Bitcoin continues to hover around $40,000 on Wednesday morning, with some price analysts describing the latest recovery as a “dead cat bounce”.
Other leading cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ether), Cardano (ada) and dogecoin have also stalled, having surged in value alongside bitcoin at the start of the week.
Market experts appear divided over whether the bounce back was part of a longer term bull market trend that will see bitcoin hit new record highs in 2021, or whether it is simply following the same pattern seen after the 2017 price peaks.
There has been plenty of good news in the crypto space in recent days, which has contributed to positive forecasts and price predictions in the region of $250,000.
The president of Tanzania has shown interest in adopting bitcoin as legal tender, Tunisia’s finance minister wants to decriminalise cryptocurrency and MicroStrategy is planning to plough another half billion dollars into BTC.
We’ll have all the latest news, analysis and price predictions right here.
Panama looks to follow El Salvador with bitcoin adoption
Panamanian Congressman Gabriel Silva is hoping his country could be the next to follow El Salvador by adopting bitcoin as legal tender.
Silva plans to present a bill next month that will begin the process to open up the country’s economy to the cryptocurrency
“I found El Salvador’s project positive, ambitious, interesting and with good acceptance,” he said following El Salvador’s announcement, and today said there is “strong citizen support” for the project.
Anthony Cuthbertson16 June 2021 16:29
Ask an expert anything
In an effort to make sense of this tumultuous time for the crypto market, we’ve invited a couple of experts to take readers’ questions.
Dr Paul Ennis, an assistant professor at University College Dublin whose research focuses on cryptocurrency, and Fred Schebesta, a crypto advocate and founder of comparison platform Finder.com, will join us tomorrow morning to give readers of The Independent an opportunity to ask anything they like about bitcoin and the crypto space.
You can find out more – and ask your questions in the comments – here:
Anthony Cuthbertson16 June 2021 14:23
Kim Kardashian promotes Ethereum Max
Kim Kardashian shared a post with her 200 million+ followers shilling the cryptocurrency Ethereum Max earlier this week.
The paid promotion caused its price to double and follows similar posts by other celebrities, including Floyd Mayweather – who has previously been fined for promoting dodgy coins.
So is it worth investing and what does it actually do? David Morris, CoinDesk’s chief insights columnist, spent some time digging into Ethereum Max in an attempt to answer these questions.
Firstly, it is in no way affiliated with the more famous Ethereum (ether) cryptocurrency. Many of the deals its creators claim to have made are not all they seem. The moral of the story? Do your own research before investing in cryptocurrencies promoted by celebrities.
Anthony Cuthbertson16 June 2021 12:50
Bitcoin vs. Elon Musk
Elon Musk has responded with laughing face emojis to a meme shared by Billy Markus, the co-founder of dogecoin, referencing the Tesla CEO’s involvement in the space.
Musk’s market-moving impact was most recently demonstrated when he said his electric car company would consider accepting the cryptocurrency again if its network improves its reliance on renewable energy sources.
Some appear happy to have the backing of the technology billionaire, even if it is only part-time. Others are less keen and see it as unnecessary interference. Whatever the case, it doesn’t look like he’s going away any time soon.
Anthony Cuthbertson16 June 2021 10:42
Bitcoin price recovery mirrors ‘dead cat bounce’ pattern
A popular market analyst has warned that bitcoin may already have seen its peak price in 2021.
The pseudonymous Mr. Whale, whose @cryptowhale Twitter account has nearly a quarter of a million followers, has compared the latest recovery to the “dead cat bounce” pattern seen following the price high seen in 2017.
If this is the case, then bitcoin could be heading as low as $7,000 later this year or in early 2022. However, if this bounce back leads on to new price records this year then the new all-time high could be considerably higher.
Anthony Cuthbertson16 June 2021 09:35
Bitcoin 2021 ‘super spreader’ event?
Dozens of attendees of the Bitcoin 2021 conference, which took place in Miami earlier this month, have reportedly tested positive for Covid-19.
12,000 people attended the event, with no mask mandate or proof of vaccination required. Numerous attendees have since reported testing positive on social media, though it is still too early to determine whether it was a so-called “super spreader” event.
“We have no reason to believe the conference was a ‘Super Spreader.’ At this point, with the information we know, this characterization of the event is not only unfair but also irresponsible,” Miami’s mayoral office said in a statement.
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 21:20
Tunisia to ‘decriminalise bitcoin’
A senior minister in Tunisia has called for bitcoin to be decriminalised in the country after a teenager was reportedly arrested for using the cryptocurrency to buy something online.
Finance Minister Ali Kooli said in a TV interview with Carthage+ that the current law was outdated and “did not represent changes in the global economy”.
He said: “Is it conceivable that a young man is imprisoned for using digital currency? I do not agree with this law and I will work to change it.”
The news comes after politicians in several countries expressed interest in following El Salvador’s lead by adopting bitcoin as legal tender.
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 16:27
Tim Draper sticks by $250k bitcoin price prediction
Billionaire investor Tim Draper has stood by his prediction that the price of bitcoin will hit $250,000 next year.
Draper is one of the most prominent figures in the crypto space, having previously purchased 30,000 bitcoins seized by US Marshalls for less than $20 million back in 2014. That same stash is now worth more than a billion dollars.
As an early backer of Skype, Tesla and Twitter, Draper is famed for his future-facing investments, and has made billions of dollars in the process.
“I think I’m going to be right on this one,” Draper told CNBC. “I’m either going to be really right or really wrong [but] I’m pretty sure that it’s going in that direction.
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 14:43
Tanzania next to adopt bitcoin?
The president of Tanzania has called on financial chiefs in the country to prepare for the arrival of bitcoin and cryptocurrency.
Speaking in Mwanza, President Samia Suluhu Hassan said Tanzania’s Central Bank should explore the use of bitcoin following El Salvador’s announcement last week that it would be adopted as legal currency.
“We have witnessed the emergence of a new journey through the internet,” she said, according to local newspaper The Citizen.
“I know that throughout the nation, including Tanzania, they have not accepted or started using these routes. However, my call to the Central Bank is that you should start working on that development. The Central Bank should be ready for the changes and not be caught unprepared.”
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 14:02
Bitcoin price ‘yet to convincingly breakthrough’
Bitcoin has dipped back below $40,000, with analysts warning that the market is facing a key testing point.
“Bitcoin is at its highest level since May, a notable recovery but the cryptoasset has yet to convincingly break through – and most importantly, close above – the $41,000 mark,” says Simon Peters, a market anaylst at the online trading platform eToro.
“We’ve seen the price face resistance earlier in the year at this level when it was trading around what was then an all-time high, and I would really need to see a stronger increase to feel optimistic about the price recovering and possibly pushing onto $50,000 and beyond.”
Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer at cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex is confident that bitcoin’s trajectory will remain positive.
He tells The Independent: “Sentiment towards the king of crypto continues to shift into positive territory. Whether we are about to witness a resurgence in the crypto bull market or a return to a longer-term trend remains to be seen. While the past few days have shown once again that celebrities and the movers and shakers in the space can impact the price, this will not last forever. The momentum that has won bitcoin increasing recognition as an asset class continues to gather pace.”
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 11:58