The gains through 2019 may not have been as spectacular as those seen back in 2017, but they were with meaning nonetheless.
For the crypto market, Bitcoin’s recovery from 2018’s lows over the course of 2019 ultimately delivered one simple statement.“Cryptocurrencies are here to stay.”
There was certainly much less regulatory chatter throughout 2019 when compared to 2018, which provided support to Bitcoin and the broader market.
Throughout the year, there were also some key events that contributed and also limited the moves over in 2019.Key events included:
The SEC and Bitcoin ETFs The SEC rejected Bitwise’s Bitcoin ETF application back in October.While the rejection was negative, the SEC Commission did attempt to soften the blow.
In a statement, the Commission stated that the rejection was not based on an evaluation of whether Bitcoin or blockchain tech has utility or value as an innovation or an investment.
For those looking for sizeable inflows of institutional money, this was a disappointment.
The Bitwise ETF, however, may not have garnered the level of interest that some had anticipated.
Other applications were withdrawn as the SEC dragged its feet in the early part of the year.
Other Bitcoin ETF applications are currently under review, with the SEC scheduled to rule on the Wilson Phoenix Bitcoin ETF proposal by February.
Halving Events Litecoin’s halving event also garnered plenty of attention.On 5 th August 2019, Litecoin went through its 2 nd halving event, which occurs every 4-years.
Rewards for producing a block on Litecoin’s blockchain reduced from 25 to 12.5.
While insignificant for the broader market, a Litecoin rally in the lead into the halving event was an impressive one.Litecoin struck a June high $146 before hitting reverse.Year-to-date, Litecoin had gained 390% to June’s 2019 high…
The reversal was as dramatic, however, with Litecoin sliding back to sub-$40 levels.
In spite of the sell-off, however, Litecoin did manage to close out the year with a 38% gain.
China’s Blockchain and Crypto Love-Hate Relationship China’s Ministry of Industry released its top-ranked blockchain projects in October.The released came off the back of China Premier Xi’s supportive comments on Blockchain tech.
EOS (1), Tron (2), Ethereum (3), Nuls (4), BitShares (5), STEEM (6), Lisk (7), QTUM (8), NEO (9), Stellar’s Lumen (10) made it into the top 10.Bitcoin came in at number 11, which is not too surprising when considering the limitations in terms of speed of transactions.
The Chinese government failed to even mention Litecoin and Ripple’s XRP, however.This may well have contributed to their woes in the second half of 2019…
Social Media and Regulator Ire Facebook Inc.
announced plans to roll out its very own cryptocurrency called LIBRA.Following the social media platform’s troubles from 2018, the announcement did not go as well as Mark Zuckerberg would have liked.One hazards a guess that the U.S government’s reaction would have been similar even if the events of 2018 had not unfolded.LIBRA would allow payments across it’s what’s App and Facebook Messenger platforms as well as its standalone platform.A certain regulatory nightmare for the U.S and just about everywhere else…
Telegram also faced the ire of the SEC as it looked to plow ahead with its plans to roll out its very own cryptocurrency, Gram.Another platform supporting the transfer of cryptocurrencies across the Telegram messaging service, the SEC stated that Telegram was in violation of the Securities Act.Telegram’s token presale had raised a whopping $1.7bn.
Central Banks Interestingly, Facebook’s announcement of plans to launch LIBRA spurred the Chinese government into action.
The threat of social media platforms reportedly drove China’s central bank to speed up the development of, what could become, the world’s first government-backed digital currency.Work began a number of years ago.It is unclear, however, whether the PBoC is close to delivering its Digital Currency Electronic Payment platform…
The ICO Market.
