In addition to DeFi and social tokens, one of the biggest trends in the crypto space is called NFT. A look at the most exciting start-ups in Berlin that are advancing technology.
With around 74.6 million search results on Google, non-fungible tokens are probably one of the most discussed topics in the blockchain world. For comparison: the search term “blockchain” comes up with 152 million search results. Countless companies in the gaming world, in the arts or in the consumer goods industry around the world are currently focusing on the topic. Probably the best known example is Dapper Labs. The developers of the NFT-based game “CryptoKitties” are now worth more than 2.6 billion dollars and prove that NFT has long since become mainstream. Even if a lot has been reported in the last few weeks about the ecological footprint of the NFTs mostly emitted on Ethereum, the hype seems unstoppable.
Berlin is following suit
In Berlin, too, the NFT landscape is growing steadily. In the last 12 months, a large number of start-ups have been founded that develop NFT-based solutions in various forms. A total of 2.4 million search results appear under the search term “NFT Berlin”.
The Berlin start-up Fanzone , which was founded this year as a spin-off from Porsche Digital, is currently enjoying a lot of attention . The newest member of BerChain has won the German Football Association (DFB) as a cooperation partner for the upcoming European Championship (EM) and represents the participating football players as digital collector’s pictures in the form of NFT.
The NFT are not just simple collector’s items, but will be supplemented by a further functionality for the EM. Token owners should then be able to participate in a fantasy soccer league with their NFT. In the future, Fanzone would like to adapt the principle to other sports and thus convince fans all over the world of the NFT’s innovation. Fanzone works closely with Lukso , another Berlin start-up. Lukso has developed a blockchain infrastructure that is particularly well suited for the emission of NFT.
Hessian houses as NFT
Another world first, which made the rounds on social media in the last few weeks, was the first house that was auctioned via an NFT . The user from Berlin, known under the name “UGN”, offered his house in the Hessian city of Usingen on the NFT marketplace OpenSea . The minimum bid of 34 Eth (about $ 74,000 at the time) was not met, but it laid the foundation for selling homes through NFT.
The upcoming release of a white label NFT platform from License.rocks is no less innovative, another Berlin start-up that was recently selected as one of ten start-ups for the prestigious German Entrepreneur Award. With its ERC-1155 standard, License.rocks is already combining fungible with non-fungible tokens in a single smart contract – a far-reaching technological innovation. The first version of their white label NFT solution runs on a Matic / Polygon sidechain. Great emphasis was placed on UX, design and payment. Even newcomers to the crypto world should be able to register as easily as possible and then be convinced by a positive user experience. It was recently announced that the platform would already be used to issue an NFT to Kay One and Stard Ova’s song “ Wallet ”.
As with many other aspects of blockchain technology, Berlin has established itself as one of the most important locations for innovation and development when it comes to NFT. The next few months in particular will show whether Berlin can establish itself as a leading center for NFT-based technology in the long term.
Bitcoin & Co. investors once again felt the volatility of cryptocurrencies this year. But even those who rely on supposedly safer stablecoins have probably been surprised by the latest developments on the market.
Stablecoins as a safe haven in the crypto universe? Investors who have bet on this should at least have doubts about this narrative after the recent events.
Titanium token drops to zero
Because last week the relatively small crypto currency Titanium, which is issued by IRON Finance, collapsed massively. Within a very short time, their value fell from over 60 US dollars to almost zero. For many investors, this meant a total loss, and the crypto bull and billionaire Mark Cuban was also affected by the crash on the crypto market.
“I was hit like everyone else. The crazy thing is that I made it out, thought they would raise their TVL enough. Then Bam.”, The investor writes on Twitter , referring to the Total Value Locked (TVL), which is defined as the total amount of the funds included in a DeFi protocol and thus corresponds to the total liquidity.
I got hit like everyone else. Crazy part is I got out, thought they were increasing their TVL enough. Than Bam.
As a result, the stablecoin IRON also collapsed significantly. The connection is understandable: As a stablecoin, IRON has invested part of a collateral in titanium and subsequently also lost massively in value.
The processing was quick, just one day later the team around the crypto currency published a statement entitled “Post Mortem” in which the events should be followed up. “We never thought it would happen, but it just happened. We have just experienced the world’s first major crypto bank run,” wrote the developers after the events, describing them as “the worst that could happen to the protocol “. In this context they also explained again why the Titanium crash hit the stablecoin IRON so hard: “Remember that Iron.finance is a partially secured stablecoin, which is similar to the minimum reserve banking of the modern world. When people panic and quickly Time to run to the bank to withdraw your money
Cuban criticizes
Many observers assume that the Titanium coin was overpriced, which Mark Cuban himself may have contributed to. Because just a few days before the crash, the billionaire was enthusiastic about crypto coin in a blog post and declared: “As long as I get a good return , I’ll invest my money.”
