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Sorry to read that, DJ. Awful stuff going on, many being very courageous about their loss and/or helping those who are ill or bereaved. Btw, my typical and ordinary street opposite some open space is very little, so this is about 40% of the neighbours dead. When that hit me, I switched off my shares screen.

Thanks Dubjon. I stand corrected, I will try to get my head around it one day. At the moment, with 3 adjacent sets of age 65-75 neighbours dead 6 months ago but I only just found out (2 sets with Covid, 1 neighbour and his wife from other causes apparently) I am less and less interested in shares and more interested in life's basics and carpe diem - enjoying each day best I can, 'cause f those seemingly fit seniors are gone, all bets are kinda sorta off and shares and the like are becoming more a hobby for me that I can take or leave. That said, NFT is not something I'd have ever imagined would have a high value, so it just shows how out of touch I am. Costly virtual horse ownership? :D Sure, why not! :D GLA and DYOR as they say.

Anyone know why (according to Mr D) things are quiet at the Nana's Bridge? When Narni and Umbria reportedly are slow to find their feet, should we term it 'not taking Um-Bridge'? . . .See what I did there !

How many competitors are there for Narni? As I understand it with my brain permanently on power--save mode, OBC's bridge or service facilitates the transfer of digital 'money' or crypto 'coins' from an available and selected 'currency' (perhaps that should be currentcy if electricity makes these 'coins') to another utilising something called a USDT 'stablecoin' called Tether and anchored to a value of US$1. If I am correct, this seems to me to be somewhat like an online Bureau De Change or Forex trading platform, costing around $3 to $6 etc a transfer and taking under a minute. This supposedly offers advantages over other methods, I assume? But there must be competitors doing better if this one wasn't doing much yesterday (I said if). What's missing from OBC's offer, assuming it is falling short? Better advertising? Better technical competence? Or just a bit of luck and some time to take root? I can recall one or two businesses with tumbleweed for many months in Sales/Enquiries and then one day the phones just went crazy as if 'the crowd' all showed up at once.

If OBC's future depends just on bitcoin (I would hope not btw), here are some reasonably positive words from VISA's boss
bitcoinist.com/visa-ceo-says-crypto-could-become-extremely-popular-in-five-years/
&
cityam.com/bitcoin-steadies-in-the-water-as-global-markets-continue-to-look-fearful/

The Investor's Chronicle article on crypto FOMO was on 26 January. OBC was briefly mentioned along with others. OBC spiked some 2-3 weeks later for whatever reason. It had also spiked a bit in Jan and IIRC that price pressure upwards started at the end of Dec. www.investorschronicle.co.uk/ideas/2021/01/26/how-to-beat-the-bitcoin-fomo

And btw, what of the AFN thing? I checked and nobody posted in a month over there.

I wish you well, whatever your opinion, Tysoup. The main thing I'd say is OBC or what they were before (ONL) have been around since pre-tech boom, late 90s I think, perhaps a bit earlier when they were publishing games and later AllIPO and ADVFN. The only other thing I'd say is that they still own a bit of ADVFN (AFN) and so people like me are holding on that basis and a hope that there is something more. Just a hope though at the moment afaik! I don't know much about the bridge thing and NFT and whether 100 others are doing similar or if it is worth anything. There were large volumes in Jan and Feb -- they seemed to be buys. I don't know if they are still in or legged it. Of my general European (modest!) portfolio, these are quite far from the worst performers so far and as I write this! :D I look with interest at AFN's price most days. A cautionary tale for anyone reading this is I once lost a lot in a co that had been around for decades and then it went bust.

Anyone else have an outage here this morning? Some host or system problem for several hours?

