Mai Capital Managements chief equity strategist and regional president, Chris Grisanti, has predicted that this year will be tough for crypto largely due to regulations. However, he expects established cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin and ether, to do quite well once regulations come into focus.

Mai Capital Managements Chris Grisanti shared his outlook for the cryptocurrency market in an interview with CNBC Thursday. Grisanti, CFA, is chief equity strategist and regional president of Mai Capital Management, a wealth management firm that provides planning and investment advisory services.

Noting that crypto is almost a victim of its own success, Grisanti detailed:

I think its going to be a tougher year for crypto There will be calls for regulation from all over the place from China, from Europe, and here in the United States.

Nonetheless, the equity strategist sees some cryptocurrencies coming out ahead. I do think there will be a great winnowing as well. I think the more established coins like bitcoin and ethereum will do quite well after regulations come into focus, he described.

The strategist elaborated:

Once regulations are in place, institutional investors, I think, will get more comfortable treating bitcoin not like a currency but like gold, which is a hedge against inflation and other things.

A recent survey by Nickel Digital Asset Management, a regulated European digital asset hedge fund manager, also shows that institutional investors are optimistic about more regulation coming to the crypto industry.

Commenting on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) being granted more power to regulate the crypto space, 73% of institutional investors and wealth managers believe this will have a positive impact on the price of crypto and digital assets and 32% believe it will have a very positive effect.

What do you think about the predictions by the equity strategist? Let us know in the comments section below.

A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

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Mai Capital Predicts Tough Year for Crypto Expects Bitcoin and Ethereum to Do Well Once Regulations Come Into Focus Regulation Bitcoin News -...

Listen To This Episode:

"Bitcoin Bottom Line" podcast host C.J. Wilson presented a solo episode to break down the topic of open-source software.

The concept of Bitcoin being an open-source software projects means that everything about Bitcoin must have visibility and auditability, meaning that anyone, including average non-coders, has access to download the entire language. This encourages folks to participate in an open, Socratic manner, having conversations with logic and not necessarily emotion.

Wilson explained the BIP process, which sees Bitcoin Improvement Proposals run on GitHub by Bitcoin Core developers. The developers are working on Bitcoin Core, posting the proposals written by Bitcoiners to the network. After these are posted, a formative argument is made to discuss the process and decide whether or not it should pass.

Since all Bitcoin iterations are reverse compatible, if a BIP is approved, each user can choose whether or not to upgrade to that version of the Bitcoin software.

Another aspect of open-source projects is that they include the transparency of all transactions on the blockchain. This explains that there is a lever of power between the developers, nodes and miners. Developers work on the programming, the nodes are validating the programming and agreeing to run the programs.

Wilson explained that a node is for folks to run their own transactions, and to receive them. A node can also be used as a wallet. In the past, folks would have their node on their laptop, also used as a wallet, and if they lost their laptop, they lost everything. Now, folks might have a Lightning Network wallet on their phone, a node on their laptop, mining equipment, etc.

Bitcoin Core developers have decided that the safety of the users is more important than the novelty of the use. Wilson closed out the episode describing the speed, efficiency and security of the Bitcoin network, and more.

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Discussing The Importance Of Bitcoin's Open-Source Ethos - Bitcoin Magazine

BNB is used widely on Binance, the world's biggest crypto exchange by volume.

This year, the old guard of cryptocurrencies lost ground to tokens with greater returns. Researchers predict the trend may continue.

Among the three largest digital tokens by market value, Binance Coin, or BNB, significantly outperformed its two larger rivals Bitcoin and Ether. The coin -- issued by crypto exchange Binance Holdings Ltd. -- gained roughly 1,300 per centin 2021, according to Arcane Research.

By comparison, market leader Bitcoin increased 65 per centwhile Ether, the second-biggest token, rose 408 per cent.