After the crash, the investor referred to the events again and stated that the amount of titanium in his crypto depot was small. But it was enough “that I wasn’t happy about it,” he added. The billionaire then also self-criticised “Bloomberg”. He himself was too lazy to get behind the mathematics of the algorithmically backed stablecoin IRON.
In this context, he is in favour of stronger regulation, especially in view of the fact that IRON is a decentralised coin: “If the collateral is not 1 to 1, […] the risks for all users should be clearly defined and before the release need to be approved? “he asks the portal.
The slump in IRON in connection with the crash of the cryptocurrency Titanium raises questions about how safe stablecoin investors can feel with their investments. Stablecoins were developed to cushion the strong volatility in the crypto market. The goal of price stability is achieved by collateralising stablecoins with assets outside the crypto universe – usually with fiat money. Investors who invest in cryptos secured 1: 1 with a fiat currency receive one stablecoin for one dollar, for example. This can be exchanged for the equivalent of the fiat currency at any time. Stablecoins generated by currencies (or raw materials such as gold) are secured against this background to park the money. Probably the best-known stablecoin is tether, a currency linked 1: 1 to the US dollar. Behind Bitcoin and Ethereum , Tether is the third largest cryptocurrency worldwide in terms of market capitalization.
However, IRON is not a stablecoin that is 1: 1 secured by Fiat currency; instead, part of the token is secured with cryptocurrencies – in this specific case with the digital currency Titanium. IRON investors have therefore accepted the risk of the cryptocurrency when investing.
Many investors consider fiat-backed stablecoins to be a relatively safe option for participating in the crypto market without being exposed to excessive volatility risks. But in the past, the supposed security has already proven to be deceptive. In February of this year, the top dog Tether agreed with the New York prosecutor to pay a fine of 18.5 million US dollars. The publishing company was accused of creating dollar tokens without full fiat currency coverage. Although the Tether editors always denied the allegations, they still paid the fines in order to be able to shelve the allegations.
Stablecoins that are not completely linked to fiat currencies are per se riskier, depending on which asset they are made dependent on. This is exactly what IRON investors recently felt. One hundred percent security or stability, as the name implies, is not to be expected with any type of stablecoins, investors must be aware of this. In addition, unlike Mark Cuban recently, one should take a closer look at the composition and background of a stablecoin.
While Ethereum (ETH) continues to weaken and can only recover slightly from its weekly lows, competitors Cardano (ADA) and Solana (SOL) show a much stronger recovery from their weekly lows.
Ethereum (ETH): Underperformance continues
Rate (ETH): 1,863 US dollars (USD) (previous week: 2,328 US dollars USD)
The ether rate can recover the tedious even after the sharp correction in the overall market. After a new low at USD 1,711, the price of the second largest cryptocurrency recovered only hesitantly and has not yet managed to regain the EMA200 (blue) at USD 1,986 per day’s closing price. In the area of the 23 Fibonacci retracement at USD 2,021, the ether price rebounded south again and again for three days in a row. As mentioned in the previous week’s analysis, the downside risks continue to prevail.
Bullish variant (Ethereum):
Ethereum also fell to a new multi-month low in the wake of the sharp setback in the crypto key currency Bitcoin (BTC). Although the price subsequently recovered to the 23rd Fibonacci retracement, it failed to initiate a sustainable rebound. In the last hours of trading, the ether price drops again and threatens to resume the bearish movement of the last few weeks of trading. A first positive sign from the bull side would be a daily closing price above USD 2,050. If Ethereum can overcome this resistance level and break the USD 2,147 above, an increase to the cross resistance of EMA20 (red) and horizontal resistance at USD 2,266 is likely. A directional decision is made at short notice. If the bulls manage to regain this price level, a reversal to the next multiple resistance at USD 2,471 is conceivable. In addition to the 38 Fibonacci retracement, the EMA50 (orange) can also be found here. In addition, the supertrend in the daily charts, which is also a strong hurdle, is just in the red resistance area.
Only a daily closing price above the high of June 15 at USD 2,639 should provide clear recovery tendencies and enable further upside potential. If the breakout from the red resistance area succeeds, the 50s Fibonacci retracement at USD 2,834 moves into the focus of investors as a price target. If the ether price can then rise towards USD 2,886 and also break through the resistance level, the chart will brighten further.
