Bitcoin, Ethereum Prices Hover at Eight-Month High as Altcoins Values Rise in Bullish Crypto Market

The international cryptocurrency market appears to be increasingly bullish with Bitcoin and several other altcoins recording increases in prices over the weekend. Bitcoin on Monday opened trading at $29,960 (roughly Rs. 24.5 lakh) with a small 0.75 percent increase in value. The oldest cryptocurrency is hovering close to the mark of $30,000 (roughly Rs. 24.6 lakh) on both national exchanges like CoinSwitch and WazirX as well as international exchanges like CoinMarketCap and CoinDCX. Bitcoin has seen a spike of 5.86 percent in value over the past week.

“Bitcoin reached a peak of $31,005 (roughly Rs. 25.4 lakh) on April 14, marking its highest point since June 2022. This has prompted bulls to lock their profits,” Edul Patel, CEO of Mudrex crypto investment platform told Gadgets 360.

Similarly, Ethereum on Monday continued to trade around its heightened prices. With a gain of 0.73 percent, Ether is currently trading at $2,097 (roughly Rs. 1.71 lakh). The second-most expensive cryptocurrency after Bitcoin saw its value rise after it completed its Shanghai upgrade last week, that now allows Ethereum validators to withdraw their staked ETH tokens, increasing liquidity for the network.

“Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, achieved a new 11-month high. ETH, in the last few days, clocked a 134 percent increase since its lowest cycle in June 2022. This has fuelled fresh enthusiasm among investors following the successful Shanghai upgrade,” Patel explains.

Most altcoins recorded increases in their values on Monday, as per the crypto price tracker by Gadgets 360. These include Binance Coin, Polygon, Solana, Litecoin, and Avalanche.

Tron, Chainlink, Cosmos, and Uniswap also registered profits.

“Following the current banking crisis, the lending practices of the bank may be further restricted which in turn could make investors bullish about crypto,” Rajagopal Menon, Vice President, WazirX told Gadgets 360. The overall crypto market valuation, as of April 17, stands at $1.27 trillion (roughly Rs. 1,03,94,808 crore), data by CoinMarketCap shows.

Despite the upward market momentum, some cryptocurrencies recorded small dips in value on Monday. These include Ripple, Cardano, Polkadot, Shiba Inu, and Elrond.

Industry insiders are of the opinion that rules to govern the crypto sector will make the sector safer against financial losses and instability in the future. India, under its yearlong G20 presidency that started in December last year, is spearheading the drafting of crypto rules that will work on an international level. Other G20 nations along with the World Bank and the IMF are participating in India's crypto-related work.

Cryptocurrency is an unregulated digital currency, not a legal tender and subject to market risks. The information provided in the article is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice, trading advice or any other advice or recommendation of any sort offered or endorsed by NDTV. NDTV shall not be responsible for any loss arising from any investment based on any perceived recommendation, forecast or any other information contained in the article.