BNB is used widely on Binance, the world's biggest crypto exchange by volume. It is also the native currency of Binance Smart Chain, a blockchain platform that supports smart contracts for use in decentralized finance (DeFi) and other applications. With BSC gaining adherents as a challenger to the Ethereum blockchain, that's helped fuel gains in the BNB token, according to Arcane Research.

Other alternative coins, or altcoins, saw major gains in 2021, benefiting from an explosion in investor interest for digital assets and an expansion of the crypto ecosystem. Solana and Fantom, coins connected with other blockchain platforms that support smart contracts, outpaced Binance Coin's returns, for instance.

While Bitcoin showed strength in 2021, we've seen a constant stream of capital trickling down into altcoins, the research firm wrote in a note. The firm's analysts predict the strongest momentum in tokens related to the metaverse and GameFi, along with ETH-killers targeting Ethereum.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Forget Bitcoin And Ether, This Altcoin Gained 1,300% In 2021 - NDTV Profit

Bitcoin (BTC) may be down over 30% from its record high of $69,000, but it has emerged as one of the best-performing financial assets in 2021. BTC has bested the United States benchmark index the S&P 500 and gold.

Arcane Research notedin its new reportthat Bitcoins year-to-date performance came out to be nearly 73%. In comparison, the S&P 500 index surged 28%, and gold dropped by 7% in the same period, which marks the third consecutive year that Bitcoin has outperformed the two.

At the core of Bitcoins extremely bullish performance was higher inflation. The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) logged its largest 12-month increase in four decades this November.

Most economists didnt see the high inflation coming, as witnessed by the 1-year ahead consumer inflation expectations, the Arcane report read, adding:

Loose monetary policies and a sustained fear of higher inflation also prompted mainstream financial houses to launch crypto-enabled investment vehicles for their rich clients in 2021.

Arcane reported an inflow of 140,000 BTC (~$6.56 billion) across spot- and future-based Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) and physically backed exchange-traded products this year.

That prompted more Bitcoin units to get absorbed into investment vehicles, underscoring a greater institutional demand for the cryptocurrency.

In contrast, gold-backed ETFs witnessed an outflow of $8.8 billion in 2021, according to the World Gold Councils report published this December.

Nonetheless, Bitcoins relatively superior performance in 2021 has included periods of high volatility.

Many analysts believe that extreme price fluctuations keep Bitcoin from becoming an ideal inflation hedge. That includes Leonard Kostovetsky, a finance professor atBoston College, who recalledin his blog postthat there have been 13 days in 2021 whenBTCs price has moved over 10% in one direction. He wrote:

Arcane, too, recognized Bitcoin for having beenmore volatile than the S&P 500 in 2021, noting that the cryptocurrency behaved like a risk-on asset by merely amplifying the most significant stock market movements.

The researcher cited VIX,a measure of the expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index options, to exemplify the relationship between Bitcoin and stock markets. It noted that BTCs price fell hard whenever VIX readings spiked in recent times, underscoring that institutional traders viewed Bitcoin as a risk-on asset.

As a result, Bitcoins potential to fall harder in the wake of a stock market correction also became higher. Arcane also noted that a bearish 2022 for the S&P 500 may end up wiping a big portion of Bitcoins gains.

Therefore, be aware of stock market headwinds in the next year and their possibleimplications for bitcoins short-term price trajectory, it added.

Related:Arcane Research releases its crypto predictions for 2022

But Aristides Capital managing member Chris Brown went far in predicting an all-and-all Bitcoin doom in 2022. He stated that cryptocurrencies could face massive selloffs ahead as the U.S. Federal Reserve ends its $120-billion-a-month asset-purchasing program followed by three rate hikes next year.

If the Fed really does hike rates enough to make money considerably less loose, or if markets believe they will, you are going to see certain areas of speculation come to a screeching halt, Brown said, adding:

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

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What BTC price slump? Bitcoin outperforms stocks and gold for 3rd year in a row - Cointelegraph

2021 was a wild year for cryptocurrency. Despite bitcoin's recent plunge, for example, its price has still risen by more than 70% in the past 52 weeks.

