The CEO of Tesla No Longer Influences the Price of Bitcoin or Dogecoin

A single tweet from Musk used to make the value of Bitcoin rise or drop significantly in a matter of hours. As the market matures, personalities and influencers will have less power over the price of cryptocurrencies.

In the past, a single tweet from Elon Musk caused the price of Bitcoin (BTC) to climb by 20%. Meme coins Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) also benefited significantly from the comments from the businessman. However, personalities and influencers seem not to have any power over the market of those crypto assets.

Some disagree with the above statements, alleging that characters like Elon Musk and Michael Saylor are more active than ever. They also react to the opinions of those people, placing great importance on their posts on their social networks. However, the market yields other data, although the dynamics at the social level remain the same.

Musk Keeps His Bitcoin Holdings amid the Current World Situation

Elon Musk recently confessed that the growing inflation in the United States and the imminent international crisis led him to keep his cryptocurrency holdings. He recognized that Bitcoin serves as a store of value during unfavorable economic situations like the current one.

However, the Bitcoin price did not react significantly to the statements from Elon Musk. It continued moving sideways between USD 37,000 and USD 38,000, as it had been doing since Russia decided to invade Ukraine.

In early 2021, Musk changed his biography to the Bitcoin acronym, making the community crazy and boosting the price by 20% in just hours. Some bitcoiners saw the billionaire as a god, believing that he would elevate Bitcoin to the path of global adoption.

A few months later, Musk antagonized the community by arguing that Bitcoin mining harmed the environment. For that reason, Tesla stopped receiving the cryptocurrency as a payment method for its electric cars.

At that time, his devastating tweets caused the price of the pioneering cryptocurrency to drop from USD 60,000 to almost USD 40,000. That happened less than a year ago when the comments from Musk seemed to be more important than those from experienced cryptocurrency specialists.

How Musk Lost His Influence over Bitcoin

Now one single person does not have the power to make the Bitcoin price rise or drop by more than 20% in a single day. However, it is relevant to delve into the reasons for the decline in the influence of Musk and other personalities on cryptocurrencies.

The views of Musk are no longer new, and there are global economic factors with much greater weight in the financial market. Presidents, economists, firms like Visa, and ordinary people talk quite properly about Bitcoin. The comments from the billionaire have become irrelevant as he has accepted and rejected the crypto asset many times.

For that reason, when Musk talks about Bitcoin, very few people see his words as crucial milestones. Besides, the Dogecoin market, one of the most supported by the businessman, did not react to his positive comments. Investors are looking for information from sources other than Twitter before deciding where to put their money.

By Alexander Salazar

Some Privacy-Focused Altcoins Yield up to 50% Profit to Investors

The price of ZEC had a 44.13% increase in its trading price over the last week. While the value of BEAM rose by 13.16%, XMR obtained an appreciation of 10.51%.

Privacy-focused cryptocurrencies have been gaining traction among investors for over a week. There is a war scenario between Russia and Ukraine, and the governments seek to restrict transactions with crypto assets.

Three of the cryptocurrencies with the highest appreciation in the last few weeks precisely focus on the privacy and transactions of users. That is evident when considering that the price of one has risen by almost 45%.

However, none of those privacy-focused cryptocurrencies have seen the most significant increase over the last week. The most appreciated in the market has been WAVES, reaching an almost 50% increase in its value in recent weeks.

Its price went from USD 17.8 to USD 26.62 per unit, and its total market capitalization exceeded USD 2.8 billion. Furthermore, its trading volume was close to USD 1 billion on exchanges.

As for privacy cryptocurrencies, Zcash (ZEC), BEAM, and Monero (XMR) rose by 44.13%, 13%, and 10%, respectively.

The gains of the above cryptocurrencies stand out compared to the leading coins, which closed to the downside. That was the case for Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Binance Coin (BNB), Cardano (ADA), and Solana (SOL).

The Total Capitalization of Zcash Exceeds USD 2 Billion Again

Zcash took the lead among privacy cryptocurrencies, with a 44.13% increase in its trading price over the last week. The crypto asset exceeded USD 150 per unit and has turned green so far this year.

