Bitcoin Experiences Huge Sell-Off AS Uncertainty Surrounds The Launch of Facebook’s Libra

Crypto markets have been bleeding this week with bitcoin among the coins that shed significantly. Bitcoin lost more than 15% in a surprising selloff and the process dragging down the whole industry. This caught investors and traders who had hoped that the launch of Bakkt platform could boost bitcoin off guard.

Facebook’s Libra falls back on the launch date

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has indicated that its cryptocurrency Libra is unlikely to launch next year as early planned. Bitcoin has benefitted a lot this year from the announcement that Facebook was launching a crypto project. The CEO told Nikkei Asian Review that they want to move forward with the project, but that could take some time. For now, he said the focus was to ensure that they do it well.

Facebook’s Libra has faced criticism across the world from countries such as the US, France, and India. The countries indicate that cryptocurrencies will undermine national currencies. Early this year, President Trump launched a blistering attack on cryptocurrencies, Libra, and bitcoin. Zuckerberg indicated that several concerns have come from different sections, and they are keen to address that. He said they would work through all the concerns raised before moving forward. 

Project Libra considers by many as a bitcoin competitor is seen as a global currency. Facebook hopes to enlist as many countries as possible with the main target being developing countries where financial access and banking is still limited. Facebook has been grappling with data and privacy scandals in recent times, but now Zuckerberg says they are focusing on doing a thing right through consultation. 

Launch of Bakkt platform disappoints

The drop in the price of Bitcoin comes after the launch of Bakkt crypto platform. The Bakkt platform allows institutional investors and traders to swap bitcoin futures contracts. This means that investors and traders cannot sell more assets than they have. The launch was rather disappointing as the total transactions trade on the first day was 72. This was uninspiring relative to the 5,000 traded by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s cash-settled futures when it launched in December 2017.

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