Bitcoin price surged to $70,000! Here’s what you need to know

The bitcoin all-time high price of $70,000 was reached on March 8.

Keeping its newfound momentum in mind, it is important to highlight that Bitcoin has changed significantly over the past couple of years. To understand and evaluate the direction forward, we need to identify BTC’s historical price action, an upcoming “supply” event, and weigh the institutional landscape for the digital asset. 

Let’s get started.

What determines Bitcoin’s price?

• Supply and Demand: Bitcoin has a limited market supply of 21 million tokens, which has increased at a slower rate over time. Currently, 19.6 million BTC have already been mined, and the rest of the supply will take another 116 years. Therefore, an increase in demand immediately creates’ price appreciation.
• Market Sentiment: Bitcoin is a part of a new digital asset class. Hence, sentiment plays a huge role, which depends on positive regulatory news, institutional adoption, wider retail involvement, and improved security. 
• Macro-economic Market: Due to its volatility, BTC’s price is often influenced by inflation rates, interest spikes, and the changing geopolitical landscape. Over time, the traditional financial market has both positively and negatively affected its value. 
• Competition: Bitcoin is not the only digital currency in the market, as other major assets such as Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, etc., offer other solutions. They have built their niche in the market, often taking market share from the largest digital asset. 

Why is Bitcoin price going up?

Bitcoin is witnessing a similar situation right now. The crypto faced a prolonged bear market in 2022 and 2023. Now, in 2024, the market dynamics have changed for BTC, as new fundamental developments and impending catalysts are positively impacting its value. Let us break down the reasons: 

• Bitcoin Spot ETFs: On January 10, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission finally approved 11 spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, or ETFs. This was a milestone achievement for BTC, and the asset has been on a tear since then. The total net asset value of all spot bitcoin ETFs is currently around $54 billion, which is around 4% of the entire BTC supply. This leads us to the next point. 
• Positive Correlation with the U.S dollar Treasury Yields: Back in February 2021, when DXY declined by 2%, Bitcoin registered a move above $50,000 for the first time. So there has always been a negative correlation between the dollar and Bitcoin. In 2024, the trend has diverted towards a more correlated move, with BTC moving with a resurgent dollar index. 
• Bitcoin Halving: A supply crunch event that is designed into Bitcoin’s network to fight inflation. Every four years, the block reward for BTC miners is halved, and 2024 marks the fourth halving event. The halving event has been a major catalyst for a new Bitcoin ATH. In light of that, let us analyse BTC’s historical price trend based on its past halvings.