Key facts:
Europe’s inflation hits all-time high and people prepare by buying cryptocurrencies.
In Latin America, Panama, Cuba and Brazil are advancing in the approval of laws to regulate bitcoin.
Among the most important news of the week is the purchase of the social network Twitter by billionaire Elon Musk. As reported by the tycoon himself, he will now begin his process of transforming the social network, in which he has promised to turn it into a bastion of freedom of expression. He even tweeted that he hoped his “worst critics” would stay on Twitter, since that’s what freedom of opinion is all about.
Meanwhile, the price of bitcoin remained below $40,000 for most of the week. The fall of the cryptocurrency in the last seven days is estimated at 2.6%. At the time of writing, BTC is trading at USD 38,528, as reflected in the market price of Latin America and Spain, according to the CriptoNoticias price calculator.
These are the most important news:
- On April 25, the Twitter board of directors received the final purchase offer from tycoon Elon Musk, which was finally accepted. The purchase was executed at $54.30 per share, giving a total of USD 44 billion. The agreement came after weeks of speculation, a period in which Musk had confirmed the purchase of more than 9% of the shares, becoming the company’s largest shareholder. After the purchase went viral, the opinions of Twitter users showed positions for and against. For some, it is about the return of freedom of expression. For others, it is nothing more than an affront against that human right.
- This week, the Central African Republic (CAR) passed a law that makes bitcoin legal tender within its territory and makes it mandatory to accept payments in cryptocurrencies. The African country becomes the second worldwide to adopt bitcoin as currency, after El Salvador. It is one of the poorest countries in Africa and in the whole world, with little access to the Internet and whose inhabitants do not know what bitcoin is. Its president, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, is a 65-year-old mathematician about whom little is known about his bitcoiner facet.
- This April 25 version 23 of Bitcoin Core was released, the programmatic code of Bitcoin. The update brings with it a number of improvements, such as the removal of node preference and the way miner fees are estimated. More than 120 developers contributed to this version. Meanwhile, the mining power in the network grows much more than its electrical consumption does. Currently, most large mining farms use renewable sources of energy, and projects are underway to harness solar and geothermal energy. This, at the same time that large companies such as Riot Blockchain plan to create an electrical substation for a more efficient use of energy.
- Analyst TechDev states that bitcoin is being accumulated at the moment and that the profit-taking phase has ceased, so a bullish rally would soon begin. TechDev combines two metrics to support its assessments: the accumulation of bitcoins by traders and the time they hold those bitcoins in their wallets. On the other hand, in Willy Woo’s opinion, the current drop in the value of cryptocurrencies is determined by 10% by cash demand and 90% by futures. The analyst assures that investors already see BTC as a safe haven.
- Inflation in Europe has reached an all-time high for the sixth consecutive month, according to data from Europe’s statistics office, Eurostat. It is a global problem that is strongly affecting the continent and makes the inhabitants turn to investment methods, such as cryptocurrencies. Despite this, the member of the board of directors of the Central Bank of Europe, Fabio Panetta, in a recent speech strongly criticized the functioning of the ecosystem, comparing it with the era of the American Wild West. For the banker, “Satoshi Nakamoto’s dream of creating reliable money remains just that: a dream.”
- Three Latin American countries made significant progress this week in the process of regulating bitcoin. April 26 Cuba authorized the operation of cryptocurrency services and platforms through legislation that regulates the granting of licenses to companies that wish to carry out exchange activities. On the same date, it was learned that the plenary session of the Brazilian Senate approved a bill that regulates the sector. The regulations will be submitted to a new vote. Then on April 28 the National Assembly of Panama approved the so-called “Crypto Law” through which the use of BTC and other cryptocurrencies as a means of payment is allowed. For the entry into force of the law, the observations of the Executive are awaited.
If you want to know the meaning of several words of the terminology of the crypto world, you can consult them in the extensive Glossary of CriptoNoticias. Here’s a little sneak peek with the word Zhoutonged.
Zhoutonged: comes from Zhou Tong, creator of the now-defunct Bitcoinica trading platform. Someone is said to have been “zoutonged” when they lose all of their money, similar to the term ashdraked.