Bitcoin Prices Will go Even Higher Once Regulations Become Clearer

Global Stock Markets

Ryan Rabaglia isn’t ready to stop being bullish about Bitcoin any time soon. The Octagon Strategy trader believes that the top-ranked cryptocurrency can still hit new highs.

BTC prices have risen above $6,500 after twice dropping below $6,000 in June 2018.
Regulatory Certainty Will Take Pressure off Bitcoin

In a recent interview with CNBC, Rabaglia declared that clearer market regulations were the likely catalyst for a sustained Bitcoin price rally. According to Rabaglia, regulatory uncertainty was putting immense pressure on the market.

He also said that mainstream investors were reticent on committing fully to the market since the laws guiding crypto commerce are still somewhat vague

In another development, David Garrity, the CEO of GVA Research believes the current BTC price surge is a temporary relief. Speaking recently, Garrity opined that trading levels had come under pressure in the market. Thus, a “relief rally” was inevitable.

Garrity also pointed to the emergence of some positive regulatory developments as the reason the current BTC price surge. According to the GVA Research CEO, recent comments by the SEC concerning the status of Bitcoin and Ethereum, in particular, have taken away some of the negative sentiment among retail investors in the market.

Unlike Rabaglia, Garrity identified end-user adoption as the critical parameter that will drive any sustained BTC price rally. He decried that lack of significant Bitcoin use cases especially in the payments market.

In addition to slow adoption, Garrity mentioned a large number of government investigations into activities in the market as another reason for the price struggles of 2018.

Bitcoin Price Prediction 2018: Can cryptocurrency hit $50,000 this year?

Global Stock Markets

Can Bitcoin hit $ 50,000 this year? While most of the cryptocurrencies are much below their earlier highs but there are newer and newer predictions coming up for cryptocurrencies. One such prediction is that Bitcoin can rise to as high as $ 50,000 in the calendar year 2018.

A cryptocurrency portfolio manager by the name of Jeet Singh, stated at World Economic Forum in Davos, that the current volatility is completely normal when it comes to the cryptocurrencies space. He also stated that it is normal for cryptocurrencies to fluctuate by 70% to 80%. This is one of the main reasons why the current volatility does not worry him at all. [sm_bitcoin_price]

He compared cryptocurrencies to the current bellwether companies like Microsoft as well as Apple. Initially, their stocks were also pretty volatile. However, as the companies develop their business model, the stocks not only rose but they become much more stable as well.

However, many of the investors are actually currently worried due to the high volatility in cryptocurrencies. According to him, however, long-term investors need not fear the volatility at all. Since they are here to stay for a longer period of time, they would have no problem at all in holding the cryptocurrencies for a longer period of time as well.

He further added that Bitcoin would reach as high as $ 50,000 this year. If indeed that happens, the current price of Bitcoin being around just $ 10,000, that would be a fivefold increase once again.

Whether the portfolio manager is right or wrong, only time would be able to tell. The truth is that currently, many of the investors are worried about putting new money into Bitcoins. Only once they are sure that the volatility would end and the Bitcoin resumes its uptrend you can be sure that most of the investors would actually get ready to invest in this cryptocurrency.

For now, however, most of the investors are keeping away from the cryptocurrency boom. Many of the investors are just holding their holdings patiently in order to find out whether the cryptocurrencies resume their uptrend or not. It is still too uncertain for most of the investors to take a call. On the other hand, institutions are increasing their presence in the cryptocurrencies pace as well which is sure to benefit the cryptocurrencies space and would add value and credibility to the cryptocurrencies in the future as well. This is one of the main reasons why it is not seeing further fall after creating a bottom few weeks back. Also, once the regulatory hurdles are sorted, you can be sure that the value of cryptocurrencies would again more.

Bitcoin prices in 2018 have been marked by volatility which has made bitcoin price prediction in short-term a bit of a challenge, even for the experienced analysts. As at the time of writing, the price of Bitcoin took a dip from 10k to under 8k following news that search engine giants, Google will ban crypto-related ads. So far, 2018 has presented its own surprises though not a dramatic as the rollercoaster we say in 2017.

History generally has a way of repeating itself but bitcoin has a lot of history which makes it an equal challenge predicting which history will be repeated. It takes more than a study of past trends to get predictions spot-on this time and so we ended this article by highlighting certain area expert analysts were looking at.

Analysts, enthusiast, and industry figures have very diverging opinions and bitcoin price predictions for both long and short-term. Optimism is still high in many quarters—reports of a new survey among British financials suggest a wide majority will buy more coins in hope of price resurgence later this year.

Bitcoin Price Continues to Decline as Bears Continue to Reign

Global Stock Markets

Today will prove to be another difficult day for all cryptocurrency markets. The bearish pressure is not relenting by any means, as market makers are intent on keeping the prices down for some time to come. 

With the Bitcoin price now dropping below $8,200, it seems to be a matter of time until the value dips below $8,000 once again. That would certainly trigger an even bigger sell-off in the altcoin department.

It has been documented over the past few months how the Bitcoin price is seemingly incapable of catching a break. No solid positive momentum has been achieved at this stage, and it seems things will not necessarily improve in the near future either. The past three months have seen some attempts at recovering losses, but ultimately seem to result in lower lows for the Bitcoin price.

