Bitcoin (BTC) is "untouchable" despite ongoing regulatory pressures in the crypto sector and those who don't have some crypto exposure are "seriously silly" according to Bloomberg's senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone.

During an April 3 stream with crypto podcaster Scott Melker, McGlone argued that unlike other cryptocurrencies such as Ether (ETH), Bitcoin couldn't be killed by regulators because it's more decentralized.

"There's so much disdain about regulators pushing back on the whole space, and that's the key thing where Bitcoin sticks out, McGlone said.

"You could make a case that Ethereum is a security when you hear about all these upgrades and people doing this and people doing that to make it better, I'm like okay well that's kind of scary, can't do that to Bitcoin, it's why it's fine and impressive," McGlone added.

The crypto sector has faced a wave of crackdowns in the United States recently, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing charges against crypto exchange Kraken for its staking services, then suing stablecoin issuer Paxos over Binance USD (BUSD). The regulator also proposed rule changes targeted at crypto firms operating as custodians.

McGlone stated he is still bullish on BTC but expects the price to go down again in step with other assets if a recession hits.

Back in January, he warned BTC might not see the surge being predicted just yet, as there are challenging macroeconomic conditions and pressure from interest-rate hikes.

According to McGlone the April 2 decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to reduce daily oil output makes a recession more likely, as well as interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve to clamp down on inflation.

"We had our morning call this morning and our economist Anna Wong said, Yeah, their base case is for that recession to kick in Q3," he said.

"OPEC is helping that. Fed tightening is helping that. So all assets have to go down. That means Bitcoin too. It's the fastest horse in the race. So I'm overall, certainly relatively bullish."

Related: Bitcoin likely to outperform all crypto assets following banking crisis, analyst explains

In McGlone's opinion, it's "seriously silly" to risk not having some exposure to crypto or trying to stand in its way.

"The key thing I look at simplistically for Bitcoin is, if you're a money manager, why take the risk of not having some of this revolutionary asset, particularly because it's so controversial you want to have at least some in it because you don't want to look like an idiot over history, he said.

"The smart guys get it; we're not gonna be a Blockbuster or Sears, and we're going to be part of this technology."

Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime

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Bitcoin untouchable amid regulatory pressures, says analyst - Cointelegraph

My Digital Money is another IRA provider that offers customers the ability to trade in cash.

The U.S.-based platform is younger than many of its counterparts on this list, having launched in April 2021. Thus, investors should exercise more caution regarding My Digital Money compared to its rivals, especially as so little information is available on the company.

Additionally, My Digital Money is partnered with Genesis Capital. Genesis is a crypto lending platform that filed for bankruptcy in January after getting caught up in the contagion that followed the spectacular collapse of crypto exchange FTX.

Genesis currently serves as My Digital Moneys liquidity provider, meaning trades are routed through its platform. Importantly, My Digital Money confirmed that Genesis does not have custody of My Digital Moneys customer assets.

However, it is certainly a point worth mentioning and a stark reminder of the importance of security and asset storage in the opaque world of cryptocurrency.

My Digital Money has also advised it is seeking a new liquidity provider, an unsurprising development given the mere presence of the Genesis name will likely cause most customers to look elsewhere in light of recent events.

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Best bitcoin IRAs of April 2023 USA TODAY Blueprint - USA TODAY

Bitcoin behaved more like one of the worlds most historic currencies in March, as the largest cryptocurrency by market cap exhibited a strong correlation to gold.

The value of the two assets moved in similar directions throughout the month, edging higher as a banking crisis reared its head in the U.S. and toppled several institutions like Silicon ValleyBankwhich eventually spilled over to shutter European giants like Credit Suisse.

The correlation between Bitcoin and gold currently stands around 50%, according to blockchain analytics firm Kaiko. It represents the strongest connection between the two assets in more than a year, Kaiko analyst Dessislava Aubert told Decrypt.

It's a significant shift because over the course of 2022 Bitcoin and gold were mostly uncorrelated, she said. So, it was not moving as a safe haven [asset] at all.

Over the past month, Bitcoin has rallied 25% to around $28,000, notching its third positive month in a row despite regulatory headwinds. Meanwhile, gold has risen over 8% during the past month, nearing an all-time high of`$1,988 per troy ounce on Monday.

Cryptocurrencies arent typically viewed as a safe haven assettheyre generally seen as risky investments like stocks. And these risk assets have been hammered over the past year as the Federal Reserve has aggressively raised interest rates to quell inflation.

But Aubert said its possible for Bitcoins status as a risk asset to shift somewhat as investors perceptions of its strengths as a store of value change.

For now, people are trying to put Bitcoin in a very traditional framework, Aubert said. Its very hard because it can be a lot of things.

Meanwhile, the correlation between Bitcoin and the S&P 500a major index often used to gauge movements in the U.S. stock marketfell significantly in March to 20%, adding on to a trend thats been building for months, said Aubert.

Bitcoins correlation with equities has been going down since December, steadily, and it's now very low, she said, adding that 20% is essentially negligible.

