Almost 18-month high for Bitcoin as ETF speculation increases
On Monday, Bitcoin rose 10%, and it rose another 5% in Asian
trade.
Gains are realized by ethereum and stocks linked to cryptocurrencies.
Demand seen to be boosted by the Bitcoin ETF; BTC shorts are squeezed
Reuters, 24 October, London/Singapore - On growing rumors that an exchange-traded bitcoin
fund is soon to be launched, bitcoin increased 6% on Tuesday to $35,198, its
highest level in almost a year and a half.
That came after bitcoin experienced a 10%
increase on Monday, recording its highest day in over a year. The bullishness
that followed expanded to the broader cryptocurrency market and into linked
stocks.
Demand is expected to increase if an
exchange-traded fund (ETF) that owns bitcoin on behalf of fund investors
receives permission from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
It is argued that a spot bitcoin ETF will attract fresh capital to the industry by allowing
investors who were previously skeptical of cryptocurrencies access to the
commodity through the stock market.
Bitcoin, an erratic asset whose price has
already twice this year, last increased 3.2% to $34,129. Ether, the
second-largest cryptocurrency, reached its highest level since August.
In after-hours trading, shares of companies with a cryptocurrency connection, such as
prominent U.S. exchange Coinbase Global (COIN.O) and bitcoin owner
MicroStrategy (MSTR.O), increased.
Several significant U.S. financial institutions have submitted proposals for bitcoin ETFs,
including investment behemoth BlackRock (BLK.N).
BlackRock's iShares ETF filing on the website of
clearing house DTCC fueled speculation about their propensity for approval. The
iShares ETF's inclusion on the DTCC list is not known when or why. Requests for
comment from DTCC and BlackRock were not promptly fulfilled.
The SEC's decision not to appeal a court decision that found it was improper to deny an ETF
application from cryptocurrency business Grayscale Investments also increased
anticipation. This information was reported this month, including by Reuters.
According to Standard Chartered's Geoffrey Kendrick, head of digital assets research,
"the SEC being pressured by the courts increases the probability" of
an ETF approval.
BlackRock refuted a false report last week
claiming that its ETF had been authorized.
Data on a website that analyzes crypto
derivatives In the past day, Coinglass revealed significant bitcoin
short-covering. Tom Wilson and Elizabeth Howcroft in London, Tom
Westbrook and Rae Wee in Singapore, and Brigid Riley in Tokyo all contributed
to the reporting. Shri Navaratnam and Simon Cameron-Moore edited the work.