More specifically, three months ago, the Bitcoin price was hovering near the $12,0000 mark. Ever since that time, it has dipped below $11,000, then $10,000, and even hit $7,200 a few weeks later. While that is still the proverbial bottom as of right now, it remains to be determined if any positive momentum can be generated before the year 2018 comes to a close. The current trend doesn’t look all that promising so far, but things are always subject to change in the world of cryptocurrency.

Over the past 24 hours, the Bitcoin price has lost another 1.95% of its value. This decline pushes the price per BTC below $8,200, and will seemingly result in a price dip below $8,000 by the time the weekend has come to a close. It remains unclear what is causing all of this negative Bitcoin price pressure this year, but it seems evident things will not improve anytime soon.

Even the Bitcoin trading volume is on the decline as of late, which is anything but promising. More specifically, the trading volume has dropped to $8.894bn, which is $2bn below what one would expect to see these days. This seems to indicate the overall demand for the world’s leading cryptocurrency is on the decline, which doesn’t bode well for Bitcoin and any other cryptocurrency on the market these days.

OKEx is still leading the charge in terms of Bitcoin trading volume, which is a bit surprising. Its USDT pair remains extremely popular and is well ahead of Bitfinex’s USD pair and the USDT market on Binance. All three platforms generate over $215m in 24-hour volume, which is rather interesting to keep an eye on. With Huobi and OKEx’s TRUE pair in the five as well, there is only one fiat currency market to speak of. That can prove to be problematic for the Bitcoin price moving forward.

Whether or not the Bitcoin price can recover from this latest setback, remains to be determined. Anything is possible in the world of cryptocurrency these days, even though the current trend looks anything but promising. Then again, the weekend is usually very different from the rest of the week when it comes to cryptocurrency trading, and this weekend may prove to be somewhat interesting in this regard.

Bitcoin’s price fell by more than 60 percent

Global Stock Markets

Earlier this year, when Bitcoin’s price fell by more than 60 percent from its record close, a less-noticed Bitcoin figure also plunged: the number of daily transactions.

There are many explanations for the fall-off in trading, from software- to news-related. What’s less understood is why the level hasn’t recovered as Bitcoin’s price made a 50 percent comeback since Feb. 5.

That’s left some investors wondering whether the cryptocurrency is waning in popularity.

The average number of trades recorded daily has roughly dropped in half from the December highs and touched its lowest in two years last month, even as Bitcoin became a household name and roared back to near $11,000.

The transaction data may be bad news for Bitcoin bulls.

Trading and purchases on the Bitcoin network, which can be measured by metrics like transaction volume, is indicative of price direction.

Transactions plunged from a seven-day average of almost 400,000 in mid-December to about 200,000 this week.

The last time it was this low, the currency traded below $500.

Transactions waiting to be officially recognized by the Bitcoin network dropped from a seven-day average of 130 million bytes in early January to about 35 million now.

Average transaction confirmation times have tumbled -- though that may be in part because the technology that underlies Bitcoin has already been adapted to address some of these delays.

For example, a software enhancement known as the SegWit protocol, changing the way data is stored on the blockchain, was activated last week by Coinbase Inc., the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange.

Not everyone agrees that lower volumes signal trouble for Bitcoin. It may be a healthy return to normality and signs that the market is maturing.

Should prices start rallying again, traders may well be coaxed back.

He sees the currency soaring to $35,000 by the end of the year.

The decline in prices may itself be to blame for lower trading volumes in Bitcoin.

And websites that once only allowed payment in Bitcoin now accept a much wider range of digital currencies.

That makes alternative currencies more appealing than the first-mover in the space.

A year ago, bitcoin’s market capitalization was about 85 percent of the total sector. It’s now around 40 percent.

Cryptocurrencies are failing as a form of money

European Share Markets

Cryptocurrencies are failing as a form of money and have shown classic signs of being a financial bubble, requiring regulators to protect consumers and stop their use for illegal activities, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said on Friday. 

Cryptocurrencies are failing as a form of money and have shown classic signs of being a financial bubble, requiring regulators to protect consumers and stop their use for illegal activities, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said on Friday.

Carney, who heads the Financial Stability Board, a global financial rule-making body, expressed doubts about cryptocurrencies earlier this year and his speech for a Scottish student economics conference expanded on these.

For now, they posed little financial stability risk to Britain as whole, due mostly to major banks’ limited involvement with them.

But for individual investors, they were a major risk.

Bitcoin prices have fallen sharply since December 2017. 

However, the distributed-ledger technology underlying cryptocurrencies did have potential for improving cash settlement in the banking system and other asset transactions, he added.

Bitcoin-Futures Regulator Clears Crypto Coins Trade

Global Stock Markets

The U.S.’s main commodities regulator recently told its employees that they are allowed to invest in cryptocurrencies, a determination that came weeks after the agency began overseeing Bitcoin futures.

Under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s ethics guidance, workers can trade digital tokens as long as they don’t buy them on margin or have inside information gleaned from their jobs. Investing in the Bitcoin futures that the CFTC polices, however, is barred.

While it’s not known how many people at the CFTC are actively trading the products, the agency’s general counsel, Daniel Davis, told employees in a Feb. 5 memo that the guidelines were being issued after the commission’s ethics office had received “numerous inquiries” about whether the investments were permissible.

