2022 has been a challenging year for digital currencies, including Bitcoin, traditionally believed to be the most stable of them due to its particular position within the cyber asset market. BTC has been designed as an alternative to traditional cash, with the possibility for it to act as a means to power daily transactions at some point. However, the market has changed substantially since the emergence of that first goal. Many investors have instead begun to see it as a means to protect against inflation, convinced by the fact that Bitcoin can legitimately act as a form of digital gold and make portfolios stronger, while investors continue to invest whether to buy Bitcoin with credit cards or look for other options as well.
But while the market seemed to be enjoying an ascension path over the past couple of months, March has arrived with less than positive news, causing investors to become concerned yet again. While there’s no doubt that the situation won’t become as dire as it had been over the last year, the changes in the market are essential for traders looking to develop robust investment strategies and stay ahead of the game.
Here are some of the latest news impacting the world of crypto today.
Australia postponing regulations
Implementing regulations has long been a topic of debate within the cryptocurrency market, particularly after digital money began to enter traditional financial markets at an ever-growing speed. The Australian treasury was set to implement crypto regulations shortly, but it appears now that this will be delayed until 2024 or even 2025. The rules were expected by the end of 2022, and some expected lawmakers to rush the regulations in the first months of 2023, particularly in the context of significant exchange collapses and capital losses that have marred the crypto environment in 2022.
China integrates digital currency
China’s most popular social networking app, WeChat, has recently added the nation’s central bank-powered digital currency as a valid payment method on the platform. This has come in the context of lax interest for the general public in cyber money, leading analysts to believe that integration within the application will boost its adoption rates. Over one billion monthly active users on the app can now pay bills or place online orders using digital money.
NFT Marketplace
A non-fungible token marketplace is set to be launched on April 24th. Multinational company Amazon is set to invest in the Web3 space, and the NFT marketplace is set to be one of the developments. While the name of the platform is yet to be determined, what is already certain is that it will include 15 collections with its initial launch. While the original release is set to occur in the United States, the platform will expand in the future to include global markets. The NFT collections will be available for purchase using a credit card or the user’s personal Amazon account.
Bitcoin on the right track
While regulations and heightened interest in Bitcoin due to the emergence of brand-new NFT projects are important topics, there’s none as important as the actual price of Bitcoin. Given BTC’s influence on the larger digital asset market, the values are of chief importance and determine the overall health of the digital money environment. While there have been reasons to worry given the troubled months of 2022 and the recent situation surrounding the Silvergate bank, of which the White House and Congress have become aware, many believe that’s not sufficient reason to become pessimistic about the progress of Bitcoin in the upcoming months.
Some analysts, including American investor and CEO of Ark Invest, an investment management business, Cathie Wood, have expressed the belief that the crypto exchanges that fell in 2022 collapsed as a result of their inability to work with Bitcoin, and with cryptocurrencies at large, in the way in which they were designed. According to Wood, the failed exchanges had in common that they were essentially centralized and opaque, created and specifically designed to control Bitcoin, which is traditionally recognized as a transparent, decentralized asset that’s not intrinsically tied to any authority. Working with exchanges that understand this is crucial for the health of the market.
However, recent events have caused the Bitcoin price to drop by 5% and the currency to stagnate. However, researchers say this isn’t necessarily a cause for concern. Firstly, continuous growth would have been unsustainable in the long run and would have done more harm than good for the entire market. Secondly, the fact that interest in Bitcoin has remained stable, transactions have shown consistent engagement levels, and the price shift hasn’t been particularly dramatic has given investors the confidence to believe that the market will hold firm and navigate this blunder successfully.
The future of finance
One of the best things about Bitcoin is the potential it shows as a means of revolutionizing the world of finance and being the next step in economic development. There are several layers to the developments cryptocurrencies are bringing into the world. The first one is, of course, the monetary aspect. Bitcoin is the leading and, for many, the only cryptocurrency with a claim to this title. While altcoins are not yet there, some have the potential to improve their status in the future, although it is implausible that any of them will ever end up posing a real threat to Bitcoin, overtake it or replace its influence.
Secondly, the revolution in financial services, with decentralized tools expected to make more of an impact in the future. Thirdly is the social aspect coming in the form of digital property rights. The decentralized nature of this technology could potentially help alleviate strenuous economic situations across the globe.
While Bitcoin hasn’t been around for long compared to other assets, it has shown much more promise than all of them when it comes to bringing developments across the world across a variety of different spheres. While the last year has been challenging for digital assets, the future still looks promising, and there’s no doubt that Bitcoin will rise to the occasion.
