With Bitcoin price successfully punching through the $12,000 barrier after PayPal announced that it would be venturing into digital assets, October is delivering on the excitement that September failed to provide. And with on-chain and market data continuing bullish signs for Bitcoin (BTC), experts believe that a 2017-style rally may be on the way.

Ether (ETH) price has also picked up, although confidence in decentralized finance is beginning to shake as the industrys growth and hype are slowing down. DeFi has been the major kick-starter for cryptocurrency popularity in 2020, but now, other digital assets seem to be ready to start thriving and could reach considerable heights by the end of the year.

According to a recent report by Finder an online comparison resource featuring 30 experts from the industry, Bitcoins price is likely to reach $14,283 by the end of the year. And according to Finders cryptocurrency editor, Andrew Munro, Bitcoins reputation as a reliable store of value is the main reason behind the generally bullish outlook. He told Cointelegraph:

Other experts have cited numerous reasons for a rally in the price of Bitcoin, namely an increasingly clear regulatory framework in the digital asset market and the many setbacks associated with fiat currencies, such as inflation and negative rates.

While the panel average predicted a $14,283 Bitcoin price by the end of the year, other predictions point to a much higher price tag, especially considering the famous stock-to-flow model created by anonymous analyst PlanB.

While Bitcoin is beginning to show signs of strength over other cryptocurrencies, with increasing trade and market capitalization dominance, industry participants also hold a positive outlook on Ether, with a panelist average of $513, a 40% increase by the end of the year. However, in the long term, experts are not so sure about Ethers sustainability. Munro said: The most commonly cited factor behind bullish near-term Ethereum predictions was the expected launch of Ethereum 2.0 before the end of the year, and the impact of staking on circulating supply.

Ethereum has seen increased popularity throughout 2020 due to the rise of DeFi, but some skepticism is being voiced over the long-term prospect and sustainability of DeFi. While many are hoping for the launch of Ethereum 2.0, that may take years to finalize. According to Jonathan Hobbs, author of The Crypto Portfolio and a former digital asset fund manager, told Cointelegraph that its one of the reasons for the positive returns on Bitcoin:

As profits from the DeFi alt season trickle back into Bitcoin, the long-term sustainability of decentralized finance may come into question. In fact, a survey by CryptoCompare asked 26 exchange operators in leading trading venues about the future of decentralized exchanges, with only 7.7% finding it likely that DEXs will overtake centralized exchanges in two years time.

It is clear that DeFi activity is slowing down, but some believe this is actually good in the long run. Lanre Jonathan Ige, a researcher at Amun AG an issuer of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products in Europe told Cointelegraph:

While sustainability seems to be the main blocker for any long-term success of decentralized finance, both when it comes to the returns on DeFi and to the technical aspects of Ethereum, others have cited a shady crypto industry, complicated interfaces and a general lack of popularity as deterrents to the continued growth of DeFi. Munro stated: 73% of the panel said scams, excessive hype and market manipulation were a key obstacle to DeFi growth, and some likened DeFi to the ICO boom in 2017.

Nevertheless, many remain hopeful about DeFi. In fact, the majority of panelists in Finders cryptocurrency report said DeFi applications will likely continue to steadily grow over the next 12 months in terms of value locked and the number of users. Ilya Abugov, lead analyst at DappRadar also believes this to be the case, telling Cointelegraph: There is less media hype in DeFi right now. There was a lot of buildup in the summer, so now there is a bit of a sobering up moment.

While DeFi may have been the catalyst for the summers crypto activity, institutional interest may be the driving force for Bitcoin going forward, according to Lanre, especially because big corporations such as MicroStrategy, Stone Ridge and Square are now getting involved,

Exchange operators queried in the CryptoCompare survey believe this to be the case as well, with 92.3% stating that there will be a rise in institutional investment in digital assets in the next two years. According to Hobbs, Bitcoins scarcity and deflationary nature are some of the factors influencing why institutions are becoming interested in digital asset investment: Ninety percent of the worlds bitcoin has already been mined. Ninety percent of the worlds dollars, however, have definitely not been printed. I believe this narrative is starting to catch on more with institutional players.

In the meantime, some institutions are still betting on the DeFi sector, with Pantera Capital recently disclosing during a webinar that DeFi will be at the center of the upcoming bull rally. But while many still believe in DeFi, most seem to think that the DeFi price hype cycle is done and that slower growth for the industry will follow, especially as Ethereum is able to scale.

While the outlook is generally positive, many are still concerned with the latest news pertaining to regulation, such as the United States lawsuit against BitMex and the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authoritys ban on cryptocurrency derivatives for retail. Will more regulatory constraints follow, or is it clear sailing for Bitcoin and crypto from now on?

