Tanzania's President handed Bitcoin a much-needed shot in the arm after offering good news for the cryptocurrency markets.
Tanzanian President Shows Support in Bitcoin
In a recently published article in City A.M., Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan has advised the East African country's financial leaders to prepare for cryptocurrencies. The 61-year-old leader stated that the era of cryptocurrency and blockchain has begun and that Tanzania should be a "pioneer" for change.
President Hassan said that Tanzania's Central Bank should start preparing for a shift in global views about banking, citing cryptocurrencies as the future of money. She also said that they have witnessed the emergence of a new journey through the internet.
The Tanzanian President also acknowledged to City A.M. that the cryptocurrency is currently not used in countries, including Tanzania. However, she said that she has called upon the Central Bank to be prepared so that it ready for its use.
Elon Musk Says Tesla May Use Bitcoin in the Future
Bitcoin surpassed $39,000 after Elon Musk said that Tesla Inc. will start Bitcoin transactions after mining is done with more sustainable energy, according to a recently published article in Yahoo News Finance.
Musk also tweeted that if there is confirmation of a reasonable rate of less than 50 percent clean energy usage by miners with the positive future trend, Tesla may allow the use of Bitcoin to purchase electric vehicles.
His statement came in response to a piece in Cointelegraph quoting Magda Wierzycka, Executive Chair of South African asset management Sygnia, stating Musk's recent Bitcoin statements should have provoked a probe by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Bitcoin Price Surges Nearly $40,000
Bitcoin prices were up over 8 percent on CoinDesk as of Sunday afternoon, changing hands at $38,808.09. Bitcoin has risen more than 28 percent year to year, but it is still roughly 40 percent down from its mid-April high of $64,829.14, according to a published article in MarketWatch.
Meanwhile, MicroStrategy Inc., whose CEO Michael Saylor has become a loud Bitcoin booster, increased a junk-bond offering for the purpose of purchasing the cryptocurrency from $400 million to $500 million last week.
Musk has been whipsawing Bitcoin and other digital assets in recent months. Tesla revealed in February that it has purchased $1.5 billion in Bitcoin and indicated its intention to begin accepting Bitcoin as payment for automobiles.
However, Musk tweeted in March, "You can now purchase a Tesla using Bitcoin," only to announce in May that the practice had been halted owing to worries about the use of fossil fuels in Bitcoin mining and transactions. Furthermore, together with the news from Tanzania, Elon Musk's last six words were enough to free Bitcoin from the shackles that had kept it below $35,000 for most of the weekend and rocket it to within a touching distance of $40,000.
Weekend trading has traditionally given the cryptocurrency markets a downward push, so a rapid increase led by news narratives will almost certainly be seen as a sign that Bitcoin is set to escape from its current depression.
Related Article: El Salvador Becomes the First Country to Adopt Bitcoin, Price Jumps After it Becomes Law
