For the first time in history, Bitcoin soared to the $70,000 mark, making it a very short-term rise. Meanwhile, traders seem to have shifted their attention to alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins), including meme coins, as they promise higher profits.
Meme Coins Showing Impressive Growth
Meme tokens such as Dogecoin and Pepe demonstrated double-digit percentage growth on Friday morning, adding to the impressive rise observed throughout the week. In addition, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value, has grown by about 16% this week, more than doubling Bitcoin’s increase.
“As Bitcoin consolidates at current levels and Ethereum relatively outpaces it in the short term, attention will be drawn to altcoins and specific side assets that will begin to ramp up,” said Chris Newhouse, a DeFi analyst at Cumberland Labs.
Bitcoin and Ethereum Prices
After reaching $70,000 on Friday, Bitcoin quickly slowed down and is trading at around $68,500 as of the time of writing this article. Ethereum, on the other hand, is closing on the $4,000 mark for the first time since December 2021.
Ethereum’s rise is due to investors expecting the Securities and Exchange Commission of the United States to soon approve spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Ethereum. Bitcoin ETFs were approved in January, and the demand for their securities became the main catalyst for the more than 60% rise in Bitcoin’s rate this year.
Emerging Meme Coins
Along with altcoins, meme coins are also rising, which have long become a phenomenon among retail crypto investors. The latter view the microscopic prices of meme coins as an opportunity to quickly earn huge profits. The Shiba Inu token was considered the most popular during the last market uptrend, and many in the industry consider Dogecoin as the first meme coin. Traders position PEPE, WIF, and other new meme coins as the next big opportunity.
