Bitcoin, perhaps finally finding its place as a so-called safe haven asset, has moved sharply higher after Iran retaliated for the U.S. killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.

The bitcoin price, now up 15% so far this year, has added 5% to its value in the last 12-hour trading period. The jump in the bitcoin price came shortly after news of Irans missile attack on U.S.-led forces in Iraq early on Wednesday.

[Updated 7:10pm EST 01/09/2020] The bitcoin price has fallen back following U.S. president Donald Trump's comments downplaying the situation in Iran and suggesting "Iran appears to be standing down." Meanwhile, rockets have apparently been fired at the U.S. embassy and military facilities in Baghdad. The bitcoin price dropped to just under $8,000 per bitcoin following Trump's White House speech.

People across Iran have mourned the killing of General Qasem Soleimani by the U.S. military in Iraq. ... [+] The escalation in tensions between the U.S. and Iran has pushed up safe-haven assets such as gold, with the bitcoin price also climbing.

The bitcoin price, down almost half from its 2019 high, surged around $600 in a matter of minutes to almost $8,500 per bitcoin on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange before falling back slightly to trade around $8,300.

Bitcoin followed traditional safe haven assets gold and the Japanese yen higher with Iran's retaliation raising international concerns the conflict between the U.S. and Iran could continue to escalate.

Gold prices have hit their highest since March 2013.

The price of oil has also soared, with brent crude up 2.5% to around $70 per barrel on concerns there could be disruption to oil supplies from the Middle East.

U.S. president Donald Trump said via Twitter he will be making a statement on Wednesday morning, adding: "All is well! Assessment of casualties and damages taking place now. So far, so good!"

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency watchers have long speculated whether the bitcoin price could eventually perform in the same way as traditional safe haven assets, though this has so far failed to happen consistently.

"The resemblance between digital gold and the physical stuff is uncanny," Mati Greenspan, the founder of crypto and financial analysis outfit Quantum Economics, wrote in a note ahead of bitcoin's latest rise. "They've basically been moving in a very similar pattern throughout most of last year."

The bitcoin price has climbed well over $8,000 per bitcoin, with the price adding some 15% so far in ... [+] 2020.

Last week, following the killing of general Soleimani, with Matthew Graham, chief executive of Sino Global Capital,askedif bitcoin has begun "moving in reaction to geopolitical risk."

Meanwhile, after general Soleimani was killed by U.S. forces in Iraq it was widely reported the bitcoin price in Iran had soared to around $24,000this was, however, based on a common misunderstanding of exchange rates in Iran.

View original post here:
Bitcoin Crashes Back As The U.S. And Iran Send Mixed Messages [Updated] - Forbes

After six days of gains, Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a precipitous drop on Wednesday, tumbling from the multi-week high of $8,460 to $7,800 in a few hours time. While the drop was extremely steep 8% in literal hours prices have remained around the high-$7,000s since, leaving many to ask whats next for the crypto market.

Although some are fearing the worst after the 8% drop, a number of prominent traders are keeping their heads up high.

Dave the Wave, the prominent cryptocurrency trader who called Bitcoins decline to $6,400 literal months ago, noted that the cryptocurrency is looking prime to consolidate back to the $7,000-odd [range], adding that most data he sees suggests that a macro bottom was established for the cryptocurrency.

Also, Financial Survivalism, an analyst that called this latest surge a week or so ago, noted that per his Wyckoff analysis, BTC is likely to consolidate into this range before blasting towards $9,000, thus fulfilling a textbook Wyckoff Accumulation pattern.

Not to mention, Bitcoins long-term fundamentals remain decisively intact. At the turn of the year, Bitcoins hash rate the measure of computational power processing BTC transactions hit a new all-time high on the 1st day of 2020. The all-time high, 119 exahashes per second, or 119 with 18 zeroes after it.

This came shortly after TradeBlock, a cryptocurrency research and data firm, revealed that 2019 was a record year for the Bitcoin network in terms of transaction count and the value of coins sent denominated in USD value.

