Crypto News Rewind 2021: Q1 – Rallies, Tesla & MicroStrategy & PayPal Bitcoin Moves, Historic NFT Moments
Here is what happened in the Cryptoworld in the first quarter of this year:
Total crypto market capitalization in Q1
January
– This year started with [bitcoin (BTC)] [rallying above the USD 29,000 level] for the first time, pushing its market capitalization to above USD 0.5trn.Over the first week of January, bitcoin continued its upward trend with more momentum, [jumping over USD 41,000] .
– Following the footsteps of bitcoin, [ethereum (ETH)] , which had recorded an all-time high of around USD 1,400 back in January 2018, was also rallying but [failed to impress] Chinese crypto users, who were favoring BTC.
– Notably, bitcoin and ethereum total value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance ( [DeFi] ) saw a [plunge of 50% and 30%] , respectively, with the number of coins staked in the Ethereum 2.0 increasing.Meanwhile, Ethereum fans [started ‘bragging’] about rising fees.
– Later in the month, ethereum managed to reach [its ATH territory in USD] .Meanwhile, some mining pools banded together [to try and stop the much-anticipated Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 1559] .
– Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis said ETH reached ATH because of [demand to use it as collateral in DeFi] , while BTC was rallying because of demand from new, large investors.
– The most popular joke coin [Dogecoin (DOGE) also soared] 270% in January, reaching the USD 0.07 level and entering the top 10 for the first time.
– [More bad news for XRP] was compiling as major exchanges were delisting the coin, though the crypto market resumed its trend, proving that it has matured.
Further, despite fintech company Ripple confirming [a failed settlement] with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), [XRP] rallied.
– Crypto platform [Bakkt] unveiled its plans to onboard nearly 20m users by 2022 and claimed their [post-merger enterprise value might reach USD 2.1bn] , adding that the crypto market [would grow to the USD 3tn mark] by 2025.(Spoiler: this milestone was achieved by November 2021).
– Investment company Ruffer [poured GBP 550m (USD 748m) into bitcoin] , and justified its move by saying that BTC “is a unique beast as an emerging store of value, blending some of the benefits of technology and gold.”
– American financial advisors revealed that they aimed to [increase their crypto holdings] .
– Russia’s Central Bank announced new banking regulations, enabling financial institutions to [freeze or block crypto-related bank accounts] .
– In Hong Kong, regulators gave a green light for [the first Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF)] .
– US Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen [hinted at a new crypto environment] saying that cryptocurrencies were a concern when it comes to terrorist financing.She also suggested [the idea of taxing unrealized gains] , while stating that crypto [had some benefits] .
– The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) announced that it would work on a new [blockchain-powered tokenization incentive] , while the UAE financial watchdog said it was [set to regulate crypto] by 2022.
– The Central Bank of Bahrain issued a license to a new crypto exchange to offer [Sharia-compliant crypto services] .
– In Davos, banks were warned that they [risked falling behind digital finance networks and providers] .
– By late January, the [WallStreetBets] saga was intensifying, pushing the price of GME, the stock of videogame retailer GameStop, to record highs.At this time, the crypto market got a new entrant, [a ‘wrapped’ GameStop token] .
– During the early days of the meme coin mania, [Robinhood revealed the side it stood on] , suspending the trade of GME and some other stocks.
Later the brokerage firm claimed that [it had not been directed to do so] by anybody.Nonetheless, the angered retail investors called it the Sheriff of Nottingham in disguise and started looking for a new home, setting their eye on the major crypto exchange [Coinbase which was getting ready for a direct listing] .
– Founder of major hedge fund Bridgewater Associates Ray Dalio and [Tesla] chief Elon Musk added even more momentum to the already strong crypto market as the first revealed that [Bridgewater Associates was eyeing BTC] while the second [added BTC] to his profile on Twitter.
– Controversial Australian computer scientist [Craig Wright] , who is alleging that he is the Bitcoin creator [Satoshi Nakamoto] , said he owned the copyright to Bitcoin white paper, asking media outlets to [take down the paper] .
– Spanish football club completed the [transfer of professional soccer player] David Barral entirely in crypto.
February
– By early February, Elon Musk said BTC was on the verge of getting broad [acceptance by the “conventional finance people”] .However, back then, he had no “strong opinions on other cryptocurrencies.” Hinting at DOGE whales, Musk [said there was too much concentration] in the meme coin, stating: “I will literally pay actual $ if they just void their accounts.”
– Likewise, the Dallas Mavericks owner [Mark Cuban] said that “blockchain-driven assets [legitimately became stores of value] .
– Meanwhile, two prominent economists warned that [central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could ‘flop’] if they weren’t designed as stores of value.
– The central Bank of Japan announced that it aimed [to launch a pilot for a digital yen in the following spring] .
