$BTC The price of Bitcoin soared beyond the US$36,000 level, or rose to an 18-month high due to market expectations regarding the approval of Bitcoin (BTC) exchange traded funds (ETF) investment products on the US Exchange.
Bitcoin rose as much as 3.6% to US$36,856 on Thursday in Asian trading hours, its highest level since May 2022. Smaller crypto assets Ethereum rose as much as 2.2% while Solana rose 3.2%.
“A short window of at least eight days opened on Thursday for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to theoretically issue a consent order,” Bloomberg Intelligence analysts James Seyffart and Eric Balchunas noted.
According to Seyffart and Balchunas, if Bitcoin ETF approval is not received this month, they still believe there is a 90% chance of approval by January 10, 2024.
According to Glassnode data, the amount of Bitcoin held by long-term investors has continued to increase in recent months.
"The supply of Bitcoin is very limited, and most BTC is owned by people who plan to hold it for long periods of time. As a result, there has been a tremendous increase in the amount of Bitcoin accumulated by these people over time. This causes the price of Bitcoin still strong," said Fyqieh.
Another factor, said Fyqieh, that supports Bitcoin prices is the dovish tone conveyed by several Fed officials. Dovish in this context refers to the Fed's attitude which tends to prefer accommodative monetary policy to encourage economic growth.
This policy usually has a positive impact on risky assets such as stocks and crypto because it reduces the attractiveness of investing in assets that are considered safer such as bonds.
