Bitcoin, the world’s largest crypto token, is on course for its longest winning streak this year, aided by the record-breaking debut of U.S. exchange-traded funds for the token.
The largest digital asset has risen about 1% and was trading at $50,314.13
on Monday in Singapore. A run of a seventh straight daily gain would mark the longest such streak since January 2023 if the advance holds, as per data compiled by Bloomberg.
Nine new spot Bitcoin funds from issuers, including BlackRock Inc. and Fidelity Investments, began trading in the U.S. on January 11, 2024, and have collected more than $9 billion of investor inflows until now.
According to Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart, Bloomberg Intelligence analysts, two of the offerings from BlackRock Inc. and Fidelity Investments, are ranked as the most successful ETFs launched based on the assets collected after a month on the market.
In an interview on Bloomberg Television, Caroline Bowler, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at crypto platform BTC Markets Pty, said that there are signs of an “increasing movement of institutional money into the asset class.”
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, the more-than-a-decade-old and largest portfolio dedicated to the token, converted into an ETF (exchange-traded fund) the same day the new funds went live, generating more than $6 billion outflow from the Grayscale vehicle, but the pace has since slowed. Overall, the batch of 10 ETFs have managed to get a net $2.8 billion.
“Hype over the ETFs fueled a Bitcoin revival last year, briefly taking the token past $49,000 on the day they began trading. A multiday, $10,000 selloff then ensued as investors booked profits and waited to see how the ETFs fared. The subsequent rebound has brought $50,000 into view, a level last seen in 2021,” Bloomberg’s Sunil Jagtiani wrote.
“Optimism about the Bitcoin halving due in April is also filtering across crypto. Halving cuts the quantity of Bitcoin that miners receive for operating the powerful computers that verify transactions on the blockchain. The event is often viewed a support for prices based on historical precedent.”
Currently, the Lunar New Year holidays are going on in Asia, and Fundstrat Global Advisors wrote in a note that the outlook towards Bitcoin is “typically positive” besides ETF inflows.
In November 2021, Bitcoin managed to hit a record high of almost $69,000 during a pandemic-era bull run that took place in an “easy money” environment. At present, the token continues to remain $20,000 below the record-high mark.