While bulls are confident, it is important to point out that $8,400 was an extremely key level from a short- and medium-term perspective, meaning that the swift rejection from that level may be bearish.

Josh Rager, a prominent cryptocurrency analyst and industry investor, for instance, pointed out that $8,400 has been a key level of support and resistance for Bitcoin over the past few months. The fact that BTC failed to regain that level on any notable time frames is, according to Rager, a sign that we are not out of the bear woods yet meaning that investors must take Bitcoin trades level by level, day by day.

$8,400 is also where Bitcoins 20-week simple moving average lies, which is a moving indicator that has been key in indicating macro reversal points for BTC over the past 18 months. On the matter, an analyst going by The Moon wrote:

This moving average has historically marked VERY important turning-points for Bitcoin, both bullish and bearish. A rejection here could lead to a break below $6,000. If broken, BTC could reach $9,450 quickly!

Also, Teddy noted that $8,400 was also a subjective diagonal resistance level and a 200-day exponential moving average, further adding to the bearish thesis.

Read this article:
Bitcoin Plummets to $7,000s: These Factors Show Where BTC is Heading Next - newsBTC

Bitcoin (BTC) awakened from its post-holiday slump, breaking easily above $8,000. A combination of geopolitical tensions and renewed appetite for trading led BTC as high as $8,360.

The most recent price move also shifted the analysis of technical indicators, signaling bitcoin may be ready to follow a bullish scenario. Three technical indicators suggested a new upward drive may be possible. Bitcoin price managed to bounce off the years-long trend of higher lows. The second technical factor was a small head-and-shoulders pattern.

Following those two completed chart moves, bitcoin has the chance to enter a six-month appreciation channel, though this move is not yet certain and depends on closing levels in the coming days.

The renewed predictions based on current chart action also match the expectations bitcoin may continue to rally for the first half of 2020. The price moves also mean BTC made its local lows at around $6,500 in December, avoiding the scenario of a dip to $5,000.

Bitcoin price has once again entered a period of active spot trading, based on a cant afford not to hold it attitude. Trading activity expanded to above $30 billion in the past day, as the price broke through milestones above $8,000.

In January, BTC now continues with a new set of support levels at $7,800-$7,900, and further potential for price development.

The current price move also sees bitcoin generally in a longer-term bull market, which started off from lows of $3,200 in December 2018. Despite the temporary fluctuations, BTC has remained above $6,000 for most of the time, with still a preserved trend for a slow climb.

The other matter remains the timing of an altcoin season. For now, the spotlight is on bitcoin, which has expanded its market cap dominance to 69.1%. But there is also a possibility the higher BTC prices may trigger altcoin speculation.

The renewed rally also reignited the narrative that the halving is not priced in yet, and may lead to a new price range.

The bitcoin bull rally also impacted Litecoin (LTC), an asset that moved in unison, adding around 14% in its first week of 2020.

For the leading asset, the current price is taking it closer to its 200-day moving average, however a Golden Cross is still a while away.

What do you think about the most recent BTC price move? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Images via Shutterstock, Twitter @KevinSvenson @Cryptopatel @PeterLBrandt

More here:
Bitcoin Bull Run: 3 Reasons Why BTC Will Continue to Surge - Bitcoinist

Its always refreshing to hear that a company or individual is prepared to accept Bitcoin in exchange for goods and services. Its even more refreshing when they actually know enough about the cryptocurrency to want to hold it.

British rapper Zuby announced earlier that he not only accepts Bitcoin payments, but that he doesnt intend to convert them payments immediately to fiat currency. Demonstrating that he has at least done a little homework, in true Bitcoiner lingo, he claims hed rather HODL than sell it straight away.

NewsBTChas reported on numerous previous occasions about high profile Bitcoin acceptance stories. Some pretty massive companies, such as AT&T, have recently started to allow customers to pay for goods or services using the digital asset.

