Bitcoin Surpasses $40K Mark After 18 Months Amidst Crypto Surge

• Bitcoin Reaches $40,000 Mark, Ethereum Surpasses $2,200
• Bitcoin and Ethereum's Performance
• Recent Trends in Cryptocurrency Prices
• Indications of Bullish Sentiment in Bitcoin

Bitcoin Reaches $40,000 Mark, Ethereum Surpasses $2,200

On Sunday, Bitcoin$42,260 -0.64% (BTC) touched the $40,000 price level for the first time in a year and a half. Concurrently, Ethereum$2,315 -2.42% (ETH) also experienced growth, going beyond $2,200. These developments occurred amid a broader, albeit subdued, rally in the cryptocurrency markets.

Bitcoin and Ethereum's Performance

In recent days, Bitcoin's price had been flirting with the $40,000 mark and finally crossed this threshold on Sunday. It was trading at approximately $40,130 at press time, based on CoinGecko data, indicating a 24-hour increase of about 2%. Ethereum was trading at $2,205, an equivalent percent increase in the past 24 hours. The majority of other top-10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization showed smaller gains. However, BNB$312 -5.65% coin, a token associated with the Binance exchange, declined about 0.1% over the previous day.

Recent Trends in Cryptocurrency Prices

The price of Bitcoin, the world's largest and oldest cryptocurrency, had dipped below $40,000 in April 2022. Despite this, it has been on an upward trend for the past few months. This rally can be largely attributed to seemingly dovish remarks from U.S. central bankers and the anticipation that a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) might be approved for launch in the country.

Similarly, Ethereum hadn't traded above $2,200 since May 2022, although it had approached this level a few times.

Indications of Bullish Sentiment in Bitcoin

Bullish sentiment for Bitcoin appears to be suggested by large scale withdrawals. Between November 17 and December 1, Bitcoin holders withdrew 37,000 BTC. This suggests that they were opting for direct custody of their coins, a fact reported earlier in the week.

Edited by Jonathan Stoker