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Vitalik Buterin Challenges Michael Saylor’s Dismissal of Bitcoin Centralization Risks

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Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has added his voice to the chorus of condemnation facing MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor following the latter’s comments advocating for institutional Bitcoin (BTC) custody.

Buterin’s critique came after Saylor suggested in a recent interview that large institutions holding Bitcoin can reduce the chances of asset seizure, which lawless crypto holders could more likely cause.

Saylor Advocates for Institutional Custody

In the October 21 sit down with Madison Reidy, the self-described Bitcoin maximalist discussed a wide range of issues, including the potential for broader asset adoption among companies and governments. He also advocated for the need for user-friendly BTC investment products, suggesting they are crucial for the cryptocurrency’s mainstream acceptance.

However, it was Saylor’s response to Reidy’s question regarding the potential risk of making Bitcoin more centralized by putting it in the hands of a few large institutions that drew the ire of the community.

She suggested that such a scenario could increase the risk of seizure and confiscation, as happened with gold in the 1930s. Saylor dismissed the concern, calling those who held it “paranoid crypto-anarchists.”

“People say that, but it’s mostly paranoid crypto-anarchists. It’s a myth and a trope that repeats itself. First of all, the government didn’t really seize gold back then; people voluntarily turned it in,” said MicroStrategy’s former CEO.

Saylor argued that regulated entities such as BlackRock and Fidelity, rather than individuals or small custodians, should be the primary holders of Bitcoin. He claimed this would protect the cryptocurrency from government seizure while ensuring its stability in the broader financial system.

Further, he declared that these same anarchists could actually originate a Bitcoin seizure event due to their disregard for the rule of law:

“I think when Bitcoin is held by a bunch of crypto-anarchists who aren’t regulated entities, who don’t acknowledge government or don’t acknowledge taxes, or don’t acknowledge reporting requirements, that increase the risk of seizure.”

Buterin’s Stance on Self-Custody

But Vitalik Buterin disagreed. In an October 23 response to a post by crypto security expert Jameson Lopp, the Ethereum co-founder said Saylor’s argument effectively promotes centralization, which Bitcoin was designed to avoid.

In his opinion, trusting institutional players with the asset’s custody erodes the very foundation of decentralization on which cryptocurrencies are built.

Buterin also took aim at his earlier involvement in the “mountain man” stereotype surrounding BTC self-custody, calling the notion outdated. He stated that advancements such as zero-knowledge proof and account abstraction have evolved the security trade-offs for self-custody.

The developer maintains that Saylor’s vision of institutional custody is dangerous, suggesting that self-custody, while not without challenges, is important to Bitcoin’s long-term security and integrity.

Buterin’s Ethereum has also had its own issues with centralization. A report from 2023 showed that more than 60% of its nodes were run through centralized entities like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud. It prompted the co-founder to suggest using stateless clients as a possible workaround for the issue, although he acknowledged it may take between 10 and 20 years to get there.

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Cryptocurrency

BTC Price Nears $100K for the First Time Since February, ETH Taps Monthly Peak (Market Watch)

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Bitcoin’s positive price performance, perhaps due to the aforementioned trade talks, continues in full force as the asset tapped a multi-month high of just under $100,000.

The altcoins have posted notable gains as well, with ETH surging past $1,900 for the first time in over a month.

BTC Aims at $100K

It almost felt like a distant dream a month ago when bitcoin’s price tumbled hard to under $75,000 amid the growing tension between the US and the rest of the world. As the situation improved, or at least for countries other than China, BTC began an impressive recovery that resulted in adding $20,000 within a couple of weeks.

The cryptocurrency faced some resistance at that point and couldn’t continue upwards for a while. It was stopped at $98,000 last week and pushed south to under $94,000 just two days ago.

However, it bounced off and reclaimed the $96,000 support, which has now turned into resistance. Although the Fed expectedly refused to lower the interest rates, BTC’s price kept climbing in the past 24 hours, perhaps due to a promising statement from the POTUS regarding the Trade War situation and upcoming talks.

As of now, bitcoin is just inches shy of $100,000, a level not seen in over three months. Its market cap has soared to $1.980 trillion, while its dominance over the alts has taken a hit and is under 62% on CG now.

BTCUSD. Source: TradingView
BTCUSD. Source: TradingView

ETH Past $1.9K

Ethereum has finally broken above an important resistance situated at $1,850 and now trades at a monthly high of well over $1,900. Although ETH has struggled against BTC and the greenback in the past half a year, you can check ChatGPT’s opinion on whether in can outperformed its bigger brother this year – here.

