The Bitcoin price has been decreasing since the October 25 rapid upward move. According to the Wyckoff distribution method, the price is in the markdown phase and has another downward move on the horizon.

After the speech by the president of China on October 25, which preceded the entire upward move, positive news for the cryptocurrency industry has been rolling in.

Today, a local government from the city of Guangzhou announced that it had received $150 million in government funding in order to advance blockchain-related projects.

The city of Guangzhou has a population close to $15 million. If other local governments follow suit, which looks increasingly likely, the subsidies for larges cities will most likely be massive.

As it seems, China is determined to become the world leader in blockchain adoption and the advancement of technology. This leads us to the question of whether the Bitcoin price will continue increasing as a result.

Crypto trader @888velvet believes that the Bitcoin price will initiate another downward move before resuming its uptrend.

The analysis stems from the use of the Wyckoff distribution method, which transpires in four phases:

As it stands, we may currently be in the Markdown phase and are set for another downward move.

Lets look closely at the Bitcoin price movement and determine the validity of using this method.

The accumulation phase likely occurred between December 2018 April 2019, when the price was trading between $3000-$4000. The upward movement that ensued, taking the price to the high of $13,764 on June 24, was the markup phase.

Afterward, distribution occurred until the crash of September 24. It is called distribution since most people who were buying during the accumulation phase are selling at these higher prices, thus distributing their cheaply bought bitcoins to new buyers that are just entering the market.

Since the September 24 crash, we are likely in the markdown phase despite the recent pump.

These phases are outlined in the graph below:

Based on just the length of the previous phases, the markdown is likely to go on for, at least, a couple more weeks. It has been going on for only 35 days, being the shortest one by a significant margin.

If it continues its downward movement, a likely level for its end would be the $6700 level in which both previous support areas and the 0.618 Fibonacci level converge. This view is supported by the current bearish cross between the 10- and 20-week moving averages (MA).

The next level of support is found near $5000 right at the 200-week MA, which is moving upward.

Disclaimer: This article is not trading advice and should not be construed as such. Always consult a trained financial professional before investing in cryptocurrencies, as the market is particularly volatile.

Images courtesy of Twitter, TradingView.

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Another Bitcoin Price Decrease Predicted by Wyckoff Distribution Method, Notes Analyst - BeInCrypto

The Bitcoin rally late last Friday added a dramatic 42% gain to its peak at above $10,000. The days before that saw seemingly disconnected whale transactions going to exchanges.

But then, the markets were on fire, with the common cause seen as the Xi Effect. The recent statement by Chinese president Xi Jinping that the country was taking a pro-blockchain stance, seemed to spark a market rally.

The most active traders, however, were not the Chinese, but Western markets, according to research by TokenAnalyst.

The level of heightened transactions continued and even expanded after the Chinese waking hours, pushing Bitcoin back above five figures. The TokenAnalyst reports that over 6,000 more transactions took place outside of the Chinese trading session, and moved over twice the amount of BTC volume.

Its true that crypto markets dont sleep, but this also shows that a rally in BTC is a self-expanding phenomena. Bot trading and automated activity, in addition to transfers between exchanges, may have added to the rampant activity.

Currently, the transfers over the Bitcoin network are on the decline. BTC saw around 300,000 transactions, as seen on a regular day. The value of transactions shrank in the past day, from above $1.9 billion to about $1.6 billion.

BTC on-chain activity and pending transactions often pick up during times of growing volatility, especially with growing prices. But the actual rally happens within an hour or even minutes, without warning.

The rally was followed by lowered on-chain activity as the prices unraveled. BTC sank to $9,124.93 ahead of the US opening hours on Wednesday, with the potential to erase some of this weeks gains. Trading volumes are still higher than usual at $27 billion in the past 24 hours.

It is difficult to estimate which exchange had the biggest effect or triggered the BTC rally. Most of the BTC trades are distributed evenly across crypto-to-crypto exchanges. However, markets like Binance and OKEx attract attention, as well as Bitfinex for its connection to Tether (USDT) transfers.

Smaller transfers continue, as USDT and other stablecoins allow for arbitrage and moving funds between exchanges.

Chinese traders, however, went on to support altcoins, and achieved robust gains for a basket of digital coins and tokens with interests in the Chinese market. TRON (TRX) preserved its gains at $0.020, boosted by the Huobi Global program to deposit TRON-based USDT.

