The price of bitcoin rose above $48,000 on Thursday, marking a 10 per cent increase since the start of the week.
Other leading cryptocurrencies also saw gains, spurred on by positive news in the crypto space.
Cinema chain AMC announced that it would accept Ethereum (ether), bitcoin cash and litecoin alongside bitcoin payments for tickets, in what is the latest demonstration of growing mainstream acceptance of cryptocurrencies.
The overall crypto market grew by more than 2.3 per cent over the last 24 hours, taking it back above $2.19 trillion. Analysts remain divided over the long-term trajectory of the market.
British banking giant Standard Chartered noted recently that bitcoin’s value could hit new all-time highs around late 2021 or early 2022, but other forecasts say current trends could result in lows below $20k by the end of the year.
You can follow all the latest news, updates and expert predictions right here.
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Key points
Billionaire investor warns regulators could try to ‘kill’ bitcoin
16:28 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Ray Dalio, the founder of the world’s largest hedge fund, has warned that if bitcoin becomes too popular then regulators will try to “kill it”.
Dalio has frequently raised concerns about cryptocurrencies, however revealed that he owns an undisclosed amount of bitcoin and considers it a viable store of value.
“I think at the end of the day if it’s successful, they will kill it and they will try to kill it. And I think they will kill it because they have ways of killing it,” the billionaire investor told CNBC’s Squawk Box.
“I think it’s worth considering all the alternatives to cash and all the alternatives to the other financial assets. Bitcoin is a possibility. I have a certain amount of money in bitcoin.”
Crypto experts make and discuss price predictions
16:08 , Anthony Cuthbertson
With analysts divided over which way bitcoin and the rest of the market is headed, we invited to experts to discuss how it might play out over the coming weeks and months.
On the bullish side was Fred Schebesta, a crypto advocate and founder of comparison platform Finder.com, whose predictions about Solana’s meteoric price rise earlier this year during a similar chat proved spot on.
Presenting another side was Simon Trimborn, an assistant professor at the Department of Management Sciences at the City University of Hong Kong, who talked about his recent research into price predictions from cryptocurrency experts and how they relate to actual market movements.
You can watch the full discussion here.
Crypto experts discuss bitcoin price predictions
AMC accepts other crypto payments alongside bitcoin
15:49 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Cinema chain AMC has announced plans to accept more cryptocurrencies as a form of payment for tickets beyond just bitcoin.
Customers will be able to pay using Ethereum (ether), litecoin and bitcoin cash.
AMC CEO Adam Aron tweeted that crypto payments will be introduced by the end of the year. The news has been widely praised by crypto advocates, though fans of dogecoin have criticised the decision to not include the meme-inspired altcoin.
Bitcoin price consolidation continues
15:16 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The crypto market is up 2.1 per cent over the last 24 hours, as bitcoin continues its steady recovery.
It reached above $48,000 on Thursday, having plunged below $44,000 earlier this week. It has since slipped back down slightly but remains above $47,000 – nearly exactly the same price it was at this time last week.
Other leading cryptocurrencies have also seen a steady rise throughout the week so far, most notably Polkadot (DOT), which has seen a 20 per cent price increase in recent days.
Wednesday 15 September 2021 05:02 , Vishwam Sankaran
Bitcoin is showing further signs of recovery since last week’s crash.
The price of bitcoin has touched $47,000 for the first time in 5 days, and has grown in value by about 4 per cent in the last 24 hours.
The global crypto market has grown by about 3.5 per cent over the last day, and the chart is not all red as it was last week.
Other cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE) and Binance Coin (BNB) are also showing signs of recovery in the last 24 hours.
Ask a crypto expert anything
Tuesday 14 September 2021 20:56 , Anthony Cuthbertson
With the crypto market in a state of relative limbo, we’ve invited a couple of experts to unpick recent events and to take readers’ questions about what to expect over the coming days, weeks, months and years.
Simon Trimborn, an assistant professor at the Department of Management Sciences at the City University of Hong Kong, and Fred Schebesta, a crypto advocate and founder of comparison platform Finder.com, will join us tomorrow at 11am BST.
You can ask your questions in the comment section of this article.
Ask bitcoin experts anything about the crypto market crash
Bitcoin price shows signs of recovery
Tuesday 14 September 2021 14:32 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The price of bitcoin has returned above $46,000, rising by around 5 per cent over the last 24 hours.
Bitcoin’s gains have helped push the global crypto market up by 3.3 per cent since this time yesterday.
The tentative recovery has been mirrored by several other leading cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ether), Ripple (XRP) and Polkadot (DOT).