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DeFi season could be over as Bitcoin and Ether pack bags for the moon - Cointelegraph

Should you trust the bitcoin bounce?

Bitcoin prices climbed more than 3% to levels not seen since January 2018 on Thursday after PayPal's announcement that it would be launching a cryptocurrency service.

Up nearly 23% month to date, bitcoin also received some accolades from legendary hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones, who told CNBC on Thursday that the cryptocurrency was in its "first inning" and likely would be "the best inflation trade" in a time of widespread quantitative easing.

Owning bitcoin, however, is no easy feat, one trader warned.

"Bitcoin trades like a commodity. It's a supply-and-demand business," Gina Sanchez, founder and CEO of Chantico Global and chief market strategist of Lido Advisors, told CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Thursday.

"If you expect demand to go up, you should expect the price to go up," she said. "The problem with it is it has been incredibly volatile and it's just highly traded by momentum, and so I think you have to be careful when you put this in your portfolio because a little bit goes a long way."

Right now likely isn't the best time to buy bitcoin anyway, Sanchez said.

"I think there still has to be a lot more standardization and regulation around how this is going to trade," she said. "It is a bit of the wild, Wild West with these momentum trades just really whipsawing it. One announcement for increased demand pushes the price really high and then you lose that value within a month."

Quint Tatro, chief investment officer at Joule Financial, saw more reasons for investors to consider buying in.

"We deal a lot with average retail investors," Tatro, who said he personally owns "a little bit of bitcoin," said in the same "Trading Nation" interview. "We look at comprehensive wealth management. And I can tell you for middle America, there are a tremendous amount of folks that are worried about our monetary system and fiat currency."

Tatro echoed Tudor Jones' concern about the Federal Reserve and other central banks flooding the global monetary system with capital.

"When somebody expresses that concern to me and asks me how they could potentially protect against not just return on capital, but return of capital, I encourage them to explore bitcoin as an option," he said.

"We can't as an investment advisor buy that for them, so, they have to do their own due diligence, but again, there's a lot of people out there that are concerned about the monetary system as a whole and they're starting to hedge that by picking up a small percentage and I think that's where the new demand is coming from."

Disclosure: Tatro personally owns bitcoin.

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Bitcoin hits its highest level since 2018, but two traders are split on whether it's worth buying - CNBC

On October 23, the Microsoft-owned Github leveraged an ostensible DMCA takedown in order to remove 18 projects from the code-hosting portal. According to sources, the takedown stemmed from a request filed by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Githubs recent move has made the crypto community quite leery of the platform and some proponents are scared that cryptocurrency codebases like Bitcoins can be taken down by government forces.

This week the RIAA got the Microsoft-owned Github to remove a number of projects from the code-hosting portal. The code repositories removed stem from a project called the Youtube-dl protocol. The software is a Python library that allows people to download source files from the video-streaming platform Youtube.

Prior to the removal, the Python-library Youtube-dl had over 72,000 stars on the repository platform. Github published the reasons behind the DMCA takedown but some people contested whether or not it was real. For instance, the legal director, John Bergmayer, claimed it isnt really a DMCA request.

I dont see an assertion that Youtube-dl is an infringing work. Rather the claim is that its illegal per se, Bergmayer wrote on Twitter. In addition to Bergmayers statements, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) also tweeted about Github complying with the RIAA.

Youtube-dl is a legitimate tool with a world of lawful uses, the EFF detailed. Demanding its removal from Github is a disappointing and counterproductive move by the RIAA.

Githubs move has caused concern among many cryptocurrency advocates as a number of bitcoin proponents have been discussing the situation. On October 24, Sideshift.ai founder Andreas Brekken tweeted: The threat is real, after sharing a tweet Pierre Rochard wrote to his followers on September 9, 2020.

I would not be surprised if central banks pressure Github into delisting the bitcoin/bitcoin repository, Rochard exclaimed well over a month and a half ago. Development work would go on, but it would be far slower and more decentralized, he added.

Of course, after Github removed Youtube-dl, a number of other crypto advocates discussed the possibilities of crypto repositories being removed and what types of alternatives are available. Software developer Chris Troutner replied to Brekkens threat tweet and explained how he backs up his code.

This is why I mirror my GitHub repositories on IPFS. This is why I back up my YouTube videos on LBRY and IPFS. Others discussed using alternatives like Gitlab as the Youtube-dl project already has a back-up on the code-hosting portal.

Shame an open-source tool that does not use proprietary code gets a DMCA notice, tweeted another individual. Code is not free if its on Github. A few other crypto users suggested that Filecoin devs should should focus on building a decentralized github. Open source code is crucial and text is easy to compress and doesnt consume storage, he added.

