By
Chimamanda U. Martha
April 26th, 2024
The upsurge in trading activity is ascribed to several factors, including FOMO, which was driven by Michael Saylor’s disclosure that MicroStrategy had expanded its BTC holdings
Bitcoin (BTC) continues its upward movement, soaring above the $57,000 mark as BlackRock Inc’s (NYSE: BLK) iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), exceeded $1 billion in trades on Monday.
BlackRock’s IBIT Makes Waves
This milestone places IBIT at number 11 among all ETFs and within the top 25 across stocks, according to Bloomberg Intelligence Senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. He noted that the nine Bitcoin ETFs collectively broke all-time volume records, surpassing $2.4 billion, slightly above the previous high set on January 11 when these investment products debuted.
Among them, BlackRock’s IBIT stands out, accounting for over $1.3 billion in trades, marking a 30% increase from its previous record. The growing popularity of Bitcoin ETFs is evidenced by the record-breaking trading volumes, with total spot Bitcoin ETF trading surpassing $3.24 billion on Monday.
Grayscale’s GBTC led as the first runner-up with $843.6 million in trades, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC and Ark Invest’s ARKB, recording $587.3 million and $265.6 million, respectively. Hashdex BTC futures ETF, with the DEFI ticker, was the last on the list with $217.0 million.
The upsurge in trading activity is ascribed to several factors, including fear of missing out (FOMO), which was driven by MicroStrategy Inc (NASDAQ: MSTR) Chairman Michael Saylor’s disclosure that the company had dramatically expanded its BTC holdings. Saylor disclosed that MicroStrategy added 3,000 BTC, which is worth $155 million to their portfolio, bringing the total to 193,000 BTC.
Analysts also speculate that optimism surrounding the potential approval of an Ethereum spot ETF, anticipated as early as May, is contributing to the crypto market’s rally. Notably, Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) recently showed support for Grayscale’s bid to convert the Grayscale Ethereum Trust into an ETF, emphasizing Ethereum’s status as a non-security.
This development comes as a recent report shows that investors continue to pour funds into Bitcoin and Ethereum investment vehicles, with digital asset investment products recording $598 million in inflows last week, extending a four-week streak of positive inflows. Bitcoin products dominated, attracting $569.5 million, while Ethereum came in second with $16.8 million.
In the broader market, equities showed mixed performance at the end of Monday’s session, with the S&P 500 Index (INDEXSP: .INX) dipping around 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ: .IXIC) remaining flat with a modest gain of 0.03%.
Analysis of Bitcoin’s Outlook
At the time of writing, BTC is trading at $57,032, reflecting a 9.5% increase in the past 24 hours.
Analysts suggest that in a highly bullish scenario, BTC could rally to $60,000, marking a 10% climb above current levels and potentially revisiting the supply zone between $60,050 and $67,789, aiming to surpass its all-time high of $69,000 recorded in November 2021.
A key indicator for this upward trend would be a break and close above $64,014, the mean threshold of the range.
Conversely, profit-taking could trigger a rejection from the $55,000 mark, potentially sending Bitcoin’s price downward. However, overall sentiment remains positive, with the crypto market showing resilience and optimism amidst ongoing developments and institutional interest.
