Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin Rallies to 60-Day High as Good News Abounds
Is Bitcoin back on track? It’s a question that’s been asked before but the past couple of months have been particularly good (or at least not bad) for the cryptocurrency market. As a result Bitcoin (the most popular cryptocurrency) reached a two-month high this week.
As Forbes reports, Bitcoin managed to hit a price of $7,820 on Monday and is currently up around 3% in the past 24 hours. Meanwhile other currencies have also seen lifts, including Ethereum, Ripple, and Bitcoin Cash. So what’s causing the gains?
The past few weeks have been peppered with good news for the crypto space. For example, earlier this month Robinhood added support for trading Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Dogecoin, which join Ethereum and (of course) Bitcoin on the platform. Later, prices for Bitcoin and others climbed higher after news broke that BlackRock had formed a group to look into cryptocurrencies and blockchain. That’s especially notable considering that BlackRock’s CEO had previously dismissed Bitcoin as an “index of money laundering.”
Continuing this positive trend, when G20 finance ministers met in Argentina this week, they determined that cryptocurrencies did not “pose a global financial stability risk.” Although they went on to declare that it was important to stay vigilant in the event that things changed, this decision at least seems to delay the threat of any coordinated crackdown on crypto. That’s especially relevant since, as Forbes notes, crypto regulations in China and South Korea played a major role in bringing Bitcoin prices down from their famed $20K perch late last year.
With all of these encouraging tidbits, it’s hard to say for sure which (if any) is playing the largest role in Bitcoin’s current rally. In fact, speaking to CNBC, eToro analyst Matthew Newton suggested that the Securities and Exchange Commission’s upcoming decision on whether to approve a Bitcoin ETF along with a report from Grayscale that found more institutions are taking an interest in crypto may also be fueling the recent increases. As he concluded, “In the long-run all of these points are very bullish.” However, this being the cryptocurrency space after all, he followed up by noting, “Technically, on the charts, what happened last week was very positive, but getting through these levels will be critical in the short term action.”
There’s no arguing that the cryptocurrency market has been a roller coaster over the past year or so. From big dips to exciting rallies, there’s certainly never a sure thing in this space. That said the past few weeks have been particularly positive from a news standpoint, which seems to be having a lifting effect on Bitcoin and others. Hopefully the cryptocurrencies at large can build on this momentum and perhaps even rally toward some of the highs previously reached in 2017.
