Bitcoin price hits near two-year high

Bitcoin prices rose nearly 7% on the first trading day of the new year, surpassing $45,000 and reaching a nearly two-year high.

At the market opening on January 2, Bitcoin's market price reached $45,000 per coin, up $1,000 from the day before. The price continued to rise, at one point approaching $45,520 per coin, up more than 7% in 24 hours. The $45,000 price level was then maintained throughout the first trading session of 2024 and continued to accumulate.

Not just Bitcoin, almost all popular cryptocurrencies on the market increased in price overnight. Ether increased by 4.5%; Solana and Avalanche both increased by more than 10%.

According to CoinDesk , the reason for this surge is similar to the developments in recent weeks. The market is excited by the expectation that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will "greenlight" the launch of several spot Bitcoin ETFs. Reuters reported late last week that the SEC may start notifying Bitcoin ETF managers that their applications have been approved. This is expected to start today.

There have been recent signs that regulators are poised to approve at least one of the 13 proposed Bitcoin ETFs, with many expecting a decision as early as January.

Additionally, the expectation that major central banks will cut interest rates this year is also a catalyst for the cryptocurrency rally, a move that will help dispel the gloom that has enveloped the market since the FTX crash and a series of other crashes in 2022.

Bitcoin ended 2023 above $42,200 per coin, up about 152%. This was the strongest year for the cryptocurrency since 2021. However, the current level is still far from the record of $69,000 recorded in November 2021.

Jupiter Zheng, partner of market research firm HashKey Capital (Singapore), believes that the cryptocurrency market will grow this year thanks to investment flows from ETF funds, the Bitcoin "halving" event (occurring every 4 years, reducing miners' rewards by half) and more appropriate monetary policies in the US and other countries around the world.

While investors are excited, Chris Weston, head of research at Australian exchange Pepperstone, still notes the scenario of Bitcoin ETFs being rejected. Accordingly, the negative reaction will be very clear and can record an immediate decline in market prices. "Instead of asking whether Bitcoin ETFs will be green-lighted, the question should be whether we should buy the rumor and whether the cryptocurrency will have a new bull cycle," he said.

Xiao Gu (according to CoinDesk , Reuters )

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