On November 12, the Bitcoin mining community reached an annual all-time high (ATH), generating more than $44 million in combined block rewards and transaction fees.
Bitcoin mining relies on specialized computer equipment, known as mining rigs, to confirm transactions and create new blocks. Miners currently earn 6.25 BTC for successfully creating a block, along with transaction fees.
This milestone marked the first time in 2023 that daily Bitcoin mining rewards surpassed the $44 million mark, a level previously observed in April 2022, as reported by data from blockchain.com.
Between April 2022 and November 2023, Bitcoin miners faced several challenges that contributed to a decline in their revenue.
These included a prolonged bear market, negative investor sentiment stemming from scams and ecosystem collapses, and regulatory restrictions hindering Bitcoin transactions.
However, 2023 marked a turnaround for the industry, driven by crypto entrepreneurs who worked to restore investor confidence. Increasing market prices and growing public interest led to a year-long uptrend in mining revenue.
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Marathon Digital Holdings, a prominent Bitcoin mining firm, reported a staggering 670% year-on-year revenue surge in the third quarter of 2023, alongside a nearly five-fold increase in Bitcoin production.
Beyond individual miners and companies, many countries actively participate in securing the Bitcoin network through mining operations.
For instance, Bhutan, a landlocked Asian nation, has been engaged in Bitcoin mining powered by hydropower since the cryptocurrency’s price was at $5,000 in April 2019.
Bhutan is now exploring partnerships to expand its mining endeavors further, including negotiations with the Nasdaq-listed mining company Bitdeer to secure 100 megawatts of power for a Bitcoin mining data center within its borders.
This collaboration could boost Bitdeer’s mining capacity by approximately 12%.
In summary, the Bitcoin mining community achieved a significant milestone in November 2023, reaching an annual all-time high in revenue.
While the industry faced challenges in previous months, it experienced a resurgence in 2023, fueled by market dynamics, increased interest, and strategic efforts by key players in the crypto space.
Bitcoin Argentina, a non-governmental organization, has unveiled a draft bill aimed at regulating the cryptocurrency market in a manner that upholds decentralization and bolsters public trust.
This significant shift in stance was presented by Bitcoin Argentina’s president, Ricardo Mihura, during LABITCONF 2023 in Buenos Aires on November 10.
Notably, Bitcoin Argentina had previously resisted the idea of regulating the cryptocurrency industry.
However, the organization now contends that regulation is imperative not only to safeguard the blockchain but also to hold malicious actors accountable under the full extent of the law.
Ricardo Mihura emphasized their new approach, stating, “We have always rejected attempts to regulate the crypto economy, but this time we set ourselves the goal of giving a positive response, with only two purposes: preserving decentralization and protecting savings and public trust.”
He further expressed concern over dishonest actors and projects operating under the blockchain banner.
The proposed legal framework primarily revolves around categorizing cryptocurrency platforms and service providers into three distinct groups based on property rights: decentralized, locally centralized or willing to cooperate with authorities, and globally centralized.
Under this framework, platforms falling into the two centralized categories would be permitted to operate freely, but their customers would be afforded robust legal protection, ensuring the right to seek compensation in the event of a company’s collapse.
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Importantly, Argentina’s judiciary would not intervene in cases involving failures of decentralized platforms. The determination of a platform’s decentralization status would be made by courts when addressing claims made by purportedly affected customers.
Mihura argued against an outright ban on cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that such bans are ineffective due to the global nature of blockchain technology.
He stated, “Not even the United States can effectively prohibit the operation of the unlicensed cryptoeconomy…Argentina has no possibility of prohibiting its residents from operating in global environments.”
Therefore, instead of pursuing a top-down ban, the proposed bill seeks to offer the best possible legal protection to citizens, holding responsible parties and those profiting from fraudulent schemes accountable, up to the final victim.
This move by Bitcoin Argentina comes at a crucial time, just one week before Argentina’s presidential runoff election between Sergio Massa, the country’s economy minister, and Javier Milei, an economist-turned-politician advocating for the abandonment of Argentina’s central bank in favor of adopting the United States dollar.
Argentina faces a pressing inflation crisis, with a staggering annual inflation rate of 121.7% over the past 12 months, ranking as the fourth highest in the world.
