Bitcoin Nears $67K, Altcoins Rally Post-Halving, Miners Gain

Key Takeaway

• Bitcoin nears $67,000 post-halving, with broad market gains including a 15% surge in Near Protocol (NEAR) and significant rallies in crypto stocks like Coinbase (COIN) and MicroStrategy (MSTR).
• Publicly listed miners Riot Platforms (RIOT), Hut 8 Mining Corp. (HUT), and Marathon Digital Holdings (MARA) see substantial gains amid increased transaction fees.
• QCP Capital predicts potential short-term altcoin squeeze due to negative funding rates, suggesting a bullish outlook for cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin Nears $67,000 Post-Halving

The crypto markets experienced a notable surge on Monday, with Bitcoin (BTC) approaching the $67,000 mark, a significant move that has alleviated concerns over a potential deeper correction. This uptick comes in the wake of Bitcoin's quadrennial halving event, which took place over the weekend, effectively reducing the issuance of new supply by half. Bitcoin's price saw an over 3% increase in the past 24 hours, reaching $66,500, while Ether (ETH) maintained a steady position near $3,200, marking a 1.5% advance during the same timeframe.

Broad-Based Crypto Rally

The positive momentum was not limited to Bitcoin and Ether; it was a broad-based rally across the crypto spectrum. According to the CoinDesk Market Index (CMI), 163 out of 173 cryptocurrencies posted positive returns for the day. The CoinDesk 20 Index (CDI) also reflected this upward trend, gaining over 3%, with the layer-1 blockchain Near Protocol's native token (NEAR) leading the charge with a 15% increase. This widespread gain underscores the robust speculative sentiment pervading the crypto market following the halving event.

Miners and Crypto Stocks Surge

The halving event's impact extended beyond cryptocurrencies to digital asset-focused stocks. Shares of Coinbase (COIN) and MicroStrategy (MSTR) saw significant rallies, climbing 7% and 12%, respectively. Publicly listed mining companies such as Riot Platforms (RIOT), Hut 8 (HUT), and Marathon Digital (MARA) experienced surges between 6% and 20%. This surge was attributed to a spike in transaction fees, a crucial revenue source for miners, sparking optimism for improved financial performance among these companies.

Market Outlook and Miner Dynamics

Despite the immediate positive market reaction, Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research, expressed caution, suggesting that the halving might not be a bullish event in the short term and warning of potential market weakness and a deeper correction. This caution stems from the possibility of miners offloading their BTC inventory to sustain operations post-revenue cut. However, historical patterns post-halving indicate a potential exponential price increase for Bitcoin, suggesting that bulls may have an opportunity to build larger long positions in the coming weeks. Additionally, the cooling off of funding rates for leveraged derivatives traders and negative funding rates for some cryptocurrencies hint at a ripe environment for a swift market upturn, should risk appetite return.

Street Views

• Markus Thielen, 10x Research (Bearish on Bitcoin):

  "Bitcoin's halving is not a bullish event and warned of market weakness for the next few months, with potentially a deeper correction in the cards."

• QCP Capital (Neutral to Bullish on Bitcoin and altcoins):

  "If this pattern is repeated this time, BTC bulls still have a few weeks to build a larger long position... Improving speculative sentiment could see short covering and a resumption of leveraged longs."