Ethereum-based USDT is also highly active, picking up transfers in the past 24 hours, as shown by the Token Analysts data:

The supply of Ethereum-based USDT has grown to about 2.023 billion, and is currently the more active stablecoin. Leading exchanges have switched to using this type of asset, and the token transfers are also related to price action.

Omni-layer USDT has also been highly active in the past day:

As for BTC, most exchanges except for Binance see net outflows of coins.

BTC has settled to a volatility of 4.01%, with the fear and greed index at 53 points, up from 20 points during the recent sell-off event. At this point, the transfers have slowed down, and BTC seems to enter another period of relative stability.

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

Images via Shutterstock, Twitter @thetokenanalyst @Whale_Alert

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Who Caused the 42% Bitcoin (BTC) Rally? - Bitcoinist

Recently, a spate of banking failure and ATM outages have been cropping up across the world. Primarily, these have been in places like India and politically volatile regions like Hong Kong. However, reports out of America are now showingcountrywide outages from Bank of America, leading Bitcoins lack of centralized financial authority to shine through.

Banking and financial uncertainty, as well as the threat of aglobal recession, has led to a more measured approach being taken in the examination of Bitcoin as an alternative to fiat currency. Most of the examples of where this financial system can work and evolve have been seen in nations under pressure, like Venezuela, India, and Hong Kong.

However, even with the U.S. staring down ever-decreasinginterest rates, the financial superpower has not really had any catalyst to drive it towards an alternative system where individuals money is much more under their own control. This banking outage has sparked outrage as much as it has sparked a debate on the feasibility of Bitcoin.

According to reports, and social media, Bank of America customers, were being met with temporarily out of service announcements on ATMs while others said they were unable to pay their bills and that their cards were being declined.

One Twitter user explained that Bank of America was allegedly reporting that this major outage was just for maintenance, but as expressed, no one appeared to be notified.

Banks have become susceptible to failure in times of economic uncertainty, and even as a centralized chokepoint of money, they are very vulnerable to attacks. In fact, there is aprediction from consultancy firm McKinsey that if a recession does hit, banks that are not fintech focused, may fail.

The primary concern in this instance of Bank of America having server outages is that people have suddenly lost all access to their own money. It is a sentiment that has been growing since the last major economic collapse of 2008, where a vast portion of the global population saw their wealth wiped out as banks collapsed.

Such outages as being experienced by Bank of America customers act as poignant reminders that they do not control their money. The creation of Bitcoin was a hedge against such failings, and although it began small, Bitcoin is reaching a magnitude where it is close to being considered a viable alternative financial system that can bypass banks.

A failing economy and struggling banks will only continue to push this narrative. Just like the 2008 collapse catalyzed the creation of Bitcoin, continued banking failures may spark the critical mass adoption of a new decentralized financial alternative.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Twitter.

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Bitcoin Thrust Into the Spotlight Following Banking Outages in America - BeInCrypto

Wall Street is getting nervous aboutElizabeth Warren's surging poll numbers.

Billionaire Paul Tudor has joined the list of financial big-wigs who predict a stock market crash if theMassachusetts senator wins the presidency.

Tudor is certain that theS&P 500 index, which recently reached a new all-time high, could plunge by an eye-popping 25 percent if Warren gets past the much-coveted 270 electoral votes, Market Watch reports.

Meanwhile, another billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen believes that the fallout could start happening even if she wins the Democratic party'snomination, predicting double-digitlosses for stock market investors.

Warren is known as a hard-liner when it comes to the super-rich. She's had spats with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg (to name a few).

Her proposed "wealth tax" would impose an annualtwo percent levy on households whose net worth exceeds $50 mln (those who are worth more than $1 bln have to shell out three percent).The lawmakerbelieves that this initiative would help the government fund different programs in the realm of education, medical care, and environmental protection.

Warren's crackdown on the onepercentis perceived as quite extreme even within her own party. During his recent appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box,"Democrat Ron Baron said that her wealth-tax was "pretty nuts."

"Warren says if you're successful because this country has allowed you to be successful ... then you shouldn't be as successful as you are," said Baron.

However, it might be too far-fetched to paint Warren as a Marxist insurgent. As a former Republican, she described herself as a capitalist "to her bones" unlike her Democratic rival Bernie Sanders who doesn't shy away from democratic socialism.

