Is This Officially a Crypto Bull Run?

Signs That We Might Be in a Bull Run

There are a number of different factors that are contributing to current fervor around crypto. Here’s three specific narratives that might be spurring on the current rise in prices:

Altcoin Season?

Oftentimes during a bull market for crypto assets, altcoins see big gains after being dormant for so long. Typically, what happens is that Bitcoin takes a jump up in value first, and then traders take those profits and put them into altcoins that are still trading sideways before they start to rise.

This seems to be what has happened over the past month. Bitcoin finally got back over the $30k mark towards the end of October for the first time since the spring. Then it quickly got to around $35k where it has been essentially trading sideways despite a couple attempts to break above $38k. Since it started this range bound trading, altcoins have seen tremendous growth.

In the last 30 days, while Bitcoin is up 30%, many altcoins at the top of the charts by market cap are up even more. Solana (SOL) is up 146%. Cardano (ADA) is up 46%. Polygon (MATIC) is up 70%. Chainlink (LINK) is up 90%. These are just a few examples. Even the worst performing altcoins seem to be up 20% in the past month, indicating we are at least testing a bull run.

ETF Excitement

There’s a fair amount of consensus among market experts that a spot Bitcoin ETF will be approved within the next few months. Though it’s also possible the SEC will try to delay again. So, when an ETF will be approved is yet to be determined, but it’s unlikely that it will be preemptively announced as to help avoid market manipulation. A spot Bitcoin ETF also opens the doors for all sorts of other digital asset ETFs.

The estimates are in the hundreds of billions of dollars when it comes to how much new investment money could flow into Bitcoin if and when spot ETFs are approved. Both Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market’s prices are already reacting to such rumors. Bitcoin’s price jumped over $30k USD for the first time since June in late October and it hasn’t really had much of a correction to this point. It will certainly be fun to see just how the price action for Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market shapes up if and when spot ETFs are approved.

Inflation Still High

There have certainly been positive signs when it comes to metrics such as inflation and the consumer price index as of late, but the reality is that inflation is still high. The average person, even those with higher wages, is likely finding it harder and harder to make their paycheck get them what it used to.

Though these sorts of individuals struggling to make ends meet aren’t likely to be investing in crypto on a large scale. But, it’s possible that retail buyers of Bitcoin are going to be more and more enticed to buy Bitcoin or other digital assets with their weekly savings rather than just put it in a fiat account.

In fact, retail investors are actually the biggest buyers of Bitcoin exposure at this time. It seems like the average person is starting to realize that a savings account doesn’t necessarily improve their purchasing power when it gives a percentage that is outpaced by inflation. It will be interesting to see if hedging against inflation becomes a catalyst for this next bull run.