By Bitcoin may now be closing in on $63k as the bulls goad it towards and beyond its former all-time high of $69k, but according to one metric, realized capitalization, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency has already closed in on a historic peak.
Analysts at blockchain data company Glassnode stated on X yesterday that Bitcoin’s realized cap has risen to $467.2 billion, just 0.22% shy of its all-time high (ATH) of $468.3 billion back in the middle of 2022.
Following a week of explosive price action and strong capital inflows, the #Bitcoin Realized Cap has experienced a near full recovery, increasing to a value of $467.2B.
This places our current value just -0.22% below the ATH of $468.3B. pic.twitter.com/g4N7AHebl2
— glassnode (@glassnode) February 28, 2024
That metric is rising quickly too. On Tuesday, Glassnode’s The Week Onchain newsletter had Bitcoin’s realized cap at $460 billion, or 3% of its former ATH.
Cryptonews has contacted Glassnode to see if Bitcoin has reclaimed its former ATH in realised capitalization and will update this story with any further information.
Realized capitalization measures the capitalization of Bitcoin at the values that each coin last changed hands at. According to Glassnode lead analyst James Check, this is “the one that matters.”
The #Bitcoin Realized Cap hitting ATHs is the one that matters.
This means the true liquidity adjusted capital invested, saved, and stored in $BTC is now at new highs.
You will hear me banging the drum on this metric all cycle. It’s the backbone metric of my #Bitcoin analysis. https://t.co/7NQP8dNVIh
— _Checkɱate (@_Checkmatey_) February 28, 2024
It’s a useful metric, because we can compare it with Bitcoin’s market capitalization, which measures the total capitalization of the asset if every coin were sold at market price.
Doing so gives a market value to realized value (MVRV) ratio of 2.14, meaning the average Bitcoin holder has seen 114% returns.
Will ETFs And Halving Propel BTC To New Heights?
The two main narratives driving Bitcoin’s recent performance are enthusiasm over ETFs and anticipation for the halving.
The ETF narrative was the industry’s main plot thread through the end of last year. The idea back then was if US regulators approved a Bitcoin investment product, it would result in a giant inflow of institutional money into Bitcoin and crypto more generally.
That has largely happened. The inflows have even been historic. But many are wondering what will drive Bitcoin’s narrative next. There has to be more behind it than another Bitcoin shopping spree by MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor.
Thankfully there is the halving. The halving is a quadrennial event on the Bitcoin network dictated by the blockchain software’s underlying code. On or around April 19, all miners’ Bitcoin rewards will be halved.
Since miners control the issuance of Bitcoin, this will lead to a supply squeeze.
It is already apparent that Bitcoin’s demand was driven by the launch of exchange-traded products in the US. If demand stays consistent, then the laws of economics say that high demand and a choked supply equals higher prices.
We will see. As we witnessed in Bitcoin’s rapid re-ascent this week, crypto is a volatile sport, and people are warming to it again.
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