Business analytics software provider MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) has added another 3,907 bitcoins to its vast trove of the original cryptocurrency.

• According to a Tuesday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company spent about $177 million on its latest BTC (-1.87%) purchase, at an average price of approximately $45,294 per coin.
• In total, the firm holds 108,992 BTC, according to a tweet from CEO Michael Saylor:

• MicroStrategy’s stock, which some investors use as a proxy for the price of bitcoin, has sunk from a high of $1,273 per share in March to $718 as of press time.
• The price of bitcoin is down 2% over the last 24 hours, changing hands at $49,191.30 at time of publication.

The abrupt withdrawal last week by VanEck and ProShares of proposals for ether (ETH, -2.96%) futures exchange-traded funds (ETF) bodes well for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission soon approving a bitcoin (BTC, -1.99%) futures ETF, according to Bloomberg Intelligence’s ETF analyst James Seyffart.  

• VanEck and ProShares both pulled their applications just two days after filing them, suggesting the SEC reached out to the issuers and indicated an ether futures fund was not likely to be approved, Seyffart wrote in a note on Tuesday.
• But the fact that both companies’ bitcoin futures ETF filings, as well as those of several other firms, remain active is a positive for their prospects, according to Seyffart. He expects at least one bitcoin futures ETF to launch in the U.S. in the fourth quarter, perhaps as soon as October.
• Many of those bitcoin futures ETFs were proposed after SEC Chairman Gary Gensler indicated recently that he would look more favorably upon bitcoin ETFs that only trade bitcoin futures contracts. 
• If eventual bitcoin futures ETFs are able to operate successfully, and open interest and volume in ether contracts continue to rise, Seyffart said he believes it won’t be long before ether futures ETFs are approved by the SEC.

Data from major exchanges – Deribit, LedgerX, Bakkt, OKEx, and CME – shows that open interest on options rose above $1 billion, surpassing the previous all-time high of $970 million registered on Feb. 14, according to crypto derivatives research firm Skew. 

The metric has increased sharply from the low of $410 million observed in March when the bitcoin market crashed on “Black Thursday,” March 12.

Deribit, the world’s biggest crypto options exchange by volume, contributed nearly 90% of the total on Thursday as open positions on the Panama-based exchange reached a record high of $903 million.

Global options trading volume also jumped to $213.7 million yesterday, the highest level since the March 12 crash, while bitcoin itself clocked a two-month high of $10,062 on CoinDesk’s Bitcoin Price index. At press time, bitcoin had dropped back to near $9,830, representing a 1.5% drop on the day, but an over 10% gain on a week-to-date basis. 

Options are derivative contracts that give the buyer the right, but not the obligation to buy or sell the underlying asset at a predetermined price on or before a specific date. A call option gives the purchaser the right to buy, while the put option gives the buyer the right to sell. 

Open interest refers to the number of options contracts that have
been traded but not yet liquidated by an offsetting trade or an exercise or
assignment. While open interest represents the number of contracts open at a
given point of time, trading volume refers to the number of contracts traded
during a specific period. 

The surge in open interest looks to have been caused by increased demand for put options, or bearish bets.

“Post-March crash, put options have been bought for downside protection primarily. As the market has rallied, more interest has entered via increased put accumulation,” said Tony Stewart, a derivatives trader and analyst in Deribit’s Market Insights channel. 

Validating Stewart’s argument is the one-month put-call skew’s recent rise from -3% to 9.1%. The positive figure indicates that put options are costlier due to drawing greater demand than calls. Similar sentiments are being echoed by the put-call ratio, which rose to a 10-month high of 0.81 on Monday, according to Skew data. 

The put bias seen in the options market suggests investors may be hedging for a potential post-halving price drop. Bitcoin is set to undergo its third mining reward halving on Tuesday, following which the reward per block mined will drop to 12.5 BTC to 6.25 BTC. 

That the supply-altering event is a long-term bullish development has been extensively discussed by the analyst community for many months. Bitcoin’s price has rallied by nearly 160% since bottoming out at $3,867 in March and has recently decoupled from traditional markets as hype over the event mounts. 

Such strong rallies ahead of major events are often followed by price pullbacks. Historical data shows the cryptocurrency suffered a 30% drop in the four weeks following its second reward halving, which took place on July 9, 2016. 

