Bitcoin’s price stabilizes following market wipeout

Bitcoin’s price smoothed out on Saturday, reaching an uneasy plateau of $5,400 following a week of catastrophic losses during the coronavirus pandemic.

Global markets hit historic lows this week—on Thursday, the Dow Jones index, fell 10%, the most in a single day since 1987. Asian and European markets met similar fates. The crashes hit the crypto economy hard, cutting Bitcoin’s price in half in just a few days—to lows of $4,107—its biggest slump in over a year.

Stock markets rebounded on Friday, recouping some—though not all—of their losses. So did the price of Bitcoin. Yesterday, its price hovered around $5,400, and today… it hasn’t deviated much; a welcome breather while the world’s traders take a well-deserved weekend break. 

Other crypto markets seem calmer than before, too, according to data from metrics site CoinMarketCap. Ethereum hit $127, up from its weekly low of $95. Bitcoin Cash, a fork of Bitcoin, reached $172, up from $139, its worst price in over a year. 

Analysts think the uptick in global markets follows US President Donald Trump’s announcement that the coronavirus constitutes a national emergency. Such a declaration makes it easier for the Trump administration to access as much as $50 billion to remedy the outbreak—a clear sign that Trump is addressing the issue. 

This is… good for Bitcoin?

Though the coronavirus caused a historic fall in global markets—crypto markets included— pundits still argue that now is the right time to buy Bitcoin, rather than sell. 

Earlier this week, internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom tweeted Bitcoin’s price crash was due to institutional investors selling off their Bitcoin. A good thing, he said, because it would make the market less reliant on speculators. 

Even Edward Snowden, the former-NSA whistleblower, is bullish for Bitcoin.

Still, not everybody is convinced that Bitcoin’s a better bet than regular markets.