Bitcoin is poised for a significant price correction, according to gold advocate Peter Schiff, just ahead of a crucial moment for institutional investors. Schiff, a long-time critic of Bitcoin, has expressed concerns about the recent price surge of BTC.
Schiff, the chief economist and global strategist at Europac, has consistently argued that Bitcoin’s value will ultimately drop to zero, contrasting it with gold, which he considers a reliable store of value.
He believes that most people only hold Bitcoin with the intention of selling it at a higher price later.
Now, as the BTC/USD pair hovers around 18-month highs, Schiff has turned his attention to what some consider a pivotal moment for cryptocurrency: the launch of the first Bitcoin spot price exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States.
This ETF is expected to gain approval in early 2024, and rumors of a possible approval in November have fueled last week’s price surge, pushing Bitcoin past $37,000.
While some anticipate a “sell the news” event, where investors reduce their exposure once the ETF is approved,
Schiff believes that a Bitcoin price correction may not even wait for that. In a recent survey conducted on November 9, Schiff presented two scenarios for a potential Bitcoin crash: one before the ETF launch and one after.
However, the majority of respondents chose the option to “Buy and HODL till the moon,” indicating their belief in Bitcoin’s long-term potential.
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Despite the survey results, Schiff remains steadfast in his view, stating, “Based on the results, my guess is that Bitcoin crashes before the ETF launch.
That’s why the people who bought the rumor won’t actually profit if they wait for the fact to sell.”
Institutional sentiment regarding Bitcoin appears to be improving as the ETF debate leans in favor of Bitcoin.
Some analysts, like AllianceBernstein, have even predicted a peak price of $150,000 in the next cycle.
They anticipate that ETF flows could start slowly and gradually build up, leading to a cycle peak in 2025 rather than 2024.
This recent breakout in Bitcoin’s price is seen as a gradual pricing in of the positive ETF approval news, with market participants closely monitoring initial outflows and potential short-term disappointments.
As a disclaimer, it’s important to note that this article does not provide investment advice or recommendations.
All investment and trading decisions carry risks, and readers should conduct their own research before making any investment decisions.
BlackRock, a leading global investment management firm, has raised concerns about the treatment of spot-crypto and crypto-futures exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
BlackRock recently confirmed its plan to launch a spot-Ether (ETH) ETF called the “iShares Ethereum Trust.”
The firm’s application, submitted by Nasdaq on November 9 through the 19b-4 form, questions the SEC’s handling of spot crypto ETFs, arguing that the agency’s reasons for consistently denying these applications are based on incorrect regulatory distinctions between futures and spot ETFs.
The SEC has not yet approved any spot-crypto ETF applications but has granted approval to several crypto futures ETFs.
The SEC has cited the supposedly superior regulation and consumer protections provided under the 1940 Act for crypto futures ETFs, in contrast to the 1933 Act that covers spot-crypto ETFs.
The agency also appears to favor regulatory and surveillance-sharing agreements with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s (CME) digital asset futures market.
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BlackRock disputes the relevance of the SEC’s preference for the 1940 Act, arguing that it places restrictions on ETFs and ETF sponsors rather than on the underlying assets of the ETFs.
The firm contends that the distinction between the registration of ETH futures ETFs under the 1940 Act and spot ETH ETPs under the 1933 Act is essentially meaningless in the context of ETH-based ETP proposals.
BlackRock emphasizes that since the SEC has approved crypto futures ETFs via the CME, it has effectively acknowledged the CME’s ability to detect spot-market fraud that could impact spot ETPs.
Therefore, BlackRock believes that the SEC lacks a justifiable reason to reject its spot-Ether ETF application under its current regulatory framework.
Many crypto and ETF analysts anticipate that the first SEC approval of a spot crypto ETF, possibly related to Bitcoin, is imminent.
Bloomberg ETF analysts James Seyffart and Eric Balchunas even predict a 90% chance of approval before January 10 of the following year, signaling the potential expansion of the crypto ETF market.
During a speech at the 2023 Australia Crypto Convention on November 10, Michael Saylor, the co-founder of MicroStrategy and a well-known Bitcoin advocate, shared his bullish outlook for Bitcoin (BTC) and its potential for explosive growth in the coming years.
