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Bitcoin Jumps To $40k As Putin Sees “Positive Movement” In Negotiations

Bitcoin has reclaimed the $40,000 mark in the last hour, following indications of progress in discussions between and Ukraine amid the ongoing conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that “positive movement” was being made in the negotiations on a “daily basis.” Russia is facing penalties from Western countries, among others, as world leaders criticize the invasion of Ukraine.

Bitcoin Spikes Following Putin Remarks

The spike came in the wake of new comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who indicated in a meeting with his Belarussian counterpart, Aleksandr Lukashenko, that there had been “positive shifts” in the Ukraine dynamic.

Putin said improvements has been made in the talks between the Kremlin and Ukraine:

“There are certain positive shifts, negotiators on our side tell me.”

BTC/USD trades close to $40k. Source: TradingView

Putin’s remarks boosted global markets. Futures on the S&P 500 rose 1.31%, while futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose 1.65%. Sentiment in Europe was higher, with the DAX in Germany rising 3.41% and the Stoxx Europe 600 rising 2.09%.

At the time of writing, BTC/USD volatility remained high, with bulls aiming to break through $40,000 resistance more convincingly.

The increasing volatility had an effect on liquidations as well, with over $24 million in leveraged positions being wiped off the market in the last hour alone. The largest single liquidation order was on Bybit, worth about $6 million.

Explosive growth in #Bitcoin bitfinex shorts

hate to say it, capitulation incoming pic.twitter.com/FTQGt41UBQ

— Cole Garner (@ColeGarnerXBT) March 11, 2022

Related Reading | Bitcoin On Course To Hit $100K Nine Months From Now, Bitbull CEO Predicts

Traders Unsure Of Market

The cryptocurrency market remains volatile. Bitcoin rose from $38,600 in European morning hours to little more than $40,200 after Putin’s remarks were made public. Ethereum, XRP, and Solana’s SOL all gained 2.4% in the last hour, while Polkadot’s DOT led advances with an 8% rise in the last 24 hours.

However, it’s worth mentioning that Russian troops are rumored to be gathering around Kyiv, and some foresee a possible effort to encircle the capital.

Adam Cochran, a well-known crypto critic and analyst, commented on the contradicting signals, saying:

“Markets are so thin and so desperate for relief that we’re moving on vague positive news in the Russia-Ukraine conflict while both sides also release worsening statements and escalating action.”

Bitcoin stayed at the lower end of its established trading range, with the area north of $42,000 proving impossible to hold for long in 2022.

The latest price action, however, was a godsend for some traders, with popular Twitter account Anbessa informing followers that everything was going as planned.

$BTC/USD Update 📈✅

🔹bullish divergence playing out ✔🔹4th entry -> 4 bounce up 3% pic.twitter.com/QqZnheFLyQ

— AN₿ESSA (@Anbessa100) March 11, 2022

The deterioration of Ukraine’s position has sent shockwaves through global markets. This week, India saw a massive outflow of foreign capital worth billions of dollars, while Brent crude hit $140 per barrel.

Related Article | Billionaire Investor Says Crypto Outlook Is ‘Very Bullish’ For Bitcoin

Featured image from Getty Images, chart from TradingView.com

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Bitcoin In Demand, Bulls Enjoy 9% Surge

Bitcoin surged as much as 9% after a weekend selloff, on anticipation that cryptocurrencies may gain popularity as a result of Russian sanctions.

According to TradingView, the crypto market appears to have recovered after weeks of poor performance, with the price of Bitcoin (BTC) rising 14.5 percent in the last week to little over $43,000. At the time of publication, the world’s most popular digital currency was trading at roughly $41,200.

Bitcoin Price Surge As Russian Demand Rise

According to Marc van der Chijs of First Block Capital, the spike can be explained in part by Russians fleeing the ruble, which has plummeted due to severe US and EU sanctions.

