Bitcoin is a Ponzi Scheme, Says Former Israel Prime Minister Ehud Barak



Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak praised blockchain as an important technology but thinks bitcoin is a Ponzi scheme that should be avoided.

Barak — who was prime minister from 1999 to 2001 — made the remarks at the Globes Most Promising Startups event in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Barak recently invested in, and became chairman of, the medical cannabis company InterCure Ltd. He was responding to a question about whether medical marijuana — like bitcoin — is a bubble. He said no.


Blockchain, Not Bitcoin
“Blockchain itself is a mathematical technological concept and an interesting and important methodology,” the tech investor said. “Cryptocurrencies — bitcoin and all the others — that’s a Ponzi scheme.”

Barak said he doesn’t believe that “it’s possible to make a currency in this way in the current generation.” Accordingly, he will not invest in crypto. “I wouldn’t invest in anything that’s related to cryptocurrencies,” he said.

However, like many crypto skeptics, Barak thinks blockchain is a potentially game-changing innovation that could disrupt many different sectors, including business, healthcare, banking, and supply-chain management.

“Whoever has the patience and understands blockchain deeply can find a lot of uses for it, from keeping sensitive medical information through to contracts,” he noted.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/bitcoin-is-a-ponzi-scheme-says-former-israel-prime-minister-ehud-barak/

Bitconnect Pumper Trevon James Claims the Bitcoin Price is Going to Zero



Crypto social media personality Trevon James, who was intimately involved in the promotion of the HYIP scheme BitConnect, which eventually led to law enforcement and legal action, says, in his infinite wisdom, that the Bitcoin price will be at $0 in ten years.

   - https://twitter.com/BitcoinTre/status/1069592267617378310

James’ YouTube channel often features him driving around his neighborhood in Florida, talking about investing in cryptocurrencies and platforms he prefers to use, most of which have some form of affiliate program from which he benefits. He occasionally does giveaways and things of that nature.

CCN has not spoken to James, but the author had previously watched a number of his videos for their entertainment value. As far as YouTube personalities go, James is certainly not the worst, and his 120,000 subscribers on that platform demonstrate it. Here he is in January, not long before the curtain really started to close on the BitConnect scheme, talking about it.

  - YouTube: https://youtu.be/pnAyXdGNYgo

At that point he was still defending BCC and its operators, saying that “if they wanted to scam” they could have just left with everything already. It’s important to note that this is exactly what BitConnect did do at a later time.


The Wisdom of a BitConnect Pumper
You’re probably new to crypto or not too deeply involved if you have never been scammed. It’s almost a rite of passage in the space, a trend that gladly lessens with time, increased number of market participants, and government attention to the issue — depending on how broad the definition of a scam, that is. Many ICOs meet some of the qualifications of a scam, having never delivered a product or returning funds. Then again, so do plenty of Kickstarter projects.

Further tweets on the same thread reveal that the majority of his respondents feel that he will be in jail soon for his involvement in pumping BitConnect.

     - https://twitter.com/BitcoinTre/status/1069592267617378310

No word on that from SEC or otherwise.

In a follow-up tweet, he says the “full video is” the one linked below, but in that video he nowhere mentions his reasoning for the prediction, indicating that he said it specifically to garner attention. He also mentions the recalcitrant Bart Simpson patterns in this video.

Will the Bitcoin price be at $0 in 10 years? If the last ten years are any indicator, no.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/bitconnect-pumper-trevon-james-claims-the-bitcoin-price-is-going-to-zero/

In an interview, Justin Sun, the Founder and CEO of TRON, discusses how the platform will implement Zcash’s zk-SNARKs cryptography in Q1 of 2019. Such a move would bring users greater anonymity and privacy.

On Nov. 28th episode of The Bad Crypto Podcast, co-host Rachel Wolfson interviews Justin Sun on the progress of TRON’s technology and its adoption.

Justin Sun spoke about a host of different developments within the TRON ecosystem: delegated proof-of-stake governance, integrations with BitTorrent, the blockchain’s impact on the industry, and most notably, its planned implementation of zk-SNARKs.

Argument for Privacy
According to Justin Sun, social media websites and search engines are monetizing user data, and many users on these platforms feel that this is an invasion of privacy:

    “[People] don’t want their privacy stored by Facebook or Google because those people can more easily manipulate the data so they can push ads to you. You don’t want to share those data with them. That’s why I think the decentralized way becomes a good way to do that [and limit how much data you are required to share].”

