Bullish Bitcoin Signals Cause Anticipation as Retail Traders Set to Gain Access to Crypto

A prominent bullish signal stirred anticipation of a renewed bull market last week. Although highly speculative, it has left many analysts suggesting that there is fuel left in this year’s bull run. Meanwhile, a statue of pseudonymous Bitcoin creator, Satoshi Nakamoto was unveiled in Budapest. AMC announced plans to bring crypto into the entertainment sector, and the global online brokerage Interactive Brokers adds crypto trading to its one-stop investing platform. 

• Bitcoin forms ‘golden cross’ technical signal 
• Statue of Satoshi Nakomoto unveiled in Budapest, Hungary
• Walmart Litecoin rumor debunked
• AMC theatres to begin accepting cryptocurrency payments
• Interactive Brokers to add cryptocurrency trading to the platform

Bullish technicals align for Bitcoin

While technical signals are never certain, one technical signal that is commented on more frequently than others is the ‘golden cross’. Due to its popularity, coverage, and historic significance, it is a signal that is followed closely by many within the crypto community. 

A golden cross occurs when the 50-day moving average moves above the 200-day moving average. The reverse of this, when the 50-day moves below the 200-day, is referred to as a ‘death cross’. While a death cross is often followed by a period of downturn, a golden cross is often followed by a period of strong performance. It is a technical analysis tool that is used inside and outside the cryptocurrency markets. While suggestive, it does not guarantee future forecasts. 

After the micro-crash experienced in Bitcoin prices during the first week of September, last week saw the leading cryptocurrency climb once again. It was this latest climb to $48,000 that confirmed the golden cross signal and placed Bitcoin back on a potential bullish trajectory towards all-time highs. 

‘We are Satoshi’ statue unveiled

The question ‘who is Satoshi Nakamoto?’ has plagued the crypto community for as long as Bitcoin has existed. It has been a mystery ever since the Bitcoin whitepaper was released in 2008. Undeniably, Satoshi Nakamoto was the pioneer in what has now become an expansive industry.

Last Thursday, Hungary unveiled the first-ever statue dedicated to the Bitcoin creator. It was uncovered in Graphisoft Park, Budapest. Created by two Hungarian sculptors, Gergely Réka and Tamás Gilly, the idea was first suggested by the editor of the Kripto Akademia – a crypto news site. It is hoped the statue will increase blockchain awareness.

As the true identity of Satoshi is unknown, the statue was created using a generic human figure. The figure in the statue is wearing a hoodie with the Bitcoin logo on the chest. The statue was called ‘We are Satoshi’ because anyone can look into Satoshi’s bronze-aluminum composite face and see their reflection staring back.

Fake Walmart press release causes spike in Litecoin prices

On Monday last week, a fake press release announced by GlobalNewswire, stated that the multinational retail corporation Walmart was to begin accepting Litecoin as a form of payment. The announcement that the largest retailer in the US was about to start accepting Litecoin payments, sent LTC prices rocketing. The coin climbed over 34% after the news broke. 

However, these price increases were short-lived. After hearing the news, Walmart was quick to debunk the story. After the story had officially been revealed as fake news, Litecoin prices retreated heavily, losing most of its gains from the day.

Unfortunately, the fake news was also shared via Litecoin’s official Twitter account, which added to the quick influx of investment into LTC. The Litecoin Foundation stated that a member of the team “was a little too eager and shared the story from the Litecoin Twitter account. This was quickly deleted and we have taken steps to correct future issues.”

After placing a “notice to disregard” onto the website, GlobalNewswire has since reported that the story was uploaded by a fraudulent user account. 

AMC theatres to accept cryptocurrencies

AMC, one of the largest movie screening companies in the US, announced last week that plans are in progress to allow customers to complete payments in theatres using cryptocurrency. Alongside plans to integrate Apple and Google Pay, the company wants to have the capability to accept bitcoin by the end of the year. It was also confirmed that other cryptocurrencies may also be accepted.

The CEO of AMC, Adam Aron tweeted about the news on Wednesday. “Cryptocurrency enthusiasts: you likely know @AMCTheatres has announced we will accept bitcoin for online ticket and concession payments by year-end 2021. I can confirm today that when we do so, we also expect that we similarly will accept ethereum, litecoin, and bitcoin cash.” 

The news is a great move for fans of both movies and crypto and is another encouraging sign of crypto adoption within the US.

This is not the first time that AMC has made headlines this year. The company was caught up in a globally orchestrated short squeeze executed by retail traders in Q1. The heavily shorted stock was sent higher and cost some financial institutions millions. The gains in stock price have continued throughout the remainder of 2021 so far. Some speculate the short-squeeze event saved the company from bankruptcy. 

Interactive Brokers partners with Paxos to bring crypto to traders

Interactive Brokers (IB), is one of the largest online brokerages in the world. Until now the platform has not offered users the ability to trade cryptocurrencies. However, an announcement made last week outlined that this was set to change thanks to a recent partnership with the crypto firm, Paxos.

Already a popular platform for the investment of stocks and bonds, IB indicated aspirations of becoming a go-to platform for cryptocurrency trading. The cryptocurrencies included in the initial offering will include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash. All transactions will be facilitated by the Paxos Trust Company. 

The Chief Executive Officer, Milan Galik, commented on the new launch on Monday. “As financial markets evolve, sophisticated individual and institutional investors are increasingly seeking out allocations to digital currencies as a means of achieving their financial objectives. In giving our clients access to cryptocurrency trading, we recognize the need to meet the growing investor demand to trade cryptocurrency alongside other asset classes in a convenient and low-cost way.”

The new crypto addition will enable IB users to manage cryptocurrencies, stocks, options, futures, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs from a single dashboard. Crypto capabilities will first be available to US residents and will be rolled out to the rest of the world later. 

As Interactive Brokers’ 720,000 client accounts and $170.1 billion in customer equity are introduced to the crypto markets it is likely that demand for crypto will take a jump.

To stay up to date on all things crypto, like Xcoins on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and sign up at the bottom of the page to subscribe.