{"id":6756,"date":"2021-02-20T16:01:51","date_gmt":"2021-02-20T21:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/?p=6756"},"modified":"2021-02-20T16:02:11","modified_gmt":"2021-02-20T21:02:11","slug":"btc-trillion-eth-2k-cme-launch-nft-mania-021320","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/2021\/02\/20\/btc-trillion-eth-2k-cme-launch-nft-mania-021320","title":{"rendered":"Thanks a trillion Bitcoin, Binance Coin goes parabolic, NFT mania: Hodler\u2019s Digest, Feb. 14\u201320"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coming every Saturday, <\/i><\/b>Hodler\u2019s Digest<\/i><\/b><\/a> will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more \u2014 a week on Cointelegraph in one link.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Top Stories This Week<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Bitcoin hits $57,500 \u2014 And $1-trillion market cap signals it\u2019s here to stay<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Bitcoin\u2019s price continued to smash records this week, surging by more than <\/span>20% <\/b>and hitting highs of <\/span>$57,505.23<\/b> at one point. <\/span>But the most significant milestone came when BTC\u2019s market cap exceeded $1 trillion for the very first time.<\/b><\/p>\n

This is a feat that took the likes of Amazon and Google decades to achieve, with Bitcoin cementing its status as a major global asset in just 12 years. <\/span>BTC even managed to overtake Tesla and Tencent as bullish momentum shows no signs of slowing down.<\/b><\/p>\n

Recent historical data suggests that Bitcoin rallies in 2021 have tended to occur on weekends, and many analysts believe the world\u2019s biggest cryptocurrency could attack the <\/span>$60,000 <\/b>level as the weekend progresses.<\/span><\/p>\n

BTC has outshone Ether over the past seven days, which has clocked gains of just 10% by comparison. <\/b>ETH has been struggling to smash through the <\/span>$2,000 <\/b>barrier in recent days but did manage to break through this threshold on Monday.<\/span><\/p>\n

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MicroStrategy raising $600M\u2026 no, $900M to buy more Bitcoin<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

BTC\u2019s surge came as MicroStrategy upped the ante in its aggressive acquisition spree, announcing that it is selling <\/span>$900 million <\/b>in convertible senior notes to institutional buyers so it can \u201cacquire additional Bitcoin.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Should the purchase go to plan, the business intelligence firm will hold more than 90,000 BTC in its reserves, and control 0.48% of Bitcoin\u2019s circulating supply.<\/b><\/p>\n

MicroStrategy\u2019s spending splurge began back in August 2020, when it purchased <\/span>21,454 BTC <\/b>for <\/span>$250 million <\/b>\u2014 a price of about <\/span>$11,650 <\/b>per coin. <\/span>At the time of writing, this stash alone will have generated a paper profit of $950 million. <\/b>Two further bulk buys occurred in September and December.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Binance Coin becomes third-largest crypto following parabolic rally<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

This week\u2019s drama has led to a rather radical shake-up in the crypto rankings. <\/b>Binance Coin is now the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap for the first time in history.<\/span><\/p>\n

BNB\u2019s price has more than doubled this week, and at one point, the coin hit highs of $342.88. <\/b>It was issued by Binance, one of the world\u2019s largest crypto exchanges, with a view to giving users discounted fees.<\/span><\/p>\n

The surge comes amid the success of PancakeSwap, a decentralized exchange based on the Binance Smart Chain. <\/span>The platform overtook Uniswap as the largest DEX by trading volume this week.<\/b><\/p>\n

Binance\u2019s chief executive officer, Changpeng Zhao, noted that BNB has also been setting new all-time highs against Bitcoin. He said: <\/span>\u201cFrom a humble 0.00001 BTC per BNB, we have grown 480x against BTC in the last three-and-a-half years.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

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Over $100M in crypto collectible NFTs sold in last 30 days<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Nonfungible token sales have been booming, with sales of crypto collectibles over the past 30 days surpassing <\/span>$100 million <\/b>in value.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

NBA Top Shot represented the lion share of NFTs sold, with CryptoKitties, the platform that started it all, enjoying a 305.92% surge in sales over the past month.<\/b><\/p>\n

This week, <\/span>a unique Spiderman drawing<\/span><\/a> by Marvel Comics artist Adam Kubert sold for <\/span>12.75 ETH <\/b>($25,387) after being converted into an NFT. <\/span>Christie\u2019s also <\/b>announced plans<\/b><\/a> to auction its first-ever \u201cpurely digital work of art.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