The rocky road back towards the all-time high
The maximum price target for the coming weeks is USD 2,981. In addition to the May 20 rebound high, this is also where the upper Bollinger Band runs. Should a recapture of USD 2,981 subsequently occur, a march through to the 61 Fibonacci retracement at USD 3,198 should be planned. Only when the bulls can muster the strength to regain this level of resistance will a further sustained price increase be possible. If Ethereum can penetrate to the upper edge of the blue resistance area at USD 3,568, there are further opportunities for increases up to the 78 Fibonacci retracement at USD 3,715. The bulls will then attempt to attack the resistance at USD 3,976. For the time being, a breakthrough of this resistance level is not expected in the coming weeks, which is why this price level acts as the maximum price target on the upside. The battered chart situation does not allow a prompt rise back to the all-time high at USD 4,374 for the time being.
Bearish variant (Ethereum)
The ether price was only able to recover from its low point to a limited extent. If the bears manage to push the ether price back below USD 1,930 to the weekly low at USD 1,711, a widening of the correction is quite likely. If the bears manage to generate a new weekly low, the correction will initially expand into the range between USD 1,664 and USD 1,545. Here you can find the lows from March 2021 as well as the red downward trend line from the high from February 2021. Should Bitcoin also dip below USD 30,000 again, the ether price is likely to fall back into the purple support area. This runs between USD 1,489 and USD 1,425 and has had a halting effect several times in the past.
If the ether price cannot sustainably stabilize here, a correction expansion into the blue support area at USD 1,296 is also conceivable. As a result, the chart continues to cloud over. The next bearish price target is then USD 1,049. In the area of the yellow support zone there are several lows from January 2021 as well as the overarching green upward trend line. If the bulls do not come back into the market sustainably, Ethereum will correct up to at least USD 922. In the medium term, a correction of up to USD 769 and USD 720 can no longer be ruled out. The gray support zone between USD 544 and USD 489 acts as the maximum bearish price target. However, as long as the ether price can stay above the green overarching upward trend line,
Indicators (Ethereum)
The RSI as well as the MACD indicator continue to trend weak and have sell signals active. The RSI is trading below 45 this week, also a sign of weakness. The sell signals in the weekly chart also underpin the current bearish trend.
Solana (SOL): Solana is recovering faster than the overall market
SOL price can hold its own but is also trading below the EMA20 (red).
$ 34.11 as first major resistance for the bulls.
$ 25.53 acts as key support for the short term.
Since the crash on the overall market, Solana has been able to recover significantly better than many of its competitors. The SOL price bounced north above the MA200 (green) and achieved a remarkable reversal of 62 percent from its weekly low of USD 20.11. Only in the gray resistance area at USD 32.97 did the bulls abandon their strength and let the Solana consolidate back below USD 30 to currently USD 29.44 on Friday, June 25th. As long as the SOL price does not drop below USD 25.53 on the daily closing price, the bulls will try again to initiate a new upward movement towards the EMA20 (red) at USD 34.11.
Bullish variant (Solana)
The countermovement by Solana is to be regarded as remarkable when considering the corrective tendencies in the market as a whole. The SOL course was able to make up for its temporary price losses significantly better than the market as a whole. As long as Solana cannot rise back above the resistance area of EMA20 (red), EMA50 (orange) and the upper edge of the gray resistance zone, a renewed downward movement cannot be ruled out here either. Like the market as a whole, Solana is once again tending south on Friday. If the situation calms down and the SOL price can stabilize sustainably above the moving average lines EMA20 (red) and EMA50 (orange), the 50s Fibonacci retracement comes back into focus as the first price target. If the bulls manage to lift the SOL price dynamically above this resistance level at USD 38.75,
If Solana overcomes USD 41.82, the area around the 61 Fibonacci retracement comes back into focus. If the USD 43.38 is broken through dynamically and the high at USD 44.16 is overcome, the upper Bollinger Band at USD 47.89 becomes the target mark. If this resist is also overcome in the coming trading weeks and the upper edge of the red resistance area at USD 49.98 is broken, the probability of a break through to the all-time high at USD 58.20 increases noticeably. For the time being, this chart mark is to be rated as the maximum price target. Only when the overall market recovers sustainably would an increase up to the 138 Fibonacci extension at USD 73.48 be considered in the coming months.
Bearish variant (Solana)
In the last few days of trading, the bears prevented the retaking of the 38 Fibonacci retracement several times. Again and again the SOL price bounced off in the area of 32.97 USD. If the bears manage to push the price of Solana again below the 23 Fibonacci extension at USD 28.38, a resumption of the corrective movement should be planned. If the green support zone is given up on a sustained basis, the correction should extend to the horizontal support line at USD 25.53. Here the cops will try again to stabilize the SOL course. However, if Solana continues to trend bearish subsequently, a further setback can be expected. The probability of a retest of the EMA200 (blue) at USD 23.71 then increases noticeably. If Solana falls below this support at the daily closing rate,
The MA200 (green) is currently just below this support level, as is the low of May 23 at USD 19.11. If the consolidation gains momentum again, the SOL course will extend its corrective movement into the orange support area. In particular, the USD 18.19 is important. The bulls have to defend this price level in order to prevent a further price correction towards USD 16.66. If the bears manage to attack this level and undercut it at the daily closing price, a correction up to the maximum bearish price target of USD 12.54 must be planned. Should the SOL price reach this support level, investors should consider their first long positions.
