Bitcoin Price Eyes $44K Mark as Crypto Market Cap Is Close to $1.7T

Bitcoin (BTC) price rebounded from some of its losses from yesterday, edging close to the $44,000 level early Thursday morning. Recall that on Wednesday, US stocks recorded an unexpected drop that saw the S&P 500 index closing 1.42% lower on the day.

This drop, albeit unsurprisingly, was enough to impact riskier assets like Bitcoin and the rest. And as a result, the broader market immediately went into a decline with major tokens taking significant hits.

Solana (SOL) and Avalanche (AVAX), for example, have recently been in the news for their high performance and massive gains. However, both also plunged on Wednesday, as a further indication of the widespread impact of the US stocks drop.

When Bitcoin Gains Other Tokens Follow

Barely 24 hours later, Bitcoin has returned to its green zone. As a fact, it may have also given the signal to other tokens as the broader market climbed in early Asian hours Thursday.

According to CoinMarketCap data, Bitcoin is up 2.51% in the last 24 hours and was seen trading at $43,904 as of publication. SOL also saw 13.51% gains in the past 24 hours, and extended gains from a multi-week rally to over 55%.

Meanwhile, the current form of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may have also contributed to the market capitalization of the global crypto market. The overall crypto market cap was close the $1.7 trillion mark on Wednesday, signaling that more money might be flowing into the crypto industry. And for what it’s worth, that is the first time since May 2022 that the global crypto market cap will cross that level.

It must be said, however, that there are a few reasons why traders’ optimism around Bitcoin has remained strong. Firstly,  there is the expectation that a spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) may soon be approved in the US. Should this happen, demand for Bitcoin is expected to go through the roof, even as more institutions begin to get more involved with the asset.

Then, there is the Bitcoin halving event slated to take place in April 2024. Interestingly, a halving event has always taken place shortly before every significant bull run that has ever happened in the history of the crypto market.

Whichever might be the case, Bitcoin appears to be fully set for a rally come 2024. However, for the short term, it may be settling down and trying to consolidate after a month-long rally. If that is the case, Bitcoin might see little to no price action in the coming holidays.