It has often been said that bitcoin may reach the $10,000 milestone by the end of the year. While many speculated that this isn’t possible, the digital currency has recently hit the $9,000 milestone, and set a new all-time high.
The year of 2017 has been incredibly positive for bitcoin, considering the fact that its value multiplied 9 times, from $800-$1,000, to over $9,000.
At this moment in time, economic analysts believe that there are several reasons behind the latest price surge. To kick things off, one of the main reasons would be the rising investor interest in the United States, following the Thanksgiving national holiday, and the Black Friday event. According to Brian Kelly, the CEO of BKCM, the price surge may be retail driven.
Additionally, the largest digital currency in the U.S. has reported that between 22-24 November, over 100,000 new accounts were created on the platform, leading to a total of 13.1 million Coinbase accounts.
However, there are several other reasons behind bitcoin’s latest price surge. For instance, not long ago, the world’s largest derivatives operator, the CME Group, announced that they’ll begin trading bitcoin futures starting from the second week of December. This announcement managed to peak institutional investor interest in the digital currency. Another important reason may be the appearance of various bitcoin hedge funds, and the announcement made by the second largest South Korean bank, which is preparing to offer a bitcoin storage service to its customers.
Despite numerous financial institutions and governments dismissing bitcoin, and referring to it as a bubble, so far, there has been no actual proof that the coin’s value is the result of a market price bubble, about to burst. Because of this, a sudden reversal in the price trend isn’t likely to happen at this time, unless a major negative event shakes the market from the ground up.
Currently, the next hurdle for bitcoin would be surpassing the $10,000 threshold. It is both a numerical, but also a psychological barrier for the digital currency. Regardless, bitcoin is theoretically already above the $10,000 value, given the appearance of Bitcoin Cash, which is currently trading at $1,598.
Lately, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, Ethereum, is also enjoying a nice price surge, with prices finally reaching $400, and trading above $450. Analysts expect that ether prices will soon break $500.
Based on everything that has been outlined so far, what are your thoughts on the latest price surge for bitcoin and Ethereum? Will the bitcoin price reach $10,000 by the end of the year? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.