Bitcoin, Ethereum and the overall crypto market dropped in evaluation last week as price stabilized. Will the rallying trend continue?
The cryptocurrencies market seems to have rebounded the massive crisis from last year. 2022 was not a kind year for crypto, from the fall of the Bitcoin to the FTX collapse. As of April 2023, however, their prices seem to be stabilizing again, signaling perhaps a return.
Bitcoin rallied 60% since the start of the year, almost hitting the $30k mark last week. Ethereum too had a great year so far, completing the transition to “proof-of-stake” (the so-called Merge Update) and breaking the $2000 mark. According to market insiders, the availability of Ethereum dropped by 100.000 units after The Merge.
Last week, however, there was an overall stabilization of the crypto market. The overall evaluation fell to $1.16 trillion, an 8.6% drop, clearing the overbought conditions.
As of Monday morning, the value of Bitcoin fell to $24.873,65 and that of Ethereum fell to $1.676,45. Both cryptocurrencies are hitting the level of support from March, signaling a stabilization and a likely future hike.
- Bitcoin price since October 2022
- Ethereum prices since October 2022
Regulations from all over the world
As the cryptocurrency market signals that it is not, in fact, dead, there is an increasing push for regulations. The crypto market itself was born as an unregulated way to manage one’s savings, but it devolved into just another volatile asset.
India was the first major country to ban cryptocurrency trades in 2021, though it was a necessary geopolitical move to protect itself from Chinese miners.
A few days ago, the European Union signaled to move towards crypt regulations. The British outlet The Telegraph dubbed cryptos as a “wild west”, and the EU’s infamous regulatory system can hardly ignore it any longer.
According to experts in the field, the EU’s main concern will first be about money laundering prevention. Transactions will have to be regulated and controlled by the EU’s authorities.
Another EU priority is the focus on low energy consumption from crypto mining. The new Ethereum proof-of-stake system already cuts energy consumption by 99%, but it’s the only major currency to utilize it.
Crucially, Bitcoin is still stuck with the old proof-of-work system, which is proved to consume thousands of times more energy.
Furthermore, a bipartisan regulatory bill on cryptocurrencies is apparently in the works by the US Congress. The United States have a famously much more relaxed approach towards market regulations.
However, according to The Block, a first proposal might come by the end of May.