– In Colombia, [banks started to work with] some of the nation’s biggest crypto exchanges on a year-long crypto transactions pilot.
– Ukraine revealed that it aimed to bolster its budget with [nuclear-powered crypto mining] .
– The payments giant [Visa] partnered with neobank First Boulevard to [pilot its crypto APIs offerings] , which involved “digital assets” held by the American crypto custody firm Anchorage.
– Following Visa’s footsteps, payments giant [Mastercard] announced that it would [start supporting “select cryptocurrencies directly on our network”] – but at least in the initial stage, it was about stablecoins, which are not cryptocurrencies.
– Major crypto exchange [Binance] quietly [launched the Beta version of Binance Pay] , while [Gemini] announced [a new product, Gemini Earn] , which offered customers rates of up to 7.4% APY on their crypto deposits.
– The US-based business software firm [MicroStrategy] hosted [over 1,400 firms at their Bitcoin for Corporations] event, while major consultancy company Deloitte released a guide for corporations looking to invest in BTC.
– Then MicroStrategy [raised] over USD 1bn to purchase additional bitcoin.Similarly, major asset manager BlackRock [started “to dabble a bit’’ in bitcoin] .
– In mid-February, [Tesla announced USD 1.5bn worth of BTC purchase] , stating that it aimed “to begin accepting bitcoin as a form of payment for our products in the near future.” The news prompted [a new BTC all-time high of USD 48,000.]
– America’s biggest tech titan, [Microsoft] said it had [no plans to follow in Tesla’s footsteps] .
Also, Bill Gates [distanced himself from bitcoin buying] , assuring that he had no intentions of acquiring crypto assets.
– The major derivatives exchange CME Group launched the [trading of ethereum futures] .
– America’s oldest bank, [BNY Mellon, announced that it aimed to hold, transfer, and issue BTC] and other unspecified crypto assets on behalf of its asset-management clients.
– US money-transfer giant [MoneyGram] claimed [its support for Ripple was in place] despite all the controversy surrounding the XRP-associated company.
– [Deutsche Bank] , Germany’s banking giant with assets of almost USD 1.8trn, took the [plunge into crypto custody] .
– Also, German-listed cannabis company SynBiotic announced that it “ [started to shift some of its free liquidity into bitcoin] .”
– Major consulting company PwC researchers found several Mexican companies were [developing an interest in delving into crypto] .
– Chinese online sports lottery service provider 500.com [acquired Bitcoin miner BTC.com] .
– Nigerian Senators criticized the Central Bank of Nigeria’s [clampdown on banks facilitating crypto investments] , calling for a reversal of the ban.
– As bitcoin was soaring over USD 50,000, [American politicians engaged in high-stakes crypto pledge wars] .
– South Korean Gyeonggi Province announced [an “intense” crackdown on crypto-flavored MLMs] .
– Major crypto exchange [Bitfinex] and Tether, the issuer of the most popular stablecoin, [tether (USDT)] , [reached a settlement of legal proceedings] with the New York Attorney General’s Office (AOG), pledging to disclose how USDT were backed in more detail.
– New Zealand’s collapsed crypto exchange [Cryptopia] , which was hacked in January 2019 and lost an estimated USD 30m in crypto assets, [was once again hacked for some USD 45,000 worth of digital assets] .
– Meanwhile, Craig Wright sent his lawyers [against Bitcoin developers] , and bitcoiners decided to [strike back] .
– It was revealed that more than ” [1 million customers” bought bitcoin] “for the first time” on [Square] ‘s Cash App mobile payments app in January.
– Kris Marszalek, co-founder and CEO of crypto platform [Crypto.com] , claimed that the crypto exchange was experiencing “accelerated growth,” and expected to reach [the 100m user mark by 2023] .Meanwhile, Crypto.com’s utility token, [CRO, doubled] in price as the exchange said it would burn CRO 70bn in preparation for the CRO Chain Mainnet launch in March.
– Almost [USD 4bn in trading positions were liquidated] in 24 hours, followed by [another USD 1bn liquidated in one hour] as a selloff in the crypto market intensified in the last days of February.
March
– The cryptoverse started March with [Cardano (ADA)] ‘s [Mary update going live,] bringing native tokens, decentralized finance ( [DeFi] ), and non-fungible tokens ( [NFTs] ) to the ADA network.
– Ecosystem of blockchain software products [Enjin (ENJ)] announced two scaling solutions meant to [remove gas fees and bring support for NFTs] from any blockchain.
– By early March, [NFT overtook litecoin (LTC)] , [bitcoin cash (BCH)] , and XRP among the searched terms on Google Trends, suggesting the start of the NFT mania.Soon [‘NFT’ surpassed ‘Ethereum’] on Google as well.
– It was also reported that swaps and NFTs were [accelerating MetaMask’s growth] .This was the time Jack Dorsey auctioned off its [first-ever tweet as NFT] , which fetched bids by Justin Sun and Sina Estavi.
