Bitcoin (BTC) prices held steady over the weekend, staying around the $52,000 mark amid quieter trading volumes compared to weekdays.
This stability reflects a recent pattern of low volatility during weekends, a trend that emerged after the introduction of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. back in January. These ETFs appear to have shifted the dynamics of bitcoin trading.
In contrast, other prominent cryptocurrencies like ether (ETH) and Polygon’s MATIC saw notable gains, climbing over 5% since Friday. Ether’s rise is likely fueled by anticipation surrounding a potential ether ETF, which could open the doors to U.S. investors and has been driving momentum in the Ethereum ecosystem recently. Meanwhile, the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20), which tracks the largest and most liquid cryptocurrencies, experienced a 2.68% increase in the past day.
Tokens related to artificial intelligence (AI), including Worldcoin’s WLD, Fetch AI’s FET, Bittensor’s TAO, and Sleepless AI’s AI, surged by as much as 10% following the announcement of OpenAI’s Sora, a text-to-video generator. This development triggered enthusiasm in the AI sector.
Some analysts have set short-term price targets for bitcoin at $55,000, with a long-term outlook aiming for $70,000.
“Bitcoin is approaching its peak and is likely to push towards $55,000 in the coming weeks,” said Ed Hindi, Chief Investment Officer at Tyr Capital, in an email to CoinDesk. “In 2024, we anticipate bitcoin to reach its all-time highs, hitting the $70,000 milestone early in the year.”
However, Hindi noted that ether may garner more attention due to its potential for greater upside and investment opportunities in the coming months.
“The real excitement will revolve around Ethereum. With the possibility of introducing an Ether spot-ETF in the U.S. alongside growing global interest in DeFi, achieving $5,000 for ETH in 2024 could very well be a feasible goal,” he added.
