Bitcoin Price Watch: Bulls Are Back as Currency Reaches $8,100

Bitcoin is on the rise. After yesterday’s impressive surge to $7,600, the currency has once again defied all odds and spiked beyond the $8,000 mark. At press time, bitcoin is trading for just over $8,100, and is once again reminding enthusiasts of why they got involved in crypto-trading in the first place.

The currency had experienced quite a few nasty runs over the past few weeks. While it never seemingly dropped below 6,600, the resistance levels between $6,700 and $6,900 were proving to be tougher than the coin could handle. Bitcoin hovered within this range for some time, and many analysts were predicting that the currency’s future would yield bleak results.

Now, it seems things are changing. Naturally, advocates and users are warned to be wary. Cryptocurrency hasn’t always proven to be the most predictable of assets, but one can allege that the bears have once again taken the reins. The current price marks a new stronghold and a $1,200 rise in the last few days.

Yesterday, we discussed the wide array of new Muslim investors that suddenly had an open doorway to the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin trades were deemed acceptable in certain instances according to Muslim law, and with nearly 1.6 billion followers, massive waves were potentially made on the virtual asset playground.

However, today’s news may have also bore some positive effects on bitcoin and cryptocurrency. Yahoo Japan has announced that it will invest a near 40 percent stake into the popular Japanese cryptocurrency exchange BitARG. The investment has already garnered approval from the country’s Financial Services Agency (FSA).

For the past month, executives at BitARG had remained relatively silent about who or what was investing in their company. They were hesitant to reveal Yahoo’s interest, saying instead that they were simply exploring “various possibilities.” Now, the company’s identity has been revealed. As the country’s primary online auction site, Yahoo Japan becomes the latest large financial services company to reject security concerns and enter the cryptocurrency scene since Monex Group last week. The organization announced that it would take over Coincheck and handle all the exchange’s customer accounts.

Coincheck was the victim of a hack last January that saw over half-a-billion in NEM coins vanish practically overnight. It’s the largest cryptocurrency-related hack in history, “beating out” Mt. Gox in 2014 by roughly $100 million. The exchange was eventually forced into bankruptcy and was overtaken by San Francisco-based platform Kraken.

Yahoo’s investment will equal anywhere between $18 and $27 million USD. That’s roughly two to three billion yen. Shares in Yahoo Japan have since closed at 0.2 percent.

While the currency still has a long way to go, bitcoin is earning positive feedback from analysts, most notably Tom Lee of Fundstradt fame, who despite the consistent price drops of the last several weeks, has remaining relatively bullish on bitcoin. He says he and his fellow team members remain convinced that bitcoin will finish out the year at $25,000 – its highest price mark since December of 2017.

Tech billionaire Tim Draper is even more enthusiastic, claiming that the currency could reach as high as $250,000 by the year 2022.