Bitcoin's price has returned to 2020 lows, while the cryptocurrency market cap has fallen below $1 trillion for the first time since January last year. These and more news in this practical daily summary so that you are always informed with the most recent events that occur within the crypto world.
Cryptocurrency value returns to 18-month lows
📍The cryptocurrency market fell by more than 12% on Monday. Bitcoin has lost 17% of its value in the past 24 hours, falling to $22.300 at the time of writing.
The unusual move by lending platform Celsius Network on Monday to suspend trading on its platform further fueled a sell-off in cryptocurrencies, leading to a fall in the value of Bitcoin. As a result, the cryptocurrency market has lost more than 12% of its market capitalization in the past 24 hours.
As CoinMarketCap shows, the crypto market capitalization is at an 18-month low, with a total value of 942.200 million as of today. This value was last seen in January 2021.
Source: CoinMarketCap
MicroStrategy and the fall of Bitcoin
📍MicroStrategy shares lose 25% of their value. Bitcoin's largest institutional investor, MicroStrategy, has been hit by the cryptocurrency's plunge on Monday. Shares of the business intelligence company have lost more than 25% of their value in the past 24 hours.
MicroStrategy, which holds a total of 129.918 bitcoins, is seeing red ink on its balance sheet. The company's Bitcoin investment reportedly reflects a current unrealized loss of nearly $1.000 billion. On top of this, the bitcoins pledged as collateral for the loan it took out from Silvergate Bank last March could be liquidated to repay the loan if the asset continues its market decline.
At Bitcoin's current price of $22.300 per unit, MicroStrategy's investment in the cryptocurrency is valued at just over $2.890 billion. By the end of last month, this same investment amounted to about $4.150 billion.
Despite Bitcoin's depreciation, MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor remains steadfast in his investment strategy in BTC as a long-term store of value. Recently, Saylor changed his Twitter profile picture to one with “laser eyes.” He also wrote “In Bitcoin We Trust”, in the social network.
Markets and investment instruments affected
📍ETFs related to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are also falling. Crypto exchange-traded funds are experiencing sharp declines as Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency market continue to lose value.
The Purpose Bitcoin ETF (BTCC), the first Bitcoin ETF approved in Canada, has seen a drop of over 20% in the past 24 hours. Likewise, the Brazilian BTC ETF, the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index Fund (HASH11), has also fallen sharply.
Shares of crypto-related companies, whether they offer direct services or hold crypto assets on their balance sheets, are also suffering from the current crypto market meltdown. In addition to MicroStrategy, crypto mining companies such as Marathon Patent Group and Riot Blockchain are among the hardest hit.
Kruger: “Celsius has little to do with the stETH drama”
📍Experts tell The Block that the current volatility in the crypto market is due to macroeconomic conditions. While the shutdown of Celsius Network has fueled fear among cryptocurrency investors, several experts told The Block that it is the macroeconomic conditions that have actually accentuated the crisis in the crypto market, increasing its volatility.
Aya Kantorovich, head of institutional coverage at FalconX, commented that her clients and investors “are much more concerned about macro than Celsius.”
For his part, economist and analyst Alex Kruger said on Twitter that the fall of the cryptocurrency market has little to do with Celsius and the stETH drama. “Celsius added 1.2x to fuel”, Kruger said. “But without Friday's CPI numbers and the stock market crash, this wouldn't have happened."He said.
Innovation, Development and Technology
📍Mendoza, Argentina, will implement blockchain in public tenders. Argentine Senator Pablo Priore has presented a bill that seeks to apply blockchain technology in public tenders, in order to adapt his innovation to improve tendering processes and increase transparency, efficiency, traceability and decentralization in public administration. This is what reported the senator of the province of Mendoza in a program broadcast on the local radio station LVDiez.
Martin Kerchner, senator for the province of Mendoza, is collaborating with Priore in the development of the regulatory proposal. The vision of both senators with blockchain technology is to mitigate the risks of fraud and manipulation.
Continue reading: The number of cryptocurrency ATMs in Spain grows 16% this year
