A survey published by crypto index fund provider Bitwise Asset Management has found the number of financial advisors allocating capital toward crypto has increased by roughly 50% in one year.
The survey, conducted in partnership with investment website ETF Trends, queried nearly U.S.-based 1,000 financial advisors in December. The findings indicate that 9.4% of client portfolios were exposed to crypto assets — up from 6.3% one year ago.
Of the investment advisors who have not yet allocated to crypto, 15% stated they will “probably” invest in virtual currency during 2021, with 2% stating they will “definitely” invest in the asset class this year.
Financial planners are much more keen to invest their personal wealth in cryptocurrency, with 24% saying they have already done so.
The global economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic appears to be the primary motivation that is driving financial planners towards crypto assets, with 54% of respondents describing “uncorrelated returns” as the principal benefit of cryptocurrency exposure.
One-quarter of survey participants described “inflation hedging” as crypto’s most-attractive utility, up from 9% the previous year. Demand from clients also appears significant, with 81% of advisers reporting that clients have queried them regarding crypto assets in 2020, up from 76% in 2019.
Despite the growth in financial advisors making allocations to crypto, Bitwise’s CIO remarked that “the survey shows it’s still early days for crypto, with less than 10% of advisors allocating today,” adding:
“At the same time, adoption and interest are growing: The survey suggests the number of advisors allocating could double or more in the year ahead.”
ETF Trends CEO Tom Lydon stated: “Financial advisors are increasingly looking for exposure to alternative assets, and interest in crypto is rising.”
The number of crypto-naysayers within the investments advisor community is also falling, with the number of respondents predicting BTC will plummet to zero dropping from 14% in 2019 to 8% last year, and then halving to just 4% this year.
Conversely, the number of advisors predicting six-figure Bitcoin prices within five years has increased from 4% to 15% in a single year.
Grayscale holds the key to Bitcoin hitting $40K, says JPMorgan
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5 hours ago
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January 18, 2021
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Grayscale Investments, the world’s largest digital-asset manager, could hold the key to Bitcoin’s (BTC) short-term price outlook, according to JPMorgan Chase.
As Bloomberg reports, strategists led by Nikolas Panigirtzoglou believe Bitcoin could lose its luster over the short-term unless it can “break out” above $40,000. The flagship cryptocurrency breached that key level on two occasions this month, once in the lead-up to new all-time highs near $42,000 and the other just last week.
The strategists determined that the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which currently has $23 billion in assets under management, will play a crucial role in whether BTC returns to that level or not.
They wrote:
“The flow into the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust would likely need to sustain its US$100 million per day pace over the coming days and weeks for such a breakout to occur.”
If BTC fails to re-take $40,000, trend-following traders “could propagate the past week’s correction,” the analysts said. That means the path of least resistance could be lower.
Since breaching $20,000 in December, the Bitcoin price more than doubled in just three weeks. The digital currency has been rangebound in recent weeks as traders look for the next major catalyst.
In the meantime, Grayscale continues to exert considerable influence over the cryptocurrency market. Average weekly inflows into Grayscale’s digital-asset products reached $250.7 million in the fourth quarter, marking a new all-time high. The Bitcoin Trust generated $217.1 million in weekly inflows, on average.
As Cointelegraph reported last week, Bitcoin’s price rose sharply after Grayscale reopened its services to new investors on Jan. 13.
Bitcoin Funding Rates Soar as Consolidation Persists; Long-Squeeze Imminent?
Published
6 hours ago
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January 18, 2021
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Bitcoin has seen some wild chop as of late, with the crypto’s price ranging between the lower and upper-$30,000 region
It has found some strong support within the lower part of this range, with sellers attempting on multiple occasions to break it to no avail.
The cryptocurrency has also been seeing large bouts of buying activity to counter selling pressure that appears to be coming from large whales on Coinbase and Binance
As soon as these bears lift their sell walls or run out of coins to sell, BTC could begin flying higher
One trader is now noting that although the crypto appears to be positioned for further upside, high funding rates remain a potential catalyst for a long-squeeze
Bitcoin has seen some positive price action this morning, with the crypto rallying higher following a sharp overnight selloff that sent the cryptocurrency down to lows of $34,800.
