Bitcoin, Ether Post Big Gains as Crypto Market Snaps Back From Black Friday Slump

Bitcoin battled the new COVID-19 variant news-led slump on Friday to mark a very strong start to the week. Bitcoin is currently valued at $58,903 (roughly Rs. 44.18 lakh) on Indian exchange CoinSwitch Kuber, up 1.47 percent after a steady day's trade on Monday where we saw BTC climb 9.44 percent from its opening valuation. Global exchanges like CoinMarketCap value the world's most popular cryptocurrency higher at $57,456 (roughly Rs. 43.09 lakh). Most of the other popular cryptocurrencies appear to have steadied in the past 24 hours. The base looks to be set for Bitcoin bulls to push beyond the $60,000 (roughly Rs. 44.99) mark after a volatile two weeks.

Ether has improved its valuation too, rallying by 10.89 percent through Monday, and marking a 5.31 percent raise over the past 24 hours. While the second-most-popular cryptocurrency is currently priced at $4,603.6 (roughly Rs. 3.45 lakh) on CoinSwitch Kuber, global exchanges value the crypto marginally lower at $4,490 (roughly Rs. 3.36 lakh) where the coin has improved by 3.95 percent over the past 24 hours. Gadgets 360's cryptocurrency price tracker reveals that the Ethereum-based coin looks to be back on track to scale new highs, following Friday's speed bump as global markets pushed all risk assets to the downside. The past week has seen Ether's value shoot up by 9.2 percent in value to mark a strong end to the month.

"The cryptocurrency market showed a quick sprint over the past 24 hours. BTC inched closer to the $59,000 (roughly Rs. 44.22 lakh) mark before facing a minor pullback. Most of the altcoins too settled marginally lower after the initial rally. The coming 24 hours would likely be a range-bound session for the cryptocurrency spectrum," says Edul Patel, CEO and co-founder of AI-driven crypto investment platform, Mudrex.

But it isn't just Bitcoin and Ether alone enjoying gains. Cardano, Tether, Chainlink, Ripple, Polkadot, Polygon, and Litecoin have all shot up in value over the past 24 hours by at least 2 percent, Polygon being the biggest gainer at 12.6 percent growth.

Meme coins Dogecoin and Shiba Inu made big gains too. Dogecoin is currently trading at $0.22 (roughly Rs. 16.82) up by 10.07 percent while Shiba Inu does even better to be valued at $0.000046 (roughly Rs. 0.003446), up by 17.56 percent over the past 24 hours.

The week has begun on a positive note as Monday saw a 9.1 percent rise in the overall crypto market cap, as per CoinGecko. A necessary boost after a brutal selloff on Friday saw investors fleeing a number of riskier assets, including cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin posting its worst day in roughly two months. The drubbing came after the announcement of a new coronavirus variant named 'Omicron' that was identified in southern Africa and which experts are now trying to understand.

Speaking of the new coronavirus variant, an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency named "Omicron" has surged by 945 percent in its value after the World Health Organisation (WHO) named the new COVID-19 variant "Omicron". The token came into existence earlier in November and seems to have risen for no other reason than the newly named coronavirus strain. Currently, the Omicron crypto token, which is represented by the acronym OMIC, is presently trading at $213.10 (roughly Rs. 15,964), as per CoinMarketCap.

Meanwhile, in the world of crypto assets, AMC Theatres and Sony Pictures have decided to reward non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to those who advance purchase or reserve opening-day tickets to Spider-Man: No Way Home. As many as 86,000 NFTs will be made available for AMC Stubs Premiere, A-List, and Investor Connect members in what is the first time a theatre chain has partnered with a notable studio to offer NFTs.

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