What to Expect From the Next Bitcoin Cash Protocol Upgrade – Bitcoin News

On November 15, shortly after 12 p.m., Bitcoin Cash (BCH) will execute an upgrade of the networks consensus rules. After the upgrade is locked in, the next block will enforce minimal pushdata in script and the opcodes OP_Checkmultisig and OP_Checkmultisigverify will be upgraded to accept Schnorr signatures.

Also Read: QE Infinity: 37 Central Banks Participate in Stimulus and Easing Practices

Next Friday, Bitcoin Cash proponents will be watching the BCH chain upgrade the current consensus ruleset in order to add two new features. Developers have been discussing the upgrade for months now and have explained in great detail at developer meetings how the changes apply to the BCH roadmap. Since August 1, 2017, BCH developers have produced a significant number of protocol developments that are unique to BCH. For instance, BCH engineers have increased the block size to 32MB, allowing for a lot more throughput than a 1MB block.

In September 2018, BCH surpassed BTCs daily transaction count by processing millions of transactions in a single day. Bitcoin Cash programmers have re-enabled the old Satoshi opcodes, which can allow for a variety of decision-based transactions, compilers, and other functions. The added opcodes allow for the implementation of OP_Checkdatasig which can be used to calculate the hash within a transaction in order to validate signatures in an automated way. Bitcoin Cash developers also increased the networks default Data-Carrier-Size to 220 Bytes.

BCH engineers did not stop there and at block 582680, the blockchain upgraded by adding the basic foundations of the Schnorr signature protocol. The upgrade prior to the Schnorr feature saw the implementation of Canonical Transaction Ordering otherwise known as CTOR. With CTOR the BCH chain can essentially work with blocks as a set, as opposed to list ordering as the process is done in a canonical manner. According to Coin Dance statistics, BCH developers have added 20 different components to the protocol, theres another 20 under development, 15 features being discussed and two new properties pending activation. The two added components being implemented to the BCH blockchain consist of a finalized malleability vector (enforcing minimal pushdata in script) and Schnorr signature support for both OP_Checkmultisig and OP_Checkmultisigverify.

The first change will curb malleability vectors on the network by applying the Minimaldata rule. This removes the final BIP 62 malleability vector, and means that most of the transactions on the Bitcoin Cash network (including all P2PKH transactions) will now be non-malleable, the November 15 upgrade documentation explains. While bitcoin transactions are signed, signatures dont encompass all the data hashed and its possible for nodes to pervert the transaction by invalidating the hash.

There are various forms of malleability vectors in scriptSig and signatures, and in 2014 BIP62 was introduced in order to deal with the problems. Over the last few years, many types of solutions have been attempted in order to confront third-party malleability vectors. After the network upgrade next Friday, a majority of bitcoin cash transactions will not be third-party malleable and the enforced Minimaldata rule should also strengthen Simplified Payment Verification (SPV) clients.

The second added feature coming to the BCH chain is support for OP_Checkmultisig (Verify) in order to complement the first iteration of Schnorr signatures. This upgrade extends that support to OP_Checkmultisig and after this upgrade, all signature checking operations will support Schnorr signatures, the upgrade documentation reads.

The new feature will allow for more complex mechanics to multi-signature transactions that will benefit from the Schnorr mechanism. Schnorr aggregated signatures (with OP_Checksig) are one way to do multi-signatures, but they have different technical properties than the familiar Bitcoin multisig, and thus are far from being a drop-in replacement for it, the November 15 specification notes. The summary adds:

Besides that, it is also desirable that any existing coin can be spent using Schnorr signatures, and there are numerous OP_Checkmultisig-based wallets and coins in existence that we want to be able to take advantage of Schnorr signatures.

Bitcoin Cash fans are excited about the next upgrade and network participants have been steadily preparing for the changes. Ordinary users wont have to do anything before the network changes take effect. Miners and node operators, however, are encouraged to download and run the latest version of a BCH client that supports the November 15 ruleset changes.

Currently Bitcoin ABC, Bitcoin Unlimited, BCHD, Flowee, and Bitcoin Verde are all ready to accept the new rules, and at press time 68% of all publicly accessible BCH nodes show upgrade support. Every day enthusiasts and proponents who dont mine or run a node can simply watch the upgrade online using a data site like Coin Dance or Fork Monitor. On November 15, both websites will let people know exactly when the consensus changes are executed.

For more information regarding the November 15 Bitcoin Cash upgrade, you can read the specifications on Github.