Introducing zk-SNARKs
By leveraging existing technologies, Justin Sun can push the TRON protocol substantially increasing privacy through the use of zk-SNARKs:

    “Q1 [2019] we will implement zk-SNARKs (zero-knowledge-proofs) into our network. This is how we can improve privacy in the whole network. In the future, if you want these privacy transactions and a private address, we can make sure… they cannot see you and the transaction can be untraceable.”

zk-SNARKs is a novel form of zero-knowledge cryptography. First widely popularized by privacy coin Zcash, zero-knowledge proofs are now used in a host of different cryptocurrency projects.

The adoption of this feature would have some interesting ramifications. Once implemented, users would be able to ‘shield’ transactions—effectively encrypting those transactions. If implemented correctly, such encryption would allow TRX users to hide the amount, the sender, and the recipient of a transaction.

Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/tron-ramping-up-privacy-adopting-zk-snarks-from-zcash/

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has put out a pre-solicitation request for tracing private transactions and performing blockchain analytics on cryptocurrencies, such as Zcash and Monero. The request was made to combat illegal and nefarious transactions on privacy-oriented blockchains.

On Nov. 30th, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a pre-solicitation notice for “Blockchain Applications for Homeland Security Forensic Analytics.” The application is requesting blockchain forensic analytics which can be used for tracing transactions on newer, privacy-oriented coins “such as Zcash and Monero.”

As stated in the government request:

    “While these [anonymity and privacy] features are desirable, there is similarly a compelling interest in tracing and understanding transactions and actions on the blockchain of an illegal nature.”

Additionally, the request indicates that the primary use of these methods would be law enforcement:

    “…this proposal calls for solutions that enable law enforcement investigations to perform forensic analysis on blockchain transactions.”

Research and development done in this area would allow the DHS to perform “analysis of suspicious transaction(s).”

A pre-solicitation notice is the first-step towards providing government research grants. The Small Business Innovation Research program (SBIR) awards these kinds of projects up to $150 thousand for an initial proof-of-concept, and up to $1 million over the next two years for research and development of these projects.

During a pre-solicitation notice, the government has opened up a technical discussion and answer forum for those interested in participating in the program.


Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/u-s-dhs-seeking-forensic-analytics-for-tracing-zcash-and-monero/

Coinbase Adds Zero-Fee Cryptocurrency Withdrawals and Sells Through PayPal



In a discreet addition to Coinbase, the company has integrated PayPal for crypto to fiat withdrawals and sells. Coinbase customers can now use the feature to withdraw fiat directly into a PayPal account.

In another customer-focused move, Coinbase has added a new layer of functionality to its service: PayPal support. The new feature makes cashing-out on Coinbase easier than before, removing the need to use a traditional bank. This feature does require users to verify their identity and country of residence.

However, the new option is not available everywhere. According to Coinbase FAQ, the service is only available in select countries.

CryptoSlate reached out to Coinbase hoping to clarify which countries are supported. Coinbase chose not to comment.

Ramifications
The added ease of selling cryptocurrency will likely contribute to greater consumer ease in the day-to-day use of cryptocurrency. Having reliable exchanges that offer trustworthy crypto to fiat services is critical to adoption.

That said, there are some concerns over the new feature as well. The additional layers of regulation, control, and personal disclosure counter some of the libertarian ethos of cryptocurrency. There are still purists who argue that the use of crypto must remain laissez-faire, without the interference of corporations such as Coinbase.

Nonetheless, strides in making the user experience easier for cryptocurrency will accelerate its adoption into the mainstream.

Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/coinbase-adds-zero-fee-cryptocurrency-withdrawals-sells-through-paypal/

What a sunny day for bitcoin and the cryptocurrency market? The market has added over $20 billion in the last 48 hours.
is that the sign for the next crypto bull run or this is just another pump by the whales to let people in and later cash out their money?
Are we on the verge of seeing another ATH very soon or it is just an ordinary pump... What y'all thinking?

Nasdaq — the world’s second-largest stock exchange — plans to roll out bitcoin futures in the first quarter of 2019 through a partnership with investment management firm VanEck.

Gabor Gurbacs, VanEck’s director of digital asset strategy, said the companies will launch a variety of bitcoin derivatives in early-2019, including a “regulated crypto 2.0 futures-type contract.”

Gurbacs made the announcement during the Consensus: Invest conference in New York on November 27, CNBC reported.

‘Transparent and Regulated’

In a follow-up tweet, Gurbacs said Nasdaq and VanEck will unveil “transparent, regulated and surveilled digital asset products, such as bitcoin futures contracts.”

Nasdaq has been working with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to make sure it fully complies with any lingering regulatory concerns the country’s main swaps regulator has.

Gurbacs confirmed that VanEck also “ran a few extra miles working with the CFTC to bring about new standards for custody and surveillance.”

