CryptoNews of the Week
- The number of attacks using ransomware has significantly decreased against the backdrop of the fall in the price of bitcoin, experts from the American company SonicWall noted. Researchers counted 236 million ransomware infection attempts in the first half of 2022. This is 23% less compared to the same period last year. According to the report, the number of ransomware incidents peaked in 2021. The targets of the attackers then were large companies that were forced to pay large amounts of cryptocurrency to hackers.
- The price of bitcoin bounced up from the $20,000 level, which concentrated the greatest attraction of speculators. This happened as a result of the transfer of coins from surrendered hodlers to "new" optimistic buyers. Glassnode experts emphasize that there was also demand from speculators earlier at the $30,000 and $40,000 levels.
Glassnode warns that it may take additional time to form a solid foundation. This is evidenced by such long-term indicators as URPD. To increase the chances of a market reversal, it is important to see the transition of speculative coins into the category of “held by long-term investors” (in other words, the “age” of coins from the moment of purchase must exceed 155 days).
- Peter Brandt, the head of Factor LLC, trader with 45 years of experience, criticized MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor, who called bitcoin an ensured digital commodity. “It is ensured with energy only because of its excessive consumption, without ensuring an economic function. It's a huge myth that bitcoin is somehow more than just a consumer of energy,” Brandt wrote.
In response, Saylor emphasized that "all products consume energy." According to him, the economic function of bitcoin is to create a free global settlement network. "Since bitcoin is a commodity, it can fulfill the role of global digital money. The economic function is to grant property rights to 8 billion people, as well as to create a global settlement network that has already transferred $17 trillion of value in 2022,” he wrote.
Note that despite the criticisms of bitcoin, this cryptocurrency is one of the largest assets in the portfolio of Peter Brandt.
- Bitcoin continues to resist selling pressure and managed to stabilize above the $20,000 level on the eve of the US Federal Reserve meeting. According to a number of analysts, the main role in this was played by the whales (investors with a balance of 1000+ and 10000+ BTC), who maintain hodle sentiment and continue to buy bitcoin on exchange rate drawdowns.
It is worth noting the activity of the owners of small BTC balances. For example, the number of addresses with a balance of 0.01+ BTC has reached an all-time high of 10,543,548.
- A well-known analyst named PlanB, the creator of the Stock-to-Flow model, predicted the day when both US stocks and bitcoin reach new all-time highs. “Some people are afraid of macroeconomics, bitcoin's relationship with the stock market, etc.,” he tweeted. “My opinion is that the S&P 500 will be in the range of $5,000-$6,000 over the next 5 years, and bitcoin will be between $100,000 and $1 million.
- Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of the FTX crypto exchange, said that the adoption of cryptocurrencies is currently best in Latin America, and has huge prospects. The potential is estimated at $128 billion. Digital currencies will be used in various areas of life, primarily as a means of payment.
- Analysts from Forex Suggest analyzed different countries and regions in terms of parameters characterizing the availability of cryptocurrencies for citizens. Several parameters were evaluated: the number and availability of crypto ATMs, regulation of cryptocurrencies at the state level, startup culture, and taxation.
Hong Kong came in first with 8.6 points, ahead of the US and Switzerland with 7.7 and 7.5 points respectively. These two countries have a better cryptocurrency infrastructure and more ATMs per 100,000 people (in the US - 10, Switzerland - 6.5, in Hong Kong - only 2), but Hong Kong won in the availability of these devices for the population due to its compactness.
Low taxes on cryptocurrency income are also important. Hong Kong, Switzerland, Panama, Portugal, Germany, Malaysia and Turkey win here. But the number of requests for cryptocurrencies in search engines is the highest in Australia (4,579 requests per 100,000 population). Ireland and the UK are in second and third place.
- Jim Rogers, a major American investor, co-founder of Quantum Fund and Soros Fund Management, said that it will be necessary to enlist government support for this sector before considering cryptocurrency a reliable investment. BTC is only a gambling tool, not real money. Bitcoin is well suited for speculation but will eventually fail as a currency.
The specialist stressed that he will consider buying BTC if the European Union accepts it as an official currency and introduces it into the region's payment system. However, he will not buy cryptocurrencies at the moment, regardless of the prices at which they can be traded. Recall that Jim Rogers predicted in 2020 that the price of the main cryptocurrency will eventually fall to zero.
