Bitcoin price LIVE: BTC edging closer to $11k for first time since Jan
BITCOIN is getting ever closer to the $11,000 mark as it seems to be heading upwards. Over the weekend bitcoin was one of the few top ten cryptocurrencies to be gaining when others were down according to CoinMarketCap.
20.27 - UPDATE - Mysterius individual buys $344million worth of bitcoin
A mysterious investor has purchased $344million (£244million) worth of bitcoin during a period of slumping cryptocurrency prices that gave them a total of 96,650 BTC in their virtual wallet, it has emerged.
A founding partner of hedge fund Tetras Capital, Alex Sunnarborg, stated that the investor is one of many that have chosen to invest in virtual currencies during a period of free falling prices in the hope they rise again.
He explained: "Not sure who that big buyer was, but many have bought this dip and have added since the rebound and additional regulatory clarity in the US and Asia.”
20.10 - UPDATE - Carney believes bitcoin has failed as a currency
Bank of England (BoE) governor Mark Carney says bitcoin has failed as a currency, when measured by traditional benchmarks.
Mr Carney told students at London's Regent's University: “It has pretty much failed thus far on ... the traditional aspects of money.
"It is not a store of value because it is all over the map. Nobody uses it as a medium of exchange."
19.44 - UPDATE - US discusses regulation
Despite Rob Joyce, a special assistant to US President Donald Trump stating that bitcoin regulation is “not even close” a bipartisan movement of US lawmakers are considering forming new legislation to regulate cryptocurrencies.
Currently there is no regulation in the US, and the responsibility is split between the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Treasury Department, and the Federal Reserve.
The SEC and CFTC held a joint hearing on February 6 to discuss their roles in cryptocurrencies. They concluded that they should work together to regulate the digital currencies.
The hearing also concluded that cryptocurrencies will need protective regulation against market manipulation and fraud.
Republican Senator Mike Rounds has also entered this conversation. He said there is “no question about the fact that there is a need for a regulatory framework.”
Bitcoin: Expert says world is ready for new kind of currency
18.15 - UPDATE - Australian juice chain Boost launched competition where you have to predict price of bitcoin
Australian juice chain Boost, have launched a competition where customers can win one bitcoin, if they can correctly guess the price of the cryptocurrency at 12 pm the following Monday.
This should be quite the challenge given the cryptocurrency’s volatility.
Only one person can choose a certain price, to ensure there's no splitting of the prize.
17.49 - UPDATE - Can the main cryptocurrencies regain the highs they have previoulsy hit
Thomas Glucksmann of GateCoin told CNBC: “Increasing regulatory recognition of cryptocurrency exchanges, the entrance of institutional capital and major technology developments will contribute to the market's rebound and push cryptocurrency prices to all new highs this year.”
He added bitcoin, the biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, could be “pushing $50,000 by December”.
Jamie Burke, CEO at Outlier Ventures, is bullish about the cryptocurrency market, insisting it has the potential to reach $1trillion.
He told CNBC: “We believe after February the market will likely go on a bull run comparative if not greater than last year potentially reaching the trillion-dollar mark before a proper crypto winter sets in where the market becomes more focused on proper market fundamentals.”
15.41 - UPDATE - Bitcoin bursts through the $11,000 threshold
According to CoinMarketCap bitcoin now lies at $11,174. The majority of the cryptocurrencies listed on CoinMarketCap are on the rise at the moment. Ethereum still seems to be struggling to break thought the $1,000 barrier as it lies at $954.
AFTERNOON HEADLINES
A new cryptocurrency will launch it’s pre-sale tomorrow which may hurt the reputation of bitcoin further. Venezuela is releasing its oil-backed cryptocurrency the “petro”.
Nicolas Maduro, Venezuelan President believes the “petro” will assist the country by helping it get out of the dire financial situation it finds itself in.
However, many believe this Venezuelan cryptocurrency has been invented just to get around sanctions put on the country.
That being said, bitcoin seems to be heading in the right direction as of late as the king of cryptos value is steadily increasing. Bitcoin has been battling a negative image from its conception and has often being linked to illicit businesses.
Still, it has often come out of these scandals intact.
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7.30am MORNING HEADLINES
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of all things cryptocurrency, including price, regulation, innovation and financial crime.
Bitcoin had a good weekend, hitting a high of $10,873 before settling at $10,810 at time of press.
Ethereum is up at $946 with Ripple at $1.15.
The total market cap for all cryptocurrencies stands at $484,989,000,000.
Only freshly-forked Litecoin sunk south after the much-hyped launch of a LTC-fiat payment service was described by Litecoin's own creator called a “scam”.
LTC is currenctly priced at $222
Iqbal Gandham, UK Managing Director at eToro, told Express.co.uk: “Unlike with Bitcoin Cash, which was aimed at solving scaling problems, there appears to be little value in this fork for Litecoin.
"A split from the original coin does not seem to improve on the technology, nor does it offer any obvious benefit to the Litecoin platform.
“The reality is that a few users wish to create a fork which allows them to utilise older mining hardware. We’re minded to agree with Charlie Lee on this one, in urging caution around the fork.”
Updates below throughout the day....
1.18pm - UPDATE - Vitalik Buterin says price could soon be zero
Vitalik Buterin, the founder of blockchain network Ethereum said on Twitter:
"Reminder: cryptocurrencies are still a new and hyper-volatile asset class, and could drop to near-zero at any time."
"Don't put in more money than you can afford to lose."
Mr Buterin added: "If you're trying to figure out where to store your life savings, traditional assets are still your safest bet."
12.01pm - UPDATE - $500 rise on the day so far
BTC is approaching the $11,000 mark after making gains of $563 today.
The price at time of press is $10,945, with ethereum at $949 and ripple at $1.15.
10.14am - UPDATE - S&P Global Ratings says cryptocurrencies need regulation and guidance
Bitcoin, ripple and ethereum need regulation if they are going to have any major impact on the financial markets, according to S&P.
The new report, 'Cryptocurrencies Won’t Disrupt Financial Markets For Now', found that a collapse in the cryptocurrency market would not affect the credit-worthiness of rated financial institutions or disturb the banking sector’s stability.
Dr. Mohamed Damak, S&P Global Ratings Financial Institutions Sector Lead, said: “We believe that the characteristics of a cryptocurrency, in its current version, make it more like a speculative instrument that, if its market value were to collapse, would not disrupt global financial stability.
"For now, a meaningful drop in cryptocurrencies' market value would be just a ripple across the financial services industry, still too small to disturb stability or affect the creditworthiness of banks we rate."
He adds that if cryptocurrencies become an asset class, the impact on financial services firms will be more gradual.
"We believe that the future success of cryptocurrencies will largely depend on the coordinated approach of global regulators and policymakers to regulate and enhance market participants' confidence in these instruments," Dr. Damak said.
9.03am - UPDATE - Dunkin’ Donuts CTO says Bitcoin is like Brexit and Trump election
CTO Kate Jaspon said: “Whether you support him or not, I don’t think anyone in this room would have guessed that Donald Trump would have been the 45th President of the United States.
“I know I didn’t.
“And then from a digital currency perspective, I mean, Bitcoin, years ago we had conversations about whether Bitcoin would be a real thing and here it is trading at all-time highs.”
Read the full report here.
