On Wednesday (December 25), Bitcoin rebounded and soared above $98,000. Russia has only banned cryptocurrency mining in 10 regions for 6 years, and President Putin did not implement a comprehensive restriction as expected. President-elect Trump announced the appointments to the cryptocurrency committee, and MicroStrategy held a shareholder meeting to raise funds for purchasing more Bitcoins.
Starting from January 1, 2025, cryptocurrency mining will be fully banned in 10 regions of Russia for 6 years, with the ban lasting until March 15, 2031. Russian lawmakers have also approved seasonal restrictions on mining activities in major cryptocurrency mining regions to prevent energy outages. These restrictions are consistent with the cryptocurrency mining law signed by the president in August and October 2024.
Ten regions and territories in Russia will ban cryptocurrency mining, including Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkess Republic, North Ossetia, Chechnya, Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, as well as the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions.
Reports indicate that the ban will affect pool activities and individual cryptocurrency mining. In addition to the comprehensive ban, Russia will partially restrict mining operations in three regions of Siberia during the winter energy consumption peak. Seasonal restrictions will affect parts of Irkutsk, Buryatia, and the Trans-Baikal region.
In 2025, these restrictions are initially set to last from January 1 to March 15 and will be extended in the following years from November 15 to March 15.
Russia's latest mining restriction measures are a refined version of the initial restrictions formally proposed by the government in November. Initially, lawmakers planned to ban cryptocurrency mining in 13 regions, including Irkutsk, which is a major mining area in Russia.
BitRiver and other large mining companies in Russia rely on cheap electricity in Irkutsk. According to local sources, the Irkutsk region has the first and largest data center of BitRiver, which was put into operation in Bratsk in 2019.
In addition to favorable news from Russia, a series of technology appointments announced by Trump also boosted the market.
Trump stated on his social platform Truth Social: "I am pleased to announce that an excellent team will work with the White House's artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency czar David Sacks. Together, we will drive scientific breakthroughs, ensure America's technological dominance, and usher in a golden age of American innovation."
In his post, he stated that the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) director he selected is Michael Kratsios, and the executive director of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and OSTP senior advisor is Lynne Parker.
Kratsios served as the chief technology officer for the incoming president in the previous Trump administration and was also appointed acting deputy secretary of defense for research and engineering during the last time the incoming president entered the White House.
According to a profile on the University of Tennessee, Knoxville's website, Parker serves as the university's vice president. The profile also notes that from 2018 to 2022, Parker served as a member of the OSTP, holding various positions including Deputy Chief Technology Officer of the United States, leading AI-focused national policy work.
Trump also stated that the President's Digital Asset Advisory Committee (cryptocurrency committee) will be led by Bo Hines as executive director, which he described as a new advisory group composed of well-known figures from the cryptocurrency industry. Hines was a college football player and a Republican congressional candidate but lost to Democratic Congressman Wiley Nickel in the 2022 election.
In the industry, MicroStrategy held a special shareholder meeting to seek approval for increasing its authorized shares to support its $42 billion Bitcoin acquisition plan, known as the 21/21 plan.
The proposal includes increasing the authorized number of Class A common stock and preferred stock to provide more flexibility for future stock issuances. Since October, MicroStrategy has significantly accelerated its Bitcoin purchasing pace, buying 42,162 Bitcoins just in December. As of December 22, the company held over 444,000 Bitcoins, valued at approximately $43.5 billion at current prices.
Bitcoin Technical Analysis
The price of Bitcoin has surged, breaking through $96,555, and has turned upward in the intraday and short term, halting the recent bearish correction and establishing a bullish wave.
Its next major target is $105,000. Note that unless it breaks below $95,195 and maintains below that level, the bullish trend will remain valid.
