Bitcoin Cracks $9,400 to Reach Nearly 3-Month High in ‘Asia-Driven Rally’

Bitcoin (BTC) has risen above a key area of resistance to reach its highest point in nearly 3 months.

On Jan. 28, at roughly 23:30 UTC the price of BTC rose from around $9,150 to $9,400 in less than 5 minutes to reach an 83-day high, CoinDesk’s BPI shows.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization continues to rise amid the backdrop of uncertainty in the global markets with the Dow Jones Industrial Average having cemented a 1.6 percent loss on Jan. 28. The S&P 500 index also saw a sharp decline, down 1.5 percent.

Both indices are posting modest gains as they attempt to correct the sell-off felt yesterday. However, with uncertainty still stemming from the Coronavirus outbreak in China, investors could be looking elsewhere to park their funds according to Su Zhu, co-founder of Singapore-based crypto investment firm Three Arrows.

“[BTC] rally looks Asia-driven with the Chinese equity market reopening after holidays has been delayed due to the coronavirus, so traders itching for activity may have set their sights on the 24-7 crypto markets in the meantime,” Zhu said.

Jehan Chu, co-founder and managing partner of Kenetic, a Hong Kong-based blockchain investment and trading firm, said given the extremely highly volatile macro environment, bitcoin suddenly doesn't seem so risky anymore.

"The recent surge in Bitcoin price is merely a prelude to a much larger move upwards that has been building up over the past several months. A steady wave of shocks including Iran turmoil, U.S. political strife, and now coronavirus destabilizing the public markets is pushing investors to seek alternative shelters for capital," Chu said.

Elsewhere in the market, the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization are posting positive gains with the likes of Cardano (ADA) up 8.6 percent, bitcoin cash (BCH) up 4.6 percent, ether (ETH) up 2.15 percent, while XRP is up 1.94 percent over a 24-hour period.

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