Thursday, March 14 — cryptocurrency markets are trading sideways, with some major coins making minor gains on the day, according to data from Coin360.
Market visualization from Coin360
Bitcoin (BTC) is up less than one percent over the past 24 hours, and is trading at $3,921 at press time. The major cryptocurrency has seen small volatility over the day, having dipped to as low as $3,901, while the intraday high reached $3,946 as of press time.
Bitcoin 24-hour price chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
Ethereum (ETH), the second top cryptocurrency by market capitalization, has gained 0.30 percent over the day, trading at $133.68 at press time. The major altcoin saw its highest price point over the week on March 8, reaching $139.37, with a weekly low of $131.65.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said yesterday that blockchain applications outside of finance face more difficulty gaining traction, as the primary added value they offer is decentralization. He proposed that decentralized apps can potentially redraw the existing technology and power landscape by leveraging a decentralized ecosystem to allow smaller players to compete with tech giants’ monopolies.
Ethereum 7-day price chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
Ripple (XRP) has suffered slight losses on the day, dropping by 0.63 percent and trading at $0.312 to press time. Trading at $0.314 in the beginning of the day, XRP has gradually dropped to its current price point.
Ripple 24-hour price chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
Meanwhile, a poll on the Weiss Ratings’ Twitter account found XRP to be preferred cryptocurrency, while the host of CNBC’s “Crypto Trader” show, Ran Neuner, thinks that XRP is faster and cheaper than BTC.
The biggest winners on the day among the top 20 cryptocurrencies are NEM and Bitcoin Cash (BCH), which are up 5.98 percent and 3.96 percent, respectively. NEM is trading at $0.0487 while the BCh prices has reached $134.12 per coin.
Total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies is at around $135 billion at press time, up from its intra-weekly low of about $131.4 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Total market capitalization 7-day chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
In the meantime, The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) plans to roll out its digital asset platform as a part of its three-year strategic plan from 2019 to 2021. The Thai exchange claimed that the local capital market will experience a transformation into the digital age.
Stocks have seen little changes today following weaker-than-expected housing data, with major indices recovering after slight losses earlier in the day, according to CNBC. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reportedly just eight points lower, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were each relativity flat.
Today, Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures reached four-months highs, CNBC reported, as a production curb agreement by OPEC and its partners along with U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela tightened global supplies.