Financial Services

Bitcoin continues rebound as it reaches two-month high

But cryptocurrency is still almost 60% down on December peak

Photograph: iStock

Tue Jul 24 2018 - 12:07

Bitcoin’s rebound continued on Tuesday, carrying the largest cryptocurrency above $8,000 for the first time in two months and leading a revival among digital currencies that have been under pressure for much of the year.

The most-followed crypto asset jumped as much as 5 per cent to $8,083.95 during London trading hours, according to composite Bloomberg pricing. Rival tokens Ethereum, Litecoin and Ripple rallied as much as 7.6 per cent. While Bitcoin last breached $8,000 in May, it’s still about 17 per cent below its high for that month.

With the latest gains, the total value of cryptocurrencies worldwide is again approaching $300 billion, according to data on almost 1,700 coins followed by Coinmarketcap. com. Bitcoin still remains almost 60 per cent down its peak of almost $20,000 in December.

"We've been in depressed levels for the last six months, so it's really one way from here, which is up," said Timothy Tam, chief executive officer with CoinFi, a cryptocurrency data analysis company, in a phone interview from Hong Kong. "The timing is always difficult to predict but I think we're at the start of a secular bull market."

READ MORE

BlackRock Plans

Optimism over Bitcoin improved after a host of regulators and central banks addressed the nascent industry over the past two months, yet fell short of trying to stunt it. Prices were supported after a report that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, was studying whether to invest in Bitcoin futures, and media have pointed to sentiment underpinned by reports of a possible exchange-traded fund holding Bitcoin.

There's also renewed optimism after Bitmain, the cryptocurrency mining rig maker, completed another funding round, Tam said. The company was reported by Caixin to have raised $300 million to $400 million at a valuation of about $12 billion.

The cryptocurrency space has otherwise struggled this year, as the industry grapples with increased regulatory scrutiny around the world as well as security concerns, with hacks a persistent problem for exchanges. Thieves made off with almost $500 million worth of tokens from Japanese exchange Coincheck in January, while most recently two Korean crypto bourses suffered cyberattacks in June. – Bloomberg

LATEST STORIES