A snapshot from CoinMarketCap’s price index shows that it is not market-wide, with Cardano (ada) and Solana (SOL) among those failing to reverse the downward trend of recent days.
MicroStrategy adds $500m to its bitcoin stash
Monday 13 September 2021 16:57 , Anthony Cuthbertson
MicroStrategy has added to its already considerable bitcoin holdings by purchasing nearly half a billion dollars worth of the cryptocurrency.
CEO Michael Saylor announced the purchase on Twitter, revealing that the bitcoins were bought between 1 July and 12 September at an average cost of just over $48,000. Bitcoin has since dropped in price slightly but the average cost of all previous purchases mean the $3.16 billion that the software firm has spent on crypto is now worth more than $5 billion.
“As of 9/12/21 we #hodl ~114,042 bitcoins acquired for ~$3.16 billion at an average price of ~$27,713 per bitcoin,” he wrote.
You can read the full story here.
MicroStrategy buys another $250m worth of bitcoin in hope of 100X price growth
BREAKING: Litecoin price chaos after Walmart hoax
Monday 13 September 2021 15:37 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Confusion in the crypto market after news emerged that Walmart had partnered with litecoin in order to offer cryptocurrency payments to its customers.
The price of litecoin shot up by more than a third before it was revealed that the news release was a hoax, potentially part of a massive pump and dump scheme.
Several leading publications and news wires reported the Walmart news before realising it was fake, including Reuters.
You can read the developing story here.
Crypto market hit by chaos after fake Walmart announcement
Floki price soars after Elon Musk dog tweet
Monday 13 September 2021 13:09 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The price of several Shiba Inu-themed cryptocurrencies have surged on Monday after Elon Musk shared an image of his new puppy.
“Floki has arrived,” the Tesla boss tweeted alongside the picture of the sleeping Shiba Inu dog.
Within minutes, the price of Floki Inu coin, Floki Shiba and Super Floki all shot up to new record highs. The obscurity of the altcoins mean that even despite the latest price rise, they still remain outside the list of the top 2,000 cryptocurrencies on CoinMarketCap.
You can read the full story here.
Elon Musk causes obscure crypto to suddenly surge in price after naming dog after it
Monday 13 September 2021 04:49 , Vishwam Sankaran
More countries seem to be on track for bitcoin adoption as legal tender.
City A.M. reported quoting Russian financial expert, Professor Vyacheslav Evgenyev, that Ukraine could be planning to make bitcoin legal tender by the start of 2023.
The Eastern European country already passed a draft law to legalise cryptocurrencies after El Salvador’s bitcoin adoption came into effect to open up the crypto market to businesses and investors by next year.
Panamanian Congressman Gabriel Silva also announced a bill last week titled “Crypto Law: Making Panama Compatible with the digital economy, blockchain, crypto assets, and the internet.”
Former NSA analyst Edward Snowden has said there is growing pressure on competing nations to acquire bitcoin – “even if only as a reserve asset.”
Friday 10 September 2021 04:58 , Vishwam Sankaran
El Salvador’s bitcoin adoption may cost some multinational money transfer companies.The South American country’s president Nayib Bukele estimates that with the country’s bitcoin adoption, money service providers like Western Union and MoneyGram could lose $400 million a year in commissions for remittances, CNBC reported.
This could save money for the country’s diaspora wanting to send money to their families and friends back home.However, recent polls have shown that most Salvadorans are opposed to the adoption of the cryptocurrency, while regulators have expressed concern about the move turning the country into a fiscal paradise for money laundering.
Solana (SOL) hits new price high – but what actually is it?
Thursday 9 September 2021 17:02 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Solana (SOL) peaked above $214 today on CoinMarketCap’s price index. It marks a new all-time high and a remarkable 12,000 per cent price rise since the start of the year. (For comparison, bitcoin’s 2021 gains stand at around 68 per cent.)
It now ranks above dogecoin and Ripple (XRP) with a market cap north of $60 billion, but more impressively it has managed to completely buck the market trends this week that saw leading cryptocurrencies crash and then consolidate.
Here’s a rundown of how it managed to achieve such highs, and the even more elevated ambitions of Solana’s developers.
What is Solana? The crypto that is rising 200-times faster than bitcoin in 2021
Bitcoin rivals see major price recovery
Thursday 9 September 2021 10:43 , Anthony Cuthbertson
While bitcoin continues to hover around the $46,000 price mark, a number of other leading cryptocurrencies are surging this morning.
Ethereum (ether), Cardano (ada) and dogecoin have all risen by between 5 and 10 per cent over the last few hours, but the real riser has been Solana.
