On Thursday (December 26), Bitcoin surged close to $100,000 before slightly retreating to around $98,770. The Russian President Putin's government stated that companies in the country have been allowed to start using Bitcoin in foreign trade. Billionaire Elon Musk criticized U.S. President Biden, suggesting that the latter is selling presidential pardon rights, and that financial considerations could influence decisions, leading to the early release of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), founder of the collapsed crypto exchange FTX.
Putin's government: Russian companies are 'allowed' to use Bitcoin in foreign trade.
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov stated on Wednesday that to cope with Western sanctions, changes in Russian legislation allow businesses to use Bitcoin and other digital currencies in international payments.
Western sanctions have complicated trade between Russia and its main partners, as local banks are extremely cautious about transactions related to Russia to avoid scrutiny from Western regulators.
This year, Russia allowed the use of cryptocurrencies in foreign trade and took steps to legalize the mining of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin. Today, Russia is one of the global leaders in the field of Bitcoin mining.
Siluanov stated in an interview with Russian media: 'We can pay for the freight of goods with digital financial assets. As part of the experimental system, we can use Bitcoin mined in Russia for foreign trade transactions.'
'Such transactions are already happening. We believe they should be further expanded and developed. I believe this goal will be achieved by 2025,' he added, stating that international payments in digital currency represent the future.
Siluanov stated in an interview that, under current circumstances, allowing Bitcoin payments in foreign trade as an alternative to the dollar is 'perfectly understandable' as it can utilize modern infrastructure. This is an innovation in the global settlement system, he added, 'this is the future.'
Earlier in December, Putin stated that the current U.S. government uses the dollar for political purposes, undermining the dollar's status as a reserve currency and forcing many countries to turn to alternative assets. He specifically pointed out that Bitcoin is an example of such assets and stated that no one in the world can regulate Bitcoin.
Putin's remarks indicate that he supports the widespread use of cryptocurrencies.
Musk: Biden is selling presidential pardon rights; SBF may be released early.
A fierce debate has erupted in the crypto community over whether the soon-to-be-outgoing Biden will grant an early pardon to SBF. Previously, a well-known Wall Street tabloid first reported that Biden was considering pardoning SBF.
It is worth noting that this news has spread quickly, with celebrities like Musk expressing their views. As the founder of Tesla and a major supporter of Dogecoin, Musk commented that he would be shocked if the Biden administration did not pardon SBF.
In subsequent comments, he directly criticized the Biden administration, suggesting that financial considerations might influence the president's pardon.
Specifically, he accused the current government of 'selling' the pardon. Therefore, he emphasized that SBF's pardon 'will be sold at a high price.'
This indicates that SBF's camp may be willing to pay a high price to ensure Biden grants him an early pardon.
SBF was convicted for committing a historic fraud case in the United States, having misappropriated billions of dollars in customer funds from the FTX exchange to finance his luxurious lifestyle and support political candidates, especially Democratic politicians, making him the second-largest donor to the Democrats in the 2020 election.
Due to the severity of SBF's crimes, which involve telecom fraud, money laundering, and other charges, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan sentenced him to 25 years in prison and ordered him to forfeit $11 billion. Although he has appealed the ruling, there is speculation that he may be released early through a presidential pardon.
The President of the United States has the constitutional power to pardon multiple federal crimes, and Biden is no exception. He recently exercised this power to unconditionally pardon his son Hunter Biden, who was originally convicted of gun and tax charges.
Bitcoin Technical Analysis
Bitcoin's price surged strongly, breaking through $96,555, and turned upward on both daily and short-term charts, halting the recent bearish correction suggested and establishing a bullish wave.
Its next major target is $105,000; note that unless it drops below $95,195 and maintains that level, the bullish trend will remain valid.