More important, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have made tremendous strides, not just in valuation today the cryptocurrencymarket capitalization is estimated at $2.5 trillion,more than double a year ago but also in growing acceptance.

Onemidyear surveyestimated that there were 221 million cryptocurrency holders, more than twice the number in January. And this year,El Salvador declared Bitcoin to be legal tender, and several countries including the U.S. have issued some form of Bitcoin-based ETFs.

At the same time, we also saw severe backlash against cryptocurrencies. China has been among the most explicit countries in cracking down, both evicting crypto miners and banning most cryptocurrency transactions for its billion-plus citizens. India isconsidering similar measures.

And even where governments are not inclined to ban crypto, 2021 has been a year of skepticism about the energy drain, and thus climate impact, that crypto potentially creates.

Given these conflicting signals, what does the new year hold? As editor of fintech newsletterFIN, here are what I see as the crucial crypto trends in 2022:

We will see further advances in mainstream cryptocurrency adoption. They may not always take the form of legal tender, but financial institutions will increasingly embrace cryptocurrency because customers are demanding that it be part of their portfolio. Many banks and financial service companies will make working with crypto a way to entice and retain customers.

In February, Canada's Purpose Investments launched what itclaimsto have been the world's first bitcoin-based ETFs. Less than a year later, it has some $1.4 billion under management.

There's no reason this can't be duplicated 10 or 100 times in markets outside the U.S. And althoughit's been reluctant to do so, the Securities and Exchange Commission could approve a bitcoin or crypto ETF in 2022.

Individual investors are also increasingly likely to realize that they can build profit in a crypto portfolio,despite the risks,and borrow against it, extending the crypto ecosystem.

A fascinating competition has developed in recent months between crypto-titanEthereumandseveral crypto blockchainsthat present themselves as faster and cheaper.

The argument might not resolve itself in 2022, but savvy investors are likely to balance their portfolios to play it safe.

2021 has been a year of remarkable retreat by techbehemoths that once dreamed of crypto domination.

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has dragged its feet for years about their digital currency, now called Diem.The recent departure of Meta's head of cryptocurrency David Marcusall but guarantees that even if Diem makes it out of the starting gate, it will be irrelevant.

This departure follows Google'sannouncementin October that it will not pursue its ambitious plans for a full-blown payment and banking service. The departure of humbled tech companies should represent a growth opportunity for existing cryptocurrenciesandstablecoins.

It's confusing, but the more the world wants crypto, the more certain governments want to crack down on it.

Technologically, banning crypto is all but impossible, but governments can make it very hard for citizens to trade (by denying licenses to exchanges, for example). In the U.S. and Europe, expect more scrutiny about the climate impact of cryptocurrency mining.

Sometimes the crypto rollercoaster can distract from the fact that, overall, market for the largest coins was way up in 2021.There's no obvious reason to think that pattern will change in 2022.

Bill Barhydt, CEO of crypto exchange Abra and a noted bitcoin bull,saysbitcoin could hit $100,000 in 2022. That's ambitious but hardly insane.What investors and would-be investors need to accept is that it could also drop another 20% on its long journey to that height.

James Ledbetter is the editor and publisher of the fintech newsletter FIN, and the former editor-in-chief of Inc. Follow him on Twitter @jledbetter.

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A fintech expert's top 6 crypto predictions: Bitcoin hitting $100,000 is 'ambitious but hardly insane' - CNBC

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren has argued that cryptocurrency is not a path to financial inclusion like crypto advocates claim. Bitcoin ownership is even more concentrated within the top 1% than dollars, she said, emphasizing the need for real solutions to make the financial system work for everyone, not just the wealthy.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) commented about cryptocurrency, bitcoin, and financial inclusion Tuesday. She tweeted:

The crypto industry claims that crypto is the path to financial inclusion, but bitcoin ownership is even more concentrated within the top 1% than dollars. We need real solutions to make the financial system work for everyone, not just the wealthy.

