Not long ago, Live Bitcoin News reported that the price of bitcoin – the world’s number one cryptocurrency by market cap – was about to surge all over again. Today, it looks like that prediction is coming true.
Bitcoin Is Spiking Again!
After spending what feels like an eternity in the doldrums (though it was only about two weeks), bitcoin has risen from the ashes and added roughly $1,000 to its price, surging from approximately $5,100 to $6,100 at the time of writing. The currency is once again showing signs of its virtue and resilience, pummeling its way back to the top of the financial ladder and experiencing another solid surge.
The good news is that bitcoin is not alone on its path forward. The currency is joined by the likes of Ethereum and Ripple, the second and third largest cryptocurrencies in the world. Both are trading for over $135 and $0.16, respectively.
The jumps come after news that President Donald Trump has said he’s considering a new spending bill designed to help average Americans battle the effects of the growing coronavirus. The bill will allocate approximately $500 billion in payments to American families, with adults receiving $1,000 each and children garnering $500 checks. Thus, two parents and three children could receive as much as $3,500 in individual payments.
This appears to have lit a fire under the economy, as both stocks and crypto alike have jumped further into green territory following the announcement. Oil has also jumped up by $3 – a nice change from its recent $21 low.
The main sentiment is that the fear and panic surrounding the coronavirus has been responsible for the fall of the U.S. economy, but some disagree. In fact, one source suggests that a DDoS attack on BitMEX – a crypto exchange based in Seychelles – may have had something to do with it.
BitMEX has sparked controversy in that it allows traders to open positions that are much greater than their own capital, which appears to have somehow sparked the attack. Geoff Watts – senior data scientist at Digital Assets Data – explains:
On March 12, bitcoin fell below $4,000. At one point, due to a backlog of liquidations, the price of bitcoin on BitMEX was over $300 below the price on other exchanges. We’re seeing a lot of leveraged trades in the crypto markets and that leverage can lead to extreme corrections during periods of high volatility.
It’s the Same Attack as Before
During this time, as much as $750 million in BTC funds were liquidated from the trading platform. In a blog post, Arthur Hayes – CEO of BitMEX – said a DDoS attack was probably responsible:
At 02:16 UTC, a botnet began a DDoS attack against the BitMEX platform. We discovered shortly afterward that this botnet had been responsible for a similar, yet unsuccessful, attack a month ago.
