Author: MAK Gojar

Follow Aaron on Nostr or X. An X post by Anita Posch warning about the risks of governments and institutions buying up large amounts of bitcoin went viral this week— even if just because of the trollish community note that appeared underneath it. I think the main concern here is that these big holders could influence the Bitcoin consensus rules to impose censorship.When it comes to censorship specifically, mining centralization is actually a more direct threat. But if it’s just miners censoring, it would only last for as long as a majority of miners is willing to keep doing it— at the expense…

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The Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index is a sentiment analysis tool that captures the collective mood of Bitcoin traders and investors. Spanning a scale of 0 to 100, the index identifies market emotions ranging from extreme fear (0) to extreme greed (100). While it’s a popular resource among many analysts, it certainly has some doubters! So, let’s look at the data to quantifiably prove if this index can actually help you make better investment decisions.Investor EmotionThe Fear and Greed Index aggregates various metrics to provide a snapshot of market sentiment. These metrics include:Price Volatility: Large price swings often evoke fear,…

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An Austin, Texas man, Frank Richard Ahlgren III, has been sentenced to two years in prison for filing false tax returns that underreported the capital gains from selling $3.7 million worth of bitcoin, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) announced today.According to the DOJ, Ahlgren was an early Bitcoin investor who began purchasing bitcoin in 2011. In 2015, he acquired 1,366 bitcoins through his Coinbase account, a year in which the price of bitcoin peaked at approximately $495 per coin. By October 2017, Bitcoin’s value had surged, and Ahlgren sold 640 bitcoins for $5,807 each, totaling a gain of $3.7…

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As Democrats aim to rebound following stunning setbacks in the 2024 elections, the race for Democratic National Committee chair is very publicly heating up.Getting less attention, but also starting to quietly commence, are moves by Democratic politicians who may have national ambitions in the next White House race.And while 2028 may seem like a long way away, recent history shows that the early moves in the next White House race start, well, very early.The unofficial starting gun for the 2024 race was fired by then-former President Donald Trump less than two months after leaving the White House, with a CPAC…

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Follow Frank on X. Before I even arrived at this year’s Africa Bitcoin Conference, I saw attendees posting about Tando, a new Kenya-based payments app that allows users to spend their sats with merchants who don’t accept bitcoin.Just arrived in Nairobi 🇰🇪🛬 & the 1st thing I see as I exit is the @tando_me sign LET’S GO @AfroBitcoinOrg 🙌🏾 pic.twitter.com/zhPSP2dTH8— OKIN | Nikolai Tjongarero (@OKIN_17) December 8, 2024 “How is this possible?”, you might ask. Well, let me explain.To use Tando, you simply download the app and prepare to pay any merchant who accepts payments via M-PESA, Kenya’s mobile money service.…

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Jeremy Rubin released a proposal two weeks ago titled Un’FE’d Covenants (FE = Functional Encryption). Given the ongoing debate over covenant proposals for Bitcoin the last year or two, his proposal marks a new practical option. All covenant proposals so far require a soft fork (actual opcodes), the development and implementation of unproven cryptography (Functional Encryption), or an absurdly high monetary cost to use (ColliderScript). Jeremy’s proposal requires no softforks, and does not impose a burdensome and impractical cost on users to utilize. The trade off for that capability is a radically different security model. By using a system of…

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Bitcoin investors received a jolt of optimism on Fox Business’ Mornings With Maria on December 13, 2024, when Digital Chamber founder and CEO Perianne Boring unveiled a staggering price prediction. Speaking with host Maria Bartiromo, Boring suggested that bitcoin could surge to $800,000 in 2025 under economic proposals set forth by President-elect Donald Trump.Personnel is policy: Perianne Boring pic.twitter.com/52IPUr2owR— Mornings with Maria (@MorningsMaria) December 13, 2024 Boring’s insights underscore how policy-driven macroeconomic factors could catalyze bitcoin’s ascent to historic highs. With its fixed supply, bitcoin’s unique scarcity positions it to thrive under conditions of increased adoption and favorable policy environments—a scenario…

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