Her comment was in response to an article in the Wall Street Journal claiming that the top 1% of bitcoin holders control a greater share of the cryptocurrency than the most affluent American households control in dollars. Citing a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research, the author wrote that the top 10,000 bitcoin accounts hold 5 million bitcoins, an equivalent of approximately $232 billion.

Many Twitter users replied to Senator Warrens tweet. One user told the Massachusetts senator: This is not true. The fixed bitcoin supply means ownership gets less concentrated over time in congruence with adoption, usage and creation of value. There is no other alternative to fixing the money printing problem that results in an invisible tax on the average citizen.

Another user tweeted to the senator: Your argument is flawed. So I am left to assume you dont understand BTC is not all crypto its BTC. You are only recognizing BTC as crypto while ignoring an entire budding crypto industry based on the transfer of value for fractions of a penny.

Moreover, some people reminded Senator Warren that crypto is decentralized and is for everyone, not just the rich. Some questioned the claims made in the Wall Street Journal article. Several people called the senator from Massachusetts ignorant and manipulative, emphasizing the need for education.

The senator recently called on regulators to clamp down on stablecoins and decentralized finance (defi) platforms before it is too late. She said, Defi is the most dangerous part of the crypto world. In July, she urged U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to urgently adopt a policy to mitigate crypto risks.

In September, she pressed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to address the problem of crypto exchange outages and high transaction fees. She also stressed at the time that cryptocurrency is not a path to financial inclusion.

What do you think about Senator Elizabeth Warrens comments? Let us know in the comments section below.

A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

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US Senator on Crypto: We Need Real Solutions to Make the Financial System Work for Everyone, Not Just the Wealthy Regulation Bitcoin News - Bitcoin...

In less than a week, investors can pop the champagne corks and celebrate another successful year. Through Dec. 22, the widely followed S&P 500 was higher by 25%, which more than doubles up its average annual total return of around 11%, including dividends, since the beginning of 1980.

But it's the cryptocurrency space that's delivered the juiciest gains of all. Since the year began, the aggregate value of all digital currencies came close to tripling. Not surprisingly, Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) has been one of the biggest contributors to this nominal value increase, with a year-to-date gain of 67%. It accounts for 40.5% of the entire $2.27 trillion cryptocurrency market.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bitcoin's gains, which recently reached as high as 8,000,000,000%from where it began trading in early July 2010, have come on the heels of numerous catalysts.

To begin with, Bitcoin's first-mover advantage has made it the most-popular cryptocurrency with retailers. As of late 2020, small-business financing platform Fundera estimated that 15,174 businesses worldwide accepted Bitcoin as payment -- and this figure has assuredly grown since.

To build on the above point, Bitcoin was also recognized by El Salvador as legal tender in September. It's the first country to allow Bitcoin to be used as accepted currency, and could pave a path for other nations to follow.

The world's most valuable digital currency has benefited from rapidly rising inflation in the U.S. and abroad as well. Since Bitcoin has a perceived cap of 21 million tokens, it's viewed as an inflationary hedge against a rapidly growing U.S. money supply and price hikes. In November, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers jumped 6.8% in the U.S., marking the biggest year-over-year jump in 39 years.

Investors look to be clearly excited about the upgrade potential for Bitcoin, too. In November, the long-awaited Taproot upgrade took effect. Taproot allows for smart-contract transactions to occur on the network, which opens the door for a broader use of the Bitcoin blockchain. Smart contracts are protocols that help to verify, enforce, and facilitate a contract between two parties.

Lastly, even the fear of missing out (or FOMO) has played a role. After watching Bitcoin gain 8 billion percent, crypto investors appear to be more than willing to overlook any threat of a reversion.

Image source: Getty Images.

Although Bitcoin has proved me wrong over the past year, I still wouldn't buy the most-popular digital currency on the planet with free money -- and I'd suggest others avoid it, too. Below are some of the reasons I simply can't buy into the hype surrounding Bitcoin.

