Bitcoin’s price has surged past $26,000, hitting a nine-month high and rising for the fourth consecutive day before experiencing a slight decline. Investors are reportedly optimistic about the digital currency’s ability to hedge against inflation and the recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
This morning, the price of bitcoin continued to rise, increasing by 2.37% to $24,724.98.
Yesterday, the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February was released, in line with analyst expectations and indicating a slowdown from January. This suggests that inflation has passed its peak and could support the Federal Reserve (Fed) in slowing down the rate hike.
Investors have also been concerned about the collapse of SVB, leading to the US introducing deposit protection measures and establishing the “Bank Term Funding Program” to prevent the crisis from spreading to other financial institutions.
According to Edward Yardini, the president of research firm Yardini, the collapse of SVB could prompt the Fed to end its rate-raising cycle earlier than expected.
Bitcoin previously hit an all-time high of $69,000 in November 2021 before falling below $20,000 in June 2022 amid concerns about the Fed’s interest rate hikes and balance sheet reduction potentially affecting market liquidity.