During the past week, the price of Bitcoin crashed a number of records, surpassing even the optimistic predictions we spoke about two weeks ago that estimated a price gain of 28% over the $6,900 level at the time, which has long been exceeded. As current market stats show, the new $10,000 range is here to stay, thanks to a large interest from all corners of the globe, including some of the biggest BTC markets today.
According to CNBC, the massive price increases have drawn in many new-believers to the crypto-scene. Thus far, over 120 “cryptofunds” have been launched, some even by veterans of Wall Street, and with CME’s Bitcoin Futures scheduled for December, it seems that things will only get more exciting.
Another interesting information CNBC shared was the new prediction of Michael Novogratz, former hedge fund manager at Former Fortress who in October said that bitcoin will hit $10,000. As Bitcoin already reached the predicted level, Novogratz is now claiming that the cryptocurrency could hit $40,000 by 2018. Although it’s a very optimistic prediction, it is not too far-fetched considering Bitcoin’s recent growth rate.
Record Market Stats
In the past week since our last update, the price of Bitcoin remained close to the $8,200 range for most of the business week, until it set on a straight but moderate upward path that took it to the current levels. The lowest point was hit during a moment of volatility on Friday, when the price reached $7,940.93, while the highest price point of $11,047.30 was briefly touched this early morning.
Driving the price increase and the last price burst was the increasing market volume, which has climbed from the $3-4 billion range to the current $8.8 billion and is still growing. Naturally, the market cap has likewise increased to a current $181.44 billion.
Our market analysis predicts a positive future trend, with the overall signal being very bullish. Out of 12 oscillators, 9 are showing a buying signal, with all 12 moving averages confirming the trend. The SMA 100 is well over the SMA 200, signaling there’s less resistance to be found to the upside. However, short term signals also show buyers might be getting tired, so keep your eyes out for any sell-offs during the weekend.
India Exchanges See Record Interest
In other interesting news, the rally Bitcoin saw since the beginning of this year has been drawing a vast interest from the Indian market, especially since Bitcoin hit $10,000. According to local media house, IndiaTimes.com, despite the warnings of a possible speculative bubble forming, a large number of Indian citizens have flocked to Bitcoin exchanges in the country, both experienced traders and amateurs alike.
Namely, according to their data, the registration rate at India’s Bitcoin exchanges saw a spike during the past weeks, doubling in size. Coinsecure, a popular exchange in the country, informed the media house they have been “flooded with requests” during the past weeks, with other exchanges like ZebPay, Bitxoxo, and Unocoin also stating that they’ve seen a similar surge in registrations.
According to a Zebpay cofounder, the number of trading volume has been doubling every three months or so at their exchange and they expect the trend to continue in the future. The past three weeks have proven to be especially lucrative for Unocoin, where around 5,000 new registrations a day were noticed during the said period. With Bitcoin’s popularity rising rapidly in India, the local tech community is asking for legalization, which could add more stability to the price if such a large-scale market is liberated.