The bitcoin price is once again surging, pulling the rest of the crypto market up with it.
Leading cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ether), Cardano (ada) and dogecoin were all in the green at the start of the week, pushing their combined value above $1.75 trillion for the first time since May.
The turn-around was triggered by Tesla boss Elon Musk, who tweeted on Sunday that the electric car maker would begin accepting the cryptocurrency again “when there’s confirmation of reasonable (~50 per cent) clean energy usage by miners with positive future trend”.
Positive news for Ethereum also helped boost its price on Monday (which is still rising today): Goldman Sachs revealed plans to offer ether options.
The investment banking giant already offers options and futures trading in bitcoin but now wants to expand to its next closest rival.
You can follow all the latest news, analysis and price predictions right here.
Bitcoin upgrade strengthens network
Bitcoin has received its first major upgrade in four years, after miners approved a protocol known as Taproot.
Miners claim it will make bitcoin’s network more robust and strong, while making it more private by essentially making every transaction appear to be of the same kind on the blockchain.
Crypto exchange OKcoin explains: “BTC transactions are publicly broadcasted on the blockchain, and since different types of transactions have different digital fingerprints, it’s pretty easy to obtain identifying information about specific transactions.
“How’s that an issue? Well, being able to track the past use of certain coins can ‘taint’ them and make them less valuable than ‘clean’ coins. It directly hurts bitcoin’s fungibility.”
The upgrade will officially activate in November.
A programmer prepares a bitcoin mining rig
(Getty Images)
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 10:17
MicroStrategy set to buy another half a billion dollars worth of bitcoin
MicroStrategy is set to increase its vast bitcoin holdings after completing a $500 million offering of secured notes
The software firm has close to 100,000 bitcoins, valued at nearly $4 billion – roughly four fifths of the company’s market cap – making it the biggest corporate investor in cryptocurrency by some distance. By comparison, Tesla holds roughly 43,000 bitcoins.
“MicroStrategy estimates that the net proceeds from the sale of the notes and the related guarantees will be approximately $488 million, after deducting initial purchaser discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by MicroStrategy,” the firm said in a press release.
“MicroStrategy intends to use the net proceeds from the sale of the notes to acquire additional bitcoin.”
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 08:51
Goldman Sachs expands crypto trading to Ethereum
Global banking giant Goldman Sachs is planning to expand its cryptocurrency trading options beyond bitcoin.
Mathew McDermott, head of digital assets at Goldman Sachs, says the investment bank will offer options and futures trading in ether – the digital currency driving the Ethereum network and the world’s second most valuable cryptocurrency behind bitcoin.
“We’ve actually seen a lot of interest from clients who are eager to trade as they find these levels as a slightly more palatable entry point,” McDermott told Bloomberg.
“We see it as a cleansing exercise to reduce some of the leverage and the excess in the system, especially from a retail perspective.”
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 08:06
Billionaire hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones has said he sees bitcoin as an important way for investors to diversify their portfolios, ranking it alongside gold in terms of total allocation.
“I like bitcoin. Bitcoin is math, and math has been around for thousands of years,” the head of the $44.6 billion Tudor Investment Corporation told CNBC’s Squawk Box.
“I like the idea of investing in something that’s reliable, consistent, honest and 100 per cent certain. So bitcoin has appealed to me, as it’s a way for me to invest in certainty.
“The only thing that I know for certain is I want to have 5 per cent in gold, 5 per cent in bitcoin, 5 per cent in cash, 5 per cent in commodities, at this point in time. I don’t know what I want to do with the other 80 per cent, I want to wait and see what the Fed’s going to do.”
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 07:42
Bitcoin price rally boosts crypto market
Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of the crypto market.
Bitcoin has bounced back above $40,000 at the start of the week, which has helped fuel a recovery across the rest of the market.
After a volatile few weeks, the leading cryptocurrency is now trading at its highest level since May, while Ethereum (ether), Cardano (ada), dogecoin and other leading digital currencies are all in the green on Tuesday morning.
Stay with us and we’ll bring you all the latest news, analysis and expert predictions from the crypto space.
Anthony Cuthbertson15 June 2021 07:29