Bitcoin (XBT) it tripled in value in 2020, growing continuously, even as the stock market fell in the early days of the pandemic. Investors were attracted to it, as well as other cryptocurrencies, with the weakening of the US dollar.
With the expectation that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates close to zero for a few more years, bitcoin may continue to gain new fans.
Well-known names are increasing bitcoin’s popular appeal. Rick Rieder, director of fixed income investments Black stone (BLK), said the digital currency could replace gold. Paying giant PayPal (PYPL) embraced bitcoin, after showing reluctance to do so.
This is not the first bitcoin price increase. He had a strong race in 2017 and reached a record high of over $ 20,000. But its price plummeted to just over $ 3,000 in early 2019, while China continued its crackdown on cryptocurrency deals. Then it rebounded to $ 8,000 in May 2019. It went from $ 20,000 in December, rising rapidly in the previous month.
Bitcoin experts remain bullish on the currency.
“When any asset goes up in price so fast for a long period of time, I become cautious and I urge anyone who trades BTC not to be carried away by euphoria,” said Nicholas Pelecanos, head of trading at the cryptocurrency company NEM, which however, it predicts that bitcoin could reach $ 50,000 on Valentine’s Day. “I believe we are just at the beginning of what will be a huge bull market.”
However, even with bitcoin becoming popular, the currency is still commonly used by fraudsters, giving it negative attention. Last July, hackers took over Twitter accounts owned by Elon Musk, Bill Gates and Barack Obama in an apparent effort to make money by cheating people with bitcoin.
Due to the decentralized and anonymous nature of the currency, it can be difficult to get the money back after losing it in a scam, as there is no central authority – like a bank – to intervene. Decentralization and anonymity have made cryptocurrency a favorite of scammers, even if it attracts technologists and investors.
CNN’s Paul R. La Monica contributed to this report.
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