    @Nasdaq and VanEck’s @MVISIndices announces #index #partnership and intention to bring to market transparent, regulated and surveilled #DigitalAssets products, such as #Bitcoin futures contracts. More info to come. Share & follow us. #crypto #futures #SMARTS #ConsensusInvest pic.twitter.com/Q2oCZx4pp1

    — Gabor Gurbacs (@gaborgurbacs) November 27, 2018

The CFTC, which regulates bitcoin as a commodity, has so far approved just two crypto futures products: one from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), and another from the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE)
ICE Will Launch Bitcoin Futures In Q1

Meanwhile, Nasdaq’s rival ICE (Intercontinental Exchange) — the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange — is also charging ahead with its own plans to launch a physically-settled bitcoin futures product in the first quarter of 2019.

Bakkt, a cryptocurrency exchange built by ICE, plans to roll out its bitcoin futures market on January 24, after scrapping the original launch date of Dec. 12, 2018.

As CCN reported, ICE cited an unforeseen increase in demand for its futures product, the Bakkt Bitcoin (USD) Daily Futures Contract, for the delay.

VanEck: SEC Will Approve Bitcoin ETF Soon

Separately, VanEck is still trying to win approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch the first-ever bitcoin ETF.

In August 2018, the SEC rejected nine bitcoin ETF applications, dashing the hopes of crypto evangelists like the Winklevoss twins, who have repeatedly failed to win SEC approval.

In its order rejecting the latest round of bitcoin ETFs, the SEC said the applicants failed to demonstrate how they could prevent fraud and market manipulation.

Despite the recent SEC rejections, VanEck’s Gabor Gurbacs said he believes SEC approval is around the corner, as CCN reported.

“We are the closest that we can be,” Gurbacs told Fox Business. “It is very clear to me that America wants a bitcoin ETF and we are here to build it.”

Despite the recent market slump, Gurbacs is supremely confident about the long-term future of the crypto industry. “I say bitcoin is digital gold, and we should not dismiss a potential opportunity for the next financial system,” he said.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/nasdaq-to-launch-bitcoin-futures-2-0-in-early-2019/

Bitcoin Price Could Bottom as Early as December [But Definitely by February]: Analyst



According to David Puell, a Bitcoin and market analyst, the dominant cryptocurrency could either reach its bottom by the end of December or within the first quarter of 2019.

The $4,300 region, which Bitcoin entered after enduring a 35 percent correction from around $6,600, has been established as a comfortable region for the asset. With resistances stacked up above the $4,300 mark, the analyst explained that a pullback from the current price could trigger exhaustion in the lower range.

Puell said:

    “Since volatility has dramatically increased, it is pertinent to have a granular view of current volume node structure. Resistances have piled up, so any pullback must be closely watched for any sign of exhaustion. The $4,300 area is the center of mass.”

Climax by December or February of 2019


Bitcoin Price (BTC/USD) | Bitstamp

Based on the steep decline in the price of Bitcoin over the past several months and the major resistance levels that have formed in the range of $4,000 to $6,000, a further drop below $4,000 could result in the market losing most of its momentum it recently gained.

A potential bottom target, according to Puell, is $2,800, which would signify an 85 percent drop from its all-time high price at $19,500.

But, Puell emphasized that a bottom can only be achieved by Bitcoin if the sell-off reaches its climax, bears lose leverage, and the market begins to show exhaustion.

Currently, the market is extremely volatile and is moving up and down by 10 to 20 percent on a daily basis. In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin surged by 12 percent while Stellar, another major cryptocurrency, spiked by nearly 15 percent.

“Weekly Gaussian bands (1) show a crucial confluence with the general $2,800 high value node zone (2). This gives a more detailed view of the nuances that come with that level in terms of potential swing and closing weekly price behavior. This general area is also supported by the 200-week MA and a good deal of buying positions (volume at time) back in Sept 2017,” said Puell, adding that the bear market could extend to 2019.

He explained:

    “Given the strength of the downtrend and current information, a selling climax may come as soon as December and as late as February.`”

Q1 2019
Willy Woo, the founder of Woobull.com, proposed a similar time frame for the end of the Bitcoin bear market. Earlier this month, Woo stated that the market is likely to reach its bottom by mid-2019, based on fundamental indicators like the transaction volume and user activity of major cryptocurrencies.

Analysts generally agree that to recover from the intense sell-off of November that resulted in the loss of nearly $80 billion from the cryptocurrency market, a months-long consolidation period will be needed, and major digital assets will have to demonstrate a relatively high level of stability in a lower price range.

