FN Media Group Presents Cryptocurrencynews.com Market Commentary
Bitcoin prices continue to rise after gaining nearly 15%, or $970 million, over a two week period. Publicly traded cryptocurrency companies are once again in the spotlight with interest in the sector renewed after the lengthy selloff that followed the all-time highs achieved throughout Q4 2017. These recent price changes have seen companies like HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd. (TSX-V: HIVE) (OTC: HVBTF), Hashchain Technology Inc. (TSX-V: KASH) (OTC: HSSHF), Global Blockchain Technologies Corp. (CSE: BLOC) (OTC: BLKCF), Riot Blockchain Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) and AXS Blockchain Solutions Inc.[1] (CSE:BAXS) (FRA: C0B[2])drastically increase their market caps over that same period. While the majority of these companies heavily focus on cryptocurrency mining, new innovations within the industry, like Peer-to-Peer (P2P) marketplaces, are drawing significant investment from some of the sector’s largest companies.
Centralized exchanges like Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and others have provided access to the cryptocurrency markets during the industry’s formative years. As these exchanges continue to grow, so too do their fee structures, internal regulations, and other prohibitive measures that make it difficult for investors to take part in the cryptocurrency markets. In 2017, Coinbase received a valuation of $1.6 billion[3] when they raised $100 million, with that number reaching as high as $8 billion in 2018[4].
Where the popular centralized exchanges leverage their size to provide access to the crypto markets, this access comes with a price. Transactions are completed through the exchanges with no interaction between buyers and sellers, fees are high and continue to grow, and withdrawing funds can take several days to weeks. These kinds of barriers are unattractive to traders who want to trade cryptos with
