Pompliano: The US needs to embrace Bitcoin immediately

  • America needs to “get very serious about [its] Bitcoin strategy as a nation-state,” said Pompliano.
  • Bitcoin is a US technology “from an ethos standpoint,” he added.
  • Most of the selling pressure around BTC is from short-term holders and institutional traders likely to be positioned at a loss.

Antony Pompliano, the co-founder of Morgan Creek Digital and ardent Bitcoin bull, has urged the US to take the lead in embracing Bitcoin.

Speaking to CNBC’s “Squawk Box” anchor Andrew Ross Sorkin, Pompliano said that the United States needs to take this step on the “off-chance, that 0.01% that the US dollar ends not being the global reserve currency used by every single country in the world.”

Terming this outlook a matter of national security, the investment analyst noted that more and more US political figures have started talking about Bitcoin adoption at the national level.

However, he says the US doesn’t seem to have a strategy on how to take initiative and become the leading destination of this transformative technology.

According to him, America would do well to be the biggest holder of Bitcoin- noting that it (BTC) is the biggest decentralised digital currency not under the control of any single entity.

About 30% of Bitcoin’s hashrate is in the US following last year’s exodus of miners from China into the country and other friendly locations. But despite this, the analyst believes the US needs to have a strategy.

We need to get very serious about what is our Bitcoin strategy as a nation state,“ he told Sorkin during the “Squawk Box” show. 

Stating that the US needs to take a leading role going forward, Pompliano noted:

Bitcoin is an American technology from an ethos standpoint. It’s about censorship resistance, it’s about free speech; it’s about self sovereignty and individual rights.“

His comments came as markets across the world looked to bounce from a sharp sell-off triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Bitcoin’s value had dipped below $35k as it looked like sellers would push it to critical support around $30,000. 

About Bitcoin’s price movement and the sell-off alongside stocks, Pompliano said that the pressure is mostly from short-term holders and institutional traders. These groups of BTC holders are likely to be ones selling at a loss, he opined. 

Long-term holders and most people are in profit, he said, based on the realized price metric that puts the average cost basis in the mid $20,000 region.

And with Bitcoin’s bounce above $38,000 on Thursday, Pomp says a lot of the sell-off pressure might “be behind us.”

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UK law firm accepts Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano and other crypto

British law firm Gunnercooke accepts payments in most major cryptocurrencies for their services. Those in need of legal help can now get the help they need with payments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin or Cardano.

CoinPass helps law firm

The law firm is working with crypto exchange CoinPass to accept these payments. CoinPass meets all the requirements of the British regulators, for example they have a registration with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Without this registration, crypto companies aren’t permitted to offer financial services in the United Kingdom, something Binance experienced first hand in the past.

Jeff Hancock, Coinpass CEO: “The CoinPass team is proud to be Gunnercooke’s crypto exchange partner. We are especially excited to be partnering with an organization that has ambitions to advance blockchain and crypto in the UK.”

Familiar with crypto industry

Gunnercooke writes in their press release that this shift doesn’t come out of the blue. The decision to accept crypto has to do with demand from the customer base; they represent “about 100 cryptocurrency developers, platforms, and exchanges.” The cryptocurrency strike company Attestant is the first to pay Gunnercooke in crypto for legal advice.

First transaction in Ethereum

A little more details about this first crypto transaction: according to Gunnercooke, Attestant paid in ether. The press release states that Gunnenrcooke advises Attestant on a range of legal and regulatory matters related to strike action.

Robert Olsen, CCO of Attestant: “Attestant is pleased to make this first crypto asset payment in Ether to Gunnercooke. We believe that accepting crypto payments will cement their position as the UK’s premier digital asset law firm. The company has been a trusted and valued partner in our journey from a start-up to a thriving business, and we look forward to working with them for many years to come.”

A first for the UK

There are already a number of lawyers in the United States that accept crypto, however Gunnercooke’s chief financial officer Naseer Patel states they are the first firm to make crypto payments possible in the United Kingdom.

“Until now, only a few US law firms allow payments through crypto assets, so we are proud to be at the forefront of innovation in the UK. We will now be able to work with a wider variety of clients in different jurisdictions, and give our partners the flexibility to get paid securely in the way they choose.”

On the way to mass adaptation

According to Gunnercooke, their move to adapt crypto as a means of payment isn’t a gimmick and certainly not a marketing ploy. They expect that more and more sectors will accept cryptocurrencies and that in the coming decades, it will become increasingly common to use crypto for everyday payments.

Gunnercooke’s interested in crypto doesn’t come as a surprise. Twice a week they release a podcast, and these are mostly about crypto and associated regulations. In their recent episode, the difference with the mainstream financial world is discussed, and the hosts discuss the role of billionaires on the crypto landscape.

 

 

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Cryptocurrency survives another day

If CoinMarketCap was your first port of call to check your portfolio this morning, your heart rate may have spiked. That’s because the following message would have greeted you on the homepage:

Navigating to the graph section, you then would have seen the below monstrosity for the global cryptocurrency market cap:

Are your palms sweaty? Knees weak, arms heavy?

But fear not, in an exclusive reveal, we can confirm that the cryptocurrency market cap did not, in fact, collapse 92% overnight. Don’t worry, everything is going to be OK.

Of course, it’s merely a technical issue with the CoinMarketCap site. But the fact that, when I first saw the graph, my mind immediately jumped to how much I could make from selling one of my kidneys is testament to how volatile the crypto market is. That even for a split second, I got the fright of my life; that there is even a 0.001% chance it could be true. And I wasn’t alone – there was a large trend increase for the term “global crypto market cap”, despite markets not moving much this morning.

