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GM - Arsen here. ☕

Welcome back to Bitcoin Therapy. The newsletter that keeps you informed AND entertained.

First, happy and relaxing Sunday to 3,381 patients reading today. 👋 

I’ve been quite sick this week (flu). But this week’s news (and memes) were too juicy to skip…

Alright, here’s what I got for you this week:

• Bitcoin ETF finally approved - but not without a sh*tshow

• A salty journalist gets exposed

• Bitcoin adoption is accelerating

Estimated read time: 4 minutes and 10 seconds

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BITCOIN ETF IS OFFICIALLY APPROVED

It’s done. The Bitcoin spot ETF has finally been approved.

But because the SEC are incompetent boomers, the announcement was everything but smooth.

Here’s how it went down:

5:13 PM – The SEC Twitter account tweets that it has approved the Bitcoin ETFs. Bitcoin pumps from $46K → $48K, filling my timeline with hopium-filled “WAGMI” shouts.

5:25 PM - Gary Gensler Tweets that the SEC’s account was hacked and that they did NOT approve the ETFs. Lmao. 🤡

So, how did this happen? Twitter performed an investigation and concluded that an unauthorized individual obtained control over a phone number associated with the SEC account.

It turns out the SEC didn't even have 2FA (two-factor authentication) enabled.

The funny (or sad) part? Just a few months ago, Gary posted a tweet telling everyone to use 2FA. Lmaoo. 🤡🤡

Following this, Bitcoin dumps from $48K → $45K

5:26 PM – The ‘wagmi’ shouts turn to tears, and everyone starts dunking on the SEC

And that’s 100% understandable if you’re one of the biggest regulators in the world and your security setup looks like this:

So let’s get this straight: the same people who have delayed Bitcoin ETF for years now because of “muh consumer protection” are the ones who ended up manipulating the price by getting their Twitter account hacked?

*fast forward to the next day*

3:40 PM SEC posts an official ETF approval PDF on their website. Everyone on Bitcoin Twitter starts posting bullish memes.

3:41 PM The approval PDF is quickly deleted from the website. 🤡🤡🤡

Apparently, it was not meant for the public yet. Everyone goes back to laughing at the SEC.

At this point, you have to give props to the SEC: they’re excellent trolls!

3:54 PM - The PDF re-appears on the SEC website

4:14 PM - Gary Gensler releases an official statement confirming that 11 Bitcoin ETFs are approved and start trading the next day.

Whew.

What a sh*tshow. After a release like this, the SEC should launch an investigation into themselves for market manipulation.

Anyways. The ETF has been live for a few days and has already broken some records.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Reached $1.7 billion in volume after 1 hour on the market

• Reached $4.6 billion in volume after the first day

• There were 700,000 individual trades across all Bitcoin ETFs. That’s double the number of trades for the NASDAQ ETF.

Hmm, it’s almost like there is demand for bitcoin out there.

And, of course, the ETF launch would not be complete without some drama: Vanguard, a US-based brokerage, blocked its customers from buying the Bitcoin ETF.

The reason? They “don’t fit with Vanguard’s investment philosophy.”

So let me get this straight: Vanguard allows you to buy 3x leveraged ETFs and 0 days to expiry options (both are risky af) but NOT a spot Bitcoin ETF?

ORWELLIAN FUTURE IS HERE

It’s 2023. Everything you do is being monitored.

That one time you ran out of toilet paper and had to choose between your socks and a T-shirt? Yup, they saw that too.

You can’t undo that incident but can achieve Bitcoin privacy by coinjoining your BItcoin.

This blog explains why it’s essential for keeping your Bitcoin private and thus SAFE.

I recommend Wasabi Wallet for this. Here’s why:

1. Beginner friendly

2. Privacy by default

3. No minimum coinjoin amounts

What are you waiting for? Take back control of your privacy and freedom.

250,000+ Bitcoin turned private - Download the wallet at wasabiwallet.io

A SALTY JOURNALIST GETS EXPOSED

Here’s a picture of the Dead Sea…

…the saltiest place on earth, second only to Matt Sparkes.

Meet Matt, a journalist for a publication called ‘New Scientist’.

Matt wrote a negative, poorly researched article about how bad Bitcoin is for the environment.

Rookie mistake, Matt…

Since then, Matt has:

• Been community-noted on X because of blatant errors in the article

• Blocked everyone trying to correct him politely

• Been the laughing stock and a target of hilariously savage memes

But here is where it gets weird.

After some digging, someone found an old 2014 article from Matt where he speaks positively about it.

So why the change in the tone?

Well, it turns out Matt used to own Bitcoin but sold it early and became salty. Classic.

Here’s all the dirt that has been dug up on Matt:

1. Made a $13,600 profit from holding BItcoin since 2013 and selling 2017

2. Violated ethics rules by not publicly disclosing his Bitcoin holdings

3. As soon as he realized he had sold his Bitcoin early, he turned critical 🤡

So, what did Matt do to combat these accusations?

He did what any honorable man would do: delete his X account and hide

And this, ladies and gentleplebs, is your average Bitcoin critic: lazy, dishonest, and cowardly.

But Matt is not the first nor the last victim of Bitcoin.

Bitcoin has humbled hundreds of loudmouth pea-brain critics.

You come at the King; you best not miss 👑

TLDR: a journalist sold Bitcoin early and turned salty

This story is based on an excellent thread written by Level39

Give him a follow!

BITCOIN ADOPTION IN FULL FORCE

Bitcoin is not some niche nerd plaything anymore.

In 2024, Bitcoin has:

• 11 spot Bitcoin ETF

• Countries making it legal tender

• Presidential candidates promoting it

And now, we have over 10,000 vendors worldwide who accept it! 🌎

But keep in mind that these are only the vendors who have manually added themselves to the map.

In reality, there are magnitudes more small businesses accepting Bitcoin.

And before you ask, no, you can’t buy a girlfriend with Bitcoin…yet.

But as Bitcoin grows, more and more people will ask themselves: why should I accept money that is guaranteed to lose value over time?

Remember: the average lifespan of fiat currency is only 35 years.

And the dollar is 53 years old… (I count from 1971 because that was when it was taken off the gold standard)

Your days are numbered, Dollar.

Want to book me for a consulting call? I can help you with the following:

• Personal Bitcoin security

• Social media growth (I manage social at Relai, one of the fastest-growing brands in Bitcoin)

QUICK NEWS⚡

• Someone sent donated $1.2 Million to Satoshi’s Genesis wallet. Total wallet balance ≈ 100 BTC

• MicroStrategy close to $3B in Bitcoin profit.  Their average purchase price ≈ $31,000

• Bitwise, a Bitcoin ETF provider, will donate 10% of profits to Bitcoin developers over the next decade! LFG!

THIS WEEK IN A MEME 📅

FROM THE ARCHIVE 📁

That one time when Bitcoin ETFs were on the list of Mad Magazine's 20 Dumbest Things of 2013.

Since then, Mad Magazine has been discontinued

Bitcoin ETF: 1

Mad Magazine: 0

PATIENT REVIEW 🧠

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See you next Sunday,

Bitcoin Therapy Team

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