However, Aubert said that Bitcoin will remain influenced by factors that also impact stocks, such as the Feds monetary policy. She also noted that Bitcoin is sensitive to changes in liquidity overall.

As Bitcoin begins to behave more like a safe haven asset and less like a risky one, there are some fundamental similarities between Bitcoin and gold that are notable, CoinShares Head of Research James Butterfill told Decrypt.

One element that the two assets have in common is that a finite supply supports their value, he said. Similar to how theres a limited amount of accessible gold in the world, Bitcoins supply is capped at 21 millionwith the last Bitcoin expected to be mined sometime in 2140, according to projections.

Bitcoin, in fact, is technically a harder asset than gold because it's a finite supply, but [also] a very well-known finite supply, Butterfill said. Theoretically, you could go out into the universe and find a ton of gold, bring it back to Earth, and flood the market.

In terms of the cultural overlap between Bitcoin and gold, perhaps there is evidence to suggest they are converging on that front as well.

The California-based rapper Snoop Dogg stepped into the ring at WrestleMania 39 yesterday and was seen sporting a golden hardware wallet like an expensive chain.

More:
Bitcoins Correlation to Gold Tightened in March Amid TradFi Woes - Decrypt

Bloomberg Intelligence strategist Mike McGlone says Bitcoin (BTC) could be the best bet for macro investors, but warns a looming recession may pose a threat to its gains in the near term.

In a new live stream with Scott Melker, McGlone says Bitcoins decentralized nature will protect it from US regulators who appear to be increasingly targeting the crypto space.

Top US regulators have stated publicly they consider Bitcoin a commodity.

Thats the key thing where Bitcoin sticks out [is] you cant do anything to this and you cant kill it. Its just unprecedented. Its untouchable. You could make a case that Ethereum is a security when you hear about all these upgrades and people doing this and people doing that to make it better. Im like okay, well thats kind of scary. You cant do that to Bitcoin. Its just why its fine and impressive.

McGlone says hes bullish on Bitcoin, but says hes also anticipating a recession in the third quarter of the year, which would weigh down on risk assets like BTC.

He says OPECs (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) decision on Sunday to reduce daily oil output makes a recession more likely, as well as interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve to draw down inflation.

We had our morning call this morning and our [Bloomberg] economist Anna Wong said, Yeah, their base case is for that recession to kick in Q3. Starting to move it a little forward now. OPEC is helping that. Fed tightening is helping that. So all assets have to go down. That means Bitcoin too. Its the fastest horse in the race. So Im overall, certainly relatively bullish.

But if I expect the stock market still to drop a third from here, I got to expect that weakness and thats still my base case. And crude oil now is kind of accelerating that issue. OPEC is just admitting that theyre seeing the global demand problem kicking in and theyre responding as a rational cartel would do within the economic rationality.

Bitcoin is trading for $28,071 at time of writing.

I

Featured Image: Shutterstock/KHIUS/Natalia Siiatovskaia

The rest is here:
Bloomberg Analyst Says Bitcoin (BTC) the Fastest Horse But Issues Economic Warning - The Daily Hodl

New data from crypto analytics platform IntoTheBlock reveals that long-term Bitcoin (BTC) holders snapped up billions of dollars worth of the king crypto in Q1 2023.

In a new report, IntoTheBlock says that long-term investors of Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH) have significantly increased their exposure to the digital assets in Q1 of 2023, which historically could mean that these entities wont likely sell until BTC and ETH closes in on their all-time highs.

The amount of Bitcoin and Ether owned by hodlers continues to hit all-time highs.

Addresses holding assets for over a year have increased their holdings by $13.4 billion and $4.7 billion of Bitcoin and Ether respectively so far in 2023. If history from previous bull markets repeats, these addresses are unlikely to sell until we approach previous all-time highs.

According to the market intelligence firm, Q2 2023 could harbor potential catalysts for the leading two digital assets, such as ETHs upcoming Shanghai upgrade and BTCs next halving cycle, which is viewed as a force behind crypto cycles.

IntoTheBlock says that ETHs upgrade could cause short-term sell pressure due to the addition of staking withdrawals, but long-term, it could be seen as bullish because it encourages more users to stake.

The firm also says that investors should keep an eye on key prices levels for Bitcoin and Ethereum. According to IntoTheBlock, investors accumulated around $17 billion worth of BTC at $27,000 and $15.1 billion in ETH at about $1,700.

$27,000 and $1,700 for Bitcoin and Ether, respectively, are the levels to watch near-term as they have the largest concentration of buyers, with 623,800 BTC (~$17 billion) and 8.4 million ETH (~$15.1 billion) being acquired at this level.

If prices were to breach this level, there is not much support based on previous buying patterns until $24,500 and $1,500 for Bitcoin and Ether.

On the selling side, recent highs of $29,000 and $1,850 have pressure from addresses that previously bought around that area, but there is not much further resistance if prices climb beyond those levels.

Generated Image: Midjourney

Link:
Long-Term Bitcoin Holders Gobble Up $13,400,000,000 Worth of BTC in Q1 2023: Analytics Firm IntoTheBlock - The Daily Hodl