The new star of the decentralised space rose by 30 per cent to a new all-time high above $210, taking it above Ripple (XRP) to rank as the sixth most valuable cryptocurrency by market cap.
Thursday 9 September 2021 06:36 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Bitcoin price seems to have slightly stabilised compared to its nosedive on Tuesday, but it still valued at $46,000. Ethereum (ether) is showing feeble signs of recovery. But Solana’s price surge since Tuesday’s fall has been the biggest, growing by over 20 per cent in the last 24 hours.
The charts are still mostly red but the global crypto market seems to have slightly recovered, growing by about 1 per cent over the last day.
Bitcoin price crash offers crypto ‘fire sale’
Wednesday 8 September 2021 20:43 , Anthony Cuthbertson
More analysts have been weighing in on the 15 per cent price crash yesterday, giving their opinion on what it means in a broader context.
“This is a false dip,” says Nick Spanos, an early adopter and well-known figure within the cryptocurrency space, who is currently in El Salvador.
“Big finance and the media say it’s because there was a bumpy rollout in El Salvador. I’m in El Salvador right now and things are looking spectacular. Even Steve Jobs had hiccups in releasing brave new products.
“Bitcoin’s price could even be back by next week. I still expect bitcoin to breach $100,000 by the end of the year, while Ethereum is on course to hit $10,000 by then. Buying more altcoins and Bitcoin right now, now that there’s essentially a fire sale as a result of the dip, will almost certainly prove to be a great move.”
You can read the full story here.
Bitcoin price crash was ‘false dip’, crypto analysts claim
‘When in doubt, zoom out’
Wednesday 8 September 2021 18:53 , Anthony Cuthbertson
A popular adage among long-term bitcoin investors during moments of sharp market volatility is “when in doubt, zoom out”.
The belief is that the short-term price trajectory has little bearing on the longer term direction, and that sudden crashes or surges can generally be ignored.
With this in mind, we’ve put together a chart showing the zoomed out significance of Tuesday’s price crash. Even after dropping by more than 15 per cent, bitcoin is still up more than 300 per cent from this time last year. The next few weeks will prove key to determining how much this adage actually rings true.
Bitcoin price steadies
Wednesday 8 September 2021 15:07 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The price of bitcoin finally appears to have steadied after yesterday’s sudden crash.
It remains around $46,000 – roughly $8,000 down from yesterday’s peak but more the $2,000 up from the price it bottomed out at.
It seems to have had a calming affect on the rest of the market, with Ethereum (ether), Cardano (ada) and Binance Coin all levelling out over the last few hours.
There have been a few altcoins that actually bucked the trend, most notably Near Protocol (NEAR). The token saw gains of more than 40 per cent over the last 24 hours, ranking it in the top 30 most valuable cryptocurrencies on CoinMarketCap.
SEC to sue Coinbase
Wednesday 8 September 2021 14:07 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The SEC has warned Coinbase that it is planning to sue the exchange over its planned ‘Lend’ feature, which will allow users to earn interest from their holdings.
The regulator served a Wells notice to signal its intention to take legal action, though Coinbase’s chief legal officer Paul Grewal claims to not know what the issue is.
“Rather they have now told us that if we launch Lend they intend to sue. We asked if the SEC would share their reasoning with us… they refused,” he wrote in a blog post.
“Mystery and ambiguity only serve to unnecessarily stifle new products that customers want and that Coinbase and others can safely deliver.”
You can read the full story here.
Coinbase faces SEC lawsuit over ‘mystery’ issues with crypto lending
Bitcoin price volatility dismissed by long-term holders
Wednesday 8 September 2021 13:35 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Long-term holders of bitcoin have urged investors to remain patient following the latest price crash.
Michael Saylor, whose software company MicroStrategy owns more than 100,000 bitcoins, believes bitcoin will continue to rise in price over the long term and has the potential to rise in value by more than 100-times. He also revealed he personally bought $30 worth of the cryptocurrency yesterday in support of El Savador’s Bitcoin Law coming into effect.
Today he tweeted: “If you aren’t willing to own bitcoin for 10 years, don’t even think about owning it for 10 minutes.”
Wednesday 8 September 2021 12:20 , Vishwam Sankaran
Bitcoin’s value is still down by about 9 per cent compared to its price 24 hours earlier.
Almost all cryptocurrencies are down compared to yesterday’s prices, and it’s still all red with very little signs of recovery.
Global crypto market prices are almost down by 10 per cent compared to values 24 hours earlier.
