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2021New highs, and a country adopts Bitcoin

Bitcoin more than doubled early in the year, hit about $69,000 in November and became legal tender in El Salvador. It was also a year of whiplash, from Tesla’s purchase and reversal to China’s crackdown on mining and trading.

Year-end price (approx.)

~$46,300

Block reward

6.25 BTC

All-time high

~$69,000 (Nov 10)

What happened

1. Feb 8

   Tesla discloses a $1.5 billion Bitcoin purchase. In May it suspends accepting Bitcoin for car purchases, citing the environmental impact of mining.

2. Apr 14

   Coinbase lists on Nasdaq through a direct listing.

3. Jun 9

   El Salvador’s Congress approves a law making Bitcoin legal tender. It takes effect on September 7.

4. Sep 24

   China’s central bank declares cryptocurrency transactions illegal, after a spring and summer crackdown that sends miners abroad.

5. Oct 19

   The first US Bitcoin futures ETF, ProShares’ BITO, begins trading.

6. Nov 10

   Bitcoin reaches its then all-time high of about $69,000.

7. Nov 14

   Taproot activates, the most significant protocol upgrade since SegWit.

Why it mattered

Futures ETFs, a national legal-tender law and Taproot all landed in the same year: Bitcoin was now an asset, a currency in one jurisdiction and a still-evolving protocol.

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