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Bitcoin is hitting new highs during a surge over $ 15,000, as investors may overlook the upside in ether in 2020.
- Bitcoin (BTC) traded around $ 15,087 at 21:00 UTC (16:00 ET). 7.7% gain compared to the previous 24 hours.
- Bitcoin 24 Hour Range: $ 14.005- $ 15.306
- BTC above its 10 and 50 day moving averages, a bullish sign for market technicians.
Bitcoin’s price jumped on Thursday, climbing to $ 15.306 around 3:50 pm UTC (10:50 am ET), according to data from CoinDesk 20, taking it to its highest price point since January 8, 2018, when the high of the bitcoin was $ 15,360. It has since declined, coming in at $ 15,087 at press time.
Read more: Bitcoin surpasses $ 15,000 as investor numbers peak
“Bitcoin is above the psychological $ 15,000 mark today on strong positive momentum, having eliminated resistance from 2019,” said Katie Stockton, technical analyst for Fairlead Strategies.
The momentum, in the form of volume, was strong on Thursday on the major spot USD / BTC exchanges. It was $ 1,233,248,261 at press time, the highest since Oct. 21 when the volume reached $ 1,273,812,127.
Stockton suspects momentum may subside, which could cause a price pullback. “There are some signs of short-term upside exhaustion from an overbought / oversold perspective in support of a few weeks of consolidation, but we would consider it healthy from a technical point of view.”
Analysts still see bitcoin as an asset to bet on in uncertain long-term times.
“The United States will push the spend button again no matter who wins the White House,” noted Henrik Kugelberg. The next year “will likely see more individual support payments around the world, and some of that money will inevitably be invested in bitcoin.”
“The macroeconomic situation in the US and elsewhere is much more uncertain, and concerns about the resurgence of COVID-19 sending the economy back to a tailspin are not entirely unfounded,” noted Guy Hirsch, US chief executive of multi-asset brokerage. eToro. “All in all, it looks like a perfect storm for retail [bitcoin] adoption that is coming at the very beginning of an expected wave of institutional capital, “he added. While most markets are up Thursday along with cryptocurrencies, the US dollar index, a measure of the greenback against a basket of other fiat currencies, was down 0.88% Thursday at press time, down 1.6% since the beginning of November.
In the futures market, open interest in bitcoin contracts returned to $ 5.4 billion, with CME’s $ 804 million in third place of all venues where institutional investors have deposited money. CME is a US-regulated exchange for large investors and brokers, so interest growth is open is a sign that big players are placing hedges and directional positions as part of some sort of bitcoin strategy.
“Interestingly, while the open interest (OI) of aggregate futures returned to $ 5.4 billion (end-October high), the increases were very steady and managed,” noted Denis Vinokourov, head of research at leading digital asset broker Bequant. “This suggests that the more regulated entities operating in the current ecosystem are taking a more pragmatic approach to the current FOMO.”
Ether overtaking bitcoin
The second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, ether (ETH), rose Thursday, trading around $ 414 and climbing 3.4% in 24 hours at 21:00 UTC (16:00 ET).
Read more: Someone just paid a $ 9,000 fee for a $ 120 DeFi transaction
Bitcoin advocates love to talk about its price hikes in 2020 as a hedge against an uncertain global economy. However, ether has done even better than bitcoin so far this year, with a 210% increase over bitcoin’s 95% gains.
John Willock, chief executive of cryptocurrency provider Tritum, said investors like Ether’s potential both as a hedge and as a bet on the possible future of finance.
“Ether has bitcoin-like qualities as a general cover for economic uncertainty, but it also has the added value of utility with the network it powers,” Willock said. “With the long-awaited proof-of-stake update ETH 2.0, from an investment perspective, it will become a return tool that has a much broader appeal.”
Other markets
The digital assets on CoinDesk 20 are all green on Thursday. Notable Winners at 9pm UTC (4pm ET):
Read more: The United States has seized more than $ 1 billion in Silk Road-related Bitcoins for confiscation
- Oil fell by 1.5%. West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil Barrel Price: $ 38.52.
- Gold was 2.5% green and at $ 1,950 at press time.
- US Treasury yields were mixed on Thursday. Yields, which move in the opposite direction to the price, rose the most on the two-year bond, climbing to 0.149 and in green to 1.3%.
