The year 2019 saw significant price action, and a return to cautious optimism in the crypto space. After a slow first quarter, hopes picked up for new events in the space. But not all expectations were fulfilled, and 2019 saw a few big disappointments.
BTC at $16,000: The hope for an October rally was dashed by a significant crash at the end of the month. BTC only managed to vault the $10,000 level briefly, but did not make new highs. An end of year rally is also becoming less probable, barring an unusual day of rapid appreciation. The yearly high toward the end of the year was one of the failed predictions, moving the target for new highs to next year.
Digital Yuan: One of the talks of 2019 was the readiness of People’s Bank of China to offer government-backed digital cash. However, the rumors that the bank would unroll the asset by November 2019 turned out to be exaggerated. Still, PBOC is busy testing the actual usage of the asset, and has signalled it may continue with further trial periods. The bank has announced multiple times it has no official deadline for a launch.
Facebook’s Libra: The announcement of Facebook’s Libra coincided with the summer’s bull market, which brought BTC prices close to $14,000. However, the idea of Libra ruffled the feathers of regulators. Suddenly, the idea of a new stablecoin that may reach billions of users worldwide was not appealing to governments and central banks. Facebook had to do a lot of explaining, and most fintech and banking companies left the Libra Association. It is now uncertain if Libra would manage to launch in 2020, as even harsher regulations are expected to take force in the new year.
Telegram Open Network: The launch of the TON token was eagerly awaited, and scheduled for October 31. But the US Securities and Exchange Commission moved in with a direct cease-and-desist order. The token is still potentially launching in early 2020, but even this is uncertain. The dashed hopes for TON tokens added to the market panic, which pressured BTC and altcoins to a lower price range.
Security Tokens: Security tokens, at the beginning of 2019, were seen as the answer to the slower ICO sales. But it turned out security tokens faced multiple limitations. They could not be traded on any exchange, and were limited to accredited investors. Most projects failed to gain liquidity, and were quickly forgotten. The resignation of Overstock’s CEO Patrick Byrne in August further cut the chances of trading security tokens, as the tZero market did not generate real investor interest.
The crypto market is almost constantly seeing disappointments and setbacks. But price action is sometimes resilient. Still, it’s good to remember that overhyped events may not materialize as expected, or spark the price rallies that were promised.
