Bitcoin's price has taken a nosedive. It's now trading at $57,000, down 23% from its all-time high. But one analyst remains bullish, and we want to believe him, don't we? Arsen, an independent market analyst, forecasts a rebound to a whopping $330,000 this cycle, which seems a bit hard to believe. He's not worried about the current dip. "Smart money" is accumulating Bitcoin, Arsen argues. This includes institutional investors and market experts. "This dip is nothing new," he notes. Bitcoin has seen similar patterns before. Previous bull cycles occurred every four years. They lasted about 800 days each, which is quite a lot. The first, in 2012, saw a 9,000% price increase. But we are from that now, aren't we? Subsequent cycles in 2016 and 2020 showed smaller gains. They were 3,000% and 1,200% respectively. Which is kind of closer to what we see now. Or do we? The current bullish cycle seems a bit weird. But not to our analyst. Arsen points out a trend. "In every consecutive cycle, Bitcoin returns get smaller by about ~60%," he writes. Based on this pattern, he predicts a 450% price increase this cycle. That would put Bitcoin at around $330,000 per coin. The current correction has several causes. Mt. Gox is reimbursing clients. The German government is selling off Bitcoin. Despite this, institutional investors are buying the dip. CoinShares data confirms this trend. CryptoQuant, an onchain analytics platform, reports that "whales" are increasing their holdings. These are Bitcoin's large investors. Not everyone shares Arsen's optimism. Some analysts predict further drops before a rebound. Markus Thielen of 10x Research sees Bitcoin potentially falling to $50,000. He bases this on a bearish double top formation. Michaël van de Poppe, founder of MN Capital, also has a short-term bearish outlook. He expects Bitcoin to break below $56,000. Van de Poppe predicts a further drop to around $52,800. This would tap into demand-side liquidity. Another famous analyst, Apsk32, foresees a correction until October. They then predict a 300% rally into 2026. The crypto market remains volatile. Bitcoin's journey to $330,000 won't be a smooth ride. But for long-term believers, the current dip might be a buying opportunity.

Michael Saylor, the Bitcoin billionaire, has revealed MicroStrategy's plans for a 10-for-1 stock split. The announcement came on Thursday, sending ripples through the crypto and tech sectors, many were caught by surprise and thought this came out of the blue. MicroStrategy, Saylor's brainchild, is a dual-purpose company. It develops business intelligence software and holds Bitcoin. The stock split aims to make shares more accessible to smaller investors. "The stock split will be effected by means of a stock dividend," MicroStrategy stated in a press release. The record date is set for August 1, 2024. Investors will receive nine additional shares for each one they own. This applies to both Class A and Class B stock. The split is scheduled for August 7, after market close. Trading on a split-adjusted basis will kick off on August 8. It's worth noting that a stock split doesn't change an investor's stake in the company. The fundamental value of their portfolio remains the same. However, the split will dilute individual share prices, this can look alarming on stock charts without proper context. Joe Burnett, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Unchained, sees potential in the move. "Now the plebs will soon be able to afford to play the MSTR call option game," he said. Burnett added, "Market makers will sell these call options and hedge their positions by purchasing thousands, possibly millions, of shares." MSTR shares closed at $1305 on Wednesday. The stock has skyrocketed 216% over the past year, outpacing Bitcoin itself. Which is fascinating, as some people obviously believe in Saylor more than they believe in Bitcoin, in which Saylor believes so passionately. MicroStrategy is the world's largest corporate Bitcoin holder. It owns 226,331 BTC, valued at $13.33 billion. The company's market cap stands at $23.16 billion, according to Google Finance. This indicates a significant premium over its Bitcoin holdings.

Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter and Block, has shared his bold vision for Bitcoin's future. At a recent gathering in Tuscany, Italy, Dorsey outlined his belief in the cryptocurrency's potential to reshape global finance. He thinks Bitcoin is supposed to defeat the king of all the human money, the American dollar himself. Dorsey anticipates a significant shift in Bitcoin's role, first of all because of the change of the usage pattern. He expects it to evolve from a store of value to a widely used currency in the West. "It's going to take some time," Dorsey stated. "It's not 10 years, it might be 15. Little by little, people see the value of this system [and] why it's so powerful." The tech entrepreneur sees Bitcoin potentially dethroning the US dollar. He believes it could become the world's primary payment method. "It could potentially... complement or replace the U.S. dollar, which rules everything," Dorsey said. He sported a Satoshi Nakamoto t-shirt and gold chain during the talk. Dorsey emphasized the need to reduce dependence on government-issued currencies. He specifically mentioned the US dollar and Chinese yuan. "These are two entities that control the value of your money, and you don't elect them," Dorsey explained. "Whereas [with] Bitcoin, you have a lot more control and a lot more free agency." This isn't Dorsey's first bullish statement on Bitcoin. We all remember what Dorsey said back in May when BTC was struggling to hold to it's all time high, Dorsey predicted its price would hit $1 million by 2030. Dorsey's company, Block, is putting its money where its mouth is. They're reinvesting 10% of gross profits from Bitcoin-related products into the cryptocurrency. Dorsey keep buying Bitcoin at all times, at all prices, regardless of where the winds blow. However, it's not all smooth sailing. Block is reportedly under investigation by US prosecutors for alleged crypto-related compliance issues.

