Former Coinbase CTO makes $2M bet on Bitcoin's performance

Former Coinbase main exertion serviceman Balaji Srinivasan has made a millionaire stake connected Bitcoin's (BTC) terms implicit the adjacent 90 days, predicting the cryptocurrency terms volition scope $1 cardinal by June 17. 

The wager was initiated connected March 17, erstwhile pseudonymous Twitter idiosyncratic James Medlock offered to stake anyone $1 cardinal that the United States would not acquisition hyperinflation. A fewer hours later, the erstwhile Coinbase CTO accepted the bet.

Sir, I judge we person ourselves a woody https://t.co/9JYaLNo9Eq

— James Medlock (@jdcmedlock) March 18, 2023

Under the projected terms, if Bitcoin's terms fails to scope $1 cardinal by June 17, Medlock volition triumph $1 cardinal worthy of the dollar-pegged stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) and the 1 BTC. The aforesaid way, if Bitcoin is worthy astatine slightest $1 cardinal by the date, past Balaji tin support the 1 BTC and the $1 cardinal successful USDC. Srinivasan explained successful the thread: 

“You bargain 1 BTC. I volition nonstop $1M USD. This is ~40:1 likelihood arsenic 1 BTC is worthy ~$26k. The word is 90 days.”

Related: Banking crisis: What does it mean for crypto?

As per the thread, different Twitter users helped acceptable up a astute declaration with the betting terms. Srinivasan besides disclosed that helium would determination different $1 cardinal successful USDC for different wager connected the aforesaid topic: 

"I americium moving $2M into USDC for the bet. I volition bash it with Medlock and 1 different person, capable to beryllium the point. See my adjacent tweet. Everyone other should conscionable spell bargain Bitcoin, arsenic it'll beryllium overmuch cheaper for you than locking 1 up for 90 days."

Medlock and Srinivasan made the wager based connected their antithetic views of the U.S. economy's aboriginal amid ongoing uncertainty regarding the country's banking system.

Srinivasan argues that there's an impending situation that volition pb to the deflation of the U.S. dollar, and thus, to a hyperinflation script that would instrumentality the BTC terms to $1 million. Medlock, connected the different hand, is bearish astir upcoming hyperinflation successful the country.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin's terms has reached $27,387 astatine the clip of writing, with its marketplace capitalization adding implicit $194 cardinal year-to-date to a 66% maturation successful 2023, outperforming Wall Street slope stocks amid fears of a planetary banking crisis.

Also, for the archetypal clip successful a year, BTC's terms has shifted distant from United States stocks, rising astir 65% compared to the S&P 500's 2.5% gains and the Nasdaq's 15% decline, Cointelegraph reported.