Indicators (Solana):
The RSI tends to be below 45 on a daily basis and thus shows a sell-signal. The same applies to the MACD indicator. Only a recapture of USD 35.33 should be able to provide new bullish impulses for both indicators.
Cardano (ADA): ADA course after a break-in with another attempt to climb
ADA price can break away from its lows after relapsing into the orange support area
The battle for 1.40 USD will decide the course of the coming weeks.
Resistance at USD 1.61 to be seen as short-term target price.
The Cardano price collapsed significantly in the course of the overall market correction and fell back to its low of USD 1.00 percentage points. A countermovement set in at USD 1.00 back to USD 1.40. Here Caradano rebounded south on today’s trading day and is trading at 1.30 USD at the time of this analysis. Like Solana, Cardano can recover more than its competitor Ethereum.
Bullish variant (Cardano)
Like all other cryptocurrencies, Cardano fell back in the wake of the Bitcoin weakness to the low of May 19 at USD 1.00. Based on this support, the ADA rate roseby 40 percent to the north before the bears hit back again. Now the bulls have to prove that the countermovement was not only technical in nature, but that they can heave the course back over the cross-resistance of the red downtrend line and EMA20 (red). If the bulls manage to stabilize Cardano sustainably above USD 1.40 and also overcome the EMA50 (orange) at USD 1.48, an increase to the upper edge of the green resistance area is conceivable. The cross resistance from the high of June 15 and the supertrend in the daily chart runs here. If a breakout above this resistance level succeeds, the purple resist zone between USD 1.74 and USD 1.82 moves back into the focus of investors.
The 127 Fibonacci extension at USD 1.77 also runs in this zone. If the bulls can break the USD 1.82 daily closing price, a directional decision will be made in the USD 1.92 area. If this price mark is surpassed sustainably, the area around USD 2.25 will initially come back into the focus of investors. At this resistance level in the form of the 161 Fibonacci extension, the bulls will have to prove themselves again. If Cardano overcomes this resistance level at the daily closing price, a price increase up to the all-time high of USD 2.46 is conceivable. In the short term, the all-time high should be mentioned as the maximum price target on the upside. Only when Bitcoin regains its strength significantly, the ADA price could aim for the next price target of USD 2.77. This chart mark is derived from the 200 Fibonacci extension.
Bearish variant (Cardano)
The bear camp showed its claws this trading week and caused a slump to the strong support level at USD 1.00. There was a clear countermovement here. This led Cardano back to around USD 1.40. This chart mark saw the first profit-taking again on Friday, June 25th. If the bears manage to push the ADA rate back below USD 1.25 and USD 1.19 at the end of the day, there will be another acid test in the USD 1.10 area. There is a cross support from the 78 Fibonacci retracement and EMA200 (blue). If the correction on the market as a whole picks up again, a renewed fallback to the weekly low of USD 1.00 is to be expected.
If this support mark from MA200 (green) and progressive low is also given up, the lower edge of the orange support area comes into view. The bulls should not give up support at USD 0.93. If the daily closing price falls below the low of April 23, the selling pressure increases further. A abandonment of the USD 0.93 should have Cardano corrected up to USD 0.81. If this price mark does not stop either, the correction extends into the yellow support zone between USD 0.75 and USD 0.70. If the 50th Fibonacci retracement is also broken dynamically at the daily closing price, a fallback to the maximum bearish price target of USD 0.58 cannot be ruled out. However, as long as Bitcoin can hold its own above USD 30,000,
Indicators (Cardano)
The RSI as well as the MACD indicator show a sell signal on a daily basis. With a value of 44, the RSI indicator is trading just below the neutral zone. A break above USD 1.40 should push the RSI back into the neutral zone between 45 and 55. In the weekly chart, too, both indicators show clear signs of weakness. The MACD indicator generated a fresh sell signal this trading week.
Bitcoin exchange rate rose on Wednesday to nearly 34 thousand dollars US , says “Prime” with reference to data Binance Exchange. Experts expect that the cost of the world’s most famous cryptocurrency may approach $ 35.8 thousand in the evening, the agency writes.
In the short term, the actions of the Chinese authorities may cause additional volatility in the cryptocurrency market, the expert said. According to him, the cost of bitcoin may fall even below $ 30 thousand. But in the long term, the cryptocurrency will grow in price, 34 thousand dollars per unit is far from the limit, Denis Smirnov is sure.
