Author Archives: Chung T'ang

The Vulnerability of Crypto Assets When Transacting via Internet Networks

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The rate by which bitcoin has been surging in popularity, has spurred further advancements in other crypto-supported economies, including bitcoin gambling. However, while the use of bitcoin is deemed as a secure method of shielding one’s assets and related financial transactions in moving such assets, this is not always the case; especially when cryptocurrency transactions are coursed through Internet networks. .

Recent News that Revealed the Vulnerability of Crypto Assets in Internet Networks

Recently, the US Department of Treasury penalized cryptocurrency wallet provider Bitgo, for processing cryptocurrency transactions involving digital assets maintained in locations sanctioned by the U.S. governments. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreigh Asses Control (OFAC) were able to track 183 cryptocurrency transactions that Bitgo processed for cryptocurrency assets of individuals located in Syria, Sudan, Crimea, Cuba and Iran using Bitgo’s non-custodial digital wallet services.

While the transactions, which transpired between March 10, 2015, and December 11, 2019 totaled only $9,127.79, Bitgo was constrained to pay $98,830 as settlement for non-compliance with multiple sanction programs of the U.S. government. Bitgo initially contended that they had no way of knowing that said 183 transactions came from cryptocurrency assets maintained in the sanctioned regions

The OFAC disputed Bitgo’s claim, saying that the digital wallet provider had every means of determining the locations of the 183 transactions. The Internet Protocol (IP) addresses linked to the devices used by the Bitgo customers who logged in to their hot wallet accounts, were traceable as coming from the sanctioned jurisdictions. .

 

The mention of hot wallet accounts raised questions among numerous cryptocurrency owners, as the OFAC’s statement revealed that their digital assets are still vulnerable to scrutiny by government regulators.

What is a Hot Wallet Account

Basically, cryptocurrency assets kept in a hot wallet account is advantageous because it allows the crypto money owners to make payment for transactions via the Internet. Examples of such as payments are for online purchases, or in some cases, in placing deposits at licensed Bitcoin Casinos operating in another country.

The drawback to the hot wallet system is that the accounts and its transactions are visible in the Internet. Even if transactions are encrypted, the security keys and codes are also stored in online servers. That being the case, many prefer to use cold wallets, in order to prevent their digital currency accounts from becoming subjects of regulatory scrutiny and mainly to keep their cold wallet assets protected against hackers. .

What is a Cold Wallet?

Cold wallets are asset storage solutions that do not require the use of Internet networks, as they are supported by proprietary software or application that uses private keys and codes accessible only to the user of a cold wallet device.

The main drawback of a cold wallet storage is that it is costly, while hot wallets can be used and acquired as part of the services offered by digital wallet providers.

Second UK National Lockdown Sees Cancellations of Non-Elite Basketball Activities

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Nearly all basketball games and events in London have been canceled following UK Prime Minister Johnson’s announcement of a new nationwide mandatory lockdown. PM Johnson’s announcement came after the majority of the Ministers in the British Parliament voted in favor of a 4-week lockdown last Nov. 04, in light of the second wave of COVID-19 outbreak taking place in England.

The Department of Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS) has given guidelines to Basketball England, Sport England and UK Sport on the restrictions to impose beginning November 05, 2020.

New Lockdown Guidelines for Basketball Games and Events

Leagues Affected by the Cancellation Orders

All training and competition for non-elite basketball are to stop starting Thursday for a tentative 4-week duration. Level 4 of Basketball England’s Return to Play guidance must be observed accordingly.

The cancellation pertains to all training and competition involving the National Basketball League (NBL) Two and Three, the Junior NBL and the NBL U18 Premier. As it is, the latter is no longer considered as an “Elite” club. The suspension also applies to al Senior and Junior local leagues.

Cancellations also apply to all competitions slated by the Academy of College Elite Academy Basketball League (EABL), Women’s Elite Academy Basketball League (WEABL) and Academy Basketball League (ABL) competitions until January 2021, at the least.

The related Level 4 Return to Play Guidance of Basketball England denotes that when returning to play, the leagues will be allowed to play up to 2 gatherings but without competition in outdoor courts in which basketball players will have to maintain safe-distancing by at least 2 meters or farther.

