A report tracking dollar gains for 2020 shows that Australia is ranked among the top 20 countries that made gains from Bitcoin last year.
According to the report by Chainalysis, 2020 was a massive year for institutional investors, pushing up the price to new all-time highs. For example, the US made over three times more gains on its investments than China, which placed second in the list.
The data was calculated from US dollars gains and shows US-centred exchanges with huge inflows towards the end of 2020, which could be a factor accounting for the country’s large gains, placing it in top spot.
Australia Places 19th Position
Australia’s favourable outlook on cryptocurrency may be one of the reasons it placed so high on the chart. Australians seem to be excited about Bitcoin, with one poll showing a quarter of employees would accept their remuneration in BTC if possible.
Not only did Binance Australia break records recently, but the government has stated it will not stand in the way of cryptocurrency development in the country. Jane Hume, an Australian Senator and Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and the Digital Economy, said that people and organisations needed to make their own decisions regarding crypto as long as they follow the law.
Small Countries, Big Gains
Various countries are investing a lot more in Bitcoin relative to traditional economic metrics such as gross domestic product (GDP). Vietnam is one of those countries, with a GDP of $262 billion and categorised as a lower-middle-income country by the World Bank. Yet it has a high level of basic cryptocurrency adoption, ranking 13th in Bitcoin investment gains at $351 million, outperforming countries that rank higher in GDP including Australia, Saudi Arabia and Belgium.
Other countries that displayed a similar phenomenon:
The Czech Republic ranks 54th in GDP at $251 billion but is 18th in realised Bitcoin investment gains at $281 million
Turkey ranks 25th in GDP at $761 billion but 16th in realised Bitcoin investment gains at $300 million
Spain ranks 19th in GDP at $1.4 trillion but 9th in realised Bitcoin gains at $554 million.
We also recently saw El Salvador become the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. Big plays like this could really factor in the Bitcoin gains list for 2021; could we see other countries challenge the US for top spot?
Solana is challenging Ethereum’s lion’s share of the decentralised applications market after rumours emerged it will receive a funding injection of between US$300-450 million.
Solana is making real progress towards positioning itself as the preferred blockchain on which the next generation of dApps are built, powering DeFi, NFTs and gaming. We also saw recently that SOL was listed on Coinbase Pro, which also boosts its tradability.
While Ethereum has struggled to meet the booming demand in the market as increased adoption has resulted in painfully slow transaction wait times and soaring gas prices, the current congestion issues have opened up the space for new contenders.
Solana’s open-source proof-of-stake blockchain aims to solve the traffic bottleneck on the Ethereum network. Solana’s advanced scalability offers dApps built on its blockchain lightning-fast performance at significantly cheaper costs to those built on Ethereum. Currently, Solana can handle more than 50,000 transactions per second, while Ethereum averages only 10-15 transactions per second. On its website, Solana boasts a low average fee of only $0.00025 per transaction.
The funding round for Solana was due to close in March but was extended due to strong interest. Solana has not released an official statement but, in a recent interview, executives did not deny it, commenting:
This information wasn’t shared by our team …We won’t be able to assist with any additional commentary around this as it’s not officially being released by Solana.
Solana spokesperson
According to Forbes, if the rumoured sum raised amounts to even $300 million, that would place it in the top six venture capital rounds in crypto and blockchain to date. It will be interesting to see if Solana comes under scrutiny from the SEC, who may deem the SOL tokens as securities and thus subject to regulatory challenges.
Learn more about the Solana project on the Solana Podcast.
Square, the digital payment firm, is partnering up with prominent Bitcoin and blockchain technology firm Blockstream to construct an open-source, solar-powered Bitcoin mining facility in the US.
According to an article released by Blockstream, the facility will be built at one of its mining sites. Blockstream will be providing the infrastructure and expertise to manage the project, while Square will be making a US$5 million investment.
Very cool to see @Blockstream and @Square partnering to build a solar-powered bitcoin mining facility.
Why is this mine so special? There are other mines that operate on renewable energy or offset their carbon emissions by buying carbon credits.
The difference is this mine will be open-source and aims to be completely transparent from construction to economics. The facility will be a proof-of-concept for a 100 percent renewable energy Bitcoin mine at scale, with the economics of the build-out – including operational costs and ROI – revealed to the public.
We hope that the open and transparent nature of the project will become a model that other businesses can learn from […] We’re hoping to demonstrate that a renewable mining facility in the real world is not only possible but also empirically prove that Bitcoin accelerates the world toward a sustainable future
Chris Cook, Chief Information Officer and head of mining, Blockstream
Two Birds With One Stone For Square
The new initiative is also part of Square’s pledge to make its Bitcoin activity carbon-neutral by 2030. Under that commitment Square has promised to fund Bitcoin projects that reduce its carbon footprint.