The CFTC’s ruling comes at a time when federal agencies are debating whether and how to impose rules on the nascent products that have rapidly become a global investment craze. A number of officials have been wary of putting a government stamp of approval on cryptocurrencies, raising concerns about their wild price swings, their use in illicit transactions and the frequency with which they’ve been hacked and stolen.
Mind-boggling Decision

The CFTC has been ahead of the crypto frenzy, first declaring in 2014 that the digital currency was a commodity subject to the agency’s oversight. Still, that supervision has mostly consisted of enforcement actions to halt alleged frauds. Much of the trading for coins now takes place on lightly regulated exchanges or in foreign countries where the commission has little reach.
Oversight Forefront

That began to change late last year when Giancarlo allowed two major U.S. exchanges to offer Bitcoin futures -- a move that placed his agency at the forefront of crypto oversight. The decision concerned some other regulators who thought Giancarlo was moving too quickly, people familiar with the matter have said.

The guidance on trading digital currencies was based on the CFTC’s standard ethics rules, which allow investments in physical commodities. That’s because the agency doesn’t regulate markets where corn or oil, for example, are bought and sold. Instead, it regulates futures contracts derived from oil or corn prices.

The guidance does note that staff members shouldn’t invest if they have nonpublic information that could impact the trade. That could potentially arise if they are handling an enforcement case, conducting surveillance or working on a regulation involving digital tokens.

The Securities and Exchange Commission also allows its workers to invest in digital currencies, with some exceptions similar to the CFTC. However, the SEC has less responsibility for overseeing the crypto markets.

The SEC’s jurisdiction right now is largely limited to so-called initial coin offerings, where companies raise money by selling tokens. The agency’s employees cannot invest in those until seven days after the ICO, according to a memo its ethics counsel issued in January. The SEC also requires its staff to pre-clear all their digital currency trades -- a requirement that the CFTC doesn’t have.

Attorneys specializing in government ethics were split on whether CFTC employees should be allowed to trade the products.

There is no government-wide policy on the investments and each agency has to set its own rules. That task is made harder because digital currencies are relatively new and there isn’t broad agreement about how they should be classified.
Regulators Grappling

Regulators and government ethics lawyers are grappling with a number of tricky questions, including whether the coins are commodities, currencies or securities. Another potential issue is whether they are akin to an investment or more like a pile of cash in a drawer.

However, Richard Painter who specializes in securities law and was a White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said that cryptocurrencies seem to be more like futures than physical commodities.

While most CFTC employees aren’t likely to trade barrels of oil or bushels of wheat, partly because they could need a warehouse to store them, digital coins don’t present that problem.

Also, regulatory decisions can have an impact on the underlying markets. One major example: The price of Bitcoin jumped 13 percent on Dec. 1, the day of the CFTC’s announcement that it was allowing Bitcoin futures.

There’s a new cryptocurrency in town: the petro.

Global Stock Markets

The newest cryptocurrency is the invention of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The “petro,” as the cryptocurrency is known, was launched this week as a very creative Hail Mary by a struggling autocrat.

The website for the cryptocurrency claims that in its first issue, opened for trading on Feb. 20, it made available 100 million tokens, each selling for about $60, a figure that is close to the price of a barrel of oil. Each petro is supposedly backed by a barrel of oil, though analysts are not sure what this means in practice. Maduro values this issuance at $6 billion: $60 for each token for 100 million tokens.

The currency is one of many sold as tokens on the New Economy Movement platform, a technology that supports cryptocurrencies. The New Economy Movement blockchain confirmed on its Twitter account that it was the platform that the Venezuelan government had selected for the petro, while also adding that it does not make political endorsements.

Unlike Venezuela’s official currency, the bolivar, the petro exists online only and is not regulated by the central bank. Unlike other cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin and ether, the petro is controlled by a government, although it is not clear which specific government entity is responsible for issuing the currency. The minister of science, technology and university education was by Maduro’s side at the launch, suggesting that the petro might fall under his jurisdiction.

 The United States prohibits Americans from buying and selling petros, arguing that Venezuela is using them to skirt tough sanctions. That’s probably true. Here is what you need to know about this cryptocurrency.

1. Venezuela is sort of rich

Venezuela’s riches have always been underground. The country sits atop the world’s largest proved oil reserves, estimated at 300 billion barrels of crude. Since the oil was discovered in 1914, the country has sought ways to translate “rich in oil” into just plain rich. Beginning in the mid-1970s, a series of Venezuelan governments approached this in more or less the same way: have a state-owned oil company extract the oil and sell it abroad, distribute some of the money to citizens and keep the rest. However, Maduro has mismanaged the national oil company, and world oil prices have plummeted — leading Venezuela into its current crisis.

2. But it’s not very rich right now

Venezuela is deeply in the red. In all, the country owes foreign creditors about $60 billion. The country has just under $10 billion in foreign reserves, the lowest level the country has seen in at least two decades. Maduro surprised analysts by making a few debt payments last year, though Venezuela eventually defaulted in November. Venezuela’s next debt payment of $753 million is due in August. The majority of Venezuelan citizens go to bed hungry; many are starving and living without necessary medicine and health care, leading to riots and mass emigration.

3. The petro is not a new Bitcoin but a new way to get money from oil

The petro is officially the first cryptocurrency backed by a country. Until now, one of the things that made cryptocurrencies distinct from regular currencies was that none have been the official currency of any country, backed by any one economy or controlled by a central bank.

