The year digital currencies silenced their critics? The numbers tell everyone

Following the election of Donald Trump in 2024, an unexpected moment of candor has emerged from an unexpected source. In the long term Crypto Critics Corner Podcast, Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin — two of the most well-informed crypto skeptics — have done A striking admission. After years of investigating and criticizing Tether and the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem, they acknowledged that their long-awaited regulatory crackdown was unlikely to materialize. In their words, “They win and we lose.”

Dear deaths

This moment of capitulation by prominent critics was not an isolated incident. At 99Bitcoins, a website that has been diligently tracking statements of the “death” of Bitcoin since 2010, editors find themselves with little to do in 2024.Bitcoin obituaryThe counter, which records major announcements of Bitcoin’s demise by media outlets and prominent figures, recorded only two such announcements all year: the lowest number since 2012.

The pattern is eye-catching. Bitcoin obituaries peaked in 2017 with 124 announcements of its death, coinciding with its first major price spike. Another surge appeared in 2021-2022 during Bitcoin’s second major bull run and subsequent FTX crash. But just two obituaries in 2024 represent a shift in perception.

Bitcoin ETF: breaking all records

Bitcoin ETF approval has a lot to do with this. The launch of Bitcoin ETFs in March 2024 not only marked a regulatory milestone, it unleashed an unprecedented wave of institutional adoption. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, in particular, broke all previous ETF launch records. Having reached $10 billion in assets under management in just seven weeks, it has accomplished what the previous record holder, SPDR Gold Shares, took two years to achieve. By the end of 2024, the iShares Bitcoin Trust had amassed over $50 billion in assets under management – ​​an astonishing feat in just 11 months.

The first day of trading alone saw trading volumes exceeding $4.65 billion, indicating massive pent-up demand from institutional and retail investors. With net gross Assets are more than $106 billionNot only are these Bitcoin ETFs successful, but they are approaching the size of gold ETFs that were created decades ago. This is not just adoption. It is a sweeping shift in how traditional finance views and accesses cryptocurrencies.

Larry Fink evolved from Cipher is skeptical of the hero He perfectly embodies this transformation. The BlackRock CEO’s journey from rejecting the use of Bitcoin as a money laundering tool to overseeing one of the most successful ETFs in financial history represents broader institutional acceptance of cryptocurrencies as a legitimate asset class.

Bitcoin has entered mainstream politics

The shift in the political sphere was equally dramatic. Donald Trump, who was once a cryptocurrency skeptic and called Bitcoin an “anti-dollar scam” in 2021, has emerged as a powerful voice in the cryptocurrency space. His appearance in Bitcoin Conference 2024 It represents an important moment in the global political legitimacy of cryptocurrencies. The selection of J.D. Vance, a well-known cryptocurrency advocate, as his vice presidential nominee also signals the emergence of cryptocurrencies as a serious political consideration.

Perhaps most important, the conversation in Washington has evolved from regulatory uncertainty to strategic opportunity. Debate of the Bitcoin Strategic Reserve in the US Senate — something that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago — represents a fundamental shift in how government officials view the role cryptocurrency plays in the national economy. It’s not just about accepting the existence of cryptocurrencies; It is about the possibility of integrating it into the national financial strategy.

Beyond Bitcoin: The Wider Evolution of Cryptocurrency

This acceptance is not limited to Bitcoin. Stablecoins, backed by major financial institutions and payment processors like Stripe, are Processing transaction volumes It can be compared to traditional payment networks such as Visa. This represents a fundamental innovation in payment technology that has become impossible to ignore.

The sharp decline in Bitcoin obituaries in 2024 is not just a statistical curiosity. It is a sign of the cryptocurrency’s transition from a speculative phenomenon to an established part of the financial landscape. The question is no longer whether cryptocurrencies will survive, but rather how they will evolve and integrate with traditional financial systems.

The editors at 99Bitcoins may find themselves less busy in the coming years, but they documented something remarkable: the year when crypto critics had to accept that cryptocurrencies are here to stay.