The Bitcoin cryptocurrency seems to have received a boost from the incursion of Russian troops into Ukraine. Its price fell slightly after the outbreak of the war, but since the beginning of the new week it has already added more than sixteen percent.
Bitcoin approached the $45,000 mark during Wednesday’s trading, more than sixteen percent above where it would have been found just two days earlier. According to experts who spoke to CoinDesk.com, one of the reasons behind Bitcoin’s hardening is that the world has cut off or is about to cut off Russia from the SWIFT international payment system, as well as from the Russian central bank’s foreign exchange reserves.
“However, capital flow controls would not affect the price without adequate demand growth. But now we’re more likely to see Bitcoin oscillate depending on which way demand goes,” analyst Alex Kruger told CoinDesk.com.
Bitcoin is about to face a rather important test in a few days, which is the reaction to the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike. Rising rates usually lead to falling asset prices, (including Bitcoin) as people prefer other, perhaps less risky investment opportunities.