What do you think about the upcoming Bitcoin Cash upgrade scheduled for November 15? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, Github, Coin Dance, Wiki Commons, and Pixabay.

Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The Local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here.

Jamie Redman is a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open source code, and decentralized applications. Redman has written thousands of articles for news.Bitcoin.com about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

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What to Expect From the Next Bitcoin Cash Protocol Upgrade - Bitcoin News

Bobby Lee: $500K Bitcoin Price Flippening of Gold Will Come by 2028 – Cointelegraph

Bitcoin (BTC) will surpass the market cap of gold and could ultimately be worth $1 million, well-known industry figure Bobby Lee has said.

In a series of tweets on Nov. 10, Lee, who co-founded Chinese cryptocurrency exchange BTCC and now runs a Bitcoin wallet startup, became the latest voice in the expanding debate on Bitcoin versus gold.

Golds market cap is $8 trillion, while Bitcoins is just $160 billion. While around fifty times lower at present, Lee thinks a reversal could come as soon as 2028.

I predict the #flippening will happen within 9 years and $BTC will shoot up past USD $500,000, he wrote.

Like many, Lee based his argument for Bitcoins success on its decreasing supply via block reward halvings. He noted that in the next decade, the amount of Bitcoin released to miners each block will halve three times. Lee added:

By 20th year, daily new output will just be ~255 BTC yearly inflation of less than 0.5%. More scarce than #gold!

His arguments chime with predictions by a well-established model charting the Bitcoin price Stock-to-Flow. The product of social media analyst PlanB, the instrument likewise uses Bitcoins new supply versus its existing stock to forecast its future value.

As Cointelegraph reported, calculations call for a BTC/USD price of just $8,300 until the next halving in May 2020. After that, however, the situation should change rapidly, with $100,000 coming around two years later.

Lee also joined PlanB in predicting far higher Bitcoin prices in the latter part of the next decade or beyond. While the former thinks a $1 million price tag is possible in the event of global money printing continuing, PlanB noted that money printing could ultimately stop the Stock-to-Flow model from working.

I would be happy if the model holds for 1 or 2 or maybe 3 more halvings. Especially since BTC is measured in $ who knows what happens with $ if the FED keeps doing more QE (money printing), he said in a Twitter exchange late last month.

The idea of Bitcoin usurping gold as an alternative store of value still has its major detractors. Among the most vocal is Peter Schiff, the gold bug who has become infamous for his social media slighting of both Bitcoin and its proponents.

Last week, Schiff argued that China potentially backing its state-issued digital currency with gold was a bearish sign for Bitcoin.

Prior to that, he forecast BTC/USD never reaching $50,000, while gold would pass $5,000.

Equally vocal about Bitcoin meanwhile is Max Keiser, the RT host who continues to argue for the cryptocurrencys supremacy on mainstream media.

In an episode of his Keiser Report last week, he said that Bitcoins self-settling ability automatically made it more suitable for transactions than either gold or fiat currency.

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Bobby Lee: $500K Bitcoin Price Flippening of Gold Will Come by 2028 - Cointelegraph

The Real Reason Behind Bitcoins Epic Rally Revealed? – Forbes

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency traders and investors have long been eying a return to bitcoin's all-time high set in late 2017.

The bitcoin price, which began 2017 at under $1,000, surged to almost $20,000 in under 12 monthscatapulting bitcoin and crypto into the mainstream and making many early adopters overnight millionaires.

Now, researchers have cast fresh doubt over whether bitcoin's epic bull run happened organically, suggesting it may have been caused by single, large player manipulating the bitcoin market.

The bitcoin price surged throughout 2017 only to fall back sharply the following year; though ... [+] bitcoin has staged something of a recovery in 2019.

Researchers John Griffin and Amin Shams, finance professors at the University of Texas and Ohio State University, respectively, found that around half of bitcoin's value between March 2017 and March 2018 was created by trades between bitcoin and tether, a so-called stablecoin with links to the British Virgin Islands-based Bitfinex bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange.

Bitfinex and Tether Ltd, which controls the stablecoin tether, are owned by the same people and the two companies share senior staff.

Earlier this year, tether surpassed bitcoin in daily and monthly trading volume to become the most traded cryptocurrency on the market.

According to the researchers, an unidentified Bitfinex account used tether to manipulate the bitcoin price by creating unprecedented demand for the digital token.

