By Joseph Adinolfi
Bitcoin surmounted the $30,000 level on Friday for the first time since August, inspired by hopes that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will soon approve exchange-traded funds that invest directly in the pioneering cryptocurrency.
According to FactSet data, bitcoin (BTCUSD) traded as high as $30,233 per coin on Friday, marking the first time that bitcoin traded above $30,000 a coin since Aug. 9.
On Monday, the bitcoin price briefly rose to right around the $30,000 mark on a report that BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest money manager by assets under management, had received approval to launch a spot bitcoin ETF.
Coinbase Global Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said on CNBC that he’s confident spot bitcoin ETFs will soon be approved.
Prices of the cryptocurrency have been rising all week as investors expect the SEC will soon approve “spot” bitcoin ETFs that can buy and hold bitcoins, unlike the current crop of bitcoin ETFs, which must rely on futures contracts tied to the cryptocurrency.
After refusing for years to approve a spot bitcoin ETF, the SEC is now expected to issue approvals to applicants after losing a court battle with Grayscale, the operator of the Grayscale Bitcoin Investment Trust GBTC. Grayscale has been trying for years to have its product, one of the first to offer exposure to bitcoin in U.S. markets, converted to an ETF. Last week, the SEC declined to appeal a ruling by a judge who said the agency had no legal basis to deny Grayscale’s push.
See:Treasury yields are surging, while bitcoin and gold are resilient
Most crypto market participants expect the SEC will approve an ETF investing directly in bitcoin by Jan. 10, the final deadline by which the agency has to respond to ARK Invest and 21Shares’s spot bitcoin ETF application.
-Joseph Adinolfi
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10-20-23 0851ET
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