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| Bitcoin surges past $4,000 for first time as speed breakthrough fuels optimism | Bitcoin surges past $4,000 for first time as speed breakthrough fuels optimism |
| (about 20 hours later) | |
| Bitcoin soared past $4,000 for the first time on growing optimism faster transaction times will hasten the spread of the cryptocurrency. | Bitcoin soared past $4,000 for the first time on growing optimism faster transaction times will hasten the spread of the cryptocurrency. |
| The largest digital tender jumped to a peak of $4,125.17 on Monday, a gain of 15 per cent since Friday, after a plan to quicken trade execution by moving some data off the main network was activated last week. The solution — termed SegWit2x — had been so contentious that a new version of the asset called Bitcoin Cash was spun off earlier this month in opposition. | The largest digital tender jumped to a peak of $4,125.17 on Monday, a gain of 15 per cent since Friday, after a plan to quicken trade execution by moving some data off the main network was activated last week. The solution — termed SegWit2x — had been so contentious that a new version of the asset called Bitcoin Cash was spun off earlier this month in opposition. |
| The split grew out of the tension between growing demand for the virtual currency and some of the design features that had fuelled that popularity — the decentralised verification procedures that ensured against hacking and government oversight. While this month’s confrontation ended up as little more than a speed bump in bitcoin’s more than 300 per cent rally in 2017, concerns remain around the capacity to increase transaction volumes. | The split grew out of the tension between growing demand for the virtual currency and some of the design features that had fuelled that popularity — the decentralised verification procedures that ensured against hacking and government oversight. While this month’s confrontation ended up as little more than a speed bump in bitcoin’s more than 300 per cent rally in 2017, concerns remain around the capacity to increase transaction volumes. |
| “Up until now a lot of people didn’t really believe bitcoin could go any higher until the scaling issue is resolved,” said Arthur Hayes, Hong Kong-based founder of bitcoin exchange BitMEX. “With this actually being implemented on protocol, theoretically the amount of transactions that can be processed at a reasonable speed is going to be much higher, so a lot of people are very bullish about bitcoin now.” | “Up until now a lot of people didn’t really believe bitcoin could go any higher until the scaling issue is resolved,” said Arthur Hayes, Hong Kong-based founder of bitcoin exchange BitMEX. “With this actually being implemented on protocol, theoretically the amount of transactions that can be processed at a reasonable speed is going to be much higher, so a lot of people are very bullish about bitcoin now.” |
| Because of a cap on the amount of data processed by bitcoin’s blockchain, transactions started to slow as its popularity boomed. The community was then divided between the SegWit2x solution backed by a group of developers and another supported by miners that sought a larger increase in the block size. The latter then became Bitcoin Cash. | Because of a cap on the amount of data processed by bitcoin’s blockchain, transactions started to slow as its popularity boomed. The community was then divided between the SegWit2x solution backed by a group of developers and another supported by miners that sought a larger increase in the block size. The latter then became Bitcoin Cash. |
| Bitcoin Cash, whose price has retreated since peaking right after its birth, has neither disrupted its progenitor’s operations nor undercut its appeal. | Bitcoin Cash, whose price has retreated since peaking right after its birth, has neither disrupted its progenitor’s operations nor undercut its appeal. |
| While SegWit2x has garnered enough support for activation, challenges remain. Its next stage involves doubling the block size to 2 megabytes some time in November, a possibility that’s still mired in debate. Reduced support could thwart this step, with some arguing that Bitcoin Cash — with a block size of 8 megabytes — has obviated the need for another “hard fork” to upgrade the bitcoin again, Hayes said. | While SegWit2x has garnered enough support for activation, challenges remain. Its next stage involves doubling the block size to 2 megabytes some time in November, a possibility that’s still mired in debate. Reduced support could thwart this step, with some arguing that Bitcoin Cash — with a block size of 8 megabytes — has obviated the need for another “hard fork” to upgrade the bitcoin again, Hayes said. |
| The cryptocurrency’s staggering price surge has bolstered related businesses. Digital currency exchange Coinbase announced Thursday it’s received a $100 million investment. The supply of bitcoin is capped at 21 million, compared with 16.5 million that had been mined as of Saturday, according to blockchain.info. | The cryptocurrency’s staggering price surge has bolstered related businesses. Digital currency exchange Coinbase announced Thursday it’s received a $100 million investment. The supply of bitcoin is capped at 21 million, compared with 16.5 million that had been mined as of Saturday, according to blockchain.info. |
| “People are starting to price in the consumer demand from Coinbase’s $100m fund-raising round,” said Justin Short, London-based founder of trading platform Nous. | “People are starting to price in the consumer demand from Coinbase’s $100m fund-raising round,” said Justin Short, London-based founder of trading platform Nous. |
| “That’s a lot of advertising budget. Every $1m of marketing brings new demand, which increases the price as the supply is limited by design.” | “That’s a lot of advertising budget. Every $1m of marketing brings new demand, which increases the price as the supply is limited by design.” |
| Bloomberg | Bloomberg |