The petro is almost all of the above. So why invent a new national currency? Under Maduro oil production in Venezuela has fallen to just around two million barrels per day and is unlikely to recover soon. The government has tried — and failed at — other strategies to raise revenue, such as selling oil assets to Russia. As Maduro has consolidated power in autocratic ways, including stripping the National Assembly of its powers, the United States cut off Maduro’s access to credit markets last August. That made it even more difficult for the government to bring in the cash it desperately needs to stay in power.

Selling petro tokens that are backed by the crude is a way to get money from oil without having to put in the effort to extract it. The oil fields that are being flaunted as backing the petro have a recovery rate of only about 6 to 8 percent — meaning that existing technology only allows for the extraction of a small portion of the underground reserves — and would be expensive to develop. Selling cryptocurrency that is supposedly backed by these resources is a quick way to convert this into much needed foreign exchange.

While Maduro claims that these tokens are backed by oil reserves, Venezuela’s constitution says that oil belongs to the public domain. As an “inalienable and imprescriptible” resource, it cannot be used as collateral.

4. Earnings from the petro won’t do most Venezuelans any good

Everyone in Venezuela needs foreign exchange. The regime needs it to stay in power and Venezuelans need it to buy food and medicine, which can no longer be purchased with the nearly worthless bolivar. The country is facing a dramatic food and medicine shortage. Many countries, including the United States, have offered to send emergency humanitarian aid, including food and medicine. But the Venezuelan government insists that there is no emergency, and has refused to allow humanitarian aid to enter the country. Given this refusal to acknowledge the very real crisis, the government is unlikely to use petro revenue to help citizens in a meaningful way.

The petro tokens can be purchased only with U.S. dollars. Venezuela’s exchange rate controls severely limit the amount of foreign currency that Venezuelans can buy.

Bitcoin is Back Over $10K, But Rally Looks Weak

Global Stock Markets

Bitcoin is witnessing a minor corrective rally today, but the bulls may have a tough time regaining control, the technical charts suggest.

CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index (BPI) fell to $9,592.96 at 01:59 UTC - the lowest level for one week. As of writing, the BPI is seen a little higher at $10,090.

It is worth noting that the global average price calculated by CoinMarketCap is holding around $200 higher, largely due to the "Kimchi premium" - that is, BTC is changing hands above $11,000 on Korean exchanges Upbit, Bithumb, and Coinone. Meanwhile, across western exchanges, the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization is trading closer to $10,000.

The cryptocurrency has depreciated by 1,86 percent in the last 24 hours, CoinMarketCap indicates.

So, it appears a relief rally has gathered pace, a move indicated by the bullish relative strength index (RSI)

BTC is stuck inside a falling channel, creating lower lows and lower highs. However, the RSI continues to diverge in favor of the bulls, so the corrective rally could be extended further towards $10,250 (falling channel resistance).

However, only a daily close (as per UTC) above $11,228 (38.2 percent Fibonacci retracement of the sell-off from the record highs), would signal a revival of the rally from Feb. 6 lows below $6,000.

Moreover, the odds are stacked against the bulls as, against the backdrop of the bearish "gravestone" doji reversal on the daily chart reported yesterday, BTC is more likely to extend the decline towards $8,800 (1-hour head and shoulders breakdown target as per the measured height method).

Additionally, as seen in the chart above, the 50-hour moving average (MA), 100-hour MA and 200-hour MA have topped out in favor of the bears.

Japanese cryptocurrency exchange briefly trips up trade

Asian Stock Markets

A Japanese cryptocurrency exchange undergoing checks by regulators has said a system failure let investors briefly trade a digital currency for zero yen, highlighting security concerns about such assets after last month’s cyber heist at Coincheck Inc.

Zaif, an exchange run by Osaka-based Tech Bureau Corp, said on Tuesday a problem in its price calculation system allowed seven customers to trade a cryptocurrency with no yen value for around 20 minutes on Feb. 16. 

It was unclear if the customers realised they were trading the digital asset for zero yen, or were somehow blindsided for a brief moment. 

The exchange said it had corrected the customers’ balances to account for any trades of the cryptocurrency made at zero yen. It added that it had resolved the issue with six of the customers and was still doing so with the remaining one. 

Zaif did not give further details, or identify the cryptocurrency affected by the system error. Tech Bureau officials were not immediately available for further comment. 

The incident comes after hackers stole $530 million in digital money from Coincheck last month, sparking checks by regulators of Japan’s other exchange operators, including Tech Bureau. 

The Financial Services Agency launched on-site checks at Tech Bureau because it saw the exchange as potentially vulnerable to cyber-attacks, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Feb. 9. 

Japan last year rolled out the world’s first system to oversee cryptocurrency exchanges, in a bid to protect customers, stamp out illegal uses of cryptocurrencies as it sought to nurture a young and promising sector. 

Zaif is one of 16 cryptocurrency exchanges registered with the government. Regulators have allowed a further 16, including Coincheck, to continue operating pending full registration.

Bitcoin Prices at 20-day High Near $11K

Global Stock Markets

Bitcoin price has rallied 84 percent from recent lows, suggesting a bottom is in place, although a long-term bull revival is still not certain, according to the price charts

Over the weekend, CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index (BPI) rose to $11,279.18, its highest level since Jan. 29. As of writing, the BPI is seen at $10,800 - up 1.59 percent in the last 24 hours. However, a bout of profit taking seems to have pushed the cryptocurrency back below $11,000 today.

While the "V"-shaped rally from the Feb. 6 low of $5,947.40 certainly paints a bullish picture, investors are still divided on whether BTC has found a long-term bottom below $6,000.

