Bitcoin Price Nears $17K as Stocks Jump on New COVID-19 Vaccine

By Jose Antonio Lanz

It’s the start of a new week, and there’s plenty of good news to go around for investors, traders… and, well, just about everyone: another COVID-19 vaccine is showing signs of being ready for the masses, and the markets are feeling good. Bitcoin is trading for nearly $17,000 per coin, marking another 2020 high, while traditional stock and equities markets are booming.

A few hours ago, Moderna Labs announced positive results for a potential coronavirus vaccine, which the company tested on a group of 30,000 people. The vaccine proved 94.5% effective, outperforming its two main competitors: Pfizer—which was a little more than 90% effective—and Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, with 92% reported effectiveness.

And, likely not coincidentally, both the Bitcoin and stock markets are heading upwards following the news. The NASDAQ rose 65 points to 11,894.41, with a 0.55% increase throughout the day. The Dow Jones registered a good 382 points more to comfortably reach 29,862.10 points, a rise of 1.3%, while the S&P 500 grew 0.83% to reach 3,614.74 points after the announcement.

As you’d expect, Pfizer and Moderna stock prices also moved today on the news. Pfizer stock dropped from $37.95 to $36.85 in one day and lost all of the profits it made after its own vaccine announcements. Meanwhile, Moderna registered an all-time high stock price today of $103.20 before correcting to $97.40 per share.

At the same time, Bitcoin continues to climb higher and higher on its bullish trend. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization is now trading at nearly $17,000 per coin: it is currently trading for $16,800, up almost 6% on the day.

Bitcoin traders last spotted that price during the last green candle of 2018 (before the crypto set off on a crash to $3,000 on January 6, 2018). Bitcoin, then, is making history again today.

Bitcoin USD trading pair. Image: TradingView

Bitcoin has been on an upward trajectory since the coronavirus-induced, mid-March crash. Its performance over the last several months may be due to several factors, some of which include its adoption by large institutions, what may be perceived to be favorable political changes, and increasingly optimistic analysis from notable names in traditional finance.

So, whether today’s COVID news moved the needle among crypto traders or not, its rise during these uncertain times begs the question: Will a return to normal for the world and its economy sooner rather than later be good for Bitcoin?

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