A slew of digital currencies have gathered decent gains over the last 48 hours and the entire market capitalization now stands at around $308 billion. Moreover, cryptocurrency trade volumes have kicked up a notch, capturing $66 billion in swaps over the last day. Overall, speculators think the recent spike in crypto prices is due to the overwhelming economic uncertainty worldwide.
Also Read: Tax Expert: IRS Letters Confirm That Trading Cryptos Is a Taxable Event
Despite Traditional Market Downturn, Crypto Markets See Steady Gains
Cryptocurrency prices have jumped northbound once again as a large number of digital assets have seen gains between 2-15% over the last 24 hours. At the time of publication, the price of bitcoin core (BTC) is hovering just below the $12K mark at $11,757 per coin. BTC is up over 8% in 24 hours and has a market valuation of around $209 billion. The cryptocurrency is up 23% over the last seven days and there’s $23 billion in global BTC trade volume on August 5. Right behind BTC is ETH which is hovering around $231 per coin and is up over 4.9% today.
Ripple (XRP) is up a hair over 2% this Monday and is trading for $0.32 per XRP. In fourth position and the biggest gainer over the last 24 hours is litecoin (LTC) as it jumped 15% after the cryptocurrency’s reward halving took place. LTC dipped a bit afterward but is still up 6% and each LTC is swapping for $99. Lastly, bitcoin cash (BCH) markets are up over 4.5% on Monday as each BCH is trading for $347. BCH is up more than 12.8% for the week and there’s $1.75 billion in global BCH trade volume today.
A Flight-to-Safety Asset
There’s been a whole lot of speculation and analysis with people trying to figure out why digital assets are pumping once again. Many people believe the rise is due to investors looking for a safe haven asset as economic turmoil strikes fear into global leaders. Charles Hayter, the founder of digital currency data website Cryptocompare, believes BTC is being used as a “flight-to-safety.” The crypto price spike started after global stock markets started tumbling when U.S. President Donald Trump told the media he would impose a 10% tariff on Chinese imports.
“Bitcoin has many use cases and one of the most important is as a form of digital gold,” Hayter explained on Monday. “We have seen bitcoin jump before on macro uncertainty as it becomes a conduit and flight-to-safety asset.” Etoro’s Simon Peters thinks tensions between the U.S. and China is a plausible theory as well. “Given that Chinese investors make up a large proportion of crypto investors, there’s a strong possibility some are backing bitcoin’s chances against the yuan,” Peters told investors on August 5.
A Looming No-Deal Brexit
It’s very possible that the world could witness a no-deal Brexit in the near future. A while back when people talked about Brexit it meant that the U.K. would leave the European Union (EU) but there were certain agreements tied to the action. This year, a no-deal Brexit means the two countries will divorce and there will be no deals or agreements made when the two go separate ways. Nicholas Gregory, the CEO of Commerceblock, which builds distributed financial infrastructure, believes a no-deal Brexit could push BTC prices past the $20K all-time high.
“Bitcoin has rediscovered its mojo this year with multiple mini-surges but a no-deal Brexit could see a massive and unprecedented breakout. Not only will a no-deal departure from the EU create turmoil and volatility across two major fiat currencies, but it will also trigger an identity crisis for the global system as the contingency and vulnerability of major global fiat currencies is laid bare,” Gregory wrote to news.Bitcoin.com on Monday. The Commerceblock founder added:
Come 2020, we expect an increasingly populist and politically unstable world to cement the safe-haven status of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies more generally. And if central banks revert to ramping up the money printing all over again, the case for cryptocurrencies like bitcoin whose supply is capped will be further reinforced. Each time a central bank increases the money supply, it’s another nail in the coffin of fiat.
‘Rally Could Have Real Legs’ Says Galaxy Digital Executive Mike Novogratz
After cryptocurrency markets spiked this weekend and into Monday, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz tweeted that the 2019 BTC rally could be real. The comment follows Novogratz’s recent interview when he told the public that the digital currency could surpass all-time highs in 2019. He attributed the rise in prices on July 25 to the recent Facebook Libra announcement and mentioned Telegram’s coin launch. On Monday, however, Novogratz blamed the global economic uncertainty and capital flight. “With the yuan over 7.0, an FX war, instability in HKG and the beginnings of capital flight, the BTC rally could have real legs,” Novogratz tweeted.
Trade and Currency Wars
Financial analyst Naeem Aslam detailed on Monday that he also thinks economic uncertainty and Donald Trump’s trade wars are helping bolster the price of BTC. “There is no doubt in mind that the Bitcoin price is going to break this year’s high,” Aslam wrote. The FX, equities, and crypto analyst said that crypto bulls can thank Trump for the spike because “it is completely driven by geopolitical tensions.”
“Donald Trump introduced new tariffs on China last week and I talked about the retaliation action by Beijing. China has unleashed its nuclear weapon on the U.S. This retaliation has come in the form of China introducing the most fearful factor for the markets, a currency war,” Aslam opined. “The Chinese Yuan crossed the level of $7 for the first time and this is only because China clearly wants to devalue its currency.” Aslam further wrote:
We all know what this means for Bitcoin; it is going to explode and continue to move higher.
Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin Markets Spike
BCH has continued to follow the upward trend as the currency has broken a decent path of upward resistance and market analyst John Isige thinks it’s possible BCH could spike to $400 per BCH in the near future. “Glancing ahead, bitcoin cash (BCH) is approaching the rising wedge pattern breakout — Trading above the pattern resistance could boost Bitcoin Cash towards $400,” Isige suggested on Monday. “Moreover, Bitcoin Cash is strongly supported initially by the 50 Simple Moving Average (SMA) 1-hour chart currently at $333.62.”
Litecoin prices jumped during Monday’s early morning trading sessions due to the cryptocurrency’s reward halving. Before LTC’s block height at 1,680,000, miners got a reward of 25 LTC but now only get 12.5 LTC per block. The halving event gave LTC prices a boost and saw the digital asset rise higher than most coins on Monday. The Litecoin network cuts its mining rewards in half every 840,000 blocks. Since the LTC halving, the digital asset is hovering around the $90-110 range.
Recent Federal Reserve Rate Cut Adds Fuel to the Crypto and Precious Metal Market Rallies
Overall, there’s no shortage of digital currency market speculators and pundits giving their two cents on the current crypto rally. A great majority of investors and enthusiasts believe cryptocurrencies are rising because of the world’s economic woes. Alongside cryptocurrencies, the price of gold has reached a six-year high and speculators believe the spike is due to the exact same reasons.
Additionally, last week, digital currency markets witnessed the first Federal Reserve interest rate cut in ten years. The Fed told the public last Wednesday that the bank would cut rates by a quarter point. Many economists believe the rate cut is troubling for the U.S. economy and even two regional Federal Reserve presidents publicly spoke out against the interest rate cut. The financial columnist from Barron’s, Ben Walsh, recently explained the Fed’s rate cut could reinforce bitcoin gains.
“The Federal Reserve has added fuel to the rally as it has shifted from raising interest rates in 2018 to keeping borrowing costs steady to its current strong hints that a reduction is on the way,” the author penned last week. “Easier monetary policy could bring more gains for bitcoin.”
Where do you see the cryptocurrency markets heading from here? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.
Disclaimer: Price articles and markets updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not to be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Always remember that only those in possession of the private keys are in control of the “money.” Cryptocurrency and gold prices referenced in this article were recorded at 11:45 a.m. EST on Monday, August 5, 2019.
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