Bitcoin’s Back, Alright

It looks like the cryptocurrency market may finally be turning around. *knocks on wood* Almost every cryptocurrency saw double-digit growth this week as the entire market grew from $104.2B to about $134.5B – just shy of a 30 percent rise. Bitcoin Cash jumped 141.68%. Tron grew 64.82%. Hell, even Bitcoin SV spiked 52.57% this week. 

Numbers like that may make you reminiscent of 2017’s bull run. However, we should tone back the excitement and see what the next couple of weeks have in store. As for our top three coins…

Bitcoin grew the least this week but still posted a more than respectable 23.81% price increase.

XRP continues to hold its second-place spot with a 28.16% improvement in its price.

Ethereum has led the pack since last Friday, showing growth of 35.55%.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Cryptocurrency Market Stats (12/21/18) 

Domestic Cryptocurrency News

Congressman Darren Soto Is at It Again: The Democratic hurricane continues to push for regulatory clarity regarding cryptocurrency. Last week, we reported on Soto’s joint effort with Republican Congressman Ted Budd to stomp out crypto price manipulation. Well, Soto is reaching across party lines once again.

This week, Soto, alongside fellow Congressman Warren Davidson, introduced the Token Taxonomy Act. The new bill would clear up the confusion around the classification of cryptocurrency. Most importantly, it states that a digital asset is no longer a security once it becomes a fully functioning network.

Facebook Potentially Throwing Hat in Crypto Ring: According to a Thursday Bloomberg report, “people familiar with the matter” have stated that Facebook is working on creating a stablecoin for WhatsApp money transfers. The company is apparently planning to start in India where the country has over 200 million WhatsApp users and $69 billion in annual remittance payments.

As always, you should take this news with a grain of salt as the announcement isn’t from Facebook itself. Facebook creating a cryptocurrency – a tale as old as time.

Facebook has been ramping up its blockchain team, however, boasting about 40 members according to LinkedIn. Former PayPal president David Marcus has been running the Facebook Messenger app since 2014 and currently leads the blockchain division.

Cryptocurrency News from Around the World

United Kingdom Crypto Class Is in Session: The United Kingdom government published a “Cryptoassets for individuals” policy paper on Wednesday to help citizens figure out their taxes. The article covers everything from the different types of tokens (exchange, utility, security) to examples outlining which taxes apply to certain crypto-related events.

Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the United Kingdom’s tax collection arm, plans to put out additional material regarding business-related transactions next. Looks like you won’t be able to plead ignorance in dodging United Kingdom taxes anymore.

Atari to Make Blockchain Version of Popular Games: In a recent press release, game maker Atari announced a partnership with Animoca Brands, a global app developer, to release a pair of blockchain games. The two games, RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch and Goon Squad are re-releases of the popular Atari games except, this time, they integrate blockchain technology.

The games implement non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a la CryptoKitties, although it’s not specified exactly how. The two titles should be available sometime in the second half of next year.