Cryptocurrency prices are down marginally today evening as the volatility in the recent weeks continued on Monday. The volatility has come amid a broader market selloff driven by investors recalibrating their portfolios to account for a more aggressive Fed, which is now expected to raise rates as many as seven times this year as it fights surging inflation.
Bitcoin, the world’s largest and most popular cryptocurrency was last trading marginally lower, down 0.6% at $42,481, while its main rival Ether 0.2% at $2,931.07.
Bitcoin is down about 38.5% since it peaked at almost $69,000 in November last year as risk aversion grows with the Federal Reserve and other global central banks starting to tighten financial conditions and remove pandemic-era liquidity from the system.
Meanwhile, Ethereum has plunged 40% from a high of $4,878.26 in November.
The global cryptocurrency market cap today is at $1.99 trillion, down 0.3% in the last 24 hours.
While proponents of cryptocurrencies once touted their lack of correlation to other assets, bitcoin and its peers saw huge gains over the last two years, rallying along with stocks as the Fed and other central banks pumped unprecedented levels of stimulus into the global economy. Bitcoin is up 1,039% since March 2020 and ether has risen 2,940%, though the rallies in both cryptocurrencies have been interrupted by numerous-stomach churning selloffs.
Worries that an aggressive central bank tightening cycle going forward will hamstring risky assets has made it difficult for some traders to maintain their bullish outlook on bitcoin and other cryptos, an asset class already identified with intense volatility.
Escalating tensions in Ukraine, where Washington warned a Russian invasion could begin any day, could also spark broad market moves, investors said.
Bitcoin has “really become the ultimate momentum trade and there are so many risks that can trigger a 40% drop out of nowhere,” said Ed Moya, senior analyst at Oanda.
Bitcoin’s volatility hasn’t stopped some analysts from trying to gauge the currency’s fair value or point out potentially important price levels.
Analysts at JPMorgan estimate bitcoin’s current fair value at around $38,000 – some 15% below its recent price – based on its volatility in comparison with that of gold, another asset investors often use to hedge their portfolios against inflation and economic uncertainty.
Vanda Research, meanwhile, said in a recent note that most of the bearish bets on a weaker bitcoin price were entered at around $47,000, and “there could be a large short-squeeze if the aforementioned threshold is crossed, and retail investors return to crypto-trading.”
Meanwhile, correlations between bitcoin and the S&P 500 reached an all-time high on Jan 31, according to data from BofA Global Research, undercutting the case for those hoping to use the cryptocurrency as a hedge against market turbulence.
Investors next week are expecting minutes from the Fed’s most recent monetary policy meeting, due out Wednesday. Walmart and chipmaker Nvidia Corp will be among the companies reporting results, as corporate earnings season rolls on.
Some investors are steeling themselves to ride out the volatility in bitcoin, betting that the long-term value proposition of blockchain technology, the built in supply limit, and the network effect it produces, will endure despite frequent price swings.
Dogecoin price was trading 5.8% lower at $0.146202 whereas Shiba Inu tanked over 5.2% to $0.00003015. The performance of other coins was also poor as Stellar, Avalanche, Cardano, Polygon, XRP, Polkadot, prices were trading lower over the last 24 hours, while Solana and Terra were up 0.9% and 1.5% respectively
Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint.
Download
our App Now!!
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here
Be the first to comment