The momentum gained by ZEC last week led it to exceed USD 2 billion in total capitalization again. The trading volumes on exchanges increased by nearly USD 500 million up 47% from the previous period.

The BEAM Price Rises despite Its Low Marketing Levels

BEAM is also among the privacy cryptocurrencies that have risen the most in value over the last week. Judging by the prices, the market seems to be increasingly demanding that feature.

The third-largest cryptocurrency by the appreciation of the week rose by 13.16% in that period. Its market capitalization is close to USD 100 million, although its trading volumes are low compared to other cryptocurrencies.

Investors and the Government of Ukraine Have XMR on the Radar

The leading privacy cryptocurrency in the market rose in value over the last week. Monero seems to have appreciated by 10.51% after Ukraine incorporated it as a donation method in the war with Russia.

Curiously, XMR appears among the five most appreciated cryptocurrencies, although the rise in its price reversed violently. It had a 10% increase at the close, but it was over 70% at some point.

At its highest point, the price exceeded USD 270 per unit, up from its high of this year. However, its value closed at USD 175 over the last week.

Cryptocurrencies play an increasingly relevant role in the economy, and investors know that. Since the value of some privacy-focused crypto assets has increased significantly, traders turn to them to make considerable profits.

By Alexander Salazar

Bitcoin Traces $39,000 Level Ahead of Europe’s Vote on Proof-of-Work Legality

Bitcoin (BTC) was flat at $39,000, until the close on Wall Street on Monday, as stocks took the opportunity to recoup some losses.

Bitcoin price action stabilizes on the first day of a week that should see multiple tests of determination from traders.

Bulls Need a “Miraculous” Recovery to the $40,600 Level

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed that the BTC/USD pair was flat at the opening bell on March 14. The pair recovered from a last minute drop to the weekly close on Sunday to avoid a deeper pullback so far.

However, the week would bring many potential challenges for the bulls, starting with a European vote on banning cryptocurrencies with proof-of-work algorithms on Monday.

Wednesday, nevertheless, was the focus; the US Federal Reserve was due to announce a key rumored interest rate hike of 25 basis points.

Meanwhile, geopolitical tensions surrounding the Russian invasion of Ukraine, coupled with the resurgence of the coronavirus in China, have added to the list of obstacles.

Therefore, traders were lackluster on the immediate outlook, given what the market had to navigate. For Crypto Ed, the 0.618 Fibonacci level at around $40,400 was set to form a local top before a deeper pullback took hold.

Crypto Ed remarked that only a “miraculous” rally to $40,600 could produce a bullish outcome.

Meanwhile, trader and analyst Anbessa highlighted a cutoff point of $37,600 for the bulls to defend.

On live order book charts, on-chain monitoring resource Material Indicators further marked further selling pressure appearing at $40,000 on Monday.

“The new BTCUSDT pair request liquidity that has just appeared seems to be trying to push the price down to the offer scale below. Expecting it to be withdrawn if the offers fill,” the account commented on a chart showing the Binance order book changes.

Bloomberg Analyst: Bitcoin “Cold” vs. Oil

Moving on to longer timeframes, Bloomberg Intelligence Chief Strategist Mike McGlone reiterated his view that Bitcoin would ultimately emerge stronger from the current turmoil.

Bitcoin, he noted that day, was defying an “ebb tide” in demand for risky assets by protecting most of its support.

“The fact that one of the most volatile and best-performing assets since the financial crisis, Bitcoin, shows relative buoyancy in a ebbing tide of risky assets in Q1 may herald the maturation of cryptocurrencies towards digital collateral, in a world that goes that way,” he argued alongside a chart comparing WTI oil to BTC.

Commodities continued to be the biggest movers at the start of the week, while oil futures, however, started to cool off.

Meanwhile, Europe Votes against MiCA, not Proof-of-Work

The crypto community should be celebrating as the European Union (EU) has voted against the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation. The early vote to pass would jeopardize cryptocurrency mining that uses the Proof-of-Work (PoW) algorithm, Bitcoin and Ethereum miners can now breathe more freely.

