Daily Archives: August 30, 2021

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that crypto assets, like bitcoin, are privately issued with substantial risks, and Making them equivalent to a national currency is an inadvisable shortcut. The crypto community disagrees.

The International Monetary Fund tweeted about crypto assets on Saturday, asserting that they are privately issued, come with substantial risks, and are inadvisable for use as legal tender. The IMF wrote: Privately issued cryptoassets like bitcoin come with substantial risks. Making them equivalent to a national currency is an inadvisable shortcut.

The IMFs tweet references a blog post written on July 26 by two of its legal counsels, as Bitcoin.com News previously reported. In the blog post, titled Cryptoassets as National Currency? A Step Too Far, the authors warned of the risks of making bitcoin legal tender as El Salvador did. One of the concerns mentioned was that monetary policy would lose bite, since Central banks cannot set interest rates on a foreign currency.

Many people on social media mocked the IMF for calling bitcoin privately issued. One Twitter user pointed out that the IMF is framing BTC (a public, open-source protocol) as a privately issued asset to discredit its legitimacy over national currencies, which are actually privately issued.

Some argued that fiat currencies come with more substantial risks than bitcoin. Government-issued fiat assets like the U.S. dollar come with substantial risks. Especially when they are loaned out by intergovernmental organizations with a history of bankrupting countries, one Twitter user opined.

Noting that bitcoin and crypto are competing as an international reserve asset, a third Twitter user described:

The IMF is getting nervous because companies and individuals are diversifying their wealth into bitcoin and cryptocurrencies instead of their special drawing rights (SDR).

Some people stated that the IMF is becoming an irrelevant organization. DTAP Capital founder Dan Tapiero predicted: The IMF wont exist within 10 years.

What do you think about the IMFs statement on bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section below.

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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IMF: Bitcoin Is Privately Issued Crypto With Substantial Risks, Inadvisable as Legal Tender Regulation Bitcoin News - Bitcoin News

Bitcoin's soaring popularity and value since its inception in 2009 is a curious case for many investors. Like the Internet boom, cryptocurrency also took only a few years to become a mainstream topic, and it is growing now more than ever. Many investors, as well as professionals, have made cryptocurrency investment a part of their portfolio. But Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, unlike fiat currency, aren't a physical asset. These digital currencies do not follow a centralised system and don't rely on banks. Their transactions happen through a decentralised network of computers.

So, are we investing in anything at all? Or are we just speculating some returns that may happen only in the far future?

In 2018, business magnate Warren Buffett had publicly denounced Bitcoin as not an investment. Three years since, the world has seen a lot happening on the cryptocurrency front. On one hand, there are business giants investing in these digital assets. On the other hand, crypto scams have left wreckage behind them.

We should perhaps stop asking whether buying Bitcoin is speculation. Instead, let us focus on the simple rules to follow in the cryptocurrency market for the ones who would like to turn it into a real investment.

1) Long-term or short-term profits

Speculation is when we are engaging in a risky transaction, hoping for a short-term profit. Instead of being a speculator, become a real investor by focussing on long-term goals. It's a thumb rule not to invest an amount that we can't bear losing. Cryptocurrency risks are as real as they can get. So, we should weigh the risks and goals that suit us best.

2) Cryptocurrency quality

It's better to stay away from flashy and risky projects while buying coins. The promise of a quick profit may often leave us hoping for returns for eternity. But if we want to really invest in a coin, we should check the red flags. Profits may not be as quick, but it'll save us in the long run. Bitcoin price in India has increased manifold since its inception.

3) Diversify holdings

Don't put all the eggs in the same basket. Diversify the portfolio, so that, in case a coin fails in the market, all isn't lost. That's better than stocking up on one cryptocurrency and speculating that things get better. Real investment is when we prudently choose a safe ground in a volatile market.