Basketball Leagues Allowed to Carry On During the New Lockdown Order

Qualified to continue with the training and competitions are leagues that fall under the UK Government’s “Elite: status, namely British Basketball League (BBL), Women’s British Basketball League (WBBL), National Basketball League 1 (NBL 1) and Women’s National Basketball League 1 (WNBL1). However, training and competition for the NBL1 and WNBL1 depends on the viability of the venue as well as the availability of financial support provided by the DCMS

Basketball activities as part of an educational course are allowed but subject to the provisions of the Level 2 of Return To Play Guidance

Reference to Level 2 Return To Play means that public gathering will be allowed in which drills, team-based training and competitions are to be held behind closed doors, with up to a maximum of 30 participants; whilst observing safe-distancing measure by at least 1 meter or more. Apart.while in an outdoor or indoor court.

How the Basketball England’s Cancellation Affect Basketball Sportsbetting in Indonesia

Although the cancellation of competitions in Basketball England denotes a reduced list of sports betting products for basketball, providers of Judi Online sportsbook still have a lengthy selection of basketball competitions up for sports betting. Some examples include the Euroleague Basketball, Philippine Cup, Korean Basketball League, Japan Basketball League and China Professional Basketball League, just to name a few. Betting offers include Handicap, Over/Under and Odd/Even for both full time and half time periods.

COVID-19 Driving Thailanders to Online Gambling and Shopping Sites

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Online gambling remains popular among Thailanders despite the economic setbacks being experienced by the country since the global pandemics. While Thailand is one of few countries to have successfully flattened the curve by strictly enforcing lockdown and other mitigation measures, fears of getting infected is still driving Thais to online gambling and shopping websites.

In the meantime, Thailanders are trying to live their day-to-day lives as normally as possible, whilst following health and safety guidelines that would prevent the COVID-19 contagion from spreading farther. While many are shopping online, they are also into recreating and engaging in online entertainment. Actually, many in Thailand have discovered their own brand of คาสิโนออนไลน์ (online casino) in which to play slots, roulette, baccarat or Sic Bo for real money betting entertainment.

That is notwithstanding the fact that in Thailand, the only form of legal gambling is lottery and horse betting. Yet when safety is the issue, gambling or gaming online is the safer alternative. Unlike in other Southeast Asian countries, Thai law enforcement authorities are not as vigilant in monitoring gambling activities transpiring in the Internet. After all, Thailand is also home to many Chinese citizens doing business in the country, whilst providing employment opportunities for locals.

Thai Prime Minister Demonstrates Transparency by Explaining the Economic Outlook of the Country

In a televised address in August 2020, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha explained to the people that the current economic crisis cannot be expected to go away quickly because the country is largely dependent on exports and tourism. Unfortunately, the economies of countries on which Thailand relies, are still unstable. Mainly because many of them are still struggling to address the health crisis being wrought by the still ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. .

As Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had put it:

“We are unable to escape the storm, as we are but a small boat in a big ocean caught in a global storm. “ “Thailand’s economy can return to normal only when the economies of the rest of the world have returned to normal”

Nonetheless, as the Kingdom of Thailand is ranked as the 8th largest in Asia, the government has been able to implement stimulus measures that included the release of a 1.9 trillion baht ((roughly about $61.21 billion) economic relief package. Currently, the Thai government’s thrust is to provide incentives that will motivate the people of Thailand to stay employed; including programs for youth employment as well as for businesses to remain competitive.

Fears of Infection Drove Growth E-Commerce and Online Gambling

The good news is that the e-commerce and online gambling sectors have been experiencing growth ever since the first case of infection was detected in Thailand. Apparently, fears of contracting the disease drove many Thailanders to do their shopping and recreation online. While Thailand’s e-commerce was already experiencing 8 to 10 percent growth in previous years, online sales continue to rise and is expected to reach as much as THB 1.530 trillion or USD $49 billion at the end of year 2020.

Indonesian Poker Games are Generally Quick and Easy

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Indonesian poker games may seem different because of their local titles like bandarq, dominoqq, sakong, aduq and capsa susun, just to mention a few examples. Actually, their game mechanics are largely similar to popular poker games played in other countries, yet in some ways modified, to suit Indonesian players who have no other option but to play poker online. .

While there may be some underground casinos that operate poker rooms, they are illicit gambling joints, which when raided by local law enforcers will also punish casino customers caught gambling.

Bandarq is quite popular among Indonesian poker players because the game play and method of determining the winner follows the conventional 5-card poker hands such as 4-of-a-kind, royal flush, full house, flush, straight, trio and pair.

