Bitcoin tops $40,000, before sliding back to $38,000January 8, 2021 - 10:41 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The price of one bitcoin (XBT) topped more than $40,000 Thursday, January 7 -- double the value from a little more than three years ago. Prices later slid back to around $38,000. Bitcoin first topped $19,000 in December 2017 before crashing spectacularly to around $3,200 a year later. The value of all bitcoins in circulation is now more than $740 billion and the total value for all cryptocurrencies is more than $1 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap. Investors have flocked to bitcoin in recent months as the cryptocurrency has gone mainstream. Square (SQ) and PayPal (PYPL)now let their users buy and sell bitcoin. Top money managers including Paul Tudor Jones, Stanley Druckenmiller -- and more recently, Anthony Scaramucci -- have embraced it. Software firm MicroStrategy (MSTR) is now holding bitcoin on its balance sheet. And a top exec at BlackRock (BLK), the world's largest asset manager, recently said bitcoin is basically a new, digital gold -- an asset that can hold up well during times of dollar weakness and rising inflation. "It's not surprising to see bitcoin's recent run up. It's encouraging to see more serious consideration of bitcoin and the digital currency asset class broadly, because it has real potential to reshape global finance as we know it," said Michael Sonnenshein, CEO of Grayscale Investments, the world's biggest crypto asset manager, in an email to CNN Business. Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | European Parliament to discuss repression in Azerbaijan The European Parliament will discuss repression of civil society in Azerbaijan on April 24 PACE wants concessions from Azerbaijan to accept Baku back A PACE co-rapporteur said that Azerbaijani authorities must make certain concessions so that the country can return to PACE. Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. |