Bitcoin rose to its highest price since December 2021. Monday, the world’s leading cryptocurrency broke beyond the $50,000 price barrier for the first time in more than two years. The action spurred a rise in cryptocurrency and associated equities. Coinbase stock and bitcoin ETFs rose, while bitcoin miner Marathon Digital (MARA) soared.
Bitcoin rose past $50,200 on Monday afternoon, after briefly reaching $50,314 in the morning, its highest level since December 2021. Bitcoin had risen to $49,000 on the day of the ETF’s introduction on January 11, but had since fallen back to its early December 2023 level before the SEC notice. Still, Bitcoin is up more than 18% this year.
Ethereum was trading above $2,650 at four-week highs and is up 15% so far in 2024.
Coinbase (COIN) rose 3.8% on Monday, returning to above its 50-day moving average. Marathon Digital stock surged 14.2% back to late-December highs.
Bitcoin ETF’s Performance
Meanwhile, spot bitcoin ETFs rose more than 5.5% in trade, following a 4% increase on Friday.
According to BitMEX Research data, BlackRock’s (BLK) iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has been the clear leader in fund inflows since the spot bitcoin ETFs started on January 11, with around $3.75 billion inflows as of the end of the day on February 9. The Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) ranks second with $3 billion in inflows. On Friday, the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) overtook the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) in terms of inflows. ARKB has recorded $918.5 million in total inflows as of Feb. 9 while BITB recorded $785.8 million.
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) reported outflows of around $6.38 billion as of February 9, which have slowly reduced. Grayscale maintains the leader in terms of assets under management, with $22.12 billion, followed by iShares Bitcoin Trust, which has $4.18 billion.
Despite GBTC withdrawals, the new ETFs have received $2.65 billion in inflows since debut, according to BitMEX analysis.
Room to Run
Other themes are projected to propel bitcoin in 2024, including the approaching halving event in April and an increase in institutional engagement as a result of the ETF’s introduction.
According to Joel Kruger, LMAX Group’s market strategist, mainstream adoption will be the most essential aspect.
“Now that the bitcoin spot ETFs have been approved, more of an effort will be made from traditional institutions to promote bitcoin’s value proposition,” Kruger said in an interview with IBD.
However, Kyle DaCruz, Director of Digital Assets Products at VanEck, believes that we have yet to witness the full impact of institutional inflows. VanEck introduced the VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), a spot bitcoin ETF, on January 11. HODL has received more than $75.5 million in inflows since its launch and has $161.7 million in assets under management as of February 9, according to BitMEX.
DaCruz told IBD that the majority of financial advisors do not currently have access to ETFs since many of the platforms require due diligence and other conditions to be completed, which can take months. “I think when that changes, then you’re talking about the true unlock of that multitrillion dollar FA chattel,” he went on to say.