First time reading? I’m Jordan, and this is The Bitcoin Minimalist. Every Tuesday & Thursday, we scour 100s of sources to bring you need-to-know Bitcoin insights.

Today we’re covering:

• U.S. government moves $2B in Bitcoin,

• Coinbase integrates Lightning Network,

• $111B inflows in Bitcoin ETFs for March,

• And everything else you need to know.

—Jordan

PRICE IMPACT

U.S. Government's $2 Billion Bitcoin Move Shakes Market

U.S. Government Moves $2B in Bitcoin: On-chain data reveals that a U.S. government wallet transferred 30,175 BTC on Tuesday. At the time of writing it comes out to approximately $2 billion USD. Of these, 2,000 bitcoins were moved to a Coinbase wallet, while the remainder went to another government-tagged wallet.

Impact on Bitcoin's Price: Following this transfer, Bitcoin's price dipped slightly below $65,000, though it has since recovered to $68,000.

Background: This movement is significant as the U.S. government's last confirmed sale of seized Silk Road bitcoins was over a year ago, in March 2023, when 9,861 bitcoins were sold for $216 million. The government had seized approximately 50,000 bitcoins related to the Silk Road website in late 2022.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

💰 In March, Bitcoin mining businesses hit a record revenue of over $2 billion. This new record blew past the previous record of $1.74 billion. The revenue came from block rewards and fees, with $1.93 billion from block subsidies. The upcoming halving in April, reducing the block subsidy to 3.125 bitcoins, will impact future earnings.

💹 Bitcoin ETFs saw record inflows in March, with trading volume hitting $111 billion, nearly triple February's $42 billion. BlackRock's IBIT led with 50% of the volume, followed by Grayscale's GBTC and Fidelity's FBTC. The surge in ETF activity coincides with Bitcoin's new all-time highs and suggests a growing demand for Bitcoin investment products.

💡 Cathie Wood of ARK Invest sees Bitcoin as a hedge against poor fiscal policies and currency devaluations. She highlights its role as a safety asset, beyond the impact of new ETFs. Despite recent outflows, Wood remains bullish, predicting a $1 million price by 2030 due to rising institutional investment.

📈 Inflation in Turkey soared to 68.5% in March, pushing Bitcoin near all-time highs against the Lira. The central bank raised interest rates to 50% to combat inflation. With the Lira's devaluation, 58% of Turkish investors view Bitcoin as a long-term investment. The government is finalizing comprehensive crypto regulations for exchanges.

💰 The number of Bitcoin billionaires increased by 50% in the past year, reaching 17, largely due to Bitcoin's record high of $73,000 in March and the legalization of Bitcoin ETFs in the US. Changpeng Zhao leads with a net worth of $33 billion. The collective wealth of these billionaires is now $93 billion, up from $37 billion last year.

🇦🇷 Argentina's CNV mandates registration for Bitcoin services, aligning with FATF guidelines. The move, affecting businesses and individuals, extends to foreign companies operating in Argentina. Concerns arise as users report issues with Bitcoin apps. The long-term impact on Argentina's 15th-ranked cryptocurrency market is uncertain.

💼 Morgan Stanley and UBS are competing to become the first major U.S. banks to offer Bitcoin ETFs to all clients. This move signals a major milestone in Bitcoin's mainstream acceptance. With over $1 trillion in assets each, their moves could attract billions in new client assets and inspire other wealth managers to follow suit, accelerating Bitcoin's integration into the mainstream financial system.

LIGHTNING SPEED

Coinbase Adds Bitcoin Lightning Integration

Coinbase Integrates Bitcoin Lightning Network: Coinbase announces a partnership with Lightspark. The main goal of the partnership is to integrate the Bitcoin Lightning Network. The result will be faster and more cost-efficient BTC transactions for Coinbase’s users.

Lightning Network's Impact: The Bitcoin Lightning Network offers a cheaper and quicker alternative to traditional payment systems like Mastercard and Visa by offloading transactions from the main blockchain of Bitcoin.

Lightspark: Lightspark's platform, developed over nearly two years, is positioned as the premier enterprise-grade entry point to the Lightning Network, promising to boost overall network usage.

POLL

TUESDAY’S POLL RESULTS

Will Peter Schiff ever change his views on Bitcoin?

He’ll never understand it - 71.2%

He’ll change his views soon - 28.8%

He’ll change his views soon - “The views of all people are and will be different in every period of 10 years of their life... This is the process of mental evolution of all living beings!” - John

He’ll change his views soon - “There is self interest in his predictions. Time will tell.” - Avi

He’ll never understand it - “He has the old mind set.” - Sam

He’ll never understand it - “It's been nearly 12 years and he still disapproves Bitcoin.” - Marc

He’ll never understand it - “There is no way that he doesn't own Bitcoin.” - Izzy

He’ll never understand it - “He's smart enough to understand it and change his views.... But at this point, he won't. He can't. It takes strength of character to say ‘I was wrong’.” - Ethan

IN THE LOOP

📈 Arkon Energy has ordered 27,700 new-generation Bitcoin mining machines from Bitmain, including 14,200 T21s and 13,500 S21s, with deliveries starting in June 2024. This move marks a shift from hosting to self-mining, aiming to make Arkon one of the most efficient miners post-halving. The company plans to expand its capacity from 117MW to 307MW in the US.

🌱 Genesis Digital Assets (GDA) announced its expansion at the Tarbush data center in West Texas, adding 1 EH/s to its hash rate capacity by accessing 36 MW of power. This strategic move, GDA's 6th site in Texas, leverages the state's abundant renewable energy sources.

📝 The U.S. SEC has opened a comment period for Ethereum spot ETF proposals from Grayscale, Fidelity, and Bitwise. Analysts are less optimistic about approval compared to Bitcoin ETFs due to ongoing probes into ETH's status as a security. Final decisions are expected by May 23.

⛽ American drivers may face gas prices exceeding $4 per gallon this summer, potentially reigniting inflationary pressures. The American Automobile Association (AAA) reports a 15% year-to-date increase in the national average to $3.53. Rising oil prices, geopolitical tensions, and tight global energy markets contribute to the expected surge.

CHARTS & DATA

15 - The number of estimated days left until the 2024 Bitcoin halving. The Bitcoin block reward will drop from 6.25 to 3.125 BTC per block.

April 11, 2024 - The last difficulty update date before the Bitcoin halving. Time will tell if the halving comes early or late, based on the amount of new mining hash power that will come onto the network.

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