At the time of writing, the price of bitcoin – the world’s number one digital currency by market cap – has fallen towards $28K, about $2,000 less from where it was just a few weeks ago. During that period, the currency rose to about $30K for the first time in about ten or 11 months, giving everyone the feeling that it was somehow stepping onto an entirely new bullish path.
Bitcoin Has Fallen Back a Bit
Crypto analyst Tim Enneking recently blamed rising federal interest rates for why the price of bitcoin continues to endure small periods of suffering. In an interview, he said:
The entire world (crypto and fiat) is basically on tenterhooks waiting for the May 3 FOMC decision… Although the correlation between crypto and fiat has generally weakened this year, major events still cause correlation, and the pending FOMC decision has halted the upward movement of crypto. That, plus regulatory uncertainty (the SEC and Bittrex, MICA), banking difficulties (Silvergate, Signature), and contagion fears (banking, commercial real estate) are all conspiring to create a retracement after what, for BTC especially, has been a major move up.
The price of bitcoin also appears to have been hit by the news of Coinbase potentially looking into relocating to Bermuda. The top crypto exchange has applied for a license in that part of the world and will allegedly investigate leaving the U.S. While customers in America will still be serviced, Coinbase is not likely to remain within the nation’s borders. The company has cited ongoing regulatory concerns as the reason for the move.
Not long ago, Coinbase was hit with a Wells notice by the SEC, who said that while the exchange had not yet been charged with a crime, charges were likely coming. Coinbase took issue with this and said it met with the SEC several times over the course of the last nine years to ensure it remained compliant.
Scott Melker – a crypto writer and investor – said the latest bitcoin slide is nothing to worry about, commenting:
For now, this is nothing more than a healthy retracement after an overextended move to the upside.
Marc Bernegger – co-founder of crypto fund Alt Alpha Digital – also threw his two cents into the mix, saying:
I personally think that the massive gains in recent weeks made investors take some profits from the table, which might have been a trigger for this long squeeze.
Rises May Still Occur
Some analysts believe the price of bitcoin is going to do quite well in the future. Robert Kiyosaki – author of “Rich Dad Poor Dad” – for example, has commented that bitcoin will soon hit $100K. He stated:
People support [bitcoin], not Fed or gov. [Bitcoin] did not need Fed or gov bailout because [bitcoin] people’s money. [Bitcoin] to $100k. Long live [bitcoin].