For starters, it isn't the scarce token it's made out to be. Take gold as a comparison. Since we can't use alchemy to make any additional gold, what remains in the ground and what's been already mined is all there will ever be. In terms of physical scarcity, that's a true line in the sand. As for Bitcoin, lines of code are what limit its "cap" of 21 million coins. Even though consensus is unlikely to increase the number of outstanding tokens above 21 million, it's not impossible that it happens. Thus, Bitcoin only offers the perception of scarcity and not true scarcity.

Another big issue for Bitcoin is dilution. But I'm not talking about the modest coin inflation that comes with cryptocurrency mining. Rather, I'm alluding to Bitcoin being a first-generation blockchain network that's being left in the dust by third-generation blockchain innovation. There's absolutely no reason for Bitcoin to be worth $913 billion when blockchain projects at a fraction of its value can scale better, process faster, and handle far more complex transactions. Bitcoin may be benefiting from a first-mover advantage, but the first to the foray is rarely the victor.

Image source: Getty Images.

History provides yet another reason I want nothing to do with Bitcoin. Major price swings are somewhat commonplace in the crypto space, and reversions following huge gains happen often. Bitcoin was up 8 billion percent at one point since July 2010 and has yet to demonstrate that it truly has staying power. Since it's been unable to decouple from the stock market, I would be betting on a significant reversion following its pandemic-low bounce.

To build on this previous point, there now are considerably more avenues to bet against Bitcoin than there have ever been. The rise of Bitcoin-focused exchange-traded funds and Bitcoin futures offers a safer way for big-money players to bet on downside in the world's most-popular crypto. In other words, Bitcoin becoming more mainstream as an investment will hurt more than help.

And finally, history also tells us that investors have a really poor track record of estimating the adoption of next-big-thing technologies. Looking back on the internet, business-to-business commerce, genomics, 3D printing, and so many next-big-thing advancements reveals that their adoption took far longer than expected. This isn't to say that blockchain can't become a mainstream technology in payment and nonfinancial applications at some point in the future. But it's important to recognize that businesses aren't willing to jump at the chance to use blockchain until it's been thoroughly vetted in the real world. We're just not anywhere close to that yet.

There are plenty of cryptocurrency projects that are really intriguing and could change the course of payment processing or supply chain management. Bitcoin just isn't one of them.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Here's Why I Still Won't Buy Bitcoin, and You Shouldn't, Either - The Motley Fool

The top dogs of the cryptocurrency market are undeniably Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH). There are certainly strong arguments to be made about many smaller digital currencies, especially those that excel in areas where Bitcoin and Ethereum do not at the moment.

However, with a combined market cap of more than $1.4 trillion, the two largest denominations command more than half of the total crypto-market's $2.4 billion valuation. Put another way, stack all of the market's other cryptocurrencies together and they're not as big as the Bitcoin-Ethereum combo.

With this strong history of appreciation, it's easy to see why volatility-tolerant investors of the two largest cryptocurrencies are eyeing the next big major milestones. Based on Monday morning's pricing, Bitcoin would have to appreciate by 95% to hit $100,000. Ethereum is a 144% surge away from $10,000.

Bitcoin is closer to its next-round milestone, but it doesn't mean that it will get there first. Let's size up the playing field to see which meaty milestone will likely be crossed first.

Image source: Getty Images.

The knocks on Bitcoin, relative to many of the market's other denominations, are pretty well established. It's been slow to evolve its blockchain technology, leaving Bitcoin largely as a store of value beyond settling up on transactions where it's accepted. The recent taproot update hopes to change that, giving it the flexibility to make a push into decentralized finance, in general, and smart contracts, in particular -- an area where Ethereum is dominant and many smaller and nimbler denominations are making a lot of noise.

