Bitcoin prices have surged since mid-October, spurring calls of a new crypto bull market.
Dreamstime
Bitcoin
and other cryptocurrencies were little moved on Tuesday, holding on to gains even as stocks slid lower. After the latest leg of a big crypto rally, analysts see the potential for Bitcoin to rise even further.
The price of Bitcoin rose less than 1% over the past 24 hours to $41,750, but was still shy of a Monday peak above $42,000—its highest level since digital assets plunged into a brutal and prolonged bear market 20 months ago. The largest token has rallied by more than 50% since mid-October—and 10% in the past five days alone—ending a multi-month quiet stretch and spurring calls of a new crypto bull market.
“A broader move of profit-taking could take the price back to $40,000 before attracting new buyers,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, an analyst at broker FxPro.
A fundamental driver behind the rise in Bitcoin prices has been optimism that U.S. regulators will soon approve the first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), which is expected to usher in a fresh wave of investor interest in cryptos. An improving macroeconomic backdrop has also helped amid expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates multiple times next year, boosting tech stocks and tokens alike.
But cryptos have vastly outperformed the stock market’s
Dow Jones Industrial Average
and
S&P 500
in recent days, with stocks paring gains after a strong November. And analysts see momentum behind Bitcoin’s latest pop, with the potential for gains to continue.
“Bitcoin has cleared yet another resistance level, near $38,000, in a short-term bullish development … reflecting renewed short-term momentum that makes around $42,200 resistance look surmountable,” said Katie Stockton, managing partner at technical research firm Fairlead Strategies. “Should next resistance be cleared, a secondary … level near $48,600 would be targeted.”
Beyond Bitcoin,
Ether
—the second-largest token—slipped less than 1% but was holding above $2,200, also a 20-month high. Smaller cryptos or altcoins were muted, with both
Cardano
and
Polygon
trading around flat. Memecoins were more upbeat, with
Dogecoin
advancing 2% and
Shiba Inu
jumping 3%.
Write to Jack Denton at [email protected]
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