Welcome to your daily crypto news digest. Here's what's making waves in the blockchain world today.
According to Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, France recently came close to passing a controversial law that would have required messaging apps to implement backdoors, granting police access to private user messages. However, the proposal was ultimately rejected by the French National Assembly.
The proposed backdoors sparked significant concerns about user privacy. Critics argued that such measures would:
Telegram, known for its commitment to user privacy, emphasized that it prioritizes encryption and the security of its users' data. Pavel Durov stated that Telegram would rather cease operations in a market than comply with regulations that undermine its encryption standards.
This development underscores the ongoing global debate surrounding privacy, security, and government surveillance in the digital era.
MicroStrategy, a company renowned for its substantial Bitcoin investments, has announced the acquisition of 6,556 bitcoins between April 14 and April 20. The purchase was made at an average price of $84,785 per bitcoin, amounting to a total investment of approximately $555.8 million.
This move further solidifies MicroStrategy's position as one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin, reflecting the company's long-term bullish stance on the cryptocurrency.
MicroStrategy, known at one point as Strategy, continues to make headlines with its aggressive Bitcoin accumulation strategy, showcasing its commitment to leveraging Bitcoin as a store of value and a hedge against inflation.
The Bitcoin hashprice—an indicator measuring the expected profit per petahash (PH) of computing power—has plummeted to approximately $44 per PH/s, nearing its lowest point in five years. This decline comes despite Bitcoin's higher market prices, as miners face challenges from rising network difficulty, lower transaction fees, and surging energy costs.
The current environment is putting significant pressure on miners, with some now operating near breakeven levels. The difficulties faced by the mining sector are also reflected in broader market performance. For example, the Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (ticker: WGMI) has declined by 50% year-to-date, underscoring the struggles of mining-focused companies.
This drop in hashprice highlights the interplay of multiple factors affecting profitability in the Bitcoin mining ecosystem. The rising energy costs and increased computational difficulty are making it harder for miners to sustain operations, even as Bitcoin's price remains relatively strong.
The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) has fallen to 98.6, marking its lowest level since March 2022. This milestone coincides with the period when the Federal Reserve began its rate-hiking cycle.
The index, which measures the dollar's strength relative to a basket of other major currencies, has dropped by 9% year-to-date. This decline reflects a weaker dollar in the global currency market, rather than domestic inflationary pressures.
The weaker dollar underscores a key point for investors: assets with gains below 9% in 2023 may effectively be losing value when measured in terms of global purchasing power. This trend highlights the importance of assessing investment performance in a global context.
Recent data reveals that public companies collectively hold approximately 700,000 BTC, a substantial portion of the total Bitcoin supply. Among these holdings, MicroStrategy, led by Michael Saylor, stands out as the largest corporate holder, accounting for a staggering 77% of the total holdings by public companies.
This dominance underscores MicroStrategy's unwavering commitment to Bitcoin as a store of value and a key component of its corporate strategy. Over the years, the company has consistently increased its Bitcoin reserves, solidifying its position as a major player in the crypto space.
The accumulation of Bitcoin by public companies reflects growing institutional confidence in the cryptocurrency as a long-term investment and a hedge against inflation. It also highlights the increasing integration of Bitcoin into mainstream financial systems.
As the adoption of Bitcoin among corporations continues to grow, this trend is likely to have lasting implications for the cryptocurrency market and its future trajectory.
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