As known, PoW offers a solid security guarantee to the cryptocurrency protocol; however it has a high environmental cost due to the fact that it requires a lot of electricity to power the machinery necessary for mining, this is the characteristic that some politicians tried to tackle.

After the announcement of the vote results, so far the prices of BTC and ETH have not reported changes, although this situation could be different as the news spreads.

By Audy Castaneda

Bitcoin Price Could Crumble Down to USD 30,000 or Less if it does not Strengthens its Demand

Bitcoin price fails to stay afloat and keep its position above $40,000. While the cryptocurrency’s bottom has been rising, analysts think it could suddenly fall.

The bitcoin price does not look like it will climb up in the next few days. This thought is what some analysts say about the first cryptocurrency; they warn that there has not been enough demand to boost its price. Something that makes them think that the cryptocurrency could crumble down to the USD 30,000 line or even less.

For at least seven weeks, the price of bitcoin has shown a strong position above $37,000, suggesting that this position is its support line. This figure has only held for a few hours and then has been mainly above $38,000 with peaks approaching almost $45,000.

However, the price hasn’t managed to stay above the $40,000 bar for long. Some experts think there is some weakness in demand, so its price may even decay below the support line it has built.

The economist Gael Sánchez Smith, alias “Papa Bitcoin,” explained on March 14 via Twitter that although the price of bitcoin has been able to reach a position at the bottom, users haven’t observed a peak in volume and negative funding that has got observed in previous soils.

Considering this fragile macro situation, Gael Sánchez Smith thinks that a fall to the USD 28,000-30,000 zone would not seem debatable. At that mark, he would expect to see signs that it could form a turning point for its price to reach a high peak again.

Bitcoin at USD 30,000 Would be the Historical Low of 2022

A point of view similar to Gael Sánchez Smith got visualized by the financial investment specialist Alberto Cárdenas, who spoke on Twitter about how he spots some weaknesses in Bitcoin. He also expressed that he thinks the digital currency would revisit the USD 30,000 very soon without giving enough details.

Analyst Willy Woo, who revealed his latest bitcoin prediction bulletin last week, reappeared with an update. In this bonus track, he explained that the cryptocurrency’s price could have a less dramatic downward behavior. Woo expressed his opinion considering that $30,000-35,000 still looks like a solid point.

According to Willy Woo, there will be less volatility for the next few weeks, and then it will increase when more demand re-enters the market. Based on previous bearish timeframes, this phenomenon may take a month or two to happen.

Woo also explained that he believes a sudden capitulation event would be necessary to revive the buying behavior. Currently, the market is reacting to sell due to the economic uncertainty caused by Russia’s attack against Ukraine. And interestingly, in the face of news that may benefit the cryptocurrency industry, traders are not responding to purchasing bitcoin for a long time.

A proof of this behavior is the order of measures created last Thursday by the United States of America president, Joe Biden. This initiative demonstrates its confidence in letting the use of digital assets evolve and could have caused a massive wave of bitcoin purchases that made its price rise and remain above USD 40,000. However, the market did not behave this way.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Bitcoin Mining Still in Danger in Europe, MPs May Appeal Vote

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Bitcoin will go under the regulation known as Sustainable Financial Taxonomy. Those who voted against can now go to the tripartite dialogue.

The draft of the Markets for Cryptographic Assets (MiCA) bill, which has been under discussion since 2020, will finally not include article 2a that proposed to limit digital mining and the use of cryptocurrencies based on the mechanism of proof of work (PoW), like Bitcoin.

However, MPs who raise energy concerns can still appeal and have it reviewed by a tripartite commission.

Members of the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee voted 32 to 24 against the final version of the European Union bill that sought to limit cryptocurrency mining, as CriptoNoticias reported earlier.

The next step has been a new voting process to approve the document that establishes a regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry. This legislation establishes a licensing regime throughout the continent and a single regulation for the Member States.

The proposal with the greatest acceptance was the one presented by the deputy Stefan Berger, who proposes including cryptocurrencies in the scope of action of another European environmental regulation, known as Sustainable Financial Taxonomy.

The Taxonomy Regulation, which has been in force since mid-2021, establishes criteria to qualify an economic or investment activity as environmentally sustainable.