I can't remember what the approximate value of the AFN stake is per share of OBC based on the current prices/profit at AFN. But perhaps it somewhat underpins the OBC price, pricey pizza munchers or not. If that rather than the banana bridge to Cumbria is the main factor driving price, probably more modest price expectations are sadly prudent. I don't know, though, I am merely guessing. I know of some of my European shares were like peanuts for years and then went up and some stayed up. But for years it was like a horrible flat line in the doldrums, excitement is the price rose 10%. Some I sold far too early, one or two did an ARB . . . but I was out by then. Very hard for some of us to get it right. Btw, what attire did Steve Jobs and the Google guys wear when they were developing Google (of which I was a very early adopter and got one of the first dabs on email addresses so my main Gmail email address is like a cherished number plate). Were they wearing lounge suits or dinner jackets to every interview? I doubt it. We should not always judge a book by covers, for the yoof, that gear is what is hip and the formal or more smart casual gear is often considered fit for granddad. Of course, by the time they get to not far from retirement, they too will wear beige trousers and bergundy shoes as seems to be eternally compulsory for oldies, as does being expected to listen to Vera Lynn or to Glenn Miller despite the fact it was The Beatles or the Stones who were big when those people were young.

Nice work, Dubjon, I'm genuinely pleased for you, you put the effort in and get rewarded. I don't put that much effort in these days, I am more of a throw some mud at the wall and hope it sticks -- let's hope for similar success here :-)

When I wrote 'sort' below, I meant 'saw'. That other share's mega gain was a nice surprise, but it doesn't happen too often. Had I not jumped on one of my shares that went up 5x in a few months, selling them to take a rather fab profit, I'd have had 10x just 2 months later and actually almost 6x (a six-bagger) even a few hours later after I sold (the same day they climbed even more after a slight retracement). Even now, those very shares remain at double what I sold them for, but I sold the whole lot. If only I'd listened to my mum's advice years ago to sell half and keep half after a good gain! Yes, mums are pretty much always right! What's to happen with OBC? Well, I dunno. Dubjon's posts make for exciting reading, but so far the market seems to only be pricing OBC at the value of AFN as it is now or thereabouts. I don't know about TA because I ran OBC on a site that does TA on various levels and very, very often it was declaring OBC a 'strong buy' even as the shares were dropping and continued to drop by double-digits. Whether OBC's TA is correct now...well, especially for Echo's sake and anyone else in that boat, I hope the only way is up (nod to Yazz). I suppose it does kinda sorta look like it should be up from here, but it's down now as I type this ... when as I expected it to be up again today to at least 50p .... hence my moniker! :-)

Dubjon, thank you for the updates.

Echo1, just to say I've been in the bought-in-too-high/early boat many times and am similarly in loss on a non-UK share I have and...er...(just checked) quite a few others. My philosophy is that I buy smallish amounts in many firms and hope one or two grow well over 1-5 years. That means some will drop and drop and I will lose most or all of my money, but others may do really well and cancel out the losers. Nothing amazing in this idea, but I don't think many like it because it needs patience and almost certainly means acknowledging some buys will be awful mistakes. One European share I have did a sudden reverse on Monday or last Friday and now I am in a rather nice profit of about 45-60%. At one point I had almost doubled my money and was tempted to take profits, and perhaps I should have. It looked really quite hopeless before that for about 4-5 months, but I totally forgot about that share and then sort it on a gainers' board. I wasn't even sure I had it! Of course, those who bought when that share was properly low are really laughing now and I envy them.

Buyer buys at 10.11am, sells by 10.18am? Looks that way. Obviously not known for their patience!

10-Aug-21 10:11:29 44.8498 6,874 Buy* 42.00 45.00 3,083
10-Aug-21 10:18:00 42.0002 6,874 Sell* 42.00 45.00 2,887

With no news I am aware of at AFN, I am not sure what the support level is. So it could be time to ponder on whether we are crossing the Narni Bridge to Umbria before stumbling across a giant who utters the words "De-fi high sum, I spell the crypto of an Onlineman."
But for something sane and sensible, read DubJon's stuff below, which actually blows my tiny mind, but hope describes how we could perhaps be in with a chance of a golden pay day, one day. OBC has been on the stock market since something like the late 90s when ONL. Has their time to shine come, at long last? Is it mañana again? Dunno, but come on OBC management, let's see some proper reasons to be cheerful.

Thanks for the summary and analysis DubJon, I hope we all keep smilin'! I'm a tiny little bit miffed as ARB didn't drop down to my target buy price afaik and neither did AFN, but such is life. I think OBC has just ticked up on the bid as you predicted.

