Leading crypto coins bitcoin and ether reached record highs on Tuesday with inflation fears driving investors to digicurrencies.
Though both virtual currencies dropped back from their peaks in US trading sessions, both have more than doubled since June and added nearly 70% against the dollar since the start of October.
Bitcoin rose as high as $68,564.40 and was last down 0.1% at $67,325 while ether, the second-biggest cryptocurrency by market value, earlier hit $4,842.65 before trading down 0.7% at $4,774.
“This move is a culmination of months of net outflows from exchanges and coming off the market, coupled with increasing demand,” said Martha Reyes, head of research at digital asset prime brokerage and exchange BEQUANT.
Also on AF: China Developer Kaisa’s Plea For Help Over Mounting Debt
“This creates a supply shock and we are far from levels where long-term holders, who make up a greater number of investors, start taking significant profits so $100,000 is on the horizon,” she added.
Market momentum has been gathering since last month’s launch of a futures-based bitcoin exchange-traded fund in the United States raised expectations of flow-driven gains.
Inflows into bitcoin products and funds have hit a record $6.4 billion so far this year, data from digital asset manager CoinShares showed, and totalled $95 million last week.
Huge pandemic savings and a more upbeat global growth prospects suggested that digital assets would remain well-supported, analysts said.
Other pieces of positive news have also helped, including plans by Grayscale, the world’s largest digital currency manager, to convert its flagship bitcoin trust into a spot-bitcoin exchange traded fund. Last week Grayscale also applied to list a “future of finance” fund that would track companies involved in the growing digital economy.
Near-Term Caution
“Crypto is where the fast money is at,” said Chris Weston, head of research at brokerage Pepperstone. “[Ether] is trending like a dream and I’d be long and strong here,” he added.
“Clients are net long, with 79% of open positions held long, and I can sense the $5k party could get going soon.”
Others though flagged cause for some near-term caution on bitcoin, however, as the cost of funding long positions has crept higher in recent days, according to trading platform BitMEX – sometimes a precursor to a pullback.
Still, the moves so far have carried the token more than 1,680% higher from its March 2020 lows and helped lift the total market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies above $3 trillion, according to crypto price and data aggregator CoinGecko.
- Reuters with additional editing by Sean O’Meara
Read more:
Bitcoin Leaps By 9% To Close In On 12-Day High
Bitcoin Recovers After Evergrande Crisis Sparks Crypto Sell-Off
Malaysian Police Deal a Crushing Blow to Power-Grabbing Bitcoin Miners
