting

Turning a hobby into a business? CoinTracking founder and CEO, Dario Kachel, knows exactly how to do it.

Since 2011 cryptocurrency trading has been CoinTracking founder Dario Kachel’s passion. What started as an excel sheet for him to keep track of the price of bitcoin, struck a need in the market and has since grown into a vital resource for many crypto traders. Here’s how he turned it into a successful business.

Kachel’s entrance into the world of cryptocurrency trading began in 2011 after he read about the new asset class in a newspaper. What started as a personal hobby soon morphed into a profitable business.

“At the end of 2011, I read about [Bitcoin] in a newspaper and thought that it sounded interesting,” Kachel recalled. 

He decided to buy his own coins and started trading soon afterward.

“Really quickly, I got lost and I actually tracked everything in Excel. But the manual tracking [in Excel] wasn’t really satisfying. So, I started to search for some kind of automated tracking tool, sure that something like this exists already,” said Kachel. 

But it didn’t. This is when the idea for CoinTracking was born.

Kachel is an experienced developer by trade and started to write a simple script at the end of 2012. It automatically imported new transactions from exchanges and updated the prices for several cryptocurrencies.

“One day,” he beamed, “I was attending the bitcoin meetup in Munich and we started to talk about this script — people actually wanted to use it!”

Inspired and spurred on by the community, Kachel began to design a user interface for the new app. Thanks to a user post on Reddit, more and more people signed up. This kind of traffic was getting out of hand.

“At one point,” he said, “the number reached 5000 new users per day. It was overwhelming and I figured that I could not handle all of this as a side project.” 

With the increasing popularity of bitcoins in 2017, Kachel started to turn his hobby into a business. He left his job, hired support staff and built a team of developers to help him do it.

Visualization cointracking
CoinTracking analyzes your trades and generates real-time reports on profit and loss, the value of your coins realized and unrealized gains, reports for taxes and much more. 

One issue that Kachel faced was a lack of skilled developers with cryptocurrency experience. “It is really not that easy to find good people in Germany with this kind of cryptocurrency knowledge. I wasn’t really convinced of outsourcing. But I am very happy with Espeo.”

Besides adding a subscription system for auto-payments for corporate users and introducing new languages and tools, such as Amazon SQS and KMS and Go language, we transcribed the code for the mobile application and added new functions. Read the detailed case study here.

The team has implemented several features since the initial launch — users can even get help with their tax statements and Kachel plans many new features and options to meet the emerging needs of users of all levels. 

“There are many criteria users should be aware of when starting trading with cryptocurrencies,” said Kachel, “and we help them not only with keeping track of their trades but also support them with the paperwork which comes along.”

If you’d like to know what criteria are important for choosing a cryptocurrency trading platform, check out CoinTracking’s newest blog post Cryptocurrency Exchange Exports: the Ultimate Guide.

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Blockchain Software Technology

6 software technologies that will dominate 2020

2019 is rapidly coming to an end. It’s time to sum up this year’s achievements and to look ahead. Narrow Artificial intelligence, mixed reality, and distributed cloud are just a few of the tech innovations to watch as we enter the next decade. Here’s a brief summary of Gartner’s 2020 tech trends report combined with our software development experts’ predictions for which software technologies will dominate the 2020s.

6 software technologies that will dominate 2020

Table of contents:

  1. Multiexperience
  2. Digital twins technology driven by IoT
  3. Distributed cloud
  4. Event-Driven Applications
  5. Blockchain
  6. Progressive web Apps

1. Multiexperience 

Improvements in wearables and advanced computer sensors are paving the way for the emergence of multiexperience, fully-immersive technology. Traditional ideas of the computer will expand to include new, varied touchpoints. This, of course, will greatly increase the demand for mobile development as firms rush to compete on better, more immersive apps.

Gartner cites Domino’s Pizza, who rolled out an ordering app that combines autonomous vehicles, smart speaker communications, and tracking sensors. The growing popularity of wearable technology is driving development in this field. Greater connectivity and improved user experience will attract more users.

