- The value of the cryptocurrency market exceeded $1 trillion for the first time in its 12-year history
According to the service for cryptocurrency analysis CoinMarketCap, January 7, the cost of one of the most popular cryptocurrencies – bitcoin (BTC) – reached a historical maximum and exceeded $ 39 thousand for the year bitcoin rose in price several times: back in March its price was $ 5 thousand The market capitalization of bitcoin for the first time crossed the $ 700 thousand mark, and the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies now, as calculated by the Independent, exceeds the combined value of payment systems such as Mastercard and Visa.
- The first federal cryptocurrency bank appeared in USA
U.S. startup Anchorage, which offers digital currency storage services, became the first federal cryptocurrency bank in U.S. history. The company received the corresponding license from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which is part of the Treasury Department. Anchorage President Diogo Monica said the company is a national bank, but unlike other financial institutions, it works with cryptocurrency assets. He added that once it is authorized by the OCC, Anchorage will be subject to federal laws rather than individual state laws, which will make its operations much easier.
U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Kraken also received a banking license in September 2020. The company’s customers can now use digital assets to pay bills and investments, as well as get paid in them. Right now, the company serves customers in the state of Wyoming. However, it hopes to become a “bridge” between the cryptocurrency market and the traditional economic system and to scale its activities worldwide.
- 20% of existing bitcoins are stored in wallets whose owners do not have access to them
Blockchain analytics company Chainalysis estimates that there are now more than 18.5 million bitcoins in the world. However, 20% of them, worth a total of $140 billion, are in lost or blocked wallets. According to The New York Times, many people became cryptocurrency owners ten years ago, when bitcoin first appeared and was worthless. However, the sharp rise in the cryptocurrency’s value has forced wallet owners to step up.
Thus, Stephen Thomas, a programmer from San Francisco, told reporters that he lost the password to his hard drive, which stores 7,002 bitcoins, or more than $260 million at current exchange rates. The storage device allows you to enter the wrong password 10 times, after which it is completely locked. Stephan Thomas has already used eight attempts. The programmer admitted that he is frustrated with the way cryptocurrency is set up: he doesn’t like the idea of people having to be banks for themselves.
- Cryptocurrency has no official status in most countries
The legal status of cryptocurrencies varies from country to country. For example, Japan recognized bitcoin as a means of payment back in 2017. This currency can be paid for in some stores, including online venues, beauty salons, cafes and restaurants. In 2017, the cryptocurrency gained official status in the Republic of Belarus. President Alexander Lukashenko signed a decree “On the Development of the Digital Economy,” which allowed citizens to buy, sell, exchange, and donate cryptocurrency, as well as engage in its mining (mining). These activities are not considered entrepreneurship and do not have to be declared. In Switzerland, a “Blockchain Law” is being developed, which should facilitate the development of decentralized financing. In particular, companies will be able to issue digital analogues of stocks and other tradable assets.
- Mining harms the environment, but more “green” cryptocurrencies are emerging
In 2019, scientists at the Technical University of Munich estimated that the blockchain network that serves bitcoin consumes 45.8 TWh of electricity each year. As a result, 22 to 22.9 Mt of CO2 is released into the atmosphere each year. This is comparable to the carbon footprint of countries like Jordan or Sri Lanka. The researchers noted that the amount of electricity consumed by cryptocurrency is constantly growing, which is due, among other things, to the development of technology.
Initially, the miners used regular personal computers with a processing power of 0.01 GH/s (gigache per second, the number of combinations that the equipment can handle per unit of time) and energy efficiency of 9 thousand J/GH (joules per gigache, the unit of energy per unit of computation). They have now switched to dedicated IC-based systems with up to 44 thousand GH/s and 0.05 J/GH efficiency.