Bitcoin rises above $13,000: PayPal's driving force and future impact

In the global digital currency market, Bitcoin's price fluctuations have always been the focus of investors and economists. Recently, the price of Bitcoin broke through the $13,000 mark, which has sparked widespread discussion. Behind this wave of price increases, the role of payment giant PayPal cannot be ignored. PayPal not only provides a trading platform for cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, but also greatly promotes the popularity and acceptance of Bitcoin through its huge user base and innovative payment methods. This article will explore in depth the relationship between the rise in Bitcoin prices and PayPal, as well as the impact this trend may have on the future financial ecology.

First of all, as one of the world's largest online payment platforms, PayPal's layout in the field of cryptocurrency can be traced back to 2020. That year, PayPal announced that it would allow users to directly buy, hold and sell cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which caused a heated response in the market at the time. PayPal's decision not only lowered the threshold for ordinary users to enter the cryptocurrency market, but also increased the liquidity of Bitcoin, giving more people the opportunity to participate in this emerging market.

According to statistics, the number of PayPal users has exceeded 400 million, which means that hundreds of millions of potential investors and users can easily access Bitcoin through this platform. This huge user base provides strong support for the rise in Bitcoin prices. As more and more people buy Bitcoin through PayPal, the increase in demand has undoubtedly driven up its price. In fact, many novice investors may not be familiar with traditional cryptocurrency exchanges, but through PayPal, they can trade in a familiar environment, reducing the cost of learning and the difficulty of operation.

Secondly, PayPal's payment method innovation has also contributed to the rise in Bitcoin prices to a certain extent. PayPal launched the "Buy, Hold, Sell" function, which allows users to trade Bitcoin directly with their PayPal accounts without transferring money to other exchanges. This convenient trading method has attracted a large number of users, including a younger generation of investors who prefer simple and fast payment methods. In addition, PayPal also allows users to use Bitcoin to pay when purchasing goods, which further enhances the actual use scenarios of Bitcoin and enhances its value as a means of payment.

However, the rise in Bitcoin prices does not rely solely on PayPal's promotion. Changes in the global economic environment are also a factor that cannot be ignored. As global economic uncertainty intensifies, more and more investors are turning their attention to digital assets such as Bitcoin, trying to hedge risks through these emerging assets. In this context, PayPal's involvement undoubtedly provides a good opportunity for the further popularization of Bitcoin.

It is worth noting that although the rise in Bitcoin prices has brought rich returns, investors still need to remain vigilant. The volatility of the Bitcoin market is extremely high, and drastic price fluctuations may cause investors to face greater risks. Therefore, when making investment decisions, users should fully understand market dynamics and carefully assess their own risk tolerance.

In addition, with the popularization of Bitcoin, relevant regulatory policies will gradually improve. Governments of various countries have different attitudes towards the regulation of cryptocurrencies. Some countries have adopted relatively loose policies, while others have adopted strict regulatory measures. As a global payment company, PayPal must comply with the laws and regulations of various countries, which will have an impact on its performance in the field of cryptocurrency. In the future, PayPal's development in the field of cryptocurrency will depend on how it balances user needs and compliance requirements.

In this context, PayPal's role is not only a trading platform, but also an important bridge to promote the integration of Bitcoin and the traditional financial system. As more users accept Bitcoin as a payment method, more financial products and services based on blockchain technology may appear in the future. This will bring revolutionary changes to the entire financial industry and promote the deep integration between traditional finance and digital currency.

In summary, PayPal's role in Bitcoin's rise above $13,000 cannot be underestimated. As a platform with a broad user base and innovative payment methods, PayPal has played an important role in promoting the popularity of Bitcoin and enhancing its market value. However, while enjoying the benefits brought by Bitcoin, investors should also remain rational and pay attention to market dynamics and policy changes in order to move forward steadily in this digital currency market full of opportunities and challenges.

In the future, as the cryptocurrency market continues to develop, PayPal may launch more Bitcoin-related services, which will further promote Bitcoin's application scenarios and market demand. At the same time, users' investment concepts will continue to evolve with market changes. Bitcoin, as an emerging asset, is gradually becoming an important part of people's investment portfolios, and PayPal plays an indispensable role in this process.

In this era of rapid digital development, innovation in financial technology will continue to drive changes in the traditional financial industry. Bitcoin, as a new type of asset, is gradually being accepted by more investors. PayPal's participation has undoubtedly injected new vitality into this process. In the future, we look forward to seeing a more open, transparent and efficient financial ecosystem, in which digital currency and traditional finance will achieve a deeper integration to create more value and opportunities.

The four most famous international exchanges:

Binance INTL	OKX INTL	Gate.io INTL	Huobi INTL
China Line　APP DL	China Line　APP DL	China Line　APP DL	China Line　APP DL

Note: The above exchange logo is the official website registration link, and the text is the APP download link.