Bitcoin seems to have bottomed out below $6,000 as indicated by bullish doji reversal, but the weekly indicators are still less clear about the long-term prospects for the bulls, as discussed below.

Last week's green candle marked a positive follow-through to previous week's long-tailed doji candle and confirmed a bullish doji reversal. So, it appears a bottom has been made at $5,873.

That said, the position of the relative strength index (RSI) indicates the job is still half done. As discussed last week, during the bull run (2015-2017), at no point were the bears strong enough to push the RSI below the support zone of 55.00-53.00. However, the RSI did drop below the support zone during the recent sell-off, signaling a bear market.

Further, it still remains below resistance zone of 53.00-55.00 (former support). Hence, a long-term bullish reversal is still not confirmed.

Also, a look at the short-duration chart indicates a key Fibonacci level has come into play. Bitcoin prices on Coinbase's GDAX exchange created a red candle (down day) yesterday at $11,228.25, which is the 38.2 percent Fibonacci retracement of the sell-off from $19,891.99 to $5,873.

A move of the weekly RSI above 53.00 would confirm the long-term bull reversal and open the doors for a re-test of record highs. However, on the way higher, bitcoin prices could face resistance at $17,174 (Jan. 6 high)

Meanwhile, a drop below $9,017.41 (Jan. 17 low) would add credence to the bearish weekly RSI, and the bearish 50-day MA and 100-day MA crossover, and could yield a deeper sell-off towards $7,000.

Japan's cryptocurrency industry to launch self-regulating body

Japan’s two cryptocurrency industry groups are planning to merge to form a self-regulating body, seeking to better safeguard investors after last month’s $530 million (£375.68 million) heist of digital money, sources involved in the negotiations said. 

The Japan Blockchain Association and the Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association are expected to merge as early as April, the sources said. 

The merged organisation may appoint the heads of the two existing associations as chairman and vice chairman, said the sources, who declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to the media. 

The Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association said in a statement that nothing has been decided. 

Representatives for the Japan Blockchain Association could not be immediately reached for comment. 

Last month, hackers stole about $530 million from Tokyo-based cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck Inc, in one of the biggest-ever heists of digital currency. 

The Coincheck heist exposed flaws in Japan’s system and raised questions over the country’s dash to regulate the industry - a sharp contrast to clampdowns by countries like South Korea and China.

The Litecoin (LTC) price has doubled in value in 10 days

Australian Stock Markets

In afternoon trade the litecoin (LTC) price appears to be running out of steam after a sensational move higher this week.

At the time of writing the litecoin price is down 5% since this time yesterday to US$220.18 according to Coin Market Cap.

As a comparison, the bitcoin (BTC) price is currently up over 7% over the last 24 hours to US$10,272, Ethereum (ETH) is 3% higher at US$949.58, and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is almost 10% higher to US$1,480.

Why is Litecoin sinking lower?

I suspect that today’s decline is the result of profit-taking from cryptocurrency traders.

After all, the popular altcoin has seen its value more than double during the last 10 days.

On February 6 Litecoin was priced at just US$108.43, whereas overnight it reached as high as US$236.

Traders have been fighting to get hold of it due to a couple of positive developments this week.

The first is the introduction of LitePay.

The merchant payment processing technology will officially launch in 41 countries on February 26 and will allow businesses to accept Litecoin payments by instantly processing the payments that are settled directly with their banks.

In addition to this, a LitePay Visa card will be available and will be accepted wherever Visa cards are accepted, taking the money directly out of the user’s Litecoin wallet.

The second development was news that Litecoin is going to follow in the footsteps of bitcoin and have its own hard fork next week.

The fork will result in the launch of Litecoin Cash.

Essentially this is an upgraded version of Litecoin with quicker processing times and lower transaction costs.

It has been designed to increase its appeal for real world use.

Owners of Litecoin at the time of the fork will receive 10 Litecoin Cash tokens.

Should you buy Litecoin?

I think these are very positive developments for Litecoin holders and I can’t say I’m surprised to see its price rally on the news.

But it isn’t enough for me to part with my money.

I’ll be watching on with interest next week when the hard fork occurs and then when LitePay launches, but it’ll be from the safety of the sidelines.

Bitcoin price: Cryptocurrency value stabilises after dramatic recent decline

Global Stock Markets

The value of bitcoin plunged last month, amid fears that trading was about to be banned in South Korea. It then stabilised briefly, before plummeting again.

The volatile cryptocurrency hit a record high when it passed $19,850 in mid-December, and its value has shifted unpredictably ever since, with frequent wild drops and recoveries.

The rapid drops are partly the result of continuing fears about regulation, as well as anxiety provoked by a series of high-profile thefts.

Its value tumbled spectacularly at the start of February, falling from $10,000 to $6,000 in four days. However, it now appears to be stable.

It is worth $8,822 as of Wednesday morning UK time, according to the Coinbase exchange.

Its value is up more than 8 per cent from a week ago, but down more than 36 per cent from a month ago. 

The most recent price drops were huge, and followed reports about potential cryptocurrency regulation and trading bans.

South Korea recently stopped allowing people to trade bitcoin and other digital currencies anonymously, but says it isn’t planning to ban cryptocurrency exchanges.

Meanwhile, Theresa May has hinted that the UK government could introduce similar measures, and the US government is concerned about bitcoin’s popularity amongst criminals.

Recent goings-on have demonstrated just how quickly things can change for investors.

