Bitcoin now more valuable than gold, close to $1300 on ETF talk

What many have termed as virtual gold in the past is now worth more than the actual yellow metal itself.

Bitcoin, now trading at all time high, has overtaken the per-ounce spot price of gold, as per the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index (BPI) and XAU/USD index.

The per-ounce spot price for gold was at around USD 1,227 in overnight trading. Compared to gold, bitcoin's price is at USD 1,282 as per BPI, during the filing of this report.

Bitcoin has gained momentum on the hopes that American entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss will receive a green signal from the US government to create the first bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The Winklevoss twins are expected to receive a final decision on from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the listing of their ETF on March 11, 2017.

On the other hand, the most popular safe haven investment, gold, is now headed for its worst week since December 2016 on the expectation of a US rate hike in March.

Earlier this month, US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen said that the central bank expects to raise interest rates gradually this year.

Though bitcoins may be more valuable than gold at the moment but saying that it is the new safe haven investment might be premature.

Volatility and acceptability as a currency remains a major concern for bitcoin.

Also, if the Wiklevoss twins fail to establish their ETF, the price is expected to fall.

Read more: Bitcoin hits record $1200 high: Here's the outlook ahead

Saurabh Agrawal, CEO and Co-founder, Zebpay, told Moneycontrol News that if the ETF issue gets postponed or is not approved, there will be a minor correction in prices -- consolidation towards the USD 1000-1100 level. He added that it would remain largely rangebound for a couple of weeks.

1 ounce= 28.3495 gram

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