Mixed feelings here too, but blue is blue, up is up (off highs as I write).
On days like today I actually feel genuinely sorry for those who sold at lower levels in recent days. It is painful, especially when bills come in that could have been paid by waiting one more or two more days. I've been in those shoes myself when panicked out of a share, only to see the panic was needless and I should have kept a cool head. That said, I kept a cool head in the past with other shares and... sadly the rest is a very easy blank to fill.

Bennster, very importantly I just realised a Jacuzzi is not exactly the same as a hot tub.
OBC is seeing some sells as is ARB today, of course. Some just taking trading profits? I don't know of any reason why people would sell at this level unless they are just traders, are way past retirement, or are unable to tolerate my attempt at being a shining wit.
With the potential AFN upside as well as the other things you and DubJon mentioned, I guess the sells are the rumoured
distressed institutional seller ... in which case I look forward to the day when an RNS confirms that's all it was. If not, in turn I will likely find myself distressed and in an institution.

Bennster, before someone else says it I will acknowledge that Apple, Google, HP and Mattel started in a garage. All that's in mine is an old pizza oven and 3 bicycles. (Hmm I think life's trying to tell me something.)

DubJon, thanks for the comments and I agree with your advice about target totals and timing. The strategy you mention has more often than not worked well for me with my European shares, but a few times it was just chasing losses down and I ended up selling at break-even or a loss and wishing I'd not averaged down. People like me want to believe OBC have upside even besides AFN, especially if we look at the market cap of ARB by comparison. But some might say I am comparing apple juice with cider, and I'd not want to do that ... I'd rather drink it. Spectar, that was good to read. Bennster, that was an interesting bit of info...I really hope it becomes the case and OBC are doing that or might do it on your cue.
Come on, OBC, carpe diem in the gambling tech sector -- and why not hire Bennster as a consultant (unlimited deluxe pizzas or weekends in Biarritz will be required in any remuneration package).

DubJon, we're a similar age, and OMG time has flown so fast... !
I have put a buy order in for ARB if it retraces somewhat. That's not to say it will retrace, but I did that on a few shares recently and all but one did retrace so I got in at a better price. Of course, my 38p or 39p buy of OBC a month or so ago was only clever for a few days before it got vertigo and put me in loss. The updates from you give us hope :-)

Thank you for the news DubJon, and for the Bad Manners reminder - that's a blast from the past, I feel really old now. Saffron Walden - I've driven through it :-)

Thanks DubJon, and very good call on ARB seeing as it leapt today by about 25% or so! I think you were chaneling Bananarama there, sadly they are no more as a split was inevitable. Bennster, I hope our optimism pays off in due course. Lots of patience already, decades of it in some cases. I hope we get to the next level up, rumoured to be inhabited by the Hodgit, to circumvent the traps in the Chambers of Ire and reach the glittering realm ruled by the numerous wizards of Osc.

It's all a bit confusing for simple people like me, but I hope this Bridge thing brings profits.

I had a quick look up on Wikipedia - seems Umbria and Narni are connected. Probably someone's already mentioned this. It is a little bit like an adventure game, unravelling this stuff. I wonder if we will cross the magic lake to get to the pot of gold, find the beautiful Maiden Widdecombe and make it to the High Scores.

"The Bridge of Augustus (Italian "Ponte d’Augusto") is a Roman arch bridge in the Italian city Narni in Umbria, built to carry the Flaminian Way over the river Nera. Of the original four spans of the 160-metre-long (520 ft) bridge, only the southernmost remains standing." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridge_of_Augustus_(Narni)

What I hope was a nice flurry of blue buys this afternoon. I didn't have the b*lls to buy any more myself as I bought a little bit more about a month back at 38p or something like that. I have seen these flurries of buys before recently and they didn't mark the bottom then, perhaps because it is tracking BTC (groan). But I really hope anyone who bought has the last laugh and sooner rather than later as none of us are immortal. I will be getting rid of some or all over 100p if and when that day dawns - or the beneficiary of my will might be the one who gets to do that. GLA especially the LTHs like myself.