By Jason Chau and Emese Bartha
Bitcoin rebounded sharply from weeks of low volatility and tight range-bound trading as institutional demand for the asset picked up.
The cryptocurrency jumped more than 9% to hit a peak of $79,455 on Friday, its highest level since late May, according to LSEG data. It last traded at $76,679.
The sharp gains come as a combination of catalysts converge. According to Zaye Capital Markets' Naeem Aslam, a jump in institutional spot demand, coupled with rising expectations of lower Treasury yields and forced buying from certain traders to close their losing bets have triggered the rally.
Bitcoin has, along with gold and silver, also benefitted from the U.S. Treasury's announcement Wednesday that it will raise its purchases of longer-term securities to at least $4 billion per operation from $2 billion, said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.
