Bitcoin rises to 6-month highs. If the rally is to continue, watch this price.
Cryptocurrencies soared on Thursday, blowing past key price levels and causing carnage among traders with bearish positions such as
Bitcoin
roared to its highest level in six months. It looks like the bullish rally that started the year is picking up again.
The price of Bitcoin has risen 11% in the past 24 hours to more than $24,600, after surging above $24,800 in earlier trade. The biggest digital asset is at its highest level since last August, well above the $23,000 range where it had stagnated for weeks after a roaring rally to start the year. Bitcoin is now up almost 50% in 2023 – but it’s still a long way from its late 2021 peak near $69,000.
“It’s been a fantastic 24 hours for Bitcoin and one that could generate further enthusiasm for crypto,” said Craig Erlam, analyst at broker Oanda. “While regulatory crackdowns continue to cause some unease, there is clearly a growing sense of relief that the worst is behind us for the industry and 2023 could be a much better year.”
Indeed, digital assets are turning bullish in the face of regulatory storm clouds that continue to gather around crypto companies, with the Securities and Exchange Commission becoming distinctly more aggressive in recent weeks. Bitcoin also rejects its correlation to the stock market. The
Dow Jones Industrial Average
and
S&P 500
has flooded in the last few days.
It’s possible that traders are actually taking the tough prospect of regulation in stride, betting that legal clarity about crypto in the US will boost the industry at large rather than scare away investors. Regardless, this rally has wiped out nearly $200 million in bearish positions over the past 24 hours, according to data provider Coinglass. This has come amid widespread “liquidations”, when brokers force traders out of positions made on margin, or borrowed money.
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Where is Bitcoin going next?
When cryptos started marching higher from around $16,600 at the beginning of the year, analysts had speculated that $30,000 would be a key level for Bitcoin. That price would be the highest since early June, when the crypto credit crisis that led to a wave of bankruptcies and surging prices began to gather.
Currently, $30,000 is a long way off. There are closer targets for traders to watch. “The next major test is falling around $24,500-$25,500, a break that could convince any remaining doubters that the future is bright,” said Oandas Erlam.
Beyond Bitcoin,
Ether
-the second largest crypto jumped 9% to $1,700. Smaller tokens or altcoins showed similar action, with
Cardano
up 6% and
Polygon
11% higher. Memecoins were a bit more mixed, too
Dogecoin
— which had its own Elon Musk-inspired rally earlier this week — up just 3%, but
Shiba Inu
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increased 6 percent.
Write to Jack Denton at [email protected]
