Bitcoin rose in volatile trading Thursday after the Securities and Exchange Commission gave the green light for the first-ever spot bitcoin ETFs to trade in the U.S., as expected.
The cryptocurrency was last up more than 1% at $46,674.77, according to Coin Metrics. Earlier, it briefly topped the $49,000, reaching levels not seen since December 2021. Meanwhile, the price of ether surged 6% to $2,614.08, reaching levels not seen since May 2022.
The ETF approval is a watershed moment for the crypto industry, which first sought to launch a bitcoin ETF more than 10 years ago. Optimism had been building since Grayscale’s big legal win against the SEC in August over the regulator’s refusal to let it convert its popular Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF. The flagship cryptocurrency’s price has increased 80% since then.
Bitcoin erases earlier losses after SEC greenlights bitcoin ETFs
Following the SEC’s decision, bitcoin initially edged lower, as expected by many traders. Although the volume of inflows into the new funds, once they begin trading, remains to be seen, bitcoin ETFs are still widely expected to drive the demand – and ultimately, price – of bitcoin higher.
“For the next couple of days, I’d expect to see bitcoin bounce around,” said Sylvia Jablonski, CEO and chief investment officer at Defiance ETFs. “In the past, when ETFs have come to market on a particular theme, one often sees a run up in the underlying asset, a sell-the-news upon launch, and then a slower and steadier rally.”
“I wouldn’t make much of these bitcoin price moves in the next couple of days, but I do think that the approval is going to lead to some longer term price appreciation,” she added. “Trading on an exchange, without a digital wallet, [and] custody similar to any other fund product makes bitcoin exposure far more interesting to those institutions with bullish views on the asset class.”
Ether’s rally propped up other coins in the Ethereum ecosystem. The token…
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