BTC up on US pro-crypto strategy; Binance CEO turns down Chelsea FC
Updated
Bitcoin (BTC) was up by 8% in European morning as traders were relieved to learn that the US government under President Biden is planning to embrace cryptocurrency with its new strategy on digital assets rather than to crack down on its use.
In a US Treasury press release statement issued today, Janet Yellen, Treasury secretary and Federal Reserve chair, said the strategy will support “responsible innovation” that “could result in substantial benefits for the nation, consumers and businesses”.
“Under the executive order, Treasury will partner with interagency colleagues to produce a report on the future of money and payment systems. We’ll also convene the Financial Stability Oversight Council to evaluate the potential financial stability risks of digital assets and assess whether appropriate safeguards are in place.
“And, because the questions raised by digital assets often have important cross-border dimensions, we’ll work with our international partners to promote robust standards and a level playing field.”
Short-betters, surprised by the rally, rushed to liquidate positions worth some $95m, with a whopping 88% of short positions closed, based on data from analytics tool Coinglass, as Coindesk reported.
Wow, almost $32 million in #Bitcoin Short Liquidations in 1 hour.
— On-Chain College (@OnChainCollege) March 9, 2022
The highest hourly amount since the price rebound on Feb. 24th. pic.twitter.com/FocCIRTUL7
Zhao rules out Chelsea Blues
Meanwhile, Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, Chinese-Canadian founder and chief executive of Binance – one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges – has now abandoned any plans to buy the UK’s Chelsea Football Club (FC).
Chelsea FC’s current owner, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, released a statement on 2 March announcing his intentions of selling off the club after 19 years of ownership, in part in response to increasing threats of sanctions, as he felt this would be “in the best interests of the club”.
Abramovich has since pledged that net proceeds from sale will go to help Ukrainian victims: “I have instructed my team to set up a charitable foundation where all net proceeds from the sale will be donated. The foundation will be for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine.”
As Zhao is currently worth over $100bn, according to Bloomberg, he would have been one of over a hundred wealthy candidates for taking over the leadership of the club from Abramovich.
However, despite having reportedly discussed a potential takeover with Ambramovich, he ultimately ruled out the deal, with a spokesperson close to him reportedly giving his reason as simply that running a football club is not “one of his priorities”.
What is your sentiment on BTC/USD?
Top coins by market capitalisation
As of 13:00 GMT, cryptocurrencies were trading as:
- Bitcoin (BTC) jumped 7.85% to $41,977.
- Ether (ETH) rallied 7.13% to $2,740.
- Binance Coin (BNB) was up by 2.74% and trading at $394.51.
Winners and losers
- Monero (XMR) and terra (LUNA) added 19.7% and 18.7% over the past 24 hours respectively.
- There are no losers among the major cryptocurrencies.
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