The bonus is that while Square is busy sustainably mining Bitcoin, its researchers will be able to document the process as a case study for future use. “We’re thrilled to partner with Blockstream to provide an open-source working model for our combined thesis that Bitcoin can further accelerate the renewable energy transition,” said Neil Jorgensen, Global ESG Lead at Square, Inc.
The project will serve as an ongoing, transparent case study that will allow us to all learn together the specific unit economics of clean-energy Bitcoin mining. We can’t wait to start sharing our results with the community.
Neil Jorgensen, Global ESG Lead at Square
Together, we'll be creating a public-facing dashboard to serve as a transparent case study for renewable energy and bitcoin mining. As we continue to explore the synergies between the two, we're excited to share our ongoing learnings and real world data points. (2/2)
More than 300 companies have submitted requests for payments and crypto exchange licences in Singapore, including Alibaba and Google.
Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), said the institute had received 300-plus requests as of June 4 since the institute established the Payment Services Act in 2020.
The MAS is now trying to speed up the application process for firms including Binance Holdings Ltd, Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd, and Alphabet Inc – the company behind Google.
Singapore to Become a FinTech Hub
Singapore is set to become a FinTech hub as the country saw over US$1.1 billion raised in FinTech firms last year. This represents record growth compared to 2014, when investments amounted to only US$20 million.
Firms are now waiting for the MAS to process their submissions. However, it might take time as the number of applications soared above expectations. It is not “something to be taken lightly”, Mohanty commented.
Giving licences to somebody is a premium, it is not something to be taken lightly. We are ensuring that whoever gets an MAS licence will be credible.
As Australians become increasingly interested in alternative investments, a recent survey by international cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has found that 40 percent of millennials prefer investing in digital assets over real estate.
More Than a Million Millennials Will Buy Crypto in the Coming Year
40% of millennials and 31% of Gen Zs believe crypto is a good alternative to property
20% of crypto investors view crypto holdings as being useful in saving for a home or investment property deposit
On average, Australian crypto investors have 12.5% of total assets in cryptocurrencies
10% hold more than 25% of total assets in digital currencies
Just under 25% of investors are long-term HODLers
As real estate investment becomes increasingly elusive, the report notes that up to 4 million Australians will be buying cryptocurrency in the coming 12 months, a third of whom are millennials. Up to 67 per cent of this group were found to believe that digital assets are a good alternative to an investment property. We also saw recent survey results that 49% of Money Invested into Bitcoin Would Have Gone into Stocks with over 62,000 answers, shows the percentage breakdown of investor capital by markets that was invested into cryptocurrencies..
Kraken Optimistic About APAC
Jonathon Miller, Kraken’s Australia-based managing director, says that cryptocurrency adoption in Australia is growing at a rapid pace with the bulk of demand rather unsurprisingly stemming from millennials and other younger generations. Miller notes:
Australians maintain some conservative attitudes towards investment. Property has been a cultural norm and high on the wish list for most investors, but as affordability continues to be an issue we’re seeing more young people look for other options to grow wealth.
Jonathon Miller
Jonathon Miller, Kraken Australia MD
Miller maintains a positive outlook for the broader Asia-Pacific region and confirms what many have long suspected, that youth is undoubtedly leading the way in crypto adoption:
We’re confident that as more investors look to diversify their portfolios and seek investment opportunities outside of the traditional offerings, we’ll see cryptocurrency come into its own in APAC.
MicroStrategy has announced offering US$400 million worth of Senior Secured Notes due in 2028 and using the funds to buy Bitcoin (BTC).
On June 7, the company said the secure notes will be available to qualified investors. This will be the first time a corporation issues a junk bond sale to buy cryptoassets.
MicroStrategy Announces Proposed Private Offering of $400 Million of Senior Secured Notes to acquire additional #bitcoin. $MSTRhttps://t.co/ilhUt1M73j
MicroStrategy reported an overall operating loss of US$183.2 million, led by a $194.1 million impairment in the last quarter. MicroStrategy’s MSTR stock has been down more than 60 percent since February 2021 – added to a massive debt and over-leveraged exposure to BTC.
MicroStrategy already owns 92,079 Bitcoins, which would account for roughly US$3 billion at press time. The firm said it needed to write down the value of its assets by approximately US$284.5 million in the next quarter due to BTC’s price plunge.
