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Bitcoin’s price jumped to $ 18,483, its highest score since December 20, 2017
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Buyers of BTC seem determined to post a new all-time high above $ 20,000
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Ethereum and Ripple have so far struggled to keep up with the pace of Bitcoin
Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) prices expanded their earnings today to push cryptocurrency market capitalization over $ 500 billion.
An important push up
The leading cryptocurrency has risen by around 150% since the start of the year and has risen by around 360% from March levels following the coronavirus outbreak.
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“Driven by a mix of market structure and solid fundamentals, bitcoin may now be within days of reaching its all-time high,” said Nicholas Pelecanos, head of trading at NEM.
“Underlying this bullish price action is the inflation coverage narrative that captured Wall Street from the immense money printing campaigns the Fed waged earlier this year,” Pelecanos added.
Bitcoin’s bullish trend this year has been driven by strong demand for riskier assets following unprecedented stimulus measures by governments and central banks around the world to alleviate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to analysts, investors, including family offices, have seen Bitcoin as a hedge against future inflation that could emerge from the unprecedented stimulus. They also said that Bitcoin’s adoption expectations among traditional companies to use it as a means of payment have largely contributed to its price hike.
Additionally, nearly half of Bitcoin’s price hike came thanks to PayPal’s announcement last month when the online payment company said it would open trading in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on its platform.
Bitcoin is hitting new record highs
Bitcoin seems unstoppable at the moment. Weekly earnings now add up to nearly 15% to push the world’s largest digital asset to a new 3-year high at $ 18,500. The price action could extend higher for another leg as BTC buyers seek to post a new all-time high above the $ 20,000 mark. This matches the technical picture suggesting a move to $ 20,180.
Ethereum grinds higher
While the Bitcoin rally looks impressive, Ethereum buyers are expected to work harder for their earnings. ETH / USD fell 1% despite an initial upward movement that saw the price action print $ 495.45, the highest levels since July 2018. A weekly close above $ 490 would be a major development bullish for ETH investors, opening the door towards $ 550.
Ripple struggles to keep up
Ripple’s price (XRP) is struggling to keep up with the bulls in ETH and BTC. Similarly to Ethereum, the price action moved higher this morning to record a 3-month high above the $ 0.30 mark before turning back to trade around 4% in the red later in the day. Looking further down, $ 0.2770 offers short-term support for traders looking to buy XRP with a decline.
Summary
Bitcoin buyers seem determined to continue to drag the entire cryptocurrency market upwards as Ethereum and Ripple have so far struggled to keep up with the pace of the latest bullish momentum in the market.