But there are concerns that the NFT frenzy is turning into a bubble that\u2019s fit to burst. <\/span>Litecoin founder Charlie Lee has predicted that NFT prices <\/b>will eventually crash<\/b><\/a> because tokens lack the legitimate scarcity of \u201creal art.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

He warned: \u201cBecause of the near zero cost to create another NFT, the market will eventually be flooded with NFTs from artists trying to cash in on this craze. Supply will overwhelm demand and the prices will eventually crash.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Dogecoin drops 23% as Elon Musk slams DOGE rich list<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

The loud, unmistakable bark of DOGE has turned into a whimper this week, with prices falling by <\/span>19% <\/b>over the past seven days.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dogecoin sank by <\/span>23% <\/b>in a matter of hours on Monday after Elon Musk drew attention to the vastly unequal distribution of DOGE tokens \u2014 and urged major holders to sell.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dogecoin has one of the most unequal coin distributions in the cryptocurrency space, with 28.7% being held by just one person and the top 12 holders possessing almost 50% of the supply.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Disgruntled by this statistic, Tesla\u2019s CEO tweeted: <\/span>\u201cIf major Dogecoin holders sell most of their coins, it will get my full support. Too much concentration is the only real issue imo.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth noting that it\u2019s unlikely this pullback wasn\u2019t just down to Musk\u2019s missives. <\/span>There was an enormous pullback across the altcoin markets as the week began, with Bitcoin\u2019s push to a new all-time high sucking volume out of smaller coins.<\/b><\/p>\n

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Winners and Losers<\/b><\/h2>\n

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At the end of the week, Bitcoin is at <\/span>$57,387.27<\/b>, Ether at <\/span>$2,017.56 <\/b>and XRP at <\/span>$0.55<\/b>. The total market cap is at <\/span>$1,752,064,723,211<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are <\/span>Ravencoin<\/b>, <\/span>Dodo <\/b>and PancakeSwap. The top three altcoin losers of the week are <\/span>Dogecoin<\/b>, <\/span>Avalanche <\/b>and <\/span>Algorand<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read <\/span>Cointelegraph\u2019s market analysis<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Most Memorable Quotations<\/b><\/h2>\n

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\u201cI think that now, after all the hacks we\u2019ve had, we basically understand that if you have two audits, three audits, it doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re safe.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Emiliano Bonassi<\/b><\/a>, DeFi Italy co-founder<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cThe amount of consolidation Bitcoin has seen since January is unreal. It really allowed fundamentals to catch up and indicators to reset. Looks like $48k is the new $35k now.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yann Allemann and Jan Happel<\/b><\/a>, Glassnode co-founders<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cThere are now more 94,000 #Bitcoin addresses holding at least $1 million worth of $BTC. The steep increase in mid December marks the point when BTC crossed $20,000 \u2014 making all early miner addresses (50 BTC rewards) millionaire addresses.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Glassnode<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

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\u201cWhile Bitcoin may very well continue to be volatile in the short term, we think it has 10x potential from today\u2019s levels over the long term as part of a diversified portfolio.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Motley Fool<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

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\u201cNorth Korea\u2019s operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the world\u2019s leading bank robbers.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

John Demers<\/b><\/a>, U.S. assistant attorney general<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cBig picture $BTC Bitcoin is undergoing its third parabolic advance in the past decade. A parabolic advance on an arithmetic scale is extremely rare \u2014 three on a log scale is historic.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Peter Brandt<\/b><\/a>, veteran trader<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cCryptocurrency-related crime is falling, it remains a small part of the overall cryptocurrency economy, and it is comparatively smaller to the amount of illicit funds involved in traditional finance.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Chainalysis<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

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\u201cFinance leaders who are tasked with ensuring financial stability are not prone to making speculative leaps into unknown territory.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Alexander Bant<\/b><\/a>, Gartner chief of research<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cYou don\u2019t want to go to a non-uniform currency where you\u2019re walking into Starbucks and maybe you\u2019ll pay with Ethereum, maybe you\u2019ll pay with Ripple, maybe you\u2019ll pay with Bitcoin, maybe you\u2019ll pay with a dollar \u2014 that isn\u2019t how we do this.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

James Bullard<\/b><\/a>, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cBecause of the near zero cost to create another NFT, the market will eventually be flooded with NFTs from artists trying to cash in on this craze. Supply will overwhelm demand and the prices will eventually crash.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Charlie Lee<\/b><\/a>, Litecoin founder<\/b><\/p>\n

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\u201cIf major Dogecoin holders sell most of their coins, it will get my full support. Too much concentration is the only real issue imo.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Elon Musk<\/b><\/a>, Tesla CEO<\/b><\/p>\n