The cryptocurrency’s value plummeted ahead of Christmas, dropping by almost $2,000 in just an hour at one point, and almost slipping below the $11,000 mark. 

It then bounced back, before tumbling again in mid-January, recovering again, and plummeting at the start of February.

Bitcoin is notoriously volatile, and its value is expected to continue to shift unpredictably.

Its rise last year also led to increasing amounts of interest in other digital currencies, such as ethereum, litecoin and Ripple XRP, and more and more people are now looking to invest in digital currencies.

However, there are serious fears that bitcoin has created a bubble that could burst at any moment.

Numerous financial experts have advised potential investors to avoid getting involved with bitcoin, and the SEC has told people to “exercise caution” and be wary of scammers.

But others have speculated that it could eventually rise towards the $1m mark.

Bitcoin has no central bank and isn’t linked to or regulated by any state.

An anonymised record of every bitcoin transaction is stored on a huge public ledger known as a blockchain.

However, transactions made with the cryptocurrency are irreversible, which makes investors in bitcoin attractive targets for cybercriminals.

Millennials Love Bitcoin And Hate Stocks

Global Stock Markets

Financial pundits the world over, more comfortable in dealing in tangible commodities and assets, have described the cryptocurrency scene as too volatile to risk long-term investment. 

Whether you agree with them or not, it’s hard not to see why they should reach such a conclusion.

Almost all of the large financial and commercial institutions have taken a pass when it comes to utilising Bitcoin or its competitors in anything but the most experimental test markets.

So much so that when Banco Santander recently announced its roll-out of an altcoin powered money transfer application, it was big news.

Meanwhile, the digital currency market has had more ups and downs than a rollercoaster, from immense highs at the end of 2017 to more than a two-thirds drop in value over the following six or seven weeks, resulting in a loss of $100 billion in real terms. It’s little wonder those whose job is essentially predicting the future are a little cagey.

However, if market experts are put off by cryptocurrencies, some millennials are taking quite the opposite view, finding investment in altcoins considerably less intimidating than playing the stocks and shares game.


But despite the unpredictable nature of cryptocurrencies, some millennials find investing in it less intimidating than putting money in the stock market or other traditional investments.

Those aged between 18 and 39 seem less willing to take a chance with traditional investment opportunities, with many of them being put off by the financial crisis of 2008, which saw a global stock market loss of $14 trillion.

Clearly, if you were growing up or entering adulthood during those dark days, as most millennials were, the memories of the market crash will have left certain psychological scars, whether you’re aware of them or not.

Bitcoin and its ilk might be more volatile, at the moment, but it’s also more open. Indeed, the very foundation upon which altcoins are based – the blockchain – is all about transparency.

There is no insider dealing: transactions are there on the blockchain for all to see – if they have a will to. And, as for rises and drops, compared to the $14 trillion lost by the traditional markets in ‘08, $100 billion is suddenly chicken feed.

Besides, with bankers, investment firms and hedge fund managers out of the equation (for the time being, at least) many see digital finance as leaving them in control of their own money.

Market Update - Part I

FM Wealth Management News Letter

Unlike what you have been led to believe there is no big secret to how the markets work. In reality, it is really quite simple. Unfortunately that does not mean that specific smaller degree moves in the market will be just as simple.

Markets act the same wherever you look. Whether it is the equities, metals, Forex, crypto-currencies, etc, they all react in the exact same way. Markets simply move from one extreme to another.  We need to be able to identify where those extremes can cause a turn.

So therefore in making your determination of turning points, there is no one definitive point at which a market must turn. So really we are dealing in probabilities when we attempt to analyze that which is non-linear in nature, such as the financial markets.

For Clients and Newsletter readers that have followed FM Wealth Management and FM Wealth Management reports for years, would know that this is exactly how we apply our wave analysis.


As an example, we were able to identify major shift changes in the US Dollar Index (DXY) when we called for a multi-year rally in 2011 when DXY was at the 74, with a long-term target to 103.50.

Another example was when we came within $6 of the top in the gold market in 2011. For those who recall, our initial expectation was that gold would see a 40% pullback before gold even struck its high.

At that point we pointed out that if that 40% drop would not hold support, it could open the door for gold to correct all the way back down to the $1,000.

 Many analysts and clients disregarded our analysis at the time because everyone was so certain it would easily eclipse the $2,000 region during the parabolic phase it was in at the time we made this call. So, when gold gave us a 40% correction from our top call, we began looking for a resurrection of the bull market.

However when the market made it clear that it was not going to resurrect, we began looking for the price to come down to $1,000-1100 before looking for another bottoming structure.

So we remain flexible, as we do not believe that anything MUST happen within the financial markets.

UK banks ban Bitcoin purchases with credit cards

European Stock Markets

Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland have all banned the practice.

It's happened in the US and now it's happening in the UK. Lloyds Banking Group, which runs Halifax, Bank of Scotland, MBNA and, of course, Lloyds, has banned its customers from buying bitcoin with their credit cards.

We do not accept credit card transactions involving the purchase of cryptocurrencies, a Lloyds Banking Group spokesperson.

 It's thought to be the first UK bank — or rather, banking chain — to block its members from investing in the cryptocurrency.

The worry, presumably, is that people will borrow cash and then be saddled with large amounts of debt they cannot pay back due to Bitcoin's fluctuating value.

