Three weeks ago, before the U.S. central bank raised interest rates a hawkish 75 basis points, before bond yields rose to 15-year highs and the British pound tanked, before the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank into bear market territory, Russia escalated its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the prospects of a severe global recession increased exponentially, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization was trading above $19,000.

On Wednesday, BTC was still trading comfortably above $19,000, up more than 4% over the past 24 hours and seemingly impervious to the increasingly volatile macroeconomic environment. How long bitcoin holds above this threshold remains uncertain as is its previously considered role as an inflation hedge.

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