Can CEX, institutional investors, whales, hinder or halt the growth of Bitcoin?

[hatshepsut93]

If FTX was able to manipulate the price of Bitcoin, only God knows what Cz is doing over there at Binance Exchange.

The worst part is that there's no escape from their clutches. Decentralized exchanges can't scale to support as many trades per second as centralized exchanges have, especially when it comes to crypto against fiat trades. DEX work great if you need to occasionally trade a small sum, but they are not suitable for day trading and high-frequency trading.

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[Fivestar4everMVP]

Source: https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/ex-girlfriend-says-sam-bankman-fried-ftx-founder-illegally-manipulated-bitcoin-price
In her testimony, Caroline Ellison made numerous bombshell criminal accusations about SBF’s time at FTX. Taking the stand in the closely-watched trail over alleged fraud by Sam Bankman-Fried and collapsed crypto exchange FTX, former Alameda CEO and Bankman-Fried’s ex-girlfriend Caroline Ellison made several dramatic accusations about crimes committed by the disgraced crypto mogul and the wider team under his watch.

“She said Sam conspired with her (on) a plan to keep the bitcoin price under $20,000, literal price manipulation,” Aaron Arnold said, referring to part of the testimony in which Ellison produced a document that read “Keep selling BTC if it’s over $20k.”

only God knows what Cz is doing over there at Binance Exchange.

If CZ was doing the same thing Sam bankman fried, I guess by now, Binance would have collapsed too, lets not believe that everybody out there are bad simply due to the numerous bad people we have everywhere, there will always be some good ones amongst the bad even though in their small numbers. I understand the popular adage that states that "when one finger touches oil, it likely maybe affect all other four fingers", this is true, but we must learn not to condemn the other four together with the one that touched the oil.

One thing I personally have come to know and believe is that, nemesis will always catch up with bad people, no matter how good and long they thrive, only time is what is needed, their bad deeds will come back hunting and hurting them.

And to answer the question, one thing is certain, when a currency is still at its low levels, rest assured it can be easily manipulated, even though personally believe that bitcoin is already big enough to be immune to such manipulations, but then, we cant do away with the fact that centralized platforms like binance and the rest have indeed contributed positively to the growth of not just bitcoin, but the entire cryptocurrency market in general.

[Lucius]

She (or anyone else in a similar situation) will say anything to save her own skin, and shift as much blame as possible to her boyfriend or whatever.

Wow, exactly what I was thinking when reading that, the dumb * will portray everyone around as the devil in disguise just to get out and make herself both look better and earn points for discussing this huge conspiracy!
Like I would trust her after the videos showing stuff like this:

“Our plan to wait for several months and for market environments to improve did not work out,” Ellison responded in part, giggling afterward.

~snip~

It is already a classic story that could be seen so many times in reality, but it is constantly running through American films and series. While living a luxurious life in the Bahamas, everything was great and everyone was friends, but when the tower of cards started to collapse, everyone blamed the one at the top, who again says that he did not know what those in the hierarchy below him were doing. The trial has already turned into the pulling of dirty laundry to the surface, and as it goes on, we will probably hear more juicy stories.

[tabas]

So, they broke up. That's what the highlight seems to be for me. 
Anyway, they cannot literally manipulate the price of Bitcoin but they can do such things that will scare the shit the most of us and then do one accord movement based on what direction they want it to be. Being huge on this market having that "trust" from the people, at least for SBF before the fiasco can do influence everyone's decision on how they're going to respond the possible FUD that they'll send to the world and the market per se. But since the highlight for me is that both of them broke up, I agree to lucius about her trying to save herself from further charges against both of them. And I won't be surprised if SBF does the same thing of making some stories that pushes Caroll into more of manipulating his mind to do this and that. Anyway, no matter what stories they tell to the world, they're both convicted and did a lot of trouble by taking people's money.

[Blitzboy]

Source: https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/ex-girlfriend-says-sam-bankman-fried-ftx-founder-illegally-manipulated-bitcoin-price
In her testimony, Caroline Ellison made numerous bombshell criminal accusations about SBF’s time at FTX. Taking the stand in the closely-watched trail over alleged fraud by Sam Bankman-Fried and collapsed crypto exchange FTX, former Alameda CEO and Bankman-Fried’s ex-girlfriend Caroline Ellison made several dramatic accusations about crimes committed by the disgraced crypto mogul and the wider team under his watch.

“She said Sam conspired with her (on) a plan to keep the bitcoin price under $20,000, literal price manipulation,” Aaron Arnold said, referring to part of the testimony in which Ellison produced a document that read “Keep selling BTC if it’s over $20k.”

only God knows what Cz is doing over there at Binance Exchange.

If CZ was doing the same thing Sam bankman fried, I guess by now, Binance would have collapsed too, lets not believe that everybody out there are bad simply due to the numerous bad people we have everywhere, there will always be some good ones amongst the bad even though in their small numbers. I understand the popular adage that states that "when one finger touches oil, it likely maybe affect all other four fingers", this is true, but we must learn not to condemn the other four together with the one that touched the oil.