However, there is a problem with this. When a big company claims to accept Bitcoin, more often than not, they dont. In the example of AT&T, the company used the controversial payment processing company BitPay to facilitate payments.

When someone pays AT&T with Bitcoin, BitPay acts as a middleman. The company immediately converts that money to fiat currency and sends the funds to the telecom firm. The payment is no longer peer-to-peer and it isnt censorship resistant, as the Hong Kong Free Press discovered last year. Political pressure can force BitPay to censor a payment, which runs at odds with what drew many people to Bitcoin to begin with. Had BitPay been involved with WikiLeakss now famous Bitcoin funding raising efforts, the website might have received no donations whatsoever, instead of the almost $3 million it managed to generate.

Another issue with using such a payment processor is that the payment immediately creates selling pressure since the company needs to exchange the Bitcoin for fiat to pay the intended recipient. Although British rapper, author, and podcaster Zuby is working with Coinbase Commerce to facilitate payments for his goods and services, he does claim to be a holder, rather than an immediate seller:

In response to the above tweet, a Twitter user asked Zuby if he kept them or instantly converted them to fiat. The singer replied simply:

HODL

Another user recommended that he consider switching to the open source cryptocurrency payment processing platform BTCPayServer. The service is championed by many of those critical of the likes of BitPay. Zuby responded that he would indeed look into using BTCPayServer going forward.

Zubys welcoming of Bitcoin, as well as his apparent willingness to hold the crypto asset and use services supportive of the ideas underlying the industry, appears to have impressed at least one follower. Shortly after the rappers announcement today, Twitter user Caleb Gregory quickly became the first person to pay for Zubys merchandise using the cryptocurrency.

Related Reading: Bitcoin Price Plunges to $7,900; Can Bulls Save the Day?

See more here:
Bitcoin Accepted: This Rapper Welcomes BTC Payments and HODLs - newsBTC

Bitcoin price started a downside correction after rallying to a new 2020 high near $8,460 against the US Dollar. BTC corrected $500, but the price is still above many key supports.

This week, we saw a strong rise in bitcoin price above the $8,000 resistance against the US Dollar. BTC traded to a new 2020 high near $8,460 before it started a downside correction.

The bears were able to push the price below the $8,300 and $8,200 levels. During the decline, there was a break below a key bullish trend line with support near $8,040 on the hourly chart.

Besides, the price failed to stay above the $8,000 support area. Finally, it traded as low as $7,867 and is currently consolidating in a range. On the upside, there are initial hurdles near $8,000, and the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $8,426 high to $7,867 low.

The first key resistance for bitcoin is near the $8,145 level. It represents the 50% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $8,426 high to $7,867 low.

If there is a clear break above the $8,145 and $8,200 levels, the price is likely to resume its upward move. The next major resistance is at $8,280, above which the bulls are likely to aim a new 2020 high.

On the downside, there are a couple of key supports for bitcoin near the $7,800 level. More importantly, the 100 hourly simple moving average is near $7,800.

Therefore, a successful bearish close below $7,800 might invalidate the current bullish view. In the mentioned case, the price is likely to revisit the $7,500 support.

Looking at the chart, bitcoin price is clearly under stress below the $8,000 and $8,100 levels. In the short term, there could be a downside extension, but the price is likely to bounce back as long as it is above $7,800.

Technical indicators:

Hourly MACD The MACD is slowly reducing its bearish slope.

Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) The RSI for BTC/USD is currently well below the 50 level.

Major Support Levels $7,860 followed by $7,800.

Major Resistance Levels $8,000, $8,145 and $8,200.

Read more:
Bitcoin Starts Corrective Decrease But Bulls Not Out Of Woods Yet - newsBTC

Bitcoins meteoric uptrend over the past several days and weeks has allowed BTC to smash through multiple resistance levels that were previously hampering its price action, and yesterdays break above $8,000 led to a sense of euphoria amongst the cryptocurrencys bulls.

