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Nine years ago on this day Bitcoin white paper was released. The cryptocurrency decided to celebrate its 9 years of existence in style by registering an all-time high at $6450 and posting a market cap of $107 billion!
Although, in the morning the markets were uncharacteristically calm, and no top-tier coin or token moved more than 3%. As evident from the chart above, Bitcoin continued to trade sideways below £6200 mark, before positioning itself for a breakout.
There are a variety of factors contributing to this surge. To start off, derivatives giant, CME Group announced today that they will be launching Bitcoin Futures in the fourth quarter of this year.
In Asia, traders are bullish about South Korea’s decision to regulate Bitcoin as a commodity, which many believe will enable the market to continue to grow at a healthy pace.
There is also speculation that China will ease restrictions on Bitcoin exchanges. In the US, analysts anticipate that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon grant their approval to the first exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the price of bitcoin.
Why are ETFs so significant for Bitcoin? Well, Bitcoin ETFs, coupled with the recent launch of LedgerX’s regulated derivatives platform, is expected to initiate a wave of Wall Street investment in the crypto economy.
After this Bitcoin rally, Max Keiser predicts that the Bitcoin price will reach $10,000 in the near future, and that milestone would likely be hastened if China eases restrictions on cryptocurrency trading.
Bitcoin gave us one hell of a treat this Halloween and achieved milestones which many believed were impossible. October turned out to be a great month for the most popular cryptocurrency. If you’re still unsure whether or not to buy Bitcoin, remember that the best time to invest in Bitcoin was a year ago, and the next best time is now.
Happy Birthday to Bitcoin and Happy Halloween to you guys.
Top Stories from the Crypto World
1. CME Group to launch Bitcoin Future Contract
Derivatives marketplace operator CME Group has announced plans to launch a bitcoin futures product in the fourth quarter of this year. CME said that the futures would be settled via cash and based on its CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate in partnership with London-based Crypto Facilities.
According to the company, the launch is contingent on receiving approval from U.S. regulators. Terry Duffy, CME Group chairman and CEO, said:
“Given increasing client interest in the evolving cryptocurrency markets, we have decided to introduce a bitcoin futures contract. As the world’s largest regulated FX marketplace, CME Group is the natural home for this new vehicle that will provide investors with transparency, price discovery and risk transfer capabilities.”
2. ‘Wait and See’ seems to be tech giants’ crypto plan, says Ethereum co-founder
Ethereum co-founder, Joseph Lubin, admitted that it’s hard to know what interaction the world’s tech giants are planning with cryptocurrencies. He said that out of Amazon, Google and Apple, no sure signs were present of a major relationship with the technology.
“Apple seems to be largely uncaring and unaware. Google is making investments, but it’s not clear that they have lot of activity going on,” he said. “Amazon, we’ve not seen that much, so we’ll see.”
Why it matters: As per analysts Bitcoin’s price is directly proportional to its adoption rate. If more people start using it as a currency or store of value, we’ll continue to see the rise in the price. Tech giants will play a huge role so far as Bitcoin adoption goes because of the massive user base they have. If they decide to use the cryptocurrency on their platforms, things could drastically change overnight.
3. Sony files patent for Blockchain-based multi-factor authentication system
Japanese technology major Sony has filed a patent application for a Blockchain-based multi-factor authentication system (MFA). As per the application, the electronics manufacturer could use two different Blockchain platforms in conjunction with each other in the proposed user login system.
One of the proposed Blockchain platforms would create the authentication codes that will be used by a user to gain access to a website or program after they enter their standard username and password.
The other Blockchain platform is responsible for receiving the codes to confirm a user’s identity when they try to conduct a transaction through the platform. The possible transactions that can be conducted include data transfer, contract generation, and asset transfer.