Czechs purchased 2.2 billion CZK worth of cryptocurrencies in the first half of this year, 37% less than in the same period last year. In June, the volume of trades was around CZK 300 million, but this is up by almost half year-on-year. This is according to the latest data from Bit.plus, the largest trader.

According to the company, trading was affected by rising inflation, the war in Ukraine, and other negative factors that did not favor investments in riskier assets. However, the volume of trades, especially at the end of the period, was mainly influenced by the falling price of bitcoin as the leading cryptocurrency.

Last November, a new bitcoin record was set when the price climbed to CZK 1 473 090. Since then, however, the cryptocurrency has tended to weaken despite more or less constant fluctuations. The most significant drop came during May and June, when the value of the world’s most famous cryptocurrency fell from 900,000 to less than half a million. On Tuesday afternoon, the exchange rate stood at 483,860 CZK.

“Bitcoin is attracting more and more investors thanks to its attractive price. Although trading volumes in crowns are lower, more bitcoins are being sold,” said Bit.plus CEO and founder Martin Stránský.

Bitcoin’s dominance among all cryptocurrencies has risen sharply to 48 percent in the past three months, according to crypto expert Igor Pauer. It then fell to its current level of around 43 to 44 percent. However, he noted, “we can expect an increase up to a level of around 60 percent, which will result in another so-called bleeding of altcoins, or all other cryptocurrencies.”

Czechs are now investing more prudently

Czechs are investing more judiciously in cryptocurrencies in 2022, according to Portu analyst Jakub Valníček, but interest remains. “In general, the Czech Republic is at the forefront in terms of cryptocurrency adoption; no one is questioning the possibility of paying in cryptocurrencies in online stores anymore, helped by the strong community around SatoshiLabs, which launched the first hardware crypto wallet, Trezor, back in 2014,” he noted.

According to Valnicek, the decisive factors for the further development of the cryptocurrency market will be the announcements on inflation and GDP in the United States, which will consequently influence the Fed’s decision on the rate of the subsequent interest rate increase, and the development of the conflict in Ukraine, which still keeps the markets in uncertainty.

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) announced Monday that it would propose global rules for regulating cryptocurrencies in the fall. It is responding to the sharp fluctuations in cryptocurrency markets, which it says have underscored the need for industry regulation. The FSB is an international organization that monitors the global financial system, bringing financial regulators, officials from central banks, and finance ministries of the G20 group of the world’s largest economies.

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