With bitcoin (BTC) surging above $60,000 since the beginning of the week, investors have become greedy. This is evident in the Fear and Greed Index, which depicts market sentiment at any given time, turning green in the last two days.
Data from Alternative.me shows that the Fear and Greed Index is in the greed zone, with a value of 71.
Crypto Investors Are Greedy
The Crypto Fear and Greed Index was in the fear zone last week and remained there until Monday when it became neutral. The index even fell as low as 32 on October 11, when BTC briefly slipped below $60,000. The index also spent most of September in the fear and neutral zones, only climbing to the greed region as BTC experienced a brief rally to $65,000 toward the end of the month.
In the past three days, BTC has left the $62,000 range and touched $68,000, currently trading at $67,000, per data from CoinMarketCap. This rally triggered the greed sentiment among traders, as they scramble to profit off bitcoin’s ascent and battle the fear of missing out (FOMO). The index surged as high as 73 on October 16 when BTC hit $68,400 and has now fallen slightly to 71, following the cryptocurrency’s slight correction.
The index is determined by analyzing data from various sources, including social media, trends, market momentum, volatility, surveys, and dominance. The numbers are derived from a meter counting 0 to 100, with the former representing extreme fear, 50 signaling neutrality, and 100 meaning extreme greed.
Notably, investors tend to get fearful when prices are falling, and analysts believe these periods are the best buying opportunities. Contrarily, market participants become greedy when prices are rising, triggering FOMO and an eventual correction in prices.
What Could Happen Next?
The last time the Fear and Greed Index went this high was in late July when BTC recovered from the $56,000 range to $68,000. However, due to the Japanese yen crisis, the asset eventually nosedived to $53,000 in the following days.
While BTC could possibly suffer the same fate in the coming days, factors like rising demand and the market’s anticipation of the second leg of the bull cycle make that unlikely.