Over the period, the total market value of bitcoin soared to $326 billion, from $16 billion at the beginning of the year. Bitcoin's market capitalization is now around $165 billion, making it the most valuable cryptocurrency by a considerable margin.

"Even a fairly small amount of capital can manipulate the price of bitcoin," Griffin told the Wall Street Journal newspaper, which first reported the study.

"If its not Bitfinex, its somebody they do business with very frequently."

"We find that the identified patterns are not present on other flows, and almost the entire price impact can be attributed to this one large player," Griffin and Shams wrote.

"We map this data across both blockchains and find that the one player or entity (labeled as 1LSg throughout the paper) is behind the majority of the patterns we document."

The pair of researchers examined the entire transaction history of bitcoin and tether for the studya data set of 200 gigabytes.

The findings of the study will add fuel to speculation tether has been used to manipulate the bitcoin price. Last year, U.S. federal prosecutors began investigating whether tether trading had been used to move the bitcoin price.

The bitcoin price has remained highly volatile since its 2017 bull run, though has failed to return ... [+] to its all-time high of almost $20,000 per bitcoin.

The study could potentially worry bitcoin traders, many of whom believe bitcoin's incredible 2017 surge was due to banks and other institutional investors eying the bitcoin and cryptocurrency market.

Bitcoin's subsequent fall to around $3,500 in 2018 has been explained through regulatory fears and some institutions thought to be interested in bitcoin parking their crypto plans.

This year, bitcoin has rallied somewhat, climbing back above $10,000 per bitcoin, following reports social media giant Facebook, among other big technology companies, are interested in bitcoin and blockchain technology.

Facebook has announced plans to release its own bitcoin competitor, dubbed libra, some time next year but has run into fierce governmental push back, with some companies who had signed up to Facebook's independent Libra Association dropping out.

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The Real Reason Behind Bitcoins Epic Rally Revealed? - Forbes

Did A Manipulator Drive Bitcoins $20,000 Peak? Plus, Why Bitcoin Trumps Gold. – Forbes

Get Forbes' top crypto and blockchain storiesdelivered to your inboxevery week for the latest news on bitcoin, other major cryptocurrencies and enterprise blockchain adoption.

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Researchers have cast fresh doubt over whetherbitcoin's epic bull runhappened organically, suggesting it may have been caused by a single, large playermanipulating the bitcoin market.

According to a new report,an unidentified Bitfinex accountusedtetherto manipulate the bitcoin price between March 2017 and March 2018 by creating unprecedented demand for the digital token. Over that period, the total market value of bitcoin soared from$16 billionto$326 billion.

Microsoftis taking its secret platform for creating crypto tokens out for a test drive. The tech giants new crypto-assets mint lets enterprisesdesign, issue and manage a wide range of digital assets. Several companies, including a video game outfit and a virtual reality platform, have already used the platform to create experimental tokens, while others likeGeneral Electricare waiting in the wings to create their own.

Big picture: Major companies like JPMorgan have already minted similar tokens, and Facebook is working with a group of companies like Uber, Spotify and Vodaphone on the Libra Project. Microsofts work, using the same standard as the other participating blockchain developers, could pave the way for an explosion of similar enterprise-grade tokens.

Stellar, the tenth largest cryptocurrency by market cap, saw its price soar this week after the Stellar Development Foundation "burned" more than half the digital token's supplyworth a staggering $4.7 billion.

Bitcoinremained largely flat following the news, while other smaller tokens, including Ripple'sXRP, rose slightly.

Plus:one reasonwhy bitcoin is better than gold.

Source: Messari. Prices as of 4:00 p.m. on November 8, 2019.

Recent data gathered by popular employment site Indeed shows that over the past year, the share of blockchain andcryptocurrency job postings is up more than 25%, while the share of searches for those jobs hasfallen by more than half. For the same period two years ago, Indeed saw a 14% bump these types of job searches.

The companies with the most job blockchain and crypto job postings on Indeed over the past year were mainstream powerhouses likeDeloitte,IBM,AccentureandCisco.

Cryptocurrency Bank Vanished, Leaving Customers in a $16M Hole [Daily Beast]

Biglaw Powerhouse To Accept Bitcoin As Payment [Above The Law]

The Bitcoin Rich List Has Grown 30% in the Last Year, But Why? [CoinDesk]

From Pigs to Party Fealty, China Harnesses Blockchain Power [Bloomberg]

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Did A Manipulator Drive Bitcoins $20,000 Peak? Plus, Why Bitcoin Trumps Gold. - Forbes

Facebook crypto boss: ‘I don’t think of Bitcoin as a currency’ – CNBC

David Marcus, the head of Facebook's cryptocurrency projects, on Wednesday said that Bitcoin is digital gold, but it's not a good currency for transactions.

