Just a year ago, the Chinese government was warning citizens that Bitcoin was “heading to zero,” claiming that the digital currency was essentially worthless. However, as we can see now, its predictions have been far off the mark. Since that time, Bitcoin has experienced a 36% increase in value, proving the Chinese government’s speculation to be quite inaccurate.
Amid the bearish market of 2022, the Chinese government attempted to capitalize on the massive downtrend, urging investors that Bitcoin prices were on the verge of collapse. At that time, the Economic Daily, a Chinese national news media agency, released an article reassuring citizens that Bitcoin was nothing more than a “string of digital codes” with no inherent value. The article stated that once investor confidence dissipated or sovereign countries declared Bitcoin illegal, the cryptocurrency would revert to its original worthlessness.
Contrary to these dire predictions, Bitcoin has not only not lost any value but has significantly increased since the article’s publication. Data from CoinGecko reveals that Bitcoin was trading at around $20,000 when the Economic Daily published its cautionary piece in June 2022. Fast forward to twelve months later, and Bitcoin is now trading at $28,852, marking a considerable 36% increase.
Of course, it’s essential to recognize that the journey between those two points has not been entirely smooth. In November 2022, Bitcoin’s price had dipped as low as $15,700 before climbing back up and briefly crossing the $30,000 mark in April 2023.
It’s worth noting that China has a history of taking regulatory action against cryptocurrencies. In 2017, Chinese regulators banned cryptocurrency exchanges from providing services in the country. However, Bitcoin continued to surge, reaching a 1,900% increase up to $20,000 by the end of 2017.
China’s central bank later reinforced its stance against cryptocurrency in 2021, imposing further bans on local crypto activity. Yet Bitcoin’s value remained unyielding as it reached its all-time high of around $68,000 in November 2021.
Interestingly, despite repeatedly “banning” crypto, China remains the second-largest Bitcoin miner worldwide. Moreover, the Chinese government does not seem to block its citizens from owning cryptocurrency and even goes so far as to protect the rights of crypto investors.
Thus, it appears that the Chinese government’s previous warnings of Bitcoin’s demise have not materialized; instead, the cryptocurrency’s value has demonstrated an impressive surge despite market fluctuations and ongoing regulatory challenges. This resilience proves that predicting the future of digital currencies is always far from certain, and only time will tell whether Bitcoin can maintain its upward trajectory in the face of adversity.
Source: Cointelegraph
