● Bitcoin’s Price Has Only Been Higher On 12 Days In Its Lifetime.
● Belarus’ Largest Bank Launches Cryptocurrency Trading Service.
● Hedge Fund Manager, Brian Kelly, Says Bitcoin’s Institutional Interest Is Growing Due To Its Fixed Supply.
For this week’s edition of Overbit Insights, all eyes are on Bitcoin, which is where our first story picks up. According to a recent report by CoinTelegraph, the price of Bitcoin is nearing uncharted territories. BTCUSD, which currently sits at $15,974 at the time of writing, has only been higher than this current price for 12 days in its decade-long existence. To be more specific, it has only been above this price for 12 days out of the 4,332 days day history, which amounts to just under .3% of its lifespan. In spite of the fabled 2017 ‘bubble’ for cryptocurrency, this means that any investor who bought the top at $20,089 would only be down 18%.
This is in stark contrast to much of the altcoin market, including even Ethereum, which is down 68% from its peak back in January 2018. Although we believe the entire space will continue to grow, mature, and even surpass all-time highs soon enough, we see these stark differences as a needed reminder as to which cryptocurrency is the clear and established leader in the pack.
Moving on from price action, our next story of the day is a regularly recurring theme in cryptocurrency – institutional adoption. This time, not by a single investor, either, but the world’s largest bank in Belarus.
According to recent reports, Belarusbank has begun providing a cryptocurrency exchange service, which allows its customers to use Visa cards to buy bitcoin. Local Belarusian outlets reported that this new digital asset service is provided in conjunction with Whitebird, a payments provider local to the area which operates out of Belarus’ Hi-Tech Park, often referred to as the Silicon Valley of Eastern Europe.
For anyone following along, this shouldn’t have been a story out of the blue, as Belarusbank announced their cryptocurrency plans last year. However, it may be one of the largest endorsements to-date by a bank (and a country for that matter), as the government of Belarus owns 99.95% of the bank’s capital. This seems just to be the beginning of their rollout, as well, as they plan to offer their services to other countries (aside from Belarus and Russia), as well as expand the services themselves.
It’s easy to tell Bitcoin has been the central theme of this edition, and with good reason. Closing out this week’s edition of Overbit Insights, we’d like to highlight one hedge fund manager -, Brian Kelly – and his opinion. In a recent interview with Brian Kelly, dismissed the notion that central bank-issued currency poses a threat to Bitcoin. This is a topic of hot contention, as more and more Central Banks look to issue their own respective digital currency.
Kelly went on to say that he could not imagine central banks issuing fixed supply currencies, and he predicts that digital currencies at central banks will actually lead to more and more money creation, and as a result more inflation. This tug of war between Central Banks and Bitcoin will be an ongoing narrative to watch out over the next few years, as central banks look to gain ground on Bitcoin, and as Bitcoin looks to continue on, offering an escape hatch to all those looking to escape the grasp of central banks.
As Bitcoin gains more and more prominence, Overbit.com will continue to provide tools and products to provide the best experience in trading, and as always thanks again for reading this week’s edition of Overbit insights.