And artist Beeple’s [USD 69m NFT entered art history] .
– As Ethereum’s Vitalik Buterin and Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong [weighed in on NFTs] , sharing their thoughts on how to improve this emerging industry, [Tron (TRX)] ‘s Justin Sun managed to [win a bid for a Beeple artwork] .Sun had previously [lost] a chance to win Beeple’s ‘Everyday: The First 5000 Days’ NFT.
– Auction house Sotheby’s [followed Christie’s] with an NFT collaboration with popular artist Pak.
– Meanwhile, the award-winning Canadian musician Grimes and the celebrity socialite and singer Paris Hilton [went full NFT] .
– And while we saw [attacks on personal tokens and NFTs] , the USA’s Saturday Night Live attempted to [explain “what the hell is an NFT?”]
– MicroStrategy continued its foray into bitcoin, using dips to [buy BTC 328] and [BTC 205] , respectively, while Hong Kong-based app maker Meitu made [a USD 40m investment in BTC and ETH] .
– The American asset management firm BlackRock said [gold was failing as a hedge against inflation] .Meanwhile, US-based investment banking giant JPMorgan Chase revealed that it wanted to [offer its clients access to the crypto market] , major investment bank Morgan Stanley revealed that it aimed to [offer three bitcoin funds] to its rich clients, and major cryptoasset management firm [Grayscale launched five new trusts] , after which the native digital currency for the Livepeer Network, [livepeer (LPT), skyrocketed] .
– South Korean commercial banking giants Shinhan and LG CNS unveiled [their joint pilot platform for CBDC.]
– Binance was [investigated] by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission over concerns that it allowed Americans to place wagers that violated US rules.
– The US SEC said [Ripple attempted to “divert the court’s attention”] with invalid fair notice defence claims.
– MoneyGram [got slapped with a class-action lawsuit] over the use of XRP tokens, which was viewed as an unregistered and unlawful security by the US SEC.
– After all the trouble, [MoneyGram eventually ended its partnership with Ripple,] in a move that pushed XRP higher.
– Ripple soon agreed to [acquire 40% in Tranglo] , an Asian cross-border payments specialist, and then its executives picked [a fight with Bitcoin advocates] , attacking the Bitcoin network’s often-maligned proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism.
– Newer stablecoins like [USD coin (USDC)] , binance USD (BUSD), and [DAI] continued to rise, eating USDT’s market share.By early March, [tether’s supply dominance hit a record low] .
– Tether’s independent accountant’s report claimed the company’s assets [exceeded its consolidated liabilities] as of February 28.
– Vitalik Buterin said Tether was [Bitcoin’s ticking time bomb demon] , referring to the lack of transparency around assets backing USDT tokens.
– As Ethereum’s long-awaited EIP-1559’s launch date was approaching, [dissatisfied miners planned “a show of force” against the update] , which provoked countermove by the Ethereum developers.
– Trading platform [eToro] reached the 20m users milestone by mid-March, and said it [aimed to go public via a merger] , while the European trading platform [Bitpanda] was [valued at USD 1.2bn] .
– Bitfinex announced [the launch of Bitfinex Pay] , and Coinbase announced its [‘business presence’ in India] , saying that it would “benefit from its huge pool of world-class engineering talent.”
– Meanwhile, South Korea’s largest exchanges said sales and income figures [were rising through the roof] .
– BTC ATM operator CoinFlip [added dogecoin] to its network.
– Mitsubishi along with banking and telecom giants [invested USD 62m in DeCurret] , a Japanese crypto exchange.
– BNY Mellon [invested in Fireblocks] , a digital asset storage, transfer, and issuing platform.
– Tesla started [accepting bitcoin payments] and said it didn’t plan to convert it to fiat.
– In late March, [PayPal] announced the launch of a service that would [allow its customers to pay with BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH] , while Visa partnered with Crypto.com [to settle transactions in USDC on Ethereum] .
– And this was the end of the first, eventful quarter of an equally eventful year.
Just wait to be reminded what Q2 brought to the table.
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Learn more:
– Bitcoin and Ethereum Price Predictions for 2022
– Crypto Adoption in 2022: What to Expect?
– 2022 Crypto Regulation Trends: Focus on DeFi, Stablecoins, NFTs, and More
– DeFi Trends in 2022: Growing Interest, Regulation & New Roles for DAOs, DEXes, NFTs, and Gaming
– Crypto Security in 2022: Prepare for More DeFi Hacks, Exchange Outages, and Noob Mistakes
– How Global Economy Might Affect Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Crypto in 2022
– Crypto Exchanges in 2022: More Services, More Compliance, and Competition
– Crypto Investment Trends in 2022: Brace for More Institutions and Meme Manias.