Bitcoin has gone from strength to strength this year as analysts predict a 90% chance of spot ETF approval by January.
2023 has turned out to be a stellar year for Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s first and largest cryptocurrency. After a week of trading sideways at $35K, BTC has pushed above $36K and is now trading at $36,707.
The last time Bitcoin tested the $36K mark was in May 2022.
Today’s gain represents a 33% increase from last month, and an impressive 97% gain from last year.
The increase has led to an influx of liquidations – approximately $150 million, of which 80% are short positions.
The SEC will soon decide whether to reject or approve 12 spot Bitcoin ETF applications
A key driver of Bitcoin’s price this year is the optimism surrounding a spot Bitcoin ETF being approved in the US.
Today, November 9, marks the opening of the first window the SEC has to approve or reject all 12 spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Matt Hougan, Bitwise Asset Management’s Chief Investment Officer, recently told CoinDesk that approval of an ETF would bring an “entire new audience” toward Bitcoin, comparing it to the first launch of gold ETFs 20 years ago.
“The approval of a spot gold ETF in 2004 led to eight or nine consecutive years of gold price increases, the longest in its modern history since the dollar’s creation,” he said.
Furthermore, approval could see inflows of $155 billion into the crypto market, a new CryptoQuant study estimates.
“The total Assets Under Management (AUM) of these companies are around $15.6 trillion. If they were to put 1% of their AUM into these Bitcoin ETFs, the total US dollar amount that would enter the Bitcoin market would be around $155 billion,” the study affirms.
Related: Confusion shrouds BlackRock ETF after ticker disappears from DTCC site, reappearing hours later
Most analysts agree that approval is likely. In late August, Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, predicted a 75% chance of approval this year, and a 95% chance of approval by next year.
Yesterday, James Seyffart, another Bloomberg analyst, upped this projection to a 90% chance of approval within two months.
The most anticipated approval is that of BlackRock, which is the world’s largest asset manager.
Disclaimer: CryptoPlug does not recommend that any cryptocurrency should be bought, sold, or held by you. Do conduct your own due diligence and consult your financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