But coins like SOL still hold the demand range, and yet a great choice of retain or mid-level investors. Lets see a deep technical analysis of SOLONA, forecast for 2021-2022, What is Solana, Daily R/S for SOL for day trading.
What Is Solana (SOL)?
Solana is a highly functional open source project that banks on blockchain technology’s permissionless nature to provide decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions. While the idea and initial work on the project began in 2017, Solana was officially launched in March 2020 by the Solana Foundation with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Solana protocol is designed to facilitate decentralized app (DApp) creation. It aims to improve scalability by introducing a proof-of-history (PoH) consensus combined with the underlying proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus of the blockchain.
Because of the innovative hybrid consensus model, Solana enjoys interest from small-time traders and institutional traders alike. A significant focus for the Solana Foundation is to make decentralized finance accessible on a larger scale.
Failed to HOLD EMA 200, will it recover quickly
Its look like any other market or altcoins, SOL is also facing downfall due to FUD caused by Elon and Chinese Governments. Though SOL is one of the gem to buy, store or hold or a longer period if you a retail investor.
As shown in above charting, there are 2 upcoming Buy opportunities in SOL. One is based on trend line and previous Resistance and Support levels, where as the other one is based on the RSI indicator which is about to enter in “OVER SOLD” zone.
HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF SOLANA PRICES
Since its inception, Solana has undertaken five different funding rounds for its SOL tokens with four private sales. The first round of seed funding was held on April 5, 2018, raising $ 3.17 million. This later culminated in two separate Series A funding rounds announced on July 9, 2018, which raised nearly $ 20 million from large investment funds and venture capital firms. Two more sales took place in February and March 2020, resulting in an additional $ 4 million raised.
According to CoinMarketCap, Solana SOL tokens are among the newest cryptocurrency projects launched recently, with the earliest trading data since April 10, 2020. Therefore, you should always take extra care when moving to a new market. Soon after it started publicly trading, SOL sank to an all-time low of $ 0.5052 on May 11, 2020.
However, it didn’t take long for SOL to start parabolic rallies around mid-2020 before it hit an all-time high of $ 4.9400 on September 1, 2020.
Since hitting its all-time highs, SOL has since corrected downward before rising rapidly again at the end of December 2020. At the time of writing (January 15, 2021), the SOL price was $ 3.3600, which means an increase. 24-hour drop 0.86%.
According to Messari , if you bought SOL during a public sale in 2020 at $ 0.2200 per token – although the first round of seed capital in 2018 valued SOL at just $ 0.0400 – you’d get a staggering ROI of $ 1427. , 27% ..
Compared to its trading value, today’s SOL price will be just 32.08% below its all-time high and an impressive 564.81% gain from its all-time low. SOL was designed as a deflationary asset with a limited supply of 500,000,000 SOL. However, Solana has also programmed a burning algorithm to reduce its total, thus reducing its total circulation to 488 630 611 SOL at the time of writing.
The current circulating supply is 261,900,137 SOL, which puts Solana’s market cap at $ 879,539,929, making it the 44th largest cryptocurrency.
SOLANA PRICE PREDICTION FOR 2021
We were able to piece together a very optimistic sentiment from the available algorithmic models based on technical factors associated with Solana SOL tokens. Seeing how much attention has been drawn to decentralized financial platforms that have just increased to $ 22 billion in locked-in value since January 2021, Solana represents a robust Ethereum alternative for apps and platforms that are aiming for rapid growth. Hence, we can see SOL break the all-time high around mid-2021.
SOLANA PRICE PREDICTION FOR 2023
The biggest problem against Solana so far is that well-established blockchains like Ethereum or EOS will be rolling out much-needed updates to their network to solve excruciating scalability issues, including slow processing times and high fees. However, many of Solana’s innovations can still put it on a solid footing over its peers, including long-awaited updates bringing better cross-chain compatibility between Solana and other blockchains powered by its SOL tokens.
SOLANA PRICE PREDICTION FOR 2025
It’s hard to predict how much the financial world will change in four long years, but we would bet big on the value of decentralization gaining more acceptance in most of our daily lives thanks to the massive adoption of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and wider deployment. decentralized applications (dAPP). Solana’s high scalability makes it a reliable choice for future-oriented platforms. As the national currency of this versatile and powerful blockchain, SOL is a very attractive investment opportunity.
The Binance crypto exchange played an important role in the recent arrests of cyber criminals in Ukraine.
