The world’s biggest cryptocurrency raced from $51,621 to $55,172 in the space of one hour on Wednesday — that’s up 6.87%.
Bitcoin has experienced a sudden, dramatic surge above $55,000 as “Uptober” makes itself known.
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency raced from $51,621 to $55,172 in the space of one hour on Wednesday — that’s up 6.87%.
Bitcoin’s price hasn’t been this high for five months — and crucially, it has now reclaimed a market cap of $1 trillion.
Although BTC did cool after breaking through the $55,000 barrier, it has eliminated stubborn resistance of $52,000 along the way.
And to put this into context, a further appreciation of 20% would mean that BTC will be on the verge of breaking all-time highs of $64,800 set back in mid-April.
Consumers in El Salvador may also be breathing a sigh of relief. This is the first time Bitcoin’s price has risen above the level where it was at on the day the country accepted BTC as legal tender.
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What’s Next?
There had been jitters among some analysts that Bitcoin’s move to $50,000 was unsustainable because it hadn’t been matched by an increase in trading volumes.
But the latest surge could change the narrative dramatically.
BTC’s value has now risen by 28.1% over the past seven days — eclipsing the gains seen by Ether, Binance Coin, Cardano, XRP, Solana and Dogecoin.
Bitcoin’s dominance has also been creeping up as a result — hitting 44.6% of the total market cap.
Yesterday, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Mike McGlone said that the biggest surprise would be if Bitcoin and Ether prices weren’t higher by the end of 2021. Predicting that $50,000 was ripe to become support for BTC rather than resistance, he even argued that $100,000 in 2021 is “meager” by this cryptocurrency’s standards.
Other analysts are pointing to charts that suggest BTC is following the same four-year cycle that led to explosive price growth in 2013 and 2017.
The presence of institutional investors means 2021 feels a lot different to past bull runs — but on the flipside, this year has also brought greater amounts of regulatory scrutiny, with moves from China and the U.S. weighing heavily on investor sentiment.
