Today was almost the day.
Bitcoin's price jumped above the $73,000 mark on Tuesday afternoon, coming just over $175 away from setting a new all-time high price and topping the previous peak of $73,737 set back in March. And then it fell.
Fervent crypto investors were no doubt glued to their screens this afternoon, watching as Bitcoin led the charge that ultimately lifted the broader market. After hitting $70,000 late Monday for the first time in five months, the price of BTC continued to gain on Tuesday, just one week ahead of the U.S. presidential election.
But it wasn't meant to be—at least, not yet. Bitcoin popped as high as $73,562 on Tuesday afternoon, as of this writing, according to data from CoinGecko, with top exchanges and other price aggregators similarly showing a daily peak that was approximately $200 or less than their respective all-time marks.
The Crypto Twitter reaction has been surprisingly subdued, with more prominent tweets wondering about the lack of euphoric glee (or subsequent crushing disappointment) than hyping up the moment.
BTC is like 3% away from all time high.
Where's the euphoria?
Where is everyone?
— Byzantine General (@ByzGeneral) October 29, 2024
Perhaps news of a near-miss on a Bitcoin all-time high isn't quite the head-turner it was in the past after the leading cryptocurrency finally breached its last peak in March, breaking a record set back in late 2021.
Or maybe crypto traders don't believe the moment is quite lost yet, despite some distance growing in the last hour-plus; Bitcoin is priced at $72,495 as of this writing, but still remains within striking distance of the persistent price peak.
There's been plenty of bullishness around the crypto space of late, not only due to crypto becoming an unexpected wedge issue in the U.S. election cycle, but also growing demand for Bitcoin ETFs, which started trading in January.
Bitcoin's close call Tuesday might have disappointed some fans and investors, but even a price above $72,000 beats what the leading cryptocurrency has put up for the past several months, as analysts dangle six-figure projections for the months ahead.
It didn't happen today—yet, at least. But stay tuned.