Bitcoin Back Above $38,000; SpaceX's Starlink Has 10,000 Users Already - News 2.5.2021

Published: Feb. 5, 2021, 2:28 p.m.

Bitcoin above $38,000, with secondplace cryptocurrency network Ethereum breaking new all time highs. One Ether $1,673 as of earlier Friday.

In tech news, it has come out Elon Musk's always-on satellite Internet network, Starlink, already has 10,000 users around the world. In a regulatory filing with the FCC, SpaceX revealed that Starlink intends to register as an eligible telecom carrier, showing the level of ambition ahead for the satellite broadband product.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 60 additional Starlink satellites into orbit back in November.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 60 additional Starlink satellites into orbit back in November.

Some fans of cryptocurrency have expressed concern that if Bitcoin becomes a true threat to traditional finance, the powers that be could turn off the Internet itself, rendering Bitcoin unusable. With Starlink, those worried crypto users can perhaps sleep a little better. The Internet service would be potentially immune to Earth-based disruption of most kinds, and its satellite array signal reaches everywhere, even in rural communities with no access to other telecom services.