Wednesday, January 17, 2018

The Eye of Sauron Turns its Gaze on Cryptocurrencies, The Crackdown Begins


Bitcoin and all other cryptocurrencies were enjoying a much needed rally over the past couple of days, confidence was building once again and things were appearing to get back on track, the resumption of the bull market was back on! That is, until government officials and central banksters had their say.

This is something that I and many others have been stating for years. The larger and more successful that cryptocurrencies become, the more of a threat they are to the establishment. The financial elite derives the vast majority of their power from their ability to endlessly print fiat money out of thin air.

This power is undeniably vast and therefore it comes as no surprise to me that the eye of "Sauron" is now being turned on crypto's. This is a space that they have been watching skeptically for some years now, the FED has kept a watchful eye and so too have others.

This watchful eye has turned to jawboning, a common tactic used by central banksters the world over. They love this strategy, as it requires getting no "blood on their hands". Simply speaking positively, or in this cause negative about a market can send them either soaring or plummeting. This strategy has been witnessed countless times before, when they discuss gold, the markets, or interest rates. It just so happens they are now turning their sights on the hottest market that any of us have seen in our lifetimes, crypto's.

One of crypto's greatest assets is the fact that they are not controlled by any one government and are largely unregulated and de-centralized. This has caused all kinds of legitimate, dark and grey money to flow into this space.

This has made countless millionaires out of small time investors over the past year, many of whom are likely attempting to dodge the tax man in any way that they can.

Now, Bitcoin and other crypto's have suffered another major setback, falling 20% overnight due to continued crackdowns from China and increased hostility by South Korea, both of which make up an incredibly large portion of the global market for cryptocurrencies.

South Korea's finance minister Kim Dong-Yeon even went as far as to state that a "cryptocurrency exchange shutdown is still an option." An action that is already having dire consequences for the markets, even though it has not yet played out in actuality.

Central bankers the world over are now stuck in-between a rock and a hard place. Do they A) regulate and clamp down on cryptocurrencies, sending it once again into the black market, where many will continue to be traded, albeit at short-term lower prices. Or do they B) allow cryptocurrencies to be embraced on the open markets, attempting to tax and regulate as much as possible? Risking the possibility of them overtaking their fiat money due to Gresham's law.

My guess is the following. Some countries will fully embrace the crypto space, hoping to become central hubs of trading in the market, similar to how Wall St and London are for the broader markets. While other countries, fearing the worst will continue from this point on to ratchet up their rhetoric against both Bitcoin and every other alt-coin.

However, there is a third scenario. The last being the most sinister and frightening. C) Central banks, seeing the value in this purely digital currency will issue their own Frankenstein cryptocurrencies, while at the same time clamp down on the existing market. Moving to a purely digital based fiat money world, one of their greatest dreams.

The latter of these three scenarios is truly the most scary, as this timeline must be resisted at all cost. The power and control that this would offer a government would be truly absolute. Abuse would be rampant and unjust, in essence, they would own you through their ability to control your flow of money, whenever and however they wish.

Regardless of what unfolds from this point on, 2018 is shaping up to be a roller coaster of a ride for not only cryptocurrencies, but for gold, silver and the markets as a whole. We are now smack dab in the middle of a once in a lifetime revolutionary change in how markets function and operate. Strap yourselves in, this is going to be a bumpy one.

- As Originally Seen on the Sprott Money Blog