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Bitcoin No Longer Rules the Roost in Tether World - U.Today

Wall Street is getting nervous aboutElizabeth Warren's surging poll numbers.

Billionaire Paul Tudor has joined the list of financial big-wigs who predict a stock market crash if theMassachusetts senator wins the presidency.

Tudor is certain that theS&P 500 index, which recently reached a new all-time high, could plunge by an eye-popping 25 percent if Warren gets past the much-coveted 270 electoral votes, Market Watch reports.

Meanwhile, another billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen believes that the fallout could start happening even if she wins the Democratic party'snomination, predicting double-digitlosses for stock market investors.

Warren is known as a hard-liner when it comes to the super-rich. She's had spats with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg (to name a few).

Her proposed "wealth tax" would impose an annualtwo percent levy on households whose net worth exceeds $50 mln (those who are worth more than $1 bln have to shell out three percent).The lawmakerbelieves that this initiative would help the government fund different programs in the realm of education, medical care, and environmental protection.

Warren's crackdown on the onepercentis perceived as quite extreme even within her own party. During his recent appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box,"Democrat Ron Baron said that her wealth-tax was "pretty nuts."

"Warren says if you're successful because this country has allowed you to be successful ... then you shouldn't be as successful as you are," said Baron.

However, it might be too far-fetched to paint Warren as a Marxist insurgent. As a former Republican, she described herself as a capitalist "to her bones" unlike her Democratic rival Bernie Sanders who doesn't shy away from democratic socialism.

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Bitcoin Price Predicted to Move Up in $10,000 Region by Prominent Crypto Trader - U.Today

The recent Bitcoin rally that practically pulled the asset back from the jaws of market bears has left analysts and traders scratching their heads for an answer. Nobody knows exactly what sparked the upward momentum that saw BTC jumping 42% from $7.4k to $10k within hours.

As BeInCrypto reported previously, the last time Bitcoin gained more than 40% in a 24-hour period was when it was still trading at $5.65 per coin.

Some fear it could be a well-coordinated attempt at market manipulation. Others argue that it was probably caused. at least in part, by Chinese President Xi Jinpings Oct 24 speech projecting blockchain as a technological foundation for future innovations. Then, there are also those who believe that the surge happened because western traders overreacted to Xis speech.

As BeInCrypto reported on Sunday, the Chinese Presidents speech on blockchain was well-received as interest in the decentralized distributed ledger technology and its offshoots skyrocketed shortly after.

However, according to analyst Dovey Wan (@DoveWan), Chinese traders were unlikely to have caused the Bitcoin rally that followed. Her argument is based on the premise that there is a noticeable time lag between when the news about Xis endorsement of blockchain came out and the point at which BTCs steep upward momentum started.

Doveys argument makes sense considering that there was no major BTC price movement for quite some time after President Xis speech was made available to over 1 billion Chinese. So, in all likelihood, she added in a recent interview with BlockTV, the rally was caused by western traders.

But was it an overreaction?

Well, perhaps it was, assuming that Xis speech indeed had a role to play in the recent rally. After all, the Chinese presidents speech was, by and large, focused on socioeconomic opportunities in institutionalized blockchain adoption. Bitcoin trading has been banned in China since 2016 and the presidents speech is unlikely to change that law anytime in the future.

Theres clearly no definitive way to conclusively prove that the Chinese presidents speech had a major role to play in the recent BTC rally. However, the fact that it caused many Chinese to pay close attention to Bitcoin is perhaps a good enough sign for the long-term health of the asset.

This is particularly encouraging for Bitcoin and its brethren considering that despite the ban on cryptocurrency trading, Chinese investors are finding new avenues to invest in the asset class, thanks to offshore funds based in Hong Kong and Singapore.

As BeInCrypto pointed out earlier, growing Chinese activity in the cryptocurrency market is likely to continue against the backdrop of a weakening renminbi. On that count, President Xis speech was indeed bullish for the asset class.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Twitter.

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Bitcoins 42% Surge to $10.5k was an Overreaction By Western Traders, Claims Analyst - BeInCrypto

The Bitcoin Time-Traveller has returned, so what further information about the future can he bring? Turns out, none as he reveals himself to be just some guy with a beef about Bitcoin. Oh, and also, Quantum computing isnt at risk of breaking Bitcoin any time soon, so chill out!