Bitcoin's biggest selling point is that it's the industry standard when it comes to crypto. A lot of non-crypto investors may not even realize that there are literally thousands and viably hundreds of alternatives to Bitcoin. A lot of forward-thinking and colorful CEOs, including Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey, and Michael Saylor, have invested substantial chunks of their company's idle cash into Bitcoin.

You don't see that kind of corporate leadership support for Ethereum. In fact, Dorsey's Blocklimits Square accounts interested in crypto exposure to only trading Bitcoin.

Landry's -- the multiconcept operator of restaurants, hotels, and casinos -- recently updated the loyalty-rewards club for its restaurants. Customers can now peg their award points to the price of Bitcoin. It's hard to see any major operator going this route with any other digital currency outside of Bitcoin. It has mindshare, and that matters.

The allure of Ethereum is clear to more seasoned crypto traders. Despite commanding roughly half the market cap, Ethereum overtook Bitcoin in trading volume on the world's largest trading exchange in the second quarter. Ethereum, with its programmable blockchain technology, is already the beating heart in more than 3,000 decentralized applications (dApps).

A big knock on both Bitcoin and Ethereum is that they're energy-depleting to mine and move around, also exposing deficiencies in the number of transactions that can be processed, as well as the related costs. Ethereum's migration from a proof-of-work model to proof of stake -- expected to be completed in the first half of next year -- will help diminish a lot of those concerns. If you think Ethereum is popular now, just imagine how it will be when it's more functional as a faster and cheaper digital tool.

Finally, the biggest reason to bet on Ethereum getting to $10,000 before Bitcoin reaches $100,000 is that it has momentum on its side. Bitcoin is up 96% over the past year, and if it duplicates that run, it would hit six figures by the end of next year. However, Ethereum has soared 501% over the past year.

Obviously, past appreciation is no indicator of how the future will play out, but the younger Ethereum is already more successful than Bitcoin in many ways outside of the market-cap game. There's no harm in buying both, and I have allocated a small part of my overall portfolio to having some skin in the Bitcoin and Ethereum games. I still ultimately believe that Ethereum will hit $10,000 before Bitcoin hits $100,000, even if it takes a couple of years to happen.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Will Ethereum Hit $10,000 Before Bitcoin Reaches $100,000? - Motley Fool

Would you be willing to overpay to have your stalled Bitcoin transaction processed more quickly? Data shows that you most certainly would.

The use of Replace by fee a transaction feature on the Bitcoin network that allows increasing the fee once the transaction is submitted more than doubled in 2021, in what may be a sign that Bitcoin adoption has also led to increased competition among users to put their transactions on the next block.

According to statistics compiled by Bitcoinops, the use of Replace by Fee transactions rose from 14% to 28% so far this year.

The data shows that out of every 144 Bitcoin blocks, almost a third of the transactions had used the fee-boosting option first implemented in 2016 when GreenAddress (now Green Wallet) started to support this solution.

The use of Replace By Fee did not have a far-reaching impact during its first years of existence. In 2018, it managed to beat the goal of 5% of transactions, and it would take another two years to reach the usability of 10% of BTC transactions.

As early as the third quarter of 2020, the story changed. The user base increased, the cryptocurrency boom hit the institutional world, and people started sending Bitcoin like crazy. The proportion of Replace by Fee transactions touched 15% in October 2020, 20% in April 2021, and closed the year nearing 30%, with a peak of 27.5%.

The trend is clear. The number of RBF transactions is increasing and does not seem to have a clear percentile ceiling in the short term.

On the other hand, in terms of daily transactions processed, the network has fallen well below the peak of nearly 450K reached in 2019. Currently, about 260K are processed every day, which already represents an increase in Bitcoin activity of almost 20% since June of this year, when transactions fell to less than 200K per day in the midst of a price recession.

RBF usage is an essential statistic in terms of usability as it shows a growing interest in fast transaction processing. As more businesses begin to deliver a more bitcoin-friendly face, options like Replace by Fee or Child Pays For Parent help create a more flexible system for users.

