FLX Wallet today announced it has released its innovative crypto currency hardware wallet. The FLX One wallet has been designed to be both secure and extremely easy to use by both new and seasoned crypto currency owners and supports many currencies. With a built-in rechargeable battery, Bluetooth wireless functionality, and iOS/Android mobile apps, you can manage all your cryptocurrencies anywhere. The revolutionary hardware FLX Key is used to backup and restore the wallet.

The FLX One system includes intuitive iOS/Android mobile apps that allows you to easily use your smartphone to make transactions and manage your cryptocurrencies with your FLX One.

The FLX One was designed and tested with ultimate security in mind, and innovative new features to usher in the next generation of hardware wallets!

Exclusive features:
● Disables communication automatically when signing transaction (i.e, wallet adaptively turns itself offline completely) (patent-pending)
● Dedicated hardware, FLX Key, for backing up and restoring your wallet. (patent-pending)
● Truly mobile - manage all your cryptocurrencies anywhere without wires
● Managed currencies solely on FLX One system (Mobile Apps and wallet) and no need to go through 3rd parties

Plus all the essential capabilities you need:
● Encrypted communication between each component in the FLX One system
● Software tamper detection (Permanently lock out FLX One when tampering is detected)
● Personal PIN (at least 6 characters long)
● Exponential lockout time when PIN is entered incorrectly
● Randomized starting keyboard cursor
● Ongoing firmware upgrade capability

The FLX Key is a revolutionary simple-to-use hardware device that is used to backup and restore your account information. If you ever damage or lose your FLX One, you can use the FLX Key to restore your account. The backup process is integrated within the initial setup by inserting the FLX Key to the FLX One wallet, and the FLX One system will take care of the rest (patent-pending). Unlike other competitors, you don't need to hand-record a list of cumbersome phases.

The FLX One currently supports major cryptocurrencies natively. Unlike other crypto currency wallets, you can manage our supported currencies solely on the FLX One system (Mobile App and FLX One) and do not need to use any 3rd party software. With firmware upgrade capability, additional currencies will be added regularly.

Kenny Fok, CEO at FLX, explained: "We looked at other hardware wallets. They are just very difficult to use, cumbersome, and not user friendly. We designed FLX One with Simple-to-use and user friendly in mind. We want typical consumers to enjoy the security of the hardware crypto wallet and have fun with it."

For full information visit https://FLXWallet.com

This time, the scam was at least a bit more creative than usual - the scammers first hacked a real verified account, giving them control over a username that has the blue "verified" check mark next to it.

Then, they switched the account name to "Elon Musk" and tweeted out the following:

The tweet that went out, notice how the actual account is @patheuk

But they didn't stop there - then (using a stolen credit card we can safely assume) they purchased advertising from Twitter and gave the post some extra promotion - causing tens of thousands of extra people to see it.

The scam itself was the usual bait of "send some Bitcoin i'll send even more back" - which from a verified account or not - is always an obvious scam. So, honestly it's a bit hard to feel sorry for the 'victims' here.

Now, a look into the wallet the site directed people to send funds to (1KAGE12gtYVfizicQSDQmnPHYfA29bu8Da) is sitting with a little over 28 BTC in it! Valued at nearly $180k.

A look into the wallet of the scammer.

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The "fiscal year" as it relates to the institutions that regulate the financial markets technically came to a close on Sept 30th - the idea is anything ongoing at the point is likely to continue into the next year as lawmakers return home from Washington, and anything beyond that date will be considered part of their 2019 actions.

On that note, the US Securities and Exchange Commission released their annual report covering the 2018 fiscal year, where they touched on the topic of cryptocurrencies several times, first stating:

"In the past year, the Division has opened dozens of investigations involving ICOs and digital assets, many of which were ongoing at the close of FY 2018."

The SEC says they've helped recover over $68 million for 'duped investors' participating in ICOs that purposely mislead the public.

Among those - a story I broke here following an insider leaking documents to the Global Crypto Press regarding Titanium Blockchain, who raised over $12 million before it was discovered their CEO lied about business relationships with everyone from Apple to PayPal.

Also included in their biggest busts was TokenLot, which stands accused of operating as an unregistered broker/dealer.

