BTC Surpassed $72K, ETH Crossed $4K

At the beginning of March 2024, Bitcoin surged past its previous record high set in November 2021, reaching over $68,500. Despite a subsequent correction to around $62,300 within 12 hours, the bullish sentiment persisted, with funding rates remaining high and BTC prices rebounding to $69,170 the following day. This pattern of reaching new all-time highs followed by sharp corrections continued throughout the week, with BTC experiencing fluctuations between $59,324 and $70,083.

Amidst this volatility, BTC surpassed the significant milestone of $72,000, pushing even higher to reach $72,850. These price movements were accompanied by sustained bullish sentiment, as evidenced by funding rates well above 0.01%. The surge in BTC prices coincided with anticipation surrounding the CPI data release, which could influence the Fed's rate cut decisions. This anticipation contributed to the modest returns of crypto stocks compared to previous weeks.

Meanwhile, ETH also experienced signific ant price movements, surpassing the $4,000 mark ahead of the Ethereum Dencun upgrade. This upgrade, expected to benefit Layer 2 solutions built on Ethereum, contributed to the bullish sentiment surrounding ETH. The surge in ETH prices was accompanied by increased gas fees, partly driven by the popularity of meme coins like DOGE and SHIB, as well as the rise of AI and GameFi tokens.

The broader cryptocurrency market saw notable performances from meme coins, AI tokens, and GameFi tokens, with the latter two categories experiencing significant gains. Despite fluctuations in the broader tech market, demand for spot Bitcoin ETFs remained strong, with significant trading volumes recorded for vehicles like IBIT. Overall, BTC and ETH led the market with their price surges, setting new records and driving investor interest amidst ongoing market volatility.

Source: Bitget Academy

Bitcoin futures saw a slight increase in open interest, alongside a surge in 24-hour trading volume. Meanwhile, Ether futures experienced a similar uptick, with open interest and a 24-hour trading volume going up. Both have relatively balanced long/short ratios, and liquidations for long positions surpassed those for short positions.

Total BTC Open Interest: $36.28B (+1.25%)

BTC Volume (24H): $119.96B (+5.76%)

BTC Liquidations (24H): $63.27M (Long)/$40.75M (Short)

Long/Short Ratio: 50.56%/49.44%

Funding Rate: 0.0447%

Total ETH Open Interest: $13.97B (+3.08%)

ETH Volume (24H): $48.08B (+3.56%)

ETH Liquidations (24H): $42.29M (Long)/$30.49M (Short)

Long/Short Ratio: 50.82%/49.18%

Funding Rate: 0.0489%

HIFI: $16.12K (+141.46%)

JOE: $121.31M (+92.89%)

FORTH: $46.79M (+85.42%)