At 23:30 UTC on January 28, the price of Bitcoin in China rose from $9,150 to $9,400 in less than five minutes. The sudden spike marked an 83-day high for the cryptocurrency in Asia.
As uncertainty in the global markets looms, demand for Bitcoin is rising. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a 1.6 per cent loss on January 28 while the S & P 500 index experienced a similar decline of 1.5 per cent.
The Run of the Golden Bull
The Coronavirus outbreak in China has caused delays in the nation’s market activity. Experts suggest that traders may have chosen to participate in the 24-7 crypto markets while they wait to dive into the equity market.
According to Su Zhu, co-founder of Singapore-based crypto investment firm Three Arrows,
“[BTC] rally looks Asia-driven with the Chinese equity market reopening after holidays has been delayed due to the coronavirus, so traders itching for activity may have set their sights on the 24-7 crypto markets in the meantime,” Zhu said.
It would seem as though traditional markets have become more volatile in recent times. As a result, Bitocin has become more attractive as perception of its risk changes.
Co-founder and managing partner at investment firm Kenetic, Jehan Chu says,
“The recent surge in bitcoin price is merely a prelude to a much larger move upwards that has been building up over the past several months,” said Chu. “A steady wave of shocks including Iran turmoil, U.S. political strife, and now coronavirus destabilizing the public markets is pushing investors to seek alternative shelters for capital.”
Meanwhile, the founder of software security company McAfee, John McAfee says Bitcoin is the Hotmail of crypto.
The altcoin maximalist has made several predictions about Bitcoin prices in the past, going as far as to suggest that Bitcoin would cost $1,000,000 in 2020.
He is among a growing group of businessmen who have given high predictions for Bitcoin prices in the past. Billionaire venture capitalist and investor, Tim Draper says that Fiat currency will soon be a thing of the past as Bitcoin displaces it as a medium of value exchange in economies around the world.