Yet not a few prefer playing aduq, dominoqq and sakong because in these games, winning hands are determined by the total score achieved by a poker hand. While tens, Jacks, Queens, and Kings have an equivalent value of ten, a tally of the total score will simply add the value represented by the number cards.

Apparently, simply determining the winner based on scores is a faster way of completing each round of poker played online. Yet when it comes to the fastest way, sakong poker is the speediest, as the game issues only three cards to each player in every round.

How to Play Sakong Poker Online

A sakong poker table accommodates up to eight (8) players, while one or two of those players will act as dealers or table bankers.

Who Can Act as Dealer or Banker in a Game of Sakong

To qualify as the dealer of the game, one’s bankroll must meet the amount required by the rules of the online casino or poker room. If there is more than one dealer or banker, they take turns in assuming the role. While not playing as a banker, they play as regular sakong players in the same poker table.

A sakong dealer has great opportunities for raking in large sums of winnings; but they also stand to lose a great sum if his poker hand score is weak. Mainly because in sakong, all nad scores are played against the hand score of the dealer. If all players in the table have higher scores than the dealer, the latter pays all players based on the amount they staked as bet for that particular hand. Now if the opposite happens, or if all players fold their hand, especially if the dealer raises his bet while still playing blind, the dealer gets to rake in all bets staked on the losing or folded hands.

Initial Sakong Bets are Wagered at Blind Stage

All initial bets are wagered blind, which means players must place bets before they see the value of their 3-card hand. Now some sakong players or dealers can raise their bets once they get to see their hand-score; but before revealing it on the table for other players to see.

There’s a possibility that the dealer or other players are simply trying to bluff their way out of a bad hand, by making it appear that their cards achieved a hard-to-beat score. That way, other players will be forced to fold if they think their scores are not high enough. Some others will call the raised bet or the bluff; or even counter with a higher bet to intimidate both the dealer and the challenger/s. .

While there is no ante for a jackpot, players and dealers alike can win big by raking in all bets staked by losing players in each round.

Sports Betting : Doubling the Thrills of Watching a Sports Event

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Watching a sports competition as it unfolds is already exciting as it is. More so when a sports bet is wagered, as the thrills double while in anticipation of a possible win outcome.

 

It used to be that betting on an outcome was as easy as staking a sum of money on the champion or the contender. Today sports betting is legal in most countries, permitting individuals to place wagers in a betting outlet or sportsbook. Modern bookmakers or the operators of sportsbooks, offer different betting products or betting propositions on thousands of sports franchises.

You will be offered different betting options, using terminologies like money line, spreads, overs and unders, all of which look appealing as a betting strategy. They present different ways on how much one can win and get to collect from the bookmaker in case of a win. Although some bettors are more comfortable with the traditional betting system, some prefer to gamble their money by way of betting odds.

What are Betting Odds and How Do They Work?

Nowadays, a sports bettor can consider staking money on the team that has greater odds of losing instead of winning. Since wagering one’s money on a less favored team involves greater risk, bookmakers are willing to pay a higher value by offering different betting odds. If that team wins, the bookmaker is obliged to pay based on what was stated as the equivalent prize money.

Supposing a bookmaker offers to pay 5 times for every one dollar staked on a team that only a few believes will win. If a sports bettor placed a $1 bet on that team, he stands to collect $5 ($1 x 5 ) from the bookmaker. It follows therefore that if another gambler had staked $50 on the same betting odds propositioned by the bookmaker, then that gambler will collect $250 ($50 x 5 ) as winnings.

Actually, that was just a simple explanation of how betting odds work. If you really want to be good at gambling, you have to understand how modern sports betting works and the different betting systems used by bookmakers when putting out betting offers for various types of sports.

What is the Most Common Type of Betting on Basketball

When betting on basketball matches, many sports bettors prefer to use the “point-spread” system of betting. This is where bookmakers give bettors on an underdog team, equal chances of winning against wagers placed on the stronger competitor/s.

A bookmaker will add points to the score achieved by a stronger team, before those who placed bets on that team can expect to win. On the other hand, those who placed bets on the underdog can simply collect the money they wagered, if the supposedly weaker team wins, regardless of the points scored.

 

This type of betting system is also known as Asian Handicap, because the point-spread system actually originated from a method devised by Indonesian gamblers.

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