Bitcoin hits 19 month high at US$42,000
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The news: Bitcoin hit a 19 month high on Monday, putting it on course to make its biggest gain since 2020.
The numbers: Topping USD42,000 ($63,330), Bitcoin’s price surge saw its rally accelerate to 150% this year. The token has not hit these levels since April 2022.
The context: Crypto enthusiasts are suggesting a mixed bag of drivers behind this week’s Bitcoin performance. Primarily, investors across the board are increasingly confident that the Fed is likely to stop hiking rates as US inflation cools. This is shifting focus toward reductions in benchmark borrowing costs from 2024, spurring renewed interest in more speculative markets including crypto.
The industry is also keenly anticipating the outcome of various institutional applications from large financial institutions to break into crypto with instruments, such as BlackRock’s US spot ETF. Bloomberg expects the SEC to decide on these applications by early 2024.
While fallout from the FTX and Binance sagas cast a heavy shadow on the sector during 2023, observers also believe the crackdown could lead to more effective supervision, which would attract more established financial players to participate.