"I don't think of Bitcoin as a currency. It's actually not a great medium of exchange because of it's volatility," Marcus said speaking at the New York Times DealBook Conference in New York. "I see it as digital gold."

Marcus said Bitcoin is like gold because you can hold on to it as an investment just as people do with actual gold, but the drastic upswings and dips that Bitcoin goes through makes it a bad option for people who need a system to send remittances across borders.

That is a key market that Facebook is targeting with its Libra cryptocurrency and Calibra digital wallet. Unlike Bitcoin, libra's value will be tied to currencies like the U.S. dollar and the Euro, which will help it remain stable.

Marcus said a key reason that Bitcoin has not been regulated out of existence is because it is not perceived to be a medium of exchange.

"It's an investment class that's decorrelated from the rest of the market," Marcus said. "Why feel threatened by that?"

Marcus has been the face of Facebook's libra cryptocurrency and Calibra digital wallet since the company announced the two projects in June. Since then, he has made multiple public appearances, including a hearing before the U.S. Senate, in an effort to spur support for Facebook's cryptocurrency endeavors.

"People don't use a unit like digital currency of Bitcoin to pay for things just because it's so volatile," Marcus said. "It serves a completely different purpose."

WATCH: Here's how to see which apps have access to your Facebook data and cut them off

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Facebook crypto boss: 'I don't think of Bitcoin as a currency' - CNBC

Where Will Bitcoins Rapid Decrease End? Analyst Outlines Reversal Areas – BeInCrypto

The payments processing company, Square, released a letter outlining in detail their financial outcome for Q3 in 2019. The sales of Bitcoin through the Cash App were shown to have increased by 245% relative to the same period in 2018. Additionally, sales have reached $148 million, an all-time high.

These numbers follow the pattern of growth for Bitcoin throughout the year. Both the network hash rate and the number of wallets have increased significantly. More specifically, the former reached an all-time high in October.

The price of Bitcoin, however, is undergoing a rapid decrease. We believe it will begin to reverse once it reaches the previous descending resistance line around $8600.

Crypto trader @scottmelker stated that the Bitcoin price is at the bottom of its trading range, very close to the previous resistance line.

However, he is using the logarithmic chart. Since the price has decreased slightly below the logarithmic line, we will use the regular chart instead.

The October 26 rapid increase cause the Bitcoin price to break out above the descending resistance line that had been in place since June 24.

Todays decrease has caused the price to almost reach and validate it. This is a very common movement after breakouts.

Additionally, this area coincides with the 0.5 fib level of the entire upward move beginning in April.

Looking at the moving averages (MA), the price has just fallen below the 200-day MA, which had been offering support since the rapid increase of October 26.

The resistance line also coincides with the previous resistance area turned likely to support, further increasing the possibility that the price will validate the resistance line and move upward.

Therefore, this makes it a very likely area for the beginning of a reversal.

Disclaimer: This article is not trading advice and should not be construed as such. Always consult a trained financial professional before investing in cryptocurrencies, as the market is particularly volatile.

Images courtesy of TradingView, Twitter.

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Where Will Bitcoins Rapid Decrease End? Analyst Outlines Reversal Areas - BeInCrypto

The SEC Has Rejected Every Bitcoin ETF. This Firm Thinks It Has a Solution – Coindesk

One company thinks it knows how to get a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) approved by U.S. regulators.

Wilshire Phoenix, a relatively young financial firm in New York, filed to launch theUnited States Bitcoin & Treasury Investment Trust ETF in May with NYSE Arca. At that point, a dozen bitcoin ETF proposals had already been swatted down by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) including nine in one day. But unlike other ETF applications, Wilshire Phoenixs ETF will invest in both bitcoin and U.S. Treasury securities, commonly referred to as T-bills.

The SEC is currently reviewing the application.

Our proposed bitcoin-related ETF is quite different from those that have previously been submitted to the Commission for approval, Wilshire Phoenix founder and managing partner William Herrmann said in a phone interview. To name just a few distinctions, the composition of the Trust is very different. Our Trust is a multi-asset trust (bitcoin and T-Bills), as opposed to just bitcoin.