Small market cap tokens have shown a promising upward price movement in the past 24 hours, with some including ICON rising by more than 30 percent. But, most assets are still down substantially since October.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/bitcoin-price-could-bottom-as-early-as-december-but-definitely-by-february-analyst/

Don't forget the Bakkt cryptocurrency exchange which is owned by the New York Stock Exchange is going to be live on January 24, 2019. With Nasdaq and Bakkt supporting cryptocurrency all in the first quarter of 2019 I see nothing but another ATH coming in 2019. I think the year 2019 is going to be a huge one for the cryptocurrency.

Billionaire Tim Draper Unfazed By Bitcoin Crash, Boldly Vows Crypto Will Surpass Fiat Money



Tech billionaire Tim Draper is unfazed by the recent bitcoin crash, and insists that the global economy will soon transition to crypto.

In fact, Draper boldly predicts that crypto will eventually overtake fiat money to make up two-thirds of the world’s total currency value.

The Silicon Valley venture capitalist said the shift will be inevitable once it becomes easier to spend and invest using cryptocurrencies.

“It’s going to be better for people,” Draper said at World Crypto Con in Las Vegas, as reported by Forbes on Nov. 26. “They’re going to move to crypto, and they’re going to go away from the political currency — they call it fiat. That’s the way it’s going to move.”


Crypto Is ‘Global and Frictionless’

Forward-thinking countries realize that the transition is on the horizon, which is why some are already trying to make the switch now, Draper observed.

“That’s why you’re seeing the smaller countries all say, ‘Yeah, we want bitcoin, we want initial coin offerings here, we want blockchain. We want all of these things in our country,'” he noted.

Draper is an unapologetic crypto evangelist who stands by his bullish $250,000 bitcoin price target for 2022, as CCN reported.

Short-term market setbacks do not unnerve him the way they do to crypto investors with short-term, day-trader mindsets.

    Billionaire Tim Draper Stands By Bullish $250,000 Bitcoin Price Target For 2022 https://t.co/lq8v7cPXun

    — CCN (@CryptoCoinsNews) September 21, 2018

Draper said crypto is a game-changing revolution. And, as French novelist Victor Hugo once noted, nothing can stop an idea whose has time.

“I tend to move my dollars into bitcoin, because why would I want this currency that’s tied to some political force when I have a currency that is going to be frictionless and global?” Draper asked.  “I would much rather have a global currency than one that is sort of tied to a political force.”


Draper Mulls Bitcoin Venture Fund

While cryptocurrency bears are running for the exits because bitcoin prices are plummeting, Draper is doubling down. In fact, he wants to launch a bitcoin venture fund.

“Eventually, I want to be able to raise a fund that is all bitcoin, invest it all in bitcoin into a bunch of different companies, and have them pay their employees and suppliers all in bitcoin,” Draper mused. “And then no accounting fees, and it’s done automatically.

“And it’s all built into smart contracts, so that if one of those companies gets sold, I push a button, it just shoots into all of their bitcoin wallets.”


Still Hodling Roughly 40,000 Bitcoins

Earlier this month, Draper revealed that he’s still holding the entire bitcoin stash he acquired in late-2014, when he purchased about 40,000 bitcoins at a federal auction for $600 apiece.

“This is a new society, and you want to get out in front of it,” Draper said at the 2018 Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal (video below).

        - https://youtu.be/poMdExcVtvM

“You want to be a part of this new society. Or do you want to be a Luddite? The Luddites died off, didn’t they?”

Throughout the crypto market’s meteoric spikes and recent downturn, Tim Draper has steadfastly remained a vocal proponent for virtual currencies and blockchain.

In fact, he’s confident that the industry’s market capitalization will soar to $80 trillion by 2023, as CCN has reported. Draper said crypto will inevitably undergo its share of ups and downs, but the market will continue to forge ahead.

“The Internet started in the same way,” Draper recounted. “It came in big waves and then it kind of came crashing down. And then the next wave comes concentrated but much bigger. I suspect the same thing will go on here.”

Reference: https://www.ccn.com/billionaire-tim-draper-unfazed-by-bitcoin-crash-boldly-vows-crypto-will-surpass-fiat-money/

Investor: Bitcoin Price Not Escaping $5,000 For 3 to 6 Months in Crypto Winter



According to Vinny Lingham, the CEO of Civic, the crypto market and Bitcoin could suffer from their bearish trend for at least three to six months.

The $3,000 support level has been quite strong Lingham said and in the short-term, the $3,000 support level will likely be maintained with buy orders being set in the lower range of $3,000 to $3,500.

