Bitcoin jumps 25% in August, but market sentiment remains subdued

Bitcoin rose about 25% in August, marking its strongest August performance since 2017, but investor sentiment did not strengthen at the same pace as prices, according to on-chain analytics firm Santiment. Santiment said Bitcoin surged from around $64,700 on Aug. 18 to about $78,300 on Aug. 21. Even so, the average sentiment balance, a gauge of investor sentiment, stood at just +32 from Aug. 19 to 31, lower than the +72 recorded in July when Bitcoin had traded sideways at around $63,000. Santiment said the Coldcard hack in early August appears to have weighed on sentiment. The indicator fell to -540 on Aug. 1 in the wake of the incident and recovered to around zero only near Aug. 19, when the rally began. Santiment added that no signs of overheating emerged even after the uptrend started. During the rally, the daily peak in sentiment balance was +73, versus +183 in July during the extended sideways market. Bitcoin has entered an uptrend, Santiment said, but investor sentiment has yet to catch up.