TL;DR
- Bitcoin soared to a new record of $64K, but faced a sharp sell-off and settled above $62K.
- Bitcoin increased its dominance in the crypto market, boosted by the prospects of US spot Bitcoin ETFs and long-term holders.
- Bitcoin faces uncertainty ahead of the April halving, which could affect its supply and demand dynamics.
Bitcoin has settled at slightly over $62,000 after a week of impressive gains, increased dominance, and wild swings. Most other cryptocurrencies followed Bitcoin’s lead but have paused their movements today, except for LTC, LEO, and TAO among the big ones. The crypto markets have undergone a major transformation this week.
Last weekend, Bitcoin was stuck between $51,000 and $52,000 and could not break past the higher level. But the bulls took charge on Monday and drove Bitcoin up by thousands of dollars in a matter of hours. On Tuesday, the digital coin reached close to $60,000. It crossed that mark on Wednesday and went on to hit $64,000.
This was the highest price Bitcoin had seen in over two years. But it faced a strong resistance that sent it down by more than $5,000 in minutes, wiping out millions of dollars. Still, Bitcoin bounced back on Thursday and tried to reclaim $64,000, but failed. It cooled off in the next hours and now trades just above $62,000.
Its market cap, which made it one of the top 10 most valuable assets in the world, remains above $1.2 trillion. Its share of the crypto market has increased by 5% since February 27 and now reaches a two-month high of 50.5% on CoinGecko.
The Impact of the Spot Bitcoin ETFs and the Upcoming Halving on Bitcoin’s Price
Galaxy’s Research Chief Alex Thorn stressed the importance of the US spot Bitcoin ETFs, calling them a “game changer” because they create a constant and growing demand for BTC. He also suggested that there is a lot of potential for more price growth, as around 75% of Bitcoin’s supply is in the hands of long-term holders who are not willing to sell at these levels.
Bitcoin was not the only star of the show. Other digital coins like Uniswap’s UNI, Filecoin’s FIL, and the viral Dogecoin (DOGE) also surpassed Bitcoin’s performance, showing the widespread strength of the crypto market. However, some experts are more wary about the future. A JPMorgan report predicts a possible drop in Bitcoin price to as little as $42,000 after the April halving when the rewards for miners will be cut in half for the fourth time in Bitcoin’s history.