Saylor’s speech began with a retrospective look at the period from 2020 to 2024. He highlighted the remarkable transformation of Bitcoin from being considered an “offshore unregulated asset” to becoming an “institutionalized mainstream app.” This transition has been a significant development for the cryptocurrency.
In the near term, Saylor predicted that Bitcoin would evolve into an “adolescent mainstream asset” by the end of 2024.
He emphasized the critical factors of supply and demand that would influence this transformation.
Saylor anticipates a substantial increase in demand for Bitcoin over the next 12 months, with the potential for demand to double, triple, or even increase by a factor of 10 on a monthly basis.
Simultaneously, he pointed out that the supply available for sale would be halved in April, which is a result of the Bitcoin halving event. This drastic shift in supply and demand dynamics is expected to drive the price of Bitcoin higher.
Saylor likened the next 12 months for Bitcoin to a “coming out party,” where the cryptocurrency will graduate from its “college” phase and enter the real world as a mainstream asset.
Looking ahead to the period from 2024 to 2028, Saylor foresaw continued high-growth potential for Bitcoin.
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He anticipated widespread adoption of Bitcoin in the big tech industry and mega banks worldwide. These sectors are expected to integrate Bitcoin into their products and services, leading to increased competition among companies like Apple and Meta (formerly Facebook) to acquire Bitcoin for potential profit.
Furthermore, Saylor mentioned the potential involvement of traditional financial institutions such as JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and Deutsche Bank in offering Bitcoin-related services, including loans, mortgages, and custody.
This institutional participation is seen as another catalyst for Bitcoin’s growth.
In a long-term outlook, Saylor projected that Bitcoin would outperform other high-quality assets.
He suggested that Bitcoin could reach astronomical prices, potentially doubling, quadrupling, or growing even more over time, making it a formidable investment compared to traditional assets like the S&P 500 Index.
At the time of his speech, MicroStrategy, the company co-founded by Saylor, held approximately 158,400 BTC, and the firm had experienced substantial gains on its Bitcoin investment, which stood at around $900 million as of November 2, 2023.
Saylor’s bullish predictions reflect his confidence in Bitcoin’s future potential as a transformative and valuable asset.
Bitcoin is poised to experience a surge in institutional investments as anticipation mounts for the approval of a United States exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Dan Tapiero, the founder and CEO of 10T Holdings, has joined the ranks of Bitcoin bulls who believe that institutional adoption is on the horizon.
As the excitement surrounding the potential approval of a U.S. Bitcoin spot price ETF continues to grow, the price of BTC has responded with enthusiasm. BTC/USD reached its highest level in 18 months.
Simultaneously, institutional interest is showing signs of a significant shift. Open interest in CME Group’s Bitcoin futures markets, a traditional institutional platform for BTC derivatives, has surpassed that of Binance for the first time.
For Tapiero, this development marks a pivotal moment. He stated on November 10th, “Now begins the renewed drumbeat of ‘institutional adoption’ of Bitcoin, driven by real facts rather than hope.
As CME BTC futures open interest surpasses Binance in the #1 spot, a torrent of capital from the traditional financial world is about to enter.”
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Aggregate Bitcoin futures open interest reached over $17 billion on November 9th, marking a seven-month high. As of the current moment, it stands at around $15.5 billion.
The optimism surrounding the ETF approval, expected in early 2024 but potentially sooner, is widely shared in the market.
QCP Capital, a trading firm, highlighted the potential impact of a spot ETF for Ether in its latest market update, suggesting it could further boost the crypto market.
However, amidst this overall bullish sentiment, QCP cautioned that Bitcoin’s daily relative strength index (RSI) has been forming lower highs, signaling a potential cooling-off period from recent highs.
They emphasized the importance of caution as BTC faces crucial resistance levels and a triple bear divergence with the RSI, which historically indicates a slowdown in momentum.
At the time of writing, BTC/USD was trading near $36,500, while ETH/USD had surpassed the $2,000 mark with a daily gain of over 4%.
As institutional interest continues to grow, the crypto market remains on edge, eagerly awaiting the potential approval of a U.S. Bitcoin spot price ETF and the subsequent influx of capital from traditional finance.
Galaxy Digital founder Mike Novogratz has delivered a promising outlook for the year 2024, forecasting a pivotal moment marked by the institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies.
