Why is Bitcoin up today? ‘There must be some demand…’

• BTC crossed the $100K and hit an ATH of $104K. 
• Analysts predicted BTC could soar beyond $110K, but a pullback to $85K was also likely.   

On the 5th of December, in the early Asia session, Bitcoin [BTC] crossed the $100K milestone, likely driven by a recent comment by Fed chair Jerome Powell.

In an interview with the New York Times, Powell said that BTC is a competitor to gold and not the U.S. dollar. He stated, 

“People use Bitcoin as a speculative asset; it’s like gold, but virtual. It’s not a competitor to the dollar but to gold.” 

A few hours after Powell’s comment, BTC surged from $97K to a new all-time high of $104K, bringing its gains to over 50% since the November U.S. elections. 

Source: BTC/USDT, TradingView

What’s next for BTC?

Commenting on the same, SwissBlock, a crypto research firm, acknowledged that Powell’s impact was a surprise but a great welcome for the digital asset. The firm stated, 

“It’s a Happy $100K! Definitely, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell pumping Bitcoin wasn’t on our bingo card. Our next short-term target? $105K.” 

On his part, Arthur Azizov, CEO of B2BINPAY, an all-in-one crypto ecosystem for business, told AMBCrypto that the pump was linked to Trump’s nomination of pro-crypto Paul Atkins as SEC chair. 

Azizov added that BTC may consolidate at $100K before a pullback to $85K. 

“I believe Bitcoin’s price will consolidate around $100,000 before retracing to five-digit levels, potentially settling near $85,000 in the following months.” 

Crypto research firm Presto Research also cautioned that the rally could attract profit-taking.

However, the research firm also noted that the $100K could attract more demand from institutional investors. 

“We believe there is more room for a rally, as there must be some demand waiting for BTC to break 100k, which will capture more public attention.” 

Now, what are BTC’s next key levels?

CryptoQuant’s Ki Young Ju projected that, based on the realized cap price band, BTC could eye $146K as a cycle top and $112K as the end-year target. 

Source: CryptoQuant