Bitcoin has increased by over 18% today, now trading at over $33,000. Just yesterday, Bitcoin was trading under $30,000.
Bitcoin has always been a volatile digital asset that gyrated quickly in price – sometimes without an apparent catalyst. The most popular crypto in the world started 2023 at around $16,000. It has now doubled, driving returns for bulls that predicted a rising price due to inflation fears and greater access when an exchange-traded product or ETF became a reality.
Recent court rulings appear to be pushing the Securities and Exchange Commission in the direction of approving a Bitcoin ETF after fighting it for years. Multiple sponsors are ready to go to take advantage of the new market once approved.
Alex Adelman, CEO and co-founder of Lolli, a Bitcoin rewards app, shared his thoughts on the rapid rise in price of BTC.
“Bitcoin has rallied past key resistance levels as signals that Bitcoin ETF approvals are fast approaching drive strong investor interest in Bitcoin. Recent developments in the crypto industry bode well for Bitcoin ETF approvals. The SEC’s positions against Bitcoin ETFs have weakened in court, particularly with a ruling finding that the SEC was wrong to reject Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF application. Bitcoin ETF applicants like BlackRock have also recently amended their applications, suggesting that the ETF hopefuls are working with the agency toward approvals. In this period of global conflict, Bitcoin is also a strong alternative investment as a sovereign currency independent of any one government. CEO of BlackRock, Larry Fink, called the recent rally a ‘flight to quality’, pointing to investors shifting into Bitcoin as a stable and secure asset in a period of extreme uncertainty.”
Adelman predicted that if a Bitcoin ETF were approved a new crypto bull market would kick in creating “historical price increases.”
“Bitcoin ETFs will give institutional and retail investors new ways to gain exposure to bitcoin within established regulations. The new offerings will funnel new inflows of capital into bitcoin from clients at leading global institutions like BlackRock and Fidelity, leading to further ongoing price increases and paving the way for a new and expanded suite of crypto offerings at top global firms.”
CEO of BTC Markets, Caroline Bowler, agreed with Adelman that a possible Bitcoin ETF was driving interest in the digital asset.
“The anticipation of the approval of all spot-Bitcoin ETF applications is palpable,” said Bowler, adding they have seen a 380% increase in trading volume in the last 24 hours.
Bowler said that JP Morgan is predicting Bitcoin ETF approvals within months. Among the 12 applications under consideration are those from Grayscale, 21Shares & Ark, BlackRock, Bitwise, VanEck, Wisdomtree, Invesco & Galaxy, Fidelity, Valkyrie, Global X, Hashdex, and Franklin.
“It’s evident that the market is attuned to the potential consequences of these developments and price is waiting on the sidelines ready to launch into the market once these approvals are passed,” Bowler said.