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Crypto Stories: How Bitcoin helped helped a couple start a family

Bitcoin family from London have "no regrets" about their decision to sell Bitcoin to start a family.

3 reasons why Bitcoin is likely heading below $16,000

Reasons for bearishness include U.S. Federal Reserve tightening, the absence of leverage buyers' demand, and fearful BTC option traders.

3 reasons why Bitcoin is likely heading below $16,000

December will likely be remembered by Bitcoin's (BTC) fake breakout above $18,000, but apart from that brief overshoot, its trajectory was entirely bearish. In fact, the downward trend that currently offers an $18,850 resistance could bring the BTC price below $16,000 by mid-January.

Bitcoin/USD price index, 12-hour. Source: TradingView

A handful of reasons can explain the negative movement, including the reported withdrawal of Mazars Group auditing firm from the cryptocurrency sector on Dec. 16. The company previously handled proof-of-reserve audit services for Binance, KuCoin and Crypto.com.

Additionally, one can point to the bankruptcy of one of the largest cryptocurrency miners in the United States, Core Scientific. The publicly listed company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Dec. 21 due to rising energy costs, increasing competition, and the Bitcoin price crash in 2022.

The liquidity crisis at the crypto lender and trading desk Genesis Global and its parent company, Digital Currency Group (DCG), sparked fear among investors. More importantly, DCG manages the $10.5 billion Grayscale Bitcoin Investment Trust (GBTC). The fund is currently trading at a 47% discount to its net asset value in part due to investor speculation on its exposure to Genesis Global.

Negative pressure from the U.S. Federal Reserve tightening movement

Apart from the bearish newsflow, the macroeconomic scenario deteriorated after the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked interest rates by 50 bps on Dec. 14. Analysts, including Jim Bianco, head of institutional research firm Bianco Research, said that the monetary authority would maintain its tighter monetary policy in 2023.

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Bitcoin 'not undervalued yet' says research as BTC price drifts nearer $16K

An indicator tracking transactions in profit and loss is yet to repeat its traditional bear market bottom sequence, says CryptoQuant.

Bitcoin 'not undervalued yet' says research as BTC price drifts nearer $16K

Bitcoin (BTC) may not be good value enough for a macro price bottom, according to analysis from CryptoQuant.

In a blog post on Dec. 29, a contributor to the on-chain analytics platform flagged one BTC price indicator with further to fall.

Profitability indicator lacks key cross

At nearly 80% below all-time highs, BTC/USD is nearing the zone in which it bottomed during previous bear markets.

As CryptoQuant's MAC_D notes, there is no shortage of instruments pointing to the 2022 bear market bottom already forming.

Despite this, however, the signs are not yet unanimous, and pointing to transactions in profit and loss, he warns that cheaper BTC prices may still enter.

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What is USD Coin (USDC), fiat-backed stablecoin explained

USDC offers instant payments, saves users from the cryptocurrency market’s price volatility and is audited by a regulated auditing firm, making it a transparent stablecoin. However, it does not offer price appreciation opportunities, and investors may incur high transaction and withdrawal fees while dealing with USDC.

One of the key advantages of the USD Coin is the speed of the transaction. Usually, one must wait a long time to send and receive USD because institutions such as banks and their complex procedures slow down the processing of transactions. Nonetheless, USDC allows instant clearing and settlement of payments.

In addition, stablecoins like USDC saves users from the price volatility of cryptocurrencies, as leading American financial institutions ensure that Circle’s reserves are 100% backed by the U.S. dollar or short-term treasuries at all times. Moreover, there are numerous digital asset exchanges where one may buy USDC. Many exchanges also enable the withdrawal of USDC across various blockchains.

Furthermore, using a cryptocurrency wallet, one can quickly make cross-border payments or remittances. Similarly, one can earn passive income by lending USDC on decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms like Aave.

Regardless of the above advantages, the USD Coin may not be an ideal investment asset for those looking to earn money from digital assets because USDC may not offer potential price appreciation opportunities to yield profits.

Mati Greenspan’s boss bribed him with 1 BTC to join Twitter: Hall of Flame

Name: Mati Greenspan
Anonymous: No
Twitter followers: 48,000
Known for: The “face” of eToro for years, Greenspan is a rare moderate voice on Crypto Twitter.

Who is this guy anyway?

The friendly but cynical Mati Greenspan became a well-known crypto market commentator in publications such as Forbes, Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal as a senior market analyst for eToro until he set off on his own by founding research and advisory firm Quantum Economics in 2019. He’s been on Cointelegraph’s Top 100 Notable People in Blockchain for the last two years.

Unlike the talking croissants and anime whales on Twitter, Greenspan is personally accountable for his views, which may explain why he’s a lot less bolshie and provocative than some. With 48,000 followers, Greenspan doesn’t have the biggest account but does offer informed market insights and alpha. 

His slightly obsessive attitude toward crypto stems from working as a market analyst in the 2000s and watching the “financial crisis from an insider perspective.”

