The BBC published an article titled, ‘Bitcoin value drops by 50% since November peak,’ on May 10. It gave a balanced account of the current state of affairs. The key takeaway was a strong positive correlation with stocks, which also sank.
However, analysis of the comments section showed most readers have a strong aversion to Bitcoin. The most upvoted comment stated BTC is not an investment; instead, it is ‘pure speculation,’ and harms the environment.
“Bitcoin is not an investment, it’s pure speculation, and it’s awful for the environment due to how it’s “mined”. Not to mention its contribution towards the global shortage of GPUs.”
Bitcoin bounce on $30,000 support
Bitcoin bears dominated on Monday, triggering a 12% swing to the downside before bouncing off support at $30,000. Today, the bulls are fighting back, having driven the price up to $32,600.
Monday’s sell-off was the latest in a broader seven-month downtrend from early November 2021’s all-time high of $69,000. The chart below shows there have been the initial suggestions of a return to form. But, any hint of that has vanished following an acceleration of the downtrend from April onwards.
Behind this is a global monetary tightening led by central banks, causing investors to flee from risk-on assets, including Bitcoin. Joe DiPasquale, the CEO of cryptocurrency hedge fund BitBull Capital said:
“The monetary policy tightening is causing investors to reduce their exposure to risk assets and BTC’s current correlation to the S&P 500 has led it to also drop today,”
As the macroeconomic environment worsens, the expectation is that central banks will continue with hawkish policies, spelling further trouble for the price of cryptocurrencies.
Naysayers out in force
Following the BBC’s report on Bitcoin’s price collapse, commenters did not hold back in voicing their opinions on the leading cryptocurrency.
As determined by the ratio of upvotes to downvotes, the most popular comments showed a robust anti-Bitcoin sentiment among the BBC’s readership.
Consistent themes include Bitcoin being speculative, negative environmental impact, talk of it being a get-rich-quick scam, and its association with criminality.
“OH NO! My energy-based pyramid scheme :'(“
Based on this, it’s clear that ordinary everyday people have yet to be convinced of the merits of holding Bitcoin. However, it remains the case that cryptocurrency and blockchain are not going away soon.
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