On Monday, Van der Chijs said he saw bitcoin trading for up to $46,000 on some Russian markets, a $5,000 premium above its US pricing.

Van der Chijs said:

“There’s not normally a difference [between the Russian and US price of bitcoin] because there are arbitrage possibilities. That seems to indicate that this urge in bitcoin price is because of Russian buying.”

Kaiko, an enterprise market data research firm, noted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in an increase in Bitcoin and stablecoin volume in both nations. Even outlier altcoins and memecoins with more volatility, such as Solana’s SOL, Terra’s LUNA, and Dogecoin, moved higher on Monday.

Russians concerned about the currency’s and banking system’s stability may consider bitcoin as a method to safeguard their savings.

BTC/USD trades at $41k. Source: TradingView.com

Meanwhile, as countries throughout the world piled on sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin issued countersanctions. In offshore trade, the Ruble lost a third of its value at one point, its worst-ever drop.

“Many Russian citizens and potentially Ukrainian citizens are cut off from being able to move their rubles, dollars, euros or anything else,” said Anastasia Amoroso, chief investment strategist at iCapital.

“We see some evidence of an increase in bitcoin-ruble volume,” Blockchain.com research chief Garrick Hileman noted, cautioning that it was unclear if Monday’s price movements could be completely attributed to such trades.

Related Reading | Battle Of The Hedges: How Gold And Bitcoin Have Performed With Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Exchanges Restrict Trading

According to data from crypto compliance firm Elliptic, the rise in bitcoin could be linked to consumers converting fiat into cryptocurrencies in order to donate to the Ukrainian military and charities, which have raised more than $22 million in crypto over the last five days.

It could also be due to non-war-related issues, such as a tight schedule, he noted.

Many prominent cryptocurrency exchanges, such as Coinbase and FTX, are not available in Russia. As a result, many Russians have resorted to Binance, a crypto exchange established in the Cayman Islands that enables trading between the ruble and bitcoin.

Binance has agreed to block Russian users after Ukraine’s vice prime minister Mykhailo Fedorov demanded it on Sunday.

Related Reading | Bitcoin Staggers After Putin’s Nuclear Deterrence Alert Warning

Featured image from Pixabay, Chart from TradingView.com

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Bitcoin Staggers After Putin’s Nuclear Deterrence Alert Warning

Bitcoin’s price increased momentum early Monday, breaking through the 38,500 barrier zone, but mostly wobbled after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear deterrence alert announcement.

The cryptocurrency attempted an upside run beyond $39,500 and $40,000 but corrected down on Sunday as Putin increased the alert level on his country’s nuclear deterrence in the face of new Western sanctions for assaulting Ukraine.

Following a 0.27% decrease on Saturday, Bitcoin fell 3.65% to close the week at $37,704.

Additionally, it was a gloomy session for the remaining major cryptocurrencies.

AVAX was down 8.07%, while LUNA fell 7.30%.

ETH declined 5.84%, SOL weakened 5.12%, ADA fell 3.48, BNB lost 3.65%, and XRP shed 3.92%.

Related Article | Russia Said SWIFT Ban Could Be Tantamount To A Declaration Of War

Following a sharp upward move, BTC encountered sellers at the $39,500 and $40,000 levels.

BTC has begun a downward correction and is currently trading below $38,290.

It has now established a new high above the $37,500 support zone.

The next critical support level is near $37,200, below which BTC may fall to $36,500.

Total crypto market cap at $1.701 trillion in the daily chart | Source: TradingView.com
Nuclear Deterrence Drags Down Cryptocurrencies

The news of Russia’s nuclear forces being placed on “special alert” and the West’s synchronized response impacted market confidence.

The European Union responded by announcing that it would finance the “purchasing and supply of weapons” and other gear to a country “under assault.”

Additionally, it closed its airspace to all Russian aircraft and prohibited the Russian state-owned television network Russia Today and news agency Sputnik from operating.

