- The relentless surge of Bitcoin (BTC) in the previous week caused soaring prices for other cryptocurrencies.
- The total market cap for all cryptocurrencies in circulation is now above $2.5 trillion.
Crypto Market Cap Pumps Ahead of Bitcoin Halving
Bitcoin is pulling other cryptos in its wake as it rallies to recover its all-time high (ATH) near the $69K line. This has resulted in soaring prices for altcoins that put their combined market cap at $2.5 trillion.
The recovery of the crypto market to its 2021 peak is mainly attributed to the upward trajectory of Bitcoin prices since the “sell the news” event after the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US waned and trading for the BTC halving started last month.
The fourth halving in the BTC ecosystem is expected somewhere between April 18 to 20 once the network’s block height crosses the 840,000 mark. This will reduce Bitcoin mining rewards from the present 6.25 BTC per block to 3.125 BTC, which will trigger a tighter supply for the coin amid its growing institutional demand.
Although another “sell the news” scenario will likely occur by then, bullish forecasts brought about by bleak economic outlook on major markets like in the US and China coupled with the aggressive BTC accumulation of financial institutions may establish a strong support for crypto prices. These could help negate the massive selling pressure or at least cushion them from completely tanking similar to the trend witnessed on the road to the long crypto winter along the end of 2021 up to the start of 2023.
Bitcoin Now
As of this writing at around 3:30 AM UTC, Bitcoin is starting the weekday with more than a 2% gain on the 24-hour chart to get back to the $63,500 range. The numbers now elevate its market cap to $1.24 trillion as it is only approximately 7% away from its ATH of $68,789 displayed on November 10, 2021.
The same timeframe also recorded around 54% increase in Bitcoin’s trading volume as $33.96 billion worth of BTC moved between wallets and exchanges out of its 19.64 million circulating supply.
The rising prices of Bitcoin have solidified its position among the top 10 tradable assets in the world by market cap. BTC currently ranks 10th in the list after it dislodged Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway last month. The digital asset is presently roughly $40 billion away from Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms.