Huobi Research Weekly（Vol.94）（12.23–12.29）

Abstract

This week, the overall market capitalization for the top 100 cryptocurrencies decreased of 0.66%, with 68 projects decreased in value to varying degrees. According to coinmarketcap, as of December 29th, 2019, the total market cap of cryptocurrencies was 196.9 billion U.S. dollars, decreased by 0.66%, and the total market cap of the top 100 cryptocurrencies was 195.4 billion U.S. dollars,decreased by 0.66% from last week. 2 cryptocurrency projects entered the top 100 this week, namely MB and BRZE. As of December 29th, 2019, Bitcoin was traded at 7422.65USD, 1.11% lower than its price last week. Ethereum was traded at 134.76USD, 1.87% higher than its price last week.

The hashrate of Bitcoin increased and the hashrate of Ethereum decreased by this week. This week, the difficulty of mining Bitcoin increased and the difficulty of mining Ethereum decreased. The average number of transactions per block decreased and the average block size of Bitcoin decreased. The average number of transactions per block decreased and the average block size of Ethereum decreased this week. The average transaction fees of Bitcoin and Ethereum both decreased. ZSC was the most active project on GitHub this week.

The average bitcoin Hashrate for the entire network reached 96.83EH/s, increased by 3.64% from the previous week.Average Hashrate for the entire Ethereum network was 148.9TH/s this week, decreased by 6.09%. Average difficulty for mining Bitcoin this week was 12.95T, increased by 0. 47% from last week. The average difficulty of mining Ethereum this week was 2524.44TH, decreased by 1.11% from that of previous week.

In network activity, the average size of each block was 912.9KB, decreased 14.77% form last week; there were on average 1970 transactions recorded in each block, decreased by 7.64% from the previous week. The average number of transactions per block in Ethereum this week was 114.2, decreased by 5.07%. The average size of each block was 24444.0 bytes, decreased by 6.98% compared to last week. As of December 29th, 2019, average transaction fees of Bitcoin this week was $0.341, decreased by 11.43% from last week. Average transaction fees of Ethereum this week was $0.0759, decresead by 5.95%.Total number of addresses on the Blockchain and Ethereum network reached 44.35 million and 80.72 million, increased 0.81(1.01%) million respectively. ZSC was the most active project on GitHub this week, with 82 commits submitted in the past week.

In terms of community activity, Tron, Bitcoin and Ethereum are the most popular communities on Facebook. On Twitter, the most popular communities are Bitcoin, Ripple and Tron.

3 investments activities took place in the blockchain industry this week, FansTime strategic investment from GODFUND, Yunphant got A+ pound investment, NewStar got strategic investment from China Marine Heavy Industries.

1. Weekly Market Review

1.1 Market overview

This week, the overall market capitalization for the top 100 cryptocurrencies decreased of 0.66%, with 68 projects decreased in value to varying degrees. According to coinmarketcap, as of December 29th, 2019, the total market cap of cryptocurrencies was 196.9 billion U.S. dollars, decreased by 0.66%, and the total market cap of the top 100 cryptocurrencies was 195.4 billion U.S. dollars,decreased by 0.66% from last week, among which, OKB had the largest increased of 106.2%, bringing its market cap ranking from №95 to №53, 999 had the largest decreased of -32.49%, bringing its market cap ranking from №18 to №22. In addition, there were 2 projects that entered TOP100, namely, MineBee (MB, decreased -2.05%, Now №97), Breezecoin (BRZE, decreased -0.54%, Now №96). As of December 29th, 2019, Bitcoin was traded at 7422.65USD, 1.11% lower than its price last week. Ethereum was traded at 134.76USD, 1.87% higher than its price last week.

The overall 24h trading volume increased this week. Overall, the 24h trading volume increased by 0.01% compared with the same period of last week. In this week, 43 of the top 100 projects increased in 24h trading volume, led by BCN with a weekly increase of 225.72%; there were 57 projects decreased in their 24h trading volume, there were 21 projects that saw over 20% decrease in their 24h trading volume, while 8 projects fell by more than 50%, led by 999, with a decreased of 93.61%.

