Bitcoin
slides to $60K amid Mt Gox dump fears By Investing.com
Investing.com– Bitcoin’s price fell on Wednesday, extending losses seen earlier in the week, as traders remained largely averse to the token amid concerns that distributions from defunct exchange Mt Gox will trigger mass selloffs of the token.
Sentiment towards broader cryptocurrency markets also remained gloomy amid uncertainty over US interest rates, with a recent drop in the dollar doing little to arrest weakness in the sector.
has fallen 4% in the past 24 hours to $60,339.1 as of 08:20 ET (12:20 GMT). The world’s largest cryptocurrency had been suffering steep losses through June and has remained firmly within a trading range established since March.
Bitcoin Sees Little Relief as Mt Gox Fears Reign
Traders have been on edge ahead of Mt Gox’s distributions. The exchange’s liquidators have signaled that they will begin returning Bitcoin stolen during a 2014 hack to customers in early July.
The exchange was seen mobilizing around $9 billion worth of Bitcoin earlier this year, though it remains unclear how much the planned distributions will involve.
Traders have speculated that the token recipients would be largely inclined to sell them, given that Bitcoin has seen massive price gains over the past decade. Such a scenario presents extended selling pressure on Bitcoin.
Speculation about dumping activities by other entities has also weighed on Bitcoin. The German government was seen offloading Bitcoin recovered from a piracy site, while some whales were also seen mobilizing Bitcoin this week.
But even before Mt Gox fears began to affect Bitcoin prices, sentiment towards the cryptocurrency was waning as the token remained range-bound for more than three months.
Capital flow data showed that trading volumes for cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds, particularly Bitcoin, have fallen sharply in recent months.
Cryptocurrency price today: Rate jitters weigh on altcoins
Broader cryptocurrency prices retreated, receiving little support from the dollar’s decline overnight.
The world’s No. 2 token fell 4.5% to $3,296.01 as sentiment towards the token remained weak even as reports suggested a spot Ether ETF could be approved this week.
and fell between 1% and 4.5%, while meme tokens lost more than 4% each.
Cryptocurrencies saw little gains even as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell signaled progress in reducing inflation, which weighed on the dollar.
But Powell warned that the Fed still needed more confidence to start cutting interest rates.
His comments came ahead of more important hints about U.S. interest rates. The Fed’s June meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, when several Fed officials are also expected to speak.
Other than the Fed, data is due out on Friday.
Bitcoin Could Hit $100,000 on US Election Day, Says Standard Chartered (OTC:)
Bitcoin’s price could hit a new all-time high in August, followed by a surge to $100,000 around the US presidential election in November, analysts at Standard Chartered said.
In a Tuesday note, analysts noted that “a new all-time high for bitcoin in August is likely, followed by $100,000 by US election day.”
The bank’s forecast depends on Joe Biden remaining in the presidential race, a scenario perceived by the market as favorable to Donald Trump’s victory. Analysts consider Trump “bitcoin-positive” and have highlighted a positive correlation between Trump’s electoral chances and the price of bitcoin.
“The logic here is that both regulation and mining would be viewed more favorably under Trump,” they wrote.
Standard Chartered also modeled a “less likely” scenario in which Biden drops out of the presidential race at the end of July, which could see bitcoin prices fall to $50,000-$55,000.