Analysts are now noting that Bitcoin could currently be caught within the early stages of the next major bull run, but it is important to note that how it responds to this one key price level could be the single factor that validates or invalidates this incredibly bullish possibility.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading down roughly 1% at its current price of $8,020, which marks a notable decline from its daily highs of just under $8,400 that were set at the peak of the recent rally.

It does appear that in the near-term Bitcoin could be on the verge of breaking below its key support at $8,000, although each slight dip below this level over the past couple of hours has been quickly absorbed by buyers.

HornHairs, a popular cryptocurrency analyst on Twitter, explained in a recent tweet that he is closely watching to see how BTC responds to $8,000 for insight into which direction it will go next, as it could be the determining factor for whether or not this recent rally marks a long-term trend shift.

May be jumping the gun here but Im willing to hop back in if we see another solid bounce & recovery at this demand. On the other hand a close back below the range high would make me flip my bias & short a retest. If this does trend higher this will be an entry worth holding, he explained.

Peter Brandt, a renowned analyst, spoke about Bitcoin in a recent tweet, explaining that it is currently attempting to break above the upper boundary of a multi-year descending channel, but bulls need to continue to maintain their buying pressure in order for this to be confirmed and in order for BTC to enter the early stages of its next bull market.

Has a new bull market began in #Bitcoin $BTC? 1. Market held support at lower boundary of multi-yr channel 2. Small H&S bottom on daily chart 3. Pending penetration of 6+ mo channel If enough cryptocultists have been shaken out since Dec 17, then yes If not, then no, he said while referencing a chart showing the aforementioned channel.

The next few hours may shine a light on the validity of this pending channel breakout, as a dip below $8,000 could spark a larger sell-off that puts the crypto firmly back into the middle of this wide trading channel.

See the article here:
Bitcoin Flashes Signs of Starting a Massive Bull Run, But One Key Hurdle Remains - newsBTC

Bitcoin broke a couple of important hurdles near $7,500 and $8,000 on the daily chart against the US Dollar. BTC price action indicates a strong rise towards $9,100 or even $10,000.

Recently, there were bullish moves in bitcoin above the $7,500 resistance area against the US Dollar. More importantly, there were a couple of key bullish breaks on the daily chart.

The daily chart suggests that the price formed a strong support base near $6,560 before starting the current rally. There was a clear break above a major bearish trend line with resistance near $7,630.

As a result, bitcoin climbed above the $8,000 resistance and settled above the 100-day simple moving average. The recent rise was stalled near the 50% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $10,564 high to $6,449 low.

However, the current price action, bullish breaks above the trend line and the 100-day SMA indicate that the bulls are aligning for the next rally above the $8,500 resistance.

The next major resistance is near the $9,000 and $9,100 levels. The 61.8% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $10,564 high to $6,449 low is also near the $9,000 level.

If the price continues to gain momentum above $9,100, there are chances of a run towards the $10,000 resistance area.

In the short term, there could be a couple of downside corrections. In the mentioned case, an initial support is near the $8,300 level.

The main support is near the $8,000 level or the 100-day SMA, which was the recent breakout zone. Any further losses may perhaps lead the price towards the $7,500 support area in the near term.

Bitcoin Price

Looking at the chart, bitcoin price is showing a lot of positive signs above the $8,000 support and the 100-day SMA. As long as there is no daily close below the 100 SMA, there are chances of a strong rise towards the $10,000 resistance.

Technical indicators:

Daily MACD The MACD is slowly gaining pace in the bullish zone.

Daily RSI (Relative Strength Index) The RSI for BTC/USD is now well above the 50 level.

Major Support Levels $8,300 followed by $8,000.

Major Resistance Levels $8,500, $9,000 and $9,100.

Visit link:
Bitcoin Daily Chart Indicates It Is Going Parabolic To $9K and $10K - newsBTC

Bitcoin is showing first signs of a weakening upside momentum as traders adjust their sentiments near key resistance areas.