The SEC has long been hesitant to approve an ETF with exposure to digital assets, citing the markets relatively young age and the possible risks to investors. The agency has rejected a number of proposals, while other applicants haveproactively withdrawn their filings.

Herrmann says the Wilshire ETF has several mechanisms to address these concerns.

The Trust itself will automatically rebalance itself monthly to address possible concerns about bitcoins price volatility, Herrmann explained. Essentially, if bitcoins price volatility increases, the index will reduce its exposure to the cryptocurrency and instead increase its exposure to Treasury bills. As bitcoins volatility falls, the opposite occurs.

The weighting will be transparent, with the index being shown on Bloomberg and Thomson Reuters portals, he said.

The CMEs Bitcoin Reference Rate will provide the data for bitcoins price in the Trust, rather than use an in-house price method or one from any related party, he added.

Wilshire Phoenix is also hoping to address SEC concerns about market manipulation by using a surveillance sharing agreement, one component the regulator stressed was needed when rejecting a recent bitcoin ETF application. Herrmann said:

The CME has surveillance sharing agreements with both the CME futures market as well as the relevant portion of the spot market that forms the basis for the Trusts bitcoin values. This addresses the SEC concerns about the lack of surveillance sharing agreements with the relevant spot market, which is something previous applicants have not been able to address.

Most recently, the SECdenied Bitwise Asset Managements fund. Ina whopping 112-page order published Oct. 9, the regulator said surveillance-sharing agreements were necessary and market manipulation remains a real concern.

As recently as September, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton said that while progress has been made in the space,the market manipulation question had not been resolved.

For Wilshire Phoenixs proposal, the SECbegan accepting comments on the proposal in June, though a final decision is still months away. The agency is currently accepting comments on the proposal through Nov. 12, 2019.

Herrmann is optimistic about the ETF proposals chances, saying we developed the ETF consistent with investor protection as well as fair, orderly and efficient markets.

SEC image via Shutterstock

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The SEC Has Rejected Every Bitcoin ETF. This Firm Thinks It Has a Solution - Coindesk

Is Bitcoin Really Doomed? Analysts Skeptical of Bear Bias After $400 Drop – newsBTC

As you are likely aware, Bitcoin (BTC) hasnt done too well over the past two-odd days. Since Friday, the cryptocurrency has shed 6% of its value, tanking from $9,250 to $8,700 in a strong move lower that came after nearly two weeks of bullish consolidation above $9,000.

Despite this relatively mild price action, which wasnt exactly a move that slaughtered bulls per se, a number of traders have flipped bearish. Bloomberg, for instance, wrote that there is a likelihood that if the bearish pressure persists for a little more, Bitcoin will trend all the way back to $7,300 back where it was prior to the most recent swing upwards.

This sentiment, according to a number of analysts, is irrational.

Popular crypto trader Mayne recently noted that the people waiting for $6,000 are irrational. He quipped that Bitcoin retracing and consolidating after its fourth-biggest bull move in history ($7,300 to $10,500, a 42% gain) is perfectly par for the course, but noted that its totally possible we can go lower from $8,800.

Crypto Michael echoed this line. The Amsterdam Stock Exchange trader poked fun at the euphoria that bears have had over the past days, accentuating the irrationality of the claims that a retest of the lows is on its way, especially in the context of the recent 42% gain:

I do remember bears being euphoric with a $1000 dropdown on a daily candle, now they are euphoric with a $300 retrace after one of the most bullish candles in the history of bBTC.

Delphi Digital has corroborated this sentiment with data. Per previous reports from NewsBTC, the prominent cryptocurrency markets research firm found that there is a confluence of evidence suggesting that Bitcoin found a trend bottom at $7,300 two weeks ago.

One of their tidbits of evidence is that Bitcoins volume profile, the amount of cryptocurrency that was traded, has printed clear signs that a bottom is in. More specifically, the market printed signs of weak volume (capitulation), a short accumulation at the bottoming range, then a surge out of accumulation into a potentially new bull phase.

They added that they currently see the cryptocurrency market very tied to risk assets, like the S&P 500. With risk assets setting new all-time highs on Friday after a strong jobs report and a potential trade deal, it could be said that BTC will surge higher with the risk assets.

Indeed, the cryptocurrency long-term charts and signals still seem to be implying that medium to long-term upside is highly likely.

Asreported by NewsBTC previously, Trader HornHairs has noted that he likes the chance we hit $14,000 before $7,000. He remarked in a recent tweet that with Bitcoin bouncing strong and holding above the one-month bullish breaker, the 0.618 Fibonacci Retracement of the entire cycle, the Point of Control as defined by the volume profile, and the yearly pivot, BTC is leaning rather bullish.