“We may see the market drop by 25%-35% from the peak, but we expect it to be followed by a period of range-bound trading over a number of months and then a gradual move back up. The longer-term horizon for bitcoin is extremely bullish but in the short-to-medium term, we think we’ll see a lot of disappointed players out there,” said Ed Hindi, CIO of Tyr Capital Arbitrage SP, which focuses on liquidity provision and arbitrage within the cryptocurrency markets.

Hence, it’s not surprising that trades are buying hedges (puts)
against long positions in the spot or futures market. 

Bitcoin is widely expected to remain bid over the weekend due to “FOMO” buying from retail investors. FOMO, or fear of missing out, refers to panic buying in a rising market. 

Until the halving has passed, more price rises look likely. “$10,000 has already been breached and the psychological resistance of that has been overcome. We are keeping our eye on $10,500 as the next key level,” said Matthew Dibb, co-founder of Stack, a provider of cryptocurrency trackers and index funds. 

Bitcoin – A Pyramid Scheme?

In a recent interview with Yahoo Finance, Lending Tree Chief Economist Tendayi Kapfidze spoke about several investment options, including the largest cryptocurrency. He seemed rather skeptical of Bitcoin, and even mentioned a lack of usage in the real world:

It’s a pyramid scheme. You only make money based on people who enter after you. It has no real utility in the world. They’ve been trying to create a utility for it for ten years now. It’s a solution in search of a problem, and it still hasn’t found a problem to solve. – He said.

In the same time, Bruderman Asset Management Chief Market Strategist, Oliver Pursche, admitted that he owns five cryptocurrencies, without specifying which ones exactly. He thinks that buying such assets would allow someone to get educated on the matter. He also says that he purchased them with a specific thought – “there’s something here. I just don’t know what it is.”

However, Pursche also warns of the possible risks, saying that people shouldn’t expect to become millionaires overnight and that they should understand such investments could lead to a potential loss.

Bitcoin’s Response

Bitcoin managed to prove people wrong over the last decade. A recent report showed that Bitcoin had been the best performing investment asset in the previous ten years, as it has delivered an 8,900,000% ROI. For reference, in the same timeframe, Netflix is the biggest stock gainer from the S&P 500 with a 4,181% return on investment.

Furthermore, Bitcoin has become much safer now with the hash rate recently recording a new all-time high.

As far as the lack of usage goes, that might not actually be the case. As Cryptopotato recently highlighted, several large industries are accepting Bitcoin payments today. People can use it to book flights and hotels, buy food, purchase technology, and even cars.

Additionally, adoption appears on the rise as well, as Bitcoin ATMs have increased with 56% during 2019 to 6,387.

Source

If successful in retrieving them, it’s questionable how and if Craig Wright will dispose of the cryptocurrency and what the effect on the price of Bitcoin would be.

Wright: I will not dump the coins

Craig Wright has fought a few legal battles in the cryptocurrency space, including the one against the estate of his former business partner, David Kleiman. Allegedly, both of them had mined over one million Bitcoins years ago. After David’s death, his brother, Ira Kleiman, accused Wright of stealing their share.

Earlier, the Kleiman family won the case in a U.S. court, as Judge Bruce Reinhart ordered Wright to deliver half of the mined bitcoins, worth around $4 billion today. Wright argued that the coins were locked and held in a Tulip Trust, a Seychelles-based fund, and he has no way to access them.

However, tomorrow, On January 1st, 2020, Wright is supposedly going to receive the private keys from a bonded courier. This could mean that he will own close to 1.1 million Bitcoins or $8 billion worth of BTC at the time of writing. If he decides to sell them, the community fears that it might have a catastrophic effect on the price of the largest cryptocurrency and, in fact, the whole market.

On the other hand, Bloomberg recently reported that Wright has been in contact with them, saying that he “cannot be certain that information will arrive.” Moreover, he then adds his intentions to keep the bitcoins, instead of selling them:

“I do not intend to dump my family’s BTC as some people suspect or want, as this would hurt many people in the industry.”

