After a long-awaited vindication, bitcoin prices are on a tear again, rising to the highest since November 2021, when they were trading at $50,128. Bitcoin has now set the crypto market on fire with a remarkable comeback after weathering two vicious years in the cryptocurrency market. Exceeding all previous expectations of traders, on March 5, the prices of Bitcoin made a flabbergasting record, surpassing $69,000, and are currently trading at a price of $71,621, which is an all-time peak. The resurgence is awe-inspiring as it comes on the heels of the challenging period in 2022, when Bitcoin’s value plunged during a widespread market meltdown. Today, Bitcoin is relishing a price surge of more than 300 percent and lifting the value of other cryptocurrencies as well. With this positive sign, investors are now grappling with numerous key factors that could tremendously influence Bitcoin’s next move—brimming change in the cryptocurrency market.
Paramount Drivers of Momentum
Recently, the world has been shaken by the high bitcoin prices, buoyed by an influx of institutional investors making their way to the crypto market. This has played a key role in supporting Bitcoin’s price at its current level. However, the transition from 2022 to 2024 worked in Bitcoin’s favour, and it became significantly accepted as an alternative asset. In January 2024, US regulators gave the green light to major financial institutions like BlackRock and Fidelity for the Bitcoin exchange – exchange traded funds (ETFs). Since their debut in the cryptocurrency market, the newly sanctioned Bitcoin ETFs have attracted more than $7.5 billion in capital inflows, as per CryptoInvesting Group CoinShares.
As more institutional investors acquire a more holistic knowledge of Bitcoin’s mechanics and unique value proposition, they’re more likely to consider it an asset. Thus, Bitcoin’s resurgence to over $69,000 holds major implications for the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem, as other cryptocurrencies also witness a huge rise in their value. For instance, Ethereum also experienced a rise in value of over 50 percent this year, reaching about $3,800.
Observing Bitcoin’s recent performance, Cathie Wood, CEO of ARX Invest, shares her thoughts on cryptocurrency’s future, saying that it could reach $1 million much earlier than the previously anticipated year of 2030.
Bigger than Silver
Bitcoin’s recent jump in price to $71000 during US trading on March 11, 2024, placed it ahead of silver (the second biggest commodity ever), which holds the market capital of $1.37 trillion. Now, the market capital of Bitcoin stands at $1.4 trillion, which led it to secure its position as the eighth-largest asset worldwide, as per CompaniesMarketCap. The data also reveals that Gold maintained its number-one spot, closely followed by Microsoft and Apple. Luckily, bitcoin climbed the ladder and bagged the 8th position, surpassing silver, marking a milestone for crypto assets. In spite of this significant milestone, bitcoin still crawls behind Amazon and Alphabet. The Google-owned Alphabet market capital is valued at $1.6 trillion, while Amazon’s market capital is towering at $1.79 trillion.
Bulls Dominance Continues…
With recent favourable outcomes, Bitcoin serves as a bellwether for the industry, and its current dominance signals a transition in the thriving crypto market compared to the previous years. Undeniably, investor sentiments about Bitcoins have tremendously improved with the price rise, as fluctuations are less severe than those witnessed in the past few years. For instance, Bitcoin experienced a 70 percent loss in 2018 and a 60 percent loss in 2022. Keeping the stats at the forefront, one thing is clear: the cryptocurrency market always grapples with numerous challenges, especially legal issues and regulatory scrutiny, which could have been a major factor exerting downward pressure on prices.
All in all, the trajectory is positive, with high adoption reducing volatility over time. It is not wrong to say that Bitcoin maintained an overall bullish trend in early 2024, recording an all-time high achievement. The subsequent recovery from $61,000 to $69,000 reflects that the coming years of cryptocurrency for investors will surely be favourable with its unprecedented surge in price.