Bitcoin woes continue into second day
Wednesday 8 September 2021 08:09 , Andrew Griffin
Bad news for anyone hoping for a swift return after yesterday’s crash: there’s been no recovery yet. Though hasn’t fallen lower than it did in the wild moments after the crash, either. Here’s the latest from Coinbase:
That has left everything looking very red. Prices are down almost 15 per cent over the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap. And nothing – not even the much-hyped Solana – has been left untouched.
Bitcoin buys McDonald’s and Starbucks in El Salvador
Tuesday 7 September 2021 17:59 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The price crash has distracted from the big news of the day, which is the roll out of bitcoin as a legal form of currency in El Salvador.
People in the country have been sharing their experiences across social media, with global franchises like McDonald’s and Starbucks now forced to accept the cryptocurrency as a form of payment.
“This is to all the critics who said bitcoin would never be used to buy coffee,” tweeted Mario Aguiluz. “Just paid for mine at Starbucks in El Salvador.”
It seems issues with the Chivo bitcoin wallet have now been resolved.
El Salvador president ‘buying the dip’
Tuesday 7 September 2021 17:30 , Anthony Cuthbertson
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has added to the country’s crypto holdings by purchasing a further 150 bitcoins during this afternoon’s crash.
“Buying the dip,” he tweeted.
El Salvador bought its first 200 bitcoins yesterday ahead of the Bitcoin Law coming into effect today, plus a further 100 a few hours later. That brings El Salvador’s total holdings to 550 bitcoin, worth roughly $25 million at the current exchange rate.
President Bukele added that the “discount” from the price crash saved the country roughly $1 million.
Bitcoin price crash causes Coinbase to go down
Tuesday 7 September 2021 16:46 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Bitcoin’s price crash has caused issues with leading cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, as users go online to either cash out their crypto holdings or buy the dip.
The company said it was “aware transactions are currently delayed or cancelled at elevated rates and our apps may be experiencing errors.”
It is not the first time Coinbase, which went public earlier this year, has suffered problems during periods of extreme market volatility.
You can read the story here.
Bitcoin price crash ‘the start of something much worse’?
Tuesday 7 September 2021 16:27 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Crypto experts are rushing to explain the latest bitcoin price crash, with some fearing it could get worse before it recovers.
Prominent analyst and cryptocurrency author Glen Goodman describes it as “horrible horrible chart damage” That could be “the start of something much worse”, while pseudonymous investor CryptoWhale – who has frequently questioned the recent bull run – took the opportunity to mock people hoping bitcoin’s price could sky rocket “to the Moon” in 2021.
Having reached all the way below $44,000, bitcoin is now back above $46,000. The next few hours could prove key for the future trajectory of the market.
Bitcoin price crashes below $50,000
Tuesday 7 September 2021 16:01 , Anthony Cuthbertson
The price of bitcoin has suffered the second sudden flash crash in the space of just a few hours, falling from above $52,500 to below $48,000.
The reason for the falling price is not immediately clear but may be linked to the previously mentioned issues with the roll out of bitcoin as a form of legal tender in El Salvador.
A price pump to support the momentous occasion has also been planned, with leading bitcoin figures calling on people to buy $30 worth of the cryptocurrency on 7 September in support and celebration of the Bitcoin Law coming into effect. Those who took part may now be looking to take any profits they gained from the slight price rise that ensued.
We’re reaching out for some expert analysis and will bring more updates when they come.
El Salvador runs into problems with Chivo bitcoin wallet
Tuesday 7 September 2021 15:53 , Anthony Cuthbertson
It’s not all going smoothly in El Salvador with the official introduction of bitcoin as a form of legal tender.
President Nayib Bukele announced that the Chivo wallet app has been temporarily disabled due to network capacity issues.
“For a few moments Chivo wallet won’t work, we have disconnected it while increasing the capacity of the servers,” he tweeted in Spanish. “The installation problems that some people had were for that reason. We prefer to correct it before reconnecting.”
You can read more about it here.
Solana price hits ATH
Tuesday 7 September 2021 15:12 , Anthony Cuthbertson
It may be Bitcoin Day but the so-called “Alt-Coin Season” is showing no sign of ending.
Solana is the latest crypto to hit a new all-time high, reaching close to $200 on Tuesday – up from around $3 this time last year.
The price surge has taken it above dogecoin to rank as the seventh most valuable cryptocurrency listed on CoinMarketCap.
You can read the full story here.
