Bitcoin’s price continues to struggle close to the $50,000 mark despite positive news from Tesla this week
Bulls fail to take control
Bitcoin struggled this week as it failed to regain the $60k level. The leading cryptocurrency has been in a bearish mode for most of the week as buyers took advantage of the situation to buy the dip. Bitcoin’s performance has been average since it reached its all-time high price above $61k a few weeks ago. The price briefly rallied following Tesla’s news, but it didn’t last as the bears retook control of the market. By the end of the week, Bitcoin is trading just below the $53k mark and is down by nearly 10% over the past week.
Tesla starts accepting Bitcoin as payment for cars
Perhaps the biggest news this week was Elon Musk announcing that Tesla had started accepting BTC as payment for its electric cars. The news came earlier this week, with Musk announcing via Twitter that US customers could pay for Tesla cars using BTC. The company is working on making the payment option available to others outside the United States. The news came a few weeks after the company bought $1.5 billion worth of bitcoins. Musk stated that Tesla will hold the bitcoins and won’t convert them to cash. Tesla is now one of the leading companies to fully integrate a Bitcoin payment option for its products.
Bitcoin is a substitute for Gold: Fed chairman
Bitcoin has often been compared to Gold and the US Dollar. However, the Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell stated that he believes Bitcoin is a substitute for Gold rather than the US Dollar. Powell says Bitcoin is more of a store of value rather than a medium of exchange. He described Bitcoin as an asset of speculation, which makes it unfit to be a currency. The debate about Bitcoin’s position has been raging on for years as most people think its high volatility doesn’t make it an ideal currency.
Asset manager Fidelity files for a Bitcoin ETF with the SEC
The Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) market in the United States is heating up as more companies are applying to list and trade them. Asset managing giant Fidelity is the latest to join the club after filing for a Bitcoin ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week. The Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust was filed by a Boston-based firm called FD Funds Management, and Fidelity Service Company will serve as the administrator for the fund. Furthermore, Fidelity Digital Assets, the asset manager’s crypto division, will serve as the Bitcoin ETF custodian. If approved, Fidelity will use in-house tools to track BTC’s performance. According to the SEC filing, the firm said the Trust would provide direct exposure to Bitcoin. The SEC now has six Bitcoin ETF proposals to consider, and the crypto space is optimistic that it would approve one or more.
FTX receives a 19-year partnership to name Miami NBA Stadium
Cryptocurrency companies are now venturing into other areas, including sports. Cryptocurrency exchange FTX became the latest crypto company to partner with a sporting establishment. FTX reached an agreement with Miami-Dade County to purchase the naming rights to the Miami NBA Stadium. The stadium is home to the Miami Heat, and FTX will retain the naming right for the next 19 years. Following this latest development, FTX became the first cryptocurrency firm to secure NBA naming rights. It is also one of the largest deals a cryptocurrency firm has secured outside the industry.
The first-ever tweet sold for nearly $3 million
Non-fungible tokens are becoming popular and have become a unique way to digitise art and other content. Earlier this week, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey sold the first-ever tweet as an NFT, raking in nearly $3 million in the process. Dorsey’s first tweet reads “just setting up my twttr“, and was posted roughly 15 years ago. The tweet has now been sold for roughly $3 million after a bidding war between Sina Estavi, the CEO of Malaysia-based Bridge Oracle and Justin Sun, founder of Tron and the CEO of BitTorrent.
Microsoft could add BTC to its Xbox online store
Tech giant Microsoft could be planning to add Bitcoin to its Xbox online store. Microsoft surveyed its users about the payment options they prefer on the store, and Bitcoin is one of the options available. The company is one of the earliest to start accepting BTC as a payment option, but it hasn’t been available on its Xbox online store. The post gained widespread attention on Reddit and Twitter as cryptocurrency enthusiasts pushed to make Bitcoin available on the gaming console.
Time Magazine’s new CFO should be comfortable with Bitcoin
Cryptocurrencies are slowly going mainstream, and more people are getting interested in crypto. Company executives are now learning about Bitcoin as it has emerged as a hedge against inflation. Time Magazine is looking for a new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and wants the applicants to be comfortable with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The company’s job posting showed comfort with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as one of the requirements.
OKEx Korea is shutting down
OKEx Korea informed its users this week that it would be shutting down in two weeks. The cryptocurrency exchange urged its customers to withdraw their crypto and fiat holdings before April 7. Okex didn’t mention why it is closing shop, but it could be due to the new law that would come into effect soon. As per the new regulation, South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges will not be allowed to share their order books with other exchanges. Okex is following Binance’s footsteps after it shut down its South Korean operation in December.