Bitcoin Storms Past $69K To All-Time High
The price of bitcoin (BTC) surged again Tuesday to cross $69,000, an all-time high. The largest cryptocurrency by market cap has now risen more than 61% year-to-date and has tripled in the past year alone.
In January, the SEC approved 11 bitcoin spot ETFs, paving the way for mainstream users to easily invest in the cryptocurrency. And that move has not only driven investor optimism but also money into the new funds. BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF (IBIT) became the fastest fund to reach $10 billion this week, Bloomberg reported.
That move, paired with high demand and limited supply as well as the upcoming halving, helped prompt this year's price surge, according to crypto enthusiasts.
Dirk de Bruin of Intelligent Cryptocurrency, a research firm, called spot bitcoin ETFs a «gamechanger.»
«It now finally allows everyone to get exposure to BTC in a safe and compliant way,» de Bruin said in an email to Investopedia. «Before the ETFs this was very difficult to do, there was doubt about compliance and safety, many individuals and funds didn't want to deal with exchanges and having to hold their own coins etc.»
The ETFs actually have to hold bitcoin, and because bitcoin supply is capped at 21 million and more than 19.6 million are already in circulation, the demand is pushing the price higher, de Bruin said.
Brett Munster, a portfolio manager at Blockforce Capital, said the amount of bitcoin sitting on exchanges is at its lowest point since 2017, and there's a tendency for investors to hold onto their bitcoin for the long term.
«What we are seeing is the liquid supply of bitcoin continuing to shrink at the same time capital inflows are growing,» Munster said in an email to Investopedia. «Assuming these conditions
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