Solana price overtakes dogecoin in record-breaking suge
‘Bitcoin earthquake’ expected as El Salvador adopts crypto as legal tender
Tuesday 7 September 2021 11:27 , Anthony Cuthbertson
With Bitcoin Day finally here, some analysts are predicting a “bitcoin earthquake” as people participate in the call from industry figures to buy $30 of the cryptocurrency in support and celebration of El Salvador adopting it as legal tender.
“There is also increased chatter about a supposedly planned ‘Bitcoin day’ or ‘Bitcoin earthquake’ due to happen on Tuesday the 7th as El Salvador adopts the digital currency as legal tender,” says Daniela Hathorn, an analyst from foreign exchange site DailyFX.
“So far the online forums are suggesting a worldwide increase of $30 in every holder’s BTC stake in what is being considered as a move of solidarity with Salvadorans, which seems slightly confusing as to how it would help. But anyway, leaving the technicalities aside this may be a ‘buy the rumour, sell the fact’ situation.”
El Salvador buys 200 bitcoins as crypto becomes legal tender
Tuesday 7 September 2021 08:47 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Today marks one of the momentous days in bitcoin’s 12-year history, as El Salvador becomes the first country in the world to adopt the cryptocurrency as legal tender.
President Nayib Bukele announced that El Salvador bought its first 200 bitcoins ahead of the new Bitcoin Law coming into effect today, saying the country’s brokers would be buying “a lot more” as the deadline approaches.
In an effort to encourage nationwide adoption, every citizen is also being offered $30 worth of the cryptocurrency if they download the government’s digital wallet app Chivo.
Bitcoin price pump gains momentum
Monday 6 September 2021 15:52 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Prominent bitcoiners are preparing for a major price pump to celebrate El Salvador adopting the cryptocurrency as legal tender.
CoinCorner CEO Danny Scott and MicroStrategy boss Michael Saylor are among those encouraging people to buy $30 of bitcoin on 7 September – the same amount that citizens are being offered through the Chivo wallet app to encourage mass adoption.
Reddit’s /r/Bitcoin forum also has several posts supporting the price pump, while other bitcoin fans are using Twitter to promote the “mass buying” event.
Massive bitcoin price pump planned to celebrate El Salvador adopting crypto
New all-time high for bitcoin’s 200 week moving average
Monday 6 September 2021 13:29 , Anthony Cuthbertson
Bitcoin’s 200 week moving average has just hit a new all-time high, reaching above $15,100.
The latest high, spotted by pseudonymous Dutch analyst PlanB, follows a trend that has seen the price of bitcoin grow over the long term.
“Nobody who bought bitcoin and [held] for four-plus years lost money,” PlanB said last week. “Ever.”
The 200WMA was below $100 in 2014 and only crossed $1,000 in 2017. If another major bull run occurs, as PlanB predicts, the moving average would be on track to pass $100,000 within the next five years.
Bitcoin ‘bypasses oppressive power structures’ in Taliban-run Afghanistan
Monday 6 September 2021 12:19 , Anthony Cuthbertson
While a lot of the recent focus on bitcoin has been centred on its price, there have been some positive news stories focussing on the cryptocurrency’s technology and how it can prove life-changing for those cut off by traditional financial services.
A first-hand account by an individual on the ground in Afghanistan has offered a glimpse into how bitcoin can benefit those living under Taliban rule.
“Just like our personal freedom, our economic freedom is quickly disappearing, as many anticipate we’re on the brink of an all-out economic collapse,” the person writes anonymously in the article for The Tokenist.
“Fortunately, developments around technology have provided us with an alternative. Digital assets, while no guarantee of freedom, can assist in obtaining some level of freedom.
“They can be beneficial in bypassing oppressive power structures by offering users 24/7 access to funds in a permissionless manner. With legacy finance in Afghanistan on the brink of collapse, a vacuum for another system is already felt. Surely, crypto can’t fix Afghanistan, but it suggests an alternative financial system for every Afghan man and woman who has been cut off from the world.”
Bitcoin price at highest since May
Monday 6 September 2021 10:48 , Anthony Cuthbertson
A fresh bitcoin price rally overnight has taken the cryptocurrency to its highest point since May.
With El Salvador set to officially recognise the crypto as a form of currency tomorrow, there are hopes that a price pump from btc advocates could help it rise even further. Notable figures within the industry have called on people to buy $30 of bitcoin to celebrate the legislation coming into effect on 7 September.
Taking a longer-term view, bitcoin is up by more than five-times since this time last year.
Hello and welcome…
Monday 6 September 2021 10:31 , Anthony Cuthbertson
To The Independent’s live coverage of the crypto market. We’ll have all the latest news, analysis and expert price predictions for bitcoin, Ethereum (ether) and other leading cryptocurrencies.