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Bitcoin price hits three-year high and nears all-time record

Bitcoin last reached above $19,000 in December 2017 (AFP via Getty Images)
Bitcoin last reached above $19,000 in December 2017 (AFP via Getty Images)

The price of bitcoin has risen above $19,000 for the first time in nearly three years.

The cryptocurrency is now less than $1,000 away from hitting its all-time high, having traded below $5,000 as recently as March.

Analysts have attributed bitcoin’s recent price surge to increased institutional investment, which has been spurred on my economic and geo-political uncertainty brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

Other major cryptocurrencies, including ethereum (ether), Ripple (XRP) and bitcoin cash also experienced significant market movements on Tuesday, with all three rising by between 5 and 35 per cent over the last 24 hours.

A recently leaked report from a senior analyst at Citibank described bitcoin as “21st Century Gold” and suggested that current market trends could push its price towards $300,000 next year.

Bitcoin’s notorious volatility will likely mean that if more gains are to come, then there will likely also follow a heavy crash.

“The whole existence of bitcoin has been characterised by unthinkable rallies followed by painful corrections (the type of pattern that sustains a long term trend),” the report stated.

“This [latest surge] could potentially peak in December 2021… Suggesting a move as high as $318,000."

CoinMarketCap
CoinMarketCap

Beyond institutional investors, online search trends suggest there has also been an uptick in mainstream interest in recent weeks.

Global Google searches for the term ‘bitcoin’ have risen 112 per cent year-on-year, according to data presented by Stock Apps, which revealed that some of the biggest spikes had taken place in countries in Africa.

As bitcoin approaches its all-time high, some analysts warned that the market could dip when it reaches the $20,000 mark.

“I am conscious of momentum and would warn that the market does look a touch overbought right now. It is possible that at $20,000 we could see some investors take profits – or if they bought in 2017, cut losses and break even – and this could see the price of bitcoin enter a short period of consolidation,” Simon Peters, a market expert at online trading platform eToro, told The Independent.

“Given that the on-chain unrealised profit/loss data currently shows that the majority of bitcoin addresses are in profit, it’s not audacious to expect some selling at $20,000 or even slightly before.”

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