The market value of Bitcoin fell as much as 30% in just 24 hours, but it has recovered. So far in May, the price of the pioneering cryptocurrency has fallen by 35%.

The sharpening of the correction in the price of Bitcoin (BTC) recently led the cryptocurrency to touch USD 30,000 for the first time since late January. The crypto asset momentarily lost about 30% of its market value in just 24 hours.

Although the price of Bitcoin recently fell to that level, it bounced back to around USD 39,000. Data from TradingView indicates that the price of the main cryptocurrency on the market fell to USD 30,066 at the lowest point of the day.

On January 28^th, the Bitcoin charts from that same source showed that price. Since that date, the price of Bitcoin had doubled, reaching a new all-time high above USD 64,000 in mid-April.

Bitcoin recently opened the day at USD 42,900 and lost almost USD 13,000 during a drop. At the time of writing this article, the cryptocurrency is trading at around USD 36,000 and has a market capitalization of more than USD 670 billion.

In the last 7 days, the first cryptocurrency has depreciated by about 40%. Tesla’s founder Elon Musk seems to be the one responsible for that situation. He launched a smear campaign against the alleged environmental impact of Bitcoin mining.

The Chinese government decided to ban transactions with cryptocurrencies to both institutions and payment services. Others believe that this could have contributed to the current situation in the market, completely in the red along with Bitcoin. However, this position of the Chinese government is nothing new.

May Has Been a Bloody Month to Bitcoin

In mid-April, the price of Bitcoin reached an all-time high but has since taken a considerable drop. Although the pioneering cryptocurrency closed last month in the red, there was not much difference between the beginning and the end of that period.

In May, the depreciation of the cryptocurrency that Satoshi Nakamoto created has been much more representative. At the beginning of the month, Bitcoin was trading on exchanges at almost USD 58,000. At the moment, its value is 35% below that mark.

The correction in the price of Bitcoin has caused panic among investors who have recently entered the cryptocurrency market. According to data from Glassnode, they have been selling young coins at a loss. However, long-term holders keep their positions unsold.

The “greed and fear” index seems to support the perception of a crisis of trust in investing in Bitcoin. However, the moment of “extreme fear” also has a connection with buying opportunities.

Various cryptocurrency analysts have made promising predictions, taking into account data such as the holding of coins in the long term. Renowned expert Willy Woo assures that the price of Bitcoin is below the real one during the drop. He foresees that the number of transactions with Bitcoin could lead to its recovery.

By Alexander Salazar

According to Cuattromo, the regulation on cryptocurrencies in Argentina should not harm innovation. The president of the financial institution says that Bitcoin is a product “whose nature very few people understand.”

Juan Cuattromo, the president of Banco Provincia of Buenos Aires, recently spoke about Bitcoin (BTC) and others. He said that the State must implement regulations on them but in such a way that they do not affect innovation.

The economics graduate argued that regulation is necessary “to protect the rights of users who have less information and knowledge.” According to the professional, this would serve to “avoid posing systemic risks,” according to the state news agency Télam.

Cuattromo defines cryptocurrencies as “products whose nature very few people understand” and that “operate in completely unregulated markets.” In this way, the president of the state bank justifies his position that “there is a whole universe with a regulatory agenda that we cannot skip.”

He considers that one of the risks of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is what can “happen in bad scenarios.” However, he did not specify if he was referring to steep falls in price or other types of scenarios. Faced with adverse situations for cryptocurrencies, the official fears that people will complain to the State and it will not be able to respond adequately.

“Experience tells us that regulation has a role to protect the rights of users in bad scenarios. For example, subprime mortgages seemed like very effective access to housing. The problem is that no one internalized the risks correctly, for which the regulation has a role,” said Cuattromo.

Argentina’s Bitcoin Regulation “Must Not Kill Innovation”

In the interview with Télam, Cuattromo reiterated that “the regulatory agenda should not kill innovation, but rather accompany and understand it.” According to the economist, it is necessary “to protect those who have less information and knowledge as they will have more exposure to an adverse scenario.”

Cuattromo seemed to anticipate criticism from those who reject state regulations on the use of crypto assets. He said that “whenever financial crises erupt, we look back and see that this was going to end badly. However, the authorities said that they should regulate them, someone replied that they would kill innovation. They need to be careful.”

There is a Greater Adoption of Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies in Argentina

There is a rapid devaluation of the Argentine peso (ARS), a history of “financial corralitos”, and restrictions on the purchase of foreign fiat currencies. These factors have led many inhabitants of Argentina to protect their assets in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. For example, those who used to save in US dollars particularly appreciate stablecoins but can no longer do so due to foreign exchange restrictions.

One in ten FinTechs in the South American country is related to Bitcoin or blockchains. That is a sign of the great growth of the industry around crypto assets, according to a report by the Argentine Chamber of FinTech.

By Alexander Salazar

Due to the dry season in the country, the production of electricity fell. Miners’ consumption could increase problematic situations such as blackouts, according to the government.

Mostafa Rajabi, the spokesman of Iran’s Energy Minister, talked about the people who mine cryptocurrencies from their homes. He stated that, once the authorities identify them, they will receive significant fines as a punishment. The main reason for that is the impact that this has on electricity consumption in the country.

