What Is Boosting Bitcoin (BTC)? –

As the leading cryptocurrency has boomed, pushing past key resistance levels like they are nothing more than soggy pieces of parchment, other crypto assets have done relatively poorly. Ethereum, for instance, is up a relatively measly 4.96% in the past 24 hours; XRP is up 3.65%, nearing the $0.33 level. The only notable cryptocurrencies that have beat the market leader are Binance Coin, posting a 15% gain as its deposits and withdrawals start to come online; Tron’s BitTorrent; and Bitcoin Cash.

Let’s try and look at the narratives, specifically in a bid to figure out what combination of factors is driving this notable surge, which caught many traders with their pants down.

Crypto Narratives Right Now

• eBay May Soon Delve Into Crypto: Rumors have begun to bubble about eBay, the world’s foremost online marketplace, potentially entering cryptocurrency. According to a Telegram post from “Patrons of The Moon”, eBay may be announcing support for cryptocurrency in the coming week, citing advertisements and sponsorships seen at Consensus in New York. The company is one of the primary sponsors of the event.
• Whole Foods, Gamestop, Other Outlets To (Indirectly) Accept Bitcoin: In an announcement made during the opening of Consensus, Gemini has partnered with a crypto payments startup, Flexa, to offer its users the ability to purchase physical goods across America with Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Gemini’s resident stablecoin. While the retailers themselves aren’t directly accepting cryptocurrency, the partners, which include Lowe’s, Amazon’s Whole Foods, Nordstrom, and Gamestop will accept fiat sourced from Bitcoin. This will boost cryptocurrency adoption, and likely sparked some hype in the retail audience.
• Bakkt To Finally Launch Futures: Earlier today, Bakkt, the Intercontinental Exchange’s independent crypto initiative, revealed that it will be launching its physically-backed futures contract in June. According to a Medium update from its chief executive, Kelly Loeffler, the product will take two forms: 1) a daily settlement future; 2) monthly futures. This confirms rumors that the platform was looking to launch a vehicle for a same-day market. Bakkt expects the soft launch of this product by July, explaining that it intends to iron out any kinks in the coming weeks. This report comes just a few weeks after Bakkt was revealed to be working with major U.S. bank BNY Mellon. As we reported, the exchange was working closely with the institution to secure Bitcoin and other digital asset private keys, specifically through a system of geographic distribution. In the same announcement, it was revealed that Bakkt had acquired Digital Asset Custody Company (DACC), while securing a $100 million insurance policy with “global insurance carriers.”
• Fidelity, TD Ameritrade, E*Trade: These three financial institutions, which are giants in their own right, are expected to soon allow for direct cryptocurrency trading on their respective platforms, opening the Bitcoin doors to institutions and retail investors alike.
• Bitcoin Decouples From Equities: While Bitcoin has been touted as an uncorrelated asset, many analysts have noted that it traced the U.S. stock market throughout some portions of 2018 and early-2019. Now, however, BTC has begun to trend differently, leading to some (CNBC Fast Money) saying that the asset is bullish. Case in point, as BTC rallied by 12% on Monday, the S&P 500 lost approximately 3%.

Title Image Courtesy of Thought Catalog Via Unsplash