Bitcoin approaches the $100,000 milestone buoyed by recent gains, with a 3.1% rise to $97,483. A reported $3.2 billion in ETF inflows reflects renewed investor enthusiasm. Meanwhile, Ethereum is recovering, with strong demand pushing its price back above $1,800, aiming for $2,000 despite a year-to-date loss of 36%.
Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, is hot on the heels of the $100,000 mark again, buoyed by a rally pushing its value to the highest level since February. After a spell of falling prices linked to Donald Trump’s tariff policies that influenced a sell-off across markets, investor confidence appears to be rekindled, steering Bitcoin back toward its peak.
Earlier this year, Bitcoin faced considerable setbacks, tumbling 30% to around $74,000 after reaching an all-time high of about $109,000 on January 20, coinciding with Trump’s inauguration. Yet, Bitcoin has bounced back, climbing 3.1% recently to a weekly high of $97,483, marking its best performance since February 21. The last time Bitcoin exceeded $100,000 was February 7.
This significant price rise is driven by evolving market conditions, especially in spot markets where demand is notably rising. This shift indicates that trading dynamics may be moving towards momentum-based strategies, contrary to earlier market trends closely tied to macroeconomic influences like inflation.
Excitingly, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) related to Bitcoin and Ethereum have seen over $3.2 billion enter the crypto space in one week. Data from Bloomberg highlights that BlackRock’s Bitcoin Trust ETF, known as IBIT, alone saw around $1.5 billion in inflows, its peak weekly performance so far this year.
Market interest for Bitcoin options is also on the up, particularly for call options striking at the $100,000 level, which exhibit the most open interest over various expiration dates. As Chris Newhouse, a research director at Ergonia, mentions, market sentiment is shifting towards momentum-based trades, propelled by heightened spot demand as Bitcoin recoups its previous heights since early February.
Newhouse elaborated that Bitcoin’s correlations with both gold and stocks are evolving, revealing a more intricate interaction with macroeconomic factors, balanced now by immediate market momentum and spot demand.
Over in the Ethereum camp, after a rough start this year, it’s showing signs of recovery, reinforcing its position as an essential player in the decentralised finance and smart contract domains. The improvements that came with Ethereum’s upgrades, including the highly talked about transition to Ethereum 2.0, have reportedly made the crypto more appealing to both developers and users alike.
However, it’s worth noting that year-to-date, Ethereum’s performance still lags behind, registering losses up to 36%. Nonetheless, recent weeks have seen Ethereum gain 14%, pushing its price back above $1,800, setting the stage to potentially regain the $2,000 threshold soon.
In conclusion, the cryptocurrency market is actively shifting, with Bitcoin on the brink of a major psychological barrier and Ethereum also looking to bolster its standing.
