Bitcoin Hits Record Highs Against Local Currencies in Asia and South America with 7% Daily Surge

Bitcoin has achieved all-time highs against local currencies in several countries across Asia and South America, following a significant 7% surge in its price.

On May 21, Bitcoin reached an intraday and six-week high of $71,650, marking a gain of over 7% within a 24-hour period.

According to CoinGecko, this puts the asset within a 3.4% range of its all-time high in USD terms, recorded on March 14, at $73,738.

Bitcoin Sets New Highs Against Various Fiat Currencies

The surge in Bitcoin’s price has resulted in new record highs against various fiat currencies.

In Japan, BTC hit an all-time high of 11.2 million yen during early trading on May 21.

This marks the first time that the asset has surpassed the 11 million JPY threshold.

The Japanese yen has experienced a weakening trend against the U.S. dollar in recent months, depreciating by 10% since the beginning of the year.

Argentina also witnessed Bitcoin reaching a peak value of 63.8 million Argentine pesos (ARS) on May 21, slightly surpassing the highs seen in mid-March.

The country has been grappling with high inflation, currently standing at a staggering 290%, along with currency devaluation over the past couple of years.

In the Philippines, Bitcoin briefly reached a record high of 4.18 million pesos (PHP) on May 21, surpassing the mid-March highs.

Similar trends were observed in other countries such as Britain, Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Norway, India, South Korea, Taiwan, and Turkey, as noted by industry observer Thomas Fahrer on X.

Bitcoin Short Squeeze on the Horizon?

In a recent post on X , crypto analyst Willy Woo highlighted the liquidation of a month’s worth of Bitcoin short positions, suggesting the possibility of a short-squeeze beyond the all-time highs.

Coinglass reported that within the past 24 hours, 79,010 traders were liquidated, with total crypto liquidations amounting to $345 million, of which 78.5% were short positions.

As reported, Markus Thielen, the head of research at 10x Research, previously predicted that a breakthrough above $67,500  could potentially lead to new all-time highs. 

Currently, BTC is trading at $70,945, just $2,500 away from reaching a new all-time high in U.S. dollars.

Aside from 10x Research, some other analysts have also turned bullish on Bitcoin following weeks-long consolidation.

Leading trading firm QCP Capital has expressed optimism about Bitcoin’s price momentum, forecasting a potential return to the highs of $74,000 .

In a recent note, the firm said it has observed substantial buyers acquiring 100,000 to 120,000 BTC Calls for December 2024, indicating confidence in the upward movement of the cryptocurrency.

“US CPI numbers triggered a break out of the range across risk assets. BTC has since traded back above 66k,” the firm wrote.