By George Glover
Bitcoin was edging higher on Wednesday, but don’t count on the cryptocurrency breaking back above $100,000 anytime soon.
The world’s largest token rose 2.8% to $98,988, according to data from CoinDesk. Its price passed six figures for the first time last week, but is now about 2% short of that level.
Bulls’ hope that the incoming Trump administration will slash crypto regulation has powered the recent rally, while spot exchange-traded funds that track Bitcoin’s price have also lured in institutional investors.
But it could be a while before the token tops $100,000 again, because long-term holders likely see that threshold as a good level at which to trim their positions.
“The meaningful round level has prompted long-term private holders to sell,” FxPro analyst Alex Kuptsikevich said Wednesday. He added that the token has likely reached a level of “psychological resistance,” comparing its recent wavering to a period in late 2020 when it struggled to pass $20,000.
MicroStrategy stock has also stalled in recent weeks. It’s down 7.1% over the past five trading sessions — but looked set to pare back some of those losses on Wednesday, when it rose 4.4%.
The business software company has become something of a Bitcoin proxy, given it’s been loading up on the crypto. On Monday, it said it had made another $2.1 billion in purchases, bringing its total holdings to 423,650 coins — more than 2% of the total amount of Bitcoin outstanding.
Write to George Glover at george.glover@dowjones.com
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