Many in the crypto community are considering this a risky move. But it seems the firm hasn’t given up on the father of all cryptos, and it’s showing it with this recent junk bond sale.
British-based multinational banking and financial services company Standard Chartered will launch a trading platform for institutional investors, with particular relevance to its Australian branch business and local banking in general.
SC Ventures is the innovation and ventures arm of Standard Chartered, which has 87,000 employees in more than 70 nations and US$789.050 billion in total assets. SC has partnered with Asian company BC Technology Group, owner of Hong Kong digital asset platform OSL, to establish a brokerage and exchange platform for clients in the UK and Europe, and ultimately Australia.
The joint venture is expected to be up and running in the fourth quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals, and aims to deliver access to liquidity in Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital assets.
Another Brick in the Digital Asset Wall
BC Group’s chief information officer Usman Ahmad, who will head up the new company, says that collaboration between market-leading firms is imperative to the continued development of robust global institutional digital asset infrastructure.
This joint venture will aid in maturing the digital asset ecosystem by combining OSL’s expertise in secure digital asset trading with SC Ventures’ capacity to develop future technology capabilities in banking and finance.
Usman Ahmad, SC/BC joint venture CEO
For the record, OSL subsidiary OSL Digital Securities made history in March when it executed Hong Kong’s first-ever licensed digital-asset trades.
Let’s take a closer look at this week’s altcoins showing breakout signals. We’ll dive into the trading charts and provide some analysis to help you.
1. Ethereum (ETH)
Ethereum is a decentralized open-source blockchain system that features its own cryptocurrency, Ether. ETH works as a platform for numerous other cryptocurrencies, as well as for the execution of decentralized smart contracts.
Ethereum’s own purported goal is to become a global platform for decentralized applications, allowing users from all over the world to write and run software that is resistant to censorship, downtime, and fraud.
Ethereum Price Analysis
At the time of writing, ETH is ranked 2nd cryptocurrency globally and the current price is A$3571. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis.
ETH‘s stunning rally to $5647 plummeted over 60 percent during May to sweep consolidation lows at $2576. This sweep of the lows could set the stage for a new bullish cycle to begin.
The price is currently balancing around the June monthly open. A quick stop runs into support beginning near $2527 could set the stage for a move into the daily gap beginning near $3255 – potentially reaching resistance near $4624.
A sweep of the highs near $3752, followed by a sharp sell-off, could hint that bears are preparing to run the swing low near $2810 AUD. This drop could find support around $2479 in the candle wick that created the May low. If the market remains bearish, the price will likely sweep May’s low into possible support near $2192.
2. Elastos (ELA)
Elastos aims to be a blockchain-powered version of the internet. The project originates all the way back to the year 2000; however, the current version that is based on blockchain technology and has been in active development by Elastos was founded in June 2017.
The team behind the project genuinely believes that Ethereum, as well as DApp platforms, faces limitations in scaling. While they are great for smart contracts, they are slow, not flexible at all, and inconvenient for full applications, according to Elastos. Elastos is a platform for decentralized apps (DApps for short) that claims to solve many of these limitations.
ELA Price Analysis
At the time of writing, ELA is ranked the 366th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is A$5.44. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis.
ELA formed relatively equal lows near A$3 after dropping over 81 percent during May. These lows could provide the target for another leg down, possibly finding support in the monthly gap of around $2.63.
If this sweep of the $3.90 swing lows occurs, more aggressive bulls might begin bidding the weekly level near the swing low around $3.37. Should the market take a more bullish turn, the level just below near $5.08 could provide some short-term support.
The steep drop left large areas of inefficient price action, making the daily gap up to $7.60 likely to be touched or filled. A sustained move through this resistance could visit a significant area on the monthly and weekly chart near $9.55.
3. Origin Protocol (OGN)
Origin Protocol is a network that allows market participants to share goods and services through peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. The platform aims to create an extensive online marketplace leveraging the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain and Interplanetary File System (IPFS) in order to eliminate the need for middlemen.
The protocol allows for the creation of a decentralized setting where both buyers and sellers can connect, check for available listings, write reviews, and perform many other actions. With this, fractional usage of assets can be traded more easily.
OGN Price Analysis
At the time of writing, OGN is ranked the 139th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is A$1.19. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis.
April started a gradual 87 percent decline in OGN‘s price. The move into February’s swing high saw a sharp jump in price, showing that some support exists near $0.59.
A sweep of the most recent swing lows into possible support beginning near $1.04 could lead to a rally over the June monthly open. This rally would likely sweep the swing high into the resistance near $1.55.
