Since the middle of December, Bitcoin has been on an absolute tear higher, rallying from $6,400 to $10,550 earlier this week, per data from TradingView. This marks a surge of over 60%, meaning that the cryptocurrency outpaced a majority of other multi-billion-dollar assets save for Ethereum, XRP, and Tesla.
This strong surge comes shortly after cryptocurrency investors expected BTC to drop off a cliff, meaning this uptrend has caught traders off guard, as evidenced by the hundreds of millions of dollars worth of short position liquidations over recent weeks.
Related Reading: Bitcoin Could Go Vertical as Price Explodes Past Crucial Resistance at $10,000
Mike Novogratz, CEO of crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital and a former partner at Goldman Sachs, recently weighed in, telling CNBC’s “Closing Bell” panel why he thinks Bitcoin has embarked on this near-relentless trend higher.
Why is Bitcoin Up so Much?
In the interview published Friday evening, the Wall Street investor responded “liquidity, liquidity, liquidity” to the anchor’s question about what is driving Bitcoin’s shocking rally.
Novogratz elaborated by citing the low interest rates established by central banks across the world and “people pumping in money,” most likely referencing the attempts by central banks to inject capital into their markets through open market operations, thus increasing demand for stocks and other assets, Bitcoin included.
Talking $BTC. Watch CNBC's full interview with Michael Novogratz, CEO of Galaxy Digital https://t.co/owuT9MhLOi
— Michael Novogratz (@novogratz) February 15, 2020
Optimistic About Crypto’s Prospects for 2020
Novogratz is optimistic about Bitcoin’s prospects for 2020.
In an interview with Bloomberg published at the end of January 30th, Novogratz gave three reasons why he expects Bitcoin to continue appreciating for the foreseeable future. They are as follows:
- The debasement of fiat money: Novogratz mentioned that the copious amount of liquidity in capital markets, encouraged by low interest rates the world over, and the seeming debasement of fiat money should help Bitcoin, gold too. The idea here is that the potential inflation caused by lax central banks should prove the value of scarce assets, like Bitcoin, whose inflation rate will be cut in half in a few months’ time.
- Becoming digital gold: Novogratz suggested that Bitcoin’s maturing into a form of digital gold, a digital store of value investment, could support prices moving forward. He specifically cited the asset’s performance amidst the brief Iran-US war fears and the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. The Galaxy Digital CEO is suggesting that BTC is showing it has investment potential, which could help draw in investors with time.
- Increasing levels of infrastructure: The investor said that the increasing level of infrastructure in the crypto industry, which he dubbed the “plumbing” of the industry, could help boost Bitcoin. Indeed, there has long been a need for more robust crypto onramps. With the introduction of Fidelity Investments, Bakkt, and other service providers, BTC could see more investment inflows, correlating with higher prices.
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