The global investigation included the MENA region and revealed how investors felt about the upcoming Bitcoin halving event and the alterations they plan on making to their investment strategies.

Key Findings From The Bitget Study:

• 80% of MENA investors anticipate that the halving will substantially influence Bitcoin’s price, with 54% envisioning Bitcoin’s value fluctuating between the $30,000 to $60,000 range at the time of the halving.
• 88% of MENA participants think BTC will surpass its all-time high during the upcoming bull run.
• 82% of crypto investors residing in MENA countries intend to augment their investments in 2024, with merely 4% planning a reduction in crypto holdings.

The data suggests a sense of optimism among MENA investors, both in the short-term and long-term prospects of Bitcoin. Notably, MENA crypto enthusiasm outshines that of European investors, with only Latin American crypto enthusiasts being more bullish.

Turning attention to the post-halving era, MENA investors strongly agree that BTC will outperform its previous all-time high during the impending bull run. Despite resounding optimism, only 26% of MENA investors believe the cryptocurrency will reach the $100,000 mark within the current year.

Gracy Chen, Bitget’s Managing Director, commented: “The Bitget Study on BTC halving impacts provides valuable insights into the evolving landscape of cryptocurrency investment. The findings reflect a broad spectrum of expectations and investment plans, indicating that 2024 will be a significant year for the Bitcoin market”.

Also Read: 3 Best Cold Storage Wallets For Crypto

Interestingly, investors in Eastern Asia, Western Europe, and Latin America display higher optimism about Bitcoin’s potential to reach the $100,000 to $150,000 range compared to their MENA counterparts. Nonetheless, a notable 11% of MENA investors remain even more optimistic, anticipating Bitcoin’s value to surge beyond the $150,000 threshold.

The study also unveils intriguing trends in investment plans for the year 2024. A substantial 82% of surveyed MENA investors intend to amplify their cryptocurrency investments this year, a figure that surpasses the global average of 70%.

The post Bitget Releases MENA Investor Stats On Imminent Bitcoin Halving appeared first on Tech Magazine.

Gary Gensler, the SEC chairman, clarified the approval by stating, “While we approved the listing and trading of certain spot bitcoin ETP shares today, we did not approve or endorse Bitcoin. Investors should remain cautious about the myriad risks associated with bitcoin and products whose value is tied to crypto”.

For a decade, the SEC consistently rejected proposals for Bitcoin ETFs, which essentially function like bundles of assets, similar to mutual funds but tradable on exchanges. The commission regularly cited investment safety concerns, but now approval has been granted, new investors won’t need to set up individual wallets to trade Bitcoin, making it more accessible.

This development has generated considerable excitement among cryptocurrency enthusiasts, as ETF-issuing companies will be required to acquire corresponding amounts of Bitcoin to back their funds. Interestingly, the immediate impact on Bitcoin’s price was minimal, but in the long run, the introduction of a Bitcoin ETF is anticipated to facilitate the entry of traditional institutional investors into the cryptocurrency realm. This could include pension and insurance funds, leading to increased demand for Bitcoin.

Also Read: Non-Fungible Tokens: A Beginner’s Guide To Getting Started With NFTs

Until now, investors seeking exposure to cryptocurrency often invested in shares of crypto-centric companies such as Coinbase and MicroStrategy, the latter holding over $8 billion in Bitcoin as of January. The emergence of a Bitcoin ETF could potentially affect the valuation of these companies.

It’s important to mention that a false announcement briefly circulated on the SEC’s Twitter/X account on Tuesday, falsely claiming approval of Bitcoin ETFs, which caused some confusion.

The post The First Bitcoin ETFs Have Been Approved By US Regulators appeared first on Tech Magazine.

“Secured by the holder’s crypto, the card is billed as a gateway to a world of luxury goods and services and one-of-a-kind members-only experiences,” states the press release issued by BitcoinBlack on July 4.

More specifically, the holders of the BitcoinBlack Visa crypto credit card get exclusive access to a mansion on the Turks and Caicos Islands, special charter deals provided by Momentum Jets, exclusive private events, as well as 1,300+ airport lounges around the world.

The card rewards every purchase with a cashback of up to 10% in the form of the Spend token ($SPDN). The token can be converted to other cryptocurrencies or redeemed at the Haute Living Luxury Marketplace at a guaranteed 1:1 value to the USD.

“We’re very excited because in addition to being able to spend rewards on incredible luxury items, the marketplace will also allow members to purchase experiences that our team at Haute Living Magazine have created exclusively for them. These are one-of-a-kind events not found anywhere else in the world.” said Kamal Hotchandini, Chief Luxury Officer of BitcoinBlack.

Also Read: 3 Best Cold Storage Wallets For Crypto In 2023

BitcoinBlack was founded in 2021 by Prakash Chand, a serial entrepreneur based out of Toronto. Prakash is known largely for his medical information website Ask The Doctor, which used a Cardano-based token, called AskToken ($ASK).

Despite what some cryptocurrency news outlets have reported, BitcoinBlack is not owned by Visa Inc. The financial and payment cards company merely lets BitcoinBlack use its payment network to facilitate transactions.