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Prediction of the Week<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Motley Fool adding Bitcoin to its \u201c10x portfolio\u201d \u2014 Has a $500,000 price target<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

The Motley Fool has announced that it will invest <\/span>$5 million<\/b> into BTC and predicted that Bitcoin will rise to <\/span>$500,000 <\/b>in the next 15 years.<\/span><\/p>\n

The financial and investment advisory giant says it will be buying Bitcoin directly rather than gaining exposure to \u201coverpriced ETFs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Setting out the three core reasons behind its purchase, The Motley Fool said Bitcoin is a better store of value than gold, it\u2019s an effective hedge against inflation, and it has the potential to become a transactional asset.<\/span><\/p>\n

The company added: <\/span>\u201cWhile Bitcoin may very well continue to be volatile in the short term, we think it has 10x potential from today\u2019s levels over the long term as part of a diversified portfolio. We plan to hold this Bitcoin investment for many years.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

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FUD of the Week\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

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People don\u2019t want a \u201cnon-uniform currency\u201d like Bitcoin, says Fed president<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis seemingly doesn\u2019t understand why many are looking to cryptocurrency as a medium of exchange instead of a uniform currency like the U.S. dollar.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking to CNBC, James Bullard was bullish on the dollar\u2019s prospects and said the greenback won\u2019t be affected by Bitcoin or gold.<\/span><\/p>\n

Expressing concern with privately issued currencies, he added: <\/span>\u201cYou don\u2019t want to go to a non-uniform currency where you\u2019re walking into Starbucks and maybe you\u2019ll pay with Ethereum, maybe you\u2019ll pay with Ripple, maybe you\u2019ll pay with Bitcoin, maybe you\u2019ll pay with a dollar \u2014 that isn\u2019t how we do this.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Bullard also warned that private currencies aren\u2019t able to maintain a stable value against goods and other currencies, nor is their future supply \u201cat all clear.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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U.S. charges three North Korean hackers over crypto attacks and WannaCry ransomware<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced charges against three North Korean hackers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Assistant Attorney General John Demers didn\u2019t mince his words when he made the announcement, declaring: <\/span>\u201cNorth Korea\u2019s operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the world\u2019s leading bank robbers.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

With a country largely sequestered from the international economy, North Korea\u2019s hacking program has been a critical source of revenue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many have linked hacking income from sources like the WannaCry malware and crypto exchange Coincheck with the nuclear weapons program.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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YouTuber regrets spending 37 BTC \u2014 now worth $1.8 million \u2014 on used Hondas<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Spare a thought for this Honda enthusiast, who has called himself an \u201cidiot\u201d after spending 30.5 BTC on two used cars back on Valentine\u2019s Day in 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chris Cut thought he was getting a \u201cgreat price\u201d of $30,500 back then, given how BTC was trading at $1,000 per coin. <\/b>But fast forward to today, and his crypto stash would have been worth more than <\/span>$1.7 million<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The YouTuber said that he wasn\u2019t bothered about paying in Bitcoin for the cars at the time \u2014 but the enormity of his lost gains have set in four years later.<\/span><\/p>\n

He said: <\/span>\u201cI started doing some math and it made me kick myself in the ass and I feel pretty depressed.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Cut later added: <\/span>\u201cI obviously have regrets about that because I can buy a lot of NSXs today for that price. [\u2026] Essentially I turned 37 Bitcoins into 2 Bitcoins.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

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Best Cointelegraph Features<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Ethereum joins the $200 billion club \u2014 But is it worthy?<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Ethereum broke the $200-billion market cap mark, surpassing secular companies such as Novartis and AT&T.<\/span><\/p>\n

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NFT \u201cart revolution\u201d: Beeple on his 5,040-day labor of love<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Beeple \u2014 whose digital creations are going under the hammer at Christie\u2019s \u2014 thinks that NFTs are \u201cthe start of the next chapter in art history.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Algorithmic stablecoins aren\u2019t really stable, but can the concept redeem itself?<\/b><\/a><\/h4>\n

Amid much fanfare, many algorithmic stablecoins have not been stable. Is the problem intractable, or is it just the algorithms that aren\u2019t good enough?<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more \u2014 one week on Cointelegraph in one link!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":6760,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"mc4wp_mailchimp_campaign":[],"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[35,2413],"tags":[2821,2722,2727,2743,2822,2746,2815],"yst_prominent_words":[225,1220,2155,2236],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6756"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6756"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6756\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6764,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6756\/revisions\/6764"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6756"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6756"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6756"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=6756"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}