Bitcoin reached a new record high of $52,079 on Wednesday, the highest price it has ever achieved in its 13-year history. The cryptocurrency’s market cap surpassed $1.013 trillion, making it more valuable than some of the world’s largest companies, according to Coingecko, a platform that tracks crypto prices.
Bitcoin’s Prevailing Trend
The digital asset has been on a remarkable rally since the beginning of February, adding about 22% to its value and setting itself up for its best monthly performance since October 2020.
One of the main drivers of the price surge is the increasing demand for new U.S. Bitcoin ETFs, which are exchange-traded funds that follow the spot price of the crypto asset. These funds allow investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without having to buy or store it directly.
LSEG Lipper data showed that the 11 U.S. Bitcoin ETFs, which received regulatory approval and started trading in January 2024, attracted capital inflows of $1.64 billion in the week ending on Wednesday. This was a significant increase from the previous week, when the products saw inflows of $409 million, suggesting that more investors are flocking to the new investment vehicles.
Analysts Take
Analysts at B2C2, a company that provides liquidity for crypto markets, stated that it’s unclear if this pace will continue, but in crypto, flow often influences price. Also, the analysts suggested that one can expect that more days like these will lead to higher prices for spot (Bitcoin) as more money flows into the market.
They added that the growing adoption of Bitcoin by institutional and retail investors, as well as its limited supply of 21 million coins, could also support its long-term value.