According to reports , a group of highly active ransomware scammers in Ukraine, with the assistance of Finance, has been caught by police in Ukraine. They are said to be part of a gang that is up to mischief under the name FANCYCAT. The gang wreaked havoc around the world in 2021 by hacking and extorting money from multiple victims. The people who have now been arrested were responsible for paying out the wallets and laundering money for the people behind them.
The local police were helped by the Binance crypto exchange during the investigation . Access was made possible through a collaboration between Binance and the cyber office of the Korean National Police, the Swiss Federal Police, US law enforcement agencies, the Spanish Guardia Civil and the Ukrainian cyber police. Much of the criminal activity took place on the dark web. The investigation found that FANCYCAT is responsible for more than $ 500 million in damage. Also Coinbase was instrumental in the past the authorities offenders: in to put a stop to.
Hacker gang FANCYCAT still active after arrest
Binance emphasizes that reputable exchanges are often used as a stopover to launder stolen assets. Of course, efforts are made to prevent cyber criminals from using their infrastructure. According to the police report, the investigators’ work is far from over. The police will continue to try to dismantle FANCYCAT. A new attack followed a few days after the arrests. Hackers: inside the gang announced that they had stolen from a new victim and are now demanding a ransom.
Because of the Corona easing, British car production rose sharply in May compared to the same period of the previous year. However, the industry association SMMT complains that a global shortage of individual parts such as semiconductors is affecting the industry’s recovery. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) announced on Friday that almost 55,000 cars left the factories in Great Britain. In May 2020 there were only 5,314 vehicles due to the consequences of the pandemic, which then reached its first peak. However, the number in May 2019 was still twice as high as this year.
Association chief Mike Hawes called for more commitment from the government. “If the UK is to remain competitive, it must provide a globally attractive policy framework for both vehicle production and supply chains,” said Hawes. Investments in research and development as well as charging infrastructure would have to be driven forward in order to achieve the net zero emissions target.
According to SMMT, a total of 429,826 cars were manufactured in Great Britain in the first five months of the year, a good 105,000 more than in the previous year, but 22.9 percent fewer than in the same period of 2019. More than every fifth vehicle had an alternative drive, every sixteenth was a purely electric car. The British auto industry is clearly export-oriented, with more than one in four vehicles being shipped abroad. Despite Brexit, the most important customer remains the EU with 53.6 percent, ahead of the USA (18.3 percent) and China (7.3 percent)
The EU states have agreed on stricter action against future violations of the law by Russia. However, at the EU summit, Chancellor Angela Merkel was unable to prevail with the suggestion that another peak meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin should be considered.
“It was not possible today to agree that we would meet immediately at management level, that is, at executive level,” said Merkel on Friday night in Brussels. The formats and conditions for a dialogue with Russia are now being worked on. “Personally, I would have liked a more courageous step here,” said the CDU politician at the end of the first day of the summit. On Friday morning, discussions on the economic situation after the pandemic and reforms in the eurozone will continue.
Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron had campaigned for a course correction in Russia policy: on the one hand, tougher, coordinated sanctions for violations of the law by Russia, on the other hand, the option of EU top-level meetings with Putin. However, many EU countries had concerns.
Only the development of a plan for punitive measures, which also includes economic sanctions, was decided. There is “a need for a determined and coordinated response from the EU and its member states to any further malicious, illegal and disruptive activity by Russia,” the summit statement said.
Germany and France had caused quite a stir with their advance. But another issue sparked much more controversy: the new Hungarian law on homosexuality. Many of the 27 heads of state and government tackled Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban behind closed doors. According to diplomats, some even asked why Hungary was still a member of the EU at all.
Merkel confirmed a “controversial but very honest discussion”. Such talks would be needed more often because there were different ideas about the future of Europe, not just with Hungary, said Merkel.
Orban denied that the law discriminated against sexual minorities. Most of his EU colleagues see it differently. The Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, who is married to a man, said, according to participants: “My mother hates that I am gay, I have to live with that. And now you are writing that into a law.”
Hungarian law prohibits publications that are accessible to children and that depict non-heterosexual relationships. It also bans advertising in which homosexuals or transsexuals appear as part of normality. Merkel and many of her EU colleagues see basic European values in danger.
Despite the bitter dispute, the heads of state and government found a common line on a number of important issues. In the fight against the corona pandemic, according to participants, they agreed that the borders for travellers from third countries were only opened carefully and in a coordinated manner. The aim is to slow the spread of the dreaded delta variant of the coronavirus. Travellers from Great Britain, where the Delta variant is already very common, could be affected.
The summit participants quickly came to an agreement on declarations on Turkey and migration policy. With a view to Turkey, they affirm the will to intensify cooperation on certain issues under certain conditions. The EU Commission is to develop a specific proposal for further financial aid for Syrian refugees in Turkey. An amount of 3.5 billion euros by 2024 is being considered.