The top 10 cryptocurrencies’ market value increased, the market share distribution remained stable. On December 22th, 2019, the overall market cap of the top 10 cryptocurrencies was 176.5 billion USD, increased by 2.25% from last week, accounting for 89.08% of the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies, increased by 0.57% from last week. The market value proportion of TOP10 project basically stable. BTC’s dominance was 68.65%, increased by 2.29% from last week.

1.2 Segment Analysis

Among TOP 100 cryptocurrency project segments, the total market cap of Application projects got the largest increase. The average market cap of Platform projects got the largest decrease. As of December 29th, 2019,the total market cap of coin projects reached 149.7 billion USD, decreased by 0.69%. The average market cap of coin projects reached 4.53 billion USD, decreased by 0.69%. The total market cap of platform projects reached 23.2 billion USD, increased by 2.01%. The average market cap of platform projects reached 0.70 billion USD, decreased by 1.08%. The total market cap of application class projects reached 18.05 billion USD, decreased by 3.67%. The average market cap of application class projects reached 0.60 billion USD, decreased by 0.46%. The total market cap of asset-backed token projects reached 4.45 billion USD, decreased by 0.32%. The average market cap of asset-backed token projects reached 1.11 billion USD, decreased by 0.32%.

The market segment distribution of the top 100 cryptocurrencies remained stable. As of December 29th, 2019, among the top 100 projects, the number of coin class projects remain the same, application class projects decreased 1, platform class projects increased 1 and asset-backed token class both remain the same. The largest overall market cap by segment was still coin projects, accounting for 76.61% of the total market cap of top 100 projects.

Note: According to the different attributes of cryptocurrencies, Huobi Academy of Blockchain Application will divide them into four categories: Coin, Application Class, Platform Class and Asset-backed Token.

Coin Project: Refers to a type of asset developed based on blockchain technology that does not correspond to a specific use scenario and whose main function is only the transaction target. Its asset value is mainly reflected by liquidity.

Platform Class Project: A type of asset that is associated with the development of the underlying technology of the blockchain and is supported by the right to use or participate in the platform.

Application Class Project: Refers to a type of asset that is associated with a specific application scenario and is supported by a certain right of use, participation, or dividend.

Asset-backed Project: Refers to a class of assets that is linked to actual assets such as gold and US dollars and supported by the value of physical assets.

2. Technical Statistics

2.1 Cryptocurrency Mining Statistics

The hashrate of Bitcoin increased and the hashrate of Ethereum decreased by this week. From December 23th, 2019 — December 29th, 2019, the average bitcoin Hashrate for the entire network reached 96.83EH/s, increased by 3.64% from the previous week.

Average Hashrate for the entire Ethereum network was 148.9TH/s this week, decreased by 6.09%.

This week, the difficulty of mining Bitcoin increased and the difficulty of mining Ethereum decreased. As of December 29th 2019, average difficulty for mining Bitcoin this week was 12.95T, increased by 0. 47% from last week. The average difficulty of mining Ethereum this week was 2524.44TH, decreased by 1.11% from that of previous week.

The number of blocks in Bitcoin decreased by 5.15%. Top 5 rankings had changed. The overall distribution of the Ethereum mining pools rankings remain the same, the number of blocks dereased 0.08%. In the past week, Bitcoin mined 1012 blocks,decreased 5.15% from the previous week. Among the top five pools were Poolin、 F2Pool、BTC.com、AntPool、1THash&58COIN, these 5 pools mined 176、148、129、112 and 52 blocks respectively, accounting for 17.39% 、14.62 %、12.75 %、11.07 % and 5.14 % of all Bitcoins mined this week. The Hashrate was 16.23 EH/s、13.65EH/s、11.89EH/s、10.33EH/s and 4.79EH/s, respectively.

In the past week, Ethereu’s entire network mined 37078 blocks, decreased 0.08% from the previous week. The top five pools were SparkPool, Ethermine, F2pool, Nanopool and Zhizhu.top, each mined 11060、8834、4184、3069 and 1853 blocks respectively, accounting for 29.8290%、23.8254%、11.2843% and 8.2771% of all Ethereum mined this week, respectively.

