- We are officially in the fourth epoch of Bitcoin (BTC).
- As expected, massive selling pressure ensued hours before the Bitcoin halving, which crashed prices down to the $59K line.
- A major recovery above $65K followed as traders and investors capitalized on the dip.
The Bitcoin Halving
The historic moment in Bitcoin was triggered at midnight on April 20 (UTC standard) when the block height of the blockchain reached the 840,000th block. This indicates that for the next 210,000 blocks following the event, Bitcoin mining will only yield 3.125 BTC per block from the prior cycle’s 6.25 BTC per block. This should cut down the daily mining production of the blockchain from the previous average of 900 BTC to 450 BTC.
As a recap, Bitcoin mining serves a vital function in the very fabric of the BTC ecosystem. The miners ensure the validation and confirmation of transactions happening on the blockchain. The process also paves the way for the creation of new units of BTC in its economy until the digital currency’s 21 million supply cap is reached.
What Happened on the Latest Halving
What’s so interesting in the Bitcoin halving that occurred hours ago is it didn’t bleed the largest crypto by market cap below $55K as some bleak predictions suggested. It went on its business as usual, moving sideways between the $63,600 and $64,700 zones.
BTC’s only significant price movement in the past 24 hours (as of this writing at 2:00 AM UTC on Saturday) was its decline to $59,651.39 at 2:00 AM on Friday based on Coinmarketcap data. However, its values immediately recovered over $62,000 an hour later and another steep climb to $65,481.60 occurred before settling at $63,700 at the moment.
So far, the current prices represent more than a 4% increase in BTC across the 24-hour chart. But then again, it’s still 3.81% less in the past seven-day frame and roughly 6% down in the one-month range. Nevertheless, BTC remains notably 120% up within the one-year period.
What’s Next?
The recent chain of events only shows that many investors, especially institutions, are now on the watch at every buying opportunity in the crypto asset. Should the aggressive buying spree continue this cycle, especially with the arrival of more spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) overseas, it could potentially catalyze a supply crunch. This could lead the prime digital asset to all-new heights from its current ceiling of $73,750.07.
With numerous analysts agreeing that Bitcoin may be on a trajectory toward $100K by year-end while others even suggest it could pop to $200K by 2025, such a super bullish scenario may not be far behind.