When it comes to migration, the dispute over the common asylum policy has stalled. Therefore, the declaration concentrated on external aspects, i.e. agreements with countries of origin and transit countries in order to prevent people from fleeing to Europe
After six years, Microsoft has introduced a new generation of the dominant PC operating system with Windows 11.
One of the innovations is that apps for Android smartphones can also run on the computers. Microsoft is increasingly daring to bundle its own programs with the operating system: The Teams software for video conferencing and collaboration in the office is integrated directly into Windows. The in-house games subscription, Games Pass, is also installed via a new Xbox app. In the corona pandemic, the use of video conferences and computer games has increased explosively.
Windows 11 also redesigned various control elements – including the start button and the associated menus, which can now be found by default in the middle of the taskbar instead of on the edge.
The vast majority of laptops and desktop computers in the world run Windows, even though Apple was the last to get ahead with its Mac computers. Windows 10, which was introduced in mid-2015, has largely replaced older versions and, according to market researchers, runs on around 80 percent of Windows computers.
Forrester Research’s industry analyst JP Gownder pointed out that the new Windows is coming in an era of hybrid office and home office work. The new operation gives the software a chance to stand out. At the same time, he welcomed the fact that the basic software code still comes from Windows 10 – this reduces the risk that previous programs and device drivers no longer work as they did with Windows Vista.
Unlike Apple, Microsoft is sticking to the fact that Windows devices can be operated with both keyboard and touchscreens. The iPhone group consistently refrains from allowing control via screen with its Mac computers.
App developers can integrate their own payment methods on the Windows platform, emphasised the group. Microsoft will not charge a fee for it. Microsoft boss Satya Nadella set big goals for the new Windows in a closing word. “The world needs a more open platform today. One that allows apps to become platforms themselves,” he said. Microsoft claims that Windows 11 will become the platform for the next web or a groundbreaking new software category. Overall, with the innovations, Microsoft is once again making it clear that the group wants to earn its money as a provider of cloud services.
Nadella’s calls for more openness and choice are of particular importance in the current debate about Apple and Google’s business model around apps – with allegations of unfair competition against both companies. As developers of the two remaining smartphone platforms, Apple and Google levy a levy of 15 to 30 percent on digital app revenues. The game provider Epic Games (“Fortnite”), which wants to operate its own app store on the iPhone, took it to court. A verdict is still pending after the recently completed trial in California. Epic had received support from Microsoft in the process.
After the introduction of Windows 11, Epic boss Tim Sweeney tweeted: “The Microsoft of 2021 is the best Microsoft ever.” The exemption of the developers from taxes does not apply to games, as Microsoft later confirmed to the technology blog “The Verge”.
At the same time, with the integration of teams, Microsoft itself is opening a flank for criticism from competing providers. After all, the rival Slack complained to the EU Commission a year ago about the bundling of teams with office programs. With the embedding in the operating system Microsoft is now going one step further. Microsoft manager Yusuf Mehdi assured in an interview with the financial service Bloomberg that competing services like Slack or Zoom would also benefit from all the new functions of Windows 11.
In the 1990s, Microsoft was targeted by competitive proceedings for the bundling of the Internet Explorer web browser with Windows. The pre-installed Microsoft browser caused the use of the pioneering software from Netscape to break in. Microsoft was nearly crushed over the allegations and has since acted very cautiously on competition issues.
A specific release date for Windows 11 was not mentioned – it is expected from autumn, together with new devices from PC manufacturers on which the operating system is already preinstalled.
Elon Musk has an estimated net worth of approximately $ 152 billion. His money is in various companies, but only one of them is listed.
• Investments in own companies predominate • Tesla stake makes up around 90 percent of his assets • He pays for his vehicles himself
“I don’t invest in anything – except in a single share” . With this statement, the billionaire manager Elon Musk surprised the markets in the spring of 2018. It is one of the biggest misunderstandings that he is an investor because there is only one publicly traded company in which he holds shares: Tesla . And nothing has changed to this day.
Tesla stake worth billions
In fact, Elon Musk is by far the largest shareholder in the electric car manufacturer: 21 percent of the company, which he also heads as CEO and since 2021 as “Technoking” , is in the hands of the 49-year-old. The boss managed the company’s fortunes early on, even if he was not one of the Tesla founders. Just one year after it was founded by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, Musk joined the company as an investor and shortly afterwards took over the chairmanship of the supervisory board, which he had to give up in 2018 as a result of a dispute with the US Securities and Exchange Commission about his Twitter practices.
