Thanks to the fourth, buying cryptos is a hot topic again Bitcoin (BTC USD) halving that took place on April 19th. This reduced miner rewards from 6.25 to 3,125 Bitcoins. As with the last three occasions, this pre-planned event is intended to trigger another crypto boom.
The halving follows a groundbreaking year for institutional Bitcoin investors. On January 10, 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved for trading. The eventually attracted $10 billion in assets in her first month. Over half a dozen companies including the world’s largest asset manager BlackRock (NYSE:BLACK), have submitted applications for a place ether (ETH-USD) ETFs. They want to replicate the January boom with Bitcoin and bring unprecedented legitimacy to the sector.
However, this excitement is tempered by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The agency charged $2.89 billion in fines in fiscal year 2023 on crypto players. BlockFi and Kraken were on the hook for $100 million and $30 million in penalties or the latter had to close its US activities. After the FTX scandal, the entire cryptosphere seems to be on alert.
Therefore, Bitcoin is probably the safest cryptocurrency asset to buy, and Jack Dorsey believes it could be worth $1 million by 2030. With Pectra, Ethereum dominates blockchain smart contracts, making it the second choice. Finally, the largest stablecoin posted a record first quarter.
Bitcoin (BTC USD)
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The recent adoption of a Bitcoin ETF in Hong Kong is likely to have a positive impact on Bitcoin’s price, building on its 130% year-to-date rise (course of the year) win. This was thanks to the SEC’s omnibus order approving 11 ETFs and the fourth halving. But Bitcoin is trading sideways, down 4% in the last 30 days.
However, Standard Chartered Bank believes that Bitcoins The price could reach $150,000 until the end of 2024. Yes Ark InvestThis is Cathie Wood is perhaps the most bullish; She believes Bitcoin could reach $3.8 million by 2030.
square (NYSE:square) Managing Director (CEO) Jack Dorsey sees Bitcoin go over $1 million by 2030. That’s him Investing in open Bitcoin mining poolswhich could potentially further reduce control risks in Bitcoin mining and increase the value of the asset.
In the meantime, Layer 2 options like the Lightning Network are becoming increasingly scalable. It makes Bitcoin more effective in terms of trading, with instant transfers and very low fees.
Also new technologies such as “Channel Factories” on the Lightning Network will make it easier for people to enter the market by making it cheaper to launch channels, further driving Bitcoin adoption.
Ethereum (ETH-USD)
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Ethereum recently completed a major update called “Dencun” that lowered data fees and made the network more flexible and efficient. Along with proto-thanksharding and lower Layer 2 transactions, this is part of Ethereum’s ongoing work to improve its blockchain.
Meanwhile, the SEC has postponed its decision-making some of these ETFs by June. If the same thing happens again with the Bitcoin ETF, Ethereum will likely hit its all-time high of $4,878 once institutional money starts flowing.
Also the Trading introduction by Retik Finance on May 21st is important. The goal is to integrate DeFi options into conventional finance, potentially having a significant impact on DeFi, a market expected to exceed $26 billion in 2024. Most DeFi contracts are hosted on Ethereum, which is why ETH holders need to be careful.
Overall, experts like those from JP Morgan believe that Ethereum will grow significantly in 2024. This is due to changes, more institutional interest and regular updates (such as the Prague/Electra update {Pectra} scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2024).
EIP-2537 improves cryptographic operations, EIP-3074 adds wallet smart contract-like features, and EIP-6110 and EIP-7251 improve validator operations and make the system scalable.
Tether (USDT-USD)
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Perhaps the safest digital asset, Connection (USDT-USD) is the largest stablecoin in the world.
Important: Tether Holdings achieved record net income of $4.52 billion in the first quarter of 2024, thanks to purchases of Bitcoin and gold, with net equity of $11.37 billion.
The latest documents show that 90% of the funds backing Tether tokens are in cash and cash alternatives. Also, Total group equity of $11.37 billion and smart investments in AI, green energy and BTC mining show a strong financial situation.
Tether has reached more people Bet USD and XAU (Tether Gold). on The Open Network (TON). This facilitates transfers within the TON ecosystem and increases liquidity and activity. In this way, Tether contributes to the functioning of an open and global banking system.
At the same time, Tether is Working with Chainalysis Develop a tracking system for secondary market behavior to further support securing USDT transactions.
Finally, Tether actively promotes the formation and adoption of digital currencies in Africa, where countries such as Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya are present. all leaders when introducing cryptocurrencies. Connection hosts a crypto educational trip for African youth with Yellow Card, a pan-African fintech and crypto exchange to promote Tether’s stablecoin, USDT and other digital currencies.
At the time of publication, Faizan Farooque did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, subject to those of InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.