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Cryptocurrency Investments: Is Buying Bitcoin Investing or Speculating? - Gadgets 360

In 2018, Andrew Schober was digitally mugged for approximately $1 million worth of bitcoin. After several years of working with investigators, Schober says hes confident he has located two young men in the United Kingdom responsible for using a clever piece of digital clipboard-stealing malware to siphon his crypto holdings. Schober is now suing each of their parents in a civil case that seeks to extract what their children would not return voluntarily.

In a lawsuit filed in Colorado, Schober said the sudden disappearance of his funds in January 2018 prompted him to spend more than $10,000 hiring experts in the field of tracing cryptocurrency transactions. After months of sleuthing, his investigators identified the likely culprits: Two young men in Britain who were both minors at the time of the crime (both are currently studying computer science at U.K. universities).

A forensic investigation of Schobers computer found hed inadvertently downloaded malicious software after clicking a link posted on Reddit for a purported cryptocurrency wallet application called Electrum Atom. Investigators determined that the malware was bundled with the benign program, and was designed to lie in wait for users to copy a cryptocurrency address to their computers temporary clipboard.

When Schober went to move approximately 16.4 bitcoins from one account to another by pasting the lengthy payment address hed just copied the malware replaced his bitcoin payment address with a different address controlled by the young men.

Schobers lawsuit lays out how his investigators traced the stolen funds through cryptocurrency exchanges and on to the two youths in the United Kingdom. In addition, they found one of the defendants just hours after Schobers bitcoin was stolen had posted a message to GitHub asking for help accessing the private key corresponding to the public key of the bitcoin address used by the clipboard-stealing malware.

Investigators found the other defendant had the malware code that was bundled with the Electrum Atom application in his Github code library.

Initially, Schober hoped that the parents of the thieving teens would listen to reason, and simply return the money. So he wrote a letter to the parents of both boys:

It seems your son has been using malware to steal money from people online, reads the opening paragraph of the letter Schober emailed to the families. Losing that money has been financially and emotionally devastating. He might have thought he was playing a harmless joke, but it has had serious consequences for my life.

A portion of the letter than Schober sent to two of the defendants in 2018, after investigators determined their sons were responsible for stealing nearly $1 million in cryptocurrency from Schober.

Met with continued silence from the parents for many months, Schober filed suit against the kids and their parents in a Colorado court. A copy of the May 2021 complaint is here (PDF).

Now they are responding. One of the defendants Hazel D. Wells just filed a motion with the court to represent herself and her son in lieu of hiring an attorney. In a filing on Aug. 9, Wells helpfully included the letter in the screenshot above, and volunteered that her son had been questioned by U.K. authorities in connection with the bitcoin theft.

Neither of the defendants families are disputing the basic claim that their kids stole from Mr. Schober. Rather, theyre asserting that time has run out on Schobers legal ability to claim a cause of action against them.

Plaintiff alleges two common law causes of action (conversion and trespass to chattel), for which a three-year statute of limitations applies, an attorney for the defendants argued in a filing on Aug. 6 (PDF). Plaintiff further alleges a federal statutory cause of action, for which a two-year statute of limitations applies. Because plaintiff did not file his lawsuit until May 21, 2021, three years and five months after his injury, his claims should be dismissed.

Schobers attorneys argue (PDF) that the statute of limitations begins to run when the Plaintiff knows or has reason to know of the existence and cause of the injury which is the base of his action, and that inherent in this concept is the discovery rule, namely: That the statute of limitations does not begin to run until the plaintiff knows or has reason to know of both the existence and cause of his injury.

The plaintiffs point out that Schobers investigators didnt pinpoint one of the young mens involvement until more than a year after theyd identified his co-conspirator, saying Schober notified the second boys parents in December 2019.

None of the parties to this lawsuit responded to requests for comment.

Image: Complaint, Schober v. Thompson, et. al.

Mark Rasch, a former prosecutor with the U.S. Justice Department, said the plaintiff is claiming the parents are liable because he gave them notice of a crime committed by their kids and they failed to respond.

