After showing some signs of recovery, the crypto markets have again entered the reds. Ethereum (ETH) has dropped by up to 6.5% in the last 24 hours. On the other hand, Bitcoin (BTC), the original cryptocurrency, dropped by 3.5% in the same time frame.
Nonetheless, the current bear market is still higher than the situation in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm, and the detrimental effects of a total and complete lockdown were far-reaching. Markets, both traditional and crypto, plummeted, and supply chains were heavily impacted, which further affected the price of equities.
Nonetheless, the markets have climbed back up in the two years since. However, in 2022, with record inflation, the markets hit the hay again.
Regardless, investments made during the lows of the pandemic would still keep you in the greens. Let’s consider how much an investor would have made if $1000 was put into.
Bitcoin
In March 2020, when global lockdown protocols were implemented, Bitcoin (BTC) fell to around $5300. Currently, BTC is trading above the $20,000 mark. So a $1000 put into this asset would have generated about $4300 by now. This is a much larger return on investment than the S&P 500 or other stock indices.
Historically, Bitcoin has gone higher than its previous highs and rarely below its prior lows, and this is an impressive track record given its extreme volatility. Some analysts predict the next bull run to occur sometime in 2024, while others think it can happen much sooner.
At press time, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $21,114.86, down by 5.7% in the last seven days. Moreover, the token is up by 5.6% in the 14-day charts.
Ethereum
Ethereum (ETH), on the other hand, has had a much higher rise than Bitcoin. In March of 2020, ETH fell below $120. $1000 in ETH during the pandemic lows would result in approximately $11,500 today. This massive return on investment leaves the stock indices in the dust.
With the merge just around, many predict Ethereum to surpass its all-time high of $4,878.26, which it attained in November of 2021.
At press time, ETH was trading at $1,425.44, down by 9.2% in the last seven days.