Adding some relief for legitimate investors, they made a point they've made before - that only those committing fraud have reason to fear SEC intervention, saying:

“The Enforcement Division recognizes the need to balance its mission to protect investors from the risk posed by fraud and registration violations against the risk of stifling innovation and legitimate capital formation”

Which is a case often made in response to those saying the cryptocurrency markets need more regulation and oversight - that so far existing laws have been sufficient and it's been impossible for someone to operate a scam in the cryptocurrency world that didn't violate existing laws as well - meaning new regulations aren't only unnecessary, but also come with the risk of slowing innovation and growth.

The full report is available on the SEC's official site here.

Welcome to the November Cryptocurrency outlook from Contentworks Agency, a content marketing agency specialising in the financial services sector.

October was the least volatile month for the major cryptocurrencies this year. The reason for this was that the earnings season did not bring major news on the currencies. This was unlike the second quarter’s earnings where Blackrock announced its intention to invest in cryptocurrencies. This was a major news because as the biggest asset manager in the world, its entry would attract more liquidity to the industry. In addition to the low-profile earnings season, there were no major news on the regulation of the industry.

November is likely to be more active than October. This is because in the financial market, a long period of low volatility is usually seen as the ‘calm before the storm’. This is because the reason prices are often unchanged is that there is indecision among the participants. As a result, when the price starts to move in either direction, more participants enter the market.

In October, the SEC met with the Chicago Board of Exchange (CBOE), VanEck, and SolidX on the Bitcoin ETF issue. In the meeting, the regulators discussed the proposed ETF, the risks they pose to investors, and how the companies will protect retail investors. A key aspect of their ETF is the fact that they will be priced at $200,000, which will make them unaffordable to many investors.

This month, the SEC will likely rule on the ETF and whether it meets the requirement. If it does, it will likely cause the price of Bitcoin to rise. This is because with the ETF, institutions like Blackrock will be able to buy the currencies. However, for the long-term, this will not be a major driver for Bitcoin. As you recall, many investors expected the list of Bitcoin futures at the CME and CBOE to improve demand. A recent report showed that the volumes have been minimal.

This month, several crypto-related events will take place. First, there will be The Decentralized event in Athens, Greece that will happen mid-this month. Contentworks is among the media sponsors for the event that will attract over 1000 participants. The company’s co-director, Charlotte Day said the following about the event:

“Decentralized is an exciting event that brings together companies, policymakers, investors, and other participants together to share ideas about the future of blockchain. We are excited to be a sponsor and will continue supporting the cause”

Speakers at the event include Eva Kaili of the European Parliament, Angeliki Dedopoulou of the European Commission, and Llew Claasen of Bitcoin Foundation. Other major events that will take place are the Southeast Asia Blockchain Summit that will take place in Indonesia, World Blockchain Summit that will take place in Amsterdam, The ICO Summit at Zurich, and World Blockchain Forum at New York. It is important to pay close attention to these events because they could deliver important updates.

As the month goes on, it is important to focus on the security of the cryptocurrency industry. This is because these events are usually unplanned and when they happen, they could affect cryptocurrencies significantly. This year, cryptocurrencies worth over $700 million have been stolen. In addition to security, watch out for news on regulation and a large company’s entry into crypto.

Did you enjoy this month’s crypto outlook? Contact the team at www.contentworks.agency to discuss content marketing for your finance or blockchain brand.

Just a few days ago, Chinese courts cleared up a few 'grey areas' - and ruled that Bitcoin ownership is legal, merchants can choose to accept it as a form of payment, and it should be treated legally as property of the owner.

Which is a step in the right direction.

But after reading comments from people in some of the cryptocurrency communities i'm a member of, things along the lines of "this is huge" and other comments expecting this to lead to market movement, I think some clarification is needed.

Still in place is the full ban on participating in cryptocurrency exchanges and ICOs.

So another way to look at this is - currently in China people can possess and spend the Bitcoin they acquired on exchanges before the ban, or through mining, with all the legal protections of someone spending money.

But mined Bitcoin, and Bitcoin purchased long ago simply changing hands within China won't have any effect on the markets as a whole.

