Bitcoin Price Drops Down

Bitcoin’s price even fell 29% on Wednesday after the China Banking Association warned member banks about the risks associated with digital currencies. Other digital currencies also suffered a sharp decline. Bitcoin has lost around 40% of its value since April 13, when it peaked at more than $ 64,606 per coin.

Prior to Wednesday, Tesla‘s decision not to accept digital currencies as a car payment, as well as concerns about digital currency regulation were major contributors to the decline. The price will increase further by 31% in 2021 and by almost 300% compared to the previous year. Here‘s a look at Bitcoin and digital currencies in general:

How Bitcoin Works?

Bitcoin is a digital currency that is not tied to a bank or government and allows users to spend money anonymously. Coins are created by users who “mine” them by adding processing power to verify other users‘ transactions.You will receive bitcoins in exchange. The coins can also be bought and sold on exchanges with US dollars and other currencies. Some companies accept Bitcoin as a form of payment and several financial institutions allow it in their customers’ wallets, but general acceptance remains.

Bitcoins are basically lines of computer code that are digitally signed every time they travel from one owner to another. Transactions can be conducted anonymously, which makes the coin popular with both libertarians and money enthusiasts. Technology, speculators, and criminals. be stored in a digital wallet, either online via an exchange such as Coinbase or offline on a hard drive with special software. According to Coinbase, there are around 18.7 million bitcoins in circulation and only 21 million will ever exist. It is unclear and no one has any idea where all the bitcoins are.

What happened to the price?

On Wednesday, a statement posted on the China Banking Associations website advised that financial institutions “should absolutely refrain from providing services in digital currencies“ because of their volatility. Almost all cryptocurrencies fell, according to industry groups. : 10 p. On Wednesday, Bitcoin fell more than 7% to around $ 40,310 per coin. Most cryptocurrencies lost between 7% and 22% of their value, and Coinbase stocks fell 5.4%. In a short time, Bitcoin closed just under 30,000 US dollars on the last trading day of 2020. In mid-April, it flirted with $ 65,000.The price then rebounded with some notable swings before taking a decidedly negative turn last week.

Does Musk have any role?

Yeah, and a pretty big one. Musk announced in February that its electric car company, Tesla, had invested $ 1.5. In March, Tesla began accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment. These measures contributed to the rise in the price of bitcoins, and Musk also promoted the digital currency Dogecoin, the value of which also increased.

Last week, Tesla said that Tesla would no longer accept Bitcoin due to the potential environmental damage that Bitcoin mining can cause. The announcement dropped Bitcoin below $ 50,000 and set the tone for the major retreat in most cryptocurrencies. on Musk‘s reasoning.

Billionaire Mark Cuban said gold mining was much more polluting than bitcoin mining. A 2019 study by the Technical University of Munich and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that the Bitcoin network generates an amount of CO2 similar to a large western city or an entire developing country like Sri Lanka.

However, a study by the University of Cambridge last year estimated that an average of 39% of crypto mining was done for evidence of work using renewable energy, mostly hydropower.

But some companies use Bitcoin.

Overtock.com also accepts Bitcoin and in February, BNY Mellon, the oldest bank in the US, announced that it would add digital currencies to its services for customers. And Mastercard said it would start supporting “select cryptocurrencies” on its network. Bitcoin has become so popular that, according to the Bitcoin wallet site’s blockchain, there are generally more than 300,000 transactions taking place in an average day.info. However, its popularity is low compared to cash and credit cards.

Is There Skepticism About Bitcoin?

Yes, in abundance. Tracking the price of bitcoins is obviously easier than trying to figure out their value, which is why so many institutions, experts, and traders are skeptical about cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrencies in general. Digital currencies were seen as a substitute for paper money, but that has not yet happened.

Also Read: Bitcoin Fluctuate As Musk Comments

The Entrepreneurs Diaries is now available on Telegram. Join our telegram channel to get instant updates from TED.