2.2 Activity Statistics

The average number of transactions per block decreased and the average block size of Bitcoin decreased. The average number of transactions per block decreased and the average block size of Ethereum decreased this week. According to blockchain.info, from December 23th, 2019-December 29th, 2019, the average size of each block was 912.9KB, decreased 14.77% form last week; there were on average 1970 transactions recorded in each block, decreased by 7.64% from the previous week.

According to etherscan, the average number of transactions per block in Ethereum this week was 114.2, decreased by 5.07%. The average size of each block was 24444.0 bytes, decreased by 6.98% compared to last week.

Number of unconfirmed transactions in Bitcoin decreased by 30.88%. Number of unconfirmed transactions in Ethereum decreased by 32.71% from the previous week. As of December 29th 2019, the number of 7-day average unconfirmed transactions in Bitcoin network was 3619, decreased by 30.88% from last week. There were 35234.2 unconfirmed transactions in the Ethereum network, decreased by 32.71% from last week, with the lowest amount of unconfirmed transactions in the week being 3038 and the highest amount being 61050.

Total transaction fees of Bitcoin and Ethereum both decreased. As of December 29th, 2019, average transaction fees of Bitcoin this week was $0.341, decreased by 11.43% from last week. Average transaction fees of Ethereum this week was $0.0759, decresead by 5.95%.

The average number of distinct miners per day in Ethereum decreased by 1.68% from last week. From December 23th, 2019-December 29th, 2019, the average number of distinct miners per day in Ethereum this week was 52.8, decreased 1.68% from last week.

The number of nodes in Bitcoin increased and the number of Ethereum decreased this week. As of December 29th, 2019, there were 9474 Bitcoin nodes, increased by 0.31% compared to last week, of which 2414 nodes were in the U.S, 1911 nodes were in Germany, and 267 nodes were in China(№8), each accounting for 25.48%, 20.17% and 2.82% of the total number of Bitcoin nodes, respectively.

As of December 29th, 2019, there were 7188 Ethereum nodes, decreased by 0.13% from the previous week. Specifically, there were 1834 nodes in the U.S, 1171 nodes in China, and 767 nodes in Germany, each accounting for 25.51%, 16.29%,10.67% of total number of nodes, respectively.

This week, the growth rate for new addresses of Bitcoin remain the same. The growth rate for new addresses of Ethereum increased. According to the data on blockchain.info, as of December 29th, 2019, the total number of Blockchain accounts reached 44354762.

According to the data on etherchain, as of December 29th, 2019, the total number of Ethereum addresses was 81538413 increased by 816949 (1.01%) this week.

ZSC was the most active project on GitHub this week. From December 23th, 2019-December 29th, 2019, ZSC was the active project repository on GitHub with a total of 82 commits.

2.3 Community Activity Statistics

The top three most popular cryptocurrencies on Facebook were Tron, Bitcoin and Ethereum in descending order, with 971k, 514k and 157k fans respectively. The top three most popular cryptocurrencies on Twitter were Bitcoin, Ripple(XRP) and TRON, with 998k, 943k, and 492k followers, respectively.

3. Weekly Blockchain News Review

3.1 Industrial Application

1. “Blockchain + lottery” Huobi China and Tianyin holding reached strategic cooperation

On December 24, Huobi China and Tianyin holding (000829. SZ) signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Beijing. The two sides will promote in-depth cooperation around blockchain technology enabling lottery business, industrial scheme consultation, digital business design and other aspects, and practice the application of “blockchain + lottery”. Yuan Yuming, CEO of Huobi China, said that blockchain technology has the characteristics of data tamper proof, fidelity and traceability on the chain, creating a transparent and reliable technical environment. The lottery industry has developed for several years, but the issuing link is long, and problems such as “unjust and auditable” are prominent in the prize opening link, which make the blockchain technology promising. It is understood that in the future, both sides will jointly explore the in-depth application of blockchain technology in lottery betting, prize opening and supervision. Based on the existing solutions and based on the pain points of each link of the lottery, Huobi China will provide relevant services of blockchain technology for Tianyin holdings, realize the upgrading and transformation of traditional industries, and jointly promote the construction of a new digital economy.

