Bitcoin’s price falls 12% according to CoinDesk and Samsung’s share raised after declaring stock split | Calamatta Cuschieri

U.S. stocks traded sharply lower on Tuesday, falling for a second day as the first major sell-off of the New Year intensified. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 327 with UnitedHealth as the biggest decliner. The S&P 500 pulled back 1, with health care and energy as the worst-performing sectors. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.8%. To drive the Markets is the fear that a high inflation due to the 10-year Treasury yield trading near levels not seen since 2014.

Bitcoin drops 12% according to CoinDesk. South Korean regulatory implemented new regulations.

Digital currency Bitcoin fell Tuesday as the 20 largest digital currencies by market capitalisation all declined, according to CoinMarketCap (Cryptocurrency Market Capitalisations).

Bitcoin traded 12% lower near $9,817 according to CoinDesk's bitcoin price index, which tracks prices from digital currency exchanges Bitstamp, Coinbase, itBit and Bitfinex.

Ethereum, the second-largest digital currency by market cap, traded about 9% lower and ripple, the third-largest cryptocurrency fell about nearly 10% to $1.19.

There was no significant driver behind the widespread drop on Tuesday morning.

South Korea's Financial Service Commission confirmed that new measures had been implemented, like bans on anonymous trading accounts.

South Korean regulatory plans to tackle cryptocurrency speculation spooked investors earlier this month. In a document published on the 23rd of January, the regulator said it would only allow transaction in cryptocurrency from real-name bank accounts beginning on the 30th of January. The measures were intended to reduce room for illegal activity such as crimes, money laundering and tax evasion.

The implementation of those news rules came after mixed messages about regulation from South Korean officials at various ministries spooked cryptocurrency markets earlier this month.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also announced on Tuesday it obtained a court order to freeze the assets of an initial coin offering claiming to have raised $600 million.

U.S. Treasury Secretary said on Tuesday that the Treasury wants to make sure cryptocurrencies are not used by money launderers. In December, the U.S. derivatives regulator has sent a subpoena to two of the world’s largest cryptocurrency platforms, Bitfinex and Tether.

Bitfinex is an online platform that enables traders to buy and sell virtual currencies such as bitcoin and ether. It’s one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world by trading volume, and is owned by a British Virgin Islands company and does not have a head office. Bitfinex is affiliated with Tether, a company that issues virtual coins that it says are pegged to the U.S. dollar and can be used in the cryptocurrency market as a substitute for the dollar. The subpoena came as watchdogs globally increase their scrutiny of the emerging asset class that it has said is highly vulnerable to manipulation and fraud.

Benjamin Roberts, co-founder and CEO of Citizen Hex, an ethereum-focused start-up, attributed the declines to uncertainty around bitcoin's ability to improve transaction efficiency and the future development of ethereum.

Samsung’s shares surged after announcing a stock split.       

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday said it recorded an operating profit of about 15.2 trillion Korean won ($14.15 billion) for the quarter ending in December. For the full year, Samsung recorded an operating profit of nearly 54 trillion won on revenue of about 240 trillion won. The company announced its belief that a stock split would make investing in the company more accessible and provide dividends to a wider range of investors.      

The South Korean tech giant said its fourth-quarter earnings were driven by strong demand for its memory chips that are used in data centers and smartphones. In recent years, Samsung's semiconductor business became a major earnings driver. That unit recorded an operating profit of nearly 11 trillion won for the December quarter.  Samsung said its earnings from the mobile business declined in the December quarter due to higher marketing costs.   The firm said smartphone sales for its low-end models declined. Indeed, recent data showed that Samsung was pushed out of the pole position last quarter from the Indian smartphone market. The company expects the mobile business to improve its earnings. The Galaxy S9 is expected to be introduced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. 

Disclaimer:

This article was issued by Linda De Luca, Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com.mt. The information, view and opinions provided in this article is being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.