Bitcoin Hits $82,000 Amid Fed's Dovish Signals; Ethereum, XRP, Dogecoin Also Spike: Analyst Theorizes BTC Hitting Peak 'Earlier' Than 4-Year Cycle Top

Leading cryptocurrencies jumped on Thursday after a dovish shift in the Federal Reserve’s rate outlook lifted risk appetite.Cryptocurrency24-Hour Gains +/-Price (Recorded at 9:18 p.m. EDT)Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC)+4.71%$80,981.04Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) +4.94%$2,506.68XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) +6.40%$1.44Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) +3.45%$103.70Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) +6.33%$0.08717Risk-On Sentiment Back?Bitcoin climbed above $82,000, buoyed by a 56% surge in trading volume. Ethereum spiked to an intraday high of $2,526, while XRP and Dogecoin were up 6% each.Cryptocurrency-related stocks also fell, with Strategy Inc. ) and Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc. ) closing up 17.56% and 14.70%, respectively.Over $550 million was liquidated from the cryptocurrency market in the last 24 hours, with $470 million in bearish shorts alone wiped out, according to Coinglass data.Bitcoin’s open interest soared 7.79% in the last 24 hours, indicating an influx of new money into the derivatives market. Notably, Binance’s retail and whale derivatives traders positioned against this move, cutting long exposure and turning net “bearish.”"Greed" sentiment dominated the market, according to the Crypto Fear & Greed Index.Top Gainers (24 Hours)Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M)Gains +/-Price (Recorded at 9:18 p.m. EDT)MarsCoin (MARSCOIN) +96.49% $0.1189Useless Coin (USELESS) +64.16% $0.2050Helium (HNT) +41.94% $0.6764The global cryptocurrency market capitalization expanded 4.49% in the last 24 hours to $2.72 trillion. Read Also: Stocks Extend GainsStocks lifted higher on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 624.16 points, or 1.18%, to end at 53,686.11.  The S&P 500 spiked 1.06% to close at 7,747.71, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.4% to settle at 26,584.06.Fed Governor Christopher Waller signaled he could back leaving interest rates unchanged this month. If August inflation “comes in hot,” he said monetary tightening would be on the table.The probability of a rate hike at the Fed’s meeting later this month fell further, from 63% to 50% in 24 hours, according to the CME FedWatch tool.Bitcoin’s Bull Market SignalsMichaël van de Poppe, a widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader, speculated whether Bitcoin would follow its usual four-year cycle or a “shorter version.”“It could theoretically be that Bitcoin had a mid-cycle correction, and we’re about to enter a 2016-2017 type of rally, with a peak earlier than the regular 4-year cycle top,” Van De Poppe stated.The big question that needs to be answered from here is whether or not we'll be having a regular cycle from here or a shorter version.It could theoretically be that had a mid-cycle correction and we're about to enter a 2016-2017 type of rally, with a peak earlier than…On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant noted that Bitcoin shows strong bullish signals with a Bull Score of 70, yet new buyer demand remains weak, while short covering in futures markets is driving most of the recent rally.“$83,000 confirms the bull market. Until then, it’s still only a rally,” CryptoQuant stated.Everything about Bitcoin looks bullish, except the buyers.Bull Score at 70, price up 24%, but short covering drove the rally, not new demand.$83K confirms the bull market. Until then, it’s still only a rally. Read Also: Remember How Bitcoin Was Supposed to Rise With Money Supply? Here's Why That Didn't Happen Photo: KateStock / Shutterstock