Given Ruvic / Reuters
- Bitcoin rose 15% to $ 38,089.94 on Friday after billionaire Elon Musk updated his Twitter bio to “#bitcoin”.
- The digital token ranged between $ 31,000 and $ 33,000 for most of the week.
- Its rise is also being driven by advocates of Reddit retail traders and investors.
- Sign up here to receive our daily newsletter, 10 things before the opening bell.
Bitcoin rose by 15% on Friday after Tesla founder Elon Musk changed his Twitter bio for “#bitcoin. “
The digital asset soared to $ 38,089.94 after the billionaire’s update, after spending most of the week in a range between $ 31,000 and $ 33,000. The token reached an all-time high of more than $ 41,000 earlier this month, driven by a record amount of economic stimulus and inflationary fears.
@ elonmusk / Twitter
Musk later posted a tweet saying, “In retrospect, it was inevitable.”
On Wednesday, your “Gamestonk !!” tweeting along with a link to the popular subreddit WallStreetBets also helped boost a 157% rise in GameStop shares.
Read More: As Redditors flood the stock market, UBS looks at 6 option strategies that investors can now use to protect their portfolios
It is unclear what the material difference is between Elon Musk having bitcoin in his Twitter biography and not having it there, according to Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com. “Does that mean he’s buying? Or does he just think it’s a good thing,” he wrote in a note, adding that Musk’s Twitter record of Tesla shares is “checkered.”
“Clearly, the move is being applauded by Bitcoin optimists,” he said, and called the feverish market trading around major securities like Bitcoin and GameStop “risky”.
He also noted that “assets that can be moved so easily by social media, whether Twitter or Reddit, are responsible for big movements during the day and subsequently can be very difficult to handle for many. It is getting wild out there. “
Bitcoin’s rise is also being indirectly driven by advocates of Reddit traders and retail investors who protest against the structure of Wall Street and the practices of financial markets. “It is important to note that much of the work being done in the blockchain space has been inspired by these barriers,” said Paolo Ardoino, CTO at Bitfinex.
The rise of Bitcoin after the rage against financial elites represents a “beacon of hope for a fairer and more equitable financial system,” he said.
Read More: MORGAN STANLEY: Buy these 17 stocks with strong gains that are expected to outperform by 2022, even if the broader market sinks