Can you imagine reading the stock market has crashed 92% overnight? You’d immediately laugh. After all, the S&P 500 has a circuit breaker which automatically halts trading in the event of a 7% drop. For cryptocurrency, a 7% drop is just a slow day at the office (indeed I need to go back a whole SIX DAYS, to last Thursday, to see the most recent daily fall of greater than 7% for Bitcoin).

Maybe I’m still scarred from memories of the crash last May, when $1 trillion in market value evaporated in a week. Or January 2018, when Bitcoin shed 65 percent in a month. Or the start of the pandemic in March 2020, when Bitcoin fell 50% in two days. Or…well I don’t need to go on, you get the picture.

Because for all the institutional adoption, mainstream media coverage and incredible progress in the cryptocurrency space over the last two years, let us not forget that it’s still a nascent asset class. Bitcoin, people often overlook, was created only 13 years ago. When the stock market crashed in October 2008, blockchain technology didn’t exist. There is a hope in time that the volatility will come down to “manageable” levels, but right now we are still privy to the capricious desires of the crypto gods.

To put some numbers around this volatility (although, if you are a crypto holder, your heart rate will tell you all you need to know), the latest 30 day estimate of Bitcoin’s volatility is 3.32% according to buybitcoinworldwide.com – i.e. Bitcoin fluctuates 3.32% daily relative to its price. For context, gold is at 1.2% with most major fiat currencies falling between 0.5% to 1% relative to the US dollar. Of course, these are just 30 day estimates, yet still the volatility of Bitcoin blows the reference cases out of the water. And it’s been quite a “boring” year thus far in 2022 for Bitcoin, relatively speaking.

Furthermore, total cryptocurrency market cap captures all coins – not just Bitcoin. And yes, you know it, Bitcoin is the most stable of the cryptocurrenciesRelative to some of the moves alt coins have made over the last year or two, the Bitcoin chart resembles a US T-bill.

So, if you’re like me and your stress levels spiked this morning, don’t worry – we are still alive and well. Sure, our life expectancy has probably dropped a little lower, although I guess that’s what we sign up for as cryptocurrency holders. As the old saying goes: If you can’t handle the heat, go buy bonds.

Having said that, however, to the folks at CoinMarketCap – please, don’t scare us like that again.

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Bitcoin slips below $40000 as the bloodbath in the crypto market shows no signs of abating

At the start of the month in February, we saw significant bullish momentum in Bitcoin (BTC). After hitting lows of nearly $32000 in January, BTC rebounded sharply in February and was even at one point hoping to reclaim $50,000. But things have fallen by the wayside in recent days. Here are some highlights.

  • Bitcoin (BTC) slipped below $40,000 in a broader bloodbath in the market.

  • The bearish trend has somewhat continued with BTC now trading at $38,000.

  • The decline has largely been triggered by tensions in Eastern Europe.

Data Source: Tradingview 

Bitcoin (BTC) – How far can bears go?

There have been several stark warnings about the future prospects of Bitcoin (BTC) and the crypto market in general. With expected Fed policy tightening this year, increased inflation, and the threat of war in Europe, there seems to be a lot of market volatility right now. 

Also, the CEO of Huobi, one of the largest exchanges in the world, has come out and said that we may not see a Bitcoin bull run until 2024. 

$40,000 was seen by many analysts as key support for BTC. Besides, the coin had experienced a period of sustained bullish gains. It was only a matter of time before a pullback came. It is likely that BTC will fall further. In fact, there are fears that the large-cap coin could hit $30,000 before it rises again.

Is it the right time to buy Bitcoin (BTC)

There has been a lot of pressure on Bitcoin in recent months. Increased inflation, the threat of regulation, and now simmering tensions in Europe are all working together to keep the coin down. 

Although Bitcoin has been cheaper than this before, it’s still a perfect entry point for long-term investors. It is suggested that you wait a bit longer. BTC could still fall further, giving investors the chance to buy cheaply.

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Mexico’s third-richest Billionaire: Don’t sell your Bitcoin during the dip

  • The Mexican billionaire believes BTC price will bounce higher long term, stating on Twitter that those who “buy and hold” onto their assets will “thank him later.”
  • Bitcoin dropped to lows of $37,300 on Monday before recovering slightly above $38k.

Ricardo Salinas Pliego, the third richest Mexican billionaire, has said the current dip in Bitcoin prices is for buying more BTC and not selling.

According to the billionaire, when prices fall as has happened with Bitcoin’s recent dip below $40,000, it is time to load up on more of the cryptocurrency. Investors, he noted in a tweet, will be better off hodling than selling.

Salinas, the founder of Mexico’s second-largest TV broadcaster TV Azteca and business conglomerate Grupo Salinas noted:

You have to buy bitcoin (keep buying when the price is low), then just hold your BTC, forget about selling … trust me you’re going to thank me later.”

Salinas has been bullish about Bitcoin before, noting in December 2021 that fiat money was “fake” and “paper lies.”

Bitcoin price dips below $38k

The billionaire’s comments come at a time Bitcoin has seen its value slip in recent weeks after a rebound failed to gather momentum above $45,000. As of writing, the cryptocurrency is trading near $38,780, with intraday prices bouncing off lows of $37,300.

The rebound above $38,000 puts Bitcoin into a key support-resistance zone one analyst is watching carefully.

According to pseudonymous trader Credible Crypto, the week might see BTC-USD remain choppy but an upward resolution to the consolidation is possible. If not, he noted, it’s likely BTC would tap lows of $36,200 and likely invalidate the upside scenario.

Going to be a slow week imo as we are sandwiched between key support (38-39k) and key resistance at 41-42k. I suspect we chop around between these two levels for a bit but ultimately resolve this consolidation to the upside. Hard invalidation for this idea is a tap of 36.2k.

 Chart showing Bitcoin’s support and resistance levels.Source: Credible Crypto

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