- Bitcoin jumped to its highest level since November 2021, nearing its all-time high above $68,000 as investor interest remains strong.
- Ether also surged over 4% to $3,633 while meme coins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu saw renewed interest from retail investors.
- Despite miners giving back gains, the long-term outlook for bitcoin remains bullish due to increasing institutional demand and expected supply cuts from the upcoming halving event.
Bitcoin jumped to start the week, edging even closer to its all-time high after the rally took a breather over the weekend. The flagship cryptocurrency was last higher by nearly 9% at $68,321, according to Coin Metrics. At its high during the day, it rose to as much as $68,577, its highest level since November 2021, the last time it reached a record.
Ether Also Surges
Ether advanced more than 4% to $3,633.90. Both coins are coming off their best week in almost a year – bitcoin gained about 21% and ether 16% – but paused their run over the weekend as the market digested two days of steep outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) that were offset by inflows into other newborn bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
Meme Coins See Renewed Interest
With the birth of these nine new ETFs, the big moves now tend to take place during the normal trading week rather than the weekends, said Antoni Trenchev, co-founder of crypto exchange Nexo. Bitcoin lifted other crypto tokens, especially meme coins. Dogecoin surged 18% while Shiba Inu coin rocketed 54%. Analysts point to them as evidence that retail investors who have been absent for much of the recent crypto rally are starting to return to the crypto market.
Miners Give Back Gains
Some crypto equities rode the bitcoin wave, such as Coinbase and Microstrategy, which rose 11% and 23.6% respectively. Miners sat the rally out, however, giving back earlier gains as the short-term effect of the upcoming halving in April – when mining companies’ revenue will be slashed – weighed on investors.
Long-Term Outlook Remains Bullish
Nevertheless, long-term investors are confident that the combination of increasing demand for bitcoin through the new US ETFs and a tighter supply expected after the April halving event will push the price of bitcoin to a new all-time high. Crypto has also been getting a bid from the stock market, where the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite reached an all-time high on Friday, becoming the last of the major stock indexes to hit a record close this year.
Conclusion
In summary, bitcoin neared its all-time high above $68,000 to start the week as investor interest remains strong. Other cryptocurrencies like ether and meme coins also saw gains. While some predict bitcoin may cool off in the coming weeks, the long-term outlook remains bullish due to growing institutional demand and upcoming supply cuts.