He shared this vision during Galaxy Digital’s third-quarter earnings call on November 9, emphasizing that the approval of several cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is no longer a matter of “if” but “when.”
In collaboration with Invesco, the fund manager filed applications for spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the third quarter of 2023.
In November 2023, investor sentiment took a bullish turn, with prominent ETF research analysts predicting that the SEC would approve 12 significant Bitcoin spot ETF applications by January 2024.
Novogratz stated that 2024 would witness a surge in institutional adoption, primarily starting with the Bitcoin ETF, followed by an Ethereum ETF.
As institutions gain confidence and the government potentially endorses Bitcoin, Novogratz anticipates a broader shift toward other cryptocurrencies.
He predicts that capital will flow into the crypto space, leading to increased investments in tokenization and wallets, potentially reaching a climax in 2025.
He also stressed the importance of maintaining dollar-backed stablecoins as a central component of the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem, ensuring their alignment with American values.
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Novogratz believes that a Bitcoin ETF will instill institutional confidence and inject a significant amount of capital into the crypto space, breathing life into the ecosystem.
However, he emphasizes that the long-term plan for crypto remains on track.
The possibility of an Ether spot ETF was also discussed during the investor call. Novogratz acknowledged that its approval might not receive the same level of enthusiasm as a Bitcoin ETF due to the unique staking model of Ethereum.
He pointed out that unless an ETF can incorporate staking rewards effectively, it may not be as attractive as owning Ethereum directly and staking it through platforms like Galaxy Digital.
This technical distinction becomes significant when considering staking yields ranging from 4% to 7%. Novogratz emphasized that blockchain projects must have a clear purpose and offer practical applications to maintain long-term value.
In conclusion, Mike Novogratz’s optimistic outlook for 2024 centers on the institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies, with the approval of Bitcoin ETFs as a pivotal catalyst.
He anticipates a ripple effect, with capital flowing into the crypto space and an eventual focus on tokenization, wallets, and stablecoins, setting the stage for a transformative period in the world of digital assets.
Bitcoin’s future price trajectory is coming under scrutiny as it continues its bullish cycle, with a classic on-chain indicator suggesting that it might be a good time to sell when the cryptocurrency reaches at least $110,000.
According to data from the on-chain analytics platform Look Into Bitcoin, the “Terminal Price” of Bitcoin is hinting at a potential six-figure peak.
This Terminal Price is seen as a straightforward method for estimating the long-term peak price of Bitcoin.
To calculate the Terminal Price, one looks at Bitcoin’s “Transferred Price,” which is determined by dividing “Coin Days Destroyed” (CDD) by the existing supply of Bitcoin.
CDD is a popular metric used to measure the number of dormant days reset each time a certain amount of BTC is moved on-chain. It provides insights into hodler intent and activity in the market.
The Terminal Price, created by Checkmate, the lead on-chain analyst at data firm Glassnode, becomes relevant at the peak of each Bitcoin price cycle.
While not every all-time high reaches the Terminal Price, Bitcoin did touch the trendline during its 2017 all-time high and again during its initial peak in April 2021.
The most recent all-time high of $69,000 in November of that year fell short of the Terminal Price.
Philip Swift, the creator of Look Into Bitcoin, suggests that selling “near” the Terminal Price could be a prudent strategy.
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Additionally, there’s a bear market counterpart known as the “Balanced Price,” which signals useful market bottoms.
As time passes, the Terminal Price tends to increase, suggesting that $110,000 might actually be a conservative target if the next all-time high occurs later in the upcoming cycle.
Swift also brings attention to the “Pi Cycle Top” indicator in his analysis. This indicator uses two moving averages for forecasting and has a track record of reliably predicting long-term price highs, albeit with just a few days’ notice.
It managed to accurately identify the top of the previous Bitcoin cycle, leaving many, including Swift himself, surprised. The question remains whether it will once again pinpoint the top of the current cycle.
With Bitcoin’s price action reaching new heights and these on-chain indicators in play, the cryptocurrency market is abuzz with predictions and strategies for the future.
The potential for Bitcoin to reach six figures in the next cycle is certainly on the radar of many forecasters and investors.
