The new Labour government, elected in July, intends to implement its predecessor’s crypto proposals on the creation of regulated activities, including operating a crypto trading platform and a market abuse regime, in full, Siddiq said. Under current plans, stablecoins will no longer fall under the U.K.’s payments regime. There will also be a carve out for staking to prevent it being treated like a collective investment scheme.

Bitcoin trades at $99,340.23, approaching the $100K mark as retail investors retain market dominance.

What is more interesting about this rally is the dominance of retail investors, who currently account for 88.07% of all Bitcoin (BTC) in circulation, according to The Block. Contrary to the recent claims that institutional investors are leaving retail investors behind in ownership of BTCs, the asset is still in the hands of retail investors, which underlines their stronghold in the market. This grassroots stronghold contrasts the much smaller shares held by whales at 1.26% and institutional investors at 10.68%.

Adding momentum to BTC, the historic debut of BlackRock’s BTC ETF options witnessed $1.9 billion in notional value traded on the first day. It is a landmark news because it signifies growing institutional interest in BTC, yet lowers entry barriers for everyday investors. But there’s still some way to go, says Jeff Park, Head of Alpha Strategies at Bitwise Invest, in his observations on X about the ETF’s potential to reshape access to BTC. 

Bitcoin Breakdown:

How BTC ownership is distributed supports the overall trend of asset availability in the market. Companies such as Coinbase have substantial quantities of BTC, holding more than 2.25 million BTC. However, most of this is kept for their clients. Satoshi Nakamoto‘s wallet, which contains 96,8452 BTC, remains untouched as it played a role in creating the Genesis block.  

Overall, funds and ETFs account for 1.09 million BTC, or about 5.2%, while governments such as the U.S. and China collectively hold around 2.5%. 

Despite BTC witnessing price surges, the market is far from stable and often shows extreme volatility. For instance, on Nov. 21, the price of BTC dipped to $95,756.24, with trading volume reaching $98.40 billion. This volatility then reflects the vital role that retail investors play during price hikes, even as institutional investors become more active in the market. 

Some argue that BTC is becoming more centralized, but the data does not back this claim. Financial products like ETFs are attractive to institutions, but they also make BTC more accessible to retail investors. BTC continues to align with Satoshi Nakamoto’s vision of a decentralized and democratized financial system. As BTC nears the $100,000 threshold, its open-and-shut conversation that BTC’s ownership remains essential.

Believers in Ethereum (ETH) could be on the verge of an opportunity, according to Ki Young Ju, the founder and chief executive of the digital asset analytics firm CryptoQuant.

Young Ju tells his 370,400 followers on the social media platform X that the ETH/Bitcoin (BTC) Net Unrealized Profit/Loss level just hit a four-year low.

“Despite Ethereum’s underperformance against Bitcoin, ETH holders endure losses without realizing them. This mirrors levels from its early 2020 bottom.

This might be an opportunity for ETH believers.”

Young Ju also notes that ETH is becoming less correlated with BTC.

“The 180-day BTC-ETH Pearson correlation is at a three-year low. A 10% rise in Bitcoin could result in only a 3% gain for Ethereum.

Just because BTC is strong doesn’t mean you should buy ETH. Each asset is now following its own path.”

Young Ju isn’t the only crypto analyst who’s bullish on Ethereum: Former Goldman Sachs executive Raoul Pal also thinks ETH is primed for big gains.

The Real Vision CEO says ETH’s current chart is playing out similarly to Bitcoin’s between 2011 and 2019.

“Ethereum now versus the previous periods is following the last in Bitcoin. Now whether it gets to the target here of $20,000/ETH, who knows. Doesn’t really matter. But directionally, we’ll see what happens. ETH should accelerate from here, and I’m pretty confident that it will.” 

ETH is trading at $3,054 at time of writing. The second-ranked crypto asset by market cap is down more than 1% in the past 24 hours.

Don’t Miss a Beat – Subscribe to get email alerts delivered directly to your inbox

Check Price Action

Follow us on X, Facebook and Telegram

Surf The Daily Hodl Mix

&nbsp

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

Generated Image: Midjourney