The post BitcoinBlack Launches Its No Limit Visa Crypto Credit Card In UAE appeared first on Tech Magazine.

What Is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency created by an unknown person called Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. Since then, its market capitalization has reached an all-time high of more than $1 trillion, which is roughly half the value of all cryptocurrencies combined.

The main aspect that separates Bitcoin from other similar projects is the technology behind it, called Blockchain. Bitcoin’s blockchain is basically a public distributed database of transactions, which are verified by network nodes through cryptography, ensuring their immutability. In other words, once a transaction is recorded, it can’t be retroactively changed.

The process of transaction verification is referred to as mining, and it requires a substantial amount of computing power. Those who participate in it are rewarded with newly created bitcoins and transaction fees. If you would like to understand how Bitcoin actually works under the hood, then we highly recommend you watch the video explanation by 3Blue1Brown.

As a user, you just need to know that Bitcoin is a convenient (albeit volatile) alternative to fiat currency, allowing you to quickly and securely send and receive payments across borders without having to go through any third party.

How To Buy Bitcoin In Lebanon?

Unfortunately, buying Bitcoin in Lebanon is not as easy as buying Bitcoin in most other countries. Due to the United States embargo over Lebanon and the banking restrictions imposed by Lebanese authorities, almost all reputable cryptocurrency exchanges refuse to serve Lebanese customers.

While you could technically create an account on exchanges like Coinbase, Kraken, or Gemini, features such as account verification and fund deposits (as well as crypto purchases) will not work even if you have an international credit card or bank account abroad.

Binance In Lebanon

One of the very few respected exchanges that does offer its services in Lebanon is called Binance.

Binance is an excellent option for buying Bitcoin as well as hundreds of altcoins (including the popular Dogecoin). Creating an account is fairly straightforward. Use your email or Lebanese phone number to sign up, fill in your basic information, and upload your Lebanese passport or ID card to complete the verification process. Once your account has been verified (this process may take a couple of hours), you’ll be able to make your first Bitcoin purchase. It’s important to mention that you will only be able to make purchases using a “fresh” dollar account credit/debit card.

Use this link to create a Binance account and get $100 USD of free credit when you make your first trade.

If cryptocurrency exchanges aren’t your thing, there are at least three alternative options available, so let’s take a closer look at them.

Peer-To-Peer

As we’ve already explained, Bitcoin makes it possible for any two people to trade directly without the involvement of a centralized financial authority. This means that you can simply find someone in Lebanon who already has BTC and purchase some from the person in exchange for cash.

You can find local traders on peer-to-peer Bitcoin marketplaces like:

• LocalBitcoins.com
• HodlHodl.com

Alternatively, you can join a Bitcoin community such as @lbbtcm on Telegram and find someone willing to trade with you that way. Just make sure to verify the person’s trading reputation to avoid getting scammed.

Bitcoin Retailers

If person-to-person trading seems a bit too daunting to you, then you should consider buying BTC from a retailer like Bitcoins Lebanon, BTCLeb, or CryptoLeb. Lebanese Bitcoin retailers typically accept payments in person or via Western Union, and they offer professional customer support to put your worries at ease during the buying process.

Mine Them Yourself

New BTC is issued as a reward to those who verify Bitcoin transactions by solving extremely complex computational math problems in a process called mining. To participate in Bitcoin mining, you actually don’t need any specialized equipment, but don’t expect to earn any significant amount of BTC unless your computer is extremely powerful — the competition these days is simply too steep.

While you can increase your profitability by investing in specialized mining hardware and joining a mining pool, which is basically just a large group of miners who evenly split their rewards, you may not be able to break even unless you have access to free or nearly free electricity.

Tips To Avoid Bitcoin Scams

Money attracts scammers — that’s how it’s always been. The cryptocurrency space is, unfortunately, full of them, so you really need to take some time to learn how to protect yourself. Here are five tips to help you avoid Bitcoin scams:

• Verify, verify, verify: You should never send money to anyone you don’t 100% trust. Remember that screenshots can be faked, email addresses spoofed, and security credentials stolen.
• Don’t put all your eggs in one basket: If this is your first time buying Bitcoin, we recommend you start small and avoid putting all your eggs in just one basket. That way, you won’t lose all your money even if you make a serious mistake and fall for a scam.
• Use two-factor authentication: When trading BTC online, always enable two-factor authentication whenever possible. 2FA is the most effective protection against password-based attacks.
• Never let anyone remotely use your computer: Even if you really could use IT support, we strongly urge you to not let anyone remotely access your computer unless you know the person and fully trust them.
• Buy a hardware wallet: A hardware wallet is a special device that resembles a USB thumb drive. It lets you store your Bitcoin private keys in a secure manner, protecting them against malware and hackers.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, people who live in Lebanon don’t have the same options when it comes to buying Bitcoin as people living in most other countries. But having fewer options to choose from is still better than having no options at all. Peer-to-peer trading, for example, is easy to get into, making it a great choice for those who would like to bet on Bitcoin’s steadily growing (at least in the long-term) price.

If you found this guide helpful, you’ll definitely want to check out our beginner’s guide on how to make money with NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens).

The post Bitcoin In Lebanon: Everything You Need To Know appeared first on Tech Magazine.