Currently, multiexperience apps use augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality to deliver ever more immersive experiences. As consumers demand more and more sophisticated applications, businesses will have to keep up and deliver more ambient experiences.

digital twins

Time and time again companies have trusted us as a software development provider. Read more about some of our projects and find out why.

 

2. Digital twins technology driven by IoT

Internet of things is an area where the so-called digital twins concept evolves fastest. Modern household appliances use a lot of smart components equipped with sensors to gather data about real-time status, working conditions, and alerts. They’re integrated to cloud-based systems to gather data, then process and analyze it.

And here’s how a digital twin is created. It’s a kind of pairing appliance which reflects its real-life counterpart in the digital environment. This virtual model of a product or service allows for the analysis of a huge amount of varied data. In effect, we can deal with problems before they even occur, prevent downtime, develop new functionalities and much more.

The digital twin concept has the widest coverage in such projects as smart cities, real-time navigable models, or health care  – with virtualization of hospital systems for work safety and continuity.

As web & mobile developers, we can also observe that digital twin technology is spreading to the user experience field. Service providers try to get clients to attend their events, for example trades or fashion shows and let customers build their visual twin to become a part of an event. This way they create an extraordinary user experience.

augmented reality
 

3. Distributed cloud

Distributed cloud systems promise to bring about a new era of cloud computing. These systems distribute public cloud services to several locations outside a provider’s data centers, but the provider still controls them. Cloud providers take care of cloud service architecture, governance, operations, updates, and delivery.

Since data centers can be anywhere, latency and data sovereignty challenges are reduced. Distributed cloud services offer the benefit of a public cloud service with those of a private cloud.

event driven appa
 

 4. Event-Driven Applications

Gartner predicts that through the 2020s a real-time, event-based approach will be a core required demand for 80% of all digital solutions. It’s crucial for business application development companies to apply “event thinking” to their solution strategy.

Event programming is not a type of technology or programming language. It represents an approach that should be implemented in a product development process. An event-driven application responds to actions generated by the user or the system, for example, mouse clicks or loading a program. From a programming point of view, it’s important to separate event-processing logic from the rest of the coding work.

Technologies like AI or IoT speed up event-driven coding as a useful product development strategy. In general, event-driven apps can improve responsiveness, flexibility and give a better understanding of user experience.

blockchain
 

5. Blockchain

2017 was the year of blockchain hype. Now that the hype has died down, it’s time for practical blockchian applications. Gartner was hesitant in its predictions for blockchain but stressed that in specific cases, firms can leverage blockchain technology to improve internal processes and ensure data security. 

Find out more: Espeo Blockchain – blockchain services that can address different business problems

Blockchain is a network of interconnected peer-to-peer devices. This technology provides for the absence of central databases, as well as the lack of clearly defined locations where all data is stored. Use cases here are especially useful to the supply chain and real estate asset management sectors as well as in healthcare data management. Throughout the 2020s, advanced in blockchain technology will improve its usability and enterprise applications. 

software technologies
 

6. Progressive web Apps

We have to add progressive web applications to Gartner’s software technologies. The growth of web-based solutions is a solid trend we could observe during the current year. It’s no reason to think it’s going to change in the coming decade.

On the contrary, in the long term, it’s more probable that web apps will take a significant slice of market cake from mobile apps, and not vice versa. We believe it, even more, when we hear Google reps talking about focusing on expanding the features of the current browsers to let web applications achieve the same UX level as mobile apps.

Moreover, progressive web apps are easier to develop and maintain than native applications. They combine the best features of the web and mobile apps. What’s more, they make use of the vast web ecosystem, plugins, and community.

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Blockchain Finance Financial Services

7 real use cases of blockchain technology in fintech

Blockchain use cases in fintech have taken the world by storm. The popularity of blockchain keeps on growing. By 2018-2022 many European and North American banks were exploring the technology and how to leverage it. Financial companies spent around $552 million on blockchain projects globally. But, what is this technology exactly, and which blockchain usability will change the face of banking and finance?

