The first time bitcoin breached this level to the upside was in a frenzy of FOMO as most of the world was just learning what this new digital asset is all about.
This time however, the rise seems much more sustainable and the current price more justifiable given the current levels of awareness and adoption. We can see this quite clearly just by looking at the number of transactions happening on the blockchain.
As we can see, the peak of the last bitcoin cycle brought the rate above 3.5 transactions per second (TPS), a level which held for the better part of two months. Due to the increased usage of bitcoin since then, the blockchain has been running above 3.5 TPS since the start of 2019.
We can also look at the level of transactions on peer to peer site localbitcoins.com, which is showing a sustained increase in activity as well. On September 9th, 2017 the total volume surpassed $50 million for the first time ever, a level that has largely held ever since.
FOMO - Fear Of Missing Out
Yes, my friends. This time it truly is different.