Monero (XMR) price rose nearly 50% after a suspected Bitcoin theft saw around 3,520 BTC, worth $330.7 million, stolen and quickly converted into Monero.
The incident saw the cryptocurrency’s price hit its highest since May 2021 at $389. At the time of writing, XMR was trading at $262, having clocked a 24-hour trading volume of $251 million, up an astounding 363%.
What Happened: According to blockchain data, a specific address received 3,520 BTC in a single transaction at around 07:30 UTC on Monday. Nine hours later, these Bitcoins were exchanged for Monero, driving a 50% increase in XMR's price, ultimately hitting $389.
The theft sparked a chain of events as the stolen Bitcoins were quickly laundered via several instant exchanges, aiming to obfuscate the origin of the funds.
The incident also saw Open Interest (OI) in XMR futures at major exchanges hit a new high, showcasing a surge in market interest in the cryptocurrency.
CoinGlass’s data shows that the futures’ OI at exchanges rose from $20.27 million on Sunday to $22.52 million on Monday. This signals that new money is flowing into the market, which could hint at more gains to come.
This price surge also resulted in significant liquidations across major exchanges. According to Coinglass data, over $1.37 million in liquidations occurred in the last 12 hours, with the majority coming from short positions. A total of $1.16 million was lost on short positions, while long positions faced $205.88k in liquidations.
On the technical chart, Monero broke above an ascending triangle formation on the daily chart, rallying over 27% from the Fib 0.5 level, Fib 0.618, and Fib 0.786.
If Monero manages to find support at around $289, it could continue rallying towards the next resistance level at Fib 0.786 at $345. If this level is breached, the psychological $400 mark might come into play.
However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) on the daily chart is at 82, which is above the overbought level of 70. Still, some indicators, such as MACD, suggest that the bullish momentum is strong, and there’s potential for further price gains.
