A stunning new Bloomberg report is making the rounds on Monday morning, arguing that “Bitcoin is losing fans” on Wall Street. However, I think they buried the lede. About halfway through the report, the authors mention that XRP bulls outnumber bears 18-to-1.
Of course, Bloomberg only interviewed one company for the report: the London-based contracts-for-difference firm IG Group Holdings plc (LON:IGG). (Source: “Investors Increasingly Willing to Spread Bet Against Bitcoin,” Bloomberg, February 8, 2018.)
The data provided by IG is incredibly interesting. Here are some highlights:
Last January, 90% of traders were bullish on Bitcoin.
Today, one-quarter are betting BTC will decrease.
In other words, Bitcoin longs outnumber shorts 3-to-1.
Ethereum has a 12-to-1 ratio.
XRP has an 18-to-1 ratio.
To put this in perspective, there are 10 long positions on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) for every one short position. And Apple is easily the most successful company on the planet, yet it runs below Ethereum and Ripple in terms of investor sentiment.
This data suggests January’s storm clouds are finally dissipating. Cryptocurrency markets had a horrific start to 2018, with nightmarish price crashes through the month and into the beginning of February, but a few days have offered some sunlight.
Ripple (XRP) Price Chart
Ripple prices have shot up against the U.S dollar. In the last 24 hours, they jumped 6.78%, bringing XRP to USD rate to $1.09. Compare this to last week, when XRP was trading in the range of $0.70 to $0.80.
Gaurav S. Iyer