Rajabi argues that cryptocurrency mining is one of the two big threats to the electricity supply this year. Besides, there has been a decline in hydroelectric power generation due to the dry season. According to the official, this activity could even cause blackouts in many areas of the country.

Government entities decided to apply heavy penalties on those who are detected conducting this activity from their homes. Additionally, they will have to compensate for the damage that they do to the national electricity supply, according to The Tehran Times.

They stress that the damage that over-demand can cause to distribution grids and generators is the main problem. In 2020, electricity providers agreed with the government to supply the surplus exclusively to cryptocurrency miners. However, this consumption does not receive the subsidies that the State provides.

Cryptocurrency Mining Is a Relevant Matter in Iran

The low cost of electricity has allowed Iran to rank as one of the most relevant countries for cryptocurrency miners worldwide. It has even awakened the interest of miners originally based in China, another fertile ground for this industry.

Cryptocurrency mining in this country received its approval in 2019 and has been growing since then. At the beginning of this year, the authorities closed 500 illegal farms dedicated to this activity, in addition to more than 1,000 previously closed.

The news on the Iranian government’s interest in using cryptocurrencies to pay for imports has been another relevant matter since last year. To enable this strategy, the authorities forced the miners based in the country to sell their cryptocurrencies to the central bank.

The government of Iran also banned the purchase of cryptocurrencies mined abroad. In other words, it is only possible to purchase those coins extracted in the country. The purpose of this decision is to avoid a flight of capital. However, cryptocurrency trading remains forbidden in the country except for the sale to the central bank. For that reason, the regulations only reinforce others that the authorities previously imposed.

Iran and Its Position on Foreign Cryptocurrency Mining

Iran banned transactions with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies mined or extracted outside the country. According to reports, the central bank adopted new measures to restrict operations of this type in Iran.

The central bank announced that, according to the Cabinet’s decision, making transactions with digital currencies mined outside the country is forbidden. In other words, it is only possible to use coins mined within the country. The government made this announcement on Iran International a UK-based Persian television station.

By Alexander Salazar

The price of Cardano rises by more than 40% and presents itself as the best payment option for Tesla. Huobi Token appreciates by 25%, Polkadot gains 21%, and Stellar advances by 12%.

The cryptocurrency market has recently seen ups and downs, mainly due to the big correction of Bitcoin. About 80% of altcoins suffered drops, except for some that exceeded 40%, according to Live Coin Watch statistics.

Cardano (ADA) leads the weekly top 50, drawing attention as its executives offered it as an alternative to Bitcoin for Tesla. This cryptocurrency precedes Huobi Token (HT), Polkadot (DOT), Stellar (XLM) and EOS on the weekly top 50.

The price of Bitcoin has seen a significant drop in the last seven days. On May 12^th, the pioneering cryptocurrency fell from USD 54,500 to USD 45,700, that is, it depreciated by around 17%.

Elon Musk’s Tweet Makes Bitcoin’s Price Drop Significantly

A tweet from billionaire Tesla founder Elon Musk seems to have been the reason for that drop in the price of Bitcoin. The businessman announced that the electric vehicle company would no longer accept payments with the pioneering cryptocurrency. That happened a few weeks after he had listed Bitcoin as one of their payment methods.

One of the arguments that led Musk to that decision is the alleged environmental impact of Bitcoin mining. Following his announcement, the price of BTC plummeted, showing small increases in recent days.

The Fall in Bitcoin’s Price Contributes to Ether’s Depreciation

As for Ether (ETH), it has been bullish most of the time. However, it has been undergoing a correction, possibly tied to Bitcoin’s crash, which recently drove it lower. The price of ETH moved between USD 3,800 and more than USD 4,300, depreciating by 0.9%.

Despite a recent slight drop, the second cryptocurrency on the market exceeded its all-time high. On May 10^th, it broke the USD 4,000 psychological barrier.

Along with the increase in ETH’s price, its market capitalization also grew. It went above USD 500 billion, momentarily outperforming finance company JPMorgan. Besides, Ether surpassed large companies such as Walt Disney, Walmart, Bank of America (BoA), and PayPal, among others.

Regarding market capitalization, XRP lost 13% and Litecoin (LTC) depreciated by 8%. In contrast, the price of Cardano (ADA) advanced by more than 40% and Polkadot (DOT) gained 20%, which puts them on the weekly top 50.

The Cardano Cryptocurrency Presents Itself as an Alternative to Bitcoin

The Cardano Foundation believes that its native cryptocurrency ADA could be better than Bitcoin for trading Tesla’s electric vehicles. They intruded on the public debate after Elon Musk decided to stop accepting BTC as a means of payment, claiming environmental concerns.

The price of ADA skyrocketed when Cardano posted on Twitter that the cryptocurrency was better for Tesla. In that way, it broke the all-time high above USD 1.7 that it had reached on May 7^th.

More recently, the cryptocurrency traded above USD 2, peaking at USD 2.29. The price of ADA has risen by more than 40% in the last 7 days.

At the time of writing this article, ADA is trading at around USD 2.20 and has a market capitalization of more than USD 70 billion. Meanwhile, HT is trading at around USD 29 and has a market capitalization above USD 5 billion.

By Alexander Salazar