The price of Bitcoin (BTC) topped $45,000 for the first time in nearly two years as the market prepares for the widely expected approval of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) over the next few days. Bitcoin has quickly risen from a price of $42,000 on Jan. 1, up more than 6% in the last 24 hours and 170% over the past year, according to CoinMarketCap data. Bitcoin is trading above any price reached in 2023 and marks a new significant yearly high for the asset just two days into 2024.
The Bitcoin price move comes as the market prepares for the SEC to approve one or more of the 14 remaining Bitcoin ETF spot product applications that are currently awaiting a regulatory decision. The last time Bitcoin traded above $45,000 was nearly 20 months ago, on April 5, 2022, when Bitcoin closed the day at $45,241 before plunging into a sustained bear market that saw Bitcoin fall to $15,600, according to TradingView data.
Market commentators remain divided on the potential impact that ETF approval will have on Bitcoin’s price in the short term. Analysts at crypto options trading platform Greeks.live claim that Bitcoin will not experience significant gains on approval day due to lower implied volatility in Bitcoin options. Traders on X have a different view, with Scott Melchor telling his 925,000 followers that Bitcoin is currently forming a “bull reserve” after a month of consolidation at prices around the $40,000 mark. Melkor predicts that Bitcoin could soar to $54,000 in the coming days following potential approval from the SEC. Meanwhile, VanEck adviser Gabor Gurbacs predicts that the early days of the spot Bitcoin ETF will be considered “unsuccessful” by broader market standards, but ultimately believes the products will attract trillions of dollars in inflows over the next few years.
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