August was a record breaking month for the cryptocurrency market that started its rally in late July and has not shown any signs of slowing down. The quick turn around followed a steep sell off where Bitcoin (BTC-USD) suffered a decline of nearly 60% in the volatile crypto market, which resulted in the selloff of other major crypto currencies and alt coins. Now the alt coins and other major cryptocurrencies including Ethereum(ETH-USD) and Litecoin (LTC-USD) have seen increases of anywhere between60%-400%, and much greater with lesser known currencies with smaller market caps.
Ethereum is the second largest cryptocurrency and with the rise of non-fungible token(NFT) transactions happening on Ethereum, the price of it has risen from a low of around $1,700 to a high of over $4,000. This is a much higher rate of growth than evenBitcoin.
Other major currencies including Cardano (ADA-USD) and Solana (SOL-USD) have been scorching new highs for the past few weeks further illustrating the diversity within the cryptocurrency market; there is a focus outside of just the major names.
The stock market is also sure to include cryptocurrency ETFs very soon pending SEC approval, allowing much more exposure to investing in cryptocurrencies for individual investors who want to stick to the traditional brokerage. Several security issues behind cryptocurrency brokerages and examples of hackers stealing money continue to cause concern about the safety of individuals’ capital. That wouldn’t be the case with thepresence of cryptocurrency ETFs on the NYSE.
Chris Kline, Chief Operating Officer of Bitcoin IRA (investment platform for retail investors who want cryptocurrency exposure) said that a lot of his clients have been shifting their portfolios more into Ethereum than Bitcoin. As of now his clients have 43%in Bitcoin, 27% in Ethereum, and the remaining 30% in other cryptocurrencies. They currently offer investments in ten different cryptocurrencies, but they plan on doubling that number in the fall.
What’s next for Bitcoin and the rest of the cryptocurrency market? Chris Clemente, an analyst at crypto mining and hardware broker Blockware Solutions, says that over the past few weeks the price action was showing a “volatility squeeze” but now buyers and sellers seem to be balancing each other out. Clemente says there’s a big move to follow soon but isn’t able to guarantee a specific direction, but with the momentum over the past few weeks crypto does not look to slow down any time soon.