The Youtube-dl DMCA takedown, however, does not concern everyone and it follows the recent Arctic permafrost project Github participated in recently. According to Github, the Bitcoin codebase will be stored for 1,000 years as Archivists etched the blockchain networks code on film reels and encased the codebase in a steel capsule.

Its also important to note that Git is a form of distribution and not a centralized protocol. Github is a centralized protocol and owned by Microsoft but the bitcoin/bitcoin repository can be mirrored at any time.

What do you think about bitcoiners concerns about Githubs centralization? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

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Can Github Remove the Bitcoin Codebase? Recent Repository Takedown Has Proponents Worried | Featured - Bitcoin News

Digital Currency Group (DCG) recently published the firms State of Crypto 2020 report which polls more than 150 portfolio crypto companies. According to the study, 75% of the respondents believe the value of their business has grown this year, while 50% of the startups have seen outperforming start-of-year projections.

The state of the cryptocurrency industry is growing according to Digital Currency Groups (DCG) latest report. The study surveyed over 150 DCG portfolio companies executives in order to quantify sentiment and provide qualitative analysis of operational trends in the crypto community.

One of the biggest obstacles for these firms was the coronavirus outbreak but many firms have recouped from the Covid-19 crisis. Still, Covid-19 and remote work was the main business challenge in 2020 recorded by 23% of the respondents. Other issues considered included third party delays (21%), fundraising (19%), and technical obstacles (13%).

Unlike 2018 and 2019, jobs in the crypto world are rising as DCG notes that 66% of its portfolio companies reported growing in headcount this year. Despite the Covid-19 uncertainty, roughly 35% of the participants said they plan to hire more people this year.

One of the greatest challenges in the cryptocurrency industry right now, besides Covid-19, is regulatory compliance. The DCG study shows 51% of the survey respondents said compliance and regulation is the biggest concern. Roughly 22% of the executives point to security issues like theft, hacks, and scams.

When asked what the most bullish crypto industry development was in 2020, 39% said that it stemmed from decentralized finance (defi) growth. 21% said that bitcoin (BTC) resilience was a bonus and 15% looked to the stablecoin surge in 2020. 10% of the DCG survey participants look forward to Big Tech joining the crypto fray.

The 150 portfolio company execs were also asked if they think Ethereum can scale before competing blockchains can catch up to its defi lead. 51% believe that Ethereum will scale first, 25% detailed that it wont scale first, and 24% said that they were unsure.

DCGs survey then asked the respondents whether or not they think the crypto industry will accelerate, steady, or slow from here. 57% wholeheartedly believe that the crypto industry will accelerate while 40% envision steady action.

Meanwhile, only 3% of the surveyed individuals thought that the industry would slow down from here. The respondents also envision sub-industry consolidation and the greatest expected consolidation would be exchange platforms.

From here, crypto execs think that the consolidation will stem from wallet and custody solutions, trading tools, and payments respectively.

One event that would propel the industry higher would be an initial public offering (IPO) of a major U.S. based crypto firm most of the respondents noted. We look to 2020 with a renewed sense of opportunity, the DCG report highlighted.

2020 has been filled with the unexpected, sad, and norm-shatteringbut it provided our space with that supportive opportunity we believed it was primed for, and it has delivered, DCGs study concluded. One event that would definitively mark the end of an industry in the shadows is getting people excited: 95% of our survey respondents said a major U.S. IPO would be a positive development.

Furthermore, the execs surveyed were also asked what they thought the price of BTC would be in 6 to 12 months from now. 48% said $10k to $15k, 22% said $15k to $20k, 21% the price will cross $21k +, 8% think it will be between $5k to $10k, and only 1% assume the price will be below $5,000 per coin.

What do you think about the bitcoin businesses on the mend and the crypto execs positivity in 2020? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, DCG's State of Crypto 2020 report,

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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Bitcoin Businesses on the Mend: Report Shows 57% of Crypto Execs Expect the Industry to Accelerate, Companies Are Hiring - Bitcoin News

Fintech giant Square (NYSE:SQ) has allowed its Cash App customers to buy and sell bitcoin for some time now, and has some high-tech cryptocurrency initiatives underway. But Square just took its relationship with the leading cryptocurrency to the next level by purchasing $50 million worth of bitcoin as an investment. Here are the thoughts of Motley Fool analyst Jason Moser and Fool.com contributor Matthew Frankel, and what it might mean for shareholders.