The Time-Traveller story is one of the most endearing in Bitcoins canon of out-there conspiracy theories, even resurfacing on Hong Kong national TV, being explained by a former beauty-queen. It emerged from a 2013 reddit post, purportedly from a future time-traveller living in a dystopian world, destroyed by Bitcoin.

HODLers protect their assets by holing up in gated Citadels to keep well away from the No-coiner masses. Most governments no longer exist, although that of North Korea inexplicably does, and holds 180,000 BTC (the largest remaining accessible stockpile).

Perhaps we liked the story for its sheer unadulterated incredulity? Or maybe we liked it because we already had some BTC and (according to the time-traveller) would be safely ensconced inside a future Citadel?

Aside from the alluring predictions of exponentially increasing Bitcoin price, the time-traveller story gained a certain amount of prominence, because in its early years it seemed to be coming true except of course, that it didnt.

However, if you were hopped up on Hopium and reasonably adept at mental gymnastics then you could argue that the predicted figures roughly tallied with what came to pass.

Now, however, the time-traveler has returned, seeming genuinely surprised at the traction his post got. Despite his current admission of a lack of concrete future knowledge, he is still ranting against Bitcoin. Albeit now his main focus is on the networks energy consumption, which wasnt considered so much of an issue in 2013 when the original post was made.

As a Bitcoin investor, youre paying for Chinese businesses to waste electricity by solving an abstract math problem that is designed to get continually more difficult.

His suggested solution is to sell your bitcoin, which he claims, indirectly has the effect of reducing the ecological damage caused by Bitcoin mining.

Except of course that it doesnt unless everyone else does that too in which case nobody is left to buy them.

The hardest of the hard-core tinfoil hat brigade may still attempt to cling on to the theory. After all, perhaps somebody just managed to hack the time-travellers Reddit details? But for the rest of us well I guess we still have a day for the 4Chan Wizard to be proved right.

Whilst we have our myth-busting hats on, lets have a look at this idea that quantum computing is about to break Bitcoins cryptography.

Not so, according to Blockstream CSO, Samson Mow. At a Liquid meetup in Las Vegas yesterday, he was quizzed over his thoughts on quantum computing.

Mow suggested that, although a 53 qubit quantum computer exists today, you would need 3000 qubits to break Bitcoin. And that isnt going to happen any time soon. Keep calm and carry on people.

Are you in any way surprised that the Bitcoin Time-Traveller was a hoax? Add your thoughts below!

Images via Shutterstock

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Bitcoin Time-Traveller: Not Really From The Future, Shock! - Bitcoinist

(Photo Illustration by Avishek Das)

A few days ago I wrote about bitcoin (BTC), which was in the middle of a classic crash. I gave several reasons why not to sell even though it looked like BTC was going down to $6,000.

One was: Firstly, a change in the global situation could dramatically change the picture.

That is what we got on October 25, 2019 Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, used blockchain technology as an example of where China should focus on new technology as part of its economic progress. That is the accepted reason why BTC went from $7,500 to $10,500 in a few hours. The read through from blockchain to BTC is not a big leap of imagination and enough to have a lot of capital pile back into Bitcoin.

China is the driver of BTC or what they used to call the Ax, the player that sets the pace. So when their President says blockchain is good its a massive boost, especially when the Chinese state has been pushing back against crypto because of its ability to send Chinese funds abroad with the click of a mouse.

Meanwhile if China is going all in for crypto, where does that leave the Libra phobic US quailing at the thought of Facebook eviscerating the dollar? Facebook is a big deal, but China is a bigger deal. The US will have to think about a 180 degree policy U-turn on Libra, if China is coming to town with crypto. The Europeans will have to get their game on too. With this potential BTC sits in the centre, the Nobel of this cyberwar.

This all sounds sizzly for crypto but forgetting all the jazzy narrative, what is an investor to do?

The investment first rule of this situation must be Up like a rocket, down like a rock.

Im not saying that bitcoin will slump back, but this is what you should write in biro on your palm of your hand for quick reference when you get confused about the market tomorrow or next week and you need solid ground to brace yourself against as things get spicy.

BTC is extremely volatile. (I hope thats not up for debate.) Which means a jump is not a singular event but simply an expression of inherent volatility with that volatility able to strike at any time in any direction.

Here is the chart:

The Bitcoin chart is mad

Make no mistake, this chart is mad.

