Crypto Today: Bitcoin reclaims $8000 and bulls have room for greater moves north

Here's what you need to know on Friday 

Markets: 

• BTC/USD is currently trading at $8,072 (+1.85%) in the afternoon in U.S. hours, as bulls regain control. 
• ETH/USD is currently trading at $141.50 (+2.50%), price pushes further north after reclaiming big $140 mark. 
• XRP/USD is currently trading at $0.2087 (+3.85%), the psychological $0.2000 managed to hold following retest. 
• Among the 100 most important cryptocurrencies, the best of the day are BSV $150.44 (+29.60%), SNK $0.654616 (16.49%) and BCH $259.11 (+10.97%) and The day's losers are BCN $0.000252 (-16.90%), ZEN $8.12 (-6.70%) and QNT $0.015574 (-5.60%).

Chart of the day: BTC/USD weekly chart

Market:

• Binance Research, the research and development platform from the stables of Binance crypto exchange, which claims to provide enterprise-grade, in-depth analysis, and insights to all participants in the digital assets industry, has released a fresh report on the state of the decentralized (DeFi) financial ecosystem. The January 8, 2020 report highlights how Ethereum, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and altcoins are shaping the future of DeFi.
• The NEM Foundation has announced the launch of the public testnet and rebranding of its blockchain platform developed under the codename “Catapult” to “SYMBOL.” The testnet launch is in preparation for the mainnet scheduled to go live in the first half of 2020.

Regulation:

• ESMA To Push For The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has announced its intentions to focus on the data security of the financial industry, especially for crypto assets. In its Strategic Orientation for 2020-22, the regulatory agency also revealed its plan to bring a legal framework for digital currencies.
• According to Hispanic cryptocurrency news outlet Criptonoticias, Banco Bradesco — one of Brazil’s major commercial banks, is refusing to honor any agreement preventing the closures of crypto exchange accounts. Reports suggesting that crypto exchanges in Brazil may soon lose banking support as a major commercial bank has refused to abide by an agreement preventing the closure of cryptocurrency exchange accounts.
• South Korean Bitcoin legislation has been drafted to increase its mainstream adoption. South Korea’s Presidential Committee on the Fourth Industrial Revolution (PCFIR) is of the view that appropriate legislation must be prepared and implemented to ensure that next-gen fintech solutions like distributed ledger technology and cryptocurrencies are promoted.

Industry:

• ECB’s President Lagarde said: “We are looking closely into the feasibility and merits of a CBDC, also because it could have major implications for the financial sector and for the transmission of monetary policy. At the end of 2019 we created an expert task force at the ECB that will work closely with the national central banks to study the feasibility of a euro area CBDC in various forms, covering all the practical aspects, including how to minimize possible unintended side-effects.”
• Reports suggest that China is preparing for its CBDC with cryptography law on encryption standards.  
• Spanish telecommunications giant Telefonica has reportedly partnered with the local Association of Science and Technology Parks (APTE) to grant access to its blockchain to about 8,000 firms in Spain.

Quote of the day:

Bitcoin is *not* my safe word

Elon Musk