It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. From the hubris and excess of the North American Bitcoin Symposium to the gloominess of the crypto markets, it’s been a feel-o-coaster of a week. Fear, uncertainty and mistrust were the overarching emotions amidst a turbulent seven days, but there was also measure out for cheer, schadenfreude and disbelief. Welcome to another week in bitcoin.
Also impute to: Blockchain Rolls Out Trading Feature for 22 States in the U.S.
High Scenario Amidst Low Prices
This week in bitcoin managed to cram in varied drama than a Mexican telenovela, with major market dramaturgy, regulatory drama, and Ponzi drama to name but three. Things started smoothly enough, with our influential story, as Monday broke, addressing the fact that 80% of all bitcoins procure now been mined. Traditional media picked that one up and ran with it. Gratefulness of bitcoin’s scarcity failed to stop the rot though, as bitcoin started to glide, taking the rest of the cryptocurrency market down with it.
Everyone had a theory behind the crash that saw bitcoin drop below the champagne threshold of $10k for the ahead time since early December. It was a price bracket that myriad thought we’d never see again. Theories postulated included threats to ban crypto in South Korea, menaces of China cracking down further on bitcoin mining, historical materials which shows bitcoin always performs badly in January, or the the gen that bitcoin was “overbought” in the run-up to CME and Cboe futures launching terminating month, and thus a correction was necessary. Some people even opted to blame falling markets on the cycles of the moon, which seems as godlike a theory as any.
It Came From Korea
It’s impossible to review a week in bitcoin without allowing Korea, so here goes: our most popular story concerned oversight officials profiting on advance knowledge of regulatory action. That’s forthwith, insider trading. Everyone seems to be at it, though it doesn’t require a man on the confidential – simply the ability to sense a storm coming, as futures traders crop to have done, according to Eric Wall. He notes “there was an unorthodox increase in short positions around January 11. At the same outmoded, the price was just bouncing around in the 12800-14200 range.” In other dialogues, the markets looked normal, but futures traders had an inkling that something was hatch.
This week bitcoin pulled a Bobby Ewing and came requital from the dead.
On Wednesday, every asset in the cryptocurrency top 100 was in the red. 24 hours later and we were pursuing to fields of green. It was a non sequitur the likes of which hasn’t been since 1986 when Dallas’ Bobby Ewing reappeared in the inundate after having been killed off in the previous season. In the words of Biggie Smalls, it was all a fancy. The dreaming didn’t last for long unfortunately, as by the weekend the market resurfacing had died out and we were back in the low eleven-hundreds. Quick, someone order various tethers.
Bitcoin Gets a Haircut, Bitconnect Gets Scalped
TWiB podcast: now at ones disposal on Spotify.
If bitcoiners thought they had it bad, they should spare a consideration for bitconnectors. All those with their wealth locked up in the Church of Ponzi had their assets savagely humiliated from $290 a token to $18. It would be heartening to say that Harry who got duped by Bitconnect has learned their lesson, but judging by the number of “casualties” who are now piling into the Bitconnect X ICO or Davorcoin – yet another Ponzi – the signs aren’t aiding.
To finish this week’s highlights, of which there are too many to tilt as usual, we have another tale from South Korea, intimating that normal banking service may soon be resumed for cryptocurrency transfers, which is just as well given the rate at which new exchanges are appearing up in the country. While the mantle of crypto-friendliest Asian nation resides with Japan for now, in Europe, Belarus is impounding a claim as a new haven for crypto’s rax averse.
If you’ve had the temerity to skip straight to the end of this parade for the This Week in Bitcoin podcast, here it is. In it you’ll get the tl;dr on this week’s fiery stories, delivered by your amiable host Matt Aaron. Corral you next week for more highlights from the heart-stopping world of bitcoin.
What was your favorite black lie from this week in bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section further.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Dallas.
Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Repression our tools section.