Bitcoin had a stellar trajectory in 2017, rising from roughly $800 in January to $19,783 in late December.

As the value grew, so did the attention of traditional investors and tech-savvy citizens who wanted to make a quick buck. The following month, however, Bitcoin's value cratered.

The reasons are unclear, but it was a harsh reminder of the volatility of cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin now sits at just under $8,000 and understandably, banks are worried about its customers getting caught up in the craze.

Financial institutions in the US made a similar move last week.

Credit cards issued by Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup are now restricted from Bitcoin purchases due to the associated risks.

At the same time, politicians around the world are scrambling to figure out what, if any regulation is required to protect their citizens.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May said at the World Economic Forum in Davos said, in areas like cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, we should be looking at these very seriously, precisely because of the way they can be used, particularly by criminals.

South Korea, meanwhile, has tried to control the market by introducing rules that limit cryptocurrency trading to real-name bank accounts.

Bitcoin slides further, headed for worst week since 2013

Global Stock Markets

THE SUDDEN plunge of bitcoin has continued as the cryptocurrency’s value dropped to just $8,369 (£5,870) after it plunged by more than 17 per cent in 24 hours.

The online currency has so far seen a turbulent 2018, with its value continuing to all after it reached an all time high of nearly $20,000 (£14,000) in December last year.

Since the turn of the year Bitcoin’s value has decreased by more than 50 per cent.

Throughout 2017 Bitcoin saw its price rise by more than 1,500 per cent from the beginning of the year after the value of a single Bitcoin has soared from $954 (£668) in January.

The decline over the past month comes after experts warned that the digital currency was in a bubble that would eventually crash.

Despite the trend in the collapse of the value of the original online currency, there are some who believe the current drop is due to confusion surrounding the Indian Government’s stance on cryptocurrencies.

 

India is not the only country to have announced its intentions to crackdown on the use of the digital money.

In January South Korea introduced a raft of measures aimed at regulating Bitcoin and similar currencies such as Ripple and Ethereal.

A ban on anonymous trading was implemented by the Asian power in a bid to crack down on all possible criminal activities the secret nature of trading Bitcoin allowed.

Can Ripple (XRP) Overtake Bitcoin (BTC) In 2018? - Part II

Global Stock Markets

How does Ripple work?

Ripple has a novel system compared to the majority of cryptocurrencies, which has earned it the title of being one of the most scalable and fastest cryptocurrencies available.

While Bitcoin was created with an ideology to move away from traditional banking systems, the ripple was designed to be compliant with banks and their networks. This is enhanced by the ripple network’s sheer transaction processing capabilities. At the moment, the ripple network can process up to 1,500 transactions per second, while bitcoin can process only 10.

However, both networks are underpinned by powerful Blockchain technology. This refers to the system that is responsible for recording all transactions made on the network, like a digital ledger, but also for encrypting transactions. While bitcoin utilizes its vast community of miners to verify transactions and mine new Bitcoin, the Ripple network is mainly controlled by its startup. However, since expanding they have started to utilize third parties to aid in verifying transactions.

This system has allowed for increased stability on the ripple network. The company stated in a recent blog post that they were planning on shifting from single-handedly managing their own nodes, to employing trusted third-parties to perform this service instead.

While some cryptocurrency advocates feel that ripple’s system is still too centralized, ripple responded by locking their remaining cryptocurrency holdings in an encrypted account and now only releases a limited amount per month.

What causes the ripple price rise?

The ripple price has grown immensely in the last few weeks. At the start of December 2017, XRP stood at $0.25, reached $1.00 at the start of January and has since grown to $2.20. This sharp price increase is considered to have come about due to investors cashing in their bitcoin to invest in other cryptocurrencies. This accounts for the fact that the ripple price has continued to grow despite the fact that the bitcoin price has decreased.

In addition, the price boost has likely been encouraged by the fact that several major Japanese credit card companies announced that they would be conducting test pilots using ripple for projects that include international payments. Ripple is also significantly cheaper than bitcoin which makes it an easier investment.

At the moment, there are 28 billion ripples in circulation compared to bitcoin’s 16.7 million. Ripple boasts a total market cap of just over $90 billion, which makes it the world’s second-biggest cryptocurrency. Second only to bitcoin.

How to invest in ripple

Ripple is widely available on most of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency trading platforms such as Kraken and BitStamp. To buy ripple, you would have to create an account on the exchange of your choice and verify your personal information. After your account has been verified, you can deposit funds into your account to purchase XRP.

At the moment, the ripple is available on over 50 exchanges, with many more promising to add support for it in the near future. However, the cryptocurrency is still unavailable on one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange platforms, Coinbase. The exchange’s CE, Brian Armstrong, previously stated that ripple was merely a distraction from bitcoin.

According to a virtual currency analyst from Interactive Investor, Gary McFarlance, there are several cryptocurrencies that are similar to ripple. A notable one is Stellar Lumens, which was created by a previous ripple executive. Stellar has also shown impressive growth but is yet to match that of ripple.
Considering ripple’s rapid rise to prominence, it is still too early to tell whether Ripple will hold onto its current value. In addition, the fact that it’s becoming widely utilized by centralized institutions makes it unlikely to ever truly overtake bitcoin, however, it definitely makes for a worthy competitor.

Can Ripple (XRP) Overtake Bitcoin (BTC) In 2018? - Part I

Global Stock Markets

Bitcoin’s trajectory of the last year has been nothing short of incredible. The continued record highs have attracted the attention of the media, the public, governments, banks, and many more. 