BTC is stabilizing above the $38,500 and $38,800 resistance levels in general. If the cryptocurrency surpasses $38,800, it may make a run at the $40,000 mark.

Bitcoin must break through the $38,202 pivot point in order to challenge the first big resistance level at $39,360.

Related Article | Russia Said SWIFT Ban Could Be Tantamount To A Declaration Of War

Broad Market Support Required For BTC

Bitcoin – the world’s most desired digital asset – would require broad market support to break through the $39,000 barrier.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine will continue to be the primary focus of attention.

Any further escalation by Russia or the West would put Bitcoin and the larger crypto market’s backing to the test.

Apart from the news, US President Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address on Monday night and Federal Reserve Chairman Powell’s Testimony on Wednesday and Thursday is also expected to weigh down on the broader market sentiment.

Meanwhile, on the regulatory front, we’re keeping an eye on the White House Executive Order on cryptocurrency and the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets launch.

MICA is a proposed regulatory framework for digital assets that parliamentarians are actively considering.

Featured image from Deccan Herald, chart from TradingView.com

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Russia Can Avoid Sanctions By Using A Wide Range Of Cryptocurrency Tools

As the Biden administration slaps economic sanctions against Russia to contain the crisis in Ukraine, Russia is using various cryptocurrency tools to maintain access to foreign capital.

As Russia attacked Ukraine, cryptocurrency prices fell sharply. On Thursday morning, Bitcoin prices declined to more than 8%, to settle at $34,702.18, marking its lowest level in around a month. 

Ether fell more than 8% to trade around $2,407.47.

Related Reading | Quant Explains How Bitcoin NUPL Can Help Predict Bull Cycles

That’s A Lot Of Money

Economists have approximated that the U.S. sanctions would cost Russia around $50 billion annually.

However, the Russian government seemed to have prepared themselves for the worst by connecting with financial networks who are willing to work with them. 

One of which is linking with digital currency firms who do not undergo any government regulation and function independently on blockchains.

“Russia has had a lot of time to think about this specific consequence. It would be naïve to think that they haven’t gamed out exactly this scenario,” Michael Parker, a former federal prosecutor in an interview with the New York Times, said.

BTC total market cap at $670.906 billion in the daily chart | Source: TradingView.com
Using Cryptocurrency Tools Vs. Sanctions

Economic sanctions are some of the most powerful suppression tools that many Western countries have used in times of war and crises.

During the Russian invasion of Crimea, the United States restricted its banks from dealing business with Russian oil, ghas and financial institutions, the latter’s economy was badly impacted.

Related Article | Bitcoin Investors Haven’t Responded To Russia-Ukraine War With Large Inflows (Yet)

While the US is the one to initiate, the way to make sanctions effective is through the global financial system. 

International banks monitor the flow of money and are tasked with blocking transactions on sanctioned nations.

This is rendered impossible, however, as the Russian government is set to launch its own central bank for the digital Rubble. It seeks to trade directly with countries without having to go through the American currency.

Under The Radar

To cover their activities from blockchain recording mechanisms, Russia also developed new technology to hide their transactions, even from third-party investigators.

A similar move has been done by North Korea which made use of cryptocurrencies to fund its nuclear and ballistic missile program, according to Reuters. 

Iran was also reported to be gaining money from crypto mining to make up for its revenue loss due to its ability to sell oil because of sanctions.

The Russian Blockchain Empire

Presently, Russia is growing a ransomware and blockchain industry.

Last year, entities connected to Russia earned about 74% of total global income, more than $400 million worth of cryptocurrency, according to a Feb. 14 report by the blockchain-tracking firm Chainalysis.

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in the Donbas region on Wednesday, Bitcoin prices declined to $35,000, indicating a drop of more than 8% compared to a day earlier.

Bitcoin was trading at $34,969 as of 1:22 a.m. Eastern Time, according to CoinMarketCap.

Featured image from Reddit, chart from TradingView.com