The price of bitcoin surged above $8,000 today for the first time in several weeks, a rise of more than 13% over the past 24 hours, prompting excitement in the cryptocurrency community. The combined market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies rose 16% over the same period. It has been, in short, bitcoin’s best day so far in 2018. But not everyone is jumping for joy.
A small number of vocal investors hold large amounts of cryptocurrency, and its among these that the excitement or desolation can be expected at every rise and fall. But today even large institutions are looking closely at the crypto world, and weighing in on the ups and downs. Among these is Barclays, which threw some cold water on bitcoin’s modest rise by saying the currency would never regain the heights reached in December 2017, when it approached $20,000.
“Unlike past peaks in Bitcoin prices, the survey evidence, based on our modeling, suggests that the speculative bubble in cryptocurrencies may have passed its peak,” the bank said as part of its annual Equity Gilt report this week.
The Wall Street Journal noted today that bitcoin has become “boring,” with transactions down 70% from its peak, and fewer social media mentions. Indeed, Google Trends shows that interest in bitcoin closely mirrors its price. Barclays commented (dryly, one imagines) its analysts use the same model for bitcoin as that used for tracking the spread of infectious disease.
Bitcoin has its best day since December, smashing through $7,000 and (briefly) $8,000 in just minutes https://t.co/Szoqkm5KGf pic.twitter.com/j4VSLnmfO8
— Bloomberg Markets (@markets) April 12, 2018
Read more in Business Insider, the Wall Street Journal, and CNBC.