Bitcoin surged to $120,000, marking its first ascent to this level since reaching a record high seven weeks prior. This uptick comes amid growing speculation that a potential US government shutdown could push investors towards safe-haven assets. The original cryptocurrency has often been dubbed “digital gold” by its proponents, who believe it plays a comparable role to the precious metal in times of crisis. Gold pulled back from its record high on Thursday. “For the first time in a while, the macro theme seems to have taken hold of Bitcoin, which has seen $1.5 billion of ETF inflows week to date, and appears to be attempting to catch up to gold’s eye-watering move of the last few weeks,” said Karim Dandashy.
The largest digital asset by market value has experienced a rise for the sixth consecutive day, climbing approximately 10 percent since Friday. Bitcoin surged approximately 2 percent, reaching $120,163 as of 2:37 p.m. in New York. On August 14, it hit an all-time high of $124,514. Smaller, more volatile tokens experienced even greater gains, with Solana climbing 5.7 percent, Litecoin increasing by 6.7 percent, and Dogecoin gaining 4.7 percent. Stocks related to crypto also experienced a rally. Exchange operator Coinbase Global Inc. saw a rise of 7.8 percent, while Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy Inc. climbed by 3.5 percent, and miner MARA Holdings Inc. edged up by 2.1 percent.
David Lawant noted that Bitcoin’s market structure has been poised for a “breakout” for some time. “Spot order books have exhibited a consistent sell-side skew for months, yet there hasn’t been a definitive price breakdown, indicating more absorption than indifference,” stated Lawant. “That’s the classic coiled-spring dynamic; when overhead supply thins, rallies can come in sharp, cascading bursts.” This might be the scenario unfolding in the market at this moment.
The bullish sentiment is further bolstered by Bitcoin’s historical outperformance in October, a month that has come to be known as “Uptober.” The token has experienced gains in nine out of the last ten Octobers. “September historically is the weakest month of the year for Bitcoin, and then Q4 is historically the strongest quarter of the year,” stated Ryan Watkins. “While I’m not the biggest believer in seasonality, I do think that it can often be a self-fulfilling prophecy.”