The stake in Tesla accounts for around 90 percent of Elon Musk’s total fortune, which is estimated at over $ 152.2 billion. Incidentally, Musk does not receive a salary for his senior position at Tesla, nor does he receive any bonuses for his work: Instead, he has agreed targets with the company for sales and operating profit, for which he will be paid with Tesla shares once they have been achieved. If he does not achieve the very ambitious goals – after all, a tenfold increase in the current market capitalisation is targeted for the stock market value – the Tesla boss goes away empty-handed .
Also worth mentioning in this context is Elon Musk’s 22 percent stake in SolarCity, the solar group that was fully acquired by Tesla in 2016. The company is now run as Tesla’s energy division.
Even if Tesla is the only listed company in which Elon Musk claims to hold shares, he is still involved in other multibillion-dollar corporations. In May 2002, Musk invested 100 million US dollars from his private fortune in founding SpaceX – here, too, he holds the chief position. The space company is worth an estimated 74 billion US dollars. Musk himself holds 54 percent of the company via a trust and has 78 percent of the voting rights.
SpaceX is unlisted and if Musk goes it will not change in the foreseeable future. In his opinion, the time for an IPO would not have come until the space company could offer regular shuttles to Mars. Such a step could cause enthusiasm on the market – even if it is still in the future: “There are many more people who want to buy our shares than we are ready to sell,” said SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell .
Boring Company – The next star in Musk heaven?
The third major project Elon Musk is investing in is the Boring Company tunneling company. Founded on a whim – Musk was annoyed by the evening rush hour and decided to let cars go underground in the future – the company has already established itself in its field of business. Goodwill is estimated at $ 920 million, and in 2018 and 2019 the company raised $ 233 million from private investors and from Musk itself. One of the investors is already well acquainted with Musk firms: Venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson already has a seat on the boards of Tesla and SpaceX.
Neuralink – is an IPO coming up?
With Neuralink, a neuro technology company founded in 2016, Elon Musk has a company under his management that raised a total of 158 million US dollars in two financing rounds, 100 million of which came directly from Elon Musk. Overall, the company valuation according to PitchBook is over $ 500 million. Here, too, Elon Musk is not only an investor, but also the largest shareholder.
In the meantime, Elon Musk has recently liquidated his numerous real estate investments, the value of which, according to media reports, once totaled 100 million US dollars. The last remaining mansion is currently for sale for $ 37 million. Musk himself wants to live on rent from now on. Musk plans to use the money he made from the property sales to invest in his space travel activities, particularly in his ambitious plan to colonize Mars.
Even if Musk claims to want to part with most of his earthly possessions, he still owns vehicles. Unsurprisingly, he is focusing on electric cars from Tesla. When asked on Twitter which vehicles he drives privately, Musk replied that he drives his Model S P100D most often. His second car is the mass market Model 3, while his Model X is used when he is out and about with his children.
I mostly drive Model S Performance with dev version of FSD computer. Our new Raven powertain & adaptive damping suspension is great! Next is Model 3P & then X if driving with my kids. Acceleration is fun on tap!
Musk also bought a Tesla Roadster, who, according to his own account, pays for his Tesla vehicles like every customer. However, he does not name the vehicle in his Twitter post – possibly because he had it shot into space in a SpaceX rocket three years ago .
Apple is warning of negative consequences for consumers against parts of the EU’s plans for new rules in the digital business.
The group specifically criticises that it will be forced to allow other app stores on its iPhone. This would seriously worsen the security and privacy of users, argued Apple in a paper published on Wednesday.
The group points out, among other things, that all apps and updates on its platform are examined by software and human auditors in order to filter out fraudulent applications. In addition, developers would have to adhere to Apple guidelines on data protection. With so-called side loading, in which apps are loaded onto the iPhone from sources other than the official store, these safety precautions were omitted, emphasises Apple.
Even users who then wanted to rely exclusively on Apple’s own app store would be more at risk, warns the company. On the one hand, because some apps could then only be available from other sources. On the other hand, because the new situation would give criminals more incentives to attack the iPhone with its multitude of valuable data.
Apple’s app store system is currently under pressure. Among other things, a process in California ended a few weeks ago in which the game provider Epic Games (“Fortnite”) wants to open the platform to other app platforms. A judgment is still pending. Among other things, Epic is opposed to the fact that a fee of 15 to 30 percent is due for digital business on Apple’s platform and that as a developer you have to use the group’s system for in-app purchases. US bills for more competition in the tech industry are also targeting the business model.
In the paper on the dangers of other app sources, Apple did not refer directly to the planned Digital Markets Act (DMA) of the EU Commission – but CEO Tim Cook explicitly linked the risks with it a few days ago. Current DMA formulations “would force side loading on the iPhone,” said Cook in an interview at the Vivatech technology conference. “As we see it, this would destroy the security of the iPhone and many data protection initiatives that we have built into the App Store,” he criticised.
