Investing.com - Bitcoin extended rally on Thursday in Asia. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency soared above $13,000 and has surged more than 40% in market cap over the past week.
Bitcoin jumped 5.5% to $13,007.1 by 12:23 AM ET (04:23 GMT). It hit a peak of $13,666.02 earlier in the day, the highest level in 18 months. The coin has soared more than 260% so far this year.
Analysts have attributed the recent gains in Bitcoin to Facebook’s plan to launch its own cryptocurrency “Libra” as traders hope the news could push cryptocurrencies into the mainstream.
Analysts also pointed to weakness in the greenback amid expectations the Federal Reserve will cut rates in July as another tailwind that has inspired the recent rally.
Meanwhile, Chinese state-run media outlet Xinhua News Agency said in an article this week that Bitcoin has seemingly gained the status of a safe-haven asset in recent months, as investors looked for safety in alternative investments amid geopolitical tension and ongoing trade war between China and the U.S.
Others believe a group of large and aggressive buyers was the reason behind the rally.
“The cause is simple: aggressive buyers crossed the bid-ask spread and overpowered both passive and aggressive sellers. Based on price action, there were aggressive buyers with deep pockets in action last night. There was no specific trigger known to anyone outside of them,” said Alex Krüger, an economist who focuses primarily on cryptocurrencies, in a tweet.
Prices of other major currencies were mixed today. Ethereum gained 1.8%, while XRP and Litecoin fell 3.6% and 4.5% respectively.