The price of bitcoin (BTC) has spiked nearly 3% in under 2 hours this morning, following a prolonged period of low volatility – its lowest since the all-time high in December 2017.

As many analysts have pointed out, extended periods of low volatility for bitcoin have historically preceded a substantial move in price, as a couple of traders on Twitter predicted yesterday:

$BTC Volatility Edition Bitcoin Volatility is touching it's historical support level. Previously there's always been a substantial move whenever it got around here. Currently, it's the lowest ever since 20k. Big move incoming. pic.twitter.com/03Sp127G8Q — Hsaka (@HsakaTrades) July 15, 2018

We just closed and made historical lows for 24 hour volatility. Massive move coming as all orders are taken in an extremely tight sub 2% range. Squeezes go in both directions but the chart looks fairly bullish. pic.twitter.com/Hh8ELjsLJ1 — Flood [Bitmex] (@ThinkingUSD) July 16, 2018

Looking at the price and volatility data from the CryptoCompare BTCUSD tile chart, there is a marked decrease in volatility preceding the price spike this morning – with bitcoin jumping from $6,380 at 9am (BST) this morning to $6,541 at the time of writing.

BlackRock Might be Bullish for Bitcoin

The price of the world’s leading cryptocurrency has seen some relative stability in the last couple of weeks – despite the ongoing bearish market.

After dropping below $6,000 last month for the first time since February, bitcoin has managed to keep above the $6k mark – defying the somewhat dire predictions for the coin following the drop.

With reports this morning that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset management firm are considering a move into crypto markets, it remains to be seen whether the market can sustain the momentum and reach the crucial $7,000 mark.