Wright’s crypto controversy

Craig Wright is among the most controversial figures in the cryptocurrency community, declaring himself as the person behind the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto – the creator of Bitcoin. Things went even further earlier this year at a blockchain conference, where it seemed like he will be credited as being Nakamoto. His panel was called – What Was Your Purpose As Satoshi Writing The Whitepaper?

The crypto community reacted against this, with many of the prominent figures in the industry boycotting the event. Litecoin’s founder Charlie Lee confirmed that, saying that “many of us made the pledge not to attend a conference that invites Faketoshi.”

Another cryptocurrency proponent, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), has also expressed that he doesn’t believe what Wright says. Binance’s Founder and CEO previously indicated that Wright is a fraud, and he is not the real Satoshi Nakamoto.

NewsSource

P2P Bitcoin Volume Spikes

Data from CoinDance, a crypto statistics platform, reveals that there was a spike in trading activities on LocalBitcoins last week, leading to a new all-time high in the weekly trading volume of Bitcoin in the local currencies of Venezuela and Argentina. 

As much as 248 billion bolivars (app. $24.8 million) was traded on LocalBitcoins in Venezuela between December 15 and December 21, which is 18.46% more than what was traded in the previous week and about 20.67% higher than the first week of December.

Although the trading volume (BTC/ARS) in Argentina was not as high as that of Venezuela (BTC/VEF), the increase was gigantic compared to what was traded during the weeks before. From Dec 15 and Dec 21, more than 32.6 million Argentine pesos (appx. $544,905) were traded on LocalBitcoins, which is 51.6% spike from the week before. 

What Caused The Spike?

From the charts above, the P2P trading volumes of Venezuela and Argentina have been rising steadily since mid-year. The reason for this could be traced to the harsh economic situation in the region. 

Many Latin American countries, including Venezuela and Argentina, are experiencing severe economic problems such as the crash of their national currencies and food crisis, a situation that is not expected to change soon, according to experts. 

Aside from that, Argentina is also facing social and political problems as a result of the stern methods that will be used to revive the economy. Back in November, the Central Bank of Argentina (BCA) issued a series of guidelines reducing monthly spending limit to $200 as well as prohibiting the use of credit, debit, and prepaid cards for the purchase of bitcoin.

NewsSource

Bitcoin Price Above $12,000 By 2020

Michael Novogratz is one of the most vocal proponents of Bitcoin. He is a former Wall Street hedge fund manager and a prominent investor, who also owns Galaxy Digital – a full-service digital asset merchant bank.

In a recap Tweet with predictions for the following year, Novogratz shared that Bitcoin will finish it trading above $12,000.

At the time of this writing, Bitcoin is trading at around $7,300 and an increase of up to $12,000 would have to see BTC gaining upwards of 64% over the next year.

Historically speaking, this is entirely within the realm of possibilities. In 2019, for example, Bitcoin started trading at around $3,700 and increased all the way to where it currently is, marking a growth of almost 100%. What Novogratz predicts would require notably worse performance.

Losing Confidence?

While Novogratz is obviously bullish on Bitcoin’s price going in 2020, it’s also worth noting that he definitely seems to have lost some of his confidence.

Back in July 2019, soon after the price had reached its yearly high at around $14,000, the prominent investor said that Bitcoin can recover to its all-time highs of $20,000 by the end of the year.

He also stated that the low that we are going to see during the year will be around $8,500, which also failed to be true.

In any case, it’s important to outline that there is a very important event that has to be considered. Bitcoin’s halving is set to take place in May 2020 and a lot of people believe that the period after it will be one of significant growth, as it has been historically so far.

NewsSource

Uzbekistan Bans Cryptocurrencies

According to a local report, the former Soviet republic is set to place a ban on cryptocurrency purchases within the borders of the country. It also states that investors owning digital assets can actually still sell them; however, in order do to so, the citizens would need to prove that they have previously acquired the assets legally. If they fail to do so, any transfers or sells will be illegal, due to the new amendment.

What may come as a surprise now is that Uzbekistan has been somewhat friendly towards cryptocurrencies in the past. Last year, the country made a move for potentially luring crypto exchanges by providing them with several different tax benefits. Those exchanges running within the country would not be subject to existing foreign currency regulations. Moreover, the report said that income from cryptocurrencies will not be taxed.

