Bitcoin price jumps after remaining at steady level since halving event
The bitcoin price jumped today to $669 by evening trading, after staying within a mostly stable range since the reward for miners fell 50 per cent last Saturday.
On Saturday, the number of bitcoins generated by the digital process known as mining halved. Previously, bitcoins were released in blocks of 25, but they are now released in blocks of 12.5.
Analysts agreed that any increases related to the halving have already been priced in. Since Saturday, the daily average bitcoin price has wavered in the range of about $3, according to market exchange Bitstamp.
Read more: This is what you need to know about the bitcoin halvening
This evening, the price of a single bitcoin was trading at $669, after trading on average between $647 and $650 during the previous three days.
Since late May, the bitcoin price has jumped from around $450 to a high of $767 in mid-June. Although inter-day trading has spiked at times in the last few days, it has escaped the huge highs and lows registered in June.
"The bitcoin price has been left in limbo after the Brexit vote volatility – it appears the block reward halving has been priced in," Charles Hayter, chief executive and founder of CryptoCompare, told City A.M.
Read more: EU referendum wipes more than $100 off the price of bitcoin
Oliver Carding, founder of CoinJournal, said: "There is no single reason as to why Bitcoin price has increased in recent months, however economic uncertainty in China, Brexit and the block reward halving have all had a positive impact on the price. The fact that Bitcoin has "weathered the storm" during a time of such economic turbulence shows that the industry is maturing and proves that Bitcoin can emulate gold, being a safe haven when conventional markets are volatile.
"Any price increases related to the halving are already priced in. The hash rate – which measures how powerful a bitcoin miner's machine is – has remained stable, suggesting that mining is still profitable at the current price and difficulty."
A higher hash rate is better when mining as it increases the miners chance of finding the next block in the blockchain and receiving the reward.