The benchmark asset on Wednesday plunged by up to 3.15 percent in what appears to be a corrective action. The move downhill prompted it to establish an intraday low of $8,202.57 on Coinbase. It also escalated the possibilities of an extended downside action as the market heads into a perceivably relaxed US session.

So it appears, investors are betting that the Iranian missile attacks on American stations in Iraq would not extend the conflict in the Middle East. The perception alone helped oil prices and global stock markets stabilize. Investors now await President Donald Trumps statement on the matter after his all is well comment last night.

Bitcoin rose majorly because speculators believed global demand for the cryptocurrency would increase amid the rising US-Iran conflict.

On the day a US-sponsored airstrike killed Qassem Soleimani, head of Irans Quds force, the cryptocurrency surged in tandem with other haven assets. It almost formed a lagging correlation with gold and oil, eventually topping to register a two-month high of $8,469.39 today.

The US stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday in the aftermath of Irans attacks and Trumps relaxed response to them.

Futures for the S&P 500 index were up 0.17 percent as of the time of this publication while Nasdaq delivered an equally attractive 0.16 percent gains. Nevertheless, Dow Jones looked constrained owing to the aftermath of aBoeing Co. jet crash in Tehran on Wednesday. Its futures were up by just 0.1 percent.

Dow Jones Futures weakest in an otherwise stable US index market | Source: TradingView.com

The visible yet interim correlation could be one of the reasons why bitcoin rejected a potential price rally above $8,400. It gets further validated with the performance of Gold. The yellow metal plunged by 0.12 percent to trade at $1,572.40 an ounce.

From a technical perspective, bitcoins latest correction formed what appears like a traditional Bull Flag pattern.

Bull flag formation on Bitcoins hourly chart | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

In retrospect, a Bull Flag formation is a continuation pattern that indicates that the underlying asset would resume its uptrend. That said, bitcoin has a likelihood of continuing the price rally purely from a bulls standpoint.

Nevertheless, larger timeframes such as the weekly one show a crucial resistance area capping bitcoins upside attempts. As long as the cryptocurrency stays below it, its likelihood of revisiting the local bottom of $6,400 is high.

Bitcoin rebounds after testing 20-weekly MA | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

The oranged 20-weekly moving average, coupled with the upper trendline of the greened Descending Channel, is behaving as an ideal resistance area for traders to exit their long positions for small profits. More likely, the price would extend the pullback and retest $7,280 as its interim support.

All eyes on how Trump plays out Irans latest attack.

Read the rest here:
Bitcoin Just Got Rejected at $8,400, And It Means a Big Fall Ahead - newsBTC

Increasing global uncertainties and a weak dollar will likely push more investors into bitcoin as it becomes recognized as a store of value. The cryptocurrency's fixed supply will further drive price increases throughout the year, Bloomberg analysts predict.

Bloomberg's 2020 crypto outlook report, published Monday, predicts bitcoin's price could move to the top of its 2019 range and retest the $14,000 high at a time when a weak dollar and stock market volatility continue and geopolitical tensions increase.

"Bitcoin's initial reaction to the [Jan. 3] U.S. airstrike that killed one of Iran's most powerful generals was a good test of our premise that the first-born crypto is maturing toward a digital version of gold," reads the report. Bitcoin jumped to a seven-week high Wednesday as gold rallied to $1,600 for the first time since 2013.

Bitcoin has long been seen as "digital gold," in part because it is a limited asset that cannot be easily increased to meet changing demand, much like the yellow metal. The halving event expected later this year will reduce block rewards from 12.5 to 6.25 BTC, further adding to supply pressures should demand continue to grow.

Bitcoin's supply is projected to grow by about 2.5 percent in 2020, which would be an all-time low. That's partly due to the halving of the block reward from 12.5 to 6.25 BTC. Supply in 2021 could well fall below 2 percent, analysts say.