Once approved in a new voting process, the draft MiCA Law will go through a subsequent discussion or tripartite dialogue. The Parliament, the Council representing the 27 member states, as well as the Commission of the European Union, participate in it.

Two months after its approval, the law is likely to enter into force, which could be in the middle of this year.

However, companies will have a 6-month transition period to comply with the requirements, commented on Twitter Patrick Hansen, a member of the community who has closely followed the entire process carried out by Europe to regulate cryptocurrencies.

Europe May Still Ban Bitcoin Mining

Although most members of the European Parliament voted against the article that limited Bitcoin mining, they can still prohibit the activity in Europe. This is because the voters in favor of the ban have one last option since they could try to make their proposal gain strength through tripartite dialogues to take the discussion to the plenary session of Parliament.

“To do that”, according to Patrick Hansen, strategy lead for the DeFi Unstoppable Finance project, “they need 10% of the votes of the European Parliament, which they already have. That would bring the PoW discussion into the high-level political arena. Since we cannot predict how it would play out, that is something that should be avoided. Even if it doesn’t change the vote on PoW, it would unnecessarily delay regulation for at least a couple more months.”

Hansen adds that even outside of MiCA regulation, the discussion about regulating Bitcoin proof-of-work, or mining, has a long way to go. He believes that the debate will return in the framework of the implementation of the rules to include digital mining in the sustainability taxonomy regulation or when the European Union intends to regulate data centers, as it has already warned before.

By Audy Castaneda

No Ban for Bitcoin: European Parliament Votes against Provision to Limit PoW

Lawmakers in Europe rejected the problematic provision to prohibit proof-of-work (PoW) cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

Europe will not prohibit Bitcoin, and other digital currencies focused on proof-of-work (PoW) procedures. The European Union Parliament rejected a debatable provision that would restrain the use of PoW-based digital currencies due to their effects on the natural environment this Monday.

Parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee decided together through a vote to keep the provision out of the draft of the framework ‘Markets in Crypto Assets,’ the European bloc’s sweeping legislative package to set a regulation over digital assets.

Patrick Hansen, strategy leader of the Defi project, Unstoppable Finance, revealed the situation through his Twitter account, mentioning sources linked to the economic committee. According to Hansen, the provision got rejected after gaining 34 votes against 24 favorable votes. News outlet CoinDesk also followed the decision closely, citing people related to the proposal.

The Argument behind the Provision

The provision in question intends to limit the use of digital assets driven by an energy-intensive computing process named PoW in the 37 EU member states.

The proposal highlighted that all would be subject to minimum environmental sustainability standards concerning their consensus procedure to validate transactions before getting issued or admitted to sealing a trade.

According to CoinDesk, it also proposed a phase-out plan to switch its consensus procedure from proof-of-work to other powerless ways such as proof-of-stake.

The regulations would have limited the use of Bitcoin and Ethereum. However, the impact on the latter would have been less, as the second-biggest cryptocurrency is upgrading to switch to a proof-of-work method.

A similar provision got also added to the draft MiCA and then withdrawn in early March after widespread rejection from the cryptocurrency industry. Although less strict than the previous one, the most recent proposal also got criticized by the crypto community due to the impact caused on the Bitcoin environment.

Discussion about PoW is far from Reaching an End

The MiCA draft will now go to the discussion stage between the European Commission, the council, and Parliament. However, the PoW discussion is far from reaching an ending point. The groups that have lost the vote could still show an opposite stance against a fast-track MiCA procedure through a series of discussions and bring another encounter with the whole Parliament.

Hansen explained that this situation would bring the debate regarding the POW into the high-level political arena. Since the implied parts cannot predict how it would develop, it should get avoided. Even if the vote on POW can’t face a change, it would unnecessarily settle a delay in the regulation for at least some months.

Proof-of-work, particularly crypto mining activity, has been facing a heavy wave of criticism from some regulators worldwide due to energy concerns, even before the use of renewable energies. In Europe, politicians and regulators from various Nordic countries have requested more robust measures to deal with Bitcoin mining since last year.

By: Jenson Nuñez