Leading cryptocurrencies climbed alongside stocks on Thursday after President Donald Trump called off “scheduled” strikes on Iran amid hopes for a peace deal.
Crypto Market Pops
Bitcoin jumped to an intraday high of $63,850 as buying pressure surged. Ethereum nearly broke through $1,700, while XRP and Dogecoin recorded sharp upticks.
Over $260 million was liquidated from the market in the last 24 hours, predominantly in short positions, according to Coinglass data.
Bitcoin's open interest rose 1.23% in the last 24 hours. Retail and whale derivatives traders with open BTC positions remained "bullish" on the apex cryptocurrency.
Despite the swift gains, "Extreme Fear" sentiment persisted in the market, according to the Crypto Fear & Greed Index.
Top Gainers (24 Hours)
The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.17 trillion, following an increase of 1.98% from the previous day.
Stocks Also Rally
Stocks rebounded sharply on Thursday. The S&P 500 spiked 1.75% to close at 7,394.30, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.54% to end at 25,809.66. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 929.97 points, or 1.86%, to settle at 50,848.75.
The rally came after Trump canceled "scheduled strikes" on Iran, adding that discussions on a deal have been approved by the "highest level of Iranian leadership."
Will Bitcoin Sustain The Gains?
Widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader Michaël van de Poppe said that the SpaceX IPO could become "tricky" for Bitcoin, unless the asset "clearly" breaks crucial level around $63,200.
"However, if the trend stalls, we’ll probably hit the low of this correction in the weekend," the analyst said.
As of this writing, Bitcoin has already breached this level, but the key question is whether it can sustain the move.
On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant noted a revival of speculative activity in the derivatives market, particularly on Ethereum, as open interest on Binance reached a new all-time high.
"Although sentiment around Ethereum has deteriorated significantly in recent months, an increasing number of investors appear willing to take the risk of rebuilding exposure, particularly on the long side, after an extended period of dominant selling pressure across futures markets," CryptoQuant said.
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