Increasing investment in bitcoin could take many forms, believe the analysts. The rapidly expanding derivatives market a sign of integration into mainstream markets will better enable institutional investors to gain exposure to the asset class. That could have knock-on effects on price and decreasing volatility, thereby reinforcing bitcoin's status as a store of value.

Not everyone is convinced bitcoin and gold share such a strong bond. Mati Greenspan, founder of Quantum Economics, which specializes in cryptocurrencies and foreign exchange, called such a relationship "weak" and noted the correlation between the two assets was negative until recently.

Bitcoin has also been prone to periods of short, sharp volatility. The asset surged up above $10,000 after President Xi of China called for his country to accelerate its adoption of blockchain technology before retracing its former range weeks later. For some analysts, that volatility fundamentally undermines the case for bitcoin being a stable store of value, at least for the time being.

But while bitcoin may still be too volatile for many people's liking, it appears investors in the asset class are increasingly valuing digital assets that can maintain some sort of stable price. The Bloomberg report predicts that tether's market cap will likely continue expanding this year, with many alternative cryptocurrencies struggling to keep investors as supply outstrips demand.

"Bitcoin should again outshine most crypto assets in 2020 as the unique and appreciating digital version of gold," the report continues. "Bitcoin is winning the adoption race, notably as a store of value in an environment that favors independent quasi-currencies."

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Read the original here:
Bitcoin Price Will Be Golden in 2020 Thanks to Limited Supply, Increasing Use: Bloomberg Report - CoinDesk

Protesters burn US and Israel flags as they shout slogans against the United States during a ... [+] demonstration following a US airstrike that killed top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani in Iraq. Photo by Arif Ali

It behooves a speculator to speculate, and nothing gets the attention of the speculator more than the classic market catalyst of war in the Middle East. So last nights U.S. strike, killing Iranian General Soleimani, is the sort of event that gets markets moving.

As one might expect, oil jumped and so did gold. Oil is up 3% and gold jumped 2%.

In this new world there is a third safe haven asset, bitcoin (BTC). It is up 5%.

Here is a chart of that action:

Bitcoin is up on the news of the US air strike on Iran

This is a very interesting chart because it shows the global professionals reacting to the news much faster than the private traders and it might be suggested this hike is the result of Middle Eastern retail piling into BTC as a flight to safety rather than the relatively non-existent institutional money.

In any event, bitcoin has the most beta in this situation and whats more there appears to be plenty of time to get your trade on in response to the news.

This, of course, is a gift to all skilled traders, a three-hour warning to buy.

Longer term, however, it is clear to see that in instances where there is trouble in capital controlled countries like Iran and China, bitcoin will be a key asset when times get sketchy.

As such, for those speculators who think of gold and oil as the place to trade when war in the Middle East is on the rise, then bitcoin is the place to be.

For those wanting to trade what might be a U.S./Iran escalation, bitcoin is the place to do your thing because while there are trillions in gold and oil to suck up demand, there is only a smattering of bitcoin to take the sort of buying surge a country like Iran could create were the situation to spin up into a large scale conflict.

Bitcoin is the best place for flight capital and haven capital for those in Iran wishing to protect their assets, and that alone is enough to drive Bitcoin back towards its previous and all-time highs. Then there is the exaggerated Beta of Bitcoin that will draw in the global speculators and their wall of money, so that in an extended and fraught US/Iran conflict only one thing is certain about the price of Bitcoin and that is, it will be far higher than it is now.

Stay informed and ahead of the crowd with Forbes Crypto Confidential, a free weekly e-letter delivered to your inbox. Sign up today.

-

Clem Chambers is the CEO of private investors webssiteADVFN.com and author of 101 Ways to Pick Stock Market Winners and Trading Cryptocurrencies: A Beginners Guide.

Chambers won Journalist of the Year in the Business Market Commentary category in the State Street U.K. Institutional Press Awards in 2018.

See more here:
Bitcoin Will Moon If There Is War With Iran - Forbes