Bitcoin tops $57k, US stocks mixed ahead of busy economic data day
Continued demand for bitcoin ETFs coupled with greater demand for bitcoin from exchanges is contributing to price moves, analysts say
Artwork by Crystal Le
Bitcoin hit a 27-month high Monday evening, breaking through $57,000 for the first time since 2021 when it reached all-time highs.
Ether (ETH) also extended its rally, hovering just below $3,300 — the highest it’s been in almost two years.
Continued demand for bitcoin ETFs — the iShares Bitcoin Trust hit $1 billion in value traded Monday — coupled with greater demand for bitcoin from exchanges is contributing to price moves, analysts say.
Read more: Bitcoin ETF interest abound as BlackRock fund has record day
“Centralised Exchanges are also witnessing a heightened demand for BTC, highlighted by a significant withdrawal of over 18,000 BTC from Coinbase, leaving the platform with its lowest Bitcoin reserve since 2017,” Bitfinex analysts wrote in a Monday note. “The redistribution of this withdrawn BTC into new wallets indicates bullish investor behavior.”
Bitcoin’s latest run comes as business intelligence firm MicroStrategy announced yet another buy, this time for 3,000 BTC, bringing the company’s total bitcoin value to just shy of $9 billion.
There is “no reason to sell the winner,” Michael Saylor, Chairman and co-founder of MicroStrategy, said during a recent appearance on Bloomberg TV.
Investors appear confident that the Securities and Exchange Commission will greenlight an ether spot ETF product as soon as this spring.
“The anticipation swirling around the approval of spot ether ETFs further underscores the maturation of the cryptocurrency market,” Mikkel Morch, founder of digital asset investment fund ARK36, said. “It’s a recognition of Ethereum’s role not just as a digital currency but as an infrastructure backbone for a future where finance and technology merge more seamlessly.”
US equities were mixed during premarket trading Tuesday morning. The S&P 500 was flat while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.1% and Dow Futures lost 0.1% as investors speculated about upcoming economic data and waited for lawmakers to pass a budget to avoid a government shutdown before Friday.
Traders will be watching for the latest Consumer Confidence Index report Tuesday at 10 am ET and are looking ahead to Thursday’s PCE print, which is the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation.
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