© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin is seen in an illustration photograph taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
By Ankur Banerjee and Medha Singh
(Reuters) -Bitcoin surpassed $45,000 on Tuesday for the first time since April 2022, as the world’s largest cryptocurrency started the new year strongly, boosted by optimism over the possible approval of bitcoin spot funds. traded on the stock exchange.
hit a 21-month high of $45,922, having gained 156% last year in its strongest annual performance since 2020. It was last up 3.1% at $45,509, but remains far from the all-time high of 69,000 dollars which it reached in November 2021.
He does not. 2, the cryptocurrency ether, rose 1.2% to $2,386.50 on Tuesday, after rising 91% in 2023.
Cryptocurrency stocks, which mirror bitcoin price movements, rose, with Riot Platforms (NASDAQ 🙂, Marathon Digital (NASDAQ 🙂 and clean spark (NASDAQ 🙂 gaining 7% to 10% after sharp declines on the last trading day of 2023.
Bitcoin investor and software company MicroStrategy added 13.4%, while the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, which tracks bitcoin futures, added 7.8%.
Investor attention has been squarely focused on whether the US securities regulator will soon approve a bitcoin spot ETF, opening the market to millions more investors and attracting billions in investments.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has rejected multiple applications to launch spot bitcoin ETFs in recent years, arguing that the cryptocurrency market is vulnerable to manipulation.
However, in recent months there have been increasing signs that regulators are prepared to approve at least some of the 13 proposed bitcoin spot ETFs, with the expectation that a decision will likely come in early January.
“We expect a positive approval and I wouldn’t be surprised if after approval we see a pullback to lower price levels before rising again,” said Matteo Greco, an analyst at digital asset firm Fineqia International.
A spot approval of the bitcoin ETF “would open the door to cohorts of investors who are outside of this market right now and will definitely improve market liquidity,” Greco added.
Growing bets that major central banks will cut interest rates this year have also been a boon for cryptocurrencies, helping to shake off the gloom that had gripped cryptocurrency markets following the FTX collapse and other crypto company failures. in 2022.
Crypto markets could increase their gains in 2024 as bitcoin tends to perform during US election years, coinciding with Bitcoin’s halving cycles in 2012, 2016 and 2020, said founder Markus Thielen from digital asset research firm 10x Research.