The recent surge in transaction fees on both the Ethereum and Bitcoin networks has reignited discussions surrounding scalability solutions and the role of layer 2 solutions.
Over the past 24 hours, cryptocurrency enthusiasts have shared screenshots depicting skyrocketing transaction fees on Ethereum and Bitcoin.
Some screenshots displayed gas fees as high as $220 for high-priority Ethereum transactions, while others hovered around the $100 mark.
On the Bitcoin side, users reported fees of approximately $10 for high-priority transactions.
This, though relatively low, represents a significant increase compared to the average Bitcoin transaction cost of around $1 over the past three months, as reported by BitInfoCharts.
These fees on Bitcoin haven’t been this high since May.
At the time of writing, conducting a $300 transfer on the decentralized exchange Uniswap using an Ethereum hot wallet incurs a network cost of $45.65, according to a test transaction by Cointelegraph.
The surge in gas fees has led proponents of blockchains like Solana to highlight the cost-effectiveness of transactions on their networks.
Solana, for instance, charges only $55-60 per minute for all users, contrasting starkly with Ethereum’s high fees.
In response to this fee surge, some have questioned how these high fees benefit lower-income individuals and the unbanked population.
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The impact on such users during times of network congestion and high fees can be detrimental.
Before the recent fee surge, Ethereum transaction costs averaged $11.35 on November 8, according to BitInfoCharts.
Just a few weeks earlier, on October 14, fees had dropped to as low as $1.40, marking the lowest point in 2023.
Notably, gas fees on Ethereum had previously peaked at $196 on May 1, 2022, with fees consistently above $20 between August 2021 and February 2022.
Bitcoin and Ethereum developers have chosen to prioritize decentralization and security at the base layer, opting to offload much of the execution environment to layer 2 solutions to reduce transaction costs.
Bitcoin utilizes the Lightning Network for scaling, while Ethereum has various layer 2 solutions like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Polygon to enhance speed and affordability.
However, opinions diverge on whether layer 2 solutions are the ideal approach to tackle scalability.
Justin Bons, founder of cryptocurrency investment firm Cyber Capital, advocates for monolithic blockchain architectures in which consensus, data availability, and transaction execution all occur on the base layer, citing Solana as an example.
Bitcoin and Ethereum, in contrast, employ modular blockchain designs by offloading certain transactions to a second layer.
Critics of Solana have highlighted network congestion-related outages, arguing that a modular blockchain design offers a more effective scalability solution.
The debate continues as blockchain ecosystems explore ways to address the pressing issue of high transaction fees.
Bitcoin has surged to a significant milestone, reaching $37,000 for the first time in 18 months. However, this impressive price action has raised suspicions among traders and market observers.
Bitcoin’s recent price surge, which saw it break through the $37,000 mark, is now targeting the elusive $40,000 level.
This upward movement in November has surprised many in the market, especially after the cryptocurrency gained nearly 30% in October.
One area of concern highlighted by on-chain monitoring resource Material Indicators is the lack of strong trading volume to support this rally.
While the price has been climbing rapidly, the volume of trading activity hasn’t followed suit. The support level is currently holding at $33,000, while resistance has shifted to the $42,000 range.
Material Indicators emphasized the unusual nature of this price move, stating, “There is no denying the fact that price has been challenging a number of different local top signals, but there is also no denying that something doesn’t seem right about this move.”
They pointed out the red flag of price appreciation on declining volume, a pattern that often leads to unfavorable outcomes.
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Meanwhile, prominent trader Skew has noted ongoing whale selling pressure as Bitcoin approaches the $40,000 mark, which has become a psychologically significant level.
In addition to price action, open interest (OI) in Bitcoin futures has been on the rise. According to data from CoinGlass, total Bitcoin futures OI has surpassed $17 billion, reaching its highest level since mid-April.
Financial commentator Tedtalksmacro has highlighted the importance of OI in recent rapid upward movements in the market.
He noted that during bearish periods, the market tends to fade these OI impulses, leading to a ranging and unpredictable environment.
Bitcoin’s recent price surge may be exciting for many, but the concerns surrounding trading volume and the potential impact of large whale selling have made traders cautious.
Additionally, the role of open interest in recent market dynamics adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing Bitcoin rally.
Market participants will be closely monitoring these factors to determine the sustainability of the current price levels.