Bitcoin has been on a record-breaking run, driven by the unprecedented amount of capital flowing into crypto products, as well as a looming reduction in the digital token's supply growth. Its market cap now stands at $1.42 trillion, surpassing the market cap of the silver market, Swiss Franc, Russian ruble, and Saudi Riyal.
On March 11, the original cryptocurrency reached an all-time high of over $72,881, and as of 7:15 a.m. in London on Tuesday it was trading at $72,220. CoinShares International Ltd. reported that a record $2.7 billion flowed into crypto assets last week, with the bulk of it going to Bitcoin. This year, both Bitcoin and a gauge of the largest 100 coins have increased by approximately 70%.
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The recent surge in Bitcoin's value can be attributed to the approval of Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF) by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This move has encouraged major financial institutions such as Blackrock, Vanguard, Valkyrie, Vanek, and Fidelity to launch their ETFs. According to a report by cryptocurrency research firm CREBACO, institutional investors have poured a staggering $41 billion into Bitcoin through these ETFs, with a significant portion of this investment coming in the last two months. "Blackrock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC have already accumulated over $12bn and $7.5bn in assets under management (AUM) in just over two months," shared Parth Chaturvedi, Investments Lead at CoinSwitch Ventures.
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Investors have recently invested nearly $10 billion into a group of new Bitcoin ETFs, which have been launched in the US over the past two months. This has resulted in a considerable rise in the overall crypto market.
On March 11, digital assets achieved further success, as the London Stock Exchange confirmed that it will accept applications for Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded notes. Additionally, Thailand’s securities regulator announced that retail investors will now be able to purchase overseas crypto ETFs.
As Bitcoin prices continue to rise, other tokens such as Ethereum, Solana, and Shiba Inu have also gained significant popularity.
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In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin saw a minor decline after reaching a high of $71,000. This decline has prompted altcoins, including meme coins, to surge. According to Rajagopal Menon, Vice President of WazirX, Solana, and Ethereum have already shown growth of around 12% and 15% respectively in the last 7 days. Menon predicts that Shib will follow a similar pattern based on its market indicators, as it has already seen a 28% increase in the last 7 days.
The success of Bitcoin ETFs and other technical indicators signal a bullish trend for crypto assets. The upcoming "halving" event, which is scheduled for April, is expected to be a major milestone for Bitcoin as it will reduce its supply growth by half.
In addition, institutional and retail investors have shown a growing interest in Bitcoin. For instance, open interest in Chicago-based CME Group's Bitcoin futures market has surged by 44% from the low of this year. Moreover, the rebound in the funding rate indicates that traders are increasingly willing to pay a premium for opening leveraged long positions in Bitcoin.
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