Bitcoin Cash Prices Climb Near 5% as BCH Gains More Support Ahead of Next Hard Fork

Bitcoin Cash prices climbed nearly 5% today as some cryptocurrency investors are supporting BCH ahead of the next planned Bitcoin hard fork.

But prices for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin were all down today as some investors take their cryptocurrency gains off the table and invest in the surging stock market.

In addition, there were rumors that the Algerian government is looking to ban cryptocurrencies. Not only is the government thinking about a trading ban, but it may also make the possession of cryptocurrencies illegal in the future.

Below is a recap of the top cryptocurrency prices at 12:30 p.m. EDT

• Bitcoin: $5,783.23, -2.66%
• Ethereum: $295.01, -1.10%
• Ripple: $0.20, -1.04%
• Bitcoin Cash: $355.28, +4.66%
• Litecoin: $55.47, -1.93%

Now that we know all of today's price movements, here's what has been moving these cryptocurrencies…

Cryptocurrency Markets Today

On Friday, the total market capitalization of the global cryptocurrency sector hit $168.9 billion. Bitcoin's market capitalization comprised 56.9% of the total crypto market capitalization.

Top performers from the largest 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization included Storj (up 42.7%), Vertcoin (up 20.38%), Bytom (up 13.3%), Zcoin (up 13.28%), Zcash (up 8.93%), Status (up 8.79%), and Wings (up 7.5%).

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The worst performers from the top 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization included Veritaseum (down -12.97%), Metaverse (down -12.86%), VeChain (down -12.8%), Aeternity (down -10.98%), and Blocknet (down -10.23%).

Bitcoin Stalls Around $5,800

Bitcoin is still trying to crack the $6,000 level again after another string of warnings from central banks and prominent Wall Street analysts. Recently, Warren Buffett doubled down on his previous criticism of cryptocurrencies.

Buffett has said that Bitcoin was in a "real bubble."

However, investor Peter Thiel argues that all of this criticism is unwarranted. During an investment event in Saudi Arabia, Thiel said that critics are underestimating Bitcoin's potential.

"If Bitcoin ends up being the cyber equivalent of gold it has a great potential left," he said.

Ethereum Can't Break $300 Level

The Ethereum price is still stuck below that $300 barrier despite increased optimism over the Byzantium upgrade. Today's downturn dragged the world's second-largest cryptocurrency's market capitalization to about $28.4 billion.

Bitcoin Cash Continues to Climb

The price of Bitcoin Cash continues to rally as markets turn away from the newly created Bitcoin Gold.

Bitcoin Cash has increased by more than 10% over the last week, as it continues to recover from August lows that pushed it below $300. Traders believe that Bitcoin Gold would be more likely to attract capital from BCH traders instead of BTC traders.

However, Bitcoin Gold currently lacks a cohesive ecosystem and has not gained much traction on exchanges.

Up Next: The Real Reason Jamie Dimon Hates Bitcoin  

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Garrett Baldwin

About the Author

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Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, and consultant with degrees from Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Purdue, and Indiana University. He is a seasoned financial and political risk analyst, with a focus on stocks, hedge funds, private equity, blockchain, and housing policy. He has conducted risk assessment projects for clients in 27 countries, and consulted on policy and financial operations for some of the nation's largest financial institutions, including a $1.5 trillion credit fund, a $43 billion credit and auto loan giant, as well as two of the largest Wall Street banks by assets under management.

Garrett joined Money Map Press as an economist and researcher in 2011, specializing in alternative strategies with an emphasis on fundamental and technical analysis.

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