A lot of these crimes are being committed by juveniles, and we dont have a good juvenile justice system thats well designed to both civilly and criminally go after kids, Rasch said.

Rasch said hes currently an attorney in a number of lawsuits involving young men whove been accused of stealing and laundering millions of dollars of cryptocurrency specifically crimes involving SIM swapping where the fraudsters trick or bribe an employee at a mobile phone store into transferring control of a targets phone number to a device they control.

In those cases, the plaintiffs have sought to extract compensation for their losses from the mobile phone companies but so far those lawsuits have largely failed to yield results and are often pushed into arbitration.

Rasch said it makes sense that some victims of cryptocurrency theft are spending some serious coin to track down their assailants and sue them civilly. But he said the legwork needed to make that case is tremendous and costly, and theres no guarantee those investments will pay off down the road.

These crimes can be monumentally difficult and expensive to track down, he said. Its designed to be difficult to do, but its also not designed to be impossible to do.

As evidenced by this weeks CNBC story on a marked rise in reports of people having their Coinbase accounts emptied by fraudsters, many people investing in cryptocurrencies find out the hard way that unlike traditional banking transactions cryptocurrency funds lost to theft are likely to stay lost because the transactions are irreversible.

Traditionally, the major crypto exchanges have said theyre not responsible for lost or stolen funds. But perhaps in response to the CNBC story, Coinbase said it was introducing a new pilot guarantee for U.K. customers only, wherein they will be eligible for a reimbursement of up 150,000 if someone gains unauthorized access to their account and steals funds.

However, it seems unlikely Coinbases new guarantee would cover cases like Schobers even if hed been a U.K. customer and the theft occurred today. One of the caveats that is not covered in the guarantee is sending funds to the wrong address by accident.

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Man Robbed of 16 Bitcoin Sues Young Thieves' Parents Krebs on Security - Krebs on Security

The euphoria seen across the cryptocurrency ecosystem over the past couple of weeks was tampered down on Thursday as an early morning attempt by bulls to push the price of Bitcoin (BTC) to $50,000 was soundly rejected.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that following its rejection, the price of Bitcoin slid to a low of $46,457 before bulls managed to regroup and put a halt to the downturn.

Heres what analysts are saying about Thursdays price action for Bitcoin and a few things they are watching for as the digital asset is caught between a tug-o-war between bulls and bears.

The $50,000 price level was identified as a critical area for Bitcoin by market analyst and Cointelegraph contributor Michal van de Poppe, who posted the following tweet outlining the significant support and resistance areas.

According to van de Poppe, Bitcoin is likely to spend some time in a downward trend following this latest pullback, but there is a significant amount of support at the $44,000 level that could protect it from further decline.

The $51,000 price level was noted by van de Poppe as an important price to overcome to invalidate the current bearish trend.

The analystsaid:

According to Whalemap, a crypto-focused data tracking service, the calls for a lengthy bear cycle are premature at best.

As seen in the chart provided, the $46,200 support level is important, as the next support level is found at $39,600. On-chain data also shows that there is a limited amount of selling volume between $46,200 and $57,400.

Whalemap analystssaid:

Related: Grayscale Bitcoin Trust FUD is now over as the last GBTC unlock totals just 58 BTC

Crypto analyst Will Clemente III issued some reassuring words on Tuesday when warned of a possible short-term bearish pullback based on exchange inflows and whale wallet activity.

Thursdays pullback in the market showed that Clemente IIIs concerns were warranted, and the analyst followed the previous tweet with, I think the large portion of this short-term move is probably over.

In a separate tweet, Clemente IIIsaid:

The overall cryptocurrency market capitalization now stands at $1.999 trillion, and Bitcoins dominance rate is 44.2%.

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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Analysts say Bitcoin price pullback and profit-taking at $50K was expected - Cointelegraph

The parents of two teenagers allegedly responsible for stealing $1 million in Bitcoin are being sued.

