Can we conclude that the bitcoin price is mainly driven by rumors from China? Crackdown on ICOs, ban the activities of cryptocurrency exchanges, ban of mining farms; what's next? Despite all of this, the price of bitcoin at the beginning of the month was only a few percentage points above the price at the end of the month. Does China really matter?
Let's go a little deeper into the news from China.
- 2017-09-06: Bitcoin Comes Clawing Back After Selloff on China Ruling: Chart (bloomberg.com) • 'Bitcoin traders seem to be taking Monday’s 11 percent slump -- triggered by China ruling initial coin offerings illegal -- as a buying opportunity.' [NB: This drop is missing from the price chart I used in the previous post.]
- 2017-09-08: Bitcoin's price tanks after report China plans further crackdown (cnbc.com) • (Title now: 'Bitcoin's price tanks after report China may shut down exchanges') 'Local outlet Caixin is reporting the Asian country is planning to shut down local bitcoin exchanges, according to a Google translation'
- 2017-09-11: China is shutting down domestic Bitcoin exchanges (theverge.com) • 'China plans to shut down domestic Bitcoin exchanges, anonymous sources told The Wall Street Journal today. The sources said that regulators weren’t giving a clear message on when the shutdown would occur.'
- 2017-09-15: China's bitcoin crackdown forces exchanges to close (cnn.com) • 'Two of the country's most prominent bitcoin exchanges, BTC China and Via BTC, said they will halt trading this month. BTC China has also stopped registering new users, it said in a statement posted on social media.'
- 2017-09-19: China orders Bitcoin exchanges in capital city to close (bbc.com) • 'China is moving forward with plans to shut down Bitcoin exchanges in the country, starting with trading platforms in key cities.'
- 2017-09-20: China's bitcoin clampdown is likely here to stay, analysts say (cnbc.com) • 'Chinese authorities banned token sales this month and local exchanges, under regulatory pressure, plan to close by the end of September. Analysts told CNBC the crackdown is likely part of a longer-term effort by regulators to control bitcoin. '
- 2017-09-23: How Shanghai Govt Came To Forcing All Bitcoin Trading to Stop: The Insider Story (cointelegraph.com) • 'The Paper news agency reported that the Chinese regulators not only banned the exchange between Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and the Chinese Yuan, but they also called for all trading of cryptocurrency to any fiat currency to end'
There was no news about Chinese mining farms, but other governments appear ready to take up any slack.
- 2017-09-08: Japan Conglomerate Launches Major Bitcoin Mining Center (cointelegraph.com) • 'GMO Internet Group, the $1.4 bln Japanese technology conglomerate, has officially announced the launch of its Bitcoin mining operation and its plans to compete with existing mining pool operators and companies within the global Bitcoin mining industry.'
- 2017-09-09: Russian Government Plans to Subsidize Bitcoin Mining Electrical Cost (cointelegraph.com) • 'The [Russian newspaper Izvestiya] report indicates that the Russian government, through the Institute for Internet Development (IRI) and the Russian Association of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (RABIK), have laid out plans to make electricity costs lower for Russian Bitcoin miners.'
- 2017-09-13: Bitcoin 'mining': A new way for North Korea to generate funds for the regime (cnbc.com) • 'U.S. intelligence researchers recently found ongoing bitcoin "mining" from North Korea.'
Meanwhile, there were reminders about the dark side of mining.
- 2017-09-14: Cryptocurrency Mining Malware Infection Attempts Are on the Rise Again • 'As we have documented on this site multiple times, rogue cryptocurrency mining malware is of keen interest to cybercriminals. By distributing this mining malware, criminals can effectively use victims’ computer resources to mine Ethereum, Monero, and a few other currencies.'
- 2017-09-28: Monero Windows IIS mining made over $60,000 for a hacker • 'Stealing computing resources for cryptocurrency mining can be profitable—to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars a month. Security software vendor ESET found that a hacker has infected hundreds of Windows servers with a secret cryptocurrency mining program, generating $63,000 over three months. [...] The malware mines Monero, a cryptocurrency that currently has a total market value of about $1.4 billion. It’s just one of the thousands of crypto coins in the marketplace.'
- 2017-09-28: The Ridiculous Amount of Energy It Takes to Run Bitcoin (ieee.org) • 'Running Bitcoin uses a small city’s worth of electricity. Intel and others want to make a more sustainable blockchain.'
The mining news was accompanied by other news from the same Asian countries. Some of the news was good for bitcoin.
- 2017-09-29: Bitcoin exchanges officially recognized by Japan (cnbc.com) • 'Japan's Financial Services Agency officially recognized 11 companies as registered cryptocurrency exchange operators. This is the latest decision in Japan to show support for digital currency. In April, it passed a law recognizing bitcoin as legal tender'
Some of the news was not so good.
- 2017-09-12: North Korea is trying to amass a bitcoin war chest (cnn.com) • 'Hackers linked to North Korea are ramping up attempts to steal bitcoin in order to bring in money for Kim Jong Un's regime, a top cybersecurity firm says. Bitcoin and other forms of virtual money -- known as cryptocurrencies -- appeal to North Korea as the U.S. pursues international sanctions aimed at further isolating the country.'
- 2017-09-14: North Korean Hackers Blamed for Bitcoin Attacks (infosecurity-magazine.com) • 'North Korean state hackers are increasingly looking to steal crypto-currency to fund the regime and circumvent tightening sanctions, according to FireEye. The security vendor’s ?senior cyber threat intelligence analyst, Luke McNamara, revealed a spike in spear-phishing attacks targeting South Korean Bitcoin exchanges since May.'
Two of the negative stories mentioned 'Monero'. What exactly is it? Wikipedia: Monero (cryptocurrency):-
Monero (XMR) is an open-source cryptocurrency created in April 2014 that focuses on privacy, decentralization and scalability that runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and FreeBSD. Monero was originally launched under the name BitMonero, which is a compound of Bit (as in Bitcoin) and Monero (literally meaning "coin" in Esperanto). Five days later, the community opted for the name to be shortened to just Monero.
The bitcoin price rise in 2017 has provoked an avalanche of related stories as general interest in the subject rises. I could continue by looking at those stories, but I think I've covered enough territory for one post.
