Bitcoin’s BTC offshoot bitcoin cash BCH chalked out impressive gains in the past 24 hours, bucking the weakness in BTC and the broader market.

BCH has gained over 5% from $491.25 to $516 in 24 hours, with trading volume tripling at one point as over 120,000 BCH changed hands. Prices hit a high of $528 at one point, the level last seen on Dec. 18, according to CoinDesk data.

While a high-volume rally is said to be sustainable, gains are not backed by improvement in onchain fundamentals. According to CoinDesk’s AI research, fundamentals for the Bitcoin Cash network recently hit six-year lows in daily active addresses. Per on-chain data, the network is experiencing a «critical demand deficit,» suggesting the recent price action is driven more by speculation than actual network usage or adoption.

Key AI insights

• In the last 24 hours from June 30, 13:00 to July 1, 12:00, BCH exhibited a significant bullish trend, climbing from $491.25 to $519.65, representing a 5.8% gain.
• The price range during this period was $37.80 (7.7%), with BCH reaching a peak of $527.37 at 03:00 on July 1 following exceptional volume support.
• Key resistance formed around $527 with multiple tests, while support was established at $519-$520, suggesting continued bullish momentum despite the minor pullback.
• Over 120,000 BCH changed hands at 01:00—nearly triple the 24-hour average volume, indicating strong buyer interest.
• In the last 60 minutes from 1 July 11:30 to 12:29, BCH experienced significant volatility, initially climbing 0.55% from $519.67 to $522.55 by 11:57, before sharply declining 0.71% to close at $518.85.

BCH/BTC chalks out golden cross

The Binance-listed bitcoin cash-bitcoin (BCH/BTC) pair, which tracks the ratio between the prices of BCH and BTC, has risen nearly 20% in four weeks, hitting a six-month high of 0.0049, according to data source TradingView.

BCH’s outperformance is gathering momentum as evidenced by the bullish golden crossover of the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) crossing above the 200-day SMA.

The pattern indicates that short-term momentum is now outperforming the broader trend, with the potential to evolve into a significant bull market.

The mainnet of Botanix, a network designed to bring Ethereum-equivalent utility to the Bitcoin ecosystem, has gone live, slashing the time it takes to add new blocks to five seconds from 10 minutes.

The network is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), the software that powers the Ethereum blockchain, allowing Ethereum-based applications and smart contracts to be copied and pasted onto Bitcoin, developer Botanix Labs said in an email.

Botanix is one of several projects attempting to scale the Bitcoin blockchain and make it a more conducive venue for decentralized finance (DeFi) by enhancing its utility and programmability.

Others include Rootstock, Stacks and BOB («Build on Bitcoin»), which have all adopted the BitVM computing paradigm that can make complex computations verifiable on Bitcoin, paving the way for smart-contract provision, similar to Ethereum’s.

The expansion of Bitcoin’s utility would allow developers to take advantage of the value held in BTC, which dwarfs that of all other digital assets.

«Fully decentralized» BTCFi

Botanix Labs also emphasized its decentralized governance structure. The mainnet launch coincides with its transition to being operated by a foundation of 16 node operators. Botanix said it expects the number to grow beyond 100 in 2026.

The founding federation includes some of the biggest names in cryptocurrency, including as Mike Novogratz’s financial services firm Galaxy Digital and crypto custody specialist Fireblocks.

«If we want a world that runs on Bitcoin, we have to build systems that honor its core principles of self-custody, open participation and global fault tolerance,” Botanix Labs CEO Willem Schroé said. “Too many Bitcoiners have been burned by centralized platforms, which is why Botanix is fully decentralized at launch. No single party, including us, can touch a user’s Bitcoin.»

Several products that will form the basis of Botanix’s Bitcoin DeFi (BTCFi) offering also debuted in conjunction the mainnet launch. These include BTC-backed stablecoin Palladium and decentralized exchange Bitzy.

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit is working with payments company Naver Pay to promote a won (KRW) stablecoin initiative, KBS reported, citing an unidentified official from Dunamu, Upbit’s parent company.

The two companies are pursing a payments business based on the stablecoin, the official said, although details remain sparse. A stablecoin is a crypto token whose value is pegged to a real-life asset such as the dollar or gold.

«We will specify the scope and methods of cooperation as soon as the relevant system is established,» the official told KBS.

Korea’s crypto-friendly president, elected at the beginning of June, has said he supports a «won-based stablecoin market,» a stance that earlier this week spurred the Bank of Korea to halt plans to roll out a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

A KRW stablecoin is likely to be an important event for local crypto traders, who have grappled with restrictions around moving KRW in and out of the country. That’s led to a large spread and arbitrage opportunities, the trade that pocketed FTX founder Sam Bankman Fried his first notable wealth.

The spread between South Korean and U.S. exchanges has often been labeled as the «kimchi premium.» The roll out of a KRW stablecoin, as long as it is tradable on-chain, would mean that traders can simply swap that stablecoin for USDT or USDC, bypassing fiat restrictions in the region and essentially ironing out any significant spreads in price.