This potential bullish move could continue through the relatively equal swing highs near $1.89 – but is likely to find some resistance in the weekly level around $2.
Continued bearishness in the crypto markets might push the price to fill the weekly gap down to $0.54. This drop would sweep the stops under May’s low and potentially mark a new accumulation zone for the next bullish cycle.
Where to Buy or Trade Altcoins?
These 3 Altcoins have the highest liquidity on Binance Exchange, so that could help for trading on USDT or BTC pairs. Instead, if you’re looking at buying and HODLing cryptos, then Swyftx Exchange is a popular choice in Australia.
As concerns continue to build about the repression of cryptocurrencies in China, the tolls are visible in the market as crypto opinion leaders have their accounts blocked.
After the news of “Key Opinion Leaders” (KOL) accounts being banned on Weibo, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) and various other cryptos took a sharp dip. The Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) cast on crypto by the Chinese government has released quite a few Bitcoins from individuals fearing to lose their money.
Breaking: On Weibo (China's Twitter), a large number of cryptocurrency KOL accounts have been blocked. This is the harshest suspension of crypto in history, and it may be a response to Beijing's crackdown policy. pic.twitter.com/QaYehR3NnV
When reports of the blocked accounts hit around 5:30am ET (about 9:30 UTC), it triggered a drop in the price of most major cryptocurrencies. The plunge seen in the following price chart of Bitcoin starting at that time sent ripples through various other major cryptocurrencies.
BTC price chart 5 June [Trading View]
Drop during news launch of multiple cryptos [Trading View]
This is not the first time China’s social media platforms have purged influential accounts related to cryptocurrency. In 2019, Weibo banned the accounts of Binance co-founder Yi He and cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun.
However, does banning a few Weibo accounts actually mean anything? As of less than a week ago, the US also had a ban on crypto advertising on social media, which it has only recently revised.
Beijing’s Logic
According to the South China Morning Post last month, Liu He, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s top economic adviser, said the government would “crack down on Bitcoin mining and trading behaviour, and resolutely prevent the transfer of individual risks to society”. The Chinese government’s reasoning is that one of the risks cryptocurrencies pose is how easily the market can be influenced by individuals.
As Colin Wu, a Chinese journalist who runs a cryptocurrency news site, posted to Twitter: “The accounts blocked by the Chinese government are mainly recommending investment and trading crypto to retail investors.”
“The government makes it clear that no Chinese version of Elon Musk can exist in the Chinese crypto market,” says NYU Law School adjunct professor Winston Ma.
This shows the Chinese government doesn’t need more uncertainty than influencers already bring to the table.
Bitcoiners have long speculated as to which country would be first. Few would have suspected that it would be El Salvador, a small Central American country with a population of 6.4 million and GDP roughly equivalent to Polkadot’s market cap of approximately US$25 billion.
1. Great weather, world class surfing beaches, beach front properties for sale. 2. One of the few countries in the world with no property tax. 3. No capital gains tax for #Bitcoin, since it will be a legal currency. 4. Immediate permanent residence for crypto entrepreneurs. https://t.co/j3eugJQCMd
The news came on Saturday at the Bitcoin 2021 conference as Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador, announced via prerecorded video that he would be submitting a bill to Congress that would effectively treat Bitcoin as legal tender. Bukele also showed support of Bitcoin by updating his Twitter profile image with laser eyes.
Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador
Although not officially law as of yet, given that Bukele enjoys a supermajority in Congress, it is expected that the bill should pass with little difficulty. Bukele cited financial inclusion to the bankless and job creation as part of the bill’s motivation. With the US dollar as his nation’s currency, he went further in saying:
Central banks are increasingly taking actions that may cause harm to the economic stability of El Salvador. In order to mitigate the negative impact from central banks, it becomes necessary to authorise the circulation of a digital currency with a supply that cannot be controlled by any central bank and is only altered in accord with objective and calculable criteria.
El Salvador to Use Bitcoin Lightning Payments
Jack Mallers, CEO of Zap and Strike, a payments app built on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, noted that he would be working with the president to implement a plan to help provide relief to the 70 percent of the population who don’t have access to banks. Going further into Bitcoin’s benefits within the context of international remittances, Mallers noted:
Over 6 billion dollars a year are transmitted in remittances and a big chunk of those money transfers are currently lost to intermediaries. We want to make cross-border payments free and solve the remittance problem for places that need it the most.
Jack Mallers, CEO Zap and Strike
If passed, the bill would result in El Salvador becoming the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender and the first government to hold it as a reserve asset.