Now the key to understanding this market is to reach back into efficient market hypothesis. This states that you cant time the market. This in turn means you cant trade this madness if you want to come out ahead or even whole. You can try but unless you have something unique to back you up, you cannot call these moves.

As such I return to the mantra of buy and hold and buy the dip.

You have to think, I do not know where the price will be in a few days but Im very sure in five years BTC will be a lot higher. Then all these moves are just noise.

Here is a chart of the noise:

The noise in the Bitcoin chart

Apart from the fact that you would need to spend your whole life lashed to your trading screen to actually be there for this move, its all but impossible to capture it when it happens.

Of course, if intraday trading is your thing, you will remember this moment for a long time, but 50/50 it wont be happy memories.

So enough grumpy old man warnings, what is up next for bitcoin?

Its all about China.

Trade war off, BTC down. China going all in on blockchain, BTC up. The trade war factor is likely to be short term, the latter long term. The conclusion of the trade war could see BTC below $6,000 but China going all-in on blockchain could see BTC go off the dial. These factors will compete in the near term.

So one thing assured is volatility and the long term just took a big boost for China, because China is a big part of the global economys future and blockchain is a big chunk of their future, and that huge tide rolls directly into Bitcoins future.

So buy and hold bitcoin, acquire it and buy the dips. It works for equities and it will work for crypto.

Be among the first to get important crypto and blockchain news and information with Forbes Crypto Confidential. It's free, sign up now.

Clem Chambers is the CEO of private investors websiteADVFN.com and author of Be Rich, The Game in Wall Street and Trading Cryptocurrencies: A Beginners Guide.

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

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Bitcoin Exploded: What Now? - Forbes

A Bitcoin mining company owned by Russias internet ombudsman is planning to open a new facility and corner 20% of the international market.

As local financial news outlet RBC reported on Oct. 29, Russian Mining Company (RMC) plans to repurpose a metal factory in the countrys northern province of Karelia.

Closed due to US sanctions in 2018, the ex-Rusal facility could soon host a Bitcoin (BTC) mining farm so large it could account for one-fifth of global output.

Our idea consists of converting the factory and selling its computer power as a service, that is to say, offering IT services, the ombudsman, CEO Dmitry Marinichev, told RBC.

Marinichev steered RBC through a $43 million initial coin offering (ICO) in 2017, a sale that remains Russias largest.

Despite his links to the Russian government, Marinichev has come out critical of some policy, particularly aspects involving the internet.

The Kremlins attempt to block instant messaging service Telegram, for example, earned scorn. Efforts have so far been in vain, as Telegram still remains accessible, while efforts could soon shift to the release of the companys own digital currency.

It is impossible to block it by blacklisting IP-addresses. That way, the battle will go on endlessly, even if you consider that Telegrams client part is open-source software whose inner workings can be analysed and comprehended, he said in an interview in May last year.

As Cointelegraph reported, competition in Bitcoin mining has heated up once again in 2019. Despite the mixed performance of Bitcoin itself, hash rate - or the combined computing power dedicated to mining - continues to hit all-time highs.

Bitmain, one of the industrys major mining participants, last week announced it would look to make its new facility in Texas the most powerful worldwide in the coming years.

Competitor Canaan Creative meanwhile filed for a $400 million initial public offering, or IPO, this week.

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Russia: Government Official Expects To Mine 20% Of The Worlds Bitcoin - Cointelegraph

The price of bitcoin has levelled off following wild market swings over the last few days, though experts predict more volatility for the cryptocurrency.

It is currently trading at around $9,300 (7,200), having dropped below $7,500 last week amid questions over Facebooks Libra cryptocurrency project and reports that quantum computers could pose a threat to bitcoin. This dip was shortly followed bya major price surge that saw bitcoin briefly reach above $10,000 over the weekend.

Despite the price turmoil over the last week bitcoin has managed to avoid the so-called Death Cross a market pattern that takes place when the 50-day moving average falls below the 200-day moving average.

From 15p 0.18 $0.18 USD 0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras.

Prominent cryptocurrency analyst Nigel Green, who is the chief executive of thedeVereGroup financial advisory firm, believes bitcoin will experience more gainsand hit $12,000 before the end of the year so long as itis able to stay above the key support level of $8,500 this week.

