‘Comeback of the Year’: Bitcoin Is the Only Global Currency That Trounced the Dollar in 2015

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by Tatsiana Yablonskaya · 3 min read
‘Comeback of the Year’: Bitcoin Is the Only Global Currency That Trounced the Dollar in 2015
Photo: Linda m bell/Flickr

Bitcoin is entering 2016 with winning positions being called “one of the world’s best performing currencies of 2015”.

2015 turned out to become one of the most crucial years for Bitcoin. Bloomberg even “gave it an award” as the comeback of the year. Indeed Bitcoin gained almost 40 percent comparing with the previous year which left the Somali shilling, the Gambian dalasi and the Burundi franc behind. The last three months showed its rapid price raise. Here are just some figures demonstrating the growing strength of the cryptocurrency:

  • 100-millionth bitcoin transaction is expected in the last days of 2015;
  • There are more than 200,000 transactions conducted every day and this is by 136% more comparing with the last year;
  • Bitcoin-related companies have raised $1 billion in venture capital investment in 2015.

During the whole year bitcoin’s price was fluctuating between its lowest position of $177.28 (January 14) to its peak of $465.50 (December 15). This last-month boost holds out a hope of even better 2016. According to the bitcoin program its reward is halved every four years.

The next scheduled term is July 2016. Thus miners will be paid half the amount as previously for mining new coin. However bitcoin experts said that “efficient market theory” implies the market has already “baked” this event into bitcoin’s price.

Many in the bitcoin community stick to the opinion that the cryptocurrency will demonstrate further growth due to the higher adoption of cryptocurrency. Bobby Lee, the chief executive of one of the leading bitcoin exchanges in China, BTCC, predicts that the cryptocurrency will get way beyond the limits of current peak price.

According to him the price can increase severalfold within next months and make up $3,500 by next summer.  “Today the worth of bitcoin is $1 per capita in the world (population),” Lee said, referring to the value of all the bitcoins in circulation, around $6.5 billion. “For such an innovative, decentralized digital asset, I say ‘boy, are we undervaluing it’. But it takes a while for people to realize that.”

Visa Europe has recently presented its annual summary “Why 2015 was the year for payments”. It mentioned separately the blockchain and its increasing role in the fintech. Indeed this year has turned blockchain into the most promising technology of 2015. It’s hard to enumerate all the financial institutions that turned to the blockchain in order to enhance their services.

“The challenges for blockchain and bitcoin in the year ahead will be two-fold.  Proponents will have to further address the lack of trust, a challenge they have faced since their creation. Then, the challenge of turning these technologies to tackle more real-world scenarios, such as sending money overseas,” says Visa.

Bitcoin News, Blockchain News, Cryptocurrency News, News
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