Bitcoin went absolutely ballistic over the past week, surging 14% from around $108,600 to nearly $123,000 and dragging the entire crypto market cap above $4.22 trillion in the process. This massive rally has everyone wondering if we’re about to see Bitcoin smash through its all-time high and enter completely uncharted territory above $125,500.
What’s wild is that all this happened while the US government is literally shut down. You’d normally expect markets to freak out when federal agencies start furloughing staff and economic data releases get delayed, but instead Bitcoin has jumped 8% since the shutdown began. Traders seem to be treating the chaos as an excuse to pile into crypto rather than running away from risk.
Onchain data shows this isn’t just hype either – there’s real buying pressure behind the move. One analyst spotted over $1.6 billion in buying volume hitting exchanges in just one hour. Even crazier, the Coinbase Premium Gap shot up to almost $92, meaning US investors are literally paying $92 more per Bitcoin than traders on Binance. That’s a massive signal that American buyers are driving this rally hard.
Bitfinex analysts think the rally looks genuinely organic and pointed to Trump floating the idea of stimulus checks funded by tariffs as another potential catalyst. They’re drawing comparisons to what happened after the COVID stimulus payments when Bitcoin went nuts.
The Fed’s dovish stance on rates is also helping since lower interest rates make people more willing to chase risky assets like crypto. Next week could get really interesting if Bitcoin manages to hold $120,000 as support over the weekend.
Conclusion
Bitcoin surged 14% to near $123,000 as the crypto market cap crossed $4.22 trillion, driven by $1.6 billion in buying pressure and strong US demand despite the government shutdown.
Also Read: Bitcoin Record High