Bitcoin reaches a one-month peak approaching $72,000 amid increased demand for safe-haven assets.

BTC surged to $71,800 as market participants shifted towards safe-haven assets amidst the intensifying conflict in the Middle East and a resurgence in altcoin strength.

Bitcoin reached a one-month peak (Midjourney modified by CoinDesk)

Key points:

• Bitcoin advanced to a one-month peak of $71,800, nearing the $72,000 threshold that previously resulted in a downturn in early February.
• This upswing coincided with increases in traditional safe havens, as gold rose by 1.8% and silver by 5.3% since midnight UTC.
• Altcoins outshone major cryptocurrencies as risk appetite slightly returned, with tokens such as KITE, AERO, and TAO registering double-digit increases.

Bitcoin BTC$71,150.61 surged to a one-month high of $71,800, effectively disregarding the risk-off sentiment that had limited upward movement in U.S. equities in the previous week.

The leading cryptocurrency experienced a halt just beneath $72,000, a level it most recently attained on February 8 before retreating to $65,000.

Precious metals also experienced gains on Wednesday, with gold and silver rising by 1.8% and 5.3%, respectively, since midnight UTC. Bitcoin has increased by 4.8% over the same timeframe.

The shift towards safe-haven assets occurs amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East, with Israel reporting strikes on multiple security sites in Iran while Iran retaliated against U.S. locations in Dubai and Qatar.

Equities have seen little movement since midnight, trailing behind the broader cryptocurrency market.

Derivatives positioning

• In the last 24 hours, global crypto futures open interest (OI) has risen by 8% to nearly $103 billion. Trading volume also increased, though not as significantly as OI, indicating renewed interest in maintaining positions rather than frequent trading. This lends credibility to the recent price rise.
• Open interest in futures associated with the top 10 tokens has increased, with DOGE leading the way at a 10% rise.
• Perpetual funding rates and cumulative volume delta for most major cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ether, are currently positive, suggesting an accumulation of buying pressure as another indication of ongoing price recovery.
• The 30-day implied volatility indexes for bitcoin and ether (ETH) remain stable at levels observed prior to the onset of the Middle East conflict, indicating a lack of panic in the market.
• On Deribit, BTC and ETH puts are still trading at significantly higher prices than calls, reflecting persistent downside concerns.
• The $125,000 strike call set to expire at the end of March, betting on prices exceeding that level in four weeks, is the most actively traded option in the past 24 hours. Deribit noted that the majority of this activity represents the closing of existing short positions rather than new purchases (bullish bets).
• Block flows indicated demand for bitcoin call spreads and call ratio spreads, suggesting moderate bullish sentiment. In the case of ETH, traders pursued both call and put spreads.

Token talk

• The altcoin market is starting to exhibit signs of strength following nearly a month of consolidation. Ether (ETH) has increased by 5% since midnight UTC, with daily trading volume remaining stable at $25 billion.
• However, it was the lower-liquidity, lower-market-cap tokens that outperformed the larger ones; KITE, AERO, and TAO all saw double-digit gains in the last 24 hours, while tokens like PUMP and DCR have increased by about 6% since midnight UTC.
• The crypto Fear and Greed index has risen from multi-year lows of 5/100 in February to 19/100, indicating a degree of optimism is returning to the broader crypto market.
• The CoinDesk Computing Select Index (CPUS) emerged as the top-performing benchmark over the past 24 hours, increasing by 7% while the BTC-weighted CoinDesk 20 (CD20) saw an approximate 5% rise during the same timeframe.