Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the U.S. National Security Agency who leaked highly classified intelligence in 2013, believes China’s cryptocurrency ban has strengthened Bitcoin.
“This is the first time in a while I’ve felt like buying BItcoin. That drop was too much panic and too little reason,” Snowden tweeted back in March 2020. Yesterday, he quoted that tweet and said “[Bitcoin] is up ~10 since, despite a coordinated global campaign by governments to undermine public understanding of—and support for—cryptocurrency.”
“China even banned it, but it just made Bitcoin stronger,” Snowden added.
Sometimes I think back to this and wonder how many people bought #Bitcoin then.
It's up ~10x since, despite a coordinated global campaign by governments to undermine public understanding of—and support for—cryptocurrency.
This is not the first time Snowden has opined about Bitcoin. Earlier this year, the infamous whistleblower lamented the cryptocurrency’s perceived lack of privacy.
Snowden and Bitcoin
During this year’s Ethereal Summit powered by Decrypt, Snowden said Bitcoin needed to become “private by design” to counter efforts against “privacy coins” like Monero.
“Bitcoin is really failing comprehensively on the privacy angle. Now in 2021, everybody knows there’s a problem when we talk about digital surveillance,” Snowden told fierce digital privacy advocate Marta Belcher.
Speaking at Decrypt's Ethereal Summit, infamous whistleblower Edward Snowden argued that Bitcoin must be made "private by design" in order to counter efforts to crack down on so-called "privacy coins" such as Monero.
"Bitcoin is really failing comprehensively on the privacy angle," Snowden said, adding, "Now in 2021, everybody knows there's a problem when we talk about digital surveillance."
Snowden, a former contractor for the US National Security Agency who leaked highly classified intelligen...
The solution—according to Snowden—is for Bitcoin to re-pivot to privacy, but he isn’t necessarily optimistic. “It’s really frustrating for a lot of people in this space that the core development team for Bitcoin has been prioritized—because the longer they wait, the more obstacles are going to be put in place to prevent that,” he added.
Since then, China’s ban has crept back into the public eye on several occasions. In May, the National Interest Finance Association of China, the China Banking Association, and the Payment and Clearing Association of China collectively reiterated their support for the government’s position.
“Recently, cryptocurrency prices have skyrocketed and plummeted, and speculative trading of cryptocurrency has rebounded, seriously infringing on the safety of people’s property and disrupting the normal economic and financial order,” they said.
China’s crackdown on Bitcoin mining has sent the hash rate plummeting and has further served to highlight the detrimental environmental aspects of the world’s most popular cryptocurrency. But the consequences have not been adequately addressed, according to a senior British academic.
Pete Howson, a senior lecturer in international development at Northumbria University in the UK, told Decrypt that China has unleashed a “global arms race in Bitcoin mining equipment” which is having devastating ef...
Last month, the government published a notice detailing further details behind their position against cryptocurrencies.
“Recently, virtual currency trading hype activities have risen, disrupting economic and financial order, breeding illegal and criminal activities such as gambling, illegal fundraising, fraud, pyramid schemes, and money laundering,” the government said.
U.S. law enforcement officials using brute force to seize cash from Bitcoin ATMs are overstepping their authority and may be violating the law, Bitcoin Depot CLO Chris Ryan said.
Ryan told Decrypt that funds police may seize rightfully belong to the Atlanta, Georgia-based provider of Bitcoin ATMs, and that they are liable for damages to the machines, even as they try to return large sums to consumers who say they’ve been scammed.
“You’ve got these rogue law enforcement officers thinking that th...
When Robinhood hosts a crypto-focused keynote event in France on Monday, investors may have an opportunity to buy the dip, investment bank Compass Point signaled on Friday.
Although some investors may “sell the news,” the trading platform has several potential catalysts on the horizon, including inclusion in the S&P 500 and a crypto business that continues to flourish, Compass Point analyst Ed Engel wrote in a note.
Robinhood shares turned lower on Friday, recently falling 1.3% to $83.46, accord...
Ask any pro-crypto lawmaker or industry leader, and they’ll tell you stablecoins are about to take over the world.
Earlier this month, the Senate passed a landmark bill to formally legalize stablecoin issuance in the United States—legislation that parties involved have promised will, once signed into law, unleash the promise of instantaneous blockchain payments on all corners of the U.S. economy.
Crypto leaders have forecasted that once the federal government gives the green light, hundreds of...