Also, trader and CoinTelegraph contributor FilbFilb found that by the end of November or start of December, the 50-week and 100-week moving averages will see a golden cross, which he claims is far more significant for the Bitcoin market that other technical crosses.

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Is Bitcoin Really Doomed? Analysts Skeptical of Bear Bias After $400 Drop - newsBTC

Bitcoin price analysis: Teasing ascending triangle breakdown, eyes on $ 8,600 – FXStreet

Bitcoin (BTC/USD), the most dominantcryptocurrency, reverses Saturdays dead cat bounce from two-week lows of 8,668.60 as the sellers return in early Sunday trading. The recent profit-taking rally in the coin lost legs, as the technical charts painted a bearish picture amid a generalized downbeat tone seen across the crypto space so far this Sunday. At the time of writing, the No. 1 coin holds the lower ground near 8,750 region, down over 0.50% on the day while its market capitalization decreased slightly from $ 160.12 billion to $ 159.13 billion.

Technically, the spot extends its range play in a potential ascending triangle formation, now teasing the pattern breakdown, as it flirts with the rising trendline (pattern) support at 8,758. The selling pressure will intensify on the breakdown, opening floors towards a retest of the two-week lows reached last Friday. A failure to resist the last, the bears will target the next support at 8,600 (round number), below which the pattern target near 8,575 will come into play. The downside appears more compelling, as the price trades below all the key hourly Simple Moving Averages (HMA). Meanwhile, the hourly Relative Strength Index (RSI) has turned flat just below the midline, backing the bearish bias.

Should the coin manage to recover above the 21-HMA at 8,797, the bulls may attempt another run towards the 8,870 level, the confluence of the bearish 50-HMA and horizontal trendline (pattern) resistance.

All in all, the risks remain to the downside, as the weekend love appears to fade.

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Bitcoin price analysis: Teasing ascending triangle breakdown, eyes on $ 8,600 - FXStreet

Bitcoin, ETH, XRP, LTC, And XLMs Next Big Test: Thanksgiving Season – Forbes

INDIA - 2019/08/30: In this photo illustration a popular decentralised digital currency Bitcoin logo ... [+] seen displayed on a smartphone. (Photo Illustration by Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Bitcoin and other major are facing a big test this Thanksgiving season, which could determine the next major moves in cryptocurrency markets.

Thanksgiving season is a special season for Americans. Its a time to get together with friends and family, enjoy a nice meal, and talk about current events, including hot investments.

That adds to the hype for these investments, as their price movementsmore fullyreflect swings in investor emotions rather than changes in fundamentals.

That could perhaps explain why Thanksgiving season has been a time of wild swings in speculative assets.

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Like the swings in the dotcom and network stocks back in the late 1990s, and Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies in the last couple of years.

Bitcoins track record during the Thanksgiving season is mixed, according toChristel Quek,Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer at BOLT.Global. In 2017 for example, investors made considerable losses in the build-up to the holiday before it surgedfrom just over $6,000 to more than $19,200 by 17thDecember, whilst more recoveries occurred after Christmas and New Years Day, she says. In 2018, these numbers were around 80% lower in what was a very volatile November as markets struggled to rally after a big sell-off. Now currently trading around $9,300, it is extremely unlikely that Bitcoin will reach the highs of two years ago, and instead continue downwards to around $6,000 in the weeks approaching Thanksgiving.

Whats after that?

Following this, we could expect prices to rally again but to around the $7,500 mark as Bitcoin prepares for the build-up to Christmas and will likely stay around that value until the start of 2020, he says.

Alex Lam, CEO & Co-Founder of RockX's,is encouraged by the positive policy developments surrounding cryptocurrencies in countries like US and China."As influential countries continue to produce positive policies in favor of digital currencies, such as in places like the US and China, Bitcoin's price may surprise people at any time, he says.

What doesthismean for cryptocurrency prices?Lam sayst is hard to pinpoint where exactly Bitcoin will be, come Thanksgiving, asBitcoin can be strongly influenced by central government policies.If I were to predict, I would say that Bitcoin will remain with the 7,500 USD - 9,500 USD bracket by the time we reach Thanksgiving,he concludes.

We will know for surein a couple of weeks.

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Bitcoin, ETH, XRP, LTC, And XLMs Next Big Test: Thanksgiving Season - Forbes