The recommendation was made in a report by RBC Capital Markets, who suggested Apple could make tens of billions a year by allowing users to to buy and sell cryptocurrency. Bitcoin, Ethereum and DogeCoin are assets listed as potential moneymakers for Apple. Amid fears US President Joe Biden could hit cryptocurrencies with regulation, RBC Capital Markets said the country could be a global leader in crypto assets with the move. They also suggested Apple incorporate this directly into its Wallet app on iPhone and iPads.
The report adds: "If the US owns the most crypto assets (be it Bitcoin or other assets), it would not make logical sense in our view to ban it."
RBC analyst Mitch Stevens calculates that the payments company Square, which was founded by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, generated $1.6billion (£1.16billion) per quarter in revenue related to Bitcoin.
But Square only has 30 million users, meaning a company the size of Apple could make huge profits.
RBC Capital Markets added in February: “Apple’s install base is 1.5 billion, and even if we assume only 200 million users would transact, this is 6.66x larger than Square.
“Therefore, the potential revenue opportunity would be in excess of $40billion (£28billion) a year (15 percent incremental top-line opportunity).”
The report also added that Apple could solve the regulatory and informational challenges of cryptocurrencies if it creates a closed system where it transfers ownership between customers.
Whether this is likely to happen is another question, as Apple CEO Tim Cook has previously displayed scepticism towards cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.
In October 2019, Mr Cook weighed in against launching an Apple cryptocurrency, saying companies should not be trying to gain power by establishing competing currencies.
His comments were an apparent swipe at Facebook, who had just announced plans to launch a digital currency.
READ MORE: Bitcoin: Jeff Bezos and Amazon 'secretly creating rival crypto'
Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warned investors of the risks that come with Bitcoin following the recent slump.
They said: “If consumers invest, they should be prepared to lose all their money.
"Some investments advertising high returns from crypto assets may not be subject to regulation beyond anti-money laundering.
“Significant price volatility, combined with the difficulties valuing [Bitcoin] reliably, place consumers at a high risk of losses.”
Express.co.uk does not give financial advice. The journalists who worked on this article do not own Bitcoin.
0 Comments