Cryptocurrency markets have a tendency to evolve in the most unusual directions these days. This is especially true where major currencies are concerned. Right now, Bitcoin Cash is capturing all of the momentum, while Bitcoin itself is lowering in price ever so slightly. Additionally, it seems BCH has the higher trading volume right now. There is also a big difference in the two markets where the profitability of mining is concerned.
Bitcoin Cash Continues to Dominate the Markets
A lot of people were surprised yesterday when they noticed Bitcoin Cash was no longer being dumped across all exchanges. This trend has lasted for a full week. With platforms such as Poloniex finally allowing BCH trading and crediting user balances, a massive pressure was created in the market. That has now subsided and it looks like things have taken a complete turn over the past 24 hours. A very remarkable turn of events, to say the least.
More specifically, the BCH price was struggling to reach US$500 just yesterday. That was considered to be the temporary top for this altcoin using the Bitcoin name. Today, however, Bitcoin Cash’s market cap is US$13.7 billion, with every BCH having a value of US$832. This spectacular growth is rather unprecedented, to say the least. Although we have seen massive price growth for Bitcoin these past few weeks, even that currency could not note a 66.5% gain in just 24 hours.
What is even more impressive is how Bitcoin Cash has more overall trading volume than Bitcoin. To put this into perspective, Bitcoin has a 24-hour volume of US$2.97 billion, which is very impressive. Bitcoin Cash, on the other hand, is responsible for US$3.53 billion in trading volume over the same period of time. That is quite a spectacular difference and also the very first time BCH has had more volume than BTC. Whether or not this will become a trend remains to be determined.
Several factors are working in favor of Bitcoin Cash right now. Korean exchanges are absolutely dominating the charts these days, with Bithumb generating over $1.4 billion in volume. Coinone and Korbit complete the top 3, all of which have far more volume than any other exchange in the world. This is quite significant, as it seems to indicate Korean traders see more value in Bitcoin Cash than in Bitcoin right now. More precisely, they feel the former has been undervalued for quite some time now. Bithumb also remains quite bullish on Bitcoin, though, which is pretty interesting.
Additionally, it is important to keep in mind mining Bitcoin Cash is far more profitable than mining Bitcoin right now. This may sound incredibly strange to people who haven’t been keeping tabs on things. Just a week ago, mining BTC was nearly 60% more profitable, but those tables have turned. At the time of writing, it is 65% more profitable to mine Bitcoin Cash compared to Bitcoin. Do keep in mind this trend could reverse at any given moment, even though the Bitcoin price isn’t budging all that much right now. An interesting development, to say the least.
All things considered, cryptocurrency markets are quite intriguing in their own way. People dismissed Bitcoin Cash as a currency with no support and no viability. Although the viability factor still has yet to be determined, it is evident its support is slowly growing. There isn’t much difference between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash, though, other than the way in which scalability is addressed. Other than that, both currencies are the same on paper, even though BTC acceptance is far greater than that of BCH. Moreover, there are still no major mining pools supporting Bitcoin Cash right now, other than BitClub and ViaBTC.