 

As more and more cryptocurrency millionaires popped up, more investors wanted a piece of the action, until we found ourselves in the midst of a massive crypto hype.

However, it’s not just bitcoin that captured the attention of millions around the world. Ripple quietly grew to prominence until a few weeks ago, when it spiked with over 36,000%, more than doubled in its price and quickly became one of the new darlings of the crypto world.

Ripple’s boom followed shortly after several international banks, as well as Korean and Japanese credit card firms, stated that they would use Ripple technology to pilot test projects.

At the time of writing, ripple (XRP) is worth an average of $2.20 and it is available on several major cryptocurrency exchange platform. Granted, it pales in comparison with bitcoin’s price of $13,800 per BTC, but it’s not so shabby when considering that ripple grew from a humble $0.006 just a year ago. In addition, the cryptocurrency’s sheer supply has ensured that it is currently the world’s second most lucrative cryptocurrency.

However, this begs the question, why exactly did ripple grow as much as it did in the last year, and does it have the potential to overthrow the grandfather of cryptocurrencies?

What is Ripple?

Bitcoin is a virtual currency that is underpinned by a larger Blockchain network. Similarly, the ripple has its own payment network that is referred to as XRP, although even the most avid of ripple advocates simply call it “ripple.”

Ripple is also underpinned by a larger Blockchain network, which consists of several technological processes that ensure that all transactions are recorded securely online. This underlying Blockchain network is widely considered to be the future of payment systems.

However, this is where most similarities between the two end. Ripple was established in 2012, but initially, it was not designed to act as a form payment. Instead, the network was created to verify and record assets, including its own virtual currency, XRP.

Bitcoin was designed to be a decentralized peer-to-peer monetary system, where community members gave their own computer processing powers to verify and create new blocks and mine new Bitcoin, and as a reward received Bitcoin proportional to their efforts.

In contrast, the ripple was established with a ready limited amount of 99 billion XRP ready for distribution which could be either traded or used as a means to navigate between other assets which would allow users to evade transactions fees.

Quicker than Bitcoin

The team behind ripple have previously stated that their network has several advantages over the bitcoin core network. Most significantly is that the ripple network offers much quicker and cheaper transactions. The average transaction conduct on the ripple network takes about 3 seconds and costs one-millionth of XRP.

In addition, bitcoin has lost utility due to its exorbitant transaction fees and times. However, the ripple network has encouraged interesting partnerships with traditional financial institutions such as UBS, American Express, and Santander as the ripple network has the potential to be used practically in foreign exchange situations.

Bitcoin, Ripple and EOS price prediction: BTC/USD $10,800 level is the key

Global Stock Markets

Bitcoin toying with dangerous levels as purchases don't appear. EOS in a similar position, while Ripple paves the way for them.

BTC/USD lacks room and must take a decision. BTC/USD 240 min

The current standings in the crypto board demand the highest attention and clear thinking. In a technical analysis, maintaining its validity until the price says otherwise is as important as reconsidering the situation and assuming a new analysis that may contradict our previous beliefs. Lacking the ability to reassess in time is the fastest way to the abyss.

Right now, the BTC/USD bullish prediction is still valid, especially taking into account the unquestionable upside long-term trend and the apparent normalcy of the current retreatment from all-time highs. Nonetheless, we must be aware that the support levels are really close to the current price. A closing below $10,800, just a few points below the current price, would force us to reassess the scenario.

The MACD is extremely flat and in the equilibrium zone. The key insight is a lack of advantage from any side. No deviations, no extrema: dead calm.

The Directional Movement Index delivers juicier information. Purchases have decreased during the last bearish term as much as sales have increased. The downward trend keeps accelerating, and given the small room in the current geometric structure, a break à la Ripple must be laid on the table.

Ripple, lacking the force to leave the support behind, keeps moving laterally

XRP/USD 240 min

In the past days, Ripple has been in the same position the BTC/USD is today. Keeping a slightly upside trendline, it has broken the triangular structure to enter an expansive environment that, given its narrowness, is very unlikely to provide any tranquility to buyers. The chances that Bitcoin follows the same route as Ripple are quite high.

Ripple's MACD is, as Bitcoin's, extremely flat and thus giving no insights about the trending projections. In this case, the news is that there isn't news.

The Directional Movement Index shows a more advanced pattern than Bitcoin's. The purchases have risen together with the extension movement as sales have decreased.

The situation is tricky, since it should be solved without any volatility increase. At the current levels, the supports would not resist higher price ranges.

EOS on watch. Accelerates its decrease and approaches the support with no brakes: EOS/USD 240 min

EOS is in a fragile position. Although there's still some room until it reaches the trendline support, its downside move keeps accelerating and the sales have increased a considerable amount.

The MACD is moving in the negative zone, with a decreasing continuity profile that is set to be valid in the short term.

The Directional Movement Index shows the sales increasing significantly, as purchases decrease and the decreasing trend accelerates. The projection is threatening the price development in the next sessions. It is very likely that the price break the support, something that we have already seen in EOS.

The situation is still of uneasy calm, with all the crypto board in limiting positions, very close to supports and casting doubts on the bullish perspectives.These are kind of situations, in which very few traders are brave enough to buy, conceal some of the best opportunities. However, we must take into account that there are chances of closing the position in losses. Only by keeping this in mind we can avoid being caught up without control of our position.