Blockchain Bites: Bitcoin's Latest Billionaire Bull, Zcash's Upgrade, Grayscale's $10B Breakthrough

Bitcoin continues to rally, with one indicator suggesting the bulls have room to roam.

Things are different this time around, compared to three years ago there is less retail interest in bitcoin and significantly more institutional involvement.

This SMA will allow Mariner's 346 wealth managers to offer bitcoin trading, custody and tax services for their 23,000 clients.

Eaglebrook is offering bitcoin custody services through Gemini Trust Company at launch.

The New York-based firm, wholly owned by CoinDesk's parent company DCG, now oversees $10.4 billion in assets including bitcoin, ether and other altcoins held across nine single-asset investment trusts and a diversified fund.

Halving an upgradeZcash, a privacy-centered fork of Bitcoin, has completed its first halving, which not only cut miner rewards but triggered a network upgrade.

Previously, critics said too much of the block reward was directed to the EEC. Deep pocketsMexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego told the world that 10% of his liquid portfolio is now tied up in bitcoin.

THE EDUCATOR: Incoming Wyoming senator Cynthia Lummis said a key item on her agenda will be explaining bitcoin to her new colleagues in Washington, D.C. TWITTER OBLIGES: Bridgewater's Dalio tweeted, "I'd love to be corrected" on bitcoin, after denouncing it last week.

Institutional interestOpen interest for bitcoin futures traded on CME Group's exchange hit a new high of $976 million Monday.

While open interest may be "Indicative of institutional investors wanting exposure to bitcoin," according to Chainalysis Chief Economist Phillip Gradwell, it's important to note that CME's recent surge comes as incumbent exchanges BitMEX and Huobi face ongoing regulatory challenges and flat or declining open interest through Q3 and Q4. At stake.