Bitcoin has managed to reclaim the $21,000 level, emerging as one of the best-performing assets of 2020, and a former SEC official believes he knows one of the key reasons driving its resurgence.
John Reed Stark, formerly a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission, opined that market manipulation is playing an outsized role in bitcoin’s recovery.
Citing a Forbes analysis of 157 crypto exchanges, Stark concluded that roughly half of the reported Bitcoin daily trading volume was likely bogus.
Of course, Bitcoin proponents have pushed back against Stark's claims.
In addition to this tacit manipulation, some believe that macroeconomic trends are behind this Bitcoin’s momentum.
In a recent tweet, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz suggested two unconventional ideas for why crypto is ‘ripping': Japan’s Bank Of Japan introducing rapid liquidity into markets combined with China backing away on regulatory enforcement of blockchain and cryptocurrencies. According to Novogratz, it is a "story to watch in 2023."It remains to be seen what impact such factors will have on Bitcoin's trajectory going forward but the story appears far from over.
The price of Bitcoin remains down nearly 70% from its record high that was achieved in November 2021.
Vladislav Sopov
Godfrey Benjamin
Gamza Khanzadaev