Inflation may have taken centre stage, but Bitcoin’s Taproot was the star of the show this week
The week in review, with Jason Deane
Another week has passed since my last review and, once again, I find myself having to carefully select what makes it to the final cut of only a couple of hundred words. As is usual for Bitcoin and the economic backdrop it operates in, there is plenty to talk about.
First, there was Taproot, Bitcoin’s latest core code update. It took years to develop, agree and test, but it activated seamlessly at block 709,632 on Sunday November 14 without a hitch. While many people didn’t even notice it happened, developers now have a whole new set of toys to play with and we’ll surely see the fruits of their labours trickle through over coming months and years. Make no mistake, it’s a big deal.
But the main theme in my Twitter feed this week has been mostly about inflation. Macroeconomists, including myself, have been predicting significant numbers for some time due to the rapid expansion of the money supply and it seems we’re really starting to feel it. Officially, the UK’s numbers came in at 4.2 per cent earlier this week but, in reality, it’s likely to be considerably more in real terms. America’s numbers are far worse (6.2 per cent), but even so, it’s nothing compared to Turkey’s Lira which is in serious trouble and may well be on an unstoppable trajectory to devaluation. Is it any wonder that the country has seen Bitcoin volume grow so much in the last few months?
The harsh reality is that this is likely to be just the beginning for many parts of the world and, as I tweeted on Wednesday, 83 per cent of the world’s currencies now have an inflation rate higher than Bitcoin’s. In theory, the ideal conditions for Bitcoin to flourish are unfolding as we speak.
Curious then, that Bitcoin saw a broad sell off in the last few days, dipping as much as 17 per cent at the point when one might arguably expect the opposite. Why? As always, it’s hard to say exactly, but analysts have offered up reasons linked to a post-Taproot sell off, profit taking after an extended run or even the signing of Biden’s Infrastructure Bill that includes the much debated crypto reporting requirements.
Some, none or all of it may be true, but the reality is that for long term holders and Bitcoin believers, it doesn’t really matter. This, after all, is about the future.
Have a great weekend!
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Yesterday’s Crypto AM Daily in association with Luno
In the markets
The Bitcoin economy
*Definitions and insights can be found at https://bytetree.com/insights/
Total crypto market cap
The total capitalisation of the entire cryptocurrency market at time of writing is currently $2,496,382,747,651, down from $2,618,779,329,807 yesterday.
What Bitcoin did yesterday
We closed yesterday, November 17 2021, at a price of $56,942.14, down from $60,368.01 the day before. The daily high yesterday was $60,948.50 and the daily low was $56,550.79.
This time last year, the price of Bitcoin closed the day at $17,817.09. In 2019, it closed at $8,206.15.
Bitcoin market capitalisation
Bitcoin’s market capitalisation at time of writing is $1.062 trillion. To put it into context, the market cap of gold is $11.827 trillion and Tesla is $1.101 trillion.
Bitcoin volume
The total spot trading volume reported by all exchanges over the last 24 hours was $41,971,241,696, up from $38,053,057,954 yesterday. High volumes can indicate that a significant price movement has stronger support and is more likely to be sustained.
Volatility
The price volatility of Bitcoin over the last 30 days is 42.96%.
Fear and Greed Index
Market sentiment today is 34, in Fear.
Bitcoin’s market dominance
Bitcoin’s market dominance today is 43.14. Its lowest ever recorded dominance was 37.09 on January 8 2018.
Relative Strength Index (RSI)
The daily RSI is currently 36.85. Values of 70 or above indicate that an asset is becoming overbought and may be primed for a trend reversal or experience a correction in price – an RSI reading of 30 or below indicates an oversold or undervalued condition.
Convince your Nan: Soundbite of the day
Bitcoin is the only asset in human history that will get better, forever.
Jack Mallers, CEO of Zap, a Bitcoin investment and payments company
What they said yesterday
Right-O!
Feels like a home run…
Think about it. And then think about it again…
Crypto AM: Editor’s picks
Bitcoin’s long-awaited Taproot upgrade has arrived
NFTs set to fund new cryptocurrency movie
El Salvador begins mining Bitcoin using volcanic energy
Bitcoin booms but Hong Kong listed crypto stocks slide in wake of China crackdown
Binance probed over suspected insider trading
Cardano Alonzo upgrade sees 100 smart contracts in first 24 hours
Crypto AM: Features
Crypto AM: Spotlight
Crypto AM: Founders Series
Crypto AM: Industry Voices
Crypto AM: Contributors
Crypto AM: In Conversation with James Bowater
Crypto AM: Tomorrow’s Money with Gavin S Brown
Crypto AM: Mixing in the Metaverse with Dr Chris Kacher
Crypto AM: Visions of the Future, Past & Present with Alex Lightman
Crypto AM: Tiptoe through the Crypto with Monty Munford
Crypto AM: Taking a Byte out of Digital Assets with Jonny Fry
Crypto AM: Parliamentary Special
Part one of two – April 2021
Part two of two – April 2021
Five-part series – March 2021
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Day two…
Day three…
Day four…
Day five…
Crypto AM: Events
Cautionary Notes