The buying pressure here proved to be significant and helped spark a rebound that is still unfolding at this moment.
BTC’s price ran as high as $37,500 before facing an influx of buying pressure that slowed its ascent.
It still is looking strong, and there’s a large possibility that it sees further near-term upside once $37,000 is flipped to support.
One analyst is cautioning against getting too excited, as he notes that high funding rates seem to indicate that there could be a long-squeeze in Bitcoin’s future.
Bitcoin Rebounds Following Sharp Overnight Selloff
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading up just under 3% at its current price of $36,900. This marks a notable rally from its overnight lows of under $35,000 set just several hours ago.
Where the crypto trends in the mid-term will likely depend on its continued reaction to $37,000. This is a resistance level for BTC, which would make flipping it into support technically significant.
Analyst: BTC’s High Funding Poses a Risk to Upside Potential
One analyst explained in a recent tweet that Bitcoin’s short-term upside potential is currently being hampered by the high funding rates for leveraged positions.
This could indicate that being long is an incredibly crowded trade and that a Bitcoin long-squeeze is imminent.
“TWAPs & daily opens seem to be really important these days. Funding is getting pretty high again though, so I don’t think there’s a whole lot of room for further upside.”
Image Courtesy of Byzantine General. Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.
The coming few days should shed some light on Bitcoin’s outlook, with its reaction to $37,000 and ultimately to $40,000 setting the tone for where it trends in the mid-term.
Featured image from Unsplash.
Charts from TradingView.
The Three Factors That Could Topple The Recent Bitcoin Rally
Published
8 hours ago
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January 18, 2021
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Bitcoin has held above $30,000 for nearly two full weeks, and the former all-time high of $20,000 seems like a distant memory. But there are three factors that are only growing in threat that could topple the epic bull run the cryptocurrency has been on.
Bitcoin Holds Above $30,000 For Almost Two Weeks, But Strength Could Be Waning
The leading cryptocurrency by market cap has yet to experience any sizable pullbacks beyond 25%. For an asset that’s notorious for 80% or more retracements, and as much as 37% during bull markets, the recent price action is uncharacteristic.
The perfect storm of institutional interest, low supply, and rapidly rising inflation fears, has resulted in the second most powerful Bitcoin bull run yet. And because there’s no telling where the top is, the cryptocurrency could be on track to shatter all expectations.
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But if there was going to be a tipping point, Bitcoin could be at it now as it consolidates above $30,000 – more than $10,000 higher than its previous 2017 peak. Here are the three factors that could spoil the upside momentum for the time being.
Three Factors Behind The Sudden Cryptocurrency Weakness
According to one crypto analyst, there are three primary factors that could send Bitcoin lower: low volume, high funding, and a strengthening DXY.
Funding references the rate paid for holding long positions in Bitcoin on derivatives exchanges. The higher funding goes, the more it costs to have those longs open – the system is designed to encourage longs to take profit during extremes.
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Low volume is never a good sign for a trend’s strength. Lack of volume often shows that interest is waning in the asset at current prices. A pullback more characteristic of Bitcoin could bring prices back to a level that reignites interest.
However, the cryptocurrency is speculative asset, and volume could increase with another push higher due to FOMO alone. There’s also a chance the low volume is due to the severe lack of coins on exchanges, and the fact that institutional buyers are likely buying OTC and not impacting what’s registered on exchanges for volume.
Comparing the DXY against Bitcoin. The dollar is strengthening | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com
Finally, the DXY dollar currency index – a basket of currencies trading against the dollar – shows that the dollar is strengthening after one of its worst year’s on record. Excessive fiat money printing to combat the pandemic has devalued the dollar.
But the extreme bearish sentiment on the dollar and over-exuberance in Bitcoin could be too tempting of a reality check for whales to ignore. A large move in the DXY would pull Bitcoin lower, as the two charts are inversely correlated.
Uncertainty around the coming United States Presidential inauguration and new tax policy could prompt a wave of profit taking in to cash. But because the President-elect has plans for much more stimulus money, any divergence in the current Bitcoin and dollar trends will be short-lived.
Featured image from Deposit Photos, Charts from TradingView.com