Bitcoin continued its upward journey and rose 1.34 per cent to trade $53,311 on Thursday, shows CoinDesk data. Notably, the price hit a significant milestone on Tuesday by reaching $50,000 for the first time in more than two years. Bitcoin last traded at $50,000 in December 2021.
Other crypto tokens have also been on a rise. Ethereum traded 3 percent higher to trade at $2,845, Binance Coin traded 8.4 percent higher at $359 and XRP traded 3.35 percent higher at $0.55 at 14.50 GMT, CoinDesk data shows.
Industry experts believe that there is increased buying pressure amongst crypto investors after BTC ETF approvals. The upswing can also be attributed to the upcoming BTC halving event scheduled for April 2024.
“The market optimism around Bitcoin halving continues as Bitcoin has regained a $1 trillion market cap above $52,000 and is just 30 per cent away from all time high. One event investors should pay close attention to is the recent Genesis court approval to redeem its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust holdings valued at $1.3 billion and potential impacts on the cryptocurrency market,” says Shivam Thakral, CEO of BuyUcoin.
Onset of crypto spring
Some say that the spike in bitcoin prices can also be attributed to the spot bitcoin ETF approval followed by the offering by BlackRock and Fidelity.
“The approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs has led to increased institutional interest, with the offerings from BlackRock and Fidelity already amassing more than $5billion and $4 billion in Bitcoin AUMs. They are the most successful ETF offerings ever, and it has only been their first month of launch. This constant buying pressure has resulted in a significant increase in Bitcoin’s price and a broader acceptance of crypto as a legitimate asset class. Fidelity has already added 1-3% BTC exposure to its “All in One” ETF offering in Canada, to provide higher risk-adjusted returns to its users! With such passive inflows entering the fray, Crypto Spring has arrived early,” says Parth Chaturvedi, Investments Lead, CoinSwitch Ventures.
The price rise has created a sense of optimism in the industry. It is also seen as a hallmark of growing acceptance of bitcoin as an asset class. CoinDCX’s Sumit Gupta says that the number of user logins rose by three times on their platform.
“This development not only validates the growing acceptance of Bitcoin but also underscores its potential as an investment asset. This surge in Bitcoin prices is poised to attract a diverse array of retail and institutional investors in India, thereby fostering greater adoption and liquidity. We have already seen 3x new user sign ups on our platform. The evolving narrative around crypto assets and increasing investor curiosity indicates a promising outlook for the Indian VDA market. However, 1 percent TDS and 30 per cent tax continues to remain a deterrent for many potential investors,” Sumit Gupta, Co-founder, CoinDCX.
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Published: 15 Feb 2024, 08:36 PM IST