Have to disagree there. Bitcoin is on EVERY governments radar, and that is a fact. The current drop in crypto is largely due to Korea's regulations and possible ban. Even in the US the IRS has been pushing to regulate crypto and they sure are a trustworthy bunch. We've had other government agencies throw out trial ballons. Some have suggested a ban on bitcoin. Nearly every big bank in the US and the world for that matter has tried to suppress the rise of bitcoin. The banks have called bitcoin a "ponzi scheme", a fraud and anything else they could think of to scare people. So they either don't know what a Ponzi Scheme is or the are lying. I'll go with the later.
So no one knows where Bitcoin is ultimately going but it has ALL the right people hating it so that is a very good sign. Even Paul Krugman has said bitcoin is a fraud. That alone should signal it's a sound investment for sure. LOL
While this might be an immediate reason for a price drop, the biggest reason is the huge speculative pump over the last five months. A strong correction just like the earlier three or four big pumps was to be expected. That along with the unresolved technical issues with Bitcoin leaves me expecting a continued pull back over the course of 2018. We could end up bouncing around in the $2000-4000 range for a while.
So it’s got governments worried because it’s a commodity an investment vehicle & not a currency. Okay. I’ve wondered for a while why it’s called “cryptocurrency” when it should be called “cryptostock”. Bitcoin has 0.1% chance of ever being a currency that gets spent like a dollar or debit card. Like I stated in my original reply, you can’t spend it like a dollar. Which a dollar is what gets taxed by the US govt every time it’s spent. Which is where the US govt gets a fair amount of its income (taxation on transactions). So until the dollar bill is replaced by something better & EASIER then why should the government be worried?
Whenever someone tries to discuss the reality of bitcoin as a currency the discussion inevitably morphs bitcoin into an “investment” and then the discussion continues on with it in a commodity category but still talked about as “coin” or “currency”.
So if bitcoin/cryptocurrency is a commodity then why can’t governments wherein it is used then regulate it? If it’s not just an investment vehicle but a viable currency that’s superior to the money in my pocket then why can’t I walk into the local gas station & buy a Mountain Dew or pay my power bill with it? Is it a cryptocurrency or a cryptostock? Is it an investment vehicle or a currency?
Korea is “yesterday’s FUD”...India is todays FUD: https://cointelegraph.com/news/india-bitcoin-prices-drop-as-media-misinterprets-govts-regulation-speech
FR crypto threads indicate that some additional info./studying is in order...one good resource: http://www.lopp.net/bitcoin.html