2. Nike applies for new patents and uses blockchain technology to track ownership

According to WWD, Nike Inc. applied for a patent called “cryptokicks” and was approved by the U.S. patent and Trademark Office on December 10. According to reports, the patent applies blockchain technology to track the ownership of physical shoes, and can create a digital version of the shoes purchased by users in the cryptocurrency wallet. In addition, the patent covers technology to create and store shoe ownership. Relevant records will be stored in the blockchain safely. At the same time, consumers can receive a token that can be used to sell their shoes. Tokens can also be stored in consumers’ digital encrypted wallets. These digital encrypted wallets can be connected to the video game network. Consumers can get their virtual characters in the game to wear their Nike virtual shoes.

3. Insurance Industry Eyes Blockchain as Top Firms Begin Tests

Recently, the second-largest health insurance company in the United States announced plans to leverage blockchain technology to secure the medical data of all its 40 million members over the next three years.The most unique quality of a blockchain is that once a piece of information is added to the distributed ledger, it cannot be altered. The information stored on a blockchain is absolutely secure and trustworthy in its entirety. In order for a change to be made in one block, changes must be made to all the subsequent blocks associated to the affected block.Being synonymous with trust, blockchain has multiple applications in improving the current health care and insurance infrastructure. Insuring giants have been using blockchain technology to prevent insurance fraud, digitally track medical records and more. Insurance is a traditional field that functions in an outdated style. While blockchain technology has been subject to extreme hype, its true potential is likely to be in some of the most antiquated fields. The technology can be a transformative force for industries like insurance, which require the coordination and cooperation of many intermediaries with varying incentives.Smart contracts enable blockchain users to transparently transfer anything of value without the interference of a middleman. Insurance policies could be written as coded, decentralized smart contracts in which an individual agrees to pay the insurance company in return for the company’s promise to help cover that person’s future medical costs.

3.2 International Policies

1. Uzbekistan Bans Citizens From Buying Cryptocurrencies

The government of Uzbekistan has reportedly barred its citizens from purchasing cryptocurrencies.According to local news outlet Novosti Uzbekistana on Dec. 25, the National Project Management Agency has banned citizens from purchasing crypto, even on established exchanges. The decision comes as a surprise to many, as the country has previously displayed a relatively lenient stance toward digital currencies. While the new regulation bars citizens from acquiring or selling cryptocurrencies, it gives some limited trading permissions to current cryptocurrency holders. Holders that are citizens of Uzbekistan can sell their current investments on two licensed exchanges after undergoing Know Your Customer procedures, ostensibly to avoid the possibility of money laundering. Any crypto assets whose origin cannot be proved are illegal to transfer or own in the country. A report from Finance Magnates notes that the law could prove ineffective, given that Uzbeks could use a virtual private network — or VPN — to bypass the ban and access foreign cryptocurrency trading platforms.

2. Bahamas Central Bank Will Pilot Digital Currency Starting December 27

The Central Bank of the Bahamas (CBOB) is planning to introduce a digital version of the Bahamian dollar in the Exuma district.According to an official press release, the CBOB will launch its digital currency (CBDC) pilot on Dec. 27, which will extend in the first half of 2020 to Abaco, a group of islands and barrier cays in the northern Bahamas.The digital currency is being developed under the initiative called Project Sand Dollar and will be the Bahamas’ first digital currency. The initiative aims to make access to financial services more efficient and non-discriminatory. In a document outlining how the initiative will operate, the CBOB explained that the digital currency could “reduce the ill effects of cash usage.” According to the Central Bank the so-called sand dollar, would also “effectively strengthen national defenses against money laundering, terrorist financing and other illicit abuses of the financial system.”

