Bitcoin has failed to emerge from its sideways trade as the year comes to a close, with cryptocurrency investors taking their wins following a surprisingly successful year for digital assets.
BTC/USD has traded between $41,000 and $43,000 for the majority of December, with the pair jumping 200 basis points yesterday before paring half of those gains this morning.
As of 10.20am, bitcoin was swapping for $43,150.
Source: tradingview.com
Despite the latter year cool-off, year-to-date gains for the benchmark cryptocurrency are an impressive 160%, marking a return to form following a dire 2022.
Bitcoin bulls were hoping for a final Santa rally pump above $45,000, but this seems unlikely with volumes retreating.
The sum off all outstanding cryptocurrency market capitalisations is $1.69 trillion, with bitcoin’s share of the market slightly above 51%.
Despite a lacklustre showing for bitcoin, crypto-adjacent stocks have ripped higher.
Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ:COIN) added more than 7.5% on Wednesday, and is scheduled to open another percentage point higher when US markets open today.
Meanwhile, shares in MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ:MSTR), the largest corporate bitcoin holder, added 13% throughout yesterday’s trading session.
Over the past few years, MicroStrategy has morphed from a software group to a proxy bitcoin investment fund, with founder Michael Saylor even rescinding his role as chief executive in order to focus on the company’s bitcoin strategy.
MicroStrategy added another $615 million in bitcoins to its coffers this week, bringing total holdings to around $8.1 billion (this figure is of course subject to massive volatility).