The price of bitcoin reached a new all-time high at $4,703.42 this past Tuesday. Various data shows just how much bitcoin has become a popular investing and trading currency. According to the Blockchain website, the average number of daily bitcoin transactions has reached 224,000 this month, from about 206,000 in August 2015.
Data from CoinMarketCap shows that the daily trade volume of bitcoin has increased to an average of $2 billion this August, or a major jump from an average of only $86.7 million a year ago. The rally on Tuesday came after North Korea fired a missile over Japan, which caused new concerns of global political instability.
“With both bitcoin and ether, we’re seeing a flight to safety due to the issues in North Korea, similar to when investors previously flocked to gold out of equities during previous wars,” said Andrew Keys, head of global business development at blockchain software developer ConsenSys, according to CNBC. Chineseinvestors.com, Inc., MGT Capital Investments, Inc., BTCS Inc., Bitcoin Investment Trust, Overstock.com, Inc.
Bitcoin has been straggling with concerns of illegitimacy, or as a shadow currency used by the black markets. These concerns are being perceived more and more as a thing of the past. A report by CNBC indicates that Criminals are dropping bitcoin in favor of other digital currencies that are harder for law enforcement to use in tracking activities in across the dark web. “We’re getting a lot better through law enforcement tracking those [criminals] and holding the exchanges more accountable,” the Homeland Security official said. “I think [bitcoin]’s a lot more legitimate than people give it credit for.”
Chineseinvestors.com, Inc. on August 14th announced, “the launch of its cryptocurrency education and trading subscription service on Chinesefn.com, the Company’s dynamic financial website that provides real-time market commentary, analysis, and educational related services to Chinese-speaking investors. The new subscription service will cover timely news and will provide analysis regarding all aspects of the emerging digital currency world, including coverage of cryptocurrencies including bitcoin and ethereum, industry trends, price movement, sector related stocks and ETFs, etc.
Cryptocurrency has attracted a lot of attention in recent years from the creation of bitcoin, the world’s first decentralized digital currency to blockchain technology, which allows cryptocurrency to transfer value across the globe without resorting to traditional intermediaries such as banks. The ability to transfer value solely through software is a huge breakthrough. The cryptocurrency market has also created new phenomena such as currency mining, trading, tender, and storage. At the same time, it has significantly impacted industries such as cybersecurity, cloud computing and storage, and semiconductors.”
“Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin have become a global phenomenon,” says Warren Wang, Founder and CEO of CIIX. “Since January 2015, the price of Bitcoin has increased 500% from $200 to $1,000 in January 2017, and just spiked to a record high over $4,000 as US-North Korea tensions escalated. Likewise, ethereum has surged from less than $10 to more than $300 this year. With the use and trading of cryptocurrencies on the rise in Asia, it appears that a much wider adoption of digital assets may be right around the corner. With an estimated 85% market share, China is one of the dominant players controlling bitcoin volume, along with Japan (which recently legalized bitcoin as a form of payment) and the United States. While many see the unique opportunity that cryptocurrency poses for investors and desire to capitalize on this market opportunity, they may not have a full understanding of the concept of digital currency or how the system works. CIIX intends to provide fundamental knowledge to Chinese speaking newcomers to cryptocurrency, including straightforward explanations of the basics of cryptocurrency, how to buy it and straightforward trading guidelines. For those with cryptocurrency experience, the Company will provide more detailed information regarding currency mining, blockchain technology, stock trends and ETFs. Through its innovative cryptocurrency education and trading subscription service, the Company endeavors to be the leading Chinese educational site providing up to date news and information on digital currencies.”
MGT Capital Investments, Inc. ranks as one of the largest U.S. based Bitcoin miners. Further, the Company continues to focus on an expansion model to grow its crypto assets materially. Recently, the company announced that it has entered a purchase order with Bitmain Technologies for in excess of 1,000 S9 Antminer Mining rigs, with shipment expected in mid fourth quarter 2017. Following shipment and setup, MGT’s Bitcoin mining operations are expected to generate $1.1 million in monthly revenue, assuming current pricing and difficulty rates. Factoring in electricity, hosting and other direct operating costs, EBITDA from the Company’s Bitcoin mining operations is projected at $800,000 per month, prior to amortization of notes payable.
BTCS Inc. plans to create a portfolio of digital assets including bitcoin and other “protocol tokens” to provide investors a diversified pure-play exposure to the bitcoin and blockchain industries. The company recently announced that it signed a non-binding Letter of Intent to merge with Blockchain Global Limited, an Australian blockchain company, which will be subject to a number of conditions detailed at the end of this press release. Blockchain Global Limited generated AU$5.9 million (approximately US$4.4 million) revenue in FY16, a 300% increase over FY2015 revenue. Blockchain Global Limited has approximately US$3.5 million in assets comprised of bitcoin and cash as of July 1, 2017, and is currently supporting its business through profit from operations.
Bitcoin Investment Trust is a private, open-ended trust that is invested exclusively in bitcoin and derives its value solely from the price of bitcoin. It provides a secure structure to gain exposure to the price performance of bitcoin. On August 2, 2017, Grayscale Investments, LLC, the sponsor of the Bitcoin Investment Trust, announced that a fork in the Bitcoin blockchain occurred on August 1, 2017. The Sponsor is monitoring events relating to the fork and the Bitcoin Cash resulting from the fork.
Overstock.com, Inc. recently announced an integration with ShapeShift, the world’s leading instant digital asset exchange, that allows customers to use all the major cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, Monero, and the new Bitcoin Cash, to buy online from Overstock’s selection of nearly 4 million products, including, furniture, accessories, bedding, décor, rugs, DIY, and more. ShapeShift allows digital currencies to be easily converted between different coin types in a matter of seconds, all without any account setup or personal data required. Instead, the funds are sent to a specific address, with the blockchain record of the transaction acting as both the order and the receipt.