He believes we “have the power to completely displace the traditional finance industry” in the next five to 10 years.

Mati Greenspan

Mati Greenspan’s boss bribed him with 1 BTC to join Twitter: Hall of Flame

Name: Mati Greenspan
Anonymous: No
Twitter followers: 48,000
Known for: The “face” of eToro for years, Greenspan is a rare moderate voice on Crypto Twitter.

Who is this guy anyway?

The friendly but cynical Mati Greenspan became a well-known crypto market commentator in publications such as Forbes, Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal as a senior market analyst for eToro until he set off on his own by founding research and advisory firm Quantum Economics in 2019. He’s been on Cointelegraph’s Top 100 Notable People in Blockchain for the last two years.

Unlike the talking croissants and anime whales on Twitter, Greenspan is personally accountable for his views, which may explain why he’s a lot less bolshie and provocative than some. With 48,000 followers, Greenspan doesn’t have the biggest account but does offer informed market insights and alpha. 

His slightly obsessive attitude toward crypto stems from working as a market analyst in the 2000s and watching the “financial crisis from an insider perspective.”

He believes we “have the power to completely displace the traditional finance industry” in the next five to 10 years.

Mati Greenspan

Mati Greenspan’s boss bribed him with 1 BTC to join Twitter: Hall of Flame

Name: Mati Greenspan
Anonymous: No
Twitter followers: 48,000
Known for: The “face” of eToro for years, Greenspan is a rare moderate voice on Crypto Twitter.

Who is this guy anyway?

The friendly but cynical Mati Greenspan became a well-known crypto market commentator in publications such as Forbes, Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal as a senior market analyst for eToro until he set off on his own by founding research and advisory firm Quantum Economics in 2019. He’s been on Cointelegraph’s Top 100 Notable People in Blockchain for the last two years.

Unlike the talking croissants and anime whales on Twitter, Greenspan is personally accountable for his views, which may explain why he’s a lot less bolshie and provocative than some. With 48,000 followers, Greenspan doesn’t have the biggest account but does offer informed market insights and alpha. 

His slightly obsessive attitude toward crypto stems from working as a market analyst in the 2000s and watching the “financial crisis from an insider perspective.”

He believes we “have the power to completely displace the traditional finance industry” in the next five to 10 years.

Mati Greenspan

Crypto Unicorns founder: P2E gaming is in a long ‘maturation phase’

Crypto Unicorns founder Aron Beierschmitt chats with NFT Steez about the key components blockchain-games need to build sustainable in-game play-and-earn economies.

$8K dive or $22K rebound? Bitcoin traders anticipate Q1 BTC price action

Anything could happen in the coming weeks and months when Bitcoin attempts to break out of its post-FTX trading range.

$8K dive or $22K rebound? Bitcoin traders anticipate Q1 BTC price action

Bitcoin (BTC) is approaching the end of 2022 at levels not seen in over two years — what do traders think will happen next?

BTC price reeling from USD strength

Currently down 15% in Q4 and over 60% year-to-date, BTC/USD has few bullish allies as 2023 looms.

Struggling to recover from the ongoing FTX scandal and associated fallout, the largest cryptocurrency giving back all the gains seen since late 2020 is indicative of the crypto market as a whole.

Risk assets are in a precious position themselves, as Cointelegraph reported, while eyes are also on the strength of the U.S. dollar going into the new year.

Cointelegraph takes a look at the diverging opinions among some popular traders when it comes to what BTC price action could do in Q1, 2023.

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Investors seek to sell FTX, Celsius, BlockFi, Voyager claims

Hedge funds and debt investors have already purchased some of the claims.

Ethereum needs to defend $1,180 to sustain this 50-day ascending pattern

ETH price bulls struggle as futures remain trading below its fair value, signaling excessive demand for shorts.

Ethereum needs to defend $1,180 to sustain this 50-day ascending pattern

Ether (ETH) has been ranging near $1,200 since Dec. 17, but an ascending trend has been quietly gaining strength after 50 consecutive days.

The pattern points to $1,330 or higher by March 2023, making it essential for bulls to defend the current $1,180 support.

Ether/USD 1-day candle chart. Source: TradingView

The anxiously awaited migration to a Proof of Stake in September 2022 paved the way for additional layer-2 integration and lower transaction costs overall. Layer-2 technologies such as Optimistic Rollups have the potential to improve Ethereum scalability by 100x and provide off-chain network storage.

Developers anticipate that the network upgrades scheduled for 2023 introducing large portable data bundles can boost the capacity of rollups by up to 100x. Moreover, in December 2021, Vitalik Buterin shared that the end game was for Ethereum to act as a base layer, with users "storing their assets in a ZK-rollup (zero knowledge) running a full Ethereum Virtual Machine."

An unexpected move negatively affecting the competing smart chain platform Solana (SOL) has likely helped to fuel Ethereum investors' expectations.

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FTX founder reportedly cashes out $684K after being released on bail

SBF has allegedly cashed out $684,000 from a crypto exchange in Seychelles while being under house arrest, according to an on-chain investigation.

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