Having just entered into the year 2024, it is very important for a very serious minded crypto investor to give attention to the Outlook of Bitcoin this year.
In this article, based on information from a renowned crypto platform operator, Luno, we will look into some major issues to watch out for concerning Bitcoin.
Major Issues That May Affect Bitcoin in 2024
1. Bitcoin Halving
Roughly every four years, bitcoin rewards paid to miners are cut in half as a way to avoid excess supply and potentially rapid inflation. These events are known as halvings, and such events have historically been credited by analysts as having had a major impact on the price as they decrease the supply of new bitcoin into the market and reinforce the sense of Bitcoin’s scarcity.
The next halving event is expected to happen in April 2024. This will see the number of bitcoin rewards earned per block approved fall from 6.25 to 3.125.
What’s happened previously? The first halving was followed in the ensuing months by the price of bitcoin increasing more than 8,000% on pre-halving levels. The price of bitcoin also increased roughly 3,000% after the second halving in 2016. The last halving in 2020 was followed by a bull run that ended in an all-time high price of almost $69,000.
2. US elections
The outcome of the US election in November 2024 could have profound implications for the crypto industry. US regulatory and financial decisions tend to have a marked impact on the global crypto industry, as we’ve seen with the Bitcoin spot-ETF applications. But there’s also an interesting development of government officials playing into crypto for voter support.
Crypto started to enter the conversation, albeit in a small way, in the last election.The amount of talk has grown since, and it could herald a more different approach to crypto than we’ve seen in recent years.
3. Africa x Crypto
Research firm Chainalysis recently pointed out that crypto investment in sub-Saharan Africa tends to be more retail driven than other regions, possibly a sign that crypto has become an important part of people’s daily lives. “No country exemplifies this better than Nigeria, which ranks second overall on our Global Crypto Adoption Index and also leads the region in raw transaction volume,” Chainalysis noted.
Nigerians are increasingly turning to cryptocurrencies for storing and transferring value, gaining access to international markets. More recently, it’s also been used as a means of overcoming challenges in accessing Dollars and hedging against Naira volatility.
4. Bitcoin ETFs
The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 11 spot Bitcoin exchange traded funds on 10 January, a landmark decision which experts say could lead to an influx of institutional investment into bitcoin. In 2017, we had initial coin offerings (ICOs, and in 2020 we had NFTs. The next bull run will also likely have ‘a thing’, a lightning rod for its popularity, and the spot-ETF could be it.
5. AI is coming, for everything
Given the hype around AI in 2023 and the obvious benefits of automated trust for transacting in an automated ecosystem, AI could be a particularly-interesting development for crypto. AI development is not looking like it’s slowing down anytime soon, with experts calling last year’s breakthroughs among the most significant in human history. It seems like the technology will leave no industry unturned, including crypto. From AI-driven chatbots to automated trading bots, the technology seems a natural fit for programmable money, aka crypto.
6. Tokenise, everything
It’s time to pay attention when juggernauts like JP Morgan enter the fray. The banking giant recently created their own blockchain and started trading tokenised assets on it. Tokenisation is a process wherein an asset is represented by a crypto token and immortalised on a blockchain. This could be in the form of a house, a fraction of a house, music royalties, gold, bonds, stocks, and so on, and so on.
It is believed that the above information about things to expect concerning Bitcoin in 2024 will be of great assistance to you in make your investment decisions.