Jason Moser: All right. Well, let's talk a little bit about Square, because this is funny, because we didn't plan this, but this really did turn out to be, kind of, a War on Cash themed show here. You know, we've got PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) with the Visa (NYSE:V) credit card, now we're talking about Square. This is a little bit of a different story here, and I want you to convince me this is a big deal because I'm not really sure that it is. But the fact of the matter is that Square has taken its relationship, its belief in bitcoin, to the next level. Not a surprise. We know Jack Dorsey is a big crypto evangelist, we know he believes in that and it's a way to democratize finance. But now, Square is going to hold, I think it's $50 million worth of bitcoin on their balance sheet. Is this really a big deal?

Matthew Frankel: Meh, kind of. I'm going to make a very unpopular statement right now. Square's interest in bitcoin is my least favorite part of the company.

Moser: [laughs] I think I'd agree with you there. I think I actually agree with you there.

Frankel: I mean, as an investor, I mean, I like to say that I bought Square before it was cool to buy Square. I got it right after the IPO when everyone hated the idea of it going to go anywhere. But anyway, the $50 million of bitcoin, it's roughly 1% of Square's total assets. So, this isn't an insignificant amount of money that they're stashing in bitcoin, I mean, this is money that was sitting on in cash anyway on their balance sheet, so it's just kind of moving from -- it would be the same, in my mind right now, if they said we're going to hold $50 million of euro on the balance sheet. But it does kind of add a next step to their interest in bitcoin. We know that Square allowed people to start buying bitcoin through the Cash App in 2018. Since then, they launched a Square Crypto Division that, kind of, focuses on solving bitcoin related issues. They're participating in a few other nonprofit initiatives when it comes to crypto. But it's always been more of a business function, not that Square was directly investing in it. You know, they were letting their users buy bitcoin, they were trying to figure out how best to use cryptocurrency to solve future problems, they didn't actually think of it as an investment.

This is maybe the biggest investor I know of, or the biggest company I know of, that's actually calling bitcoin an investment.

Moser: So, I wonder, you know, I think about several years back when bitcoin really was just starting to gain headlines here. We're talking about the big challenges for bitcoin between the two big challenges, as a medium of exchange and a store of value. And you could see there were hurdles to clear on both sides. Now, I think that the medium of exchange hurdle has -- I'm still not convinced, I mean, I don't know the mass majority of people out there are using bitcoin to buy anything. It does seem to me, though, that it's starting to make its case a little bit more as a store of value. This, to me, for Square, strikes me as more of a hedging strategy than maybe anything else. And maybe it's a way to gain a little bit more headlines. Maybe it's a way for Jack Dorsey to get folks to believe a little bit more in the merits, the potential of cryptocurrency, you know, bitcoin and whatnot. So, maybe it's a multi-serving move there. But it does seem to me, at least, it seems to bolster the argument that bitcoin does hold a place in that store of value argument.

Frankel: Yeah. And I would say over the last year or so, the price of bitcoin has stabilized significantly. I don't know if you remember a couple of years ago, when you know, one month it would be worth $4,000, the next month it'll be $20,000, the next month it will be $3,000. Who wants to store value in something that's going to do that? But bitcoin has been roughly $10,000 for a pretty long time now. I mean, give or take. I mean, it fluctuates just like any type of currency. But now it's behaving more like a currency rather than just a crazy speculative asset. So, in that regard I could also say it's more of a store of value. That's why I say, right now, this move to put $50 million in bitcoin, to me, isn't that much different than putting it in euro or something like that from a financial point-of-view, because now the value has become a whole lot more predictable.

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Square Bought $50 Million Worth of Bitcoin: What Does it Mean to Investors? - Motley Fool

In the days preceding Bitcoins latest rise in price, stablecoins went wild, exhibiting some largely unprecedented behavior.

On October 18, stablecoins moving to exchanges reached record highs of 60,000 and 56,000 respectively, according to data from CryptoQuant. The outlet's data tracked USDT on Ethereum, PAX, USDC, TUSD, DAI, SAI, BUSD, HUSD and USDK. When it comes to the total inflow of all stablecoins in terms of the dollar value, no extraordinary trends were detected.

CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju told Cointelegraph that, although the inflows were not huge in terms of dollar value, they signified a bullish trend among retail investors:

Ju believes that the market's high address and transaction count indicates that inflows were coming from a large number of retail investors rather than from a few large players. The assumption is that investors send stablecoins to exchanges when they plan to convert them to other crypto assets primarily Bitcoin.Yesterday, Tether minted 450 million USDT on the Tron (TRX) network. The companys CTO Paolo Ardoino clarified earlier that the amount was authorized, but not issued:

Tethers market capitalization quadrupled in 2020, beginning the year with $4 billion and rising to $16 billion at time of publication. Meanwhile,Bitcoin balances on major exchanges fell below 2.5 BTC for the first time in years.

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Stablecoins went wild in the days before Bitcoins recent surge - Cointelegraph