Illegal cryptocurrency mining operations in Malaysia have stolen electricity worth astounding $723 million between 2018 and 2023. Their profits from Bitcoin and Ethereum mining for that period remains unknown, yet it would be fare to assume the sum is also epic. This revelation comes from Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir, Deputy Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation. Nasir disclosed this information during an event where seized items, including Bitcoin mining machines and electrical equipment valued at $467,000, were destroyed. He stressed that these illicit operations harm both the state-controlled power operator and local communities. Energy companies can detect abnormal usage patterns. Thieves typically avoid registration and bypass meters or divert power from existing lines. "The theft of electricity by those who mine cryptocurrency occurs because they believe this activity cannot be detected due to the absence of meters on their premises," Nasir explained. However, energy suppliers can identify unusual consumption in an area. This capability allowed Malaysian officials to seize over 2,000 items in October 2022. While cryptocurrency mining itself is legal in Malaysia, stealing electricity for this purpose is not. The Universiti Teknologi MARA clarified this distinction in December 2022. Malaysian authorities have been cracking down on illegal miners since at least August 2019. Nasir emphasized that these operations comply with national criminal procedure laws. Some seized machines have been crushed by steamrollers as part of the disposal process. It's a no-nonsense approach to deterrence, to say the least. Curbing illegal mining is a priority for the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation. This effort runs alongside initiatives to boost renewable energy sources in Malaysia. But legal actions against illegal crypto activities in Malaysia are not limited to that. There is more. Malaysian authorities have also taken action against unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges. In May 2023, the Securities Commission Malaysia ordered Huobi Global to cease operations due to lack of registration. That makes Malaysia one of the countries with the most strict approach to illegal crypto activities. Currently, only six cryptocurrency trading platforms are registered in Malaysia: HATA Digital, Luno, SINEGY, MX Global, Tokenize Technology, and Torum International. No Binance, no Coinbase, if you've noticed. In a related development, Malaysian authorities busted a forex investment fraud and cryptocurrency syndicate in May. The operation had been laundering funds from overseas scams. Eight local men and two women were arrested in raids across the Klang Valley. Assets seized included 129 vehicles with exclusive registration plates worth $3.8 million, 75 branded watches valued at $2.1 million, and 18 luxury vehicles worth $1.7 million.

Block has announced its first customer for its 3nm mining ASICs. The buyer is Core Scientific, a major Bitcoin mining firm. This deal is significant in the history of Bitcoin mining, as it proves Jack Dorsey is a a real visionary far beyond Twitter. Core Scientific will receive chips with 15 exahashes per second (EH/s) capacity. This will boost the company's hash rate by 60% compared to June 2024 levels. The agreement allows for additional volume. Block's Proto team developed the new mining platform. It aims to improve efficiency and reliability for large-scale operations. Core Scientific will be able to optimize its data center resources. Russell Cann, Core Scientific's Chief Development Officer, said the partnership will "define a new paradigm for scaled Bitcoin mining". He believes it will benefit operations and strengthen the Bitcoin network. Core Scientific's stock is up 2% today. It has gained 167% in two months. The rally follows reduced concerns about miner capitulation after April's Bitcoin halving. Block's shares haven't fared as well. They're down 1% today and 12% year-to-date. The stock remains far below its 2021 peak, and that is a bit worrisome for many of the Block's fans. Block completed its Bitcoin mining chip in April. Jack Dorsey, Block's CEO, said it would help miners "survive and thrive" after the fourth halving. Miners feel insecure about halving events, and Dorsey feels this might be a point of interest for customers and investors. Block claims this deal is one of the largest ASIC agreements in Bitcoin mining history. It's a big step for the company's efforts to "democratize Bitcoin mining". But, the company is branching out beyond mining. In March, it launched Bitkey, a hardware wallet for Bitcoin self-custody, which is pretty in line with Dorsey's old passion for Bitcoin maximalism.