How Long Will The Upward Trend In Bitcoin Continue?

 | Aug 28, 2014 02:44AM ET

After stabilizing above the $500 level, will the upward trend continue? Yesterday saw a gain in the Bitcoin (BTC-eUSD) rate, hitting highs of $516 and today the upward trend has continued. Currently, the BTC-USD rate is $520.99, breaking through yesterday’s resistance of $514.35.

A recent report by Citi finds that the Bitcoin price is being subdued by miners and merchants. They stated that if miners provide a steady increase in the supply without an increase in final demand, with miners selling bitcoin to recoup their investment in mining equipment, downward pressure is put on prices. They also note that large merchants, such as Dell, who accept Bitcoin, are immediately selling and converting to fiat money, putting further downward pressures on the BTC-USD rate.

NewEgg, an online retail company, have recently announced they will expand bitcoin payments from the US to Canada, the second such company to do so. Previously TigerDirect added bitcoin payments to its website in July. NewEgg also operates in Taiwan and China, but these outlets have not started to accept Bitcoin yet, but are potential future developments.

One of Europe’s biggest banks, Santander, is commissioning a study of the impact of Bitcoin on banking markets. Previously, other banks have done similar reports, with National Australia Bank stating that Bitcoin would take several years to gain mainstream acceptance last year. This report is due to be finalised in late September and will consolidate a large amount of information that will guide strategy for the bank.

Looking at the hourly chart below, we see that the parabolic stop and reversal indicates the upward trend has not ended yet and any buy orders should not be exited yet. The market saw large buying volumes early this morning. Both the stochastic and relative strength index are both indicating that the market is entering overbought conditions, which imply a downward price movement as the market corrects itself.