One thing I personally have come to know and believe is that, nemesis will always catch up with bad people, no matter how good and long they thrive, only time is what is needed, their bad deeds will come back hunting and hurting them.

And to answer the question, one thing is certain, when a currency is still at its low levels, rest assured it can be easily manipulated, even though personally believe that bitcoin is already big enough to be immune to such manipulations, but then, we cant do away with the fact that centralized platforms like binance and the rest have indeed contributed positively to the growth of not just bitcoin, but the entire cryptocurrency market in general.

Even though CZ and Sam are going in different directions, they have both had a big effect on the crypto world. Each person has a plan, and to be honest, I don't know what would have happened if CZ had gone the way Sam did.

The part about how one sticky finger doesnt define the rest is very important, especially in a field where many people are labelled by the actions of a few. In fact, time is the best way to see things for what they really are. When it comes to currency manipulation, danger can come from any currency, no matter how much it is worth on the market. Size might act as a cushion, but it doesnt really make a wall. It is possible to make subtle moves in large-cap currencies like Bitcoin, though they are harder to do.

[jeraldskie11]

 Institutions and whales are the cause of major movements in the market, so for me it is possible that they can prevent the increase in the price of Bitcoin. With what happened to Ftx and their CEO, I think we can't compare or relate him to Binance. Binance has been around for a long time and there have been a lot of accusations but it still hasn't stopped them from operating. CZ is good, he thinks best for crypto.
Try to check this link: Crypto Binance Founder’s $1 Billion Plan to Save Crypto Quietly Fizzled Out

[kryptqnick]

The first thing I decided to do was look at BTC price before the FTX collapse in November 2022 (as the collapse obviously wasn't the plan, and left SBF without the power to try conducting the alleged manipulations of the price).
The price dropped significantly in June, and remained around $20k for months (at between $19k and $20k in October). Then it really dropped hard in November, but that can be explained by the FTX collapse.
If keeping it below $20k literally meant keeping it at, like, almost $20k, I think that's weird. If the plan was to really bring the price down, the FTX collapse accomplished that, but at the cost of pretty much everything to the FTX.
So my verdict is that a major exchange can perform an exit scam or something, and the next of that will drive the price down, but if we're talking about significant price manipulations of an operating exchange, I don't think that's possible with Bitcoin because the market's just too big.

[CryptopreneurBrainboss]

If CZ was doing the same thing Sam bankman fried, I guess by now, Binance would have collapsed too, lets not believe that everybody out there are bad simply due to the numerous bad people we have everywhere, there will always be some good ones amongst the bad even though in their small numbers.

There's no good in centralization especially when it has to do with centralized exchange, Cz mightn't be doing exactly what SBF did but he could be doing what is worse. You can't say they aren't manipulating altcoins price on their exchange directly and indirectly (all projects Binance exchange is involved in as investors or partners always does well). The tokens that get launched on their launchpad gets the most profits and marketing exposure. There might be worse things happening on Binance exchange so we shouldn't think any centralized exchange is different, they're all after profits and control which is why they want control of our Bitcoin. Cz has been trying to buy everything in the industry from the moment his brand became a household name. They bought, coinmarketcap, trust wallets and other smaller exchanges just to increase their power and you think he would be different?

but then, we cant do away with the fact that centralized platforms like binance and the rest have indeed contributed positively to the growth of not just bitcoin, but the entire cryptocurrency market in general.

Don't act like Bitcoin wasn't doing fine before Binance exchange came into the picture and Bitcoin will do just great after Binance exchange is gone (which is inevitable). One day their sins will catch up on them and just like FTX they'll be exposed. You think alot of irregularities isn't going on with what get listed on their exchange and how Cz took out his biggest competitor with just one tweet by tweeting of selling their native tokens to the open market. Bitcoin doesn't need Binance exchange or other centralized exchange but they need Bitcoin to have business to do and make profits. The industry would had been better without these centralized service forcing their companies on the industry and posing as the face of the industry.

[DapanasFruit]

With the damning testimony of no other than the ex-girlfriend of Sam Bankman-Fried detailing the many shenanigans they (the Sam-Car love team) both committed, am sure this is a very exciting developing story. Now, it is really interesting the claim that they were able to halt the rise of Bitcoin in that specific period...and if this is true then this speaks volume of the power of a big CEX to manipulate the market. However, we should be taking whatever this woman is saying with some eyebrows raised. One, she is not really that technically knowledgeable on many things so we must have some verified data proving her statements, otherwise we can be hoodwinked again and again. I am then waiting for someone credible to verify and show proofs of what this Caroline Ellison just said in court because in the first place I don't trust her face.

[bayu7adi]

[...] Bitcoin doesn't need Binance exchange or other centralized exchange but they need Bitcoin to have business to do and make profits. The industry would had been better without these centralized service forcing their companies on the industry and posing as the face of the industry.

I've noticed that people who come through centralized exchanges or any centralized platform tend to view Bitcoin as a money-making tool. They often have a somewhat "ignorant" attitude towards the whitepaper designed by Satoshi, which clearly outlines that Bitcoin's primary purpose is to serve as a peer-to-peer exchange tool.