For example, a payment processor, exchange, or service provider can require up to 6 block confirmations to accept a payment. The fee calculation is already something that many wallets offer automatically. Still, in case of an error and urgency on the part of a buyer the use of Replace by Fee can save the user from unexpectedly long waiting times.

And if paying more for a faster Bitcoin transaction seems insulting to your new bitcoin-loving friend, perhaps it would be a good idea to keep them away from the more popular NFT projects and DeFi protocols.

PrimeXBT Special Offer: Use this link to register & enter POTATO50 code to get 25% off trading fees.

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Use of Replace By Fee in Bitcoin Transactions Skyrocketed in 2021 - CryptoPotato

Crackdowns on bitcoin (BTC) and crypto activity are partially about high surveillance and control.

Reportedly, the countries where crypto activity is restricted or banned at some scale right now are China, Turkey, Russia, Vietnam, Bolivia, Algeria, Colombia, Nigeria, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, India, Nepal, and North Macedonia.

The pattern that prevails amongst most of these bans portrays authoritarian regimes and the depreciation of fiat currencies. Theres also the narrative behind the bans, using almost the same excuses and fearing the power of bitcoin the power in hands of the people in similar ways.

The Human Rights Foundation has reported that half of the worlds population lives under an authoritarian regime.

Tyranny is the root of poverty, war, and torture.

As this is the reality of our world, people urge to find ways to survive it, face it, surpass it. The decentralization of BTC currently represents the most useful economic tool to many citizens worldwide, thus its gaining huge traction and has started to be used as a replacement for cash.

Cash used to represent a certain level of freedom from corrupted systems and banks, but its downfall has increased since the pandemic. The digital era of finance has begun and the ones in power dont feel safe if they are not in control of the blockchain, the epicenter of innovation nowadays.

Naturally, regimes will only accept the innovation they can control and use in their favor.

In Turkey, the ban against cryptocurrencies came as investors and the common people started to adopt BTC and other digital coins to face the rapidly increasing inflation and weak national currency. What the president described as a way to stabilize the Turkish lira, investors saw as a blow to the country.

Similarly, Reuters reported that the Indian government is aiming for a general prohibition on all activities by any individual on mining, generating, holding, selling, (or) dealing in cryptocurrencies, which includes its use as a store of value and a unit of account.

The new Indian measures reportedly will open the possibilities for arrest without a warrant for any crypto user and they might be held without the option of bail. They also plan to crack down on crypto advertisements.

When the lastest China ban on crypto happened, the Financial Times reported how it affected a coffee shop that was famous for accepting bitcoin as payment:

a barista there told me it had been several years since customers could pay with it. You cant even come here to talk about it, he says.

And a Chinese official told the FT that the country no longer needs bitcoin because they have their own digital currency now.

In this scenario, saying that people do need bitcoin is the same as saying that people do need freedom.

Related Reading |Swedish Regulators Propose PoW Mining Ban. State-Owned Power Company Defends It

What regimes publicly say they fear is never what theyre actually afraid of.

Authoritarianism fears freedom freedom to choose, freedom of speech, the lack of surveillance, losing power and control. Naturally, they fear bitcoins pseudonymity, how its censorship-resistant, the fact that it can be used as a hedge against a depreciating national currency.

These countrys central banks want to be the only ones able to fix monetary issues by activating policies. The thing is, if those policies worked in favor of people most of the time, then BTC adoption wouldnt be so big and represent a risk to the banks: because those people wouldnt need it as much.

But thats not the reality, thus crypto users want to stick it to the banks. They also want control over their own investments and spendings, and the banks want that same control back.

However, do these bans really work? Can they fully ban crypto? In the second part of this article, well address these questions reviewing 2021 scenarios, plus different approaches to crypto by other tyrannies like Venezuelas.

Related Reading |Unpacking The Effects Of Chinas Bitcoin Ban On Investors

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Crypto Regulations Newsletter: A Tale Of Tyrannies & Bitcoin (1/2) - bitcoinist.com