Bitcoin Surges, Hits $65,000 Milestone

Bitcoin started this week with a significant surge, breaking above the $65,000 mark for the first time in over a week, marking a notable moment in the cryptocurrency’s recent performance. Despite a minor retracement, the digital currency remains up by 0.5% from the previous day, reflecting a persistent upward trend.

The buoyancy in Bitcoin’s price has positively influenced the broader cryptocurrency market. Early Monday data from CoinGecko indicated that the global cryptocurrency market capitalization had reached $2.5 trillion, registering a 1.3% increase within just a day.

Currently, Bitcoin has slightly backtracked to $64,264.08, yet it still maintains a 3% increase compared to last week. In terms of trading volume, around $13 billion worth of Bitcoin changed hands in the past day, with Binance, the largest crypto exchange globally by volume, handling about 22% of these transactions.

The First Digital USD (FDUSD), a stablecoin issued by the Hong Kong-based First Digital Labs in 2023, emerged as the most traded pair with Bitcoin on Binance. Over the past day, FDUSD accounted for approximately $3 billion in trading volume.

Bitcoin’s influence extends beyond its price and trading volume; the network celebrated a milestone, having processed over 1 billion transactions to date. This achievement comes amid a spike in daily transactions, driven largely by the introduction and rising popularity of new protocols like Runes. Yesterday alone, the Bitcoin network recorded 304,306 transactions through Runes, making up about 60% of all network activity.

Runes, a protocol that enhances Bitcoin’s functionality by facilitating the creation of fungible tokens, represents a significant step forward from the BRC-20 tokens, which brought NFT-like assets to Bitcoin’s platform. This innovation is part of what some in the community refer to as a new era of “shitcoins” intended for the crypto veterans.

Other intriguing developments in the Bitcoin ecosystem included the movement of a 13-year-old wallet, which contained 687 Bitcoins purchased when the price was only $2. The transfer, highlighted by Bitgrow founder Vivek Sen on Twitter, has captured the attention of the crypto community, with many seeing it as a bullish signal. The wallet’s owner, having held onto the investment through various market cycles, epitomizes the legendary “hodler” spirit within the crypto world.