Transaction fees paid for bitcoin (BTC) transactions jumped over 50% in the last 24 hours. According to the Chairman of the Israeli Bitcoin Association, the rise isn’t significant yet, but if fees keep rising BTC will need a new scaling solution.

Purse.io, the bitcoin startup that announced it was shutting down last week, has revealed it’s in “serious talks” with investors to get acquired. One investor believes to be looking to buy the firm is Bitocin.com CEO Roger Ver.

Binance has launched a cryptocurrency payments app called “Bundle” in Africa, in a bid to create a stable on and off-ramp for users in the continent.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Fees Paid for on-Chain Bitcoin Transactions Surge 50% in 24 Hours
• Bitcoin Startup Purse in ‘Serious Talks’ to Be Acquired After Announcing Shutdown
• Binance Launches Crypto Payments App ‘Bundle’ in Africa

At the time of writing, bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $7,578.13 (6.90%) with a daily Top Tier volume of $3.65 bn. As for ether (ETH), it is trading at $189.39 (4.64%) with a daily Top Tier volume of $1.65 bn. The MVIS CryptoCompare Digital Assets 10 Index is currently tracking at 2,747.43 (4.11%).

Fees Paid for on-Chain Bitcoin Transactions Surge 50% in 24 Hours

The total amount of fees paid for on-chain bitcoin transactions has jumped over 50% in the last 24 hours, going to over $9,500. The mean fee BTC users have been paying for their transactions rose 58.8% to a $0.78 high, according to Glassnode.

Speaking to CoinTelegraph Meni Rosenfeld, Chairman of the Israeli Bitcoin Association, said he believes the 24-hour timeframe is too short for the rise to be significant, claiming historic data shows BTC transaction fees are more volatile than the cryptocurrency’s price. Rosenfeld added:

“If the trend continues, a mild increase in fees can be a positive sign. It means people are actually willing to pay those fees — in other words, Bitcoin is increasing in popularity and usage. This can correlate with increases in the Bitcoin price and adoption.”

The executive noted that if the fees rise too much it won’t be a “healthy sign” as it would mean “the technical infrastructure of Bitcoin is failing to scale.” In the long term, on-chain transaction fees are expected to rise, Rosenfeld added, while the cost of spending BTC remains low thanks to second-layer scaling solutions like the Lightning Network.

He contended that if fees go to high “we will need to seriously consider new scaling solutions,” after claiming there’s a “delicate balance” when it comes to optimal fee levels, as low fees could see miners become underfunded.

Bitcoin Startup Purse in ‘Serious Talks’ to Be Acquired After Announcing Shutdown

Purse.io, the bitcoin startup that last week announced it was shutting down after six years operating in the space, may have a lifeline as it revealed it’s in “serious talks” to get acquired by “well-known bitcoin investors” noting it has several parties interested in its business.

The startup essentially helps users shop on Amazon with bitcoin (BTC) and bitcoin cash (BCH) by connecting those looking to sell Amazon gift cards for crypto with shoppers looking to spend BTC or BCH and get a discount.

According to CoinDesk Purse support manager Eduardo Gomez confirmed in a private message that Purse may survive, saying:

“We are in serious talks to get acquired. Meaning that we will most likely live through this.”

One of the investors who may be looking into buying Purse is Bitcoin.com CEO and Bitcoin Cash proponent Roger Ver, who in a YouTube video revealed he has “been talking to [Purse],” and believes the company is “too important for the ecosystem to disappear.”

Gomez further revealed the startup’s team received “tremendous support” from its users after announcing the shutdown.

Binance Launches Crypto Payments App ‘Bundle’ in Africa

Popular cryptocurrency exchange Binance has rolled out a cryptocurrency payments app called “Bundle” that’s targeted at the African market, and allows users to send and receive cash, and buy, sell and store cryptoassets.

At launch, the Bundle app support is one fiat currency, the Nigerian naira (NGN), and three cryptocurrencies: bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), and Binance coin (BNB. In the coming weeks, Binance said, “many more” fiat currencies will be supported in the app.

By the end of the year, Bundle is set to support over 30 African countries, in a bid to become an on/off ramp for users in the continent. Bundle founder Yele Bademosi, formerly a director at Binance Labs, was quoted as saying:

“We built Bundle with the digitally native African user in mind. They are social, online, and connected across geographical boundaries. They prefer their financial services delivered digitally via mobile apps as opposed to visiting brick and mortar bank branches.”

Bundle operates as an independent entity from Binance, but is a project incubated by the exchange. It raised $450,000 from it last year in a pre-seed funding round.

Flipside Friday

The Flipside Crypto Disparity Ratio is a tool helping you find out which cryptoassets are under and overvalued. The crypto disparity ratio scores cryptoassets based on market capitalization and FCAS ratings, with a score over 1 showing it’s undervalued, and under 1 showing it’s overvalued.

POA Network (POA), a public sidechain based on the Ethereum protocol that will use Proof-of-Authority and allow organizations to build their own networks in their own validators and allow developers to deploy decentralized applications, tops the undervalued list with a score of 1.58.

XYO, an ERC-20 token used for a decentralized network of devices that anonymously collects geospatial data, comes next with a score of 1.47. It’s followed by the Raiden Network (RDN), an off-chain scaling payment solution to perform ERC20 compliant token transactions, at 1.40.

Next comes SingularityNET (AGI), a protocol for coordinating, discovering, and transacting AI algorithms at scale.

On the overvalued side we have Monacoin, the once-popular cat meme cryptocurrency which has even been used to buy land in 2014, at 0.35. It’s followed by THETA, a decentralized video delivery network powered by users at 0.36.

Next to it comes Crypterium (CRPT), a cryptobank platform leveraging the Ethereum blockchain to provide an instant processing engine for both fiat and crypto transactions at 0.36. At the bottom of the list is DxChain (DX), the world’s first decentralized big data and machine learning network powered by a computing-centric blockchain.

State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

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