Breaking through the $44,000 mark! The prospect of a Bitcoin ETF boosts market confidence.
Bitcoin broke through the $44,000 mark, reaching its highest level since April 2022. Bitcoin has risen over 160% this year, and the increasing demand for the highly anticipated US Bitcoin Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) has further boosted its upward momentum. Meanwhile, Ethereum has risen 88% year-to-date. Investors are also looking forward to the Bitcoin halving, which is expected to occur in the spring of 2024. The settlement between Binance and the US Department of Justice is seen as a major obstacle to cleaning up the cryptocurrency industry following the FTX incident.
Zhitong App has learned that Bitcoin is consolidating its upward momentum, breaking through the $44,000 mark for the first time since April 2022 on Tuesday. According to Coin Metrics data, the latest Bitcoin price has risen by more than 4% to reach $43,794.99, continuing the previous day's upward trend. With the increasing demand for Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States, Bitcoin briefly rose to $44,903.45, reaching its highest level since April 7, 2022.
It is worth mentioning that Tuesday's surge has pushed Bitcoin's gains for the year to over 160%. In addition, Ethereum rose 1.6% to $2,263.76 on the same day, with an 88% increase so far this year.
It is understood that Bitcoin has frequently set new highs in the past few weeks. Last weekend, Bitcoin broke through the $40,000 mark for the first time since April 2022 and gradually climbed to a new high for the year at the level of $34,000 in early November.
The increasing possibility of the approval of a Bitcoin ETF in the United States is the main driving force behind Bitcoin's rise. This trend began in the summer, and although it started off weak, reports of potential Bitcoin ETF issuers meeting with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and receiving feedback on their ETF applications have further boosted investor optimism.
Currently, the market consensus is that a Bitcoin ETF will be approved in early 2024 based on various deadlines determined by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for issuer application submissions.
Finally, Binance's settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice at the end of November is widely seen as a major obstacle to clearing the cryptocurrency industry after the FTX incident. Investors are also looking forward to the Bitcoin halving, which is expected to occur in the spring of 2024.