XRP, SOL, ADA, TRX, AVAX, and XLM have charted gains of around 2-4%, while DOGE, LINK, and SUI have shot up by up to 7.5%. BCH and PEPE are the top gainers, with double-digit price increases of 11% and 12.5%, respectively.

The total crypto market cap has surged by almost $100 billion in a day and is up to $3.2 trillion on CG.

Cryptocurrency Market Overview. Source: QuantifyCrypto
Cryptocurrency Market Overview. Source: QuantifyCrypto
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Disclaimer: Information found on CryptoPotato is those of writers quoted. It does not represent the opinions of CryptoPotato on whether to buy, sell, or hold any investments. You are advised to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. Use provided information at your own risk. See Disclaimer for more information.

Cryptocurrency charts by TradingView.

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Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin Price Approaches $100K: Here’s Why This Time It Can Be Different

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On-chain data from Sentora (previously IntoTheBlock) indicates that the largest cryptocurrency can spike well above $100,000 if it finally manages to break through that barrier, given the lack of significant sell pressure.

However, another analyst outlined the next big resistance line, which his not all that far ahead.

With BTC approaching and currently sitting just inches away from the coveted six-digit territory, the entire crypto community has turned its focus on whether the asset will finally be able to break through. Recall that the last time it traded above that coveted milestone was just over three months ago.

With optimism regarding big trade deals between the US and another country (perhaps the UK, even though some speculate it could be China), BTC’s price jumped from under $94,000 yesterday to the current $99,500.

If it pulls another impressive leg up, Sentora’s data shows that the potential resistance “may be limited” due to the relatively low amount of BTC purchased at that level. More precisely, just 3% of the total supply was accumulated at these prices, which suggests that “sell-side pressure could be relatively contained.”

However, Ali Martinez brought another chart showing that 81,910 BTC (bought for well over $9 billion) was acquired at an average price of $101,673, which has now turned into a major resistance if the $100,000 line falls.

In contrast, BTC has formed a “strong support” at $94,719, where 195,320 BTC was acquired, with a USD value of $18.5 billion.

In the meantime, while BTC’s market price fights with $100,000, the asset’s realized cap has soared to a new all-time high – details here.

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Bitcoin Realized Cap Soars to New All-Time High

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Bitcoin’s Realized Cap, an important on-chain metric reflecting the total dollar value invested in the network, has shattered records for the third week in a row, surging to an unprecedented $890.74 billion.

The latest spike comes as BTC hovers just below the $100,000 mark, buoyed by investor optimism and macroeconomic tailwinds, including improving geopolitical sentiment and a stable interest rate environment.

A Strengthening Conviction in Bitcoin’s Future

In an article posted on X and the CryptoQuant website, a pseudonymous on-chain analyst, Gold Crypto, argued that the new all-time high in BTC’s Realized Cap signals a fundamental shift in market dynamics that could mark the early stages of a new bull cycle.

The metric has become a barometer for long-term stakeholder sentiment and is calculated by summing the value of each bitcoin based on the price at which it last moved. It reflects the total dollar value of the BTC currently held by investors based on the cost basis of their assets rather than the current market price.

Realized Cap often serves as a barometer of investor commitment, since, unlike market capitalization, which can be skewed by speculative trading, it captures the actual capital flowing into BTC.

With the metric now sitting at more than $890 billion, the market watcher pointed out that Bitcoin is seeing a “steady stream of buying,” a trend he says conveys “renewed interest from investors.” The analyst believes this isn’t mere speculation but a sustained accumulation that speaks of growing confidence in the future of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency as a financial instrument and store of value.

“This new record in the Realized Cap not only indicates an increase in invested capital but also a growing conviction in Bitcoin’s long-term potential as a financial asset,” he wrote. “With sustained accumulation from both LTH and STH, the market seems to be building a solid foundation for a significant next move.”

From Correction to Rally

The on-chain strength is also slowly manifesting in Bitcoin’s price action. Data from CoinGecko shows that the asset went up 2.7% in the last 24 hours and was trading at $99,700, only a hair’s breadth away from the psychologically important $100,000 level, and just 8.4% below its all-time high of over $109,000.

It climbed 4.9% in the past week, outperforming the broader crypto market, which saw a more modest 2.7% uptick in that period. Furthermore, over 30 days, BTC has grown by more than 25% after navigating a brief correction earlier in the month that saw its price dip to $93,500.

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