This still leaves us with at least a reasonable hope that Bitcoin spending activity officially being legal ignites more demand to be allowed back into the global cryptocurrency markets.  A task much easier if Chinese businesses can present a case for increased profitability through use of cryptocurrencies.

We've been tracking this story since yesterday, and as soon as we think it's reached a point where we could publish an article - the story takes another wild turn.  There's surely more to come, but what we know so far is pretty interesting.

The exchange is called "MapleChange" and is based in Canada, and the problems all began yesterday when users of the exchange noticed all of their tokens were gone.

That's when they made the following announcement on Twitter:


At this point, while their users weren't happy, they seemed to be patiently waiting to see what MapleChange would do next, and find out what the results of their 'investigation' would be.

But before receiving any updates on what happened to their funds they noticed MapleChange deleting their social media accounts, starting with their Discord chat channel. At this point their Twitter account was still active and users started publicly slamming the company.

Accusations varied from saying MapleChange was simply trying to run away from the problem, to saying they were the ones behind the whole thing, that MapleChange stole the funds themselves, and were currently in the process of executing an "Exit Scam" - something both ICO's and small exchanges have been caught doing in the past, where they raise funds, then fake being victims of hackers as an excuse to then steal those funds.

MapleChange responded to these accusations on Twitter with:


Then - their Twitter account disappeared as well.

I thought this was all we would hear for awhile, but things took another turn - as Reddit users got on the case and tracked down the personal information of the exchange's CEO and began posting it everywhere MapleChange was being discussed, as shown in this Tweet from a Twitter account created just to troll MapleChange:


Suddenly, MapleChange re-activated their accounts - both their Twitter and Discord channel were now back online.

Many are saying it's more than a coincidence that as soon as the CEO was 'hunted down' - MapleChange suddenly returned. But MapleChange offered this explanation:


This brings us to what's happening now - it appears all Bitcoin and Litecoin are gone forever, the rest will be returned once they can "properly identify customers and hand back the proper amount" according to MapleChange.

Still unknown is the value of Bitcoin and Litecoin stolen. While initially accused of losing 919 BTC, MapleChange insists "We have NEVER had 919BTC in our wallet".

Also still unknown is what happens next as far as Canadian law enforcement, and civil actions against MapleChange that will surely follow. 

Here in the US, the FBI would be examining the exchange's servers, and users would be preparing their lawsuits. But this is a first for Canada and we'll soon be learning how they respond to such incidents involving cryptocurrency.

If anyone has additional information, contact us or reach out on Twitter @GlobalCryptoDev.

Ripple has confirmed their latest heavyweight hire is Google's (now former) Vice President of Products, Amir Sarhangi.

Sarhangi is now in charge of development for Ripple's global payments network known as RippleNet.

Dispite a bear market for 2018, Ripple has been beating the odds - boasting $73.53 million in revenue in the 2nd quarter of the year, and following that up by doubling that amount and hitting $163.33 million in the 3rd quarter.

His title from Google, 'Vice President of products' will be Sarhangi's official new title at Ripple as well.

A reality-style television event, a hackathon, a job fair, and presentations and panel discussions featuring leading innovators in the dynamic blockchain and cryptocurrency industry, are just some of the highlights expected at the 4th World Blockchain Forum (WBF) that will take place in New York, November 8-9, 2018.

“We are witnessing an unprecedented digital migration of wealth onto blockchains of various forms so we need to start working towards a global blockchain industry consensus,” WBF Co-Founder Zhao Sheng said. “And the best way to achieve consensus is to gather all stakeholders together within an ecosystem founded on consensus, which is why we organise the World Blockchain Forum.”

Everyone is welcome to attend WBF. In particular, WBF extends an invitation to anyone who is sceptical about blockchain and cryptocurrencies to come along, express their concerns, ask questions, and learn more about the positive benefits of blockchain from the movers, shakers, and beneficiaries of the technology.

More than 2,500 people are expected to attend WBF New York, including representatives of 150+ companies and 200+ speakers; experts are from various areas, such as blockchain finance, cryptocurrency, token economics, and consensus, Ethereum apps, the EOS ecosystem, the future of crypto, and AI trading.

Confirmed speakers include Celsius Network Founder & CEO Alex Mashinsky (a pioneer of peer-to-peer decentralized borrowing & lending platform), Agentic Group Founder Rik Willard (representing a federation of more than 50 blockchain and related companies on five continents), and Everipedia Founder Mahbod Moghadam (who is putting human knowledge on the blockchain). These speakers and many more will bring their powerful insights into blockchain technology and its applications.

WBF is dedicated to bridging the Eastern and Western worlds in an interactive setting. The conference will discuss the current state and future prospects of blockchain, including trends, opportunities, challenges, regulations and their long-term implications.

WBF is expecting more than a million global impressions from coverage of WBF New York, making it the blockchain event of 2018.

Investor sharks sniff out new blood
WBF will work with television producer SharkChain during the first day of the Forum to produce a competition show onsite in which a shortlist of innovative blockchain companies will pitch their business proposals to a panel of investors.

To be named WBF · New York City Series, the event will be broadcast on mainstream media including NASDAQ, NETFLIX, HULU, WebRTC, OTT, SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS, ROKU, and APPLE TV.

“Great ideas stand up to pressure tests,” Mr Zhao said. Representatives of promising projects will pitch their ideas to experienced investors and answer probing questions while getting invaluable global media coverage and exposure.


This will be compelling viewing for anyone interested in the blockchain sector, especially new investors and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Explore opportunities to join the revolution
Popular Chinese recruitment firm liepin.com is working with WBF to host a job fair during the event to help attendees learn about and connect with opportunities for employment or professional collaboration.

Hacking the future
As part of Blockchain Week 2018 (November 8-13), tech-oriented not-for-profit IDEAS will work together with WBF to host a global blockchain hackathon immediately after the Forum on November 10-11.

IDEAS is the largest tech non-profit and boasts the widest developer community in North America with more than 200,000 members. The organization is active not only in the blockchain industry but also in data science and AI.

About the World Blockchain Forum
The World Blockchain Forum (WBF) Corporation was registered in New York in 2017 and its first WBF event took place March 26-27, 2018 in London.

From the outset WBF positioned itself as the premier event at the cutting edge of global distributed ledger technology (DLT or “blockchain”), an interconnecting platform for global blockchain stakeholders, and a place where leading authorities and innovators can listen and be heard.

As the blockchain sector’s leading event, WBF is able to invite, inform, and influence leaders in government, academia, media, and business who may still view blockchain with scepticism.

Now an established event, WBF has set out its primary objectives as follows:

●Influence the culture and direction of the blockchain industry by bringing all stakeholders together within a single trusted DLT-enabled ecosystem
●Become the premier venue for investors to find new blockchain projects
●Become investors’ most trusted guide on worthy new projects
●Become a reliable source of news on the blockchain industry and projects
●Become the biggest stage for the launch of new blockchain projects
●Offer ICO services to new blockchain projects
●Offer investment services for blockchain investors
●Offer a meeting place for developers, experts, advisors, professionals, service providers, and prospective employees and team members

We invite you to join the 4th World Blockchain Forum, November 8-9, 2018 in New York at the New York Hilton Midtown.

Keep an eye on our social media channels and official website, WBF.io, to get all the details and reports first.

Official Website: http://www.wbf.io

Ticket Sales: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wbf-new-york-blockchain-conference-tickets-48224210913

In this month's IRS Information Reporting Advisory Committee Public Report, they dive into the topic of collection of cryptocurrency taxes, citing research conducted by Fundstrat:

"...estimated cryptocurrency-related U.S. tax liabilities at $25 billion. That is based on approximately $92 billion of taxable gains for U.S. cryptocurrency investors, who, according to Fundstrat, comprise around 30 percent of cryptocurrency investors worldwide. Globally, the cryptocurrency market grew from about $19 billion at the start of January 2017 to more than $500 billion at the end of December 2017, according to data from CoinMarketCap"

Also in the report, their estimate that up to 50% of people could attempt to not properly report their cryptocurrency earnings, adding:

"Because transactions in virtual currencies can be difficult to trace and have an inherently pseudoanonymous aspect, some taxpayers may be tempted to hide taxable income from the IRS."

The full report can be viewed on the IRS website here.

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