Bitcoin has registered some impressive gains over the last 48 hours after being in a lull period in recent weeks, Mr Green toldThe Independent. The $8,500 support has previously acted as a crucial support for bitcoin. I believe that if bitcoin traders can keep the price above this over the next week, the worlds dominant cryptocurrency will experience a breakout.

On 3 January, 2009, the genesis block of bitcoin appeared. It came less than a year after the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto detailed the cryptocurrency in a paper titled 'Bitcoin: A peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System'

Reuters

On 22 May, 2010, the first ever real-world bitcoin transaction took place. Lazlo Hanyecz bought two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins the equivalent of $90 million at today's prices

Lazlo Hanyecz

Bitcoin soon gained notoriety for its use on the dark web. The Silk Road marketplace, established in 2011, was the first of hundreds of sites to offer illegal drugs and services in exchange for bitcoin

On 29 October, 2013, the first ever bitcoin ATM was installed in a coffee shop in Vancouver, Canada. The machine allowed people to exchange bitcoins for cash

REUTERS/Dimitris Michalakis

The world's biggest bitcoin exchange, MtGox, filed for bankruptcy in February 2014 after losing almost 750,000 of its customers bitcoins. At the time, this was around 7 per cent of all bitcoins and the market inevitably crashed

Getty Images

In 2015, Australian police raided the home of Craig Wright after the entrepreneur claimed he was Satoshi Nakamoto. He later rescinded the claim

Getty Images

On 1 August, 2017, an unresolvable dispute within the bitcoin community saw the network split. The fork of bitcoin's underlying blockchain technology spawned a new cryptocurrency: Bitcoin cash

REUTERS

Towards the end of 2017, the price of bitcoin surged to almost $20,000. This represented a 1,300 per cent increase from its price at the start of the year

Reuters

On 3 January, 2009, the genesis block of bitcoin appeared. It came less than a year after the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto detailed the cryptocurrency in a paper titled 'Bitcoin: A peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System'

Reuters

On 22 May, 2010, the first ever real-world bitcoin transaction took place. Lazlo Hanyecz bought two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins the equivalent of $90 million at today's prices

Lazlo Hanyecz

Bitcoin soon gained notoriety for its use on the dark web. The Silk Road marketplace, established in 2011, was the first of hundreds of sites to offer illegal drugs and services in exchange for bitcoin

On 29 October, 2013, the first ever bitcoin ATM was installed in a coffee shop in Vancouver, Canada. The machine allowed people to exchange bitcoins for cash

REUTERS/Dimitris Michalakis

The world's biggest bitcoin exchange, MtGox, filed for bankruptcy in February 2014 after losing almost 750,000 of its customers bitcoins. At the time, this was around 7 per cent of all bitcoins and the market inevitably crashed

Getty Images

In 2015, Australian police raided the home of Craig Wright after the entrepreneur claimed he was Satoshi Nakamoto. He later rescinded the claim

Getty Images

On 1 August, 2017, an unresolvable dispute within the bitcoin community saw the network split. The fork of bitcoin's underlying blockchain technology spawned a new cryptocurrency: Bitcoin cash

REUTERS

Towards the end of 2017, the price of bitcoin surged to almost $20,000. This represented a 1,300 per cent increase from its price at the start of the year

Reuters

Other market analysts claim that geopolitical issues such as Brexit and the escalating trade war between the US and China could see investors turn to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies due to uncertainty in traditional markets.

The recent gains could also serve to prompt even more investment, as traders seek to make a quick profit from bitcoins sudden good fortune.

After the quick push higher there will be profit taking today but the overall change in sentiment is very positive, said Marcus Swanepoel, CEO of cryptocurrency firm Luno, who added that there did not appear to be one answer as to why bitcoin experienced such huge gains.

Some attributed bitcoins latest price rise to comments reportedly made by Chinese leader President XiJinping. Speaking at the Political Bureau of the Central Committee last week, President Xi described bitcoins underlying blockchain technology as an important breakthrough and said more should be done to encourage its development.

He added that China should seize the opportunity offered by blockchain technology and accelerate its development.

His comments add weight to rumours that China is developing its own cryptocurrency, which is expected to be revealed early next year. A recent report published by digital exchange Binance suggests that its launch could have a significant impact on the traditional financial sector by eliminating the need for bank accounts.

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Bitcoin price prediction: China-induced surge will continue if cryptocurrency defies dreaded 'Death Cross' - The Independent