Lingham said:

    “I think it stays in the range between $3,000 to $5,000 at least for three to six months. I don’t think we break through the support level of $3,000 just yet. I think there is a lot of buying in the short-term around that mark. If we don’t get out of the crypto bear market cycle in the next three or six months, the $3,000 level could go.”


Not Escaping Crypto Bear Market in Six Months Could Lead to Trouble

Several prominent analysts including Woobull.com founder Willy Woo have said that the bear market of the cryptocurrency market could come to an end by the second quarter of 2018, but there exists a very low probability of the downtrend being reversed in the short-term.

Following a correction in the magnitude of 80 to 90 percent, an asset normally tends to endure a long consolidation period. For a rapidly moving asset class like crypto, the consolidation period could last three to six months.

But, Lingham said that if the cryptocurrency market fails to recover in the next two quarters, the $3,000 support level could be breached and the downtrend could extend to the end of next year.

Over the past several months, in spite of the volatility in the cryptocurrency market, the industry has seen the entrance of Bakkt, ICE, Nasdaq, Fidelity, and many more financial institutions in Asia.

Today, on November 27, sources reported that Nasdaq is planning to operate a Bitcoin futures market by the first quarter of 2019.

Lingham noted that if the volatility of the cryptocurrency market continues to increase, then institutional investors could refrain from investing in the asset class even if the infrastructure strengthens and solidifies.

“[Extreme volatility] doesn’t make crypto an investment-grade asset. If you keep speaking about institutional investors coming to the table and ETF getting approved, you can’t have this sort of volatility in an asset class if you want big money to be involved,” he added.


Is Bitcoin Too Risky?

The recent crash of Bitcoin in the past two weeks by more than 35 percent has scared away retail and institutional investors, Lingham explained. Because of the downtrend, he emphasized that the asset is too risky to invest in.

“I think in the short-term, it is a market where you scare away the retail investors, you scare away the institutional money and the die hards are hodlers, and will come in whatever dry part they have left. For me, it’s a bit too risky. But obviously, it’s high-risk, high-reward, if the market does turn, this could be a great time to buy.”

Reference: https://www.ccn.com/investor-bitcoin-price-not-escaping-5000-for-3-to-6-months-in-crypto-winter/

The world’s second largest stock exchange Nasdaq is planning to introduce a Bitcoin futures market within the first quarter of 2019.

Sources told Bloomberg that Nasdaq has been cooperating with the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to receive regulatory approval to operate as a compliant cryptocurrency futures market operator.

The report read:

    “Nasdaq has been working to satisfy the concerns of the U.S.’s main swaps regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, before launching the contracts, the people said. The New York exchange operator, which was first reported to be eyeing Bitcoin futures last year, wants to allow trading in the first quarter of 2019, one of the people said.”


What Impact Will Nasdaq Plus Bakkt Have on Bitcoin?

Bakkt, a cryptocurrency exchange built by ICE, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, is expected to launch its Bitcoin futures market on January 24.

On November 20, the company delayed the listing of Bitcoin futures citing an unforeseen increase in demand for its futures product. Bakkt stated that it needs additional time to prepare the infrastructure that is required to serve a large group of investors based in the US.

“ICE Futures U.S., Inc. will list the new Bakkt Bitcoin (USD) Daily Futures Contract for trading on trade date Thursday, January 24, 2019, subject to regulatory approval. The new listing timeframe will provide additional time for customer and clearing member onboarding prior to the start of trading and warehousing of the new contract,” Bakkt announced.

Currently, the demand from institutional investors for crypto can only be evaluated through the numbers that Bakkt, Fidelity Digital Assets, Goldman Sachs, BitGo Custody, Coinbase Custody, and other major over-the-counter (OTC) markets can provide.

The entrance of Nasdaq in a long-lasting bear market and downtrend suggests that the company sees sufficient institutional demand from the U.S. market. A conglomerate in the size of Nasdaq does not allocate a large portion of its resources to develop an infrastructure for a new asset class unless it is certain that the demand for it will grow over time.

Depending on the delivery of Nasdaq’s plans, by the second quarter of 2019, the cryptocurrency market could have Nasdaq and NYSE, two of the largest stock exchanges, in the global market operating Bitcoin futures markets.

Bakkt physically delivers Bitcoin to its investors and as such, it could have an actual impact on the supply of Bitcoin and ultimately its price. The intricacies of Nasdaq’s plans remain unclear but the two markets could lead to an increase in additional liquidity for the asset.


SEC’s Concerns

Since August, when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) denied exchange-traded funds (ETFs) based on the futures market, the commission consistently stated that the futures market is simply not of significant size to handle large-scale investment vehicles.

In the next 6 to 12 months, the stance of the SEC towards the Bitcoin futures market could change if Bakkt and Nasdaq demonstrate real demand from local investors.