According to court documents obtained by Brian Krebs, Andrew Schober lost 16.4552 in Bitcoin (BTC) in 2018 after his computer was infected with malware, allegedly the creation of two teenagers in the United Kingdom.

The complaint (.PDF), filed in Colorado, accuses Benedict Thompson and Oliver Read, who were minors at the time, of creating clipboard malware.

The malicious software, designed to monitor cryptocurrency wallet addresses, was downloaded and unwittingly executed by Schober after he clicked on a link, posted to Reddit, to install the Electrum Atom cryptocurrency application.

During a transfer of Bitcoin from one account to another, the malware triggered a Man-in-The-Middle (MiTM) attack, apparently replacing the address with one controlled by the teenagers and thereby diverting the coins into their wallets.

According to court documents, this amount represented 95% of the victim's net wealth at the time of the theft. At today's price, the stolen Bitcoin is worth approximately $777,000.

"Mr. Schober was planning to use the proceeds from his eventual sale of the cryptocurrency to help finance a home and support his family," the complaint reads.

The pair, tracked down during an investigation paid for by Schober, are now adults and are studying computer science at UK universities.

The mothers and fathers of Thompson and Read are named in the complaint. Emails were sent to the parents prior to the complaint requesting that the teenagers return the stolen cryptocurrency to prevent legal action from being taken.

The letter reads, in part:

"As his parents, I am appealing to you to first give him the chance to make this right, without involving law enforcement. Your son is obviously a very intelligent young man. I do not wish for him to be robbed of his future."

However, the requests, sent in 2018 and 2019, were met with silence.

Schober's complaint claims that the parents "knew or reasonably should have known" what their children were up to, and that they also failed to take "reasonable steps" in preventing further harm.

In response (.PDF), the defendants do not argue the charge, but rather have requested a motion to dismiss based on two- and three-year statutes of limitation.

"Despite his knowledge of his injury and the general cause thereof, Plaintiff waited to file his lawsuit beyond the two and three years required of him by the applicable statutes of limitations," court documents say. "For this reason, Plaintiff's claims against Defendants should be dismissed."

However, Schober's legal team has argued (.PDF) that the teenagers were not immediately traced, and roughly a year passed between separately identifying Read and Thompson.

Schober's lawyers have requested that the motion to dismiss is denied.

Have a tip? Get in touch securely via WhatsApp | Signal at +447713 025 499, or over at Keybase: charlie0

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Parents of teens who stole $1 million in Bitcoin sued by alleged victim - ZDNet

LONDON/CHICAGO, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Bitcoin's price surged past $50,000 on Monday for the first time since May, but the rebound from a months-long slump later ran out of steam.

The world's largest cryptocurrency was last down 0.2% at $49,201. It had risen as high as $50,562 as investors bet that the prospect of more U.S. stimulus spending would lead to further gains, and more mainstream financial services firms made moves in the nascent asset class.

Bitcoin has climbed 82% since hitting a yearly low of $27,700 in January.

The price retreat was predominately driven by profit taking, according to Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA in New York, who also pointed to a report that some bitcoin mining from China might abruptly go offline on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the price of rival cryptocurrency ether was last up 1.97% at $3,305. The virtual coin has risen 91% since slumping to below $1,740 last month.

Representations of cryptocurrency Bitcoin are seen in this picture illustration taken June 7, 2021. REUTERS/Edgar Su/Illustration/File Photo

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The cryptocurrency recovery comes as some more established financial services companies offer their customers access to virtual coins. PayPal Holdings Inc (PYPL.O) said on Monday it would allow customers in Britain to buy, sell and hold bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies starting this week. read more

Moya said that fears of capital gains taxation has led some traders to hold cryptocurrency as a long-term investment, removing some volatility from the market.

"New investors are the key to this latest bitcoin rally and all signs show they are comfortable with high risk," he said in an email, adding that bitcoin "could see a fast appreciation here and might not hesitate making a run for $60,000 if appetite for risky assets remain intact."

Others also believe the upswing could have further to go if more retail investors return to the market.