This article will provide you with simple answers to both these questions and share different examples of blockchain ecosystems influencing global finance.

Table of contents:

  1. What is blockchain technology, and how does it revolutionize the financial services sector?
  2. Decrease transaction costs
  3. Resolve identity theft issues
  4. Global payment options
  5. Enhanced regulation and auditing
  6. Credit reports
  7. Lending as a way to gain budget or to invest
  8. Financial instruments trading
  9. Conclusion to blockchain application in fintech

What is blockchain technology, and how does it revolutionize the financial services sector?

Blockchain technology is a data management system using complex cryptography to power many cryptocurrencies and other decentralized applications. At their core, blockchains are accounting systems and digital ledgers that facilitate auditing. What makes them different from traditional databases is that they distribute up-to-date versions of ledger data to all the devices on the network. This makes it nearly impossible to change the information once it’s on the blockchain network as all the devices in the network would have to accept the changes i.e. in the voting process. 

One of the first times blockchain was used, its product was Bitcoin, which facilitates digital money transfers and has no central authority, such as a central bank. The protocol uses the computing power of all the devices — called mining — in the network to add new data to the chain and rewards miners with bitcoins. 

The complexity of the system makes it resistant to hacking as someone would have to take control of the 51% or more of the computing power of the network to do it. 

Later, Ethereum emerged and introduced smart contracts, making this blockchain more useful for business needs like financial markets.

Blockchain has many applications in real-life financial services. PWC revealed in a 2017 report that 77% of fintech companies expect to involve it as a part of their systems. Forbes summed up the 50 most significant 2022 projects and mentioned many in the fintech sector.

Fintech companies are moving towards this new trend for several reasons, including the following.

Decrease transaction costs

An online transaction has multiple elements that you have to consider. There are trading companies or applications, transfer channels, as well as some intermediaries who slow down the process and introduce some extra charges to it. The costs rise even more for international dealing.

A study by McKinsey says that remittance companies are making $40 billion per year with these fees. Blockchains can decrease all these losses. Blockchains enable direct peer-to-peer (p2p) transactions over the internet, which eliminates the intermediaries and their costs. The decentralized system also eliminates delays in online payments. Their real-time data updating feature further ensures smooth, error-free operations and prevents extra charges or lost investments. 

Resolve identity theft issues

A press release by Javelin shows that 6.64% of consumers became a victim of identity theft in 2017. Since then, digital fraud and identity theft issues were made even more painful, especially during the pandemic. 

Banks and fintech firms are required to implement know-your-client and anti-money laundering procedures following increased oversight. Of course, this means they need a lot of paperwork which slows their processes. It can take weeks to verify the identity and complete an online transaction. The lengthy and non-standardized paperwork of these verifications further adds to the problem.

Therefore, financial institutions are increasingly open to implementing a blockchain-based system. In this system, the user has to prove the identity only once. After that, they are given a verification document that they can use to conduct transactions from any part of the world. They can also use this document to manage and share personal data, log in without a password, and e-sign any document.

Global payment options

The blockchain network is entirely internet-based and doesn’t need any specific setup for operation. Thanks to the digitization of assets, users can access the data and conduct transactions from any part of the world using their account’s public and private keys.

Its internet-centric system also makes it flexible for global transactions. In fact, the 2016 Statista study about blockchain usage opportunities amongst financial institutes reveals that about 60% of the total blockchain-based transfer of digital assets involved cross-border transactions. 

Enhanced regulation and auditing 

With increased financial connectivity across the world, the demands for regulatory services are also growing. Companies will need better and more advanced fintech systems to deal with the demand, and that’s where blockchain solutions come to play. 

Blockchain applications use a decentralized system that creates new storage areas for every new action but never tampers with the old blocks. It also maintains a non-deletable report of the transaction related to your blockchain. The system also saves the original document of the trade that the users can view at any time.  

Moreover, blockchain provides all the data and analysis reports at one single source, which is beneficial for auditing. Its smart, read-only nodes decrease the time and the cost required for verification and accounting.

