Bitcoin Weekly 2016 August 17: Bitfinex hack interim report, KeepKey wallet does ShapeShift trades, Copay users can purchase Amazon gift cards

It’s the week of wallets in the Bitcoin ecosystem with KeepKey and BitPay’s Copay both making announcements. The hardware wallet KeepKey just announced a firmware change that allows wallet users to make trades on the ShapeShift cryptocurrency exchange platform (currently for Bitcoin, Litecoin and Dogecoin). BitPay’s Copay wallet app also announced a change that will enable users to purchase Amazon.com gift cards with bitcoin in app.
On the gaming circuit, blockchain-based platforms are beginning to show how virtual items can be secured as crypto-assets. A limited edition, rare card in the trading card game (TCG) Spells of Genesis developed by EverdreamSoft just traded for approximately $3,700 USD. And, with the intent of producing a platform for TCGs, EverdreamSoft and IndieSquare have teamed up to jointly develop a blockchain-based platform for issuing virtual property (in this case, virtual tradable cards).
As for the current Bitcoin market, currently BTC is trading at $577.35 USD (BitcoinAverage.com). This comes as a little bit of a dip from last week’s high of $597. Monday this week, Bitcoin market value reached a low of $654 but has since been on the rise again back to the price it holds currently. Much of the current price volatility (and lower market value) can be attributed to the Bitfinex hack that occurred at the beginning of this month (see below for updates on that).

This post was published at Silicon Angle on Aug 17, 2016.