"The last time bitcoin was at $50,000, the Google trends (tracking website showing bitcoin searches) was much higher than what it is now," Marcus Sotiriou, a sales trader at the UK based digital asset broker GlobalBlock, said in a note.

"This suggests that retail euphoria hasn't entered the market yet and bitcoin has a long way to go in this market cycle."

Reporting by Anna Irrera in London and Karen Pierog in Chicago; Editing by David Holmes, Alison Williams and Jonathan Oatis

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Bitcoin price rises past $50000 then retreats - Reuters

Andrew Schober was almost all-in on cryptocurrency. In 2018, 95 percent of his net wealth was invested in the digital tokens, which he hoped he could sell later to buy a home and support his family.

But then disaster struck. Schober had downloaded an app called Electrum Atom after clicking a link on Reddit, mistakenly thinking it was a bitcoin wallet. Instead, it was malware that allowed hackers to steal 16.4552 bitcoin when he tried moving some of his tokens. At the time, they were worth nearly $200,000. Today, they would be worth over $750,000.

The lawsuit alleges that two men in the UKboth minors at the time, now attending university for computer scienceused the supposed wallet app to deliver malware that inserted itself into a computers Java libraries. The malware then proceeded to monitor Schobers activity, waiting for him to copy a bitcoin address. When Schober went to paste it, the malware swapped the copied address for another that was stored in the code. Schober was intending to transfer bitcoin from one of his addresses to another, but instead the malware sent the cryptocurrency to the hackers own addressa classic man-in-the-middle attack.

The clever twist is that when Schober went to paste an address, the malware would swap it out for one that looked similarthere were 195,000 addresses embedded in its code.

In the wake of the hack, Schober hired experts to trace the flow of cryptocurrency from his addresses to accounts controlled by the hackers.

The blockchain analysis presented in the lawsuit suggests that the hackers tried to launder the bitcoin into Monero, a privacy-focused cryptocurrency. But to do that, they needed the private key that went along with the public key for the address used by the malware. Around the time of the theft, one of the young men, using an account apparently under his name, posted a question to GitHub about how to obtain said private key. That account also contained GitHub repositories for the malware along with code for a program that allowed for algorithmic trading at the Bitfinex exchange, where two deposits involving Schobers bitcoin were traced to. Together, it led Schober to the alleged thieves.

At the time of the theft, the alleged perpetrators were both minors, so as Schober learned their identities, he sent their parents notes informing them of what he knew. It seems your son has been using malware to steal money from people online, he wrote. Schober appealed to the parents, asking them to make this right, without involving law enforcement. He said he would drop the matter if the stolen bitcoin was returned in full, and he listed an address and gave them a deadline. He sent one note in 2018 and another in 2019. He never heard back from either of the young men's parents.

That silence led him earlier this year to file a lawsuit against the young men and their parents, claiming that the adults knew or should have known that their children were engaged in illegal computer abuse(s) and/or cryptocurrency theft(s).

One of the defendants, Hazel D. Wells, mother of one of the young men, filed a motion to dismiss the case, saying that the statute of limitations on three of the four claims had expired (conversion, trespass to chattel, and a violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act). Defendants did not reply to the fourth, civil conspiracy. Schobers attorney replied that the clock didnt begin when the bitcoin was stolen, but rather when he learned of the identities of the alleged hackers.

At issue in this case is the fact that cryptocurrency transactions are hard to trace and are irreversible, unlike those that happen within the traditional banking system. Tracking down thieves requires investing significant sums of money, as Schober did, and even then, getting back the stolen tokens is a long shot.

Cryptocurrency theft is big business. Last year alone, nearly $2 billion in cryptocurrencies was involved in theft, hacks, or fraud. That number seems to be down this year, but only because theft of decentralized finance investments is on the rise.

Though significant, those cases are small potatoes compared with the Poly Network breach that happened earlier this month. The hacker managed to exploit a vulnerability in the way the company handled smart contracts to steal $600 million for fun before returning the stolen coins and netting a $500,000 bug bounty.

