CryptoCann™ Report: Investors fly to Bitcoin as Turkish lira tumbles; Trump’s tariffs could burn cannabis industry

The Crypto Report

A monetary meltdown in Turkey has ignited a price spike in Bitcoin against the country’s currency — but it’s not exactly providing investors with shelter from the economic storm.

As the Turkish lira hits fresh lows versus the US dollar, the cryptocurrency reached a seven-month high versus the currency Monday, according to a CoinDesk story by Omkar Godbole.

Bitcoin has risen 31% vs the lira since August 8 (just before the Trump administration imposed harsh tariffs in response a standoff over the detention of an American pastor) compared with a 12% boost against the US dollar in the same period, according to CoinDesk.

“The crash in the lira looks very likely to be increasing Bitcoin’s proposition as a safe-haven asset in Turkey,” CoinDesk’s Omkar Godbole pointed out.

Bloomberg’s Luke Kawa noted that the recent action does seem to make the Turkish lira more volatile than the cryptocurrency, as 10-day swings in the lira relative to the dollar “now exceed those for Bitcoin amid Turkey’s escalating currency crisis.”

But that doesn’t mean investors should pile into the cryptocurrency just yet.

“Bitcoin’s volatility has hindered its mainstream adoption as a source of payment, preventing it from acting as a reliable store of value,” Kawa writes. “The amount of the cryptocurrency used to purchase goods and services has been steadily declining.”

The ‘Cann Report

The Trump administration’s tariffs on Chinese goods are likely to harsh the mellow of the legal cannabis industry.

Arnaud Dumas de Rauly, co-CEO of The Blinc Group, told Forbes that vaping devices, batteries, filters and cartridges created for vaping devices are all subject to the new tariffs, which will raise prices for medical marijuana and other users who use vaporizers, according to a Forbes article. De Rauly’s company develops and sells vaping and other cannabis products.

iAnthus Capital Holdings Inc. (OTCMKTS:ITHUF) has broken ground for a new medical marijuana facility in Warwick, New York. It’s subsidiary, Citiva, is one of 10 licensed medical cannabis producers in the state, according to the Green Market Report.

Phase 1 of the buildout of the former Mid-Orange Correctional Facility is expected to be completed in the first half of 2019. The facility will eventually support up to 125,000 square feet of total cultivation and processing space, with an estimated yearly medical cannabis production of 2,400 kg, according to the report.

iAnthus shares were down 3.6% to US$4.96 at midday.

Story by ProactiveInvestors