3. Japanese Financial Services Firm Invests in Crypto Exchange Huobi Japan

Japanese financial services firm Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings will invest about 500 million yen (nearly $4.6 million) in the Japanese branch of cryptocurrency exchange Huobi.According to a press release on Dec. 26, the investment is part of a broader collaboration with Huobi Japan, wherein Tokai will acquire shares in the exchange. Tokai intends to use the partnership with Huobi to promote new businesses in the areas of crypto asset exchange, initial exchange offerings, local currency issuance, and crypto management and storage services. According to financial news website Financial Times, Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings reported a revenue of 57.57 billion Japanese yen ($252.5 million) over the past 12 months. The firm stated today that its new partnership is part of a wider effort to adopt new and emerging technologies like blockchain as part of its business development plan.

3.3 Technological Breakthrough

1. Tech Development, Investments and NFT to Drive Crypto Adoption in 2020

As the end of the year draws closer, discussing what the future holds for the crypto industry becomes increasingly relevant. In particular, how global financial and technological trends will affect the adoption of cryptocurrencies in the coming year. Now, talks of how emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things can influence crypto have emerged, with possibilities for new applications coming to the fore. Furthermore, a global trend toward a cashless society is set to have a real impact on how privacy and freedom are perceived. Could cryptocurrencies provide a much-needed solution as early as 2020?

1. Increased use of AI and the IoT. No matter the industry, experts are more than willing to proclaim that artificial intelligence is the next big thing in their industry. The ubiquity of datasets, not to mention machine learning and high-performance scalable computing, are truly propelling the world into an age of AI. Many even consider the technology to be a sure sign of the incoming fourth Industrial Revolution. The good news is that the crypto industry has various applications where AI can be used to make cryptocurrencies attractive to the mainstream public. For instance, efficiently optimizing energy consumption during the mining process. For the most part, the energy it takes to mine Bitcoin has been a concern, and certain programs can reduce the energy costs. This provides increased profit margins to miners, who reduce transaction fees as a result.Once implemented, AI can potentially compute the probability of a particular node’s performance and recommend methods that can be used to enable faster and cheaper transactions on the blockchain. Furthermore, when combined with IoT tech, different nodes will be able to communicate autonomously, achieving an increase in efficiency in terms of consensus protocols on the blockchain.

2. Institutional investors’ increased interest in crypto.Another trend that will likely take cryptocurrencies to the mainstream in 2020 is the increased interest in crypto-related projects from institutional investors. out of 441 United States-based institutional investors, 47% “appreciate that digital assets are an innovative technology play.” What’s even more interesting is the fact that 22% of institutional investors already own digital assets. Basically, interest in cryptocurrencies or digital assets has matured from a reserve group of early adopters to financial advisors, traditional hedge funds, and family offices taking a keen interest in the industry.

3. Increased microchipping and use of cashless systems globally . All over the world, the movement toward a global cashless society is picking up speed. From Africa to Europe to Asia and America, there is no shortage of countries that are replacing banknotes for the convenience of electronic or plastic money.In places such as Sweden, the move toward a cashless society has been so efficient that cash in circulation in the country has dropped to just 1% of GDP. Furthermore, Swedish legislation has made it possible for various retailers to refuse cash payments altogether. To keep up with the changes, the Swedish central bank has set up plans to issue a digital version of its national fiat currency dubbed ‘e-krona.’ Add that to the increased popularity for microchipping among the Swedes and, in a few years, experts predict that the country could be among the first in the world to go completely cashless, bringing about several major advantages. Although electronic payment methods might offer convenience, a detailed record of the user’s purchases, location and time are recorded. This data can be sold and marketed by a user’s payment provider, retailers, and payment processors.

4.Weekly Investment Activities

3 investments activities took place in the blockchain industry this week, FansTime strategic investment from GODFUND, Yunphant got A+ pound investment, NewStar got strategic investment from China Marine Heavy Industries.

Huobi Research

About Us：

Huobi Research was founded in April 2016 and started research and explorations in various aspects in Blockchain area since March 2018. We cover various fields such as Blockchain technology research, industry analysis, application innovation and economic model explorations. We aim to establish a research platform and to offer theoretical foundations as well as judgements of trends in Blockchain to the public, ultimately promoting the development of the Blockchain industry.

Huobi Research Weekly aims to provide participators of the cryptocurrency market with the most up-to-date and comprehensive database to help them facilitate decision-making process.

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