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Man robbed of 16 bitcoin hunts down suspects, sues their parents - Ars Technica

A cryptocurrency ATM has been installed in Honduras where users can buy bitcoin and ether. According to reports, this is the first crypto ATM in the country. Honduras borders El Salvador, where bitcoin is set to become legal tender in a little over a week.

A cryptocurrency ATM launched this week in Honduras, Reuters reported Friday. According to reports, this is the first cryptocurrency ATM in the country. It allows users to buy bitcoin and ethereum using the local lempira currency.

The Republic of Honduras is a country in Central America. It borders El Salvador, the country which passed a law making bitcoin legal tender alongside the U.S. dollar. The law is set to go into effect on Sept. 7.

The cryptocurrency ATM in Honduras, locally called La Bitcoinera, was installed in an office tower in the capital of Tegucigalpa by Honduran firm TGU Consulting Group.

TGU CEO Juan Mayen, the 28-year-old CEO who led the crypto ATM effort, explained that there was no automated way to buy cryptocurrencies until now, stating:

You had to do it peer-to-peer, look for someone who was willing to do it, meet in person and carry x amount of cash, which is very inconvenient and dangerous given the environment in Honduras.

The cryptocurrency ATM tracking website Coinatmradar does not currently list any cryptocurrency ATMs for Honduras.

Mayen said that he hopes to install more cryptocurrency ATMs. He noted that many software developers in the country are already paid in cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that using cryptocurrency will lower the cost of sending remittances.

In 2020, Hondurans living abroad sent $5.7 billion, about 20% of the countrys gross domestic product (GDP), in remittances.

With the upcoming Bitcoin Law going into effect, El Salvador President Nayib Bukele said last week that 200 crypto ATMs are being installed.

Do you think Honduras should have more cryptocurrency ATMs? Let us know in the comments section below.

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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Buying Bitcoin and Ether Just Got Easier in Honduras With Cryptocurrency ATM Featured Bitcoin News - Bitcoin News

Bitcoin (BTC) could surge to $100,000 or bottom out at $30,000 by Christmas but one of its best-known analysts is betting on the moon.

In a Twitter update on Thursday, PlanB, creator of the stock-to-flow family of BTC price models, cast fresh doubt on a Bitcoin bear move.

With BTC/USD trading at $47,000 this week, PlanB has a lot to be confident about.

His recent prediction of a minimum monthly close for August exactly matches current prices and if the remaining four are just as accurate, Bitcoin could end 2021 at $135,000.

Stock-to-flows first incarnation demands an average BTC price of $100,000 this halving cycle, but Mays about-turn gave its time-tested precision a run for its money.

PlanB has nonetheless stuck by it, arguing that it has not yet been invalidated and that there are no proven better alternatives.

One such alternative model, which now appears unlikely to come true, is the logarithmic diminishing returns chart originallyproduced by Bitcointalk forum user Trololo in 2014.

An adjusted version calculates just $30,000 for BTC/USD at the end of this year, something that PlanB believes is less likely than stock-to-flows $100,000.

Next months will be key, he added in comments on an accompanying chart contrasting the two models.

As Cointelegraph reported, short-term BTC price analysis is erring on the cautious side this week.

Related:More like shock-to-flow BTC price hits bull trigger as mystery buyers scoop up supply

As $50,000 remains out of reach as support, opinions are differing over the potential impact of the United States Federal Reserves annual Jackson Hole summit, which is shortly to get underway.

Despite rallying 60% versus recent lows of $29,000, Bitcoin has yet to challenge final resistance to cement $50,000, let alone all-time highs of $64,500 from April.

Zooming out, optimism remains the name of the game, with data hinting at a fresh bullish surge to come before the year is out. This would copy other post-halving bull market years, notably 2013s double top.

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Bitcoin could hit $30K or $100K this year as analyst warns next months are key - Cointelegraph