After breaking through the resistance of $12,000, Bitcoin's price briefly broke through $13,000 on the morning of October 22, reaching a high of $13,198 before temporarily falling back. This is the first time Bitcoin has reached the threshold of $13,000 since June 2019. Bitcoin prices have risen by more than 7% in the past 24 hours and more than 12% in the past 7 days. The surge in Bitcoin has once again made it to the top ten of Weibo's hot search list.

At the same time, mainstream currencies have also changed their decline in the past few days. In the past 24 hours, the prices of Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash have both risen by about 6%. Ethereum soared to the $400 mark, while Bitcoin Cash rose to more than $260. Litecoin has risen by more than 14% to more than $5.

So what are the main driving forces and reasons for Bitcoin's recent rise? Mainly from news stimulation and positive macro fundamentals.

1. PayPal launches Bitcoin purchase service

If we must find the direct cause of the rise in Bitcoin prices, the first thing we have to mention is the news that PayPal launched a Bitcoin purchase service.

On October 21, the US digital payment giant PayPal announced that in the coming weeks, it will allow customers to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, etc. directly in their PayPal wallets through their accounts. (Perhaps this is also one of the reasons why all mainstream currencies have risen sharply today).

Starting in early 2021, PayPal customers will also be able to use cryptocurrencies to shop at 26 million merchants on its network, the company said in a statement. However, considering the volatility of cryptocurrencies, PayPal pointed out that while users will be able to pay with cryptocurrencies in early 2021, payments will be settled using fiat currencies (such as the US dollar), which means that merchants will still receive payments in the form of fiat currencies.

In an interview, Dan Schulman, president and CEO of PayPal, said, "The shift to digital forms of currency is inevitable, and it brings obvious advantages in financial inclusion and access; efficiency, speed and resilience of the payment system."

"We are working with central banks to consider various forms of digital currency and how PayPal can play a role," Schulman added. PayPal hopes that this service will encourage the use of cryptocurrencies worldwide and prepare for new digital currencies developed by central banks and businesses.

PayPal will work with New York financial technology provider Paxos Trust Company to provide these services, and is eager to work with central banks and regulators around the world in the future to shape the role that digital currencies will play in the future of global finance and commerce.

PayPal is located in San Jose, California, USA, has 346 million active accounts worldwide (including more than 26 million merchant accounts) and processed $222 billion in payments in the second quarter of this year. The launch of the cryptocurrency trading service is of great significance. It will not only increase people's awareness and adoption of cryptocurrencies, but will also affect the size and coverage of the crypto market in the future.

2. The number of Bitcoin HODLers has soared

In addition to PayPal, Bitcoin has been favored by many large institutions and companies this year, such as MircoStrategy, Square, Grayscale, Galaxy Digital, Stone Ridge, etc., and funds in the traditional financial market are accelerating to enter the Bitcoin market.

This is a long-term positive for the Bitcoin market: the participation of mainstream investment institutions and companies will greatly enhance the buying confidence of the Bitcoin market. This is reflected in the data of Bitcoin's macro fundamentals.

According to the latest trends observed by the crypto analysis website Glassnode, the number of Bitcoin HODLers is increasing.

Note: "HODLers" refers to firm holders of Bitcoin, who have a religious enthusiasm and loyalty to Bitcoin. No matter how the market environment changes (price fluctuations, legal and political changes), they will firmly hold Bitcoin and never sell it. They firmly believe that Bitcoin will dominate the future currency world.

According to Glassnode data, the number of addresses holding more than 0.1 Bitcoin (currently about $1,188) has reached a record high, and the number of addresses holding more than 100 Bitcoins (currently $1.188 billion) has reached a six-month high. At the same time, the price of Bitcoin indicates that the price of HODLers is less than $12,000 per coin.

First, as of October 19, Glassnode data showed that there were 16,159 addresses holding more than 100 Bitcoins, which just touched and exceeded the six-month high (16,158) set on June 8.

Changes in the number of addresses holding 100+ BTC in the past six months

Secondly, the number of addresses holding at least 0.1 Bitcoin has also exceeded the highest record level in history. Glassnode data shows that as of October 21, there are 3,160,057 addresses holding at least 0.1 Bitcoin (the highest record is 3,159,231).

Changes in the number of addresses holding 0.1+ BTC in the past decade

These two data show that Bitcoin has attracted some new investors in the recent rise. Pedro Febrero, an analyst at Quantum Economics, believes this is very optimistic news, "The more buyers there are, the greater the chance that the price of Bitcoin will rise."

However, Febrero warned not to infer the correlation between the price of Bitcoin and the number of addresses holding a large number of Bitcoins in turn. He said, "In the medium and long term, as the price rises relative to fiat currencies, Bitcoin will be increasingly redistributed among low-value addresses."

In addition to providing a convenient trading method, PayPal has also increased the popularity of Bitcoin through its marketing strategy. As the price of Bitcoin rises, PayPal continues to launch Bitcoin-related advertisements and promotions on its platform to attract users to pay attention to this digital currency. This marketing promotion not only increases Bitcoin's exposure, but also increases users' trust, further stimulating investors' desire to buy.