On the contrary, those who genuinely embrace Bitcoin are more inclined towards anything related to decentralization. They possess a strong willingness to use Bitcoin according to its intended purpose. I consider these users to be of higher quality compared to those who come through centralized platforms.

So, are people who get to know and agree with Bitcoin's existence through centralized platforms unnecessary? Centralized exchanges (CEX) have indeed been more popular than decentralized exchanges (DEX) for a while, possibly because more people prefer centralized platforms due to the convenience and better services they offer. If one truly despises CEX, does it mean that the ecosystem has become cluttered with garbage?

For me, I lean towards realism. I appreciate money, and I also appreciate the function of Bitcoin.

[Latviand]

I take it as a bullshit because the only way to control Bitcoin price is you need to own all Bitcoins, while FTX isn't own all Bitcoins.

Actually I don't understand why centralized exchange need to make the Bitcoin price below $20K, what's the point? they're making money from people who keep use their exchanges, so regardless what the Bitcoin price, they're still make profit.

It's not the question of who owns the bitcoins can control the price, the lesson in the article is that if the CEX conspire with whales and other big bitcoin players, they can easily change the value of bitcoin so people wouldn't see the true value but it's not really a big scare imo, I am sure that CEX needs to be honest about their dealings and that they have to make sure that they still put the interest of the people that's on their platform rather than their own but even that is a pipe dream. The reason that they're deceiving their users is because they're not content with the profits that they're getting out of providing services, they want to skim more for themselves.

[Fundamentals Of]

My answer is a resounding yes. Centralized platforms control vast amount of coins entrusted to them by their customers. Whatever they do with those coins, their customers aren't informed and are clueless. These centralized exchanges may lend them, use them as collateral, trade them, or use them to manipulate or influence the price. The case of FTX and SBF proved that owners can even sell them and withdraw them to buy luxurious properties, donate to politicians, give gifts to family, etc. I believe this is happening right now.

They not only hinder the growth of Bitcoin, they destroy its image. Many people must have been afraid of Bitcoin one way or another when the FTX case broke out. FTX isn't Bitcoin but it affects the reputation of Bitcoin especially to those who lack knowledge.

[Ndabagi01]

They not only hinder the growth of Bitcoin, they destroy its image. Many people must have been afraid of Bitcoin one way or another when the FTX case broke out. FTX isn't Bitcoin but it affects the reputation of Bitcoin especially to those who lack knowledge.

Following the events of FTX and SBF, investors have become smarter, and the majority of them no longer store their coins on centralised exchanges. As of August of this year, bitcoin holdings on crypto exchanges had dwindled to 2 million, which is significantly less than the entire amount of bitcoin in existence. You may have noticed that while the FTX and SBF saga caused many people with insufficient knowledge of bitcoin to lose interest in bitcoin, it has also reshaped the mindset of long-term investors who buy bitcoin to have complete ownership of their funds rather than allowing these centralised exchanges to use their funds for business that is always at risk of losing them.

[Adbitco]

The industry would had been better without these centralized service forcing their companies on the industry and posing as the face of the industry.

There is nothing doubtable about all you said but we should also tried to understand that the industry as a whole works collectively, without any misunderstanding centralized exchange has one way promoted the growth of Bitcoin whereby it makes it easier and possible for a middle man to easily possess some portions of bitcoin without any hassle which you and I knows. The problems we are facing today is the total dependency whereby people don't understand that exchanges aren't a place to store funds than to buy or sell and immediately such transactions has been completed we ought to move out our funds to a safe and a reliable wallet where we have accessed to than store them over exchange, believe me or not if that people had this mindset I think those who got involved in the SBF & FTX scandals wouldn't had experienced that such incidents.

[Fundamentals Of]

They not only hinder the growth of Bitcoin, they destroy its image. Many people must have been afraid of Bitcoin one way or another when the FTX case broke out. FTX isn't Bitcoin but it affects the reputation of Bitcoin especially to those who lack knowledge.

Following the events of FTX and SBF, investors have become smarter, and the majority of them no longer store their coins on centralised exchanges. As of August of this year, bitcoin holdings on crypto exchanges had dwindled to 2 million, which is significantly less than the entire amount of bitcoin in existence. You may have noticed that while the FTX and SBF saga caused many people with insufficient knowledge of bitcoin to lose interest in bitcoin, it has also reshaped the mindset of long-term investors who buy bitcoin to have complete ownership of their funds rather than allowing these centralised exchanges to use their funds for business that is always at risk of losing them.

It's good news that centralized exchanges are now holding smaller amounts of Bitcoin, but the real reasons why we actually don't know. Although one of the reasons must be that some users are now withdrawing their coins to self-custodial wallets, it might also be a reason that trading activities are lower because of the boring movements of the price of Bitcoin. Once the bull run starts to happen, funds might still flow into exchanges.

[BGoodwin]

they cannot fundamentally hinder or halt its long-term growth. Bitcoin's decentralized nature, global adoption, and underlying technology make it resistant to centralized control.