Bitcoin Price Hits $68,000, New All-Time High Looms

  Key Takeaways

• Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have surged significantly.
• Meme oins and some crypto stocks saw positive movement.
• Analysts predict a potential cooling off for Bitcoin in the short term.

Bitcoin experienced a significant increase  at the beginning of the week, nearing its all-time high as the momentum from its previous rally resumed after a pause over the weekend.

The leading digital currency wasup by 9% at $68,635.20, as reported  by CoinMarketCap.

BTC, ETH Surge to New Highs – The Best Week in Nearly a Year

The Bitcoin (BTC) price soared to its highest level since November 2021 , reaching up to $68,848.62 at one point. Meanwhile, Ethereum saw a more than 5% increase, advancing to $3,650.59.

Both cryptocurrencies experienced their most significant weekly gains in almost a year, with Bitcoin surging by approximately 21% and ETH by 16%. However, their upward trajectory took a brief pause over the weekend. This pause came as the market adjusted to two days of sharp withdrawals from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which were balanced by investments into other emerging Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

Antoni Trenchev, co-founder of crypto exchange Nexo said :

“What we’re seeing today … might well be a rerun of early last week when bitcoin surged $10,000 in the space of a couple of days. We’re in that sort of environment when a day or two of sideways consolidation can precede explosive price action thanks to the voracious demand of these new spot ETFs.”

Bradley Howell , Head of OTC, at digital asset market maker Keyrock  told CCN this latest cryptocurrency market rally was led by Bitcoin. He noted that BTC saw a 28% price increase over the previous seven days, at the time of writing (March 5 2024).

“This BTC-led rally appears to be driven primarily by strong inflows into BTC ETF products, which hit a new high on Wednesday of $673.4m. Meanwhile, other major cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, XRP, and AVAX have mildly underperformed Bitcoin’s gains, increasing 16%, 19%, and 17% respectively over the past week.”

He added:

“This lends further evidence that Bitcoin ETF inflows are likely the main fuel behind this broader crypto market uptrend. Outliers have been Solana and Cadano, which have rallied 31 and 37% respectively over the past 7 days. Additionally, typically trivial “meme coins” like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, Bonk, and Pepe have seen outsized gains of 97-450% in the last week, indicating a resurgence of retail activity. With both institutional and retail flows moving higher, this could lead to some interesting weeks ahead.”

Bitcoin’s Surge Boosts Meme Coins and Crypto Stocks

Bitcoin’s recent price rally not only elevated its own value but also helped lift other cryptocurrency tokens, particularly memecoins. Dogecoin (DOGE) witnessed a 32% increase , whereas Shiba Inu (SHIB) soared  by 95%.

Analysts interpret these movements as signs that retail investors, largely absent during the earlier phases of the crypto rally, are beginning to re-enter the market. This shift is underscored by a surge in memecoin’s weekly trade volume. This metric reached its highest point since late 2021, according to cryptocurrency data provider Kaiko.

Miners Experiencing Challenges

In tandem with the rise in token values, some cryptocurrency-related stocks also benefited from Bitcoin’s momentum. Notably, Coinbase  and Microstrategy  saw their stock prices climb by 11% and 23.6%, respectively. On the flip side, mining companies did not partake in the rally, relinquishing earlier gains.

The looming halving event in April, set to cut mining revenues, exerted downward pressure on investor sentiment. Consequently, mining companies such as CleanSpark and Cipher Mining experienced declines of over 7% each, with Iris Energy and Marathon Digital nearly dropping by 5%, and Riot Platforms falling almost 7%.

Cooling Predictions Amid Bitcoin Price Highs

Analysts are speculating that, while Bitcoin may continue its upward trajectory in the short term, its growth could moderate  in the coming weeks due to approaching extreme levels of unrealized profit margins. According to CryptoQuant , Bitcoin’s realized price is currently around $42,700.

Despite these short-term projections, long-term investors remain optimistic. They believe the rising demand for Bitcoin, fueled by new US ETFs, combined with a diminishing supply expected after April’s halving event, will propel Bitcoin’s value to new heights.

Additionally, the cryptocurrency market has been buoyed by the stock market’s performance, particularly the tech-centric Nasdaq Composite , which reached an all-time high on Friday, marking the last major stock index to achieve a record close this year.