Crypto turns green as Bitcoin flirts with $73k

Most cryptocurrencies are trading in the green over the past 24 hours, with Bitcoin surging to $73,000, pushing the global crypto market cap to $2.45 trillion.

On October 29, Bitcoin (BTC) reached $73,000, marking its highest price level since the all-time high in March 2024. According to data from crypto.news, Bitcoin surged by 5.7% in 24 hours, reaching a peak of $73,001 across major exchanges. Although Bitcoin is trading just below $72,930 at the time of writing, analysts believe that the bullish momentum may not be over.

In an October 28 interview with CNBC, Matthew Sigel, head of digital assets at VanEck, pointed out that the current market conditions, combined with the November 5 vote, create a bullish setup for Bitcoin.

Veteran trader Peter Brandt also expressed his optimistic outlook, predicting that Bitcoin could rise to $94,000 in the near future.

Some analysts anticipate that if Bitcoin breaks past its all-time high (ATH), it could trigger a breather, as profit-taking might lead to increased bids. However, a more bullish outlook suggests that the market could continue its upward trajectory in the coming months.

This sentiment has pushed altcoins higher. Ethereum (ETH) is trading above $2,650, BNB (BNB) is above $607, and Solana (SOL) is holding steady at around $181. Sui (SUI) has surged by 24%, reaching $2.03, while meme coins have also seen significant gains, led by Popcat (POPCAT), which is up 2.22%.

However, some sectors are notably outperforming the broader market and could continue to lead the charge.

Crypto analyst Miles Deutscher highlights that meme coins are the top performers so far in 2024, up 219% year-to-date (YTD). Other sectors that have outpaced the market include artificial intelligence (AI), real-world assets (RWA), Bitcoin ecosystem projects, and decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN).

According to Deutscher, AI tokens and BRC-20 tokens are both up 217% YTD, while RWA is up 134% and DePIN has risen 73%. These sectors are benefitting from the ongoing bull market cycle in 2024.

On the other hand, certain sectors have struggled this year. SocialFi, zero-knowledge (ZK) tokens, and the metaverse have seen declines. SocialFi is down 57%, ZK tokens have fallen 36%, and metaverse projects are down 30%. Other underperforming sectors include governance tokens (-25% YTD) and layer-2 tokens (-16% YTD).