The cryptocurrency market experienced a pause in its recent rally on Thursday, as Bitcoin traded at $80,945, marking a 0.7% decline over the past 24 hours but still reflecting a 6.9% increase for the week. Ether fell by 2% to $2,326, while Dogecoin exhibited the most significant drop of 4.4%, landing at $0.1106 after a prior surge that had pushed its 30-day return into double digits. In contrast, XRP remained steady at $1.41, and BNB saw a modest rise of 1.3% to $643. Solana, on the other hand, recorded a weekly increase of 6.1%, reaching $88.06.
This pullback in the crypto sphere coincided with a significant upswing in global equity markets, buoyed by optimism surrounding a potential ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran. Reports suggest that the two nations are in discussions to propose measures to end the nearly 10-week conflict, contributing to a bullish sentiment across various stock indices. The MSCI All Country World Index climbed 0.3%, while the MSCI Asia gauge surged 1.9%, hitting record highs. The Nikkei 225 reached an intraday peak, reflecting the growing confidence in the market.
Notably, South Korea surpassed Canada to become the world’s seventh-largest equity market by value, spurred by a remarkable 18% rise in Softbank’s stock and a 3.3% increase in TSMC shares. Wall Street also reached new heights on Wednesday, with approximately 80% of S&P 500 companies exceeding earnings expectations, according to Bloomberg.
In the commodities market, Brent crude remained under $102 a barrel, driven by speculation that a U.S.-Iran agreement could facilitate the resumption of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, gold prices continued to soar for the third consecutive day, trading at $4,700 an ounce amidst expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts and a decline in inflation concerns.
Market analysts, including FxPro’s chief market analyst Alex Kuptsikevich, noted that Bitcoin faces its next testing point around the 200-day moving average at $83,300. This moving average, which serves to smooth out short-term price fluctuations, is closely monitored by traders as a long-term trend indicator. Kuptsikevich emphasized that a stable consolidation above this level would signal bullish dominance in the market, pointing out that a prior indication of this trend emerged when Bitcoin maintained levels above the 50-day moving average about a month ago. He also highlighted the potential for a short-term profit-taking phase as Bitcoin nears the $83,000 mark, which could lead to some gains being realized.
The structural landscape for cryptocurrencies remains supportive. Analysts noted a significant rebound in Tether’s market capitalization, which has grown by $5.9 billion in the last 60 days, reversing a previous trend of monthly outflows. These issuances are viewed as new capital entering the crypto market, potentially contributing to price movements.
In additional developments, Morgan Stanley indicated that U.S. banks may soon be allowed to hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets despite existing regulatory constraints. The bank is already running a Bitcoin-based exchange-traded product (ETP) and plans to launch spot cryptocurrency trading on its wealth management platform later this year. Furthermore, Western Union has introduced its own stablecoin, USDPT, on the Solana blockchain to avoid delays associated with traditional interbank settlements. BitMine also reported significant growth, adding over 100,000 ETH for the third consecutive week, bringing its total ether reserves to 5.18 million ETH, valued at approximately $13 billion, or 4.29% of the total supply.
