Crypto Today: Bitcoin moves away from $20K, bitcoin cash retakes $2K

The CME Group launched bitcoin futures trading on Sunday afternoon after opening above the $20K mark, the BRR failed to push higher and fluctuated in a range between $18,500 and $19,500. In the meantime, the BTC/USD pair reached a fresh record peak at $20,035 on Sunday according to the data provided by coinmarketcap.com and was last seen trading at $18,763 losing 2.38% on the day. 

In a detailed article, ING economist Teunis Brosens argued that in the long term, Bitcoin had little to offer a wider audience, and would likely return to being a niche product for a select group of enthusiasts. “The current Bitcoin dominance appears built on the idea that bitcoin will remain the cryptocurrency of choice forever. Indeed, cryptocurrency, like other internet services, are subject to “network effects” and “switching costs”, creating a “winner takes all”-dynamic,” Brosens explained.

On the other hand, higher transaction times and fees for bitcoin continue to push investors to alternative cryptocurrencies. In fact, bitcoin cash broke above the $2K mark and was up 15% at $2,150 on Monday. With today's upsurge, bitcoin cash retook the third spot in terms of market capitalization and surpassed ripple, which gathered a lot of attention last week by more than doubling its price. The total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies broke above the $600 billion mark for the first time on Monday with bitcoin remaining the most dominant cryptocurrency, taking up 52% of the total volume.