Credit reports

Banking & financial institutions often store the transactional information of their users to analyze their monthly transactions. They use this data to analyze the credibility of the users and prepare their credit reports. However, they mostly use a centralized server or system for this job, which is a huge security risk. Anyone who can hack into the server can get complete access to the private data of all users. 

Blockchain-based systems are different and more reliable in this case. They decentralize the information and use separate storage spaces to protect the data. It also deploys robust security algorithms and identity verification protocols that further enhance the level of security.

The best part is that they can also help to audit these credit reports at a much higher speed than the traditional system.  

Lending as a way to gain budget or to invest

Traditional credits and loans are not accessible for some businesses, while they may still require cash flow to expand or start performing efficiently. It is valid for some fintech startups or e-commerce companies. On the other side, groups of small investors are looking for a way to invest without much work and unnecessary risk.

Blockchain tools, especially smart contracts, are a way to match investors with individual borrowers. The technology provides a way to transfer assets, sign deals with terms transparent to both sides and finally automate debt management and execution. Blockchain mitigates risks on both sides and gives a chance to investors and borrowers that are omitted in the traditional finance system.

Financial instruments trading

Cryptocurrencies and NFTs are investment options, but that is not what this case is about. Blockchain networks, often private enterprise ones, have been changing the way financial assets are traded for years. The process requires approvals, audit trails, and accessibility for many pre-verified roles like financial brokers or advisors.

All of that is done by each unit taking part in the process separately. Blockchain is one virtual place where those businesses meet with full accountability and transparency of actions. Solutions for financial clearing services are cutting times and errors by more than half.

Conclusion to blockchain application in fintech

Blockchain use cases in fintech are revolutionizing the finance industry. The benefits of blockchain are clear as it has removed the barrier of speed, cost, and many more factors of financial transfers. It can provide you with real-time database management, financial tracking, resource management, and a lot more.

This future tech can even enhance the security level of your financial institution and work as a defence against identity theft issues. These advantages are noticed by large banks like HSBC, Deutsche Bank, and KBC are using this technology to maintain the reliability of their services.  

Blockchain platforms are the future of finance, not only for cryptocurrency users but also for FIAT currencies, a trend that is driving massive business. That is why many organizations are looking for a way to use blockchain to be a part of it. 

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Blockchain Entrepreneurship Financial Services Other

How blockchain loyalty points can save frequent flyer programs

Blockchain loyalty points could help consumers protect their frequent flyer points. Redeeming these rewards is often easier said than done. Up to 36 percent of frequent flyers say that airline loyalty rewards expire before they’re able to use them. 64 percent of airline customers also claim that airline frequent flyer programs are too complex for them to navigate. Of course, if the airline suddenly collapses, you also lose the points you worked hard to collect. We need to hold airlines accountable for their promises. Rolling out blockchain loyalty points could be one way to do just that. The immutability of blockchain systems serves as a model for how to improve frequent flyer programs.

Origins of frequent flyer programs

Frequent flyer programs encourage customers to stay loyal to the airline companies and prevent them from choosing competing carriers. Since there is very little difference in the underlying product, airlines have to come up with attractive perks to keep consumers coming back. These programs emerged in the early 1980s as a way to do just that. Airlines then would use a customer database to track miles flown and this birthed a reward system of a mile earned for a mile traveled. 

The trend spread and has now become a common marketing tool for many airlines. In theory, the programs offer a range of free flights, accommodation, and exclusive services such as a faster check-in. Members earn points for each flight depending on the length of the flight — the longer the flight, the higher the fare and the higher the point score. 

To redeem their miles travelers book tickets with their frequent flyer number. However, some issues exist that can make the process harder for customers. For example, airlines are notorious for blackout dates. These are peak travel periods where airlines raise prices around holidays or popular sporting events at destinations. Limited seat availability can also make airlines inflate seat prices. In a way, this not only makes it hard for customers to retrieve their loyalty rewards but can also cause them to forgo their rewards altogether.

