Bitcoin Surpasses $66,000 as Cryptocurrencies Surge During Worldwide IT Disruption; Solana’s SOL Leads Alternative Coins
The recent surge in the cryptocurrency market saw Bitcoin reaching a one-month high at $66,700, marking a 4% increase over the past 24 hours. Concurrently, Solana experienced an 8% rise, surpassing $170 for the first time since early June. This positive momentum in the crypto space unfolded amidst global IT disruptions caused by a malfunctioning software update, emphasizing the robustness of decentralized blockchains as noted by crypto experts.
Bitcoin’s resurgence continued on Friday, with its price hitting the highest level in nearly a month. During the early U.S. trading hours, BTC surged above $66,000 and peaked at $66,700 in the afternoon, a level not seen since June 17. The uptick in price was supported by robust trading volumes for BlackRock’s spot bitcoin ETF (IBIT), with Bitcoin trading at around $66,500 at the time of reporting, reflecting a 4% increase over the previous day.
In the altcoin market, Solana emerged as a frontrunner with an 8.5% surge, crossing the $170 mark for the first time since early June. This outperformance was highlighted against the backdrop of the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20) rising by 4.3% during the same period. While cryptocurrencies faced a downturn earlier in the week in line with a U.S. stock market decline, the crypto rally on Friday unfolded as major equity indexes continued to struggle.
The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 were down by 0.8% and 0.6%, respectively, by 1 p.m. ET, while gold witnessed a significant drop of over 2% following a recent all-time high earlier in the week. The market dynamics also saw a software update by CrowdStrike triggering widespread computer outages globally, impacting various sectors such as airlines, banks, and businesses. This incident underscored the resilience of decentralized systems like public blockchains in contrast to centralized networks.
Looking ahead, there is anticipation in the crypto space for Bitcoin to potentially reach $100,000 by the end of the year. Analysts suggest that Bitcoin is currently trading within a multi-month sideways channel between $56,000 and $73,000, hinting at a potential breakout towards new all-time highs leading up to the U.S. elections in November. Institutional interest in December $100,000 bitcoin call options further supports this bullish sentiment.
Crypto analyst Mads Eberhart from Steno Research expressed optimism for the second half of the year regarding crypto assets, citing favorable factors such as anticipated U.S. interest rate cuts, increasing liquidity, regulatory clarity in Europe, and the likelihood of a more crypto-friendly U.S. leadership. Eberhart shared his price targets, envisioning Bitcoin at $100,000 and Ethereum at $6,500.