Reference: https://www.ccn.com/breaking-what-crypto-winter-nasdaq-to-launch-bitcoin-futures-market/

I don't know what this guy is thinking/smoking - but hey we all know bitcoin and Amazon are not related in any way but they're all IT-based technologies. What this article is trying to say is Amazon and bitcoin have one thing in common which is investors. Investors buy and sell Amazon stock and so does the bitcoin. Sometimes the market is bullish and sometimes is bearish, the investors are the ones that control the market. We're not saying the bitcoin and Amazon share anything but the market behavior made by the investors.

* The crypto market crash will never take 8 years to recover, it may take 8 months to recover. Cryptos are unlike Amazon, they recover fast!

Guess what? The whales are dumping cryptos on the exchanges to manipulate the prices to make people panic sell while they still buy cheaper coins on OTC. Well, that is a very smart game and yet very few people can understand this. Buying bitcoin from OTCs won't help bitcoin price recover fast, I think we're now in for a show.

* Note: In crypto both institutional investors, hedge funds, crypto exchanges and guys like Arthur Hayes are the whales.

Are Institutional Investors Accumulating Bitcoin While Retailers Panic?



Over the past month, the cryptocurrency market has experienced one if its worst sell-offs in all of 2018 as the price of Bitcoin dropped 35 percent.

Jake Chervinsky, a government enforcement defense and securities litigation attorney at Kobre & Kim, suggested that while retail traders or individual investors are selling in the cryptocurrency exchange market, institutional investors are accumulating.

He wrote:

    “Investors, with bitcoin trading under $4,000: Retail: ‘should I sell and buy back lower? should I open a short? should I just give up? is it going to zero? was this whole crypto thing a scam after all?’ Institutions: ‘please keep selling us cheap bitcoin. thank you.’”

Are Institutions Really Buying?
The statement of Chervinsky led to a series of debates within the cryptocurrency community, mostly triggered by skeptics who have questioned the involvement of institutional investors in the market given the lack of momentum of major digital assets.

If institutional investors have been accumulating Bitcoin over the past month, then the price of BTC should have increased rather than plummet by more than 35 percent.

Chervinsky explained that professional traders and institutional investors are highly cautious in accumulating new assets and often invest in a way that it has minimal impact on the short-term price trend of the asset or the currency.

“The problem, however, is concluding that ‘because institutional investors are buying, price will immediately go up.’ Professional traders are experts at accumulating assets without affecting the market,” said Chervinsky, adding that institutions do not take naked long positions on speculative assets like Bitcoin.

“None of the investors & traders I’ve worked with take naked long positions on speculative assets. When they buy spot, they simultaneously hedge in other markets to reduce risk. ‘Hope’ has nothing to do with it.”

Institutional investors tend to invest in speculative assets through the over-the-counter (OTC) market. In the case of Bitcoin, due to its lack of liquidity, institutional investors have to rely on trusted custodians like Coinbase Custody and Fidelity Digital Assets to purchase or sell large sums of BTC.

OTC market operators and custodial solution providers are not obliged to share their trading volumes and as a result, data held by OTC exchanges is rarely released to the public. Because of the lack of information offered by OTC exchanges, it is difficult to back up claims that institutions are accumulating BTC to a large extent.

But, as Chervinsky said, there are clues investors can consider to assume that institutional investors are investing in the asset class. Grayscale Investment reporting high inflows and university endowments like Yale taking positions could signify a growing demand for Bitcoin from the traditional financial sector.

Uncertainties
It remains unclear whether institutions are merely interested in cryptocurrencies or are actively accumulating Bitcoin as a long-term investment.

Currently, the demand for Coinbase Custody, Bakkt, and Fidelity DIgital Assets is one of the limited ways to justify institutional demand for crypto and recently, Bakkt confirmed that the demand is growing rapidly.

Apart from that, it is difficult to quantitatively prove that institutional demand for crypto is in fact strong and that institutional investors are accumulating Bitcoin.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/are-institutional-investors-accumulating-bitcoin-while-retailers-panic/

Bitcoin Price Will Bottom at 85% Discount to All-Time High: Morgan Creek



Anthony Pompliano, who works in Morgan Creek’s Digital Assets division, told CNBC’s Squawk Box on Monday that he believes the Bitcoin price is essentially going to bottom out with an 85% reduction in value from its previous all-time high. Prefacing that his forecast is based on previous experience in the crypto markets, he said:

    “85% from the all-time high is about where we’ll end up. Puts it around $3,000. Came close over the weekend but probably a little bit more to fall.”