Loyal customers deserve better and as pressure from low-cost carriers drives costs down, new ways to lure frequent flyers are increasingly important. One way to do this is to transform airline loyalty points into immutable digital assets with blockchain.

Blockchain loyalty points

If we look at blockchain as a way to protect digital assets, treating airline flyer miles as non-fungible tokens could help airlines keep better track of these points, and make it easier for consumers to spend them. We’ve already designed the blockchain architecture for a customer loyalty management company called Gabrotech. The Singaporean firm is revolutionizing loyalty points programs. With the issues facing traditional loyalty programs, blockchain is a perfect fix for these problems. Better transparency and security are some of the main advantages.

  • Ease of retrieval: with blockchain, customers can redeem their flyer miles more easily as opposed to the traditional method. The biggest issue customers have had with the existing method is the limited rewards. The added flexibility blockchain brings will enable them to redeem flyer miles easier, and in more ways including redeeming in installments. Additionally, blockchain tokens can be used across a wide variety of platforms. Instead of juggling different cards for different loyalty rewards, a system leveraging blockchain could allow consumers to switch between cryptocurrencies and even store tokens with ease. Customers will also be able to convert the cryptocurrency rewards into actual cash if they want. This doesn’t come with the old system.
  • Smart contracts:  a smart contract is a blockchain feature that helps two or more parties to digitally facilitate, verify and enforce their contract. In other words, they allow you to exchange anything of value in a transparent way while passing over the traditional need for a middleman. Blockchain removes the need to pay any middlemen and thereby saves the customer, and airline time and money. A smart contract is an automatic bind, it won’t let either of the parties to make changes to the contract without the permission of the other one. That’s why blockchain-based airline loyalty reward is transparent.
  • Security: blockchain is an algorithm that creates a rigid and time-stamped database of every transaction on it. This makes it easy for customers to follow every transaction. The rigid rules drastically reduce the chances of any kind of fraud.  

Airlines ahead of the blockchain curve

Singapore Airlines won the highly coveted first spot at the Startracks airline awards in 2018 for several reasons. From their impressive customer service, the beautiful airport to the magnificent cuisine served on its flights, they have proven themselves the absolute best at what they do. So, it was no surprise to see them top the list. In addition to all these, however, Singapore Airlines is the world’s first airline carrier to launch a blockchain-based airline loyalty digital wallet. The airline collaborated with KPMG Digital Village and Microsoft to come up with the blockchain-based solution they dubbed KrisPay

In a company press release, head of KPMG’s Digital Village in Singapore, Jan Reinmuller said, “with the blockchain-based digital wallet, it is a straightforward process for participating with merchants to connect with the program and for customers to make a purchase with their tokenized miles.” The process used in KrisPay is relatively simple to use. All airline customers have to do is download the KrisPay app and convert their KrisFlyer miles into KrisPay miles. Customers can then spend their loyalty rewards by scanning the KrisPay QR code at any merchants cooperating with Singapore Airlines. At launch, there were about 18 merchants available and the number has since increased. 

It works too, unlike in the traditional system where customers have to wait for their flyer miles to accumulate before being able to use them. With a simple scan, customers can use as little as 15 KrisPay miles to pay for purchases made with partner merchants. Even if a customer’s loyalty reward is not enough to book a flight, less than frequent travelers can convert and spend their points elsewhere. 

As shown above, blockchain has the potential to change the way companies structure loyalty programs. Singapore Airlines is by no means the only carrier adding the use of blockchain to its operations. Cathay Pacific and Air New Zealand have already followed suit in 2018. 

Conclusion

Blockchain loyalty points could make it easier for airlines to track, and attract consumers to their service. Additionally, reassuring frequent flyers that their digital assets will not go away will encourage them to actually use them. The high percentage of consumers that express frustration with their frequent flyer programs should spur airlines to act. Nearly 8 trillion flyer miles go unused, which should signal a breakdown in the service.

Soon, airlines still using the traditional frequent flyer programs to reward their customers lag behind tech-savvy carriers. They already are, but they may soon start losing customers to rival airlines that are using the better means blockchain offers to reward their customers.