- Hollywood producer Ryan Felton pleaded guilty to receiving $2.4 million through a cryptocurrency scam. This is stated in the US Department of Justice press release. He raised the money through an initial coin offering for a streaming platform FLiK. The producer said that the company has the potential to bypass Netflix. In addition, the team behind the platform which was introduced to the market at the height of the 2017 ICO boom, claimed to be entering into licensing agreements with major film and television studios. In addition, Felton promoted another ICO in 2018: the CoinSpark crypto exchange, promising investors a 25% profit in the form of dividends.
As a result, the investors' funds were transferred to Felton's accounts and cashed out. he used them to buy a house for $1.5 million, a Ferrari for $180,000, a Chevrolet Tahoe SUV for $58,250, and jewelry for $30,000.
- British IT engineer James Howells became famous all over the world for admitting that he lost his hard drive in 2013, which contained a wallet with 7,500 BTC. This loser threw a disk from an old computer that he used for mining back in 2009 in a landfill. The poor man did not follow the news and did not know that these bitcoins were worth about a million dollars even at that time.
Almost 10 years have passed since then, but he is still trying to find the loss. James Howels has repeatedly requested the Newport City Administration to organize a massive search for the HDD over the past few years. Officials refused him time after time, citing inevitable environmental problems and a trivial stench throughout the city when digging up the entire territory of the landfill. In 2021, the treasure hunter offered the city authorities 25% of the value of his BTC (about $72 million at that time), but this did not help either.
Now, disillusioned with people, Howels decided to bet on robots. He will order two search robots-dogs of the Spot type worth $75,000 each from the American Boston Dynamics. Iron friends will be nicknamed Satoshi and Hal in honor of the creator of bitcoin and the cryptographer who received the first transaction. It remains a mystery how robot dogs with cameras or even metal detectors will be able to find a laptop HDD in a giant garbage field, already deep under the surface. And what happened to the disc after nine years of lying in a landfill? The magnetic recording is most likely damaged, although there is still a chance to recover information on specialized equipment.
- Crypto analyst Nicholas Merten believes that an unexpected rise in the market is likely, which will be a big surprise for the bears. “Bitcoin skyrocketed from $29,000 to $53,000 last July, up 80% within a month. I suppose that the market can grow up again now and retest the previous consolidation area around $30,000. There are no major resistance zones ahead and the moving averages are leading right into this point, giving bitcoin a great upside opportunity. Most people do not believe in this possibility, but the rally can surprise you with its scale in a market with excessive volumes of derivatives.”
Note that although Merten does not exclude BTC growth in the short term, he doubts that the asset will reach the bottom: “Many believe that the bottom was reached on June 18. Yes, we saw a huge sell-off and a good rebound. The market also got rid of significant amounts of borrowed funds used for crypto speculation. But one cannot discount the reality of the continued impact of the macro market, which will continue to limit long-term investment in cryptocurrencies.”
- The next big rise in cryptocurrency prices will occur before the next halving in the bitcoin network, which is scheduled for May 2024. This is the opinion of financial analyst Florian Grummes, Managing Director of the investment company Midas Touch Consulting. In his opinion, despite the recent minor recovery, the cryptocurrency winter is far from over. The rise to $35,000 will occur in 6-12 months. This will be a so-called "auxiliary rally" that may precede a larger rally.
In the long term, Grummes is confidently optimistic, but warns that since the crypto market is directly correlated with the stock market, one must be prepared for deviations not only upwards, but also downwards at the current stage.
This expert predicted BTC to rise to $100,000 in the 1st quarter of 2022 in the past, which did not happen. Therefore, his forecasts, as well as all other ones, should be treated with sufficient caution now as well.
- Raoul Pal, co-founder of Real Vision Group and former CEO of Goldman Sachs, believes that cryptocurrency markets are preparing for a serious positive trend reversal. The markets are mainly driven by liquidity, which comes from the M2 money supply, he said. This money supply correlates with the total amount of currency in circulation, plus it is highly liquid non-cash assets that can be easily converted into cash.
Most crypto investors believe that miner rewards at the next halving will drive up the price. However, Pal argues that the role of M2 is greater than that of halving: “Cryptocurrency is not driven by the business cycle, but by global liquidity. So the main indicator of the growth of bitcoin is the rate of change of M2. Every time there was an increase in the money supply, there was always a reversal, the specialist says.
Notice: These materials are not investment recommendations or guidelines for working in financial markets and are intended for informational purposes only. Trading in financial markets is risky and can result in a complete loss of deposited funds.
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