Bitcoin inches up, holds above US$30,500

Bitcoin inches up, holds above US$30,500

Time Stamp: July 12, 2023 6:19 AM
Source Node: 2757072

Bitcoin prices remain above US$30,500 although its trading volume dropped in the last 24 hours. Ether and all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies traded mixed ahead of key inflation data announcement in the U.S. later on Wednesday. 

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Top 10 cryptos trade mixed

Bitcoin gained 0.62% to US$30,741 in 24 hours to 4.05 p.m. in Hong Kong, but lost 0.06% on the week, according to CoinMarketCap data. In the same period, the market capitalization of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency also inched up 0.57% to US$597 billion, while its trading volume declined 21.12% to US$11.87 billion. The token touched a high of US$$30,831 in the past 24 hours.

“BTC [Bitcoin] is seen to be consolidating between US$29,800 – US$31,200 in the last three weeks. A breakout either way is very likely in the coming days as July awaits several macro events, [including] the U.S. Consumer Price Index and the U.S. Producer Price Index this week followed by the Fed’s interest rate decision in the last week of July,” Minal Thukral, executive vice-president of growth and strategy at CoinDCX, India’s first crypto unicorn, told Forkast in an emailed response on Wednesday.

“We can expect volatility coming in the second half of July with the upcoming events and BTC mostly staying range bound since last week,” Thukral added. 

Standard Chartered Bank on Monday projected Bitcoin prices would reach US$50,000 by the end of 2023 and US$120,000 in 2024.

“Historically, Bitcoin halving has proven to be the biggest driver for the start of a bull run as this happens every four years where the supply for Bitcoin reduces by 50%, increasing demand which leads to price rise,” Thukral said. 

The next halving is scheduled for April next year, with the pre-halving buildup already reflecting the Bitcoin price increase. 

Bitcoin prices also received a boost after several traditional finance (TradFi) companies, including BlackRock, WisdomTree, Invesco and Bitwise, filed Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications in the U.S. last month.

“Although the approval is still pending with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, if approved this will make it easier for mass adoption for users,” Thukral said.

“Over-the-counter (OTC) trading reached a one-year high in June, surging by 60% in the past quarter alone. These OTC trading deals are now more popular with institutional investors, indicating BTC is becoming a preferred investment option,” he added.

Digital asset and fintech investment firm Fineqia said on Wednesday that its analysis of global exchange traded products (ETPs) with digital assets as underlying collateral, has expanded by 76% in assets under management (AUM) year-to-date amid renewed interest by investors.

“It’s an upward trend so far this year, and that’s attracting capital,” Fineqia chief executive Bundeep Singh Rangar said in an emailed statement. “Recent ETF filings in the U.S. signals a revival of interest among financial institutions.”

Ether, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency, gained 0.35% to US$1,889 in the past 24 hours, but dropped 2.38% on the week.

All other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies traded mixed, with BNB – the native token of world’s biggest crypto exchange Binance – gaining the most. BNB rose 1% to US$249 in the past 24 hours and gained 2.64% on the week. 

KTX.Finance, a decentralized perpetuals exchange on BNB Chain, said on Tuesday it has raised US$4 million seed round financing led by Hashed. Other participants in the round include AlphaLab Capital, CRIT Ventures, KuCoin Ventures, among others. KTX.Finance – incubated by ByteTrade Lab – went live last month on BNB Chain and said it has achieved US$40 million in trading volume from more than 600 traders. 

The total crypto market capitalization rose 0.66% to US$1.2 trillion while market volume decreased 19.9% to US$26.45 billion in the past 24 hours. 

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