Bitcoin Surges Past $78,000, Record Short Liquidations Fuel Rally

Bitcoin's price has surged past $78,000 on Friday morning, marking its strongest weekly performance in over three years. According to Standard Chartered analyst Geoffrey Kendrick, this rally could push Bitcoin's price beyond its record high of over $126,000 before the end of the year.

Kendrick noted that investors have grown accustomed to steep declines earlier this year, but the latest rally shows how quickly prices can move in the opposite direction. The analyst attributed the surge in part to the liquidation of bearish positions, with a record short liquidation on CoinGlass data going back to June 2021.

The rally has also attracted fresh capital, with Bitcoin ETFs seeing roughly $1.5 billion in inflows this week, according to Kendrick. He described this as an early sign of renewed demand and noted that low open interest across crypto markets could leave room for more traders and investors to enter if the price continues to rise.

Kendrick's $100,000 year-end forecast may now be too low, he said, adding that 'an overshoot towards the all-time high before year-end may be possible' after October 6.