He went on to explain to the host, who spoke of lost confidence among Bitcoin investors and the prospect of them returning to the market following their recent heavy losses, that he feels Bitcoin was overvalued and is now seeing a healthy correction.

    “Bitcoin was overvalued in December ‘17. There’s more sellers than buyers this year. So the price goes down. But there’s three things you gotta remember. The first is, this is a transaction settlement layer. It’s the most secure in the world. It’s got to be worth something. It can’t be worth zero.”

“The second is it’s the best performing asset class in the last ten years. It’s outperformed S&P, Dow, Nasdaq, et cetera, during the longest bull run. And so it experienced two 80% drops during that time, but the asset’s still up over 400% in the last two years,” he continued. “And the third thing is: that was all done by retail.”

‘Tulip Mania’ Invoked



Another commentator on the show asked why the Bitcoin bubble would have a different outcome than “Tulip Mania,” referring to the 400-year-old story of tulips becoming extremely lucrative in Holland and then going out of fashion, crashing the bulb price. Tulips were one of the earliest futures markets, as a result. Bitcoin, in reality, has a lot more money than the tulip bubble ever could have generated — even a crashed market would likely outsize the estimated size of the tulip market at that time.

To this, Pompliano said:

    “I think what’s important to remember is that through 2017, all of the buyers were retail, right? And so now what you’re seeing in 2018 as the price has gone down, you’re starting to see institutions come in. And one of the things that doesn’t get talked about much is that most of these institutions are not buying on exchanges. They’re actually buying on the OTC market, which we don’t have great transparency into or insight. So what I think you’re seeing is the washout of these retail investors […]”

He was then cut off by a question about mining, which he answered deftly. He then said his firm had been pressing into Bitcoin the whole way down and that they will continue to acquire discounted Bitcoin, based on “very deep conviction” at Morgan Creek.

Morgan Creek owns a partnership called the Digital Asset Index Fund with Bitwise Asset Management, which enables large institutional clients to get convenient exposure to digital assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the myriad of tokenized assets therein.


Reference: https://www.ccn.com/bitcoin-price-will-bottom-at-85-discount-to-all-time-high-morgan-creek/

Venture Capitalist: Be Patient With Crypto, Amazon Took 8 Years to Recover From 1999



Renowned venture capitalist Fred Wilson has said that crypto could go down even more in the short-term. But, investors that remain in the market will likely be rewarded, as was the case in the Dot Com era.

In a blog post on Nov. 25, Wilson said:

    “So while crypto asset prices are down 80-95% in USD terms over the last year, they could and probably will go lower. Amazon was down 80% a year into the post-bubble bear market and it got cut in half again before it made a bottom almost two years after it peaked. What we have yet to see in crypto land is when they kick you when you are down. And that is certainly coming.”

Case of Amazon
Amazon, now the second largest technology conglomerate in the world behind Apple with a stock price of $1,500, was worth $6 less than 17 years ago. Investors that bought Amazon stocks in 2001 are up 250-fold. If you had invested $1,000 into Amazon at the time, that investment is now worth $250,000.

But, prior to 2001, in 1999, the price of Amazon stock achieved a new all-time high at $90 as the Dot Com bubble peaked. From then on, the stock price of Amazon collapsed, declining to $6 in 2001. It took Amazon more than eight years to recover to $90 in 2007.

Wilson noted:

    “Amazon peaked in the Internet bubble in late 1999 at around $90/share. Almost two years later, at the trough, you could briefly buy Amazon at $6/share. And then it took until late 2007 for Amazon to trade above the highs it reached in 1999.”





Like Amazon, the cryptocurrency sector has suffered several large corrections in the past and each one of the corrections averaged a drop of 85 percent. As an asset class at its infancy, cryptocurrencies will continue to experience bubble-burst-build-rally cycles in the years to come.

Wilson emphasized that similar to the case of technology stocks in the early 2000s, investors that remain in the cryptocurrency sector through long-lasting downtrends and bear markets will be rewarded in the long-term.

    “I think some crypto asset (and possibly a number of crypto assets) will have a price chart like Amazon’s current one in 18 years. But we will have to do what Amazon did, hunker down and build value and survive, for quite a while to get there. And I think things will get worse before they get better,” said Wilson, adding that no paydays were awarded to investors in the technology space until 2010.”

Wilson added:

    “But those who stayed were rewarded, although it took a long time for that to happen. We didn’t see meaningful paydays in the Internet sector until the 2007-2008 period and the big paydays didn’t start coming until 2010 and beyond.”