Political Situation in Uzbekistan

Protests and public discontent is a rare thing in Uzbekistan, due to the authoritarian’s way of operation. However, after President Mirziyoyev was elected a few years ago, the citizens began forming quiet online protests that grew to public ones in the fall of 2019.

The reason behind those protests appears somewhat unusual at first glance – the declining weather temperatures. But the citizens are claiming that this is just what put the on the street, as they cannot meet basic needs for electricity and natural gas.

Actions against the government reportedly began in the country’s least developed region, Nukus, as people blocked a road and burned car tires in a protest to demand the resumption of natural gas supply in their homes. Bakht city citizens followed after a major methane station was unexpectedly closed. Since those initial acts, Fergana and Ellikqala regions have also taken a stand on the streets. Be the first to know about our price analysis, crypto news and trading tips: Follow us on Telegram or subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Following the departure of founding CEO Kelly Loeffler, who was appointed to a United States Senate seat in early December, Blandina has now been promoted to CEO position as he joined Bakkt as chief product officer in April 2019.

As announced by Bakkt’s parent company Intercontinental Exchange on Dec. 23, the appointment came into force on Dec. 20.

Bakkt’s former COO Adam White will now serve as the company’s president

Alongside the new CEO, Bakkt has also appointed Adam White, a former executive at major U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase, as new president of the company. White has been serving at Bakkt as chief operating officer since joining the company in November 2018. The executive is also known for starting his career testing experimental aircraft as an officer in the U.S. Air Force, the announcement notes.

While Blandina will continue to chart Bakkt’s strategic direction, payment products and markets, as well as regulatory issues, as Bakkt’s new president, White will be focusing on digital asset markets, custody and trading, Jeffrey Sprecher, founder and CEO of ICE said in the statement.

CEO Loeffler leaves to join Senate

Former Bakkt CEO Loeffler was appointed by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to replace retiring Sen. Johnny Isakson on Dec. 4. As reported, Loeffler is expected to take office on Jan. 1, 2020, the day after Isakson steps down.

The news comes after Bakkt set a new volume record of 6,226 physically delivered Bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts traded at ICE Futures U.S.. The new record is an increase of over 25% from the company’s previous record of 5,600 BTC and is worth around $47 million at press time, according to Coin360.

Source (Credit): CoinTelegraph

Advertisement:

Just recently, Bitcoinbch.com CEO Hayden Otto published a video that shows how easy it is to double spend BTC In it, he described how double-spending can easily take place using bitcoin. However, several bitcoin supporters allege that BCH is susceptible to the same type of attack. Even though the BCH network does not make use of the Replace-by-Fee (RBF) protocol.

Ironically, BCH’s attempt to debase Bitcoin turned out to be dubiously successful. Shortly after the video went live, TravelbyBit decided to get rid of both BTC and BCH.

In an interview with Micky.com, Travelbybit CEO Caleb Yeoh disclosed that his company will be “dropping both Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash from the POS (Point of Sale).”

Also adding that ” both Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash are not satisfactory enough for retail POS transactions. As they have many “trade-offs between user experience vs security.”

As a result of this decision, about 400 Australian traders will no longer be able to use BTC and BCH on the platform.

The controversial protocol

The Replace-by-Fee (RBF) protocol has attracted a lot of controversy since its inception. It is basically a protocol that allows users to replace a transaction with a completely different one. RBF launch resulted in a lot of disagreements. It negates one of Bitcoin’s founding principles which is irreversibility. Vinny Lingham, former CEO of Gyft disclosed how bad RBF was for his business in 2018.  He said: “We processed over 100,000 transactions with amounts from $5-2000/transaction with no double spends.” Also adding that: “Over $25m in sales and the first time we got a double-spend attack was after RBF was introduced.”

In January 2019 Ethereum Classic also experienced double-spending attacks resulting in a loss of about $500,000.

BCH doesn’t care

Otto appears unperturbed about the delisting. He also added that “BCH alone accounts for over 93% of Australia’s crypto retail expenditure.” Pointing out that all this economic activity occurs outside the TravelByBit network. Hence “BCH adoption in Australia is unaffected.”

Source (Credit): AltCoinBuzz

Advertise: