Edge Launches Confidential Mastercard, Litecoin Delisted in South Korea, Ethereum Closer to Proof of Stake

Edge Launches Confidential Mastercard

Edge, a cryptocurrency wallet provider, has launched the first private bitcoin Mastercard. Registering for the Edge Mastercard does not require any personal information. It has a credit limit of $1000 a day, and you can fund the card using Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and Dash. 

"Not a name, not a phone number, not an email address. Not your actual address, nothing. You can create a virtual card in around 15 seconds inside of Edge," said Paul Puey, the CEO and Co-founder of Edge. 

The confidential Mastercard will be available in the U.S. Edge wallet users can sell their cryptocurrency and transfer the dollars directly to their Mastercard to spend. There are no transfer fees. Later, the card will integrate with Apple Pay, Samsung, and Google Pay. Ordering a physical card costs an extra $20. 

 

Litecoin Delisted in South Korea

Litecoin, one of the oldest cryptocurrencies, has been delisted by big South Korean exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb. The delisting is due to Litecoin’s activation of the MimbleWimble Extension Block - a confidentiality protocol that conceals transactions. 

The exchanges cited that Litecoin’s activation of the MimbleWimble protocol was at odds with South Korea's Specific Financial Information Act. The act requires exchanges to check transactions for illicit transactions. 

MimbleWimble is a decentralized system focused on anonymity. The protocol conceals sender and receiver addresses. It also batches up transactions to increase privacy. Litecoin activated the MimbleWimble protocol last month to increase privacy and scalability. 

Ethereum Closer to Proof of Stake

Ethereum is one step closer to the “Merge” after successfully merging the Ropsten Testnet with its beacon chain on Wednesday. The Ropsten Testnet is an Ethereum replica, and the beacon chain is a proof of stake blockchain. Ethereum is transitioning from a proof of work to a proof of stake protocol to make transactions cheaper and faster. 

However, before the full transition can occur, Ethereum developers must complete a few steps. The Ropsten Testnet merge was the first of three. Goerli and Sepolia will undergo their merges. In addition, Ethereum mining difficulty needs to accommodate the move from proof of work to proof of work. Vitalik, the co-founder of Ethereum, estimates that the final merge will be completed in September or October of 2022.

Written by Lindi Miti © Crypto University 2022