Promising Future
In 2017, as individual investors fueled a strong rally for major cryptocurrencies, the global crypto market secured a valuation of over $800 billion. Since then, the cryptocurrency exchange market has seen a drastic change in its infrastructure with the entrance of Fidelity and conglomerate-backed exchanges.

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other major blockchain networks saw the implementation of fundamental first layer improvements pertaining to security, privacy, and scalability.

In many areas including regulation, infrastructure, and liquidity, the cryptocurrency sector is in a much stronger position than it was in late 2017.

The latest cryptocurrency market crash was triggered by the movement of the market; when an asset class experiences a four-fold increase in value within a two-month period, it tends to correct. But, as Wilson said, it is important to objectively evaluate the state of the market and the sector with tangible evidence.


Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/venture-capitalist-be-patient-with-crypto-amazon-took-8-years-to-recover-from-1999/

Ohio First State to Accept Bitcoin: Calling Crypto Secure, Transparent, and Low Cost



Beginning Nov. 26, Ohio will begin accepting Bitcoin payments for twenty-three kinds of business taxes. The state will become the first in the United States–and one of the first governments in the world–to accept cryptocurrency.

Up until now, there have been concerns that Bitcoin would not become a suitable means for conducting payments, instead, describing the cryptocurrency as a store of value. Opponents have described Bitcoin as “slow and costly.”

However, moves by the Ohio Treasurer’s office directly counter those criticisms. Through the use of the payment service BitPay, Ohio State now offers Bitcoin as a means to of paying state taxes.

According to the Ohio Treasurer’s website, twenty-three kinds of business taxes will be available for payment in crypto, including utility tax, sales tax, and employee withholdings. The website states that the state is adopting crypto payments because they are secure, transparent, and low cost:

    “Cryptocurrencies cannot be transferred to third parties without user initiation, thereby practically eliminating fraud; Anyone can view all transactions on the blockchain network; Payments on the blockchain can be tracked on a second-by-second basis; a minimal fee is charged to confirm transactions on the blockchain network.”

The payment option will not only be limited to Bitcoin, as the website states, “the Treasurer’s office looks forward to adding more cryptocurrencies in the future.”

Furthermore, the state is looking to gain a foothold as a blockchain technology epicenter, with the Treasurer’s Office stating, “[we are] working to help make Ohio a national leader in blockchain technology.”

Adoption by Ohio serves as a harbinger of things to come. Use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have the opportunity to make governments more secure, more transparent, and more efficient. This move is the first of many to bring us into a world where this technology is leveraged to improve our day-to-day lives as citizens.


Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/ohio-first-state-to-accept-bitcoin-calling-crypto-secure-transparent-and-low-cost/

Within the last 48 hours, Bitcoin has once again made a dive through a historic price support after dropping 14 percent, puncturing its $4000 support-level and settling at a yearly low of $3800.

In the last ten days, BTC has taken a beating, bringing down most of the market. Having experienced its third major drop in the last 10 days, Bitcoin holders have now experienced losses of over $2600 per coin; a 24-hour loss of 12 percent, and a 10-day cumulative loss of 40 percent. Moreover, the overall market downturn reflects Bitcoin’s price.

State of Altcoins
Other popular altcoins, including Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC), are at their all-time lows of 2018 at $111 and $29, respectively.

Other cryptocurrencies in the top 10, including Bitcoin Cash (BCH), EOS (EOS), Stellar (XLM), and other altcoins are down 10-15 percent across the board. This time around, Ripple’s XRP coin has followed the market trend. The crypto has so far lost 12 percent, rather than holding steady, as seen in other market drops. Factom has again defied the market with gains of 5 percent.

The biggest losers this dip include MonaCoin, Mithril, and WaltonChain, with losses between 20 and 30 percent. Of the top 20, Stellar and Zcash have experienced the largest drops with losses of 17 and 16 percent.

What Caused the Drop
Analysts have attributed the drop to several different factors. The drop may have been fueled by the discovery of price manipulation by stable coin issuer Tether. Researchers found that the company may have been printing USD Tether (USDT), a cryptocurrency allegedly backed by 1 USD per coin, without any backing at all.

These actions were reportedly done in conjunction with the major crypto exchange Bitfinex in an attempt to drive up market prices. The incident came to a head when the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation.


Reference: https://cryptoslate.com/bitcoin-obliterates-4000-support-level-market-loses-another-18-billion-altcoins-reeling/

The market starts scaring the shit out of me. What the hell is wrong with the cryptocurrency market? What on earth is going on in the cryptocurrency market? I used to justify the recent market crash as a 'fake dump' but now it starts freaking me out! So, where do